(A) Applicability.
(1) The Board of County Commissioners may, on its own motion, upon recommendation of the Planning Board, or upon petition by an interested person, amend, supplement, change, modify or repeal the regulations established by this chapter.
(2) No amendment to this chapter that down-zones property shall be initiated nor is it enforceable without the written consent of all property owners whose property is the subject of the down-zoning amendment, unless the down-zoning amendment is initiated by the county. For purposes of this prohibition, "down-zoning" means a zoning ordinance that affects an area of land in one of the following ways: (a) by decreasing the development density of the land to be less dense than was allowed under its previous usage, or (b) by reducing the permitted uses of the land that are specified in the ordinance to fewer uses than were allowed under its previous usage.
(B) Initiation of amendments. A request to amend the text of this chapter may be initiated by the Board of Commissioners, Board of Adjustment, Planning Board, Zoning Administrator, or the general public.
(C) Application submittal.
(1) Applications for proposed amendments to this chapter must be submitted to the Greene County Planning Department at least 30 days prior to the Planning Board meeting at which it is to be considered.
(2) All applications for a text amendment shall be submitted in accordance with §154.036, Common Review Procedures.
(D) Notice and legislative hearings.
(1) Before adopting, amending, or repealing any provision of this chapter, the Board of Commissioners shall hold a legislative hearing. A notice of the hearing shall be given once a week for two successive calendar weeks in a newspaper having general circulation in the area. The notice shall be published the first time not less than ten days nor more than 25 days before the date scheduled for the hearing. In computing such period, the day of publication is not to be included but the day of the hearing shall be included.
(2) Notice to military bases. If the adoption or modification would result in changes to the zoning map or would change or affect the permitted uses of land located five miles or less from the perimeter boundary of a military base, the county shall provide written notice of the proposed changes by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the commander of the military base not less than ten days nor more than 25 days before the date fixed for the hearing. If the commander of the military base provides comments or analysis regarding the compatibility of the proposed development regulation or amendment with military operations at the base, the Board of Commissioners shall take the comments and analysis into consideration before making a final determination on the ordinance.
(E) Action by the Zoning Administrator. The Zoning Administrator shall draft the appropriate amendment and prepare a staff report that reviews the proposed text amendment request. Following completion of technical review by staff, the Zoning Administrator shall forward the completed request and any related materials to the Planning Board for a recommendation.
(F) Action by the Planning Board.
(1) Zoning amendments. All proposed amendments to this chapter shall be submitted to the Planning Board for review and comment. If no written report is received from the Planning Board within 30 days of referral of the amendment to that Board, the Board of Commissioners may act on the amendment without the Planning Board report. The Board of Commissioners are not bound by the recommendations, if any, of the Planning Board.
(2) Plan consistency. When conducting a review of proposed zoning text pursuant to this section, the Planning Board shall advise and comment on whether the proposed action is consistent with the Greene County Comprehensive Plan and any other officially adopted plan that is applicable. The Planning Board shall provide a written recommendation to the Board of Commissioners that addresses plan consistency and other matters as deemed appropriate by the Planning Board, but a comment by the Planning Board that a proposed amendment is inconsistent with the Greene County Comprehensive Plan shall not preclude consideration or approval of the proposed amendment by the county.
(3) Separate board required. Notwith- standing the authority to assign duties of the Planning Board to the Board of County Commissioners as provided by G.S. Ch. 160D, the review and comment required by this section shall not be assigned to the Board of County Commissioners and must be performed by a separate board.
Following Planning Board review, the Zoning Administrator shall forward the completed request and any related materials, including the Planning Board recommendation (if applicable), to the Board of Commissioners for final action.
(G) Citizen comments. If any resident or property owner in the county submits a written statement regarding a proposed amendment, modification, or repeal to a zoning regulation, including a text or map amendment, to the clerk to the Board of Commissioners at least two business days prior to the proposed vote on such change, the clerk to the Board shall deliver such written statement to the Board of Commissioners. If the proposed change is the subject of a quasi-judicial proceeding under G.S. § 160D-705 or any other statute, the clerk shall provide only the names and addresses of the individuals providing written comment, and the provision of such names and addresses to all members of the Board shall not disqualify any member of the Board from voting.
(H) Action by the Board of Commissioners.
(1) Following the receipt of a recommendation from the Planning Board, the Board of Commissioners shall conduct a legislative hearing, in accordance with § 154.036(F), to review and consider the application, the relevant supporting materials, the Zoning Administrator's report and recommendation (if given), the recommendation of the Planning Board, and any comments submitted by the public pursuant to division (G) of this section or made during the hearing. Following the close of the legislative hearing, the Board of Commissioners shall take one of the following actions:
(a) Approve the amendment as proposed;
(b) Approve a revised amendment;
(c) Remand the application back to the Planning Board for further consideration; or
(d) Take no action on the proposed amendment.
(2) Board of Commissioners statement; plan consistency. When adopting or rejecting any zoning text amendment, the Board of County Commissioners shall approve a brief statement describing whether its action is consistent or inconsistent with the Greene County Comprehensive Plan. The requirement for a plan consistency statement may also be met by a clear indication in the minutes of the Board of County Commissioners that at the time of action on the amendment the Board of County Commissioners was aware of and considered the Planning Board's recommendations and any relevant portions of an adopted comprehensive plan. A plan amendment and a zoning amendment may be considered concurrently. The plan consistency statement is not subject to judicial review.
(I) Approval criteria. In evaluating any proposed amendment of the text of this chapter, the Planning Board and the Board of Commissioners shall consider the following:
(1) The extent to which the proposed text amendment is consistent with the remainder of the chapter, including, specifically, any purpose and intent statements;
(2) The extent to which the proposed text amendment represents a new idea not considered in the existing ordinance, or represents a revision necessitated by changing circumstances over time;
(3) Whether or not the proposed text amendment corrects an error in the ordinance;
(4) Whether or not the proposed text amendment revises the ordinance to comply with state or federal statutes or case law;
(5) The proposed text amendment will advance the public health, safety and welfare of Greene County;
(6) Whether the proposed amendment is consistent with any comprehensive plan that has been adopted and any other officially adopted plan that is applicable based on G.S. § 160D-501.
(J) Withdrawal of application.
(1) Any application submitted in accordance with the provisions of this section for the purpose of amending the regulations of this chapter may be withdrawn at any time, but fees are nonrefundable.
(2) Any application that has been withdrawn shall be reconsidered only as a new petition and must comply with the submission and review requirements of this section.
(Ord. passed 6-21-21)