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Nags Head adopts state-mandated parking-width change despite local concerns
Summary
The Nags Head Board of Commissioners approved a text amendment to its Unified Development Ordinance to reduce required parking-space width from 10 feet to 9 feet, complying with recent changes to North Carolina law. Planning staff said the change leaves little local flexibility and some commissioners warned it may not suit the town’s beach‑town vehicle mix.
The Nags Head Board of Commissioners approved a text amendment to the town’s Unified Development Ordinance on Oct. 1, 2025, to reduce minimum parking-space width from 10 feet to 9 feet to comply with recent changes in North Carolina law. Planning and Development Director Kelly Wyatt told commissioners the statute requires the reduction and staff and the Planning Board recommended adopting the amendment.
Why it matters: The town’s UDO historically set 10‑foot spaces to accommodate large vehicles common in a beach community—SUVs, trucks, roof racks and equipment—so planners and some commissioners said the change sacrifices local context to meet statewide standards.
Kelly Wyatt summarized staff analysis and recommended adoption, saying the amendment would set residential parking at 9 by 18 feet and commercial at 9 by 20 feet. “Currently our UDO requires 10 feet in width… we would be looking at 9 by 18 for residential and 9 by 20 for commercial projects,” Wyatt said during the hearing. She noted the planning board had voted unanimously to recommend adoption.
Commission discussion focused on local impacts. One commissioner said the town’s larger vehicles and high turnover of vacationers make the narrower spaces a concern and described the state mandate as a poor fit for every municipality. Another commissioner responded that the town had no practical option but to comply with the statutory change.
The board opened the item as a public hearing, heard no public speakers on the change, then debated briefly and moved to approve the amendment. The motion carried; a single voice on the record said “I opposed,” though no roll-call tally appears in the record.
What’s next: The text amendment will be incorporated into the town’s UDO. Staff said the ordinance language and updated tables were available in the staff report and on-screen during the meeting.
Notes: The planning director said the change is driven by a state statute; the meeting transcript references the North Carolina General Statutes but does not supply a citation number. The transcript uses several inconsistent spellings for the town name; this article uses the official town name, Nags Head, as presented in meeting materials.
