Alliance for Reedy Creek Trenton Corridor

A rezoning application containing a maximum of 175 housing units that will almost double the number of households in the corridor and substantially increase traffic has been submitted for land on the Cary side of Trenton Road next to I-40.

Sign The Petition Opposing the current plan

Application 25-REZ-12 requests rezoning from Office and Institutional (O&I) to Residential Multi-Family-Conditional Use (RMF-CU).

Concerns about the project include

• Traffic and Safety Increase in traffic along roads that function as a single corridor between Trinity and Edwards Mill Roads. All the development traffic must use this corridor. The area is designated as Sensitive Area Residential Streets with greenway and is heavily used by recreationalists.
• Environmental Negative impacts to Richland Lake caused by silt from the development. The property is within the watershed of Richland Creek, which deposits silt into Richland Lake whose purpose is to protect downstream properties from flooding. The proposed development involves significant land disturbance during construction and contains impervious surfaces upon completion.

As part of Cary’s rezoning process, a Neighborhood Meeting was held on September 3, 2025. A record 107 neighbors and corridor users attended and many expressed concerns and asked questions about the application. Cary staff employee Rachel Smith and Ryan Blair with Heritage Capital presented information about the rezoning and then opened up the meeting for questions and comments.

Maps, details, and information on how you can stay involved are provided on the ARCTC site at About Us/Impacts to the Corridor/Trenton Road Proposed Development.

While the Lenovo Center is not in the corridor, anyone who has experienced the surge and gridlock in traffic during the NC State Fair or Lenovo Center events can appreciate the impacts of new development near the corridor.

The approved rezoning changes 80.7 acres from Commercial Mixed Use–12 Stories with Conditions (CX-12_CU) to Planned Development (PD) with an associated Master Plan. The request includes four different districts: Arena/Parking (existing arena and parking), Entertainment (shopping, tailgating, dining, music), Mixed-Use (retail, dining, hotel), and Live/Work (office, apartments).

The Raleigh City Council approved this rezoning (with conditions) on April 15, 2025. ARCTC continues to work with City Council members and the developer to help mitigate issues with the project.

Concerns about the project include

• The building height change from 12 stories to 40 stories is a dramatic increase.
• Traffic gridlock is an area problem and this development will make it worse. There are currently no required plans to substantially change the existing road infrastructure.
• The required traffic analysis needs to consider the other developments being planned for the area and periodic events like concerts and the NC State Fair.
• Downstream flood control Richland Lake and associated dam are under review because of functionality concerns. The amount of sediment in Richland Lake continues to increase, especially from upstream construction projects.

While not in the corridor, this development on Trinity Road has the potential to increase traffic in the corridor and negatively impact Richland Lake and associated streams. Developer ZOM Living has requested rezoning of a parcel of land that includes seven properties at the corner of Trinity and Chapel Hill Roads. Those parcels, which total a little over 16 acres, are currently zoned for single-family and the rezoning request is for a Planned Development District (PDD) that includes at least three apartment buildings, five-stories high (up to 60 feet tall) with up to 375 units. One building would contain 2000 to 5000 square feet of retail space.

Concerns about the project include

• Traffic (increased accidents at Trinity/Chapel Hill intersection and increased traffic of 600+ cars ingressing and egressing near the intersection)
• Quality of Life for existing homes (increased noise, crime, and light pollution, loss of natural recreational spaces, crowding, and increased parking of cars and traffic inside adjacent neighborhoods)
• Environmental (increased impervious surfaces creating runoff directly to streams and Reedy Creek, loss of wildlife habitat, and clear-cutting existing natural buffer for streams)