By Richard Sullins | richard@rantnc.com
If you’ve lived in the Sanford area for any length of time, you’ve likely wondered about what’s going to be done with the 25 acres or so of land that sits behind the CVS Pharmacy and Bojangles restaurant at the intersection of U.S. 1 and Tramway Road.
The land was cleared about a decade ago, and it seemed to be ready for construction of something new – but no one seemed quite sure what it was. There was speculation it might be home to a large gas station or perhaps an outdoor mall. Maybe a new car dealership would open there.
Finally, the city of Sanford has now given approval to new plans for an apartment complex, a large hotel and up to nine new commercial properties on the land.
Conceptual plans submitted to the Sanford City Council by Rhetson Companies, Inc. of West End in Moore County detail plans to construct an apartment village on the 24.6 acres near the intersection of the two very busy roadways, consisting of 11 three-story buildings that will contain 30 units each – a total of 330 apartments that will be built by Alliance Residential Company in Scottsdale, Arizona.
The more generic planning documents that were also included as part of the package do not contain details about the proposed commercial developments or the hotel, except to show where they could be located.
Rhetson has built apartment complexes and a large number of Dollar General stores in the region, including one that includes Dunkin’ and Jersey Mike’s in a commercial strip just up the road from the Tramway location. Alliance is one of the largest and most active residential real estate developers in the United States, with more than 100,000 units completed in 16 states and 39 metropolitan areas.
A recent action by the city council approved a zoning designation of the Tramway South Apartments Conditional Zoning District for the property. Conditional zoning creates a more negotiated process of sorts where detailed site plans and subdivision plats are required at more frequent intervals by the city council prior to the issuance of any permits for construction or further modification in the development process.
Before this plan, the most recent idea for the property was in 2014 for a shopping plaza to be called The Marketplace at Tramway. The design included spaces for a supermarket and chain retail stores, as well as smaller spaces for other merchants. When Bojangles and CVS came less than 10 years ago, it seemed that something was finally about to happen.
Intersection redesign
But the North Carolina Department of Transportation refused to grant permission for any other businesses to locate on the site until the intersection at U.S. 1 and Tramway Road can be upgraded to handle increasing amounts of traffic.
A 2020 DOT Average Annual Daily Traffic Count determined that an average of 25,500 vehicles per day go through the intersection along U.S. 1 and another 9,400 vehicles travel across it on Tramway Road.
NCDOT is considering two versions of a proposed plan to rework the intersection into a “reduced conflict” design (previously known as a “smart street”) with right turns only permitted where the two new alignments of Tramway Road would meet. U-turns could be made about 1,000 feet from the intersection.
Public meetings were held on the proposed design last year and comments were received through October 29. Construction was originally set to begin this year, but delays have pushed that date until after the U.S. Open is held in Pinehurst in the summer of 2024. The let date for construction is now in the fall of 2025.
The anticipated completion date for the intersection improvements is the fall of 2028 and the estimated construction costs of $24 million will be paid from federal highway funds.
The new conceptual plan presented to the city council shows spaces for as many as nine new commercial locations that would be located in existing outparcels along the northbound side of U.S. 1 and the southern edge of Tramway Road.
Given DOT’s previous reluctance to allow further commercial development along those corridors until the intersection upgrading can be completed, development of the new commercial outparcels could be postponed until the intersection is completed in about six years.
Hope they make a plan for the tramway school traffic with parents picking up kids in the afternoon , sometimes they are lined up to us 1
All those boujee parents taking their kids to school because they are high and mighty and to good to ride the buses are clogging up the roads.
Not a boujee parent by any means but when the buses have to sit and wait 5 min because the kids can’t even wait by the bus stop because lazy parents can’t get them out the door why should my kid have to be up before I go to work because a short bus route takes a solid hour….
Did’nt tramway had a mayor
enough already, How can Tramway have any more traffic?
traffic will definitely need to be addressed first….according to this article though….no worries….plans plans plans….nothing in stone….i would rather see a go kart mini golf complex of some kind….this area needs some fun!!!
The school traffic is already a headache for anyone traveling Center Church Road. When Sheetz opens, that is going to add to the problem. Food Lion shopping center’ s traffic comes into the same road. The new apartments will be coming into ??? You guessed it CCR! How many more cars can this 2 lane road handle? Traffic needs to be addressed first. That applies to Hwy 78 side as well. I live in Tramway area I don’t want anymore growth.
Everything looks good on paper when planning is done, but it don’t always work out for the best afterwards does it ?
All of these new housing areas and we can’t even get any nice sit down chain restaurants to eat in (exp Texas Roadhouse). The fast food restaurants are overrun during the day and people don’t understand why everyone goes out of town to eat on the weekends.
Right turn only off of CCR and hwy 78 isn’t going to help ease the traffic problem. How is going a 1000 ft in the wrong direction then having to make a u turn to get where you need to go going to help the flow? Obviously those of you that have made this decision won’t have the pleasure of driving it.
That’s right ,. Looks good on paper , but it does not work , there needs to be a lane just for parents picking up/dropping off kids that does not affect other people ,some of us having to go down #1 , take Chris Cole or Arthur Maddox Rd , then get on center church Rd to get home when they are lined up on center church Rd & you can’t just go around them if they are in the road, people have complained , but nothing has changed
The NCDOT need to get it act together. I when to hearing on the proposed changes long before anything was built. Traffic is a hazard now in Tramway. Six more years is too long to wait. Get it done now!
Hope someone reads all these comments & will see that there is a real problem with traffic in tramway, hwy 78, center church rd, #1 , the school traffic jam, etc
With all the apartments going up around tramway, there needs to be another grocery store , the food lion in tramway will not be able to keep the shelves stocked
Remember a similar discussion back in 2012 and we were told we would have to wait until the 2014 US Open concluded before DOT would make changes. Surely our local elected officials are not buying that lame excuse again.
We could sure use a mattress store, more fast food and another dollar store would be great, just some ideas, kidding aside … apartments behind Food Lion going up and more going up in this area, plus down the street 78 north and south, that’s a lot of people, so yes a larger grocery store is a must and traffic infrastructure is a given, has anyone seen the disaster of Fuquay-Varina, it blew up and it looks like downtown mid day New York City, bumper to bumper,
Just what Lee County needs, another dope motel. You people never stop shooting yourselves in the foot. 🤣
There’s a lot of people with legit concerns here. Let’s take a look at a few of them:
School traffic – Parents lining up to drop off and pick up their children has been an issue ever since the school opened. If it is not already happening, they need to force the pick-up traffic all the way around the back parking lot. If that doesn’t solve the problem, then it will only be addressed by adding additional lane(s) on Center Church.
Additional Grocery store – The market will decide that. If a grocery chain determines that there is enough business to support, and justify the cost, they will build. I would expect a new grocery store on Tramway Road (78) to help alleviate the traffic on US1.
Turning lanes – I know it seems odd to have to drive 1000 feet beyond where you want to turn, only to make a U-Turn. Once in practice, it works well, and keeps traffic moving. This “Smart Road” system is in place on Hwy 55 in Holly Springs. It works.
Sit-Down Restaurants – They only come with growth. I predict that in 5 years you will have plenty to choose from. If not a Texas Roadhouse, then you’ll have an Outback, Olive Garden, Bonefish Grill, or possibly a Red Lobster. The big sit-down chains are coming.
Bottom line is that growth is a double-edged sword. It brings better paying jobs and more people. More people means more traffic. It also means your shopping and eating options increase. It’s the nature of capitalism. If someone can make a buck, they will.
It’s apparent that all here believe traffic is the #1 concern. Bad pun. Anyhow, the NC DOT should do more traffic studies. Center Church Road is state maintained and should be 4-laned to Henly Road. Tramway Road is state maintained. I see daily, a steady stream of traffic from Jonesboro to Tramway.
With the new housing developments and schools, commuters will overwhelm this thoroughfare also just to get to US #1. Tramway Road needs to be 4-laned.
The Tramway Road intersection is a mess. Tramway Road should be taken under US #1 and a US #1 bridge over would make sense. It has been rumored that Pendergrass Road would be extended to Tramway Road, but the radio station is in the way. I believe the FCC has intervened because of the radio tower.
Then there is US #1. Pinehurst must have a tremendous political pull. I’m a golfer, but I believe fixing US #1 has priority over the US Open.
Finally, what happened to the western bypass loop that was planned for Sanford over 25 years ago? The plan was to widen Pendergrass Road and connect to other roads out to Hwy 421.
These projects should have been started years ago. Emergency crews already have problems getting to a call due to congestion. To neglect safety for the sake of golfers is ludicrous.
My only guess is our governor receives a lot of campaign contributions from Pinehurst. Got to follow the money on this, and it is definitely coming from Pinehurst. They are the bad actors.
Ah yes, Pinehurst is historically a hotbed of support for Democratic politicians. It all makes sense now.
Pretty sure there is an equal split of both Dems and Reps in Pinehurst. I did not mention any party in my rant. No need for sarcasm Rant.
The overwhelming success of the recent push by our former mayor, and current governor to draw businesses (employers) to our local area has caught the DOT with their pants down. Plans that were once considered “down the road a bit”, have now been pushed to the forefront.
I also expect Tramway Rd. to be widened to 4 lanes from Fire Tower Rd all the way to US1. You should expect Tramway Rd. to become a newer version of Horner Blvd, with businesses and restaurants lined on either side, and multiple new neighborhoods to be built behind them.
I like the idea of a US1 bridge in Tramway, but I don’t expect it. I am envisioning a split in US1 prior to Pendergrass that will result in that current section becoming “Business US1”, and US1 connecting back to its current path at the Hwy 15/Rocky Fork intersection.
I moved here in 1985 when there was almost nothing in Tramway, including Tramway school that was built and opened in 1998. There was no Food Lion shopping center. Although businesses continued to be built and expansions and changes made, the road system did not change enough to ease an ongoing problem. The only thing was the crossovers at the existing service station. I avoid the intersection ass much as possible by taking the street behind CVS and Bojangles and the new road that leads to the Service station on the north-bound US 1. Promises not kept are as worthless as wooden nickles.
Such a disappointment adding more apartments to an already heavy traffic intersection (that has school traffic on both sides of tramway) and still no amenities for all the families you are trying to attract. We only have Limited food options most of which are barely just ok and of those limited options majority have limited evening and weekend hours.
It is what it is, at Tramway, If we were good enough to ride buses, these parents should take note, if you have to go to work and cannot pick ur child up because the bus route takes too long, get a neighbor, relative, friend to pick ur child up, less parents means less traffic. There is always a way if you make it. Tramway is gonna grow no matter what we say or do. Tramway needs a decent restaurant, like a seafood restaurant. They need something like Tractor Supply, a department store, to give the people there something to go to besides going into Sanford or the other side of Sanford. WA WA there is gonna be a block at the stoplight and you have to go to Tramway Baptist Church to turn around there is already a place made out for big trucks and busses to turn on side of the road from Tramway. There is one in front of Food Lion already, and Cedar lane down US 1. Raleigh has turn abouts and turnarounds for years and years. No the DOT has to go by their rules not yours, or ours, we do not know why they do things the way they do. They are waiting for the Gold Tournament before they start that is going to be 2024. Growth hurts some and makes others happy that is the way it is. The school should have a Driveway on Henley Rd too but that didn’t happen. Politics was why the school was built there in the first place.