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Planning staff updates board on Imagine Pender plan; county warns of state law limiting down‑zoning
Summary
Planning staff briefed the Pender County Planning Board on progress for the Imagine Pender comprehensive land use plan and warned that Senate Bill 382, enacted Dec. 11, 2024, restricts local governments’ ability to impose certain down‑zoning changes without property-owner consent, complicating future implementation of plan recommendations.
Pender County planning staff provided an update on the Imagine Pender comprehensive land use plan and alerted the planning board to a recent state law the county says could restrict how the plan is implemented.
Planner staff reported the project is in phase 4 (develop the plan) after public engagement and baseline analysis. Staff summarized outreach efforts from fall 2024 — including 10 community meetings, roughly 77 in-person attendees and online survey responses — and outlined eight community priorities: managed growth; environmental, farmland and rural preservation; mitigating flooding and drainage; community amenities and recreation; attainable housing; economic development; enhanced civic engagement; and public services and health care.
Staff said the next steps are drafting plan policies, implementation actions and the future land use map; draft documents will be shared with the planning board and public for comment. Staff also said the County will circulate materials via ImaginePenderCountyNC.gov and by email to board members when available.
In a separate presentation, staff described Senate Bill 382 — enacted Dec. 11, 2024 — which, according to staff, limits a local government’s ability to enact certain changes that would decrease development density, reduce permitted uses, or create nonconformities without the affected property owner’s consent. Staff said the provision will affect implementation actions (changes to zoning or development regulations) rather than the process of drafting the comprehensive plan itself, and that the Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution opposing that portion of the bill.
Board members asked whether the county is coordinating with statewide planning organizations and indicated they were interested in draft plan materials and focused briefings on topics such as the cost-of-community-services study. Staff said the county is monitoring proposed fixes to the state law and will keep the board informed of changes.
