Mills River council approves contract amendment to finish UDO update with CodeRight Planners

The Mills River Town Council on a voice vote authorized the town manager to negotiate and execute a $30,200 amendment to the town's Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) contract with CodeRight Planners to finish updates aimed at ensuring compliance with recent down-zoning law.

Town staff presented the amendment and said it supplements work already paid under the original contract. The packet materials (item 6b) include revisions and a task timeline; staff signaled the amendment would start immediately and aim to deliver a draft for council review by Sept. 24, 2026. "This timeline is tighter than the original discussion," staff said, and the amendment would prioritize staff and consultant time to speed review.

Chad Meadows of CodeRight Planners told the council the update focuses on two major tasks: reinserting the mixed-use district where appropriate and reexamining the principal and accessory use tables so no presently allowed uses are removed. "We basically have two major tasks to deal with," Meadows said, adding that the team expects to deliver tracked-change text in August showing roughly 20 pages of edits compared with the UDO adopted on June 11.

Meadows and staff emphasized the goal is to avoid unintended down-zoning. "We're going to avoid down zoning," Meadows said, explaining that where a change could reduce a property's current rights, the update would require consent or would be adjusted so existing uses and densities remain allowed. Legal counsel said the town will review the three elements of the down-zoning test described in session law to verify compliance before formal adoption.

Council members pressed for clarity on maps and naming conventions. Staff recommended against mixing old and new district names in the ordinance book because doing so could confuse the public; instead, staff suggested choosing either the new naming scheme proposed in the draft or reverting fully to the prior names. A council member asked for a side-by-side presentation of the current and proposed maps so the body and the public could clearly see where, if anywhere, development potential might change.

The motion to approve the amendment was made by a council member and seconded; the mayor called for the voice vote and recorded unanimous approval with no opposing votes.

The town attorney advised that a moratorium could not be introduced at this special-called meeting because the statute governing special meetings limits discussion to items listed on the posted agenda; council members were advised to place any moratorium request on the next regular meeting agenda, currently scheduled for August 1.

Next steps: staff and CodeRight Planners will provide tracked-change proposals to the council and planning board in early August for review. A public hearing on the updated UDO is tentatively proposed for Sept. 24, 2026.