The village of Whispering Pines has a traffic problem.

Village officials had to set up extra chairs for what turned out to be a standing-room-only crowd at the Village Council's meeting Wednesday. The issue that brought so many residents to the meeting: the threat of more traffic on Pine Ridge Drive.

Two new subdivisions plan to have access points on Pine Ridge Drive. Residents of that area pleaded with the council Wednesday to stop that from happening.

The council approved preliminary plats for the Arrowstone and Newbury Ridge subdivisions this summer. The developments will add 167 new homes to Whispering Pines. The village annexed them after approving the plats.

In the past, residents of Pine Ridge have asked if a road could be built over the Blue Dam, which would connect the two subdivisions and therefore spill traffic onto Hardee Lane.

Another solution would be for one or both of the access points on Pine Ridge Drive to be used for emergency access only.

The main entrance to the Newbury Ridge development will be through Blue Farm, a Southern Pines subdivision off N.C. 22. The other will be off Hardee Lane.

Approving the preliminary plat authorizes the developer to move ahead with his or her plans. The council gets to approve the final plat.

Mayor Giles Hopkins said that the council will take all of the discussion into consideration before making a decision.

Check Friday's Pilot and ThePilot.com for the full story.