NC Senate moves closer to eliminating rezoning petitions
A formal process North Carolina residents have used to regulate development around their property is closer to going away after a key vote in the Senate on Wednesday.
House Bill 201 would end protest petitions for rezoning cases. Currently, if enough neighbors within a 100-foot radius of land proposed for rezoning sign on to a “protest” petition, state law makes it harder for the project to be approved.
If a valid protest petition is filed, the law mandates a rezoning needs 75 percent approval of the governing board, instead of a simple majority. The bill strikes that requirement.
Senate lawmakers voted 39 to 9 in favor of the idea Wednesday, and it appears headed to the governor after already passing the House 89 to 28.
Sen. Floyd McKissick, a Durham County Democrat, objected to the bill’s final reading, delaying it by at least a day after saying he hoped to include an exemption for local governing boards that would like to keep the protest petition process.
Cary City Mayor Harold Weinbrecht said his city council would take advantage of that exemption, yet doubted lawmakers would include it in the bill. Weinbrecht is in favor of the protest petition process, saying it protects property owners from harmful development in their neighborhoods.
“It's a great tool to make sure everyone works together,” he said. He said the council has overridden protest petitions unanimously after hearing from neighbors who objected to development in Cary for no reason other than they didn’t want anything built at all.
Weinbrecht said the legislation serves developers, not the people.
“Look at who is contributing to those campaigns,” he said. “Anything developers want they are getting. That’s to the detriment of a lot of people and municipalities.”
Supporters of the bill have said that the protest petition process gives landowners too much power over adjacent property.
Rep. Paul Stam, a bill sponsor and Apex Republican, has said individuals “do not have the fundamental right to tell other people what to do with their property.”
Sen. Andy Wells, a Hickory Republican, introduced the bill on the floor Wednesday, and he sought to emphasize that it does not eliminate a citizen’s right to protest rezoning changes or development.
“Citizens always have the right to talk to their local officials,” he said. “Ideally, they have council members who will listen to them.”
George Farthing of the North Raleigh Coalition of Homeowners Association said by taking the protest petition process away, it puts residents at a disadvantage against big developers with attorneys and resources on their side.
“It’s important to state that I’m not opposed to growth and development,” Farthing said. “But if we are going to have growth, zoning should matter.”
He said that developers with plans “not harmful to the community” should have no issues.
“It’s important for all North Carolinians to be in touch with the governor and hope that he will honor our history and the promise of zoning to protect our neighborhoods,” he said.
Sen. Mike Woodard, a Durham Democrat, said the protest petition process has been effective since 1923, that it is not used frequently, and rarely are developers denied rezoning because of it.
“Protest petitions do exactly what they are supposed to do,” he said. “They ensure well thought out rezoning cases.”
A final vote is expected Thursday in the Senate, which meets at 11 a.m.
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This story was originally published July 1, 2015 at 7:27 PM with the headline "NC Senate moves closer to eliminating rezoning petitions."