St. Stephens is a growing community near Hickory’s charming downtown
With a small city to the west and rolling pastures to the east, Saint Stephens is a Catawba County suburb with a rural feel. It offers an attractive blend of being close to a vibrant downtown while being removed enough to see the stars at night. “It’s a very family-oriented area that’s convenient to Downtown Hickory, Lake Hickory, shopping and dining. It’s a very popular place to be,” says Stephanie Hefner, a Catawba Valley native and Realtor with eXp Realty. She adds that St. Stephens is in a period of growth, as its larger lot sizes and accessible home prices are drawing buyers seeking to relocate for the region’s growing data center industry. “There are a lot of people moving in from out of state, so the streets are getting busier. But we’re not Charlotte, so we don’t have that kind of traffic.”
Saint Stephens locals can head downtown Hickory and enjoy the popular Notions restaurant.
The surrounding areas of Saint Stephens are full of beautiful and dense old growth forests.
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A range of home styles on spacious lots outside Hickory
Single-family homes in St. Stephens fill a mosaic of numerous small but growing subdivisions connected by winding two-lane roads. Dense woods fill the spaces in between. Ranch-style homes are the most common, but with steady development from the 1940s to the present, various architectural styles are present in the neighborhood, from small post-war cottages to midcentury split-levels and recently built New Traditional homes. Space is often a selling point. “Typically, lots are bigger in St. Stephens. You’ll get more land for the same, or even a lower, price as you would with a house in Hickory,” Hefner says. These lots, which can exceed a half-acre, are often highly landscaped with manicured shrubs and shade trees. Home prices start as low as $120,000 and can reach upwards of $450,000. St. Stephens also has manufactured homes ranging from $100,000 to about $250,000. The market here is active, with properties typically selling after 26 days on average, roughly half the national average.
Saint Stephens residents enjoy neighborhoods that give space between neighbors.
Ranch style homes are one of the most common sights in Saint Stephens.
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Parks, a pool and outdoor recreation near Lake Hickory
Lake Hickory, a link in what’s known as the Catawba River Chain of Lakes, anchors outdoor recreation in St. Stephens. Watersports, including fishing and kayaking, are one of the more popular pastimes here. Several marinas provide boat storage and rental options, such as Lakeside Marina. The public Wittenburg Access Area features a sandy beach and swimming area. Boaters can cruise down to Lake Hickory Pub & Marina to dock for lunch with a view. Hickory’s Getinter Trail connects to the city’s Riverwalk, which offers a scenic stroll over the water.
Farther inland, the 9-acre St. Stephens Park is where families take their children and dogs to run around a playground and dog park. Its LITeracy Trail and Garden Walk provide an interactive way for children to read while exploring nature. Generations of memories have been made at Kool Park Pool, a summer hotspot since the 1930s with a waterslide, four diving boards and a massive 235-foot-wide swimming pool. Golfers have several nearby courses to choose from, including Player’s Ridge Golf, which offers an 18-hole public course with views of the mountains in the distance.
Bruce Meisner Park is a new addition to the Hickory area. Stretching more than 70 acres, the park is home to a playground, picnic area and concrete cornhole boards. The city plans to add more to this park, like nature trails and possibly lake access, but there’s no official timeline.
Build into the natural rock base the Kool Pool truly is a cool spot for Saint Stephens locals.
Visitors can enjoy the public soccer fields when there are no games at Henry Fork River Park.
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Live music, food and beer at Hickory’s Oktoberfest
While St. Stephen’s subdivisions hold small events, residents countdown the days to Hickory’s annual Oktoberfest. Celebrating the city’s German heritage, the event takes place downtown on Union Square the second weekend of October. Tens of thousands of revelers, some donning lederhosen, enjoy live performances, shopping at vendors and tasting German cuisine and beer. The KidsFest area keeps little ones entertained. Oktoberfest also has a charitable cause: the Susan L. Coleman Castle of Cans. The annual month-long food drive culminates at the festival and supports several area food banks.
Local restaurants and entertainment in Downtown Hickory
With local restaurants and entertainment venues like Carolina Movie Theater, Downtown Hickory is where St. Stephens residents go for an evening out. Hefner says Notions in Union Square is a local favorite for American fare enjoyed on the patio or in its contemporary dining space featuring a gallery wall of mirrors. “Notions is more of a high-end place a few steps above restaurants like Outback Steakhouse,” Hefner says. The family-owned Las Isabelas is a go-to for traditional Mexican dishes and is also a meat market and tienda. Closer to home, chain restaurants and Roadside Grill, a small drive-through spot for burgers and hot dogs, dot Springs Road.
A centrally located Food Lion and Walmart Neighborhood Market make for quick grocery runs, but other national retailers can be found along U.S. Highway 70. Valley Hills Mall hosts two floors of department stores, while the Hickory Furniture Mart is a four-story hub filled with shops and galleries specializing in home furnishings.
Catawba County’s highly rated public and private schools
Catawba County Schools earns an A-minus overall rating from Niche and offers three learning pathways: traditional schools, a virtual learning program and a Spanish Immersion program. Several elementary schools serve St. Stephens, including the A-minus-rated Snow Creek Elementary, which offers a competitive robotics club. Harry M. Arndt Middle receives a B-plus. Its Broyhill Leadership Academy is modeled after Lenior-Rhyne University’s invite-only Broyhill Leadership Institute. The private Lutheran school, with undergraduate, graduate and seminary programs, is about a 4-mile drive from most homes. St. Stephens High gets a B-plus. The boy's tennis team has performed well recently, making it to the 2024 3A state championship.
A private option includes St. Stephens Lutheran Christian School, which Niche does not yet rate. Its rising 9th-grade students typically move on to University Christian High School, an A-rated Lutheran school on the campus of Lenior-Rhyne University. Catawba Valley Community College and Appalachian State University’s Hickory campus are also in the area.
Commutes and industries in western North Carolina
Local roads make for a short commute into Downtown Hickory, roughly 6 miles west of St. Stephens. Interstate 40, North Carolina’s mountain-to-sea highway, sits a few miles south of the community, connecting it to cities like Asheville and Winston-Salem. Charlotte is about 50 miles southeast via State Route 16. “You’re an hour from Charlotte Douglas International Airport and about four and a half hours from the beaches,” Hefner says. While Hickory is home to multiple manufacturing and healthcare jobs, the Catawba County region is also a growing hub for data centers. Google, Apple and Facebook all have facilities in the area.
Written By
Lia Jones
Photography Contributed By
Justin Stapp
Video By
Jarrod Bock
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