Catawba County adopts ordinance to rezone 717 parcels after county boundary re-establishment

The Catawba County Board of Commissioners on March 17 unanimously adopted Ordinance No. 2025‑01 to amend the county's Official Zoning Atlas and Official Zoning Overlay Atlas to apply Catawba County zoning to 717 parcels or portions of parcels that became part of Catawba County after the North Carolina Geodetic Survey re‑established the Catawba–Lincoln county boundary effective Feb. 2, 2025.

Planning Director Chris Timberlake told the board staff reviewed Lincoln County zoning districts and recommended equivalent Catawba County districts for the affected properties, generally preserving residential, commercial and industrial designations. The parcels total roughly 1,314 acres, and staff recommended updates to the Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use maps along with adjustments to overlay districts where state or federal regulations require them.

Timberlake said staff translated Lincoln districts to the closest Catawba equivalents and noted several local exceptions. Nearly 40 parcels along NC 16 and Wrenn Drive and two parcels along Grassy Creek Road are smaller than Catawba County's R‑30 minimum lot size; those properties were treated individually in staff recommendations. Planned Development‑Residential (PD‑R) areas approved under Lincoln County's standards were proposed to be treated as cluster subdivisions in Catawba County's R‑30 cluster provisions or handled through conditional district processes when site‑specific standards are required.

Staff also recommended applying overlay districts where applicable, including the Floodplain Management Overlay (FPM‑O), Catawba River Corridor Overlay (CRC‑O), Watershed Protection Overlay (WP‑O), Mixed‑Use Corridor Overlay (MUC‑O) and Economic Development Overlay (ED‑O) for properties falling within applicable buffers or corridor areas. Timberlake said the Planning Board held a public hearing on Feb. 25, 2025, where about 15 citizens attended and no public comment was offered; the Planning Board recommended approval.

Chair Randy Isenhower moved adoption of the ordinance, citing the need to establish zoning where jurisdiction changed because of the geodetic survey. The motion carried 5–0. The ordinance rezones the listed parcels, updates the Future Land Use maps, and adopts the staff’s reasonableness and plan‑consistency statement under NCGS 160D‑605.

What happens next: the ordinance and map changes take effect as adopted; affected property owners should consult Catawba County Planning for parcel‑specific details about adopted zoning districts, overlay requirements, and any potential development standards or necessary site approvals.