What You Need to Know about Zoning Laws in North Carolina

If you’re a business owner or property developer in North Carolina, it’s critical to be aware of local municipal zoning laws. These regulations can significantly impact how the property can be used — and the type of business activity that can be conducted on it. While there are a variety of zoning regulations, it’s vital to be aware of the potential restrictions you may face before you sign a lease or enter into a transaction.

Zoning Laws Dictate What You’re Allowed to Do with Your Property

Zoning laws dictate what you’re allowed to do with a specific property and the type of activities that may or may not be conducted on it. Specifically, zoning creates various districts and identifies how the land within a planning jurisdiction may be used. The zoning laws in North Carolina are complex and can be hundreds of pages long — even for small towns and cities.

It’s crucial to be aware that zoning laws can be highly nuanced. These regulations can specify the design, shape, and size of the structures that can be built on a parcel of land. They can also address issues such as noise, waste management, and various other matters pertaining to how the land is used.

There are Different Zoning Categories

There are a wide variety of zoning categories in North Carolina. Each type of zoning deals with its own regulations. For example, residential zoning laws can limit the number of structures you can have on your property. Commercial zoning laws can dictate not only whether your type of business can operate on a property, but they also deal with things like parking capacity requirements.

While each municipality has specific zoning laws and regulations, zoning districts can include the following:

• Residential base zoning districts — Residential districts can specify where single family, mixed residential, duplexes, and manufactured homes are permitted.
• Business base zoning districts — Business districts establish where office installations, convenience type retail stores, grocery stores, and high-intensity retail stores are allowed. This category can also include zoning for downtown, industrial, and business park districts.
• Planned development zoning districts — A planned unit development district is meant to encourage innovative and creative land planning to provide a mix of uses. These uses can be related to residential, employment center, or traditional neighborhood districts.
• Special base zoning districts — Special base zoning districts can include lands used for things like conservation, agricultural-residential purposes, and military/airport districts.
• Overlay zoning districts — Overlay zoning districts can include those that address areas used for hospitals, historic/landmark districts, and those that make it possible for developers to create transit-oriented development.

Some properties can have more than one zone — such as commercial/residential properties. Zoning can also be conditional in North Carolina pursuant to state statute, which is becoming more common. In accordance with state law, a zoning ordinance can include “conditional districts, in which site plans and individualized development conditions are imposed.” Effectively, this allows a local government to tailor development in situations where land is being rezoned for more intensive use. It limits the uses that would usually apply in the event the land was up-zoned to be a general use zone. Utilizing an experienced attorney to negotiate between neighbors, local government and any opposing counsel is key to achieving a successful result in this scenario.

Zoning Laws Can Change and Result in Nonconformities

Like any other laws, zoning laws can change — this is common in municipalities and counties that are growing. In such cases, your permitted use may no longer be consistent with the law. When a regulation changes, it can create a nonconformity. There are typically three options for how nonconformities are treated: (1) immediate termination; (2) grandfathering and continuation of the nonconformity; and (3) amortization of the nonconformity.

Although North Carolina law does not favor nonconformities, sudden compliance with a new zoning law may not always be practical. This makes immediate termination of the prior law extremely rare. However, with amortization, a nonconformity can remain for a specified grace period. After the time frame ends, the nonconformity must comply with the new law. When a nonconformity is grandfathered in and continued, the land can be used in the same way permitted by the old law, subject to certain restrictions. For example, with grandfathering, there are usually restrictions placed on the expansion, enlargement, repair, or replacement of the nonconformity.

Unified Development Ordinance

Charlotte’s population has more than doubled since the 1990s but its development regulations have not undergone a full update until recently. In 2022, Charlotte City Council adopted a Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) to address the City’s continuing rapid growth. The Charlotte UDO, which goes into effect on June 1, 2023, is a unified set of regulations that guide growth and development in Charlotte. The UDO combines zoning regulations, along with other land development rules (such as subdivision, tree, and floodplain ordinances) into one comprehensive document. Charlotte’s UDO combines eight land development ordinances into one.

The City of Charlotte UDO is the primary tool to implement the Charlotte Future 2040 Plan and other adopted plans and policies through development regulations. The UDO also builds from other City policies, including the Charlotte Moves: Strategic Mobility Plan, the Charlotte Streets Map, the Strategic Energy Action Plan and the Tree Canopy Action Plan.

Effective June 1, 2023, Charlotte’s existing (also known as “Conventional”) zoning districts will translate to new UDO zoning districts. Existing conditional zoning districts will not change at this time; rather, they will be considered for alignment zoning after June 1, 2023, during a community area planning process.

The new regulations governing the UDO zoning districts provide more options than ever on how to develop vacant property and redevelop existing properties. As a result, historically single family home residential neighborhoods may see development of duplexes and triplexes where they were previously prohibited.

Contact an Experienced North Carolina Zoning and Land Use Attorney

North Carolina’s zoning laws are extremely complex. If you are a property owner, entrepreneur, developer, or another party with a zoning issue, it’s essential to have a knowledgeable attorney by your side. Located in Charlotte, Murray Law provides reliable representation to landowners concerning a wide range of zoning and land use matters. We welcome you to call Murray Law’s Charlotte office at 704-940-9095 to schedule a consultation to discuss your case.