TO: Mayor and Members of City Council
THRU: Kelly Strickland, Assistant City Manager
Dr. Gerald Newton, AICP - Development Services Director
FROM: Demetrios Moutos - Planner I
DATE: October 13, 2025
RE:Title
Approve P25-44: Request to rezone 0.11 acres at 433 Hillsboro St. from residential to Limited Commercial (LC), owned by Shelby Tart, represented by Lori Epler of Larry King & Assoc.Title
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COUNCIL DISTRICT(S):
Council District(s)
2 - Council Member Malik Davis
b
Relationship To Strategic Plan:
• Goal II: Responsive City Government Supporting a Diverse and Viable Economy
o Objective 2.1 - To ensure a diverse City tax base - By rezoning a long-standing commercial site at 433 Hillsboro St. from split-zoned MR-5/LC to LC, the City preserves and enables reinvestment in taxable commercial activity at an already-served infill location.
o Objective 2.3 - To leverage partnerships for job creation and retention - Aligning zoning with the established garage/vehicle sales and service use supports near-term job retention and local small-business operations while reducing regulatory risk from nonconformity.
o Objective 2.4 - To sustain a favorable development climate - Correcting a legacy split-zoning/nonconforming condition simplifies permitting, signals predictability for small businesses, and supports corridor reinvestment goals identified in adopted land-use guidance.
• Goal III: City Invested in Today and Tomorrow
o Objective 3.2 - To manage the City’s future growth and strategic land use - The request focuses growth in a logical pattern by placing a 0.11-acre, publicly-served parcel within a coherent commercial zoning context (adjacent CC/LC) rather than dispersing uses, consistent with the City’s strategy to direct development to serviced nodes.
o Objective 3.3 - To sustain a favorable development and business climate through timely and accurate review - Brining the existing use into conformity reduces case-by-case exceptions. It enables standard, efficient reviews and inspections aligned with City process objectives.
Executive Summary:
The applicant seeks a straight (general use) rezoning of 433 Hillsboro Street from split-zoned Mixed-Residential 5 (MR-5) and Limited Commercial (LC) to all LC on a ±0.11-acre, publicly served infill parcel. The site is presently used for a garage/vehicle sales and service. The purpose is to resolve a long-standing nonconformity created with adoption of the City’s UDO districts; no new development is proposed and, as a straight rezoning, no conditions may be attached.
Adjacent zoning includes LC and MR-5 to the north, LC to the east, and Community Commercial (CC) to the south, reflecting a predominantly commercial corridor. Converting the split zoning to a single LC district would bring the existing use into conformity, streamline permitting, and support modest reinvestment on an older commercial frontage consistent with the City’s guidance for improving legacy strip corridors.
On September 9, 2025, the Zoning Commission held a legislative hearing; no speakers in opposition were present. The Commission voted 3-0 to recommend approval of the rezoning.
Background:
Owner: Shelby Tart, Tart & Tart Investments (Contact: Shelby Tart)
Applicant: Lori Epler, Larry King & Associates, PA
Requested Action: Split Zoned LC and MR-5 to LC
REID #: 0437475212000
Status of Property: Developed; used as a garage and vehicle dealership, with an existing nonconforming business; no new development proposed.
Size: 0.11 acres ±
Adjoining Land Use & Zoning:
• North: MR-5 and LC (mix of residential and limited commercial)
• South: CC along the corridor to the south (commercial uses)
• East: LC with adjacent commercial uses
• West: MR-5 and CC across the railroad tracks
Letters Mailed: 82; notices to all owners within a 1,000-ft. buffer.
Land Use Plans:
With the adoption of the City’s Future Land Use Plan, all rezoning petitions are reviewed for consistency with the plan and map. The plan emphases targeted reinvestment and reuse in marginal commercial areas and encourages context-sensitive, walkable commercial districts. Applying LC to an existing commercial site that is not proposing new development aligns with these policies and implementation guidance.
Issues/Analysis:
History:
The subject property at 433 Hillsboro Street (REID 0437475212000) has been under the same ownership for approximately 49 years and has long operated with commercial uses. The current split zoning (LC/MR-5) appears to have resulted from the 2011 UDO district conversion, leaving the existing business as a nonconforming use; the applicant seeks to correct that status rather than initiate new development.
Surrounding Area:
This location is within Fayetteville’s central urban fabric near downtown, with a mix of commercial and residential districts in the vicinity. The City’s zoning map for P25-44 identifies nearby districts that include DT-2 (Downtown), CC (Community Commercial), LC (Limited Commercial), MR-5 (Mixed Residential 5, OI (Office & Institutional), HI (Heavy Industrial), and SF-10 (Single-Family Residential 10). The applicant notes that adjacent and facing properties are in commercial use. An aerial/notification exhibit shows a standard mailed notice to owners within 1,000 feet.
Rezoning Request:
This is a straight rezoning of one parcel from split zoning, Limited Commercial (LC) and Mixed Residential 5 (MR-5), to all LC to align the map with the site’s established commercial use. As a straight rezoning under UDO §30-2.C, no conditions may be attached; all uses permitted in LC by the UDO Use Table would be allowed if approved. The request does not propose physical expansion or premature development; rather, it standardizes the underlying zoning for a longstanding business.
Land Use Plan Analysis:
The Future Land Use Map prepared for this case identifies a mixed context around 433 Hillsboro Street that includes Downtown Mixed Use (DTMXU), Neighborhood Mixed Use (NMU), and Highway Commercial (HC), along with nearby Medium-Density Residential (MDR), Employment Center (EC), and Park/Open Space (PARK/OS) designations; the subject site is within the NMU designation. This locates the parcel within an area the plan already anticipates for commercial/mixed-use activity rather than new residential intensification.
Policy alignment is direct. The plan’s “Strategic, Compatible Growth” policies call for growth where urban services already exist (LU-1) and for strategic economic development (LU-2). It also encourages redevelopment along under-utilized commercial strips and reinvestment in distressed residential areas (LU-3). Changing the MR-5 portion of this long-standing business to Limited Commercial (LC) implements these
directives by focusing incremental value on an in-place commercial address, not on greenfield land or a new corridor.
The plan’s implementation section further instructs staff and boards to use the FLU map and the plan to guide land-use decisions and to remove barriers to reinvestment and redevelopment in targeted areas. Converting a split LC/MR-5 parcel to a uniform LC eliminates a mapping barrier that currently complicates reinvestment for an established commercial use, aligning with Implementation Strategy #1 (use the plan/map in decisions) and Strategy #3 (remove reinvestment barriers).
The plan’s citywide Suitability Analysis supports focusing commercial activity in existing nodes and along corridors and understanding the “impacts and externalities of corridors.” In practice, standardizing the site’s zoning to LC reinforces an existing commercial block identified on the zoning exhibit (surrounded by CC, LC, DT-2, OI, etc.), rather than introducing an isolated classification.
Public-preference guidance inside the plan also points to outcomes consistent with this request: strong support for “Infill & Reuse” and for walkable mixed-use/commercial settings, and a desire to avoid new strip-style commercial patterns. The map change enables reinvestment in an existing commercial address and does not extend commercial zoning into new frontage, which aligns with those preferences.
Taken together, the FLU map’s mixed-use/commercial context at this location and the plan’s policies - LU-1, LU-2, and LU-3 - plus Implementation Strategies #1 and #3, support rectifying the split zoning to a single LC district. This advances the plan’s intent to focus value around existing infrastructure and strategic nodes, encouraging compatible commercial reinvestment, and removing procedural barriers that inhibit reinvestment on already-developed parcels.
Consistency and Reasonableness:
The map change would: (1) resolve a documented nonconformity traceable to the 2011 district conversion; (2) match adjacent commercial use patterns along the block; and (3) avoid creating an isolated zoning “island,” given the presence of multiple commercial and downtown districts nearby. These outcomes are consistent with the Future Land Use Plan’s reinvestment and infill/reuse direction and with the FY 2025 Strategic Plan - Goal II (responsive government supporting a diverse and viable economy) and Goal III (managing future growth and strategic land use).
Conclusion:
Reclassifying 433 Hillsboro Street from split LC/MR-5 to a uniform LC would correct a legacy mapping condition, better align the zoning with the site’s long-standing commercial use, and reinforce an existing commercial block with the central city. The request advances the City’s policy focus on reinvestment and orderly growth management without inducing new greenfield demand or strip-style expansion, and it supports Strategic Plan goals related to a diverse tax base and strategic land use.
Budget Impact:
Near-term administrative costs - The City’s direct costs to process the rezoning - staff review time, legal advertising, and mailed notices - are offset by the applicant’s paid Map Amendment fee. The record shows that a $1,000 rezoning fee has been received, and the balance is $0 due. Mailed notices were sent to owners within 1,000 feet.
Capital and operating impacts - The application states no new development is proposed - this action is to correct a long-standing nonconformity, so there are no immediate capital improvements or service expansions attributable to this rezoning. Should any future redevelopment occur, standard review may include a transportation analysis if thresholds are met, with improvements typically borne by the applicant through the development review process. Overall, near-term operating impacts to Police, Fire, and other services are expected to remain at current levels.
Use of existing infrastructure - The City’s Future Land Use Plan prioritizes growth in areas already served by roads and utilities; this site is an infill commercial location. Advancing land uses where services exist limits demand on the Capital Improvements Plan and aligns with adopted policy to “encourage growth in areas well-served by infrastructure and urban services.”
Revenue outlook and reinvestment effects - Regularizing an existing commercial use (by rezoning to LC) can facilitate routine permits and encourage private reinvestment. Over time, that can modestly increase taxable value and local sales activity with limited public outlay, which is consistent with the Plan’s emphasis on reinvestment of underperforming commercial areas and focusing value where infrastructure already exists.
Strategic plan alignment - From a fiscal stewardship standpoint, the request is consistent with Goal V of the FY25 Strategic Plan - maintaining a financially sound city by aligning resources with priorities and achieving efficiencies - because it leverages existing systems and recovers processing costs via fee.
Bottom line - Net fiscal impact is anticipated to be neutral to modestly positive in the near term (fees offset processing; no new capital required) with potential incremental revenue gains over time if the correction of nonconformity enables site reinvestment.
Options:
1. Approve as presented (recommended).
Move to approve the map amendment to LC as presented, based on the competent evidence in the record, and adopt the attached Plan Consistency and Statement of Reasonableness finding the request consistent with the Future Land Use Plan.
2. Approve with a reduced area.
Move to approve the map amendment to LC with a reduction in the area to be rezoned, based on the evidence in the record, and adopt an amended Plan Consistency and Statement of Reasonableness finding the modified request consistent with the Future Land Use Plan; direct staff to revise the ordinance and map accordingly.
3. Approve to a more restrictive district.
Move to approve a map amendment to a more restrictive base zoning district in lieu of LC, based on the evidence in the record, and adopt an amended Plan Consistency and Statement of Reasonableness finding the modified request consistent with the Future Land Use Plan; direct staff to prepare the corresponding ordinance.
4. Deny.
Move to deny the map amendment request, based on the evidence in the record, and adopt the Plan Inconsistency and Statement of Reasonableness setting forth why the request is inconsistent with the Future Land Use Plan and not in the public interest.
Recommended Action::Recommended Action
The Zoning Commission and the Professional Planning Staff recommend that the City Council approve the map amendment to Limited Commercial (LC) for 433 Hillsboro Street (±0.11 acres) and adopt the attached Plan Consistency and Statement of Reasonableness based on the following findings:
The request is consistent with the City’s adopted growth strategies and the Future Land Use Plan’s direction to focus investment around existing infrastructure and strategic nodes and to encourage compatible economic and commercial development. The action standardizes the zoning for a long-standing commercial site served by public water and sewer, supporting reinvestment along an established corridor.
LC is appropriate for the surrounding context given adjacent LC, MR-5, and CC districts and existing commercial/mixed-residential activity. Converting the split MR-5/LC parcel to a uniform LC designation eliminates a nonconformity for the existing garage/vehicle dealership and better aligns the zoning with on-site conditions.
No adverse impacts on public health, safety, or general welfare are anticipated. Any future permits or site changes will be subject to the City’s development review for compliance with applicable fire access, utility, stormwater, and access standards, ensuring site-specific impacts are mitigated.
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Attachments:
1. Plan Application
2. Aerial Notification Map
3. Zoning Map
4. Land Use Plan Map
5. Subject Property
6. Surrounding Property Photos
7. Consistency and Reasonableness Statement