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Aberdeen board approves zoning text amendment updating UDO chapters 1, 2 and 4
Summary
The Aberdeen Town Board voted to adopt a land-use consistency statement and approve zoning text amendment TA 26-04, which updates multiple administrative and use provisions in the Unified Development Ordinance, including stormwater references, administrative adjustments, and removal of a rarely used 'beneficial use' provision.
The Aberdeen Town Board of Commissioners on May 26 adopted a land-use plan consistency statement and approved zoning text amendment TA 26-04, which updates chapters 1, 2 and 4 of the town’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO).
Planning Director Miss Graham summarized the package and said the changes are largely housekeeping and statutory-alignment edits, but include several substantive clarifications. "We are definitely updating, with relation to general statutes and getting correct references in there," she told the board, and explained the package would be presented as a red-line ordinance in the packet.
Key changes Miss Graham highlighted include: adding a reference to state statutes that recognize bona fide farm exemptions from zoning; removing a transitional section created during the last major UDO rewrite because it is no longer needed; correcting board-of-adjustment meeting language to reflect actual practice (meet on an as-needed basis rather than a monthly minimum); and consolidating administrative-adjustment types so the planning director’s authority is clearer.
She said the town will change its reference for stormwater guidance from a town BMP manual (which does not exist) to the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) stormwater design manual. The amendment also clarifies statutory "permit choice" language (allowing applicants to elect either the rules in effect when an application was deemed complete or the rules in effect later) and proposes to remove a rarely used "beneficial use determination" provision that appeared redundant with existing appeal and variance processes.
On use provisions, the planning director said the amendment adjusts language about caretaker quarters for extractive industrial sites, removes design-control language for accessory dwelling units to comply with state law limiting local regulation of residential construction standards, and aligns manufactured-dwelling references with state statute so the town cannot effectively exclude them.
Miss Graham said the planning board considered the amendments and made a unanimous recommendation for approval, including the land-use consistency statement tying the amendment to the town’s comprehensive plan. Commissioner Helms moved to adopt the consistency statement; Speaker 5 seconded and the motion carried. Commissioner Helms then moved to approve TA 26-04; Speaker 5 seconded and the board approved the zoning text amendment.
Miss Graham also described a procedural proposal the consultants raised: shifting authority to accept performance guarantees to the technical review committee (TRC) while retaining payment-release decisions at the board level. She said staff can keep the board informed and that these items commonly appear on the consent agenda.
Next steps: the board approved the proposed text amendment and accompanying consistency statement; staff will proceed with any remaining adoption steps and administrative follow-through required by town procedures.
