City of Hendersonville leaders are focused on how to accommodate overwhelming post-pandemic population growth, which is projected to continue for the next two decades. That’s according to a comprehensive plan council members unanimously adopted Thursday night.
The 2045 plan focuses on how the city will expand housing options while maintaining a “small-town character” as it deals with an influx of new residents. Council members applauded after the vote, which came with little discussion from the dais or the public on Thursday.
Comprehensive plans lay out potential strategies for land use, zoning and development. Local governments are required to make them and take public input during the process. The current plan was in the works for months and the city held various meetings and public input sessions. Hendersonville's last long-range plan was adopted in 2009, and provided guidance for council members on development through 2030.
“It is a living, breathing document,” City Manager John Connet said. “This is a guide and a vision as we see it today, but that vision could change tomorrow…It can be and will be amended, it’s expected to be amended.”
The new plan, dubbed Gen H, estimates that the city’s population could rise to about 20,000 people by 2045. Hendersonville’s population was just over 15,000 in 2022, according to the latest census data available. That’s about a 33% increase.
This “unprecedented growth” is straining Hendersonville’s housing supply, according to the plan prepared by Bolton and Menk, a consulting firm based in Charlotte.
Housing – and where to build it – is the largest issue addressed in the plan. Council members will need to decide whether to let development continue as is or be more “intentional.”
“It is possible that new housing development will be created through the conversion of agricultural lands and open space if new housing is developed at the same or lower densities than previous decades,” the plan states.
“Increasing the affordable housing supply is paramount.”
READ MORE: New Hendersonville affordable housing may move ahead with $600K in federal funds
The estimated number of additional housing units needed to accommodate new residents would be just over 2,200 by 2045. That equates to 110 units annually over the next 20 years.
Currently, 60% of city land is developed, leaving less than half available for new development. And almost all of that remaining land – 87% – is partially or wholly in a floodplain. On the outskirts of the city, technically known as adjacent extraterritorial land, 73% percent of the land supply is in a floodplain.
To confront the lack of available land, the plan recommends higher density development on nodes, or areas “intended to be the largest activity centers outside of downtown (that) support a broad range of compatible uses.” Most of these proposed nodes are along Interstate 26 and Four Seasons Boulevard.
This approach would help “minimize expansion of development footprint and reduce pressure on developing agricultural land or protected open space,” according to the plan. Redeveloping existing infrastructure will also reduce capital costs for developers.
Affordable Housing
Across Western North Carolina, local governments are grappling with higher housing costs and affordability.
According to a 2024 needs assessment from the North Carolina Housing Coalition, 25% of Henderson County residents are cost-burdened, meaning more than 30% of their income is spent on rent or mortgage and essential bills, like electricity expenses. The report also found that 44% of renters have difficulty affording their homes and 20% of homeowners have difficulty affording homes.
Last month, the Asheville City Council approved spending $600,000 in federal funds to subsidize a 60-unit affordable housing development in Hendersonville. The Apple Ridge developer plans to build single-family homes and apartments. Asheville’s City Council had to vote on the funding because it is the lead entity of the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium, which encompasses Henderson County and Hendersonvile.
