Hundreds pack into public meeting over proposed resort

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. — Hundreds packed into the Huntersville Recreation Center Monday night for the town board’s first public meeting on a proposed $800 million beach-style resort.

The Lagoona Bay Beach Club would include hundreds of residential units, a hotel, and a 10-acre man-made lagoon.

Many residents are pushing back on the proposed development, saying it will cause issues with traffic, water usage, and overcrowded schools. They believe the project is better suited somewhere else.

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Lagoona Bay is being proposed for a site off Sam Furr Road in Huntersville. The project spans 270 acres. It would have a hotel and 250 single-family homes, plus dozens of apartments, townhomes, and condos.

Homes and condos would be sold for half a million dollars, and apartments would be over $2,000 per month.

Some were in support of the project at Monday’s meeting.

NOW | @HuntersvilleGOV holding public hearing on proposed Lagoona Bay Beach Club project. Developer is pursuing rezoning of parts of a 263-acre site @wsoctv pic.twitter.com/CwRmVHP39O
— Jonathan Lowe (@JonathanUpdates) June 5, 2023

“I learned why I am for it,” one resident said. “I am for the additional tax revenue that this will create.”

Others were against it.

“Please do not let the hunger for growth diminish the quality of life that Huntersville has become famous for,” another resident said.

“It won’t hurt morning traffic or school buses,” developer Jake Palillo said. “Lunch traffic will be light but at the end of the day, it’s a place to bring your family.”

However, the town Planning Board doesn’t agree with that.

That board recently raised 62 issues with the developer’s request.

“There is no support for this particular proposal as it appears before you,” said David Peete, a Huntersville planner.

The decision is now up to town commissioners.

The earliest that town commissioners could possibly vote on the Lagoona Bay proposal is July 16.

However, after Monday’s meeting, commissioners said they still have a lot of questions that need to be answered.

Palillo is suing two women over their social media comments complaining about the project. In the lawsuit, the developer accuses the two residents of trying to destroy his reputation in the community after a comment surfaced calling him greedy.

Channel 9 spoke with both residents, who said the developer is trying to intimidate and bully them.

(WATCH PREVIOUS: Developer of Lagoona Bay project in Huntersville undeterred after planning staff gives thumbs down)