Showdown continues over Chatham Park’s 5,000-acre ‘small-area plan’
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- Developers seek approval for a 5,000-acre South Village SAP amid public backlash
- Plan bundles 16 areas, proposes 15,000 homes and 9M+ square feet of development
- Town planning board reviews fifth SAP version; public comment ends Oct 29, 2025
Developers of the Triangle’s largest master-planned community, Chatham Park, are pushing ahead with a 5,000-acre “small-area plan” for an undeveloped tract inside the park, despite public backlash calling it a “power grab.”
Under Chatham Park Investors LLC, Preston Development — co-founded by Tim Smith and Julian “Bubba” Rawl — are seeking sweeping clearance to develop South Village, a section inside the larger 8,500-acre master-planned community on the east side of Pittsboro, roughly 30 miles west of Raleigh.
Small-area plans, known as SAPs, provide standards for factors like density, design aesthetics, infrastructure improvements and future development. In 2015, the town approved Chatham Park’s rezoning request and master plan, but SAPS are submitted and approved as the project gets built.
For its latest district, the Cary-based firm is currently seeking the green light from the town’s Board of Commissioners.
On Friday, Pittsboro spokesman Colby Sawyer told The N&O that the town’s Planning Board is reviewing the SAP’s fifth version and drafting recommendations.
In the 129-page SAP, the developer has consolidated 16 areas into a single group — making it twice the size of the park’s initial North Village plan. They argue it ensures “best land-use practices” and helps private utilities plan for such things as roadways, electricity, gas, fiber for data and telecommunications.
But opponents say it effectively circumvents the process for “public input, flexibility and accountability.”
The town is taking public input until Wednesday, Oct. 29.
So far, the response has been mixed, “ranging from supportive to negative,” Sawyer added. “Staff continues to work with the applicant, mitigating potential concerns.”
Chatham Park Investors and Preston Development were unavailable for comment.
Established in 2008, Chatham Park is divided into three small areas or “villages.” Each village has its own SAP with phases designed to “improve, preserve and regulate it.” In October 2021, Pittsboro’s Board of Commissioners approved the park’s North Village plan, which covers 2,500 acres north of U.S. 64. Construction is underway.
The second district, South Village, sits west of the Haw River and south of U.S. 64 Business East. It’s completely planned and is awaiting several approvals. The third district has yet to be planned.
According to the latest plan, Preston Development is proposing to develop South Village in seven phases, spanning from 2028 to 2052. The plan covers a wide range of land uses, including residential, retail, and research and development. It’s expected to bring over 15,000 housing units and more than nine million square feet of non-residential development.
Chatham Park and town representatives would meet annually to “review and discuss possible revisions.”
Chatham Climate Action Network, or CCAN, a coalition of residents, business owners and activist groups, is among those fighting back. In June, the group started an online petition, arguing for what has been the status quo: multiple, phased SAPs that can be “adapted over time” in response to environmental, economic and population changes.
They’ve collected over 1,000 signatures online and on paper.
“The submitted proposal continues to be inadequate and incomplete,” said Vickie Atkinson, CCAN founder and a retired civil servant living in Pittsboro.
“There are real concerns that this redefinition of the process would limit oversight by the planning board and Board of Commissioners,” she said.
The Board of Commissioners is expected consider the final proposal on Monday, Nov. 10.
This story was originally published October 25, 2025 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Showdown continues over Chatham Park’s 5,000-acre ‘small-area plan’."
