Plans for ‘The Hive’ development go before N. Augusta City Council

NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - The North Augusta City Council on Monday night considered plans for a 177-acre development that’s created a buzz among some residents.

The Hive development would bring apartments and townhomes to the east side of West Martintown Road between Knobcone Avenue and Interstate 20.

Pineview Estates Neighborhood has about 30 homes. They’re worried about the new development routing traffic through their entrance.

On Pinon Drive, you can hear birds chirping, bikes pedaling by, and dogs being walked through the neighborhood and the Greeneway that cuts right through.

“We expected to have this to be our forever home,” said Jean Norris, Pinon Drive resident.

Norris says this neighborhood makes her feel at home.

“The quiet neighborhood, the quiet safe community that we feel here,” said Norris.

Now a new development scares Jean and the rest of those who live on Pinon Drive.

The first reading of the general development plan for The Hive went before the council on Monday night.

Plans from 2006 gave developers the green light to move forward with an entrance to 250 homes in the back of the neighborhood.

The development calls for 16 acres of quadplex townhomes, about 75 acres of single-family dwellings, 24 acres of multi-family units, 27 acres for businesses and 33 acres of green space.

SEE THE PROPOSED GENERAL PLAN:

The plan has a detailed description of how to deal with pedestrians and traffic, although that was a major concern brought up by neighbors at a public hearing in April.

“It is just going to create; I would say chaos. Too much traffic for a community a neighborhood that was built 50 years ago. It was not initially built to sustain so much traffic,” said Norris.

This cut-through is next door to Norris.

Developers say the connection would bring a 15 percent increase and 310 cars per day, which brought dozens of neighbors to council Monday night.

“Pedestrians, young children, a lot of walkers on Pinion Road, and those using the Greeneway,” one neighbor said in April.

Every neighbor signed a petition against the plan, but even with pushback, nothing was going to change the cut-through.

“Well, I wasn’t here in 2006, and also some of the other residents, and it will never come to fruition,” said Norris.

Jean doesn’t want this to break up the quiet way of life they’ve become accustomed to.

The council is saying their hands are tied. They did look at changing some other parts of the plan, including buffer zones, like trees and fencing. But as for the entrance, neighbors will continue to fight and possibly take this to the court of common pleas in Aiken.

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