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40 <br />Comments from Commissioner Alice Gordon distributed at BOCC/PB public hearing <br />11 /22/2010 <br />CONSIDERATION OF THE UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCE (UDO) <br />A. CONDITIONAL DISTRICTS <br />Conditional Districts (floating zoning districts) can have a significant effect on <br />development in Orange County. Therefore it is important that citizens are not only <br />aware that this new type of zoning district is being proposed, but that they also have <br />time to understand the implications of the two new conditional districts. <br />1. Conditional Use District (CUD). Except for certain exclusions, it appears that for a <br />Conditional Use District, any use permitted in the Table of Permitted Uses can <br />potentially go almost anywhere in Orange County's planning jurisdiction. Whether that <br />is true or not needs to clarified, and the ambiguity eliminated. If it is true, here is a list of <br />some of the uses that could be permitted almost anywhere: <br />Banks & financial institutions; kennels; laundry & dry cleaning services; massage <br />(business); night clubs, bars, pubs; offices & personal services; restaurants; retail; <br />storage or warehousing; assembly & packaging operations; anima! hospitals, <br />veterinarians; health services (under 10,000 square feet); rehabilitative care facility; <br />rooming house; motor vehicle sales & rental; motor vehicle services stations; parking as <br />a principal use (surface or structure); assembly facility (i.e. place for people to meet?); <br />research lands and installations; special events. <br />2. Conditional Zoning Districts (CZDs). It appears that these floating zoning districts <br />can be placed in any of the general zoning districts, as long as the regulations <br />associated with each specific district are followed. Also, in contrast to the current <br />zoning ordinance (for Planned Developments), no Special Use Permit (SUP) is required <br />for CZDs. Thus the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) has more discretion over <br />whether to approve a rezoning request for a CZD than it would in approving a SUP <br />which requires making aquasi-judicial decision that must be based on competent, <br />substantial evidence presented at a public hearing. <br />B. UDO CHANGES <br />There have been many changes between the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) <br />discussed earlier this fall and the final document brought to the November 22 Quarterly <br />Public Hearing. In addition, this document was not available to the public until less than <br />two weeks before the hearing. Furthermore, the Chapel Hill Town Council and Carrboro <br />Board of Aldermen need a chance to review the UDO to ascertain how it applies to the <br />areas covered by the Joint Planning Agreement. <br />C. ADDITIONAL TIME FOR REVIEW <br />Because of the proposed addition of floating zoning districts (Conditional Districts) <br />which is a significant change to Orange County's current zoning ordinance, and the <br />number of changes that were incorporated into the extremely large UDO document. <br />