Surf City City Zoning Code
SECTION 2
0 ADMINISTRATION
2.1 Established boards and staff.
The following elected and appointed bodies shall have the various powers and responsibilities in administering this ordinance and for reviewing and making decisions on applications for development approval, appeals, and amendments to this ordinance as stated herein:
A. The Town Council.
B. Planning Board.
C. Board of Adjustment.
D. Administrator.
E. Technical Review Committee (TRC).
(Ord. No. 2024-15, 11-5-24)
2.2 Organization.
The boards provided by this ordinance may adopt rules and maintain records in conformance with the following:
A. Rules of Conduct. A Board may adopt rules necessary to conduct its affairs and to establish Board organization, procedures, and the conduct of its meetings.
B. Conformance of Rules. The rules adopted by a Board shall be in accordance with North Carolina State law and the provisions of this ordinance.
C. Election and Terms of Officers. Each Board shall elect a Chairman and Vice-Chairman from its membership. These officers shall serve for a term of one year, or until the expiration of the term of their appointment to the Board on which they serve.
D. Record of Meetings. Each Board shall keep accurate minutes of its proceedings and the actions taken in its meetings. When holding quasi-judicial hearings, the Town Council and the Board of Adjustment shall keep a transcript of the meeting and maintain a record of the evidence presented in the course of the hearing.
(Ord. No. 2024-15, 11-5-24)
2.3 Town Council.
A. Organization. The Town Council is established and composed pursuant to Part I of the Town Charter.
B. Powers and Duties. In execution of the provisions of this Ordinance, the Town Council shall be responsible for final action regarding the following:
1. Major Site Plans (Section 3.14).
2. Text Amendments (Section 3.17).
3. Rezonings/Map Amendments (Section 3.18).
4. Conditional Zoning (Section 3.19).
5. Developer Agreements (Section 3.20).
6. Special Use Permits (Section 3.21).
7. Major Subdivision Preliminary Plat (Appendix B).
C. Conflict of Interest. Members of Town Council shall not vote on any legislative decision regarding a development regulation adopted pursuant to this Ordinance where the outcome of the matter being considered is reasonably likely to have a direct, substantial, and readily identifiable financial impact on the member. A Town Council member shall not vote on any zoning amendment if the landowner of the property subject to a rezoning petition or the applicant for a text amendment is a person with whom the member has a close familial, business, or other associational relationship.
D. Board Statements Required.
1. Consistency Statement. In regard to a zoning text or map amendment, once the Town Council has made a final decision to either adopt or reject the proposal, the Council shall approve a statement describing whether its action is consistent or inconsistent with adopted plans or policies of the Town and explaining why the Town Council considers the action taken to be reasonable and in the public interest.
2. Statement of Reasonableness. When adopting or rejecting any petition for a zoning map amendment, a statement analyzing the reasonableness shall be approved by the Town Council.
(Ord. No. 2024-15, 11-5-24)
2.4 Planning Board.
A. Establishment and Composition. The Planning Board is established and composed pursuant to Article IV, Chapter 13 of the Town's Code of Ordinances.
B. Oath of Office. All members of the Planning Board shall, before entering into their duties, qualify by taking an oath of office as required by G.S § 160A-61.
C. Powers and Duties. In execution of the provisions of this Ordinance, the Planning Board shall have the following power and duties.
1. General Authority.
a. The planning board may exercise additional powers as may be prescribed elsewhere in this Ordinance and as permitted by G.S. 160D-301.
b. The Planning Board shall perform related duties as directed by the Town Council.
2. Review Authority. The Planning Board shall review and make recommendations regarding the following:
a. Major Site Plans (Section 3.14).
b. Text Amendments (Section 3.17).
c. Rezonings/Map Amendments (Section 3.18).
d. Conditional Zoning (Section 3.19).
e. Developer Agreements (Section 3.20).
D. Conflict of Interest. Members of appointed boards, such as the Planning Board, shall not vote on any advisory or legislative decision regarding a development regulation adopted pursuant to this Ordinance where the outcome of the matter being considered is reasonably likely to have a direct, substantial, and readily identifiable financial impact on the member. An appointed board member shall not vote on any zoning amendment if the landowner of the property subject to a rezoning petition or the applicant for a text amendment is a person with whom the member has a close familial, business, or other associational relationship.
E. Quorum. Four (4) or more members of the Planning Board shall constitute a quorum.
F. Voting. The concurring affirmative vote of a majority of the members present and qualified to vote is required to make a recommendation or any other decision in favor of an applicant. Tie votes must be considered recommendations for disapproval.
G. Vote of the Chairman. The Chairman of the Planning Board, or Vice-Chairman serving in that role in their absence or temporary disqualification, shall vote as any other member of the Board.
(Ord. No. 2024-15, 11-5-24)
2.5 Board of Adjustment.
A. Establishment. The Board of Adjustment is established pursuant to G.S. 160D-302.
B. Composition.
1. Number and Term.
a. The Board of Adjustment shall consist of five members, each appointed for three years.
b. In appointing the original members or in the filling of vacancies caused by the expiration of the terms of existing members, the Town Council may appoint certain members for less than three years to the end that thereafter the terms of all members shall not expire at the same time.
2. Membership.
a. Membership on the Board of Adjustment shall include proportional representation from the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) in accordance with G.S. 160D-307. The representative from the extraterritorial jurisdiction shall vote on decisions in the extraterritorial jurisdiction or that would affect a zoning district included in the extraterritorial jurisdiction. To ensure proportional representation from the ETJ, population estimates to the ETJ shall be updated no less frequently than after each decennial census.
b. Any member of the Board of Adjustment representing the extraterritorial jurisdiction shall be appointed by the appropriate County Commissioners.
3. Alternate Members.
a. The Town Council may, in its discretion, appoint two alternate members to serve on the Board of Adjustment in the absence of any regular member. One alternate member shall be from the Town of Surf City and one alternate member shall be from the extraterritorial jurisdiction.
b. Alternate members shall be appointed for the same term, at the same time, and in the same manner as regular members.
c. Each alternate member, while attending any regular or special meeting and serving in the absence of any regular member, shall have and may exercise all the powers and duties of a regular member. Three unexcused absences shall constitute a vacancy to be filled by the Town Council at the next regularly scheduled meeting.
C. Proceedings.
1. Oath of Office. All members of the Board of Adjustment shall, before entering into their duties, qualify by taking an oath of office as required by G.S. 160A-61.
2. Meetings. All meetings of the Board of Adjustment shall be held at a regular place and shall be open to the public.
3. Minutes. The Board of Adjustment shall keep minutes of proceedings showing the vote of each member upon each question, or if absent or failing to vote, an indication of such fact; and final disposition of appeals shall be by recorded resolution, indicating the reasons of the Board, all of which shall be a public record.
4. Quorum. No final action shall be taken on any issue unless a quorum is present. Three (3) or more members of the Board of Adjustment shall constitute a quorum. However, a vote on a variance will require a 4/5 vote.
5. Powers and Duties. In execution of the provisions of this Ordinance, the Board of Adjustment shall have the following powers and duties.
a. General Authority. The Board of Adjustment may exercise additional powers as may be described elsewhere in this Ordinance and as permitted by North Carolina General Statutes. Boards shall follow quasi-judicial procedures in determining appeals of administrative decisions, special use permits, certificates of appropriateness, variances, or any other quasi-judicial decision pursuant to G.S. 160D-406.
b. Final Authority. The Board of Adjustment shall be responsible for final action regarding the following:
(1) Variances (Section 3.22).
(2) Administrative Appeals (Section 3.23).
6. Conflict of Interest on Quasi-Judicial Decisions. A member of any board exercising quasi-judicial functions pursuant to this Ordinance shall not participate in or vote on any quasi-judicial matter in a manner that would violate affected persons' constitutional rights to an impartial decision maker. Impermissible violations of due process include, but are not limited to, a member having a fixed opinion prior to hearing the matter that is not susceptible to change, undisclosed ex parte communications, a close familial, business, or other associational relationship with an affected person, or a financial interest in the outcome of the matter.
7. Voting. The concurring vote of four-fifths of the board shall be necessary to grant a variance. A majority of the members shall be required to decide any other quasi-judicial matter or to determine an appeal made in the nature of certiorari. For the purposes of this subsection, vacant positions on the board and members who are disqualified from voting on a quasi-judicial matter under G.S. 160D-109(d) shall not be considered members of the board for calculation of the requisite majority if there are no qualified alternates available to take the place of such members (see G.S. 160D-406(i)).
(Ord. No. 2024-15, 11-5-24)
2.6 Administrator.
A. Designation. The Town Manager shall hire the Planning Administrator who shall be charged with administering and enforcing the provisions of this ordinance. The Administrator shall administer certain provisions of this section as may be required below.
B. Delegation of Authority. The Administrator may designate any appropriate staff member to represent the Administration in any function assigned by this section but shall remain responsible for any final action.
C. Responsibilities. In execution of the provisions of this section, the Administrator shall have the following powers and duties.
1. The Administrator may exercise additional powers as may be described elsewhere in this Ordinance and as permitted by North Carolina General Statutes.
2. The Administrator shall perform related duties as directed by the Town Manager and Town Council.
3. The Administrator or their designee will be responsible for the administration of this ordinance.
4. The Administrator will be responsible for the issuance of permits and other development approvals and/or determining the additional applications needed (variance, rezoning) should an application not meet the requirements of this ordinance.
D. Review Authority.
1. Temporary Use/Zoning Permit (Section 3.9).
2. Sign Permit (Section 3.10).
3. Common Signage Plan (Section 3.11).
4. Written Interpretation (Section 3.12).
5. Minor Site Plan (Section 3.14).
6. Major Site Plan (Section 3.14).
7. Minor Subdivisions (See Subdivision Ordinance).
8. Final Plats (See Subdivision Ordinance).
9. Traffic Impact Analysis (Section 3.16).
10. Text Amendment (Section 3.17).
11. Rezoning/Map Amendments (Section 3.18).
12. Conditional Zoning (Section 3.19).
13. Developer Agreements (Section 3.20).
14. Special Use Permit (Section 3.21).
15. Variance (Section 3.22).
16. Administrative Appeals (Section 3.23).
17. Modifications to Development Approvals (Section 3.24).
E. Conflict of Interest. No staff member shall make a final decision on an administrative decision required by this Ordinance if the outcome of that decision would have a direct, substantial, and readily identifiable financial impact on the staff member or if the applicant or other person subject to that decision is a person with whom the staff member has a close familial, business, or other associational relationship. If a staff member has a conflict of interest under this section, the decision shall be assigned to the supervisor of the staff person. No staff member shall be financially interested or employed by a business that is financially interested in a development subject to regulation under this Section unless the staff member is the owner of the land or building involved. No staff member or other individual or an employee of a company contracting with the town to provide staff support shall engage in any work that is inconsistent with his or her duties or with the interest of the Town, as determined by the Town Council.
(Ord. No. 2024-15, 11-5-24)
2.7 Technical Review Committee (TRC).
A. Organization. The Technical Review Committee (TRC) is comprised of individuals from Town departments, and other local, State, and federal agencies as the Administrator deems appropriate.
B. Review Responsibilities. In execution of the provisions of the section, the Technical Review Committee shall have the following Review Authority and shall make recommendations regarding the following:
1. Major Site Plans (Section 3.14).
2. Traffic Impact Analysis (Section 3.16).
3. Conditional Zoning (Section 3.19).
4. Major Subdivision/Preliminary Plat (See Subdivision Ordinance).
(Ord. No. 2024-15, 11-5-24)