(A) The Planning Board shall have the powers and discharge the duties provided by law for Planning Boards established under the provisions of the General Statutes of North Carolina. It shall be the duty of the Planning Board, in general:
(1) To acquire and maintain in current form basic information and materials as are necessary to an understanding of past trends and present conditions appertaining to matters which must be considered in planning the development of the area, and forces at work to cause changes in these conditions;
(2) To prepare and from time to time amend and revise the comprehensive and coordinated plan for the physical development of the area;
(3) To establish principles and policies for guiding action in the development of the area;
(4) To prepare and recommend to the Board of Commissioners ordinances promoting orderly development along the lines indicated in the comprehensive plan;
(5) To determine whether specific proposed developments conform to the principles and requirements of the comprehensive plan for the growth and improvement of the area;
(6) To cooperate with and assist in the coordination of the progress of any county planning boards in Wilkes County, and to furnish technical assistance to the boards;
(7) To keep the Board of Commissioners and the general public informed and advised as to these matters; and
(8) To perform any other duties which may be lawfully assigned to it.
(Prior Code, § 2-44)
(B) The Planning Board shall have and exercise all the rights and duties set forth in G.S. § 160A-387. With respect to zoning, the Planning Board shall, among its other duties, specifically study the resources and needs of the town and prepare maps and plans for the systematic future development of the town. It shall provide in those plans for dividing the town into districts and zones and shall prepare plans specifying the height, area, manner of construction and land use in districts and zones. It shall prepare and submit to the Board of Commissioners, for approval and adoption, reports and recommendations as to regulation of the percentage of a lot that may be occupied; the size of yards, courts and other open spaces; and the location and use of buildings, structures and land for trade, industry, residence or other purposes; and it shall make studies and surveys of the town with respect to the proper zoning thereof in as full and ample manner as is required in the performance of its other duties as a Planning Board.
(Prior Code, § 2-45)
(C) The Planning Board shall propose and review from time to time regulations for the control of land subdivision in the area and submit to the Board of Commissioners its recommendations, if any, for the revision of regulations. Regulations shall be adopted or amended. The Planning Board shall review and make recommendations to the Board of Commissioners concerning all proposed plats of land subdivision.
(Prior Code, § 2-46)
(D) The Planning Board may conduct public hearings as may be required to gather information necessary for the drafting, establishment and maintenance of the comprehensive plan. Before adopting any plan it shall hold at least 1 public hearing thereon. The Planning Board shall have power to promote public interest in and understanding of its recommendations, and to that end it may have published and distributed copies of its recommendations, and may employ other means of publicity and education as it may determine. Members and employees of the Planning Board, when duly authorized by the Board, may attend planning conferences, planning institutes or hearings upon pending planning legislation, and may, by formal and affirmative vote, pay, within the Board’s budget, the reasonable travel expenses incidental to attendance.
(Prior Code, § 2-47)