Raleigh residents worry planned bus line will raise property taxes, pushing out those who live along New Bern Avenue
Raleigh leaders are proposing new zoning for 744 properties along the city's first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line to encourage denser development.
The Raleigh City Council held a public hearing to discuss the matter Tuesday evening.
Construction on Wake BRT started in November 2023 on the 5.4-mile route between downtown’s GoRaleigh Station and New Hope Road. It’s the first of four BRT lines planned for Raleigh.
The proposed rezoning would raise the maximum height on buildings along the transit route from three stories to as tall as five stories along most of the BRT line between downtown Raleigh and Wake Med.
The city's Planning Commission and the Historic Development Commission are recommending city council members deny the rezoning request.
The BRT will deliver more frequent and reliable service that can cut travel time by 10 minutes compared to today’s buses.
WRAL News spoke with Denzel Burnside, the executive director of Wake Up Wake County. The nonprofit supports the rezoning.
“We want to make sure all communities – Black, White, Hispanic – have access to transportation, adequate transportation, equitable transportation,” Burnside said. “We don’t want to throw out everything that’s in there, because these are communities – especially off New Bern – that have been historically deprived of infrastructure.”
Burnside acknowledged that there’s often fear whenever there’s something new proposed among nearby residents.
“We want to see this take place, but we want to see it done equitably,” Burnside said of the city’s proposal. “We want to see it done consciously.”
Oakwood resident Matthew Brown said he’s concerned about the new transit line.
“That will raise their tax values even more than they’ve already been raised, and that will push out hundreds of people,” Brown said. “The homeowners – their taxes will go up and they can’t afford to keep their homes, and the renters will be kicked out because landlords will sell to developers.”
Brown is concerned that redevelopment could change the character of the area.
“All these beautiful old homes will be torn down,” Brown said. “It’s just a disaster.”
Neighborhood activist Octavia Rainey said she grew up in College Park.
“You shouldn’t take downtown and bring it to New Bern Avenue,” Rainey said.
Rainey is against rezoning the neighborhoods and had a clear message to city leaders.
“You don’t have any consideration for the people who live here,” Rainey said. “You don’t have any consideration for the Black people who built this city.”
The nearly $97 million BRT line will stop at 10 bus stations, including in front of WakeMed.
A Bus Rapid Transit has higher capacity than a regular bus transit system. It has bus-only lanes and give buses priority at traffic signals. New Bern Avenue is the first of four BRT corridors planned for Wake County.
