(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

   (A)   Before an amendment to this chapter may be adopted, it must be presented or referred to the County Planning Board for the Planning Board's recommendation. The Planning Board shall be given at least 30 days in which to make a recommendation. Whenever territory is added to an existing designated zoning area, it shall be treated as an amendment to this chapter for that area.

   (B)   When conducting a review of proposed zoning text or map amendments, the Planning Board shall advise and comment on whether the proposed action is consistent with any comprehensive plan that has been adopted and any other officially adopted plan that is applicable. The Planning Board shall provide a written recommendation to the governing board that addresses plan consistency and other matters as deemed appropriate by the Planning Board, but a comment by the Planning Board that a proposed amendment is inconsistent with the comprehensive plan shall not preclude consideration or approval of the proposed amendment by the Board of Commissioners. If a zoning map amendment qualifies as a "large-scale rezoning" under G.S. Chapter 160D, the Planning Board statement describing plan consistency may address the overall rezoning and describe how the analysis and policies in the relevant adopted plans were considered in the recommendation made.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

    An amendment may be initiated by the Board of Commissioners, the Planning Board, the Board of Adjustment, or by the petition of any owner of a legal or equitable interest in land located in the county.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

   (A)   A petition requesting an amendment shall be presented to the Planning Board on a form prescribed by the Planning Board. The petition shall contain such information, and shall be presented in such a manner as specified by the Planning Board. The petition shall be submitted to the Pasquotank County Planning Department 30 days prior to the regularly scheduled Planning Board meeting. The Planning Board, after considering the petition, shall prepare a recommendation to be considered by the Board of Commissioners. The recommendation should contain all information considered by the Planning Board in its deliberations and reasons for its recommendation. In cases of petitions requesting rezoning of property or an amendment to the zoning ordinance text an application fee established by the County Commissioners shall be paid by the applicant to the County of Pasquotank to cover necessary administrative costs prior to placement of the petition on any agenda of the Planning Board. Petitions presented to the Planning Board may be withdrawn at any time. Application fees are nonrefundable.

   (B)   The Zoning Administrator shall cause a public notice to be published identifying the nature of the petition and date, time, and place at which the Planning Board will review the request. The notice shall be published in a newspaper having general circulation in Pasquotank County at least ten days prior to the scheduled Planning Board meeting. The notification may be in the form of an item included on the Planning Board agenda.

   (C)   For zoning map amendments, the Zoning Administrator shall mail individual notices, by first class mail, to the affected landowner, as shown on the county tax listing, and to abutting property owners in all directions from the affected parcel. Notices shall be deposited in the mail at least ten days prior to the scheduled Planning Board meeting.

   (D)   If an amendment petition is denied by the Board of County Commissioners, a rezoning petition similar to that denied for the same property or a portion of the same property within one year of the Board's actions shall not be accepted, except that:

      (1)   There has been a significant change in the zoning classification of adjacent properties; or

      (2)   The Board of Commissioners has adopted a plan that changes public policy regarding how the property affected by the amendment should be developed; or

      (3)   Public facilities such as roads, water mains, sewer lines, or other infrastructure are constructed or expanded to serve the property or to accommodate the intensity of development allowed under the proposed classification.

   Note: Change in ownership of the subject property does not qualify for an exception to the one-year restriction.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

   (A)   Before amending this chapter, the Board of Commissioners shall hold a public hearing on the amendment, at which parties interested in the proposed amendment shall have an opportunity to be heard. Notice of the hearing shall be provided and the public hearing shall be conducted in accordance with this subchapter. Upon receiving a recommendation from the Planning Board, the Administrator shall coordinate with the County Manager's office the scheduling of a public hearing and publication of a notice of the public hearing for any amendment to this chapter.

   (B)   If any resident or property owner in the county submits a written statement regarding a proposed amendment, modification, or repeal to a zoning regulation, including a text or map amendment, to the Clerk to the Board at least two business days prior to the proposed vote on such change, the Clerk to the Board shall deliver such written statement to the Board of Commissioners.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

   (B)   Large-scale zoning map amendments. First-class mail notice shall not be required if the zoning map amendment proposes to change the zoning designation of more than 50 properties, owned by at least 50 different property owners, and if the county elects to use the expanded published notice provided for in this division (B). In this instance, the county may elect to make the mailed notice required of this section or, as an alternative, elect to publish notice of the hearing as required by G.S. § 160D-601, provided that each advertisement shall not be less than one-half of a newspaper page in size. The advertisement is effective only for property owners who reside in the area of general circulation of the newspaper that publishes the notice. Property owners who reside outside of the newspaper circulation area, according to the address listed on the most recent property tax listing for the affected property, shall be notified by mailed notice.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

   (A)   When adopting or rejecting a zoning text or map amendment, the Board of Commissioners shall approve a brief statement describing whether its action is consistent or inconsistent with an adopted comprehensive plan. The requirement for a plan consistency statement may also be met by a clear indication in the minutes of the Board that at the time of action on the amendment the Board was aware of and considered the Planning Board's recommendations and any relevant portions of an adopted comprehensive plan. If a zoning map amendment is adopted and the action was deemed inconsistent with the adopted plan, the zoning amendment shall have the effect of also amending any future land-use map in the approved plan, and no additional request or application for a plan amendment shall be required. A plan amendment and a zoning amendment may be considered concurrently.

   (B)   If a zoning map amendment qualifies as a "large-scale rezoning" under G.S. § 160D-602(b), the governing board statement describing plan consistency may address the overall rezoning and describe how the analysis and policies in the relevant adopted plans were considered in the action taken.

    (C)   Additional reasonableness statement for rezonings.  

      (1)   When adopting or rejecting any petition for a zoning map amendment, a statement analyzing the reasonableness of the proposed rezoning shall be approved by the Board of Commissioners. This statement of reasonableness may consider, among other factors:

         (a)   The size, physical conditions, and other attributes of the area proposed to be rezoned;

         (b)   The benefits and detriments to the landowners, the neighbors, and the surrounding community;

         (c)   The relationship between the current actual and permissible development on the tract and adjoining areas and the development that would be permissible under the proposed amendment;

         (d)   Why the action taken is in the public interest; and

         (e)   Any changed conditions warranting the amendment.

      (2)   If a zoning map amendment qualifies as a "large-scale rezoning" under G.S. Chapter 160D, the Board statement on reasonableness may address the overall rezoning.

   (E)   Should a zoning map amendment be approved that is not consistent with the Future Land Use Map, the Future Land Use Map shall be deemed amended. The Zoning Administrator shall note the approved amendment on the Future Land Use Map. If the Future Land Use Map was adopted as a CAMA plan, then the amendment will not be deemed effective until the change is approved through the CAMA plan-amendment process.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

   If an amendment is adopted while an application for development or zoning approval is pending, the applicant may choose to comply with the original or new version of the ordinance, pursuant to G.S. Chapter 160D.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

   (A)   By decreasing the development density of the land to be less dense than was allowed under its previous usage.

   (B)   By reducing the permitted uses of the land that are specified in a zoning ordinance or land development regulation to fewer uses than were allowed under its previous usage.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)

   (C)   Exempt projects. Absent an imminent threat to public health or safety, a development moratorium adopted pursuant to this section does not apply to any project for which a valid building permit issued pursuant to G.S. Chapter 160D is outstanding, to any project for which a special use permit application has been accepted as complete, to development set forth in a site-specific vesting plan approved pursuant to G.S. Chapter 160D, to development for which substantial expenditures have already been made in good-faith reliance on a prior valid development approval, or to preliminary or final subdivision plats that have been accepted for review by the county prior to the call for a hearing to adopt the moratorium. Any preliminary subdivision plat accepted for review by the county prior to the call for a hearing, if subsequently approved, shall be allowed to proceed with final plat approval without being subject to the moratorium. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a complete application for a development approval has been submitted prior to the effective date of a moratorium, G.S. § 160D-108(b) applies when permitting processing resumes.

      (1)   A statement of the problems or conditions necessitating the moratorium and what courses of action, alternative to a moratorium, were considered by the county and why those alternative courses of action were not deemed adequate.

      (2)   A statement of the development approvals subject to the moratorium and how a moratorium on those approvals will address the problems or conditions leading to imposition of the moratorium.

      (3)   A date for termination of the moratorium and a statement setting forth why that duration is reasonably necessary to address the problems or conditions leading to imposition of the moratorium.

      (4)   A statement of the actions, and the schedule for those actions, proposed to be taken by the local government during the duration of the moratorium to address the problems or conditions leading to imposition of the moratorium.

(Ord. passed 6-21-2021)