Brunswick County, North Carolina

Unified Development Ordinance
   

Duncan Associates is working with Brunswick County to update the zoning, subdivision, and related land development regulations and consolidate them into one easy-to-use document.

Brunswick is the southern most North Carolina county along the Atlantic Ocean, located just to the southwest of Wilmington. Until the late 1990's it was a relatively rural county characterized by family farms, timbering, and seafood industry. Although there was some beach-oriented development, the County had not been 'discovered' like the Outer Banks to the north or Myrtle Beach to the south.

This all changed with the turn of the century, and since then Brunswick County has been one of the fastest growing regions in the state. The Board of County Commissioners prudently decided to update the land development regulations to anticipate this changing climate. The new regulations will promote more efficient land use by allowing an increased mixture of housing types by right in exchange for more open space preservation. The rural character of the county is being preserved through a combination of corridor development standards as well as buffering requirements that emphasize retaining existing vegetation.

Traffic on the historic road network is anticipated to increase dramatically in the future. In anticipation of this increase, the revised ordinance contains provisions requiring developers to prepare a traffic impact study for all large scale developments. Other regulatory efforts to minimize the shock to the road network and improve public safety include requirements for multiple road connections and interconnectivity with adjoining properties.

Period:    June 2005 - Present
Team:      Duncan Associates

Contact:   Leslie Bell
                Planning Director
                1.800.621.0609