Disney Finally Breaks Ground on Its North Carolina Expansion Project

In December 2023, The Walt Disney Company announced its plans to build its next development in Chatham County, North Carolina. Disney’s Asteria will include 4000 residential units on 1,500 acres, green space, community buildings, neighborhood parks, and access to the development’s natural beauty, including the Haw River. Disney expects sales to begin on the new development in 2027.

Despite some community opposition, Disney’s Asteria took its first step toward ground-breaking last week when the Pittsboro Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the preliminary plan for the development.

According to the Chatham Journal, Disney broke ground this week on phase one of the project, with work on infrastructure. The land clearing and roads have started, along with work on utilities to the new property.

The paper says that Disney should take 18 to 24 months to complete the infrastructure work, with home building to begin after that. Disney expects the first residents to move into their homes in 2028.

The initial plan calls for developing 217 acres of the 1,550-acre project. The initial phase will build 494 single-family homes, townhomes, duplexes, and quadplexes along tree-lined streets. Disney plans to develop the property in three separate phases.

The town of Pittsboro, where the new development is located, currently has only around 4,500 residents. The development plans are causing friction in the rural town, as residents have concerns about infrastructure, population growth, and the potential for sky-high housing costs with the opening of the new development.

The area is expected to grow rapidly from this development, including an estimated 60,000 new residents. While some have expressed concern over this growth, others are excited about the economic opportunity that it will bring to the area.

Asteria General Manager Matt Dean told the meeting:

We’re excited to bring forward this Asteria phase one preliminary plan application to the town and look forward to building a meaningful and long-term relationship with you for years to come.

Despite this initial first step, homes at Asteria will not begin sales until 2027, well after the infrastructure projects are complete.

So, despite some major concerns from community members, Disney has started its first step toward building its newest Storyliving community in North Carolina.

What do you think of Disney’s North Carolina Storyliving community? Let us know in the comments.