TITLE
Vote to approve a legislative request for a text amendment to the Zoning Ordinance by Dave Gaddis to reduce the minimum acreage requirements for all public or private campgrounds from 20 acres to 10 acres in all districts.
ABSTRACT
Action Requested:
Vote to approve a legislative request for a text amendment to the Zoning Ordinance by Dave Gaddis to reduce the minimum acreage requirements for all public or private campgrounds from 20 acres to 10 acres in all districts.
Introduction & Background:
A legislative public hearing was held September 18, 2023. Planning staff presented the citizen-initiated request by Mr. Gaddis and received two comments from residents in the Moncure area (Richard McHenry and Anne Stomp). These comments center around the Moncure area in particular and focus on better regulation of the permitting of campgrounds such as time allowed, record keeping, visual impacts of the spaces, etc.
In 2006, the Board of Commissioners approved a reduction of the minimum 20-acre requirement to 10-acre minimums in the zoned portions of the Haw River Township only. Public and private recreation camps and grounds are only permitted within the residentially zoned areas of the county with an approved Special Use Permit.
Discussion & Analysis:
Section 19 of the Zoning Ordinance allows for citizens to initiate text amendment changes based on information they believe to be supportive of the request.
Section 17.5.B includes the current requirements for public and private recreation camps and grounds. Should this amendment be approved, the minimum lot area would apply to all residentially zoned areas of the county.
The applicant states in the supporting summary, there are two campgrounds that have been approved since the 2006 amendment that are located on 10.01 and 10.35 acres (Chatham RV Park and Jordan Dam RV Park) therefore setting a precedent to support the amendment.
Since the Comprehensive Plan was adopted in 2017, development is being guided to specific areas and two industrial mega sites have started developing over the last two years. Housing options for temporary workers is difficult to find in the county and this may help fill that gap.
The Planning reviewed the request during their regularly scheduled meeting on November 7, 2023. Discussion included the potential growth in western portion of the county, specifically temporary and permanent employment driven by Wolfspeed, and the Toyota plant across the county line in Randolph County, and increasing demand for work-force housing. Additionally, there is increasing interest in development in the Moncure area resulting from the VinFast car manufacturing site and increasing development in general occurring in the county and that there aren’t enough affordable housing options for workers.
If the text amendment is approved, potential applicants will still be required to apply for a Special Use Permit with the final decision resting with the Board of Commissioners.
The Planning Board voted 5-4 to recommend approval of the text amendment and 6-3 to recommend approval of the consistency statement.
How does this relate to the Comprehensive Plan:
Housing, Recommendation 02, Housing Policy 2, encourages accommodation and incentivizing affordable and workforce housing.
Recommendation:
The Planning Board, by a vote of 6-3, recommends adoption of a resolution approving the following Consistency statement:
Vote to approve the text amendment with the following consistency statement (voted 6-3 to approve) provided by the Planning Board.
• Since the Comprehensive Land Use Plan was adopted in 2017, development is being guided to specific areas and two industrial mega sites have started developing over the last two years. Housing options for temporary workers are difficult to find in the county and this may help fill that gap.
The Planning Board recommends, by a vote of 5-4, adoption of an Ordinance Amending the Zoning Ordinance of Chatham County to approve a legislative request by Dave Gaddis to reduce the minimum acreage requirements for all public or private campgrounds from 20 acres to 10 acres in all residentially zoned districts,