Tell Us What You Think

Dear Kimberly Ann,

Thank you for submitting your question and reviewing the Work in Progress Presentation from Planapalooza.  The "Conservation Neighborhood" idea presented was a general concept that has not yet been fully vetted by the community, our consultants, or Village staff.  Our consultant recommended a potential location for such a neighborhood, but at this point of the planning process the specific location shown is not really important.  Rather, we are looking for feedback on the concept in general to determine if the community feels this could be a strategy to preserve the rural setting of the majority of the ETJ in the face of development pressures. As you stated, the concept is a “mixed use center” that is denser in the center (like the Village Center) and gets less dense as you move out from the center.  Mixed use centers contain a variety of uses such as retail, restaurant, office/professional, and residential uses all in one central location (or a “live/work” setting). A mixed use conditional district simply means that any developer and the Village Council would have to jointly and voluntarily agree to place certain conditions on the development.  These conditions could include a certain % of land is dedicated to open space or any other condition voluntarily agreed to by both parties.  You are correct that the area our consultant chose to place the conservation neighborhood in the ETJ for illustration purposes only does lie in a watershed protection area.  Therefore, watershed protection would definitely be a development consideration for this location should a developer request to develop this land as a conservation neighborhood and if the Village Council approved of such a development. I hope this answers your questions and we appreciate your interest in our planning process.  I encourage you to remain informed and engaged throughout the remainder of our long range planning process.

Thank you for submitting your question about the ETJ expansion area.  I am not able to tell what your address is from your message, so I am not clear where your property is actually located.  I am sorry that you are offended and do not feel engaged as a land owner in ETJ request area.  Because you and others feel that way, the Village has asked the Moore County Commissioners to NOT hear our request at this time and rather wait until we have an opportunity to adequately engage you and other property owners in the requested ETJ area.  We realize there is a lot of confusion and questions that need to be addressed and answered first.  This will take time and we are committed to putting forth the effort to ensure that we fully understand your concerns and the concerns of your neighbors.  Please feel free to email me personally at nhawkins@vopnc.org or give me a call at 910-295-1900 and I will be happy to speak with you directly.

Thank you for your question and for the information you provided on Glen Ellyn, IL.  We will review this information and see if there is anything we can learn from them.

Strategies to address residential planning, architectural code, appearance, and governance will be discussed during the upcoming Envision the Village public meetings which include the August 29^th Visioning Sessions (10:00 am or 6:30 pm at Village Hall – 395 Magnolia Road) and the September 19^th -24^th Planapalooza event.  Stay tuned at www.envisionthevillage.com as more details on these events will be posted in the upcoming weeks.

As you may imagine, development laws vary from state to state.  In Pinehurst, we are prohibited by state law (Session Law 2015-86) from regulating building design elements for one and two-family dwellings unless the home is located in our Local Historic District or is a designated historic structure.  These laws went into effect in 2015 and in many cases NC cities and towns have been forced to loosen their regulations as a result. 

Infill on previously platted lots, such as those on Morganton Road, are permissible as long as they meet the Village’s zoning requirements and are constructed according to state building code standards. Per Session Law 2015-86, the Village is no longer able to regulate aesthetic items such as paint colors, materials, architecture, design layouts, etc. unless the home is located in the Village’s Local Historic District.

Again, thank you for your question, which is one we believe many other residents may have as well. We fully expect this topic will be heavily discussed over the next several months as we strive to identify ways we can ensure quality development within our existing legal framework. Examples of strategies used in other communities, such as Glen Ellyn possibly, may help us do just that.  We encourage you to remain an active and engaged participant in this planning process as it unfolds.