Print instructions: Single sheet, front only. US Letter, no scaling. Intended for hand-delivery to commercial property owners along Highway 87 and other corridors inside the proposed boundary.
Gray's Creek Facts · Public Handout · No. 03 For Commercial Property Owners · May 2026
If your business is inside the proposed boundary

You have more at stake than your residential neighbors.

The proposed Town of Gray's Creek would draw a boundary that includes the Highway 87 commercial corridor, the Gray's Creek shopping center, the Corporation Drive cluster, and most contractors, farms, automotive shops, restaurants, and offices in the area.
A residential homeowner whose home is assessed at $200,000 would pay roughly $825 per year under the petitioners' website plan ($500 property tax + $325 sanitation fee). A commercial property with a $2 million tax-assessed value would pay $5,000 in new municipal property tax alone, every year, on top of the unchanged county tax. Larger operations pay proportionally more. Commercial property owners on Highway 87 fund the new town. Residential property owners vote it in. The interests are not identical.
§ 01 · What's at risk if incorporation passes
Six concrete risks to commercial operators.
RISK 01
New municipal property tax, no offsetting reduction
$0.10 to $0.25 per $100 of assessed value, applied to commercial valuations. County tax does not decrease. The "$0.25 is lower than Hope Mills" comparison ignores that Hope Mills started lower and went up.
RISK 02
New municipal zoning, written by an unelected council
County zoning carries over "at startup." After startup, the new Town Council can rewrite the ordinance. Existing commercial uses can be made non-conforming, limiting expansion and reducing resale value.
RISK 03
Privilege license fees, sign ordinances, hour restrictions
Municipalities can impose fees and regulations the county cannot. Sign size, hours of operation, outdoor storage, equipment yards, and truck parking are all common targets in newly incorporated towns.
RISK 04
Village Center overlay on Highway 87
The petitioners describe a Village Center overlay that would govern the Highway 87 corridor. Whether it restricts or upzones depends on a future council that has not been elected.
RISK 05
No commercial property owner is on the organizing committee
The petitioners' Facebook post and website do not name any commercial property owner among the organizers. Commercial operators are being asked to fund a town designed by residential homeowners.
RISK 06
Boundary may not exclude commercial properties
The proposed boundary map is "in preparation." No published version yet shows whether commercial corridors will be included, excluded, or carved into a separate district.
§ 02 · What to ask before signing or organizing
If you are approached by a petitioner, ask these questions.
  1. Is my commercial property inside or outside the proposed boundary? Show me the parcel-level boundary map.
  2. What is the projected first-year municipal property tax on my parcel at $0.25 per $100 of assessed value?
  3. What is the draft zoning treatment of my parcel? Same as today, or different?
  4. Will the new town impose any privilege license fee, business registration fee, or operating fee not currently charged by Cumberland County?
  5. Will the Village Center overlay include Highway 87? If so, what's the maximum density it would allow?
  6. How many commercial property owners are on the organizing committee? Can you name them?
  7. What protections exist in the draft charter for commercial operators against unilateral zoning changes by the first Town Council?
  8. If the answer to any of the above is "in preparation," when will we see the document?
What commercial property owners should do now
1. Don't sign anything yet. The petition deadline is November 1, 2026. There is time to read every document the petitioners publish. 2. Talk to the other commercial owners on your corridor. Organized commercial owners carry more weight at the General Assembly than individual letters. 3. Contact your state legislators directly. Rep. Diane Wheatley (NC House) and Sen. Val Applewhite (NC Senate) represent Cumberland County. Both will receive the bill if it advances. A letter on business letterhead from a commercial property owner inside the proposed boundary lands harder than a homeowner email. 4. Read everything at grayscreekfacts.com. The full analysis, sourced and updated as new information becomes public.
For commercial owners along Highway 87, Corporation Drive, and other corridors inside the proposed boundary grayscreekfacts.com