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Owners withdraw special-use permit for 412 Rowland Avenue after contested public hearing in Surf City
Summary
After a lengthy public hearing in which residents and council members raised navigation-safety and traffic concerns, the property owners withdrew their application to amend the special-use permit for 412 Rowland Avenue; the council accepted the withdrawal, meaning the project must be resubmitted if pursued later.
Ty Hopkins, one of the owners of 412 Rowland Avenue, told the Surf City Town Council that he was withdrawing the property’s application to amend a special-use permit after extensive public comment and council questioning.
At the March meeting, Hopkins said the team requested a deferral so it could present revised designs and hold additional community meetings. “It turns out people care about this a whole lot more than I expected,” Hopkins said as he described the team’s plans to return with more information and community input. The applicant’s engineer, Dave Anderson, outlined changes intended to reduce boating conflicts, increase landscaping and move dry-stack operations farther from adjacent properties.
Council members and members of the public repeatedly pressed the applicants for an independent marine-safety analysis and for clearer answers about fueling, dock access and peak boat movements through the narrow canal. Several council members said they were concerned about how the proposed dry stacks and associated activity might affect navigation at busy times and during storms. One council member warned that peak-day boat movements could create a larger crowding effect than earlier estimates.
With those concerns unresolved, an owner asked to withdraw the application so the team could gather additional studies and conduct more outreach. Town attorney Brett DeSelms advised the public that a withdrawal removes the item from the council’s agenda but does not preclude the owners from resubmitting; the project would have to restart the review process under the town’s new unified development ordinance. The council voted to accept the withdrawal by voice vote.
What happens next: the owners said they plan to do additional public meetings, obtain technical studies (including a safety analysis), and, if they choose to proceed, resubmit under current ordinances. The town will treat any future filing as a new application and require the full review process, including planning-board review and any required state or federal permits.
