Business

Pardee buys 20 acres in Mills River for $1.75M

Pardee Hospital bought 20 acres on N.C. 280 for development of health care facilities.

By Bill Moss, Published: December 29, 2015

MILLS RIVER — Pardee Hospital has bought 20 acres on N.C. 280 in Mills River as part of what the hospital’s CEO described as a “measured, strategic approach to planning for the health care needs” in fast-growing northern Henderson County.

Pardee bought the property across from the Ingles supermarket for $1.75 million from the Moore family in a sale recorded on Dec. 18, according to Henderson County land records.
“Over the past few months, and as part of a larger endeavor to strategically plan for and accommodate patient growth and delivery of health care in Henderson County, Pardee Hospital has been exploring opportunities in the Mills River area of Henderson County,” Pardee CEO James M. “Jay” Kirby II said in a news release issued Monday.
“We see this as a positive move for Pardee and one that makes sense in reaching people in Etowah, Mills River and Fletcher,” Kirby said of the purchase. “This is part of a measured, strategic approach to planning for the health care needs of our community. We have worked with business and industry, listened to our patients and heard from residents within our county that access to high quality health care in that area of the county is a growing concern.”

Pardee's purchase of a 20-acre site on one of the few large parcels on a major thoroughfare in Mills River came within days of the announcement that a manufacturer of automobile parts is considering investing $217 million in a new factory at Ferncliff Industrial Park that would employ 350 workers.

In response to follow-up questions, hospital officials said Tuesday they could provide no more specific detail because they had not completed the process of identifying the health care needs of the area and seeking input from industries that within two years will be employing hundreds of people at nearby plants.

"Pardee is taking time to perform its due diligence in determining final options for the land," Kirby said. "The purchase was in response to growth in that area of the county. Accessible, high quality health care that meets the needs of the residents and industry in that area are factors that will determine the final choice. Business and industry in the area may dictate occupational health services; a growing number of families may demand an offering of family practice providers. "To be as fiscally responsible as we can to our board and our community, Pardee will take measured steps to determine the final plans for the property and not jump ahead to offer hypothetical options.  We look forward to working with our community and medical staff to determine the highest and best use for the property."

The property between the Quality Plus gas station and Valley Ag was owned by James C. Moore, Sharon and Gary Earl Moore, Lisa and Dennis Edwin Moore, and Beulah S. Moore.
Before the sale closed, at the request of the Moores, the Mills River Town Council rezoned the property from neighborhood commercial to general business.
Representing property owner James C. Moore, engineer Will Buie told the town council that the parcel is suitable for commercial use and is one of the few large parcels in that area that can be developed.
The Mills River Zoning Enforcement Officer Holly Padgett and the town Planning Board recommended the rezoning to a more permissive commercial use, citing new retail use across the road, the availability of public water and sewer and the 20,000 cars per day five-lane highway. The general business zone allows offices, medical clinics, fitness centers, extended care facilities and 51 other retail, service or commercial uses.
“Because these commercial uses are subject to public view and are important to the economy of the community, they shall have ample parking, controlled traffic movement and suitable landscaping,” the Mills River zoning code says.