Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
Pender County staff previews UDO amendment to expand farmers and artisan markets
Summary
Staff presented a conceptual Unified Development Ordinance amendment to allow farmers and artisan markets as regulated temporary uses countywide (except conservation), remove a 60-day limit and allow markets up to eight months. Board members discussed definitions, vendor limits, food trucks, restroom and parking requirements and asked staff to draft text for future review.
Pender County planning staff previewed a proposed text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance intended to modernize rules for farmers and artisan markets and reduce permitting barriers.
Senior planner Virginia Norris described the concept as a workshop item: the amendment would treat markets as a regulated temporary use (permitting markets in all zoning districts except environmental conservation), create formal definitions for farmers markets, artisan markets and market events, remove the existing 60-day limit and allow markets to operate for extended seasonal periods—up to eight months—under a market-event designation that triggers specific standards.
Norris said the changes were prompted by a recent request for repeated temporary-event permits and that current limits can force organizers to reapply multiple times. She listed potential standards that would accompany the change: site plans showing stall layouts and vendor counts, parking and traffic-management measures, signage and health-and-safety requirements, restroom provision for events with food service, and limits or criteria on vendor mixes to preserve priority for local farmers.
Board members and staff discussed potential unintended consequences and controls. Planning director Tim Owens and board members noted concerns about opening large swaths of the county to long-running events, the possibility of private promoters staging concerts under a market permit, and whether food trucks should be permitted as accessory uses. Assistant planning director Justin Brantley asked directly about food trucks and whether they could be included as accessory elements; staff said those are potentially allowable but that detailed limits (number of food trucks, frequency, restroom requirements) would be part of the draft text. As Brantley asked, “So what about a food truck that wants to be at the event at the market?”
Members suggested options such as requiring a percentage of vendors to be local farmers, using juried vendor lists for artisan goods, limiting entertainment in residential areas, and requiring recurring markets to renew permits annually or meet infrastructure standards if they are long-running. The board discussed examples—Carolina Beach, Beaufort and Duplin County—and staff indicated they would consult with NC Extension and stakeholders, run a public survey for feedback, and draft a text amendment for a future meeting.
Norris and staff noted the county could consider using underused FEMA-owned lots for temporary markets where permitted, and the board asked staff to return with specific wording and standards after stakeholder outreach. No vote was taken; the item remains a workshop and staff will prepare formal text for future consideration.
