This week, Town Council will make a crucial decision about the residential project proposed for the Carpenter tract on Green Level Church Road.

PulteGroup wants to build 75 or more homes on 27 acres of farmland owned by descendants of Arthur Carpenter. Some residents of neighboring Weycroft subdivision are unhappy, saying the proposed subdivision is too dense and the houses too cheap. A town rule gives the neighbors significant leverage against the project.

The conflict has come to a head: PulteGroup last month ended negotiations with neighbors and withdrew its plans, which awaited approval by the Cary council. The company now wants to submit plans for a new, denser development. That move is opposite Weycroft's wishes but more closely complies with town documents that govern the long-term use of land, according to a land broker and a town staffer.

Pulte first pursued a low-density development because it hoped to appease neighbors, said Dane Sambrick, the landowners' longtime real estate representative. The company now is changing tactics because it doesn't believe it can satisfy the neighbors while keeping the project viable, Sambrick said.

Town rules could stall that effort. The council will decide Tuesday whether to waive the yearlong waiting period it usually requires between requests to rezone land. Staff have recommended approval of the waiver, but three council members have recommended denial - more than enough to ensure defeat.

PulteGroup says the waiver would allow it to refine its plans with new flexibility. But in emails to the council, Weycroft residents said the developer was trying to skirt their influence and was no longer cooperative.

"If Pulte truly wanted to 'accommodate' our concerns ... they would not be seeking a more dense neighborhood," wrote Tom McCuiston, who has helped organize opposition. "Allowing the waiver encourages applicants such as Pulte to withdraw applications when they are faced with a protest petition, reapply and wear down the opposition," he continued later.

The Weycroft subdivision cradles the Carpenter property. With 1.8 units per acre, the established neighborhood's homes are larger and pricier than what PulteGroup has proposed.

"It's not in any aesthetic or economic sense harmonious with Weycroft," said Tom Ferro, a Weycroft resident.

Sambrick, who is not an employee of PulteGroup, acknowledged Weycroft is unlikely to support Pulte's new plans.

The objective, he said, is to make a bulletproof proposal. The town's land-use plan already calls for medium-density development with more than three units per acre on the Carpenter farm - so a denser project would require less paperwork and legal finagling.

"This one will be complying with everything Cary's set out; all of those things will be filled to the 'T,' " said Sambrick.

"Then Cary Town Council should have no ability or reason to be able to turn it down."

The denial of a project that lines up with the town's long-term plans could be grounds for a lawsuit, he said.

A representative of PulteHomes did not respond to requests for comment.

The Weycroft neighbors still could fight any new proposal during its rezoning process.

They could file another protest petition, meaning any proposal then would need five council votes instead of the normal four.

Councilwoman Jennifer Robinson said the council is unlikely to allow PulteGroup to resubmit plans early, unless the company shows a plan "clearly in harmony with the adjacent neighborhood."

Projects can meet that goal even without the support of neighbors, she said, but "our objective is to have neighborhoods built that are received well by the surrounding communities."