1-4.1   STATE LAW

This Ordinance is adopted pursuant to Chapter 160D, Local Planning and Development Regulation . This Ordinance is further adopted pursuant to the following Session Laws applicable to Forsyth County, and these laws are followed to the extent that they are not inconsistent with the cited General Statutes: Chapter 677, 1947 Session Laws, as amended, and other applicable laws.

(UDO L-164, § 2, 7-8-21)

1-4.2   INTENT

The intent of the adopting jurisdiction is to exercise its available power as authorized in the statutes cited in Section B.1-4.1 to the maximum extent possible, as more fully set forth herein.

1-4.3   AMENDMENTS

This Ordinance may be amended in accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance as required or allowed by subsequent legislative enactments.

1-5.1   COMPLIANCE WITH PROVISIONS

No building, premises, or structure shall be used, constructed, erected, modified, altered, converted, occupied, placed, maintained, removed or moved, and no land use shall be commenced, maintained, or modified except in compliance with the provisions, restrictions, and procedures set forth herein.

1-5.2   VESTED RIGHTS

(A)

Rights Perfected Prior to this Ordinance .....Development rights perfected prior to the effective date of this Ordinance shall be subject to the Zoning Ordinance or other legal requirements under which the rights were perfected, unless and until such vested rights are withdrawn or expire in accordance with law.

(B)

General Statutes 160D-108

(1)

Purpose. .....The purpose of this section is to implement the provisions of G.S. 160D-108.

(2)

Definitions. .....As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meaning indicated:

(a)

Site Specific Vesting Plan. .....A plan of land development submitted to the local jurisdiction for purposes of obtaining one (1) of the following zoning or land use permits or approvals in accordance with Section B.6.

(i)

Approval of a use requiring a special use permit by the Board of Adjustment in accordance with Section B.6-1.4(A).

(ii)

Approval of a use requiring a special use permit by the Elected Body in accordance with Section B.6-1.5.

(iii)

Approval of a one-phase special use district zoning petition or a site plan amendment to a one-phase special use district zoning petition by the Elected Body in accordance with Section B.6-2.2.

(iv)

Approval of a final development plan by the Planning Board in accordance with Section B.6-2.2(D) pursuant to a two-phase special use district zoning petition approved by the Elected Body in accordance with Section B.6-2.2

Notwithstanding the foregoing, neither a variance, a sketch plan nor any other document that does not describe with reasonable certainty the type and intensity of use for a specified parcel or parcels of property shall constitute a site specific development plan.

(b)

Vested Right. .....A right established pursuant to G.S. 160D-108 of the North Carolina General Statutes related to the establishment of vested rights.

(3)

Establishment of Vested Right.

(a)

A vested right shall be deemed established upon the valid approval or approval with conditions by the Elected Body in compliance with all provisions of this Ordinance or Subdivision Ordinance, as applicable, of a site specific vesting plan, following notice and public hearing.

(b)

The Elected Body may approve a site specific vesting plan upon such terms and conditions as authorized in Sections B.6-1 and B.6-2 of this Ordinance, and upon making such findings as are required for approval by this Ordinance.

(c)

Notwithstanding Sections B.1-5.2(B)(1) and (2), approval of a site specific vesting plan with the condition that a variance be obtained shall not confer a vested right unless and until the necessary variance is obtained.

(d)

A site specific development plan shall be deemed approved upon the effective date of approval by the approving authority or ordinance relating thereto, and only to the extent of that approval.

(e)

The establishment of a vested right shall not preclude the application of overlay zoning that imposes additional requirements but does not affect the allowable type or intensity of use, or ordinances or regulations that are general in nature and are applicable to all property subject to land-use regulation by the local jurisdiction, including, but not limited to, building, fire, plumbing, electrical, and mechanical codes. Otherwise applicable new or amended regulations shall become effective with respect to property that is subject to a site specific vesting plan upon the expiration or termination of the vested right in accordance with this section.

(f)

A vested right is not a personal right, but shall attach to and run with the applicable property. After approval of a site specific vesting plan, all successors to the original landowner shall be entitled to exercise such right while applicable.

(4)

Approval Procedures and Vested Rights for Site Specific Development Plans.

(a)

Plans shall be submitted and processed in accordance with the procedures established by this Ordinance and shall be considered by the designated approving authority for the specific type of zoning or land use permit or approval for which application is made. A vested right is established once approval is granted by the approving authority following notice and public hearing.

(b)

The notice of public hearing required for vested rights shall follow the same advertisement procedure as is required by the approving authority for the specific type of approval for which application is made.

(c)

Nothing in this section shall prohibit the revocation of the original approval or other remedies for failure to comply with applicable terms and conditions of the approval by the approving authority or of this Ordinance.

(5)

Duration.

(a)

A vested right for a site specific vesting plan shall remain vested for a period of two (2) years. This vesting shall not be extended by any amendments or modifications to a site specific vesting plan. The Elected Body may provide that rights regarding a site specific vesting plan shall be vested for a period exceeding two (2) years, but not exceeding five (5) years, if warranted by the size and phasing of development, the level of investment, the need for the development, economic cycles, and market conditions, or other considerations. This determination shall be in the discretion of the local government and shall be made following the process specified for the particular form of a site specific vesting plan involved in accordance with subsection C of this ordinance.

(b)

Relation to Building Permits. .....A right vested as provided in this subsection shall terminate at the end of the applicable vesting period with respect to buildings and uses for which no valid building permit applications have been filed. Upon issuance of a building permit, the provisions of G.S. 160D, Article 1, shall apply, except that the permit shall not expire or be revoked because of the running time while a vested right under this subsection exists.

(c)

Multiphase Developments. .....A multiphase development shall be vested for the entire development with the zoning regulations, subdivision regulations, and unified development ordinances in place at the time a site plan approval is granted for the initial phase of the multiphase development. This right shall remain vested for a period of seven (7) years from the time a site plan approval is granted for the initial phase of the multiphase development. For purposes of this subsection, "multiphase development" means a development containing one hundred (100) acres or more that (i) is submitted for site plan approval for construction to occur in more than one (1) phase and (ii) is subject to a master development plan with committed elements, including a requirement to offer land for public use as a condition of its master development plan approval.

(d)

Development Agreements. .....A vested right of reasonable duration may be specified in a development agreement under Article 10 of Chapter 160D of the North Carolina General Statutes.

(e)

Upon the expiration or termination of the vested right in accordance with this section, the site specific vesting plan shall be subject to all current Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) regulations or other applicable requirements of law relating to the development of the site.

(6)

Termination. .....A right that has been vested as provided in this section shall terminate upon any of the following:

(a)

No Building Permit. .....Termination of the applicable vesting period with respect to buildings and uses for which no valid building permit has been issued;

(b)

Written Consent. .....Written consent of the affected landowner;

(c)

Threat to Public Health or Safety. .....Findings by the Elected Body, by ordinance after notice and a public hearing, that natural or man-made hazards on or in the immediate vicinity of the property, if uncorrected, would pose a serious threat to the public health, safety, and welfare if the project were to proceed as contemplated in the approved vested plan;

(d)

Compensation. .....Compensation to the affected landowner for all costs, expenses, and other losses incurred by the landowner, including, but not limited to, all fees paid in consideration of financing, and all architectural, planning, marketing, legal, and other consultant's fees incurred after approval by the local jurisdiction, together with interest as provided in G.S. 160D-106. Compensation shall not include any diminution in the value of the property which is caused by such action;

(e)

Misrepresentation. .....Findings by the Elected Body, by ordinance after notice and a hearing, that the landowner or his representative intentionally supplied inaccurate information or made material misrepresentations which made a difference in the approval by the Elected Body of the site specific vesting plan; or,

(f)

State or Federal Law. .....Enactment or promulgation of a State or federal law or regulation that precludes development as contemplated in the site specific vesting plan, in which case the Elected Body may modify the affected provisions, upon a finding that the change in State or federal law has a fundamental effect on the plan, by ordinance, after notice and a hearing.

(7)

Limitations. .....Nothing in this section is intended or shall be deemed to create any vested right other than those established pursuant to G.S. 160D-108.

(UDO L-164, § 2, 7-8-21)

1-5.3   MULTIPLE USES

In cases of two (2) or more principal uses on the same zoning lot, the regulations for each use shall apply to that portion of the structure or land so used.

1-5.4   MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

The requirements contained in this Ordinance shall be the minimum requirements for administration, enforcement, procedures, restrictions, standards, uses, variances, and all other areas addressed by this Ordinance; and, if any other existing ordinance or regulation allows lesser regulation, this Ordinance shall govern, so that in all cases, the more restrictive limitation or requirement shall govern.

1-6.1   INVALIDATION OF PORTIONS OF ORDINANCE

Should any section, sentence, clause, phrase, or word of this Ordinance be held invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction of either the State of North Carolina or of the United States, such decision shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remaining parts of this Ordinance. The remaining parts shall remain in effect without the invalid provision, and to that extent they are severable.

1-6.2   INVALIDATION OF APPLICATION

This invalidation of the application of any provision of this Ordinance to any particular property or structure, or to any particular properties or structures, by any court of competent jurisdiction, shall not affect the application of such provision to any other property or structure not specifically included in such invalidation.

1-6.3   PRESUMPTION

When an administration officer or board authorizes regulatory action, it shall be conclusively presumed that such officer or board would not have authorized such action except in the belief that such action was lawful.

1-7.1   CONFLICT WITHIN ORDINANCE

Where a conflict exists between any limitations or requirements in this Ordinance, the more restrictive limitation or requirements shall prevail.

1-7.2   CONFLICT WITH OTHER ORDINANCE OR LAW

Where a conflict exists between the provisions of this Ordinance and any other ordinance or law, or where the provisions of this Ordinance impose overlapping or contradictory regulations, the most restrictive provision or the one which imposes the highest standards or requirements shall prevail.