Junior League votes "yes" on Starmount donation
It looks like the nonprofit Junior League of Greensboro might take Starmount up on the local developer's offer of one of the city's most historic houses.
Starmount Co., which recently announced plans to sell its commercial assets and basically start over, isn't getting out of the local development business. The company hopes to build offices of some sort on part of a 6-acre property at the southwest corners of Friendly Avenue and Green Valley Road. In order to do that, Starmount needs to see the Albright house, a rambling white house on the property, moved west along Friendly.
The developer has offered to donate the house and a chunk of property across from Friendly Center to the Junior League, if the nonprofit will relocate the house and refurbish it. The nonprofit's members voted Monday night in favor of accepting the donation.
But there's a problem: Neighbors in Starmount Forest aren't happy, to say the least.
They've planned a meeting Thursday night at a local church to discuss the potential rezoning and already have expressed their anger about the proposal in letters and e-mails to the paper.
One reason they might be so miffed is that residents of the area have been largely protected from rezonings for years. While neighborhoods throughout the city saw nearby developments, Starmount Forest was buffered from change by 1957 decision by the General Assembly.
The year Friendly Center opened, the city took over the former town of Hamilton Lakes. But the merger came with a catch - Greensboro couldn't rezone parts of the former town with a majority vote from the former townspeople during a special or general election. That mandate held a huge chunk of property relatively safe for 50 years.
But the restriction expired January 1. And Starmount immediately responded, making plans for property that has lain dormant for years.
It should be interesting to see how all of this plays out, especially with the neighbors mobilizing so early.