Milton council to weigh in on Scarlet Oaks site plan

Milton Town Council is set to weigh in on three separate items related to the proposed Scarlet Oaks development at a meeting set for 6:30 p.m., Monday, May 4, at Milton library.

First up will be council comments on the preliminary site plans for the proposed 163-unit residential development. Those site plans were originally reviewed by the planning and zoning commission April 21. The planners established a series of conditions related to the plans, but the commission tabled a final vote on preliminary plans pending input from council. 

Once council makes its recommendations, the matter will go back to planning and zoning for approval. Developer Ribera Development would then need approvals from state and county agencies before the matter comes back to the town for final approval. 

The residential portion of the development, which was annexed into town in 2023, would include 64 single-family detached units and 99 single-family attached units, along with a clubhouse and a proposed shared-use path. The 50-acre parcel is zoned R-1, residential, with a large-parcel development overlay. 

Plans call for the development to have 20-foot-wide streets throughout, 5-foot-wide sidewalks on both sides of the streets and street trees. Each house will have two parking spaces per dwelling, per code, and open spaces will include recreation areas, stormwater management ponds, and landscaping along Harbeson Road and Shingle Point Road. Access to the development will come from Shingle Point Road.

At that same April 21 commission meeting, planners finalized an advisory report for council on an additional 5 acres to be annexed in as a commercial component of the Scarlet Oaks development. While it is planned for overall public use, the parcel would be located at the intersection of Shingle Point and Harbeson roads.

The planned commercial venture would include a proposed mixed-use building with a restaurant, a greenhouse market, a beer garden, a pond and gazebo, and an outdoor area that could be used as an amphitheater or farmers market. Developer Scarlet Oaks Holdings LLC has proposed a C-1 commercial zoning designation for the property. Planning and zoning approved its draft advisory plan March 21, with the final draft approved April 21. 

The developer went before the state’s Preliminary Land Use Service April 29 to seek feedback from state agencies on a proposal to amend the town’s future land-use map to change the zoning of the parcel from residential to commercial. The measure was supported as the map then reflects the property’s planned use. 

To cap all these developments off, at its May 4 meeting, town council will establish a date for a public hearing on the proposed annexation. The earliest possible date for the hearing would be at council’s meeting set for Monday, June 1.