2022-09-29 Agenda Review
NEW HANOVER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BOOK 35
AGENDA REVIEW, SEPTEMBER 29, 2022 PAGE 548
ASSEMBLY
The New Hanover County Board of Commissioners met for Agenda Review on September 29, 2022, at 4:04
p.m. in the Harrell Conference Room at the New Hanover County Government Center, 230 Government Center Drive,
Wilmington, North Carolina.
Members present: Chair Julia Olson-Boseman; Vice-Chair Deb Hays; Commissioner Bill Rivenbark; and
Commissioner Rob Zapple.
Members absent: Commissioner Jonathan Barfield, Jr.
Staff present: County Manager Chris Coudriet; Deputy County Attorney Kemp Burpeau; and Clerk to the
Board Kymberleigh G. Crowell.
Chair Olson-Boseman called the Agenda Review meeting to order and announced that the purpose of the
meeting is to review and discuss the agenda items for the October 3, 2022 Regular Meeting with discussions as noted
and that Emergency Management Director Steven Still will provide an update on Hurricane Ian:
STAFF UPDATE ON TROPICAL STORM IAN
Emergency Management Director Steven Still provided an update on Hurricane Ian. As 2:00 p.m., Hurricane
Ian is expected to make landfall near Charleston, South Carolina. With this projected path, it is expected that New
Hanover County (County) will see gusty conditions on Friday morning with gusts up to 49 miles per hour (mph) by
mid-afternoon. The County is currently under a tropical storm warning and storm surge watch. Rainfall totals are
expected to be between 4-6 inches and storm surge is expected to be 1-3 feet at high tide. The emergency operations
center (EOC) will be activated starting at 7:00 a.m. on Friday with only emergency management staff present. Track
changes are anticipated with the 5:00 p.m. update, with a more eastward track expected. The next call with the
National Weather Service (NWS) is at 6:00 p.m. today. Tropical storm force winds extend 100 miles from the storm’s
center, and although the center of the storm is not expected to come this far north, impacts will still be felt. Mr. Still
stated he does not see the need for a State of Emergency at this time but believes that one should be drafted just in
case. There is not an expectation to need a full activation nor to open shelters at this time. Emergency Management
staff have been in contact with municipal partners and the Board will continue to be provided updates.
Chair Olson-Boseman thanked Mr. Still for the update.
Consent Agenda Item #2: Approval of Shoaf Law Firm, P.A. Request for Refund of Deed Excise Tax: In
response to Board questions, Clerk Crowell explained that pursuant to North Carolina General Statute 105-228.37,
a request for refund of overpayment of real property conveyance excise tax must be made within six months of the
date of payment and the refund must be approved by the Board of Commissioners. In response to Board questions,
she confirmed that it was a clerical error and is a rare request to receive. A waiver of notice was received from Shoaf
Law Firm, P.A., and a public hearing is not required.
Consent Agenda Item #4: Adoption of Budget Amendments: In response to Board questions regarding
budget amendment (B/A) 23-030, County Manager Coudriet stated that the requested increase is due to a state
salary increase. The increase is not an unfunded mandate as the Board made the decision to provide the position to
the District Attorney.
Regular Item #9: Consideration of Updated American Rescue Plan Framework and Film Internship Grant
Request: In response to Board questions, County Manager Coudriet stated that Intergovernmental Affairs Manage
Tim Buckland and Susie Hamilton are set to present the request on Monday. Included in the packet is a letter of
support from Cape Fear Community College for the film training program.
Regular Item #11: Presentation of Workforce Housing Services Program Recommendation for Funding
Allocation. Commissioner Zapple stated that he was excited to see this program come to fruition and looks forward
to the presentation on Monday. He thanked staff for their work on this.
Regular Item #14: Text Amendment Request (TA22-02) – Request by Austen Truhe and Christina Sheltra,
applicants, to amend the Unified Development Ordinance to permit the use of Accessory Dwelling Units in all
residential zoning districts. In response to Board questions, Planning and Land Use Director Rebekah Roth confirmed
that the amendment will allow for accessory dwelling units (ADU) to be up to 1,000 square feet. Ms. Roth introduced
Sarah Lipkin-Sularz, the County’s new housing planner, to provide more information. Ms. Lipkin-Sularz stated that
the change allows the County to start with smaller ADUs which may allow for an increase in size later. Regarding the
City of Wilmington (City) consider increasing the ADU size in its ordinance to 1,200 square feet, Ms. Roth stated that
1,000 square feet is staff’s recommendation based on their research of what is allowed in other counties. The
applicants’ primary concern is for ADUs to be allowed. Vice-Chair Hays stated that she believes the City and County
should be coordinated with one another and would be in favor of increasing the ADU size for the County to 1,200
square feet. Ms. Roth stated that one of the other components the City is looking at is that an ADU can only be 50%
of the size of the main dwelling which could make it more restrictive in some cases. The Board was not in favor of
adding a percentage limitation. Ms. Roth added that staff wanted to be sure there is a mechanism in place so that if
a citizen mistakenly upgrades a structure to an ADU, there is a way in the ordinance to make it legal.
NEW HANOVER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BOOK 35
AGENDA REVIEW, SEPTEMBER 29, 2022 PAGE 549
Regular Item #15: Text Amendment Request (TA22-03) - Request by New Hanover County to amend
Articles 2, 3, 4, 5, and 10 of the Unified Development Ordinance in order to modernize standards, clarify existing
standards, and update standards to make sure they are effective. Commissioner Zapple stated that he believes the
amendments are good, but expressed concerns with Article 5.3, Tree Retention as he feels there needs to be more
discussion on it. Commissioner Rivenbark commented on the Pender Commerce Park and how trees were kept along
the perimeter. Planning and Land Use Director Rebekah Roth stated that the tree retention plan for the Pender
Commerce Park is specific to that project.
ADDITIONAL ITEMS
Commissioner Rivenbark stated that he has received several calls about contractors riding around with no
tags on their trailers. In response to Board questions, Tax Administrator Allison Snell stated that taxes for trailers are
linked to tags. It is up to law enforcement to enforce and not something her office can enforce. Commissioner
Rivenbark also commented on the wonderful job being done by the Environmental Management Department on
picking up trash on the sides of the road.
STAFF UPDATE
Update on the Chamber’s Business Retention and Expansion Program. Wilmington Chamber of Commerce Vice
President-Small Business Development and Business Retention Josh Hallingse provided the following update:
Small business development and business retention
Amplify the voice of small business owners: P2P Rescue, Portrett Pharmaceuticals, Craftspace, End of
Days Distillery, and Grover Gaming – help tell the story of small businesses
Targeted marketing and business development:
Advocacy and networking:
NEW HANOVER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BOOK 35
AGENDA REVIEW, SEPTEMBER 29, 2022 PAGE 550
In response to Board questions regarding to space needs for businesses, Mr. Hallingse stated that the small
businesses he is reaching out to, and visiting are existing businesses that have an average of 6,200 square feet of
space. Through those visits, their needs are tracked but the average ask for space is based on the type of business
and the class of real estate. Office space has not been a problem as the need is more on the industrial side.
Chair Olson-Boseman thanked Mr. Hallingse for the presentation.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business, Chair Olson-Boseman adjourned the meeting at 4:49 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Kymberleigh G. Crowell
Clerk to the Board
Please note that the above minutes are not a verbatim record of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners
meeting. The entire proceedings are available online at www.nhcgov.com.