Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
1 <br /> 6 <br /> Motor Vehicle Service Stations are allowed by right in <br /> the EC-5 zoning district. <br /> Motor Vehicle Repair Garage - An establishment where <br /> the following services are available: major mechanical <br /> repairs, including engine overhaul, and transmission <br /> work. Repair garages can also offer services similar <br /> to service stations. <br /> Motor Vehicle Repair Garages, though included in the <br /> definitions found in Article 22 of the Zoning <br /> Ordinance, are not included in the Permitted Use Table. <br /> Uses which are not explicitly permitted by the Zoning <br /> Ordinance are prohibited. The Planning Staff does not <br /> know at this time whether omission of Motor Vehicle <br /> Repair Garages altogether from the Permitted Uses Table <br /> was intentional or unintentional. Neither does it know <br /> whether the omission of this use from the EC-5 zoning <br /> district in the use table was intentional or <br /> unintentional. These issues will be researched further <br /> and brought before the Board of Commissioners at a <br /> later date for the purposes of determining whether or <br /> not Motor Vehicle Repair Garages should be included in <br /> the Table of Permitted Uses, and if so, in what <br /> districts they should be permitted. <br /> Land Use Classification of Wilson Property <br /> The public hearing record includes the recollection of <br /> a number of individuals who have had some familiarity <br /> with the historical use of the property. Some witness <br /> statements contain no indication of time in relation to <br /> the zoning of Bingham Township. In other cases, time <br /> estimates were very general, and not tied to a specific <br /> date of year. There was also some testimony in which <br /> the activities were described as occurring clearly <br /> after the zoning of Bingham Township. <br /> Even if it assumed that the activities occurred around <br /> the time that the township was zoned, then, the <br /> Planning Staff finds that activities which have been <br /> described as occurring on the property at that time <br /> best fit the Zoning Ordinance definition of a <br /> "junkyard" . There was evidence presented which <br /> indicated some degree of body work and engine repair. <br /> Some activities, particularly those related to repair <br /> and maintenance of "hotrod" vehicles by their owners <br /> could be considered as related to a hobby rather than a <br /> business. The Planning Staff finds that these <br /> activities would, however, have been incidental to the <br /> primary use of the property as a junkyard where <br /> vehicles would have been stored and parts salvaged. <br />