Lenoir City Council extends one-year moratorium on new multifamily construction

Lenoir City Council voted April 28, 2025, to extend for one year a moratorium on the construction of apartment and other multifamily housing within the city limits, adopting the ordinance on second and final reading.

Council made the decision during the meeting’s public hearing and second-reading item. The mayor noted the city had been notified of pending litigation related to the moratorium; the mayor also said the city attorney was not present because of an illness. No further detail about the litigation was given at the meeting.

The ordinance as read at the meeting described an extension of the existing moratorium for one year from the ordinance’s effective date. The ordinance number was read aloud in the meeting transcript in a form that was difficult to parse; the council did not supply additional identifying information at the hearing.

Councilor Brandon moved to adopt the ordinance on second and final reading; Councilor Shields seconded. Roll-call votes recorded in the meeting transcript show Council members Anderson Waller, Kennedy, Shields, Brandon and Simpson voting “aye.” No opposing or abstaining votes were recorded.

Council discussion at the hearing was brief. The mayor and a staff member (Greg Buck) clarified the dates in the ordinance language during the public hearing; no amendments to the ordinance were offered in the meeting record.

The ordinance will remain in effect for the one-year period specified in the adopted text unless the council takes subsequent action or a court order alters the moratorium.