The scraggly pines and bare-limbed saplings along Chalks Road do little to foretell Bob Luddy's plans for the 25 unspoiled acres just south of Jones Dairy Road. Luddy, Franklin Academy's founder and chairman of its board of education, hopes to move much of the charter school from South Franklin Street, building two new buildings and expanding his offerings to include high school. If town commissioners authorize the rezoning and annexation into town limits, the new classification will permit a school on the site.
Annexation is needed for town services including water, sewer and police protection.
So far there seems to be no reason why commissioners would deny the request. The parcel sits just across the road from town limits and Heritage Wake Forest, a planned community similar to Raleigh's Wakefield. When Luddy purchased the property last August, the move seemed to put the new school in the middle of nowhere. But as Heritage has developed, the site selection has become clearer, putting it within minutes of the new intersection of Rogers and Forestville roads and the first leg of the proposed N.C. 98 bypass. Luddy, who also owns Youngsville's Captive-Aire, hopes commissioners act quickly.