LELAND — RV parks are once again a topic of planning debate in the Cape Fear region.
READ MORE: ‘Chicken or the egg?’ Non-compliant RV park shut down by commissioners
The Leland planning board recommended striking language barring RV parks in special flood hazard areas after denying the request in May.
The amendments, if approved by council, also clarify any individual RV within the park shall be limited to 180 days of occupancy per year. RVs must be fully licensed and ready for highway use, including being on wheels, allowing quick disconnection from utilities, and having no permanently attached structures.
There are also changes to the code’s permitted use table. Instead of RV parks being permitted by-right in commercial zonings, the projects would be considered under conditional zoning.
Leland joins New Hanover County in municipalities considering changes to RV park ordinances as transient housing provides cheaper alternatives for vacationers and mobile workers, most notably travel nurses.
In May, Michael Faulkner, in the works of developing Castle Hayne Farm Park LLC, requested New Hanover County allow a decrease in the minimum lot amount for RV parks from 25 to eight spaces. Commissioners denied his request and also cited Faulkner for violating the ordinance, as he had been operating a park before receiving permission.
Despite the potential increased freedom in Leland, the RV parks will still need to follow all flood zone regulations set by FEMA. It includes establishing utilities 2 feet above base flood level and disinfecting any structures touched by contaminated floodwater.
“While I’m disappointed that the RV park will be permitted to be located in a special flood hazard area, I do like the fact that it will have to go through some pretty strict planning process and rules and regulations before it can be approved for that,” planning board member Barbara Akinwole said during Tuesday’s meeting.
The board’s decision was unanimous, but three months ago its members were all in opposition.
Sam Franck, a real estate lawyer with Ward and Smith, first brought the amendments before the board in May on behalf of applicant Evolve Acquisitions LLC. The company has an office in Wilmington and focuses on multi-family development, including Hawthorne at Oleander in Wilmington.
The request was not tied to development plans, but if Evolve was to put forth an RV park project, it would become the first in Leland.
However, the board recommended council deny Franck’s request after staff presented a litany of negative consequences at the planning board’s May 16 meeting.
The original text amendment application requested only to strike the language banning RV parks from special flood hazard areas. It also made it a requirement to post signage indicating RVs must be removed within 24 hours when the town declares a state of emergency.
Evolve Acquisition’s request prompte the town to adopt RV park standards in 2022. According to Franck, the inclusion of the special flood hazard areas exception in the original language was an oversight.
“The intention with this amendment is to correct a mistake,” Franck said at the May meeting. “It was never the intent of that applicant to establish a regime where RV parks were permitted, but not permitted in flood zones.”
Despite this admittance, and Franck’s counters to each of staff’s concerns, the board did not favor his position.
“I think along the way someone said, ‘Hmm, there’s a piece of land in a special flood hazard area that we may need to use,’” Akinwole said. “So I think it should stay the way it is.”
Representing staff’s viewpoint, planning supervisor Andrew Neylon claimed RV sites are not designed to reduce flooding risks. He also expressed concern over utility hookups not being located above base elevation or sewer discharges having greater chances of failure. Each individual RV site — the permitted amount is seven per acre — would need to be signed off on by staff after a storm event to ensure safety, adding dozens of safety checks to its workload.
Public Safety Director Chris Langlois also chimed in at the meeting. He pointed out it might be hard to locate owners to move their RV during emergencies, as they could be in another part of town vacationing and are not connected to local mass communication channels. They may not even have 24 hours to move before conditions reach dangerous levels.
Langlois also worried the transient population may increase the number of search-and-rescue attempts by first responders, compounding the risk if the utility hookups are not secure. More vehicles in smaller areas also means more cars on the roads and at fuel stations in an emergency.
In his retort, Franck reminded the board these things are true of RV sites outside flood zones and even in some cases for permanent residents. He said the board and council “already made the decision” to accommodate more out-of-towners with the original RV ordinance and through hotels in the area.
He argued RV parks are often located in flood-prone areas, especially in beach towns, claiming their placement is no different from a parking lot, which is allowed.
While he said any comparison to a permanent structure isn’t applicable, Franck stated RV sites are well-regulated. Misuse can occur in RV parks and in homes, though just like homeowners, Franck said the RV park owner would be motivated to comply with zoning ordinances and regulations.
“It’s that owner that’s on the hook to comply with regulations,” Franck said.
Board member Christopher Berlin asked if there were any repercussions for leaving an RV after people are asked to leave during emergency situations; Neylon replied there is not in the current code.
“I think we have a responsibility not to be creating text amendments that could possibly cause a problem,” board chairman Warren Hodges said. “To me, I think there’s a problem if you’re looking to go into a flood zone.”
Leland town council members disagreed. Franck asked the council to remand the application back to the planning board at its meeting on June 14, noting he had spent the month working on a compromise with town staff. Council granted the request unanimously and without discussion.
Now, the text amendments will go before the council again, with more control vested to it through conditional zoning and explicit language ensuring the transient nature of RV parks and compliance with flood regulations.
“It seems like doing this conditional zoning will give us more of an opportunity to look at a site layout and make better decisions about what we should and shouldn’t be recommending for the town and for the citizens to keep everybody safe,” planning board member Debbie Willis said at this week’s meeting.
Reach journalist Brenna Flanagan at brenna@localdailymedia.com
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