After public objections over flooding and private‑road safety, Pender County approves partial Hampstead rezoning

Pender County commissioners approved a partial rezoning in the Hampstead area on a split‑parcel proposal after an extended public hearing that brought multiple residents to the podium to object.

The county owns roughly 27.5 acres near the Highway 17 / Dan Owen Drive intersection that staff proposed to rezone from Residential Performance (RP) to General Business (GB). Planning staff said the parcels nearest the highway are consistent with a regional commercial corridor under the Imagine Pender 2050 plan; residents said rezoning the rear parcels would create safety and drainage problems for existing homes on Dan Owen and Majestic Oaks and urged the county to hold the wetland/floodplain parcels as green space.

During public testimony, residents described erosion, a compromised diversion ditch, and recurring flooding on lots that back up to county‑owned land. Wade Danner, president of the Majestic Oaks East Homeowners Association, told the board the private section of Dan Owen Drive is a narrow easement and that commercial improvement of the unpaved segment could dramatically increase through traffic and hazards for children. Several residents asked the board to delay rezoning until drainage and inter‑parcel utility issues were fully resolved.

Anthony Colon of Pender Water and Sewer explained the land was purchased with the utility's enterprise fund under a prior administration and said a subdivided portion may be transferred to parks and recreation for a proposed dog park; he and asset management staff described limits and options for selling or transferring parcels. Commissioners noted the enterprise‑fund purchase complicates decisions about disposal and asked staff to work with affected neighbors to address drainage.

The planning board had recommended partial approval: rezoning the area adjacent to U.S. 17 while leaving the rear parcels in their current designation or returning them for conditional rezoning. The commissioners voted to approve the portion described by staff as "west of Safe Passage and north of Dan Owen Drive" while taking no action on the other parcels, and directed county staff and the county manager to meet with impacted residents to address drainage and property maintenance questions.

What’s next: The county will proceed with rezoning and prepare any necessary site surveys for that approved portion. Staff will meet with residents who raised drainage and easement concerns to determine remediation steps and to evaluate whether the remaining parcels should be retained as green space or handled through a conditional rezoning.