Town commissioners approved rezoning for the project in June 2018. It will have up to 123 townhomes on nearly 17.6 acres on Stevens Mill and Mt. Harmony Church roads. Photo courtesy of Town of Matthews
Harmony Hills gets OK to change townhome elevations
MATTHEWS – The town has granted a request by Century Communities to make changes to elevations of townhomes in the Harmony Hills development currently under construction.
Changes included adding three new floor plans to accommodate market demand, incorporating porches on end units and making cosmetic changes to doors, windows and trim.
Commissioner John Urban offered some design suggestions during the Jan. 13 meeting, which prompted the board to defer the decision to Jan. 27 to give the company time to review. Urban was OK with the company’s changes Jan. 27.
“It supports economic viability of the future development,” Urban said. “The elevations are not substantially changed from the originally approved elevations. It is also reasonable because it allows for the mix of elevations, floor plan layouts and the overall development has not changed.”
Mayor survives earthquake
MATTHEWS – Mayor John Higdon experienced an earthquake while in San Juan, Puerto Rico from Jan. 23 to 26.
It was the second earthquake he’s experienced in his life. Higdon was walking back to his hotel when the shaking occurred.
He described the experience as “pretty neat,” comparing it to the trembling one feels in Matthews Town Hall when the train passes.
On another note, Higdon was impressed with a multi-directional bike path near his hotel that was separated from vehicular traffic by a small wall. He said the wall provided a higher degree of safety than paths in Matthews, though he said the path looked expensive and required a lot of real estate.
Stranded motorist attempts to steal deputy’s patrol car
MATTHEWS – A stranded motorist tried to drive off in a sheriff’s deputy patrol car after the officer stopped to offer help.
A Union County Sheriff’s deputy was traveling on I-485 on Feb. 3 following an off-duty assignment when he spotted a disabled vehicle in the left lane between Providence and Lawyers roads.
The deputy approached 22-year-old JeJuan McArthur McCalston, whose vehicle appeared to be out of fuel, officials said.
The deputy requested Mecklenburg County authorities assist with traffic control while he attempted to push the vehicle out of the roadway. After a brief conversation, the suspect ran from his vehicle and got into the deputy’s marked patrol car.
The suspect attempted to drive away, but he couldn’t overcome the transmission lock. The deputy took him into custody.
The Matthews Police Department arrested McCalston on charges of felony attempted larceny and driving while impaired.
Town gets props for its financial reporting
MATTHEWS – The Government Finance Officers Association recognized the town’s finance department for excellence in financial reporting for the 21st consecutive year.
The award specifically recognizes Matthews for the year ending 2018.
“We were a little behind in getting the paperwork in due to turnover in the department,” Assistant Town Manager Becky Hawke said. “Staff jumped on it so that we did not break our streak.”
Hawke said Matthews has the longest consecutive streak among Mecklenburg County towns by more than a decade.
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