From trees to transportation, Brunswick considers changes to rules on development

A process to update a document that guides development in Brunswick County has been ongoing for months and continues to see delays.

In the last year, residents have been vocal at meetings of the Brunswick County Planning Board and Board of Commissioners, expressing their concerns with the development occurring across the county and the environmental impacts that development could have. Looking to address residents' concerns regarding development, clearcutting and tree standards, Brunswick County officials are considering amending its unified development ordinance (UDO).

Brunswick County planning staff began working with the public and development community on this process in the fall 2023 and has since proposed several text amendments to the county’s planning board and commissioners.

While the county is working to entirely rewrite its UDO, it has been considering amending its current UDO to address some pressing problems now, including tree and landscaping standards, and development along highways.

The board of commissioners received an update on these proposed amendments in July. Here’s the latest.

Trees, landscaping and greenspace amendments

The first text amendment the board is considering is one that increases standards regarding trees and landscaping to better preserve existing trees and require the planting of new trees in new developments. The current UDO does not require planting for residential lots and has limited requirements for planting in commercial or non-residential developments.

“… Unfortunately, we’ve seen developments take place where homebuilders come in, clearcut lots, construct homes and walk away without planting a single tree on that single-family residential lot,” Assistant County Manager Haynes Brigman said at a recent board meeting. “That doesn’t apply for most residential builders. Most residential builders understand the importance of having mature landscaping on their site, so if the lot is clearcut, they’re often coming back and replacing those or planting new plants, new trees on those lots. But, unfortunately, we can point to certain situations where developers are planting no trees at the conclusion of a single-family home construction.”

The recommended amendment, currently, looks to require a minimum of three trees on a single-family or two-family residential lot. On a commercial lot, a minimum of 15 trees would be required for each disturbed acre, as currently recommended – business and industrial parks would be exempt from that requirement.

Brigman said planning staff looked at the ordinances in effect in other counties to determine what might work best in Brunswick.

“Most developers, most builders, are already meeting this requirement,” Brigman said. “This is intended to go toward the developers that are not planting anything when they are done.”

Staff also recommended amendments to better define heritage trees, adjust street buffer requirements, and change the requirements for amount of open and recreational space.

“The intent is to just try to protect and preserve some of the existing natural habitat that we have in Brunswick County,” Brigman said.

Transportation Overlay Zone amendment

Looking to protect the existing vegetation along major roadway corridors in the county, staff also recommended the addition of a Transportation Overlay Zone (TOZ) in the county.

A TOZ would require the establishment and protection of vegetative buffers along major transportation corridors in the county for new developments. New developments in the TOZ – so near major roadways in the county – would be required to create a landscaping buffer between the roadway and the development.

According to a staff report: “The current UDO allows development as close as 20 feet to the existing transportation corridors rights-of-way, with limited landscaping and opacity requirements to buffer the new development from the transportation corridor. This creates visual, sound, and light pollution between the transportation corridor and the new development.”

The proposed TOZ would require a 50-foot buffer on specified non-highway corridors and a 100-foot buffer on major highway corridors for new residential development – not to impact existing or pending proposed developments, only future developments. The major roadways that would fall into the TOZ include U.S. 17, N.C. 211, U.S. 74/76, N.C. 133 and more.

“This is more of a zoning application that would apply to the immediate properties that adjoin these interstates or these highways,” Brigman said. “The intent behind it all, again, is to ensure that the land adjacent to those highways is protected and preserved to the best of our ability, while still allowing development to occur.”

As the county continues to see development, Brigman said, many residents have expressed concern for looking like Horry County, South Carolina, with development right up against major roadways.

“When you travel along Highway 17 and you leave Horry County and you enter Brunswick County, there is a physical difference…” Brigman said.

Planning staff added that New Hanover County utilizes TOZ standards along its major corridors.

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What’s next?

This item was on the board’s July meeting agenda for information only, so the board did not take action on these recommended amendments during that meeting.

The commissioners expressed a desire to meet with members of the planning board, residents and members of the development community to continue workshopping these amendments, which is expected to happen in the coming weeks.

Jamey Cross covers Brunswick County for the StarNews. Reach her at jbcross@gannett.com or message her on Twitter/X @jameybcross.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: From trees to transportation, Brunswick considers changes to rules on development