19 Jul
2013
19 Jul
'13
1:24 p.m.
***** F.Y.I. ***** SEE NEW DECISION(S) BELOW >>>>
Ms. Deborah Ford
ECAC Co-chair--RCAC 2nd. Vice-chair
(919) 835-3566
----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Tom Miller <tom-miller1(a)nc.rr.com>
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Sent: Friday, July 19, 2013 12:13 PM
Subject: Zoning Protest Petitions, Action Alert Update
Dear Neighbors:
Yesterday I told you that instead of voting on S. B. 112, the bill that the NC House of
Representatives amended to abolish zoning protest petitions, the North Carolina Senate has
created its own version of the bill by amending H. B. 74. This bill does not tamper with
protest petitions. This morning the senate gave its final approval to its version of the
bill . It will now go to the house.
Both versions of the bill contain a long list of provisions affecting the way state and
local government agencies regulate everything from the environment to bed and breakfast
businesses. There a differences and the one of the big ones is the protest petition
provision. I can only think that the hue and cry raised by neighborhood advocates since
last week has made a difference. The question now is which version of the regulatory
reform bill will pass and, when it passes, what will it say about zoning protest
petitions?
The right of a neighboring property owner to protest the proposed rezoning of an adjacent
property is as old as zoning itself in North Carolina. The 1923 enabling legislation that
first authorized NC cities to regulate land use by zoning expressly permitted a protest
petition. The petition right is part of the concept of zoning, the original balance of
competing interests which is built into the zoning process. From the beginning, when
neighbors filed a valid petition, the rezoning could pass with only a supermajority vote
of the city council. Today, a protest petition is valid if it signed by the owners of 5%
of the band of property 100 feet wide surrounding the property to be rezoned. When a
valid petition is filed, the rezoning can be approved only with a ¾ majority vote of the
city council. While 5% doesn’t sound like much, it is actually a very high bar and the
result is that only a few valid petitions are filed. Fewer still
actually result in the defeat of the proposed rezoning. It is the existence of the
petition right in the first place that causes developers to be good neighbors. When the
necessary threshold of neighbors actually file a valid petition, it is a signal to the
city council and the whole community that the proposed rezoning is controversial and
deserves special scrutiny. If the protest petition right is taken away, the whole zoning
process will be out-of-balance. Ordinary people, the very people whose interests in their
homes are meant to be protected by zoning rules, will lose their only leverage in a
process that is often stacked against them. Modern zoning regulations are complicated and
ordinary people who cannot afford attorneys and land planners are alienated from the
process. The last thing the legislature should consider is a move that will only increase
this alienation.
So, this weekend, let’s redouble our efforts to let our legislators in both the house and
the senate know how important the preservation of zoning protest petitions is to us.
Again, here are the three steps you can take:
1) E-mail all the members of the General Assembly from your community, both in the
Senate and the House. Tell them to save your right to file a zoning protest petition in
whatever version of the regulatory reform bill they may ultimately pass. Please do not
say “Vote against S. B. 112” or “Vote for H. B. 74.” Both bills are loaded with
provisions that legislators and citizens feel passionate about. We don’t want to get
tangled up in the larger debate. Also, because the situation is fluid, we don’t know
which bill will start moving or what it may ultimately say. Our message should be “Don’t
tamper with the right of an ordinary citizen to file a zoning protest petition.” You can
find your senators’ and representatives’ e-mail addresses at www.ncleg.net.
2) Share this message with other neighborhood advocates in your community. Post it
on your neighborhood listserves and facebook pages. Messages form ordinary people at home
carry a great deal of weight with elected officials in Raleigh. (That is as it should be,
right?)
3) E-mail Governor McCrory. He was Mayor of Charlotte and has a wealth of knowledge
about the balance of rights that is built into the zoning process. While he probably will
not veto the final regulatory reform bill, he should know about our issue. He may use his
influence to remove the controversial protest petition provisions from the legislation
before it reaches his desk. You can write the governor at www.governor.state.nc.us.
Thanks to you all. Together, I believe we will make a difference.
Tom Miller
Durham