Planning commission backs Coastal Dunes PUD despite neighborhood warnings about dune breach and road

The City Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of zoning case ZN8725, a planned unit development (PUD) proposed by Coastal Dunes LLC for property at 6753 State Highway 361, sending the matter to City Council for final action.

Staff introduced the PUD as a mixed residential proposal that would include 99 single‑family lots and 32 townhouse lots with six common‑area amenities. Staff said the PUD includes two explicit deviations from the Unified Development Code (UDC): townhouse lots as small as 1,700 square feet and townhouse lot frontages reduced to 22 feet. Andrew Dimas (staff) told the commission the technical review committee had evaluated the plan, that the master site plan is “married” to the future plat, and that the proposal meets the UDC criteria the city uses to evaluate PUD requests. “We recommend approval of the rezoning,” staff said.

Neighbors mounted a broad, often emotional opposition during the public hearing. Melissa Heckmaster of Lost Colony Villas opened the block of speakers by saying, “We are here to voice our…