Subdivision approved for Vanceboro
New Bern Sun Journal, 5/28/08 - Nikie Mayo
A lakefront subdivision with a familiar name has received final approval from county leaders for development at Vanceboro.
Swift Creek Landing is a residential development planned for U.S. 17 just outside the town limits. It will cover nearly 160 acres bordering Swift Creek and with access to lakes created from old mine pits.
It's a project of Sumit Gupta, an Outer Banks developer who has multiple projects along the coast and as far away as Raleigh. One of Gupta's larger projects is a 500-unit, mixed-use development proposed in Washington, N.C., just north of Vanceboro.
His development in Vanceboro is his first endeavor in Craven County, he says, though he's looking for property in New Bern for a larger project.
"We were interested in the property in Vanceboro because there wasn't so much development between Washington and New Bern," Gupta said Wednesday. "We want to put a boat ramp out there because it's on a navigable creek.
"We think it gives us an opportunity to tap into Washington, Greenville and New Bern markets for people who don't mind commuting to work in exchange for coming home to larger lots."
Initially, Craven County leaders have approved just 13 lots in the subdivision. Gupta expects that it will include about 40 lots when work there is finished, all intended for single-family homes. The houses will start at $250,000.
"We aren't looking for something that will be highly developed," he said. "We are looking at lots that are at least three-quarters of an acre and go up ... from there."
The large-lot subdivision appears to be a new trend in Vanceboro; a sprawling "country-estate" subdivision called Swift Creek Plantation is also planned in the town.
That subdivision is the project of David Blain and Janie Figueroa and is expected to cover about 450 acres on Streets Ferry Road. The plans for that development recently received preliminary approval from Craven County. Though the names are similar, that plan is not related to Gupta's project.
Along with Gupta's subdivision will come a new turn lane off U.S. 17 and a paved road to be called Swan Drive.
"The subdivision will be basically right there where the road splits for people heading out of Washington and toward New Bern," said Jason Frederick, a Craven County planner. "There is such proximity to emerging traffic that there was the feeling that a deceleration or turning lane was needed there specifically for the subdivision."
Grading has started for that work and paving for the road that leads into the subdivision is expected to begin within two months, Gupta said.