2022-02-03 PB MINUTES
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Minutes of the
New Hanover County Planning Board
February 3, 2022
A regular meeting of the New Hanover County Planning Board was held on February 3, 2022, at 6:00 p.m. in the
New Hanover County Historic Courthouse, 24 North Third Street, Room 301 in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Members Present Staff Present
Jeffrey Petroff, Chair Rebekah Roth, Director of Planning
Donna Girardot, Vice Chair Ken Vafier, Planning Manager
Hansen Matthews Zachary Dickerson, Current Planner
Colin J. Tarrant Amy Doss, Current Planner
Marty Little, Long-Range Planner
Sharon Huffman, Deputy County Attorney
Absent Members
Paul Boney
Allen Pope
Jeffrey Stokley Jr.
Chair Jeff Petroff called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. and excused Board Members Paul Boney, Allen Pope, and
Jeffrey Stokley Jr.’s absence. Planning Manager, Ken Vafier led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Approval of Minutes
Minutes from the January 6, 2022, Planning Board meeting were presented to the members. No changes or
amendments were identified. Board Member Colin Tarrant made a MOTION, SECONDED by Board Member Hansen
Matthews to approve the minutes as drafted.
Motion to approve minutes carried 4-0
NEW BUSINESS
Rezoning Request (Z22-01) - Request by Cindee Wolf with Design Solutions, applicant, on behalf of Atlantic Coast
Holdings, LLC, property owner, to rezone approximately 5 acres of land located in the 6300 block of Sidbury
Road from R-15, Residential District to (CZD) B-2, Regional Business District, for a mini-warehouse/self-storage
facility.
Planning Manager Ken Vafier stated that staff had received notice from the applicant requesting a continuance of
the rezoning application and deferred to Ms. Cindee Wolf.
Ms. Cindee Wolf with Design Solutions, on behalf of Atlantic Coast Holdings, LLC, property owner, stated it would be
of benefit to the applicant if all Planning Board members were present when they presented their project. Ms. Wolf
requested a continuance of the rezoning application to the March 2022 agenda.
Vice Chair Donna Girardot made a MOTION, SECONDED by Board Member, Hansen Matthews for a continuance of
the zoning request to the March meeting.
The motion for continuance of the rezoning request carried 4-0.
Rezoning Request (Z22-02) - Request by Cindee Wolf with Design Solutions, applicant, on behalf of Wilmington
Realtors Foundation, Barry Dean Cribb, and Polly Dean Cribb, property owners, to rezone approximately 6.13
acres of land located at 6221-6229 Carolina Beach Road from R-15, Residential District, to (CZD) R-5, Residential
District.
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Current Planner Zachary Dickerson stated that staff had received notice from the applicant requesting a continuance
of the rezoning application and deferred to Ms. Cindee Wolf.
Ms. Cindee Wolf with Design Solutions, on behalf of Wilmington Realtors Foundation, Barry Dean Cribb, and Polly
Dean Cribb, property owners, stated they would appreciate the input of as many Planning Board members as
possible and therefore requested a continuance of the rezoning application to the March 2022 agenda.
Board member Hansen Matthews made a MOTION, SECONDED by Vice Chair Donna Girardot for a continuance of
the zoning request to the March meeting.
The motion for continuance of the rezoning request carried 4-0.
Rezoning Request (Z22-03) - Request by Douglas E. Reeves, property owner, to rezone approximately 1.84 acres
of land located at 6205 Blossom Street from R-15, Residential District, to CB, Community Business, and R-10,
Residential District.
Current Planner Amy Doss stated that staff had received notice from the applicant requesting a continuance of the
rezoning application and deferred to Mr. Douglas Reeves.
Mr. Douglas Reeves, Reeves Holdings, LLC, property owner requested a continuance of the rezoning application to
the March Planning Board meeting.
Board member Hansen Matthews made a MOTION, SECONDED by Board Member, Colin Tarrant for a continuance
of the zoning request.
The motion for continuance of the rezoning request carried 4-0.
Chair Petroff referred specifically to the rezoning request (Z22-01) for Sidbury Road and suggested the initiation of
a study or small area plan to look at the area in a more comprehensive manner for both the Planning Board and the
Board of Commissioners. Vice Chair Girardot asked to also study the area south of Monkey Junction.
In response to the board, Ms. Rebekah Roth, Director of Planning, stated that staff would work with the long-range
team and present information at a future meeting of what the requested studies would entail.
Text Amendment Request (TA22-01) - Request by New Hanover County to modify Articles 2, 3, 4, and 5 of the
Unified Development Ordinance to update permissions and standards for wireless telecommunications facilities
and to perform technical fixes to various ordinance provisions.
Long Range Planner Marty Little provided information pertaining to modification of Articles 2, 3, 4, and 5 of the
Unified Development Ordinance to update permissions and standards for wireless telecommunications facilities and
to perform technical fixes to various ordinance provisions.
Mr. Little explained that the amendment contained two components: a telecommunications component to modify
permissions and standards for wireless support structures and a maintenance component to update various
provisions of the code that have been identified over the past few months.
Mr. Little stated that the telecommunications update consisted of five strategies intended to reduce the potential
impacts of wireless on nearby residential properties, require colocation onto existing towers when possible and to
prioritize non-residential districts when new towers are needed. He stated the updates required new applicants
provide evidence that would explain why collocating new antennae onto an existing tower would not be reasonably
feasible; a balloon test be conducted at the proposed tower site in order to simulate the tower’s perceived visual
impact; structural and aesthetic design standards that prohibited lattice towers, required equipment to be fully
contained, screened or hidden, and applied faux tree standards to towers in residential districts; and modification
of setbacks for wireless support structures located in commercial and industrial districts to reflect modern
engineered fall-zone practices. He stated the update also proposed allowing towers by right in commercial districts
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as an incentive to prioritize locating new towers in those districts rather than in residential areas, and the update
organized the wireless support structure section to make sure it was clear which standards applied to staff level
approval and which standards remained applicable to the standards that would require special use permits.
Mr. Little stated the amendment to the wireless standards provided staff an opportunity to incorporate some
technical fixes into the amendment as part of staff’s ongoing effort to ensure that the tools of the code continue to
work as they were as they were intended.
Mr. Little stated the maintenance amendment included a provision in the UDO’s measurement section to clarify how
the ordinance treated fractions. He stated the original draft had exempted the method of rounding for density
calculations, but a public comment received had made staff aware that the drafted language could be stricter than
the county’s previous uncodified practice and could create non-conforming situations, so the exemption had been
removed. He also clarified how the amendment defined a major subdivision, which was any subdivision that
exceeded the minimum criteria for a minor subdivision, allowed for the creation of special purpose utility lots, where
lots used for necessary public utilities would not be required to meet the minimum dimensional standards of the
underlying zoning district. He indicated that the amendment corrected a clerical error and allowed Senior Living:
Assisted Living facilities with a Special Use permit in a B-1 neighborhood business district.
Mr. Little stated clarified that multi-family and commercial development within the RMF districts would be subject
to street yard standards as required in the code, and that single-family developments in these districts were
currently, and would remain, exempt. He stated the amendment aligned standards for foundation planting with
recently adopted commercial building heights to avoid landscaped areas that were more excessive than the
ordinance intended. He stated the amendment clarified that the foundation planting area must be at least 12% of
the area of the building’s first floor or an area measured up to 25 feet in height of the first floor, whichever is less,
and that the amendment updated the Traffic Impact Analysis section of the code to reflect the current practice
established by NCDOT and WMPO for TIA scoping, approval and appeals.
Mr. Little stated staff was looking for a recommendation from the board and that all amendments recommended
for approval would go before the Board of Commissioners at their March meeting.
Chair Petroff closed the public hearing and opened to Board discussion.
With no further discussion, Vice Chair Donna Girardot made a MOTION, SECONDED by Board Member, Hansen
Matthews to recommend APPROVAL of proposed amendment to the New Hanover County Unified Development
Ordinance to modify permissions and standards for wireless telecommunication facilities and to perform
maintenance to various identified provisions throughout the code. The board found it to be CONSISTENT with the
purpose and intent of the 2016 Comprehensive Plan because it aligned with the plan’s implementation guidelines
that aimed to support business success, workforce development, economic prosperity, and public safety while
preserving the character of existing residential neighborhoods and advanced the county’s efforts to ensure the tools
in the code continued to work as they were intended. The board found APPROVAL of the proposed amendment
reasonable and in the public interest because it incorporated zoning tools that addressed compatibility between
necessary wireless infrastructure and established residential neighborhoods and provided needed maintenance for
clearer and more consistent standards.
The motion to recommend approval of the text amendment carried 4-0
OTHER ITEMS
Director of Planning and Land Use, Rebekah Roth provided a brief update about the January Board of Commissioners
meeting. The Commissioners had asked staff to prepare for a work session to discuss the future vision of
development on the western bank of the river. She stated the meeting would probably take place in March. She
stated as staff received more information, they would inform the board as to when the meeting would take place.
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She stated the meeting would be advertised so that anyone from the public who would like to watch it streamed live
or attend would have the opportunity to learn about it.
Chair Jeffrey Petroff adjourned the meeting at 6:21 p.m.
Please note that the above minutes are not a verbatim record of the New Hanover County Planning Board Meeting