09SeptemberPBPlanning Board Minutes September 12, 2023 Page 1 of 9
RANDOLPH COUNTY PLANNING BOARD MINUTES September 12, 2023
There was a meeting of the Randolph County Planning Board on Tuesday, September 12, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. in Meeting Room A, Randolph County Office Building, 725 McDowell Rd, Asheboro, NC, 27205, due to renovations at the 1909 Historic Courthouse.
Chairman Pell called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. and welcomed those in attendance and asked for a roll call of the members.
• Reid Pell, Chair, present;
• Kemp Davis, Vice-Chair, present;
• John Cable, present;
• Melinda Vaughan, present;
• Reggie Beeson, present;
• Ken Austin, present;
• Barry Bunting, present; and
• Brandon Hedrick, Alternate, present.
County Attorney, Ben Morgan, was also present. Randolph County Planning staff members Kayla Brown, Melissa Burkhart, David Harris, Cory Hartsoe, and Tim Mangum were also present for the meeting
Pell called for a motion to approve the consent agenda as presented.
• Approval of agenda for the September 12, 2023, Planning Board meeting.
• Approval of the minutes from the August 8, 2023, Planning Board meeting.
Bunting made the motion to APPROVE the consent agenda as presented, with Cable making the second to the motion. The motion was adopted unanimously. Pell asked the Board members if there were any conflicts in the cases before the Planning
Board tonight. Hearing none, Pell turned to Caddle to present the first case of the night.
Caddle presented the first case along with site plans and pictures of the site and surrounding properties.
REZONING REQUEST #2023-00002102
The Randolph County Planning Board will hold a duly published and notified Legislative Hearing on the request by ELIZABETH D. WELBORN,
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Randleman, NC, and their request to rezone 9.80 acres at 6239 Davis Ctry Rd, New Market Township, Randleman Lake Critical Area Watershed, Tax ID #7747926824, Rural Growth Area, from RR - Residential Restricted
District and RA – Residential Agricultural District to RLOM-CD - Rural Lot
Subdivision Mixed - Conditional District. The proposed Conditional Zoning District would specifically allow the division of Max H Welborn subdivision lot A into two parcels for Class B Mobile Homes and above as per the site plan.
Pell opened the public hearing and called for anyone wishing to speak in favor of the request to come forward and address the Planning Board. Max H Welborn, 6239 Davis Ctry Rd, Randleman, the owner, and applicant, rose to
address the the Planning Board along with his daughter, Janice, and answered questions
from the Planning Board. The new parcel is being divided off the base tract to allow the grandson to build a new site-built home and the size of the lot is due to the property being in a Rural Growth Area.
Pell asked if there were any questions from the Planning Board. Davis said that he is very familiar with the property under consideration.
Cable asked if the residence was going to be a stick-built house and the daughter replied
that it would be a barndominium. Austin asked if there would be a new drive placed along Davis Ctry Rd or if the grandson would be using the existing drive. The daughter stated that the plan was to use the
existing drive, but her son may put in a new drive later. Davis asked about the easement that was shown on the plat and the daughter stated that the easement was put on the plat by the surveyor to ensure access to the new lot.
Pell asked if there were any more questions from the Planning Board members.
Pell asked if there was anyone else in favor of the request who would like to address the Planning Board. Hearing none, Pell asked if there was anyone in opposition to the request who would like to address the Planning Board.
Hearing none, Pell closed the public hearing. Cable said that he heard Caddle say in her overview of the case that the pictures presented were made when the public hearing sign was posted and that answered his
concerns about the site being posted and adjoining property owners being notified of the
public hearing.
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Davis made the motion to APPROVE the rezoning request to rezone the specified parcel(s) on the rezoning application to the requested zoning district based upon the Determination of Consistency and Findings of Reasonableness and Public Interest
statements that are included in the Planning Board agenda, submitted during the rezoning
presentation and as may be amended, incorporated into the motion, to be included in the minutes, as well as the site plan(s) with all agreed-upon revisions, also incorporated into the motion and that the request is consistent with the Randolph County Growth Management Plan. Beeson made a second to the motion to APPROVE the rezoning
request.
Pell, having a proper motion and second, called the question on the motion to APPROVE the rezoning request, and the motion was adopted unanimously.
Caddle told the applicant that due to the potential of an appeal of the rezoning decision,
the approval paperwork would be sent after the deadline for filing an appeal if no appeal is requested.
REZONING REQUEST #2023-00002193
The Randolph County Planning Board will hold a duly published and notified
Legislative Hearing on the request by TJTR PROPERTIES, LLC, Asheboro, NC, and their request to rezone 21.33-acres at 2863 NC Hwy 134, Cedar Grove Township, Tax ID #7657589746, Secondary Growth Area, from RA – Residential Agricultural District, RR – Residential
Restricted Districts, and LI-CD – Light Industrial Conditional District to LI -
Light Industrial District. It is the desire of the applicant to rezone the property to allow any uses allowed by the LI - Light Industrial District. Pell opened the public hearing and called for anyone wishing to speak in favor of the
request to come forward and address the Planning Board.
H R Gallimore, 231 S Fayetteville St, Asheboro, rose to address the Planning Board and said that he was representing the applicant, Thomas Schneider, who could not attend the public hearing. Gallimore gave a background on Schneider and stated that he started
Schneider Stone and that he sold that business several years ago and that he has been using this site for several years to build and sell storage buildings. Gallimore stated that there are other industrial uses in the area and Schneider was involved in many different operations and that he may or may not get into stone fabrication and he wants the flexibility of a straight rezoning to do different operations on the property. Gallimore stated
that Schnider wants to follow the rules as outlined in the Randolph County Unified
Development Ordinance.
Caddle directed the Planning Board to the list of uses allowed in the Light Industrial District that is included in the agenda packet.
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Pell asked if there were any questions from the Planning Board members. Davis said that the existing building is for manufacturing and sales of storage buildings
and that the existing Conditional District Permits prohibit billboards. Davis asked what
would happen to the existing Conditional District Permit if the property was rezoned. Davis was told that the existing Conditional District Permit would go away and be replaced by the straight Light Industrial District and would allow any of its uses.
Morgan stated that the Light Industrial District does allow billboards. Pell recalled how this
property has been before the Planning Board and the Board of Commissioners several times and it came back for a public hearing to specifically allow a billboard sign to be placed along Interstate 73/74.
Davis asked how the Planning Board would handle a potential billboard going forward
and if the Planning Board should put a condition on the property related to a proposed billboard sign. Caddle told the Planning Board that this request is for a straight rezoning and any
specifics on the signs outside of the Randolph County Unified Development Ordinance
would come from the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT). Several Planning Board members asked if the Light Industrial District would allow a billboard sign and Caddle said that a billboard sign is one of the permitted uses in the
district.
Cable stated that he felt that changing the Conditional District Permit to a straight zoning district would change the entire parcel to the same zoning and Schneider would be able to put a billboard on the site as long as all requirements from NCDOT were followed.
Hedrick stated that the Randolph County Unified Development Ordinance in Article 600, Section 635, footnote nine states, “Where erected, these signs shall not be located within fifty
feet of any residential district and there shall be a minimum
1,000 linear feet radius between any two outdoor advertising signs. If the highway has two or three lanes, the sign can be no larger than four hundred square feet or 672 square feet on any highway with fire or more lanes.”
Hedrick continued by saying the Randolph County Unified Development Ordinance does not contain any details regarding electronic changeable face signs. Davis read from the Randolph County Unified Development Ordinance in Article 600,
Section 635, B. General Requirements, Item 8,
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“No sign shall be erected, repaired, or repainted by any person until a permit has been issued by the Randolph County Planning Director . . .”
Caddle stated that any proposed billboard sign would have to go through Randolph County Building Inspections for proper plan review and permitting. Cable asked that if the Planning Board approved the straight rezoning, Schneider would
not have to come back to the Planning Board for any use allowed by right and Caddle
said that was correct. Hedrick asked if all the existing commercial uses in the area have Conditional District Permits and the members of the Planning Board said they thought that was a true
statement.
Austin asked if Schneider wanted to put up a billboard sign. Caddle and Morgan both answered that since this is a request for a straight rezoning,
Board members cannot ask that question.
Gallimore rose to address the Board again and told them that Schneider had just turned down a request to put a cell phone tower on this site since it was next to Interstate 73/74. Gallimore also stated that Schneider had not told him all his thoughts regarding the future
development of this property.
Davis stated that he visited the site on Saturday and that there are commercial operations right around the request location but that the problem is when commercial operations start abutting existing residential area and at what point does the Planning Board draw the line
of allowing commercial operations and residential areas to be side by side.
Gallimore told the Planning Board that Schneider has several things in mind and does not want to keep having to come back to the Planning Board to do different operations.
Pell asked if there was anyone else in favor of the request who would like to address the
Planning Board. Hearing none, Pell asked if there was anyone in opposition to the request who would like to address the Planning Board. Hearing none, Pell closed the public hearing.
Hedrick reminded the Planning Board of the recent joint meeting to discuss the Northeast
Randolph County Growth Management Plan and that one thing that was mentioned in the plan is the protection of scenic corridors around the interstate and US highways. The goal of this policy is to protect the perception of the rural character of Randolph County.
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Austin stated he felt like it was a broad change to rezoning this property to Light Industrial
District and if this is a typical request for the Planning Board since the Board mostly sees Conditional District Permits.
Davis stated that the Planning Board has never preferred straight rezonings. Beeson stated that he agreed with Davis and just a glance of all of the uses allowed in the Light Industrial District are things like “Temporary carnival, rides, Ferris wheels” and
“Billboard” and that the Planning Board needs to look at this list closely before approving
the straight rezoning. Davis said that the list of possible uses was at no fault of Schneider.
Gallimore asked to address the Board, but Pell stated that the public hearing had closed
but it could be reopened if the Board desired to reopen the public hearing. On the motion of Kemp, seconded by Cable, the Planning Board voted unanimously to re-open the public hearing.
Gallimore stated that he deals with a lot of clients, but he does not have an agreement with Schnieder to sell this property or anything else related to this property. Gallimore said that the County will be getting more requests for straight rezoning due to the long-range plan and that many changes are coming to the County. Gallimore suggested that
maybe some parts of the Randolph County Unified Development Ordinance need to be
fine-tuned but it can be hard and expensive for clients to get specific site plans and engineering if they do not know the request will be approved. Gallimore stated that many people traveling through this area may like the area without billboards and there are not many billboards in Randolph County.
Cable stated that his concerns with various uses allowed by right and billboards, in general, are the angles of lights shining into the surrounding homes and the impact on property values. Cable said that many signs that he sees in Alamance County are distracting especially at night.
Pell stated that this is not the first time the Planning Board has dealt with billboards and the Board has turned down several billboards over the years. Gallimore said that the County left billboards in the Randolph County Unified
Development Ordinance for a reason and if Schneider can put a billboard on the site, he
may put one there. Cable stated that he has a friend who has a cell tower on his property and the rent that he receives from the cellular companies feeds his retirement account and his only
concern and stumbling block is the light shining into the residences and straight rezoning
would give Schneider a blank canvas to do whatever was allowed by right on the property.
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Gallimore asked Caddle if there were ever any complaints to Alamance County about billboards. Caddle stated that Alamance County does have billboards everywhere and that she did not know of any complaints.
Davis stated that the municipalities look at billboards differently than the County and he is not saying that the information in the Randolph County Unified Development Ordinance is right, but it is what we have to work with at this point.
Pell reclosed the public hearing for discussion among the Planning Board and a motion.
Davis stated that is it his opinion that there may be a time when the Planning Board and County staff decide to update the sign section in the Randolph County Unified Development Ordinance. Davis went on to say that he is not a billboard proponent but
that he also understands that no billboards in the County might not be the best way to
move forward and that the Board has to work within the confines of the Randolph County
Unified Development Ordinance.
Cable stated that he felt that no billboards would be an absolute solution for the County
but based on road structure, curves, and the location of residences, a billboard or other
potential uses allowed by right could cause more impacts on the existing residential area. Cable continued that by approving this straight rezoning request, the Planning Board could open a problem that could not be easily solved.
Austin stated that he felt the Planning Board and County staff needed to look at this
section of the Randolph County Unified Development Ordinance and update it as some people would try to take advantage of the current regulations. Beeson stated that if this request were approved, the Planning Board would only see
straight rezoning going forward.
Hedrick said that the Planning Board should not consider the rules that may be put into place, but this property currently has a Conditional District Permit, and it stipulates no billboard advertising signs.
Pell stated that he counted fifty-five different uses allowed by right in the Light Industrial
District.
Cable said that he agreed with the discussion and some of the uses in a Light Industrial
District like churches would have little impact but uses such as a truck terminal would
impact the area and would not be in the public interest. Kemp stated that this was no fault of Schneider.
Beeson said that most of the allowed uses on the list are regular businesses that have
limited hours of operations, but a billboard should probably be removed from this list since it is a twenty-four-hour, seven-day-a-week operation.
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Pell called for a motion on the request. Cable made the motion to DENY the rezoning request to rezone the specified parcel(s)
on the rezoning application to the requested zoning district based upon the Determination of Consistency and Findings of Reasonableness and Public Interest statements that are included in the Planning Board agenda, submitted during the rezoning presentation and as may be amended, incorporated into the motion, to be included in the minutes, as well as the site plan(s) with all agreed-upon revisions, also incorporated into
the motion and that the request is not consistent with the Randolph County Growth
Management Plan. Davis made a second to the motion to DENY the rezoning request. Pell, having a proper motion and second, called the question on the motion to DENY the rezoning request, and the motion was adopted unanimously.
Caddle stated that the Planning Board will likely be in this meeting location for a while and there would be a brief training session on the laptops at the October Planning Board meeting.
Caddle also told the Planning Board that another joint session with the Board of
Commissioners would probably be towards the end of October and that the Planning Board would be voting on a recommendation for the Board of Commissioners to adopt the Northeast Randolph County Growth Management Plan.
Cable stated that he thought the work session went well and he thanked everyone for all
their hard work on the plan update. Beeson asked if the Steering Committee should look at the Light Industrial District to see if it needs to be updated.
Having no further business, Pell called for a motion to ADJOURN the meeting. Bunting made the motion to adjourn, with Cable making the second to the motion. Pell, having a proper motion, and second, called the question on the motion to
ADJOURN. The motion passed unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 7:23 p.m., with 5 citizens present.
RANDOLPH COUNTY
NORTH CAROLINA
________________________
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Chairman
_________________________ _______________________________ Deputy Clerk to the Board Date
Approved by the Randolph County Planning Board
October 3, 2023