An updated proposal to build on land at the south end of Topsail Island is expected to be discussed by the Topsail Beach Planning Board next week.
The board is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. Monday in the Assembly Building at 720 Channel Blvd.
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Todd Olson, the prospective owner of the land referred to locally as “The Point,” is requesting the town conditionally rezone a little more than 30 acres of the nearly 150-acre tract so that he may build seven single-family homes on the land.
The rest of the nearly 120 acres would remain a conservation zone as classified by the town, and the family would partner with the N.C. Coastal Land Trust, according to the proposed plans.
The Coastal Land Trust released information on its website stating that the Olsons are proposing to place most of the property under a conservation easement with the land trust, “which would permanently restrict residential and commercial development on that portion of the property.”
“The Coastal Land Trust views this as an excellent and feasible way to permanently conserve the majority of this outstanding property. It is the next best alternative to purchasing The Point which has proven to be very difficult given the price of the property, the challenges of obtaining funding for the purchase through public grant sources and private fundraising, and the constraints in managing the property,” the statement reads.
The proposal to rezone the land, which has accreted over time, has been met with fierce opposition from residents and visitors to the town.
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Olson’s proposal includes building seven, one-story homes on pilings, a swimming pool and pool house, maintenance building and garage, and beach access and pedestrian water access.
The land is within a federally designated area called the Coastal Barrier Resources System, or CBRS.
Though building is permitted in the system, property owners of land within the CBRS do not qualify for federal funding, including Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance or the National Flood Insurance Program.
The meeting will be aired live at https://www.facebook.com/townoftopsailbeach.
Comments and questions may be submitted to the board at https://form.jotform.com/230533813570047
Before 9:30 a.m. Monday. Supporting documents are available at www.topsailbeachnc.gov.
