Orange County NC Website
<br />Staff has seen an increase in the number of automotive sale business operating <br />within the County and has begun receiving complaints related to the storage and <br />display of vehicles being offered for sale, specifically too many cars being placed on <br />a parcel of property blocking or impeding access for both customers and emergency <br />vehicles. In certain instances, cars have been parked in required land use buffer <br />areas killing required landscaping or have been encroaching into adjacent rights-of- <br />way creating additional enforcement problems. <br />Staff is proposing to develop comprehensive regulations designed to limit the <br />overcrowding of automotive sales operations within all general use zoning districts <br />where such land uses are permitted. <br /> <br /> <br />2. Analysis <br />As required under Section 2.8.5 of the UDO, the Planning Director is required to: <br />‘cause an analysis to be made of the application and, based upon that analysis, <br />prepare a recommendation for consideration by the Planning Board and the Board of <br />County Commissioners’. <br />Automotive sales are allowed in the following general use zoning districts as a <br />permitted use (i.e. administrative approval) of property: <br />1. Neighborhood Commercial (NC-2) with special standards; <br />2. General Commercial (GC-4); <br />3. Existing Commercial (EC-5); <br />4. Existing Industrial (EI); <br />5. Light Industrial (I-1); <br />6. Medium Industrial (I-2); <br />7. Heavy Industrial (I-3); <br />8. Economic Development Eno High Intensity (EDE-2); and <br />9. Master Planned Development Conditional Zoning (MPD-CZ) district. <br />This use is also permitted within the Economic Development Buckhorn Low and High <br />Intensity (EDB-1 and EDB-2) districts with the review and approval of a Conditional <br />Use (i.e. a rezoning and Class A Special Use Permit) application by the BOCC. <br />Currently, the County only limits the total number of cars that can be parked and/or <br />displayed for an automotive sales business located within the Neighborhood <br />Commercial (NC-2) general use zoning district. It should be noted that staff has an <br />active code enforcement case against an existing business along Highway 70 within <br />the Cheeks Township. <br />The amendments are necessary to address congestion at automotive sales operations <br />due to too many vehicles being displayed for sale. <br />Additional analysis will be part of the public hearing materials. <br /> <br />4