HomeMy WebLinkAboutSunset Townes Amenity Center TRC Comments
Sunset Townes Amenity Center – 2696 Alvernia Dr – TRC Review
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To: James Yopp, Sunset Townes POA Inc.
From: Zach Dickerson, Senior Planner
Date: December 17 Technical Review Committee (TRC)
PID#: R02400-002-633-000
Egov# SITECN-25-000116
Subject: 2696 Alvernia Drive – Sunset Townes Amenity Center - TRC Review
Technical Review Committee (TRC) General Information
The TRC is a staff-level group of local government officials that reviews projects for compliance with
the local regulations administered by each respective review agency. Voluntarily participating state
agencies may also provide comments. And general information and non-binding recommendations
about the site may also be provided by government agencies.
The TRC meetings are considered staff meetings and are not public hearings. The TRC meeting is an
opportunity for applicants to speak with county staff and any voluntarily participating state or federal
agencies about the review comments they have been provided.
No voting is involved in the TRC process, and no final approvals or denials are made at the TRC
meetings. Following the TRC meeting, applicants are responsible for updating their plans to address
review comments. Those revised plans need to be resubmitted to the assigned case planner. The case
planner will facilitate additional reviews until all comments have been addressed, and the necessary
departments have stated the plans comply with the applicable minimum requirements for
development.
Following any future TRC approval, the project is required to obtain additional permits to include a
zoning compliance permit for the site. Applicants are also responsible for coordinating with state and
federal agencies for compliance with any additional requirements. Any activity on the property that is
not approved as part of the TRC review and zoning compliance permit will be considered a violation
of the UDO and subject to enforcement action under Article 12 Violations and Enforcement.
The following comments have been received for the December 17, 2025, TRC meeting. Additional
comments may be made upon further review of subsequent revisions.
Sunset Townes Amenity Center – 2696 Alvernia Dr – TRC Review
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Planning, Zach Dickerson 910-798-7450
Compliance with local UDO requirements
1. General Comments
a. Zoning district is R-15, Residential
b. This project encompasses the amenity center and pool for the Sunset Townes
neighborhood. The closest use definition for amenity center is Community Center.
c. It appears the mailbox kiosk for Sunset Townes was approved in the preliminary plan
review of this development- can you confirm the location? I can’t find it on the original
layout and I don’t see it on the amenity center plans.
d. The Planning and Land Use Department’s review of the site is for compliance with the
UDO and use specific requirements of the specified land use. Any other activity that
might occur on the property beyond the definition above should be noted on the
application and site plan for additional review and comment.
2. UDO Section 5.1, Parking and Loading
a. The closest use for amenity center in the use table is Community Center.
b. The Community Center use requires 2.5 spaces per 1,000 sq ft.
i. 2,600 sq ft amenity center (2.6) * 2.5 = 6.5 spaces, round to 7.
ii. 8 parking spaces shown on the plan, number is sufficient.
c. Please show parking spot dimensions on the plan. 90° parking spots require a
minimum 9’x18’ size.
3. UDO Section 5.2, Traffic, Access and Connectivity
a. Please note that no building permit for any structure shall be issued which requires
NCDOT approval for a Driveway Permit until NCDOT has issued the permit approval.
Evidence of approval shall accompany the application for building permit.
4. UDO Section 5.3, Tree Retention
a. It does not appear any trees are being removed for this project as the land is already
cleared. Please confirm.
b. Note: Land disturbance permits can be issued by county Engineering before a Tree
Removal Permit is approved by Planning. However, any trees removed before the Tree
Removal Permit is issued may result in enforcement action under Section 5.3.2 of the
Unified Development Ordinance to include prohibiting any development of the site for
3 to 5 years.
Sunset Townes Amenity Center – 2696 Alvernia Dr – TRC Review
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5. UDO Section 5.4, Landscaping and Buffering
a. Please detail parking lot landscaping. Parking lot landscaping is required at 8% of the
total area used for parking. These areas can potentially be used as parking lot islands
if they are landscaped as such.
b. Foundation plantings look good, thanks!
c. Street yard does not appear sufficient. Per staff calculations, it appears you have
approximately 251 feet of frontage on Alvernia Dr.
a. Nonresidential uses in residential zoning districts require 12 square feet of
street yard per linear foot of street frontage. 251 * 12 = 3,012 sq ft of street
yard.
b. The area where the trees are planted as shown on the plan appears to be a
little over 1,500 sq ft.
c. Shrubs are also required.
d. The street yard can be planted in any configuration provided the minimum
square footage is met.
e. Minimum width is 8 feet, maximum is 18 feet.
d. All planting materials must comply with the approved planting materials listed in the
New Hanover County Tree & Landscaping Manual. The species and size must be listed
in the final landscape plan indicating compliance with the manual. Or evidence the
proposed plant species are acceptable from the county Agricultural Extension office.
Sunset Townes Amenity Center – 2696 Alvernia Dr – TRC Review
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6. UDO Section 5.5, Lighting
a. Please note that a lighting plan is not required for TRC approval but will be required
prior to issuance of construction plan approvals.
b. Is any lighting proposed for the site?
7. UDO Section 5.6, Signs
a. Check to see if the locations of any freestanding signs are shown on the plan. If the
sign is along a DOT maintained road or near an intersection with a DOT road (including
the driveway access). They need to show the required DOT sight triangles on the plan
and the sign location must be outside the sight triangles.
b. If no freestanding signs are shown on the property, ask the question whether any
signs are planned? And that if signs will be added, the plans need to show the location,
but not the size.
c. For any signs on the site, a separate sign permit must be submitted and reviewed by
the county for compliance with Section 5.6 of the UDO for standards at or after the
submittal of the separate zoning compliance and construction permits for the primary
building or use. Any approvals granted by the TRC for the site design is not an approval
for the ultimate size or placement of the sign.
8. UDO Section 5.7, Conservation Resources
a. The conservation resource map does not indicate that there are any conservation
resources on this property.
9. UDO Article 9, Flood Damage Prevention
a. A portion of this property is in the 500-year and the AE floodplain.
b. FRIS panel is number 3210.
c. Please delineate the floodplain boundaries on the site plan- it does not appear that
any buildings for this site plan are located in the floodplain.
Sunset Townes Amenity Center – 2696 Alvernia Dr – TRC Review
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NHC Fire Services, Ray Griswold 910-798-7448
Compliance with NC Fire Code
1. Fire finals required.
2. Portable fire extinguishers per NFPA 10.
3. NFPA 704 marking on Pool Chemical Storage and pump rooms required.
NHC Engineering, Galen Jamison 910-798-7072
Stormwater management and land disturbance
1. A revision to STMW-22-0018 will be required. Should any stormwater conveyance measures
be proposed, please include the requisite calculations with the permit submission. Please
digitally submit the permit applications documentation revisions with requisite review fees
using STMW-22-0018 to the COAST online permit portal (https://newhanovercountync-
energovpub.tylerhost.net/apps/selfservice#/home.
2. A revision to LNDP-19-0016will be required. Please digitally submit the permit applications
documentation revisions with requisite review fees using LNDP-19-0016 to the COAST online
permit portal (https://newhanovercountync-
energovpub.tylerhost.net/apps/selfservice#/home.
3. Please contact the State for their stormwater permit requirements. It is anticipated a minor
modification to SW8 220307 will be required.
NHC Environmental Health, Dustin Fenske 910-798-6732
Septic tanks and wells
1. Surrounding properties are connected to public sewer. Site must connect to public sewer.
2. Surrounding properties are connected to public water. Site must connect to public water.
3. Pool plans must be submitted to NHC Environmental Health and approved prior to building
permit issuance.
Sunset Townes Amenity Center – 2696 Alvernia Dr – TRC Review
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NHC Addressing, McCabe Watson 910-798-7068
Street naming and property address
1. No comments, existing address is acceptable.
Cape Fear Public Utility Authority, Bernice Johnson 910-332-6620
Public water and sewer
1. CFPUA TRC Comments provided are preliminary comments only.
2. CFPUA is moving toward becoming paperless. When ready to submit plan review package,
upload all documents to https://www.cfpua.org/FormCenter/Engineering-3/Engineering-
Plan-Review-103.
3. Water is private, behind CFPUA master meter; private sewer.
NCDOT, Nick Drees 910-343-3915
Driveway access and state road improvements
1. No comments- nothing else required.
WMPO, Luke Hutson 910-343-3915
New Hanover County contracted traffic engineering services comments:
1. See attached.
Sunset Townes Amenity Center – 2696 Alvernia Dr – TRC Review
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Project information also provided to the following state agencies and non-regulatory local
agencies for their awareness:
New Hanover County Emergency Management
New Hanover County Schools
NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ)
NC DEQ Division of Coastal Management
NC DEQ Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources
New Hanover County Sustainability Manager
New Hanover County Soil and Water Conservation
US Army Corps of Engineers
MEMORANDUM
To: New Hanover County Technical Review Committee
Date: December 1, 2025
Subject: Sunset Towns Clubhouse
Comments:
• If the amenity center will be open to the public or to those outside the Sunset Towns
community, the trip generation will need to be reassessed to determine if a TIA is
required.
NCDOT Projects:
• N/A
WMPO 2050 MTP Projects:
• N/A
New Hanover County Projects:
• N/A
TIA: The amenity center will be used by the Sunset Towns community and subject to mainly
internal traffic, and not open to the public, a TIA is not required.