Planning Board minutes - 040721 - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

Approved 5.5.21 169 170 Perdita Holtz: Conditional Districts, as they are now called, require a Neighborhood Information Meeting so there are 171 multiple steps that happen before notices for a Planning Board meeting or a Public Hearing ever goes out. For instance, 172 on page 68 there are the requirements for a Neighborhood Information Meeting for Conditional Districts. Notices for 173 Neighborhood Information Meetings are sent out 14 days prior and it is a 1,000 feet requirement and a sign is also 174 required to be posted on the property. 175 176 Lamar Proctor: My concern is notice, there are plenty of spots where notice gets sent but they seem to be shrinking under 177 these amendments. Is there a mechanism when there is an application for a zoning amendment that would include an 178 informational meeting in front of the County Commissioners prior to the Planning Board considering it? It feels like these 179 applications go out and come through the Planning Board and then we get surprised or even they get surprised at what is 180 being put in front of them. Is there any mechanism that could be initiated or put in place where there is an application and 181 then there is an informational session with the Board of Commissioners at a Public Hearing that says this is a zoning 182 change that's being applied for,the process has starting and we're letting you know this is coming and we are following the 183 process next where the Commissioners are put on notice and the public is put on notice. I feel like things kind of popped 184 up and then interested parties hear about them by word of mouth and I want to make sure the public is getting the proper 185 notice. Most people don't get newspapers anymore so those are some of my concerns regarding notice. 186 187 Michael Harvey: When an application is submitted, staff has five business days to determine sufficiency. Once it's 188 sufficient and formally accepted, that's when our internal clock for the LIDO starts. There is an internal review by Planning 189 Department staff and other County staff through our Development Advisory Committee(DAC),we then schedule the 190 Neighborhood Information Meeting. With Conditional District applications,the Neighborhood Information Meeting is 191 required to occur in a set timeframe before Public Hearing. Notices of the Neighborhood Information Meeting are sent to 192 property owners within 1,000 feet. The notices have to be sent 14 days prior to the date of the Neighborhood Information 193 Meeting and we post signs on the property. After the Neighborhood Information Meeting it then goes to the Planning 194 Board and there is a separate mailing required for Conditional District applications before the Planning Board, not required 195 by State law but something the County is going to continue to do. After the Planning Board, there is a Public Hearing with 196 a separate advertising component. There are three public meetings, Neighborhood Information Meeting, Planning Board 197 meeting and Public Hearing with three separate advertisings for each application.As for an initial public review, at last 198 night's meeting,there was a petition submitted by a County Commissioner to study whether or not we need to amend the 199 Unified Development Ordinance to create a concept plan meeting where a conditional application would be reviewed by 200 the County Commissioners before a Neighborhood Information Meeting is scheduled to offer comments to the applicant. 201 That is in an infant stage in terms that we haven't been given formal direction by the BOCC to investigate that process but 202 it is something that is being discussed. It was looked at several years ago but we were not authorized to submit the formal 203 procedure to amend the UDO to include it but it is something the BOCC is tinkering with having us look at again. 204 205 Craig Benedict: It did come up last night and it will be referred to BOCC Chair/Vice-Chair to be discussed and will include 206 the County Manager/Deputy Manager and myself on what modifications could be necessary to have such a process. The 207 reason it wasn't followed through with before was in the interest to have as much technical input on an application to offer 208 to the applicant before someone looks at an application that might not be fully vetted. It may be part of our process that 209 after all the various departments, NCDOT, Emergency Services, Fire, everybody makes their comments, and we let 210 everybody know that we are looking at the aspects of an application. Then maybe there's another opportunity for the 211 public to see it sooner rather than later. It might not—they thought having an un-vetted project by all those different 212 internal agencies would make it look like the work was not being done. 213 214 Lamar Proctor: Board of Adjustment is appealed to Superior Court and does not go before the County Commissioners? 215 216 Perdita Holtz: Correct. 217 218 Lamar Proctor: The minimum 10 days and the removal of the exclusions is a huge deal and I question that. It seems to 219 be something that is part of the history of our UDO and now it's wide open and those exclusions are removed. Those are 220 my concerns. 221 222 Perdita Holtz: Maybe it would help you to know, all of these uses are allowed somewhere already they just weren't going 223 to be allowed as a Conditional Use District but they are allowed in certain Zoning Districts if you look in the Table of