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Matthews board weighs wider zoning notices, planning-board-first review and tighter public-hearing rules
Summary
Town staff proposed expanding mailed zoning notices, shifting some zoning reviews to the Planning Board before public hearings and tightening public‑hearing time rules; commissioners debated impacts on equity, developer outreach and timetables and asked staff to return with draft language this summer.
Matthews staff told the Board of Commissioners on April 28 that modest procedural changes could increase public notice and reduce last‑minute continuances in zoning cases.
Planner Jay outlined three linked proposals: increase mailed notifications from 100 feet toward 500 feet in some cases, ask the Planning Board to review zoning applications before they reach the Town Board, and amend the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) so the Planning Board’s role is clarified. Jay said Indian Trail and Stallings use a 500‑foot mailing radius and that the larger buffer “would help even further” with community engagement.
The board pressed staff on details and consequences. Commissioner Mark Tufano said “a hundred feet or just touching the property is woefully inadequate, especially on these large projects” and urged an approach that uses project size or traffic‑study triggers to vary the notice radius. Commissioner Ken McCool worried that moving review earlier could…
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