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The Dare County Board of Commissioners will hold a public hearing at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 17, 2023 for a proposed amendment to the county’s Cluster Home Development Ordinance. The public hearing will take place at the commissioners meeting room at the Dare County Administration Building, which is located at 954 Marshall C. Collins Drive in Manteo.

The Dare County Planning Board determined that the current ordinance allows for a level of density and scale in traditionally single-family districts that is not consistent with the intent of those districts.

The proposed amendment would remove cluster home ordinance from 22 districts located within unincorporated Dare County – specifically residential single-family zoning districts that do not allow the development of multi-family units.

The proposal will retain the cluster housing ordinance in a dozen zones.

People will have the opportunity to speak about the proposed changes during public comment.

If adopted by the Board of Commissioners, the proposed amendment would only impact future cluster home developments in the various zones within the unincorporated areas of the county following the date of its adoption. Changes to the ordinance would not impact cluster home developments that have already been approved or applications already submitted.

Below is a listing by areas of unincorporated Dare County of zones in which the cluster housing ordinance is to be removed and zones that would remain.

To find how a property is zoned go to darenc.gov, click on departments, click on planning. On the left of the planning page, a listing says zoning regulations and maps. Click on it. The first page lists unincorporated areas of the county. Click on the one that applies and the zoning map will open with that area.

Another way is to go to maps.darecountync.gov, which opens the county’s GIS maps. Hit continue. Go to the “Jump to Area” button and select an area from the dropdown list. Find the property and click on it. The zoning information is at the bottom of the chart.

Below is a listing of zones where the cluster housing ordinance is proposed for removal and where it will be retained.

Unincorporated Areas of Dare County

R zones are residential. C zones are commercial. I stands for Industrial. NH stands for Natural Historic.

Martin’s Point. The area is zoned MP-1, single family residential and is mapped in the residential portions of Martin’s Point. The zone was not included in the cluster housing ordinance.

Colington. The cluster housing ordinance will be removed from zones R-1, R-2B, RS-1, VC 2 and NH. The ordinance will remain in these zones: R-2, R-3, CS and C-3. Also mapped in Colington are R-1A which is not included in the ordinance and R-4 which is zoned exclusively in Colington Harbor where covenants would not allow cluster housing.

Roanoke Island. The ordinance will be removed from NH and R-1 (low density residential). The ordinance will remain in R-2, R-3, RS-8, C-3, I-1 and SNC (Skyco Neighborhood Commercial). The zone C-PR (public recreation), which is mapped, was not part of the cluster housing ordinance.

Wanchese. The ordinance will be removed from the following zones: Hwy. 345, BT, HML, MC-1, MC-2, RB, VR, WR-1 and WVC. The only zone mapped but not included in the ordinance is NC, standing for Neighborhood Commercial. It is mapped along Old Wharf Road. The zone permits single family residential combined with an extensive list and regulations for commercial activity.

Manns Harbor. The cluster housing ordinance will be removed from all zones: NH, MHA and MHB.

East Lake. The cluster housing ordinance will be removed from ELNH and ELR. Two zones are mapped but were not included in the ordinance: ELVC an ELCS.

Stumpy Point. The ordinance will be removed from NH, SP-C and SP-2, which are all the zones mapped in the mainland village.

Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo and Frisco. These villages are zoned S-1, which is a dimensional zone but not use specific. The S-1 zone remains in the cluster housing ordinance under the proposal.

Avon. The ordinance is removed from zones R-1 and R2-A. It remains in R-2 and C-2 and C-3. The VC zone is mapped in Avon, but was not included in the ordinance. The VC is mapped only on a parcel that contains a law office. The zone S-1 is mapped along the ocean beach front and remains in the ordinance.

Buxton. The cluster housing ordinance is removed from R-1 and R2-A. The ordinance remains in R-3, C-2, C-3 and I-1. SED-1 stands for Special Environmental District which is mapped over the Buxton Woods Forest and not included in the ordinance. BNH is mapped over a residential area next to the Old Coast Guard Base. The zone was not included in the cluster housing ordinance.

Hatteras. The ordinance is removed from RS-1, R2-AH and NH. It remains in R-2H and C-2H. A Height Overlay District is in place in Hatteras Village. It is applies to “residential structures located within an overlay area established from the National Park Service oceanfront boundary to a distance of 500 feet landward as depicted on the Hatteras Village zoning map.” It is not included in the listing. The S-1 zone is mapped along the ocean beach front and remains in the ordinance.

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