Planning staff present 'Omnibus 19' technical UDO changes, including ADU and grading clarifications

Planning Department staff presented Omnibus 19 (TC-2400001), a set of technical text amendments to the Unified Development Ordinance that align local code with recent state law changes and correct inconsistencies. Robin Schultz, a planner and county arborist, said Omnibus 19 updates 11 UDO articles and removes references that conflict with the North Carolina residential building code or the Department of Environmental Quality's purview (for example, wastewater system rules). She said the amendment clarifies that triplexes and quadplexes are now covered by the state code and updates notice requirements for street renamings.

Schultz said the omnibus also changes accessory-dwelling-unit (ADU) language to match state law (SCAD), clarifying placement allowances and when site plans are required for developments exceeding 20 ADUs. Commissioners asked about the lone planning commissioner who voted against the package; staff identified that as Commissioner Cease and said his concern related to ADU provisions. Commissioner Jacobs asked Habitat for Humanity-specific questions about grading setbacks; Schultz said the language was adjusted after meetings with Habitat to exclude street frontages for non-mass-graded sites and to allow grading for positive drainage away from foundations.

Staff emphasized that Omnibus 19 is intended as limited technical corrections rather than a broader policy rewrite; the department expects to advance larger development-standard updates during the full UDO rewrite in the coming months. The item was presented for the board's information and will go to the council on Aug. 19 for further action.