Introduction

This document is the Town of Zebulon's Unified Development Ordinance (or "UDO"). It contains the rules that control how land can be used in the Town, what kinds of uses may be in particular locations, and how new development must be configured. The following paragraphs describe this document and how to use it.

The UDO replaces Chapter 152 of the Town Code of Ordinances (the Land Use Ordinance), upon its effective date – January 1, 2020. While this document implements the Town's adopted policy guidance, like the Comprehensive Plan, it is regulatory (not advisory) in nature, and is a legal document that carries the force of law.

The Town's zoning map is the graphical depiction of the location of the zoning districts and is adopted by reference in the UDO. All the land within the Town's corporate limits and extra-territorial jurisdiction has a zoning district designation. The UDO makes several revisions to the Town's prior zoning district line up, including the creation and establishment of two new downtown zoning districts to be applied to lands around the downtown. The UDO also creates three new zoning districts (commercial neighborhood, industrial campus, and planned development) which are made available for request but not proactively established on the zoning map. The UDO also consolidates the Town's prior six residential zoning districts into three: suburban, neighborhood, and urban. The UDO converts several special use districts to general use districts; such as the RMF SUD, TR SUD, and HB SUD.

This document contains 10 articles that consolidate similar kinds of provisions, like procedures, zoning districts, use standards, or development standards into individual articles. It includes a text formatting system comprised of numbered section and subsection headings that are designed to help code users understand how the text in the document is organized.

The top of almost every page includes a listing of the particular article name, as well as the appropriate section numbers of the text on that page. This allows users to quickly navigate through the document using the tops of the pages. Page numbers are included at the bottom of each page. Page numbers include the article number so that a user may quickly see what article a page is located in (which is helpful for navigating or referencing the document). Some articles, like Article 2: Procedures, also include an introductory section that explains how the regulations in the article are structured and how to use them effectively. Where possible, provisions in a particular article are listed in alphabetical order to allow users to quickly locate the desired text.

Readers are reminded that the UDO is a "living" document. In other words, the text in the document and the zoning map can change from time-to-time. Users should also be sure that they are using the most recent version of the UDO document and zoning map.

Questions about the UDO, the zoning map, or other aspects of the development review process should be directed to the Town's Planning Department at 919.823.1810. The Planning Department offices are open during normal business hours at 1003 North Arendell Avenue in Zebulon. Information is also available on the Town's website at www.townofzebulon.org.

Thank you for reviewing this material, and we look forward to serving you.