Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Auburn planning commission adds missing NC‑40 rules and new solar regulations
Summary
The commission approved text amendments adding long-missing bulk regulations for NC 40 and new rules for residential and industrial solar panels, treating most panels as accessory uses while keeping large solar fields as conditional uses and allowing some panels to exceed primary-structure height to capture sunlight.
The Auburn Planning Commission on Wednesday approved a zoning text amendment to add missing bulk regulations for the NC 40 district and to create rules for solar panels in residential and industrial zones.
Planning staff told commissioners the bulk rules were an omission dating to a 1996 ordinance and that the amendment simply aligns NC 40’s standards with adjacent neighborhood districts. “It was just really just correcting an omission,” staff said during the presentation.
The second part of the amendment adds standards to regulate solar panels. Staff said most rooftop and yard panels will be treated as accessory structures, while proposals that use significant acreage for solar arrays will remain conditional uses subject to review. The draft language permits panels to extend above a home’s primary structure “so they can reach up and get out of the shade,” and staff cited an approximate 12‑foot allowance in some cases.
Commissioners asked whether the new rules would allow front‑facing panels and how the ordinance treats rooftop installations. Staff said the text provides provisions to let south‑facing panels capture sunlight while limiting visibility from primary street fronts; conditional‑use review would be required for large or primary‑use solar fields.
The commission approved the zoning text amendment by voice vote after the public hearing produced no speakers.
What happens next: The amendment will be incorporated into the city’s zoning ordinance and enforced by planning and inspections staff for future permit reviews.
