Fayetteville historic home now at center of new battle

A historic piece of property in Fayetteville with ties to the Civil War is now at the center of another battle. A company wants to turn the residential home into a private middle school, but some residents are concerned about their peaceful neighborhood.

Mary Lynn Jordan has lived next door to a historic home on Morgantown Road in the Haymount community for 53 years. She says Union Gen. William Sherman may have stayed at the home during his rampage through Fayetteville during the Civil War.

"His troops stayed out here in my woods, and he stayed in the big house. It was built in 1840," Jordan said.

Now, Jordan and other residents are putting up a fight to stop the home from being turned into a middle school with about 90 students.

"If you had truck loads, busloads of children coming in and out all day, how am I going to get to my property if the street is blocked? That is my concern," Jordan said.

Christy Pettit has requested a special use permit to make the change. She said there will be no busing or added congestion in the neighborhood.

"Pick up and drop off is between 7 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., so it is not 90 students at one time," she said. "We do have full-day children."

Pettit owns the First Impressions Academy on Raeford Road. The school has about 100 preschool and elementary school students. She said the residents' concerns about the potential change are unfounded.

"We are not tearing down the school. We are keeping its integrity," she said. "We have the money to invest in it. We have an amazing education here."

Jim Kyle also lives near the home in question. He said that, while he is not against the school, he thinks its operation will overwhelm the community.

"Locating it here in this quiet neighborhood with very narrow streets and the amount of traffic that would be generated by this school, we just don't think it's appropriate," he said.

Pettit said she plans to improve the property and request it be rezoned historic.

A meeting on the request for the special use permit will be held Tuesday at 6 p.m. inside City Hall.