From Small Town to Booming County: A Conversation with Annice Broadwell

Jonathan Breeden: [00:00:00] So what do you? Let’s talk a little bit about what you do now. I know you’re in real estate. Tell the listeners about what you do and how you can help them.

Annice Broadwell: Okay. Yes, I’m a real estate agent. I work for Hometown Realty. Which is a native also of Johnston County.

Started by two Clayton natives. We’re the largest agency in Johnston County. I’ve been working with them since 2000, but I’ve been doing real estate developing before that starting about 2016 with my dad doing residential developments and now we’re moving into commercial development. But as a real estate agent, I mostly do residential.

I am now moving into some commercial just because of the development side has moved me into the real estate side of commercial. So I help clients buy, sell, help investors buy and sell. So listing a home, helping buyers find the right home, people from out of town, people from out of state coming to move here.

Narrator: Welcome to another episode of Best of Johnston County, brought to you by Breeden Law Office. [00:01:00] Our host, Jonathan Breeden, an experienced family lawyer with a deep connection to the community, is ready to take you on a journey through the area that he has called home for over 20 years. Whether it’s a deep dive into the love locals have for the county or unraveling the complexities of family law, Best of Johnston County presents an authentic slice of this unique community.

Jonathan Breeden: Hello and welcome to this episode of the best of Johnston County podcast. I’m your host Jonathan Breeden and today we have a guest on that is a Johnston County native and who is in real estate development and residential real estate here in Johnston County and Anna’s Broadwell.

And I guess when your main name was Lee and her father is Denton Lee and old Cleveland forever. And he was on the school board, did a lot of different things and him and her doing some development around here. We’ll talk about that and some of those stuff that she does in Johnston County.

And so I’d like to welcome you to the program. Thank you. Thank [00:02:00] you. Appreciate it. Well, no problem. So I guess we’ll start with you, you are actually originally from Johnson County. You would be the first guest that we’ve had, depending on what order they run them in, that I was actually born and raised here.

So tell us a little about what it was like growing up here in the Cleveland community, which was not like the Cleveland community today. No, it

Annice Broadwell: has changed a lot, especially over the last 30 years. So growing up, it was very small, rural farm town. We Knew everybody, you know, you went to the store, you went to church, you saw, you know, everybody knew school was, I mean, not very many people in each class.

K 8 was in the school building, the old Cleveland school building by GCAA. Had to go to high school all the way at South Johnston and Four Oaks. So, a lot less people here and then 40 came through in the early 90s and we started booming. So, changed a

Jonathan Breeden: lot. Right, right, right. And I, right. And I guess the Cleveland Elementary School opened in maybe 94?[00:03:00]

Annice Broadwell: Is that right? It was like 94, yep, and my aunt was the first principal of the elementary school, K 5. Right. It’s on the corner of Cleveland and Cornwallis. Right. And Miss Ferguson. Miss Ferguson, right. Yep, she was my, she’s my aunt, and Yeah, so the old school stayed the middle school for a little while until the new middle school, the Cleveland Middle was built.

So, and now it’s senior apartments. Right,

Jonathan Breeden: right. Very nice senior apartments. They did that a few years ago, and a lot of nice people live there, and they don’t cost a million dollars, and that’s great. It’s great for the community and stuff like that. So yeah, I mean it’s hard to believe that, you know, 40 is not completed until 92.

It was the last stretch of 40 in all of America from California to Wilmington and it opens there in 92 and I think at that time Johnson County had about 60, 000 residents and now Johnson County has about 270, 000 residents in just a 33 year period, you know, a lot of growth and you’ve lived [00:04:00] here your whole life.

So I guess you’ve watched that. So what What do you let’s talk a little bit about what you do now. I know you’re in real estate. Tell the listeners about what you do and how you can help them.

Annice Broadwell: Okay. Yes, I’m a real estate agent. I work for Hometown Realty. Which is a native also of Johnston County.

Started by two Clayton natives. We’re the largest agency in Johnston County. I’ve been working with them since 2000, but I’ve been doing real estate developing before that starting about 2016 with my dad doing residential developments and now we’re moving into commercial development. But as a real estate agent, I mostly do residential.

I am now moving into some commercial just because of the development side has moved me into the real estate side of commercial. So I help clients buy, sell, help investors buy and sell. So listing a home, helping buyers find the right home, people from out of town, people from out of state coming to move here.

Love helping those, love helping first time home [00:05:00] buyers through the process. Work with a lot of different mortgage lenders and attorneys to get deals closed. And I really enjoy it. I finally figured out what I want to do with my

Jonathan Breeden: life. Hey, it’s definitely too late. It’s definitely too late.

I know. I know. I mean, I figured out that I wanted to be a lawyer when I was in the ninth grade, you know, and I think that is a little unusual. Yeah. Yeah. You know, sitting in the ninth grade in Larimer, North Carolina, and I’m like, You know, studying civics and the Federalist Papers, and I’m like, you know what?

I like this. Like, this is pretty neat. These people are trying to form a government apart from the British. They’ve got some pretty good ideas, Hamilton and stuff, so I was like, maybe I could be a part of that. Yeah, so I’m sitting there, like, I literally was so, like, wanting to be a lawyer, like, I figured out, like, I would graduate high school and Take 93 and I would go to NC State and I could graduate 97 and then I could graduate law school in 2000 and I mean, I’m doing all of this and it’s like 1989, you know, like, that’s just strange.

I actually was able [00:06:00] to accomplish most all of that. I guess I graduated from state a year early, but yeah, it was still, it’s still fascinating. So I guess so you real estate. So you see that you see the growth and stuff. I guess you, you worked with, I guess y’all did Macklemore.

Annice Broadwell: We did. We we developed Macklemore two phases in there and then went and did freedom farms out off of freedom road.

By off of Plenta. Okay near the high school and that is almost finished we’ve got a couple more lots in there that builders have that they’re building on and Then we moved in commercial into commercial real estate and that just happened because My dad had some property out there that food line wanted and so food line came And ended up staking claim to that little triangle there at Cleveland and Macklemore and Fire Department Road and just found out last night that they are the fourth highest producing food line in all the stores.

I [00:07:00]

Jonathan Breeden: couldn’t believe that. I, and these numbers may be wrong, but I think they built it. And they thought it might do 300, 000 or 400, 000 a week, and it’s never done less than 600, 000 in a week. It’s amazing. It’s just unbelievable the success they’ve had there. And of course, Food Lion being an original North Carolina company out of Salisbury, I know now it’s owned by a more national brand.

I think maybe the people that own Kroger are now owning it. And I don’t know their names, but But still, I still think that they’ve tried to keep the Food Lion brand. As it was when the family started it out of Salisbury 40 or 50 years ago. That’s been my experience with Food Lion. I like Food Lion.

That food line is extremely convenient. I live out here just like you do and and everybody just always worked there. It’s always been nice. And you never go there and not see a whole bunch of people.

Annice Broadwell: So it’s very busy. I can’t go in there and not stop and talk to at least two people. Usually it’s four or five.

Right. No doubt. My grocery trip is [00:08:00] never very short lived.

Jonathan Breeden: Right. But the next thing I guess you and your dad are working on is across the street from the food line. Where was the. The pelican snowballs and the batting cages and the little baseball field my son used to play on now that has been flattened and they put it in parking lots.

What’s that

Annice Broadwell: going to be? So that is going to be a commercial development called Parkview Center. And we’ve moved pelicans over a little bit. We still have pelicans there for a good many more years, we hope. Taking up that space from us and so the community can still enjoy that. But we are going to start putting in some commercial buildings for leased space.

We have redesigned the existing building that was part of the batting cages originally. And then it was a church for a little while. We have revamped that and it is going to be a restaurant as of right now. It’s going to be called Cosmic Charlies. It is brought to us by the owner of Simple Twist Colleen [00:09:00] Roby.

So she is going to put a restaurant in there. It’s going to be more quick service food, not. the same as Simple Twist. Hopefully we’re gonna do some morning time menu items as well. Coffee shop. She’s still developing that and getting in there and designing the kitchen right now. So we hope for first quarter of 2024 for her to be open in there.

So we’re really excited about having a new spot for people to hang out. She’s gonna have full bar. So there’s gonna be A lot of places to sit and hang out as well as a huge patio that we hope that she’s going to have some entertainment and things

Jonathan Breeden: like that. Oh, that’s going to be, that’s going to be awesome.

I know how well, I mean, Draft and Vine, you know, right next door has been a tremendous success. And I mean, and so, I mean, you know, this community clearly would, could use more because I mean, Draft and Vine, I mean. It’s been unbelievably successful. I think it’s been beyond what they even thought it was gonna be.

And and that’s great. And I think it would be great. Anything that it seems like anything Colleen Ruby [00:10:00] touches is really good. I mean, simple to everybody loves simple twist and So, you know, I don’t doubt she’ll do a really good job with that too. So how many buildings are actually going to be there?

Annice Broadwell: So, as of right now, we have pad ready for five additional buildings. Okay. Possibility of six later, but there are five pad ready spaces there. Okay. And we are working with a designer to build the first building as of right now. We’ve just decided which building that’s going to be, but we’re still in talks about that, so I’m not going to say which one that one is.

But we also have the availability to actually sell the pads to businesses if they’d like to come and bring their own product there. We’d love to see an urgent care out there. I think our community really could use one of those. We have the one up at 4042 and then over by the hospital. So I think we really could use one out this way.

So

Jonathan Breeden: how big will these buildings

Annice Broadwell: be, you know, so they’re different. There’s several that are different [00:11:00] sizes. I think the largest is around 5800 square feet, the largest. Yeah. And they go down probably to about 47, 4600 square feet. Okay. It’s the smallest. I believe. So, so

Jonathan Breeden: big enough that it may have more than one business.

Yes. Correct. Could be several

Annice Broadwell: businesses. They’re going to be vanilla box built. So they’re going to be pretty much. Open inside where leases can come and, you know, decide if they want one space, two spaces, depending upon the size of the building, and lease that space

Jonathan Breeden: out. Right. Well, and I think you told me a few minutes ago that you’re going to put the lot beside Foodline that butts up to Macklemore, not the one with the White House, but the one on, right next to Foodline on the market.

As well, and you maybe might get a

Annice Broadwell: restaurant. We would love to have a restaurant there. Of course, it could be used for lots of different things. In the family, we refer to that lot as the mountain lot. Because when you’re looking at it from McLemore, it looks like it’s a… A hill. A hill. Right. We just completed a [00:12:00] retaining wall on two sides to help make the footprint up top larger than what it was.

So, yeah, the sign is getting made right now. And I’m fixing to make it active in MLS. And… So, yeah, that’ll be on the market.

Jonathan Breeden: That’s a lot going on. I love that. Yeah,

Have family law questions? Need guidance to navigate legal challenges? The compassionate team at Breeden Law Office is here to help. Visit us at www. breedenfirm. com for practical advice, resources, or to book a consultation. Remember, when life gets messy, you don’t have to face it alone.

Jonathan Breeden: and I guess, I mean, I asked you right before we started, but I’ll ask you again. At one point, I was told the White House was going to be, right there on the corner, was going to be picked up and moved down the road, but it’s still there.

So, is it going to be there for the foreseeable future? I know your family owns that

Annice Broadwell: too. Yes, it’s going to be there for the foreseeable future. The plans for moving it did not [00:13:00] happen. As of right now, they’re not happening anymore. So for right now, that building is there and it’s currently being leased by Jack McClam and another attorney.

So he’s happy there right now and we’re going to keep that there. Well,

Jonathan Breeden: cool cool. Well, that’s awesome. So, so I guess we’ll ask you a couple more questions. What do you love most about Johnson County from here? You’re part of having you really in the fabric of this community.

Annice Broadwell: So I think, I really think it’s the people. I mean, Growing up, you could pretty much count on anybody to do anything, and I don’t think that’s changed with even with as many people as we have now, and maybe we don’t know every face like we used to. I still think everybody loves this community. When they move here, it becomes part of their life.

They feel like they’re from here once they’ve been here a while. And the people like me who grew up here feel the same way. Right. And I just think that everybody is just very helpful and want to be helpful to everybody. I mean, we have, yes, we’re just a community. We’re not a town, we’re not incorporated, but Right.

I feel like [00:14:00] we do have that town feel when you’re in the Cleveland community and we have events like Celebrate Cleveland and now the Cleveland. Fire parade.

Jonathan Breeden: Now the parade, the Christmas parade, that’s done by, with the fire department.

Annice Broadwell: Yeah. So the Celebrate Cleveland started back in the early nineties as well.

I was actually on that board back then when we first started it. So, with Cookie Poe?

Jonathan Breeden: Cookie Poe. Yeah. I was on that board for several years. Yeah. With your brother? , you know, we, and the and yeah, Robert Underwood. I mean, it was, we go way back. I mean, I was. If you know Cookie Pope, you ended up on that board at some point.

That’s right. Oh man, she’s the best. So, anyway. So, alright, well cool. What would you like to see, you know, or wish you could see more of in Johnston County?

Annice Broadwell: I really, I got behind the whole parks and rec thing for our communities that are not incorporated. I think the county is moving forward on that.

So I would like to see [00:15:00] more of that happening in our unincorporated areas. It’s more push toward that. Would be nice to have some more spaces like that.

Jonathan Breeden: Well, and your father and michael not and scott james and, you know, actually went in and bought the land, you know, before the county did to preserve it.

So it didn’t become another neighborhood at polenta And in Matthews and now the county has bought that. But like, I mean, that was a tremendous possible sacrifice by about those three individuals. So we’re going to buy this land and we’re going to preserve it and hope that the county buys it from them, which they did.

And hopefully in the next 10 or 15 years, we’ll see a community park there. I don’t think it’s going to be immediate. These parks are 30 to 50 million. It’s unbelievable. It’s unbelievable. involved with that since the very beginning. I was on one of the very first calls with the county manager Rick Hester with the lady who owned the land about what she wanted to see and would she be willing to sell it and that kind of stuff.

So, so [00:16:00] yeah, I was in at the beginning and then you know, your dad got involved and Michael nod and we now have it and it’s going to be a part. It may not be a part for our sons who are the same age and play together, but it’ll be a part of it. Maybe for our grandchildren,

Annice Broadwell: that’s what I keep telling my kids, that’s what I keep telling them.

Hopefully your kids will be able to play there. Right, right.

Jonathan Breeden: So, I don’t think it will be for me yet. So, so, what what is, I guess, would you say your business with the real estate and the commercial development? What are y’all doing to help improve Johnston County? And stay active in the community.

Well,

Annice Broadwell: To touch on my real estate part is being part of a hometown realty. I mean, we’re very, hometown realty is very active in all of the communities that it serves. Sponsoring so many different things from school events to community events. Also local food banks and food drives and coat drives.

helping animal rescues. They do a lot of stuff like that. And the agents there are so [00:17:00] proud of hometown realty that they are massively involved with those things as well. Anytime there’s something that we can do for the community, we’re always pitching in and the agents take hold of that and in their own lives are volunteering and committing to bettering the community in those ways.

There’s constantly a box in our offices for some kind of donation that we’re wanting to help like backpack buddies or coats for kids or all of those things we help with. I think those are helpful in our community as far as the development part of what we do. I think that offering, you know, being able to build the stuff over at Parkview Center in Cleveland community is going to be an added bonus to our citizens where they won’t have to go so far for some things that they do now, even if it’s, even if it is 40, 42, that’s still a 10 minute drive for some people on the other side of Cleveland community, 15 minute drive.

And with construction, it’s even more. And [00:18:00] hopefully we’ll be able to have some things up there that, Are a little bit closer and we have the grocery store now. We have HealthSmart Pharmacy there now couple of, you know, several restaurants, J Top, Subway, all those out there.

Jonathan Breeden: Hungry Howie’s is there.

Hungry Howie’s is there. there, right. There’s a Mac and

Annice Broadwell: Cheese place as well.

Jonathan Breeden: Right, right, the Mac and Cheese place. I’ll be sick if I go there. But anyway, I love Mac and Cheese. So I guess I guess the last question would be what has you excited right now about, about Johnson County, the Cleveland community, you know, what’s going to happen here in the next, you know, six, six to 12 to 18 months?

Annice Broadwell: Gosh, what has me most excited? Well, I love to learn new things and I love to be a part of stuff and be of service. So I think that me learning the commercial side of things has gotten me excited to start that development and continue that and offer. Things to our community in that way. I’m always excited to see new businesses open and thrive.

I, I don’t have a problem with the [00:19:00] residential, you know, stuff. I mean, it’s, you know, that’s my job now. And I like to see, you know, down home developers and builders come and be able to find space to build. I really enjoy. If staying local so, those things I’m excited about.

Jonathan Breeden: Yeah, no, I mean, I’m with you.

I mean, you know, I mean the growth, I mean the growth is going to happen, right? This is a, this is a. free world where you can live wherever you want to live. I used to do a lot of criminal defense. They don’t get to live where they want to live sometimes but you know, like, and so this area is going to continue to draw people because of its proximity to Raleigh, because you have Novo, you have riffles.

You have these hospitals. We’re about to have the Cochran District in Clayton, right across from the hospital, which is going to look like a mini North Hills. I mean, it’s going to happen. And, you know, I want to compliment you and your father you know, for the. The high class way, like Macklemore is an extremely [00:20:00] nice neighborhood, spread out, kept as many trees as possible, you know, the food line doesn’t look like a commercial thing, it fits in the community, it’s brick, it doesn’t have these sort of plastic faycades, and I know y’all were very involved with them in saying we’re not going to have that, we’re going to make this fit, and so, you know, and we’re not Carrie, but we’re not going to just be You know South Saunders Street either, you know what I mean, and y’all get credit for that You may not I give you credit for that whether the public recognizes that or not.

Those are all definitive decisions that a developer can make and hopefully should make for our community to make it better and We’re about to have an exit, another exit right on the Cleveland School Road off of one of the busiest interstates in the United States. And you know, that’s going to, that’s going to add even more traffic and create more commercial there on, on the Cleveland School.

On Cleveland School Road off of 42 because it’s gonna have its own exit. That’s right. [00:21:00] And I think you’ll start to see that develop as well. So if anybody wanted to get in touch with you that’s listening to this about how you might can help them in the commercial side or the residential side, how should they do that?

Annice Broadwell: They can call me (919) 818-4276 or they can email me at annais A-N-N-I-C e@myhtr.com. I’m also on Facebook and Instagram. A little bit of Tik Tok.

Jonathan Breeden: I’m new to Tik Tok

Annice Broadwell: too. LinkedIn. So yeah, just my name, Anna Sleet Broadwell. Pretty much you can find me. It’s a pretty unique name.

Jonathan Breeden: And we’ll try to make sure we put that in the show notes down below.

And so if you’ve enjoyed this episode of Best of Johnston County, Be sure to like or subscribe or follow depending on where you’re getting this episode from so that you’ll be aware of any future episodes that come out every week. We have some exciting more guests that we will have coming on.

You don’t want to miss it. I think if you care about Johnson County as much as Anson and I do, you’re going to [00:22:00] really enjoy the guests we’re going to have talking about why we all love Johnson County. And what makes it so great. If you would also do us a favor of leaving us a 5 star review wherever you see podcasts down at the bottom and maybe write a review about how much you enjoy this.

That will help us with our visibility. And so other people in Johnson County and the surrounding area can find this podcast and learn a lot about it. I do think there will be a lot of people listening to this podcast as time goes that are considering moving here. So those five star reviews will make it more visible for them.

Until next time, I’m your host, Jonathan Breeden, and thanks a lot for listening.

That’s the end of today’s episode of Best of Johnston County, a show brought to you by the trusted team at Breeden Law Office. We thank you for joining us today and we look forward to sharing more interesting facets of this community next week. Every story, every viewpoint adds another thread to the rich tapestry of Johnston County.

If the legal aspects highlighted raised some questions, help is just around the corner at [00:23:00] www. breedenfirm. com.