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Forsyth County updates Board of Adjustment procedures to align with state law
Summary
The Board approved a staff-initiated text amendment to Chapters 3 and 10 of the county Unified Development Ordinance to align Board of Adjustment voting procedures with NC statute 160D and to clean up site-plan and staff-title references.
The Forsyth County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a staff-initiated text amendment Dec. 19 to Chapters 3 and 10 of the county’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) that clarifies Board of Adjustment procedures, site-plan requirements and department titles.
Staff said the change aligns county UDO language with Chapter 160D of the North Carolina General Statutes, which requires four-fifths (4/5) approval for variances in quasi-judicial proceedings and a simple majority for other board of adjustment actions. Planning Director Chris Murphy briefed the board and said the county had been following state law in practice but needed ordinance language corrections to match statutory standards. The amendment also clarifies which site-plan type applies to different applications and updates outdated job titles to the current director title.
The planning board reviewed the amendment in July and recommended approval. There were no speakers in opposition at the county public hearing. The county council (city) had already approved the change in September. The commissioners voted to adopt the amendment as recommended by staff.
The change is intended to reduce inconsistency between the UDO wording and state enabling legislation and to ensure applicants and board members have clear reference language for site-plan and approval thresholds.
Speakers included Chris Murphy, Planning and Development Services director.
