Developers tweak plans for Cary Maplewood land to address neighbor opposition

Developers looking to turn the former Maplewood School property into a multifamily residential area in Cary shared updated plans that now include the owner-occupied, single-family homes for which many nearby residents had advocated.

The updated plan was shared with residents at a recent public open house meeting.

The Village Board entered a preliminary development agreement in March with developers Cordogan Clark and JTE Real Estate Services along with Eriksson Engineering and D2 Capital Advisors to build a community of apartments and rented townhouses.

But many nearby residents have been outspoken in advocating for single-family homes instead. Resident Paul Ingallinera created an online survey and said it found more than 94% of 231 participants were not in favor of the developer or the proposed development. The majority of those who responded wanted single-family homes with a park.

Some existing residents have said they’d like to see the land turned into a public park, while others have said they were open to a less-dense plan of owner-occupied townhomes and single-family homes. Residents have asked for the plan to be put up for a referendum vote.

Cordogan Clark & Associates Principal John Cordogan said developers have taken residents’ concerns into account by tweaking the plan to add owner-occupied homes and townhomes and by cutting down the height of some buildings.

Developers’ previous conceptual proposal included five-story apartment blocks with about 200 units oriented by Route 14 and surrounded by three-story buildings of 50 townhomes. The conceptual plan also included a public park at the corner of Krenz Avenue and School Street.

The new plan now calls for 12 two-story, single-family homes; 16 two-story townhouses; 22 three-story townhomes; two five-story apartment buildings; and one four-story apartment building, totaling 228 apartment units. The smaller buildings would be situated on the outskirts of the site neighboring existing single-family homes, with the taller buildings closer to the railroad tracks to the north, according to the site plan.

Plans for parking include 196 covered spots and 177 lot spaces.

Access to the development will only be from the not-yet-created Maplewood Access Road. Previously, developers planned to have another access point from Prairie Street. The Maplewood Access Road Extension project aims to improve mobility in downtown Cary. The new road would be an extension of Industrial Drive, running from Cary Algonquin Road to High Road, parallel with Route 14 and south of the railroad tracks.

Developers also increased the size of the public park area to the west from 1.5 acres to 2.8 acres with a public playground still planned for the corner of Krenz Avenue and School Street. A walking path, stormwater management area, landscaped screen and the playground all increased in size from the first conceptual plan.

Although the addition of single-family homes is a positive, resident Chris Rieke said he is still not OK with the density and height of the four- and five-story apartment buildings.

“My personal opinion: I don’t want anything there,” he said. “Two stories on the outside and three stories on the inside would be good, but that’s not going to bring in enough money for the TIF. The developer wouldn’t make any money and the village wouldn’t make any money, so they’ve got to go tall.”

The Maplewood property sits in the village’s downtown tax-increment financing district created in 2023.

Currently, developers are in the 150-daylong, due-diligence period where the village and residents can “pick apart the plan,” followed by a redevelopment agreement that could come up for a vote in August, Mayor Mark Kownick said at a previous board meeting. Rezoning applications are expected in the fall, with permitting and then construction beginning in Spring 2026, the mayor said. Village documents indicate that an extension in the negotiation period is possible, and further work with the developer could be dropped if an agreement is not made.