It’s good to know at least one public office holder in Brunswick County is working to reign in land development excess.
Bill McHugh, a member of the Leland Town Council, is leading an effort to ban or severely limit development in areas designated as wetlands. According to the Port City Daily, the town is studying whether to update its development ordinances.
The matter came to a head in the wake of potential Tropical Storm #8, when Stoney Creek, a neighborhood in Leland, was flooded. It was the second time Stoney Creek residents had to deal with floodwaters. In 2018, the neighborhood was flooded following Hurricane Florence.
During a council meeting following last month’s rains that caused up to six feet of floodwaters in Stoney Creek, McHugh proposed updating Leland’s land use plan. According to the Port City Daily, McHugh said he wanted to “effectively end” flood-zone development in the town of Leland, adding he hoped his suggestion would be approved before there’s more flooding in the town.
McHugh suggested modeling Leland’s ordinance similar to a prohibition approved in Raleigh, which prohibits residential development in flood zones. Exemptions that are allowed include properties already developed within the floodplain or parcels that are .5 acres or less. Raleigh’s approach also limits development in residential flood zones to low-impact uses, such as parks, wildlife sanctuaries and picnic grounds.
McHugh added the Raleigh ordinance has withstood challenges by developers in the courts.
The council discussed but did not approve McHugh’s proposal, instead directing the staff to take it under consideration as it prepares a draft of a new ordinance for final approval. Passage will come too late to spare Stoney Creek residents from more flooding. But it may serve as a bellwether for other municipalities or the county commissioners to adopt.
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