ALBEMARLE, N.C. — The Stanly County Board of Commissioners voted to remove a proposed Albemarle bypass and a highway expansion through Norwood from the county’s long-term transportation plan.
The decision follows public pushback from local agricultural workers and property owners who expressed concerns over the loss of working farmland.
The proposed bypass route would have intersected Hatley Farms Road, cutting directly through active farm properties and agricultural structures.
County officials voted to adjust the plan to protect local agricultural operations from potential future right-of-way acquisitions.
Wyatt Straining, a 19-year-old farmer at Parker Farms, voiced opposition to the proposal during a commissioners meeting.
Parker Farms has operated in Stanly County for more than 80 years, storing corn, wheat, and other crops in grain bins situated along Hatley Farms Road.
Straining noted that the proposed bypass route directly threatened his family’s primary facilities and operations.
“I love this area. It’s my whole life,” Straining said. “It would devastate the farm. It would take the main headquarters and our whole livelihood.”
Rather than constructing a new bypass, Straining suggested county and state officials focus on existing road infrastructure. “There’s 24/27. don’t know why we couldn’t eventually widen 73.” Straining said.
Scott Efird serves as the chair of the Stanly County Board of Commissioners. Efird emphasized the board’s responsibility to balance future infrastructure needs with agricultural preservation.
“You gotta protect the rural farmland. At some point there may be a bypass around Albemarle or Norwood, or even around Locust, who knows. I think it’s important we do everything we can do to protect farmland,” Efird said.
According to Efird, the road routes drawn by the North Carolina Department of Transportation were not definitive plans. No funding has been allocated for the bypass projects, and any potential construction to manage county traffic growth would be decades away.
Farmland preservation has remained a central focus for Stanly County leaders in recent years.
Commissioners approved the county’s 2040 Comprehensive Land Use Plan in 2022 after a community survey identified the loss of agricultural land as a major local issue.
Under the 2022 land-use guidelines, county rules discourage large residential subdivisions and mandate a minimum lot size of three acres in rural areas.
Efird stated that future commercial and residential growth should be centered in or around municipalities, keeping rural areas preserved for agriculture.
The transportation plan will now head back to the municipal governments of Albemarle and Norwood for consideration.
All local governments within the county must agree on the proposed modifications before the transportation plan can be finalized with the state.
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