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Southern Pines delays landscaping and tree‑protection changes as towns press opposition to NC Senate Bill 382
Summary
Council voted to continue proposed landscaping and tree‑protection amendments to its June meeting to await clarity on NC Senate Bill 382, and later adopted a resolution opposing the bill and asking local delegates to intervene.
Council members voted to delay two zoning code changes — amendments to the town’s landscaping standards and a tree‑protection measure — until the June meeting because of uncertainty created by North Carolina Senate Bill 382.
Planning Director BJ Grieve explained that Senate Bill 382 broadened the statutory definition of downzoning to include any regulation that creates a nonconformity, and noted that the bill’s evolving language has left local governments uncertain whether character‑district and landscaping provisions might be treated as downzoning. "So staff's recommendation is another continuance," Grieve said, adding that a 90‑day continuance to the June meeting should give staff time to assess legislative action and return with workable code language.
Council subsequently approved a separate resolution opposing SB 382, directing staff to forward the resolution to the town’s delegation and the region’s municipal managers. Town staff and the mayor said the resolution reflects shared concern among Moore County municipalities that SB 382 would unduly constrain local zoning tools used to implement comprehensive plans.
Next steps: staff will return to council when legislative language is clearer and the council agreed to reconsider the landscaping and tree‑protection items at the June meeting (the council cited June 10 as the likely target date).
