By Erica  Batten. While traffic congestion and concerns about fast-paced development are common on the eastern side of Lake Norman, the lake’s west shore is relatively congestion-free. But with red dirt being turned up by the ton these days in Sherrills Ford, Denver and adjacent communities, there’s no doubt the west shore will catch up to its neighbors on the other side of the lake.

For investors, that’s good news.

“There is going to be a long period of time of growth in the Denver market,” said Tom McMahon, managing director of SVN Commercial Real Estate Advisors in Cornelius. “The fact that the Denver market is in the infancy of growth makes it a very good opportunity for investment dollars to go to.”

For now, the west side has some advantages when it comes to traffic. The four-lane N. C. 16 Bypass provides an easy alternative to Business 16, which runs closer to the lake and is perforated with driveways and traffic lights. The bypass puts uptown Charlotte and the airport within 30 minutes of anywhere in Denver.

“The fact that the Denver market is in the infancy of growth makes it a very good opportunity for investment dollars to go to.”

– Tom McMahon, SVN Commercial Real Estate

Developers have also learned from mistakes made along the lake’s other major roadways. Original considerations for The Village at Sherrills Ford, a 206-acre mixed-use development at N. C. 150 and Slanting Bridge Road currently in the clearing stages, had included a public school. But population projections for southeast Catawba County, coupled with the congestion along 150 caused by school traffic in neighboring Iredell County, steered developer Dale Morrow toward other priorities for the project.

Traffic is still a major issue that developers will have to contend with.

Several other developments will add to congestion, including Morrow’s 64-acre residential project along Campground Road near NC 16 Business. The Simonini Group of Charlotte plans a mixed-use subdivision, Rivercross, on 116 acres  near Triangle Road, and Shea Homes is rolling out its Trilogy Lake Norman, a 1,650-home “active lifestyle community” for older adults near East Lincoln High School along Hwy. 73.

Lincoln County Commissioner and Denver resident Martin Oakes has expressed concern about traffic congestion. He said developers, not NCDOT, have been responsible for most recent road improvements—and their estimates of traffic conditions in the near future aren’t promising. NCDOT has no projects scheduled in unincorporated Denver until 2021.

“There is no town [government] to take on road projects or build sidewalks, but the tradeoff is a tax rate that is about 70 percent of homes in other towns around the lake,” said Scott Knox of Verdict Ridge in Denver.

Knox is optimistic about job growth in Lincoln County. “Currently, most residents are commuting out of the county for work. The Lincoln Economic Development Association is doing a great job of driving business to the county,” Knox said. “I am excited for the hotels that will soon come to the west side of the lake, as well as Publix and a few other shopping conveniences.”

Residents of Denver’s Westport community are concerned about the environmental impact of continued development. Residents of the fifty-year old neighborhood, Lake Norman’s first developed subdivision, recently circulated a call to action against new development there planned by Westport Construction Partners.

“The issues of stormwater and sedimentation/erosion are critical…because they threaten Lake Norman, where we get our drinking water, where we recreate, and where a wide variety of wildlife make their home.”

– Ben Benoit, Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation

“Development is the No. 1 threat to water quality,” said Ben Benoit, Westport resident and the Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation’s Lincoln County Lakekeeper. “The issues of stormwater and sedimentation/erosion are critical…because they threaten Lake Norman, where we get our drinking water, where we recreate, and where a wide variety of wildlife make their home.”

Of course, Lake Norman is the goose that laid the golden egg. But how to protect it is the subject of debate.

County commissioners met June 20 to vote on the developer’s proposed changes to its original plan, which would add 30 more “zero-lot-line” homes in the same acreage. Although the planning board had recommended approval of the changes, commissioners voted to table the decision until the developer met with Westport residents to discuss the project’s impact on property values and the environment.

“The developer has expressed publicly his awareness of storm water issues,” said Benoit. “However, he has not submitted—and thus far has not been required by the county to submit—a specific, detailed plan for handling post-construction storm water so that the lake is not damaged.”

Benoit said many members of the Westport community are doubtful the developer will take measures to protect the lake unless the county requires it.

With many developers and planning boards around the lake, the environmental impact can be significant. “It is incumbent on each municipality and governing authority to make wise decisions within their jurisdictions that preserve the quality of our water,” Benoit said.