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Land Use and Zoning

This page is under construction.

The Town's Land Development Ordinance (LDO) was adopted in June 2021 and replaced the previously in effect Unified Development Ordinance (UDO).  Please note, for some active projects, the UDO still governs their developments.  All new developments and construction shall be governed by the LDO.   

Traditional Zoning requirements such as minimum building setbacks, required numbers of parking spaces, and landscaping or buffer regulations, exist through the LDO.  The LDO regulates and separates uses by the combination of various types of Zoning Districts (LDO Section 3) and then placements of Specific Uses in each of those distinct Districts as either Permitted Uses (P) or Permitted by Special Use permission (S) as found in LDO Section 5. 

The division of land, called Subdivision, is primarily captured in LDO Section 9, however, aspects such as the minimum lot widths for a new lot are predicated on what Zoning district a property is in, which would be found in LDO Section 3 for instance.  

Voluntary Annexation Petitions may be submitted by the property owner of any eligible* property to annex the property into the Town's corporate limits, which entitles it to receive Town services/benefits and the obligation to follow all laws and regulations of the Town.

Voluntary Annexation petitions require 3 steps or appearances before the Town Board of Commissioners before they can receive final approval and the land is annexed:

  1. Direct Clerk to Investigate Sufficiency – this is a Staff action on the Consent Agenda.
  2. Call for Public Hearing – this is a Staff action on the Consent Agenda.
  3. Public Hearing (Legislative) – This is an Applicant Action on the Regular/Board Action Agenda, usually accompanying a Map Amendment (rezoning) application.

*-Eligibility relates to General Statute 160D-202 and/or Agreements with adjacent municipalities about the exact boundaries for annexations. 

 
Zoning Map and Amendments

The Official Zoning Map shows the assigned zoning district of all properties in Rolesville’s corporate Town limits and extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ). The Town Board adopted a new Zoning map with the adoption of the LDO in 2021.  Property owners ("Applicants") may apply ("petition") to the Town to change the zoning district of their property (referred to as a Map Amendment, or more commonly a 'rezoning').  Town Staff first review and comments on these requests, and ultimately present them first to the Town's Planning Board for review and recommendation, and then to the Town Board of Commissioners via a Legislative public hearing.  The Town Board has the final decision making authority on such requests.

 
 
Site Plans and Special Use Permits

Some land uses and operations require Town Board approval through special use permit public hearings. The Town uses special use permits to create new and amend existing Planned Unit Development (PUD) master plans, approve site plans, and to authorize special uses. Special use permit proceedings are quasi-judicial. This means they involve sworn testimony and presentation of facts before the Town Board of Commissioners. Upon approval, a special use permit is tied to the land.

Variances
 
The Town can grant variances when strict interpretation of the LDO creates a hardship for a specific property. The Board of Adjustment (BOA) conducts public hearings for these cases. This is a quasi-judicial process requiring sworn testimony.

To petition for a map amendment, a special use permit, or a variance, one must file a completed application with the Town, and pay all applicable fees found in the Adopted Fiscal Year Budget. The applications are available on the Forms and Applications. The Planning Department encourages potential petitioners to contact the staff to schedule a pre-submittal meeting.