HICKORY — Hickory City Council meets tonight to consider annexing about 24 acres the city already owns along the Catawba River in Burke County — land earmarked for the planned Catawba River Environmental Education Center.
The regular meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, in Council Chambers at the Julian G. Whitener Municipal Building, 76 N. Center Street. Meetings are open to the public; video typically posts to the city’s YouTube channel the next day.
Annexation hearing for CREEC site
Under new business, Planning Manager Cal Overby will present a public hearing on a voluntary non-contiguous annexation of city-owned property at 964 and 970 Airport Rhodhiss Road, plus an unaddressed parcel to the east.
Burke County parcel IDs listed in the agenda: 2783785060, 2783788894, and 2783886713 — about 24.39 acres total. Staff says the petition meets statutory requirements for voluntary non-contiguous annexation, that adequate public services are available, and that the city’s intention is to use the land for the future Catawba River Environmental Education Center (CREEC). Staff recommends approval. Notice of the hearing ran Sept. 5 in a newspaper of general circulation in the Hickory area.
The site sits about 3,100 feet northwest of Hickory’s city boundary and about 3.70 miles northwest of downtown. Lake Hickory and the Catawba River lie to the north. Access is via Airport Rhodhiss Road (NCDOT SR 1653). Staff proposes Long View water service and septic. The parcels are currently zoned Burke County R-3; the city proposes Hickory Planned Development. If approved, annexation would be effective Sept. 30, 2026 and place the land in Ward 5.
Grant application and related CREEC dollars on consent
Also tonight, consent includes a resolution authorizing the city to apply for an Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) grant of up to $2 million for CREEC — up to $1 million from the National Park Service program and up to $1 million in city local match.
The agenda describes the three river parcels as the project site and lists eligible work such as a paved walking path, boat dock, kayak launch, trails, outdoor classrooms, amphitheater, educational signage, drop-off pavilion, site furnishings, a scenic overlook, and natural restoration. Staff says the anticipated grant project cycle begins in October 2028.
Budget Revision Number 5 on the same consent slate would move $25,300 from General Fund contingency to Water and Sewer capital projects for topographic and wetland surveying tied to CREEC.
Also on the night’s agenda
Special presentations include a proclamation for Bill McBrayer and a Hispanic Heritage Month proclamation for Centro Latino Hickory (Program Coordinator Soraya Valdez Place).
Consent also covers, among other items: expanding The Nest at HKY’s hangar and office lease at Hickory Regional Airport; surplus library materials for the Friends of Hickory Public Library; $4,000 microenterprise grants for Golden Rule Music School and Maven Med Scrubs; a long-term $1-per-year lease with the Hickory Downtown Development Association at 24 1st Avenue NE; awarding retiring Sgt. Cam Anderson his service weapon and badge; housing assistance recommendations; and soliciting on-call engineering RFQs for water and sewer work.
Council will also reaffirm Budget Revision Number 4 on second reading and take up vacancies on several boards and commissions.
Catawba First News will update this story after Council acts.
Earlier coverage: Hickory 101 offers a free five-week look at city government in October · Hickory manager proposes $162.8M FY 2026-27 budget; tax rate held at 46 cents
Source: City of Hickory, Sept. 15, 2026 City Council agenda.
