Conditional Zoning Districts Richard Ducker Institute of Government

Types of Zoning Districts (1) General-use districts (2)Conditional-use (special-use) districts (3)Conditional districts

(1)General Use Districts Site must be generally suitable for any of the permitted uses Site-specific development conditions may not be added to a particular rezoning since regulations must be uniform for each type of use or project

(2)Conditional Use Districts Districts must be provided for in the ordinance and are mapped in response to petition of owner Zoning districts in which uses are permitted only upon issuance of a conditional use permit

(2)Conditional Use Districts Governing board makes both zoning amendment (legislative) and conditional use permit decision (quasi-judicial) Single consolidated public hearing often used to consider both zoning amendment and conditional–use permit Site-specific development conditions added to permit and “run with the land.”

Conditional Zoning Upheld Massey v. City of Charlotte (2001) –Conditional zoning authorized by general statutes –Conditional zoning need not involve a quasi-judicial process Summers v. City of Charlotte (2001) –Neighbors not denied due process rights –Developers’ mixed-use development plan consistent with city’s local area plan

(3) Conditional Districts Each conditional district differs from any other other zoning district Conditional district may, but need not necessarily, parallel a general-use district Governing board has no power to add conditions to the rezoning; it may only react to the concessions or restrictions proposed by the property owner

(3)Conditional Districts Petitioner proposes site-specific development conditions through submission of site plan Site-specific requirements and site plan features incorporated into the standards for the district itself No conditional-use or special-use permit involved, and no quasi-judicial hearing required

Negotiated Zoning: the Drawbacks Focuses on the site rather than on community-wide planning concerns Undercuts the workup of development standards for particular uses of land Significant risk of spot zoning Local government must react to proposal made by property owner Difficult to keep track of and enforce site- specific development conditions

Negotiated Zoning: the Benefits Governing board gains flexibility to better balance interests of developer and neighbors Site-specific development conditions may be used that mitigate undesirable impacts Community more likely to know what it is getting Gives regulatory status to a master development plan Avoids problems associated with quasi- judicial procedures