TO: Zoning Commission
THRU: Jennifer C Baptiste - Planning & Zoning Division Manager
FROM: Thomas Cohen - Planner I
DATE: September 8, 2026
RE:Title
P26-44: A request to rezone 3001 Village Dr (0426164079000) consisting of ±2.90 acres, owned by Stout Properties Inc from Community Commercial (CC) to Conditional Community Commercial (CC/CZ).
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COUNCIL DISTRICT(S):
Council District(s)
2 - Councilmember Malik Davis
b
Relationship To Strategic Plan:
Goal II: Responsive City Government Supporting a Diverse and Viable Economy
• Objective 2.1 - To ensure a diverse City tax base
• Objective 2.4 - To sustain a favorable development climate to encourage business growth
Goal III: City Investment in Today & Tomorrow
• Objective 3.2 - To manage the City’s future growth and strategic land use
Goal VI: Collaborative Citizen & Business Engagement Base
• Objective 6.1 - To ensure collaborative relationships with the business community, local governments, military, and stakeholders
Executive Summary:
The case is a request by the applicant to conditionally rezone the property located at 3001 Village Dr (0426164079000) from Community Commercial (CC) to Community Commercial Conditional (CC/CZ). The request is to amend the design standards for a convenience store locating in the Hospital Area Overlay District (HAO). This is not a condition to limit uses but to amend design standards.
Background:
Owner: Stout Properties Inc
Request: Community Commercial to Community Commercial Conditional Zoning
REID or PIN: 0426164079000
Parcel Size: ± 2.9 acres
Existing Site Conditions: Empty lot with some parking spaces
Adjacent Zoning:
• North: CC - Cape Fear Hospital Associated Businesses
• South: CC/CZ - Apartments
• East: CC - Bank
• West: CC - Bank
Future Land Use Designation: Community Center
Public Notice: Notification letters were sent to property owners within 1,000 feet of the subject site equating to 50 notices sent.
Issues/Analysis:
The applicant requests to conditionally rezone the ±2.9 acres located at 3001 Village Dr from Community Commercial (CC) to Community Commercial Conditional Zoning (CC/CZ) to amend the design standards associated with the Hospital Overlay District.
Conditions
The revised conditions proposed by the applicant are as follows:
1. Parking may be located to the front, side, and/or rear of the principal structure
2. Side parking may encompass a maximum of 50% of total parking
3. No maximum setback applies, only the minimum setbacks as required by the Community Commercial zoning district
4. Buffering requirements will adhere only to the UDO Section 30-5.B.4 Landscaping Requirements standards
5. Gas-pumps may be located between a building and the principal street that it fronts
The property is located within the Hospital Area Overlay District (HAO) which has a unique set of dimensional standards that overwrite those of base zoning districts. The applicant’s proposed conditions are an attempt to alleviate some, but not all, of these standards to construct a proposed convenience store in the typical orientation and configuration of gas stations and convenience stores.
Analysis
The request maintains the base district of Community Commercial (CC) which aligns with the Future Land Use Designation of Community Center which is a nonresidential leasable space with the possibility of vertical mixed use or multifamily.
The Hospital Area Overlay (HAO) was established to uphold the public health, safety, and welfare of the community in the vicinity of the Cape Fear Valley Hospital. It aims to foster harmony between residential and non-residential land uses to advocate for development that is compatible with the Cape Fear Valley Hospital. The HAO states four specific goals:
1. Protect surrounding neighborhoods from being adversely affected by inappropriate or poor quality development;
2. Allow for compact development, while providing adequate room for parking, landscaping, and buffering;
3. Create more attractive, pedestrian-friendly developments, less dominated by the automobile; and
4. Minimize traffic impacts through limitations on certain land uses, access management, traffic calming, street improvements, intersection improvements and other means.
The HAO has several dimension standards to help guide development and meet these four goals. The applicant is seeking alleviation from three specific standards that effectively flip common building orientation.
• 30-3.H.2.e.3 Front Yard "Built To" Line, requires that the principal structure be built no farther than 10 feet from the street right-of-way.
• 30-3.H.2.g.2 Location of Parking, requires that all parking be located only to the back and side of the principal structure with only 25% of total parking allowed to occur on the side.
• 30-3.H.2.i Buffering Requirements establishes an additional set of buffering requirements on top of what is normally required by the UDO.
Additionally, UDO Section 30-5.I.3.g Auto-Oriented Uses prohibits several items, including gas pumps, from being between a building and the street to which the building fronts.
The conditions therein are designed to exempt the property from these UDO Sections that prevent the typical orientation of convenience stores with gas sales. Conditions One and Two resolve 30-3.H.2.g.2, Condition Three resolves 30-3.H.2.e.3, Condition Four resolves 30-3.H.2.i, and Condition Five resolves 30-5.I.3.g.
These conditions do not permit more than what’s already permitted by the base CC zoning district but, they are antithetical to the HAO.
Local Context
The subject property is now a vacant lot and the former site of a K&W Restaurant. The prior business was located on the southeastern portion of the lot with parking in the front and to the sides with the dirt of the foundation still visible within the lot. This non-conformity with the HAO is common within the immediate area such as Walgreens, the Women’s Center of NC, and Bragg Mutual Federal Credit Union. These properties and the prior business were constructed before the adoption of the HAO rather than granted conditions. The conditions would enable continued partial non-conformity.
Located to the south of the subject property is Good Homes Bordeaux Apartments which were conditionally rezoned in Case P22-46 to enable adaptive reuse of the previous hotel and convention space which resided. This apartment complex is connected to the subject property through several means. The first is that there is a throughway on the western side of the lots. The second is that they share a retaining wall with parking lining the hotel’s side of the wall. However, the property line extends out to almost the outer wall of the hotel.
This creates a disharmony as the HAO standards require the business to face the apartments instead of the street and would block the access to the apartment complex and parking. The HAO would also require a Type D Perimeter Buffer, a perimeter which cuts through the parking lot of the adjacent apartments. While a buffer can be constructed further into the lot it creates a severe limitation on the buildable space while achieving minimal screening results. Condition Four resolves this problem.
Conclusion
While the request and proposed conditions are counter to the intents and standards of the HAO, they are justifiable. They are not counter to the Future Land Use Map nor are they offensive to the local contexts. They are arguably more considerate of local contexts than without as the adjacent apartments will have the principal structure as a buffer from the customers of the 7-Eleven as they did when the property was a K&W. While it doesn’t enhance walkability it neither reduces it given the prior non-conformity
Budget Impact:
Approval or denial of the requested map amendment does not create immediate and direct impacts on the budget other than the collection of the application fee and cost for relevant staff. Indirectly, the business would produce significant taxes relative to vacancy or to what the prior business produced given the potential volume of sale and product.
Options:
• Approval (Recommended Action):
Recommend approval of the request based on the evidence submitted and the consistency with the Future Land Use Plan as outlined by the attached Consistency and Reasonableness Statement but subject to the conditions presented.
• Approval, but with revised conditions:
Recommend approval of the request based on the evidence submitted and the consistency with the Future Land Use Plan as outlined by the attached Consistency and Reasonableness Statement but subject to any revised conditions agreed to by the applicant, in writing.
• Denial
Deny the request based on the evidence submitted and inconsistency with the Future Land Use Plan.
Recommended Action::Recommended Action
The Professional Planning Staff recommends that the Zoning Commission recommends to City Council a motion to APPROVE the request as presented - to conditionally rezone the approximately 2.9 acres located at 3001 Village Dr from Community Commercial (CC) to Conditional Community Commercial (CC/CZ) with the following conditions.
1. Parking may be located to the front, side, and/or rear of the principal structure
2. Side parking may encompass a maximum of 50% of total parking
3. No maximum setback applies, only the minimum setbacks as required by the Community Commercial zoning district
4. Buffering requirements will adhere only to the UDO Section 30-5.B.4 Landscaping Requirements standards
5. Gas-pumps may be located between a building and the principal street that it fronts
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Attachments:
1. Application
2. Aerial Notification Map
3. Current Zoning Map
4. Future Land Use Map
5. Site Pictures (Subject Site)
6. Site Pictures (Surrounding Properties)
7. Site Plan
8. Consistency and Reasonableness Statement