The amendment, which has been in progress since last fall was initially released to the public on June 7, and would have “refined” current zoning and created policies specific to the riverfront area, according to the planning board’s presentation.
In the weeks leading up to the meeting, roughly 2,500 community members used the public comment period to voice concerns about the initial amendment, and potential environmental and economic impacts of the development.
The planning board released a response to popular concerns expressed in public comments on July 5. It also altered the amendment to place height restrictions on any potential developments and eliminate language about residential development.
If it had been approved, this amendment could have been added to the county’s current comprehensive plan — which puts guidelines in place for future development and land use — with the approval of county commissioners.
Environmental concerns were also loosely addressed in the language of the amendment — calling for monitoring studies and Brownfields programs in the development process. The land on the Western Bank is mainly privately owned and borders the marsh of Eagles Island, which is in Brunswick County. New Hanover County owns about 91 acres of land on the bank, mainly industrial sites.
Clark Hipp, the one member of the board who voted for the amendment, said that the board was tasked with developing an “alternative place type” for the area.
The new amendment, revised after the public comments, requires residential development in this area to have a special use permit, but the area is currently zoned for urban mixed-use development.
“I’m not sure that we have, the County has the power to take away the rights of property owners to develop their property,” he said.
Commercial, recreational and civic use of the area were highlighted in the planning board’s presentation — with the amendment’s updates that considered public comments. The amendment would have created a special zoning designation just for this area, called “Low Intensity Riverfront.”
Hipp said that he believed the lower-intensity place type introduced in the newest version of the amendment addresses public concerns about development impacts
Flooding has been an issue in recent years for the area, presenting another concern for development’s ecological impact. Community members during the public comment period were concerned about the frequent flooding at the site and proximity to vulnerable wetlands, especially at Point Peter and Eagles Island.
“This is one of the lowest and most hazardous areas for flooding in all of New Hanover County,” Roger Shew, a geologist at UNC Wilmington who came to speak during the public comment period, said. He also presented images of flooding in the area to the board, explaining that high-tide flooding in Wilmington has increased in recent decades.
Residents also worried about development on marshlands and environmentally vulnerable areas, as well as parts of the Western Bank that are part of the National Register Historic District — like land next to the U.S.S. Battleship North Carolina.
Some also shared concerns about interference with the educational aspects of the battleship’s memorial, potential traffic, and impacts to the area's walkability.
Travis Gilbert was one of the community members who came to the meeting to speak against the amendment. He came representing a number of nonprofits and environment organizations, including the Cape Fear River Watch and the Historic Wilmington Foundation (which he is the former executive director of), saying that community response to the amendment was one of the largest outpourings of comments from the public he had ever seen.
After about an hour of public comment, board member Cameron Moore suggested finding a consultant to look at the area and put the development on pause to look at zoning districts in the area. Thus, the board voted to not recommend the amendment to the New Hanover Board of County Commissioners.
Hipp was the one vote in favor, Walter Avery, Cameron Moore, and Vice Chair Colin Tarrant voted against. Planning Board Chair Jeff Petroff recused himself, and Hansen Matthews and Kevin Hine were absent.
“We’ve got to start somewhere, we have started somewhere, that’s where we’re at tonight,” Moore said. “The commissioners have put this on us and put it on staff to come up and identify and try to create a vision.”
New Hanover County commissioners are expected to discuss the issue at an upcoming meeting, likely in August.
