April 3, 2023 - 6:00 PM - Board of Commissioners Rezoning Minutes

10 459 Meeting of the Johnston County Board of Commissioners April 3 , 2023 6 00 pm The Johnston County Board of Commissioners met in regular session Monday , April 3 , 2023 at 6 00 pm in the Commissioners Meeting Room , Johnston County Courthouse Annex , Smithfield , North Carolina The following members were present Present Chairman RS “ Butch ” Lawter , Jr , Vice Chairman Patrick E Harris , Tony Braswell , Ted G Godwin , and April Stephens Absent Commissioners Fred J Smith , Jr and Richard D Braswell Also Present County Manager Rick J Hester , County Attorney Jennifer J Slusser , Clerk to the Board Dana G Cuddington , and Executive Assistant Deputy Clerk Susie Reeves Chairman RS “ Butch ” Lawter , Jr called the meeting to order at 6 00 pm and the following business was transacted Chairman Lawter noted that Commissioners Fred J Smith , Jr and Richard D Braswell were absent from tonight’s meeting 1 Appointments Announcement Chairman RS “ Butch ” Lawter , Jr stated the Board utilized written ballots at the 10 00 am meeting for appointments to the West Johnston Firefighters Relief Fund Board and the West Johnston Fire Protection District Commission Chairman Lawter stated the votes have been tallied and he announced the following appointments were made West Johnston Firefighters Relief Fund Board – Travis Parrish was appointed for a two year term to expire on April 30 , 2025 West Johnston Fire Protection District Commission – Timothy Godwin and Jimmy Wilkins were reappointed ; and Zachary Webb Alexander was appointed for two year terms to expire on April 30 , 2025 Mr Godwin and Mr Wilkins were granted waivers in the length of service policy 2 Approval Discussion of Agenda Upon a motion by Commissioner Ted G Godwin , seconded by Commissioner Tony Braswell , and carried by unanimous vote , the Board approved the agenda postponing Cases 22 - 17 and 22 - 18 until the May 1 , 2023 6 00 pm meeting per the request of the applicant and removing Case 23 - 06 from the agenda request withdrawn by the applicant 3 Visit from 2023 Miss Johnston County , Miss Johnston County Teen , and Miss Smithfield Teen 2023 Miss Johnston County Tiffany Smith , Miss Johnston County Teen Colleen McDermott , and Miss Smithfield Teen Kaylee Stavlas addressed the Board Page460 April 3 , 2023 – 6 00 pm Continued Miss Smith thanked the Board for allowing them to speak at the meeting She shared information with the Board on the Miss America Organization stating it is the leading scholarship fund for women in the United States Miss Smith spoke on her platform stating she promotes children’s health which includes physical health as well as mental health She stated it is very important to focus on the mental health of children and spoke on her initiative called Positive Lifestyles Among Youth which is an after - school program dedicated to improving the health of children Miss McDermott stated she is from Apex and this is her second year competing in the Miss America Organization Miss McDermott stated she was drawn to the organization for the talent and scholarship opportunities She spoke on her platform called Planet Youth – Empowering Our Youth to Empower Our Planet which involves recycling crayons through collection bins and stated last year she was able to recycle over 10,000 crayons which were then redistributed to children’s hospitals Miss McDermott also spoke on her podcast in which she interviews other teens that work to improve the environment She spoke on the importance of saving the planet and shared information regarding other initiatives she participates with to improve the planet Miss Stavlas stated she is the very first Miss Smithfield Teen and for her platform she started her own non - profit business called NEX GEN CEO where she travels to local schools to empower the next generation of diverse entrepreneurs Miss Stavlas stated she began her business when she was eight years old and was able to provide over 1,000 for children in Haiti that were dying due to malnourishment Miss Stavlas stated she hopes to also teach life skills outside of entrepreneurship to students and she invited the Commissioners to attend and participate in her first business fair for students on May 13 , 2023 at the Smithfield Recreation and Aquatics Center The Board thanked Miss Smith , Miss McDermott , and Miss Stavlas for the visit and wished them good luck in the future 4 Public Comment None 5 Public Hearing Rezoning Requests Advertised – The News & Observer , The Johnstonian News and The News in Review – March 22 and 29 , 2023 Certified letters were mailed to adjoining property owners on March 20 , 2023 A notice was posted at the location on February 9 , 2023 for Case 23 - 08 The Chairman opened the Rezoning Hearing for Case 23 - 08 Case 23 - 08 Petition to remove 1547 acres located at 5842 NC Hwy 42 W in the Cleveland Township from the Environmentally Sensitive Area ESA Tax ID 06D01008B Owner Triple B # 32 - Mast , LLC Applicant Triple B # 32 - Mast , LLC Planning Director Braston Newton stated the petition is to remove 1547 acres located at 5842 NC Hwy 42 W in the Cleveland Township from the Environmentally Sensitive Overlay District Mr Newton stated the property is located within a Primary Growth Area in the County’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan Mr Newton shared ordinance information with the Board on the Environmentally Sensitive Overlay Districts and stated this is a situation where the overlay district does not completely coincide with the drainage and sub - drainage basins for the impacted or noted water bodies Attorney Jerry Eatman , 3625 Laurel Hills Road , Raleigh , NC , representing the applicant , addressed the Board Mr Eatman stated the request is to correct an error within the overlay district He stated the property is currently shown as draining into the Environmentally Sensitive Overlay District ; however , it actually drains into an area that is not covered within the overlay district Mr Eatman called to the Board’s attention maps and a letter from the Public Utilities Department in the agenda packet agreeing that this property is not within the Environmentally Sensitive Overlay District He offered to answer any questions There being no further public comments , the Chairman closed the public comment portion of the hearing Mr Newton reported the Planning Board recommended approval of the rezoning and adoption of a Resolution for the Statement of Consistency as submitted in the agenda packet Page461 April 3 , 2023 – 6 00 pm Continued At the inquiry of Commissioner Ted G Godwin , Mr Newton stated there are some other properties in the area that need to be removed from the overlay district and staff is currently working on a map to identify those properties He stated that information will be coming to the Board in the near future There being no further comments , the Chairman closed the Rezoning Hearing for Case 23 - 08 Decision on Rezoning Case 23 - 08 Case 23 - 08 Petition to remove 1547 acres located at 5842 NC Hwy 42 W in the Cleveland Township from the Environmentally Sensitive Area ESA Tax ID 06D01008B Owner Triple B # 32 - Mast , LLC Applicant Triple B # 32 - Mast , LLC Commissioner Ted G Godwin moved the Board adopt a Statement of Consistency Resolution and approve the request for Case 23 - 08 Vice Chairman Patrick E Harris seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote RESOLUTION FOR CASE NUMBER 23 - 08 RESOLUTION APPROVING A ZONING AMENDMENT AND ADOPTING A STATEMENT OF CONSISTENCY REGARDING AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE OFFICIAL ZONING MAPS OF JOHNSTON COUNTY WHEREAS , pursuant to NC Gen Stat § 160D - 605 , prior to adopting or rejecting a zoning amendment , the governing board is required to adopt a statement approving or rejecting the zoning amendment and describe if the amendment is consistent or inconsistent with the comprehensive zoning plan and why the board considers the action taken to be reasonable and in the public interest ; WHEREAS , the Johnston County Planning Board has reviewed a proposed amendment to The Official Zoning Maps of Johnston County , for a parcels identified as tax Tag ID 06D01008B located at 5842 NC Hwy 42 in Cleveland Township , by removing the subject property from the Environmentally Sensitive Area Overlay District WHEREAS , based on a review of the proposed amendment the Planning Board found that the proposed amendment is consistent with the Johnston County Comprehensive Land Use Plan and updates and further recommended that the Board of Commissioners approve the proposed amendment ; and WHEREAS , this Board has reviewed and considered the above written recommendation of the Planning Board and has held a public hearing on the proposed amendment , and this Board desires to approve the zoning amendment and adopt a statement describing why the adoption of the proposed amendment is consistent with the Johnston County Comprehensive Land Use Plan and updates , and the Board considers the proposed amendment to be reasonable and in the public interest NOW , THEREFORE , BE IT ORDAINED BY THE JOHNSTON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS THAT 1 This Board finds and determines that the adoption of the proposed amendment to the Official Zoning Maps of Johnston County is consistent with the Johnston County Land Use Plan and updates thereto because the Land Use Plan and updates indicate that a The amendment aligns with “ Goal 10 Protect Natural and Cultural Sites ; Objective 10B Protect Ecologically Sensitive Areas ” found in the Comprehensive Land Use Plan 2 This Board finds and determines that it is reasonable and in the public interest to approve the proposed amendment because a The Environmentally Sensitive Area Overlay District is intended to be consistent with the drainage basins of the perennial streams identified in the Johnston County Land Development Code , Section 14 - 103 b 2 ; and b The site is located within the Primary Growth Area The request is reasonable and in the public interest in that the map amendment corrects an inaccuracy 3 This Board approves the proposed zoning amendment , removing the subject parcels from the Environmentally Sensitive Area Overlay District rd Adopted this the 3 day of April , 2023 6 Comprehensive Land Use Plan Continued Discussion Chairman RS “ Butch ” Lawter , Jr stated that since there are two Board members absent , he suggested the Board take more time to review the red line version of the Land Use Plan and have a full discussion at the April 17 , 2023 meeting Chairman Lawter also mentioned a possible public hearing could be held the week of th May 15 at a different location He instructed staff to look into an alternate location for the hearing Page462 April 3 , 2023 – 6 00 pm Continued Commissioner April Stephens stated she believes the Board members are individually clarifying their questions with the red line version with staff Commissioner Ted G Godwin stated when the Board finally gets the Land Use Plan approved , it will be just the tip of the iceberg for the work He stated the Board will then need to begin work on the associated ordinance amendments 7 Manager Reports and Comments County Manager Rick Hester stated Johnston County is a member of the Triangle J Council of Governments and they are looking at using federal grant money to put together a regional study with the nine counties and municipalities involved regarding transportation , housing , land use , and infrastructure He stated Triangle J has asked the members for a letter of support Mr Hester stated a letter has been drafted and if there are no objections the letter would be sent on behalf of the Board There were no objections by the Board County Manager Rick Hester updated the Board on the budget preparation process and stated by early May a proposed budget would be provided to the Board 8 Board Reports and Comments None There being no further business , Vice Chairman Patrick E Harris moved the Board adjourn Commissioner Ted G Godwin seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote The meeting adjourned at 6 27 pm RS “ Butch ” Lawter , Jr , Chairman Dana G Cuddington , Clerk to the BoardPage