Land Use Plan Update Existing Land Use-1991

Existing Lane Use in New Hanover County
-December, _ 1991
New Hanover County Planning Department
- _.
DexterHayes; Director
- : Patrick Lowe, Assistant Direc_` ,
-
--Staff Planners
Walter "Pete" Avery
Wanda Coston
Sam Burgess
Chiis.O'Keefe
- CAMA Interns
JoAnne Shadroui =
"Administrative Secretary
.Phoebe Saavedra
Graphics Planning ,Technician
_-Lisa Elaine Horne .
"New 'of
-Hanover County ;Board Commissioners
=E: L:"Matt" Mathews, Chairman
-
Robert'G. Gteer;'Vice ±Chairman
Jonathan Bafield
- Fred Retchin
William H Sutton
Planning . Board,Members ,
Earnest Puskas, Gliatrman
Kenneth A .--�Shanklin;',Vice_Chaiiman ,
Robert McDonald
Wesley O. Nixon
-William Grathwol
'
C.Richard Boisky
Charles R, Howell-
Y_ The preparation of the deaimeat was finenced m p at, through a Coastal Area MamgemmtAd
grant provided by the North Cbrollma Coastal )lfamgemeat Prog+—through Fuade ptogided
by the Caaatal Zoos M mgement Ad of 1972, as amended, which.is administered by the office
p
. ofoceanandC�astalResouroel�dnagemeat NaticoglOctaoicandAtmoaphericAdmmisba .

Al
Existing Land Use in
New Hanover County
December 1991
Wilmington - New Hanover County
Land Use Plan Update

0
C
Preface
The Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA), enacted in 1974 by the North Carolina
General Assembly, requires that the 20 coastal counties of the state prepare land use plans.
These plans provide a framework used to guide local leaders as they make decisions for the
protection, preservation, orderly development and management of the North Carolina
coastal area. The original CAMA Land Use Plan for New Hanover County was adopted in
1976. Updates to the plan are required by CAMA on five year intervals This report is part
of the third plan update (1981, 1986 and 1991) performed in conjunction with the
Wilmington -New Hanover Comprehensive Planning Program, initiated in 1974.
In accordancewith CAMArequirements, thelanduseplan consists ofthefollowing elements:
1.) Summary of data collection and analysis;
2.) Existing land use map;
3.) Policy discussion;
4.) Land classification map.
This information plays an important role in the formulation of local development
regulations, such as zoning ordinances, and it provides input for growth policy decisions.
These reports also provide useful data to the public and private sector in considering
development proposals.

n
11
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. INTRODUCTION ................................................ :.................................... I
II. COMPARABILITY OF LAND USE STATISTICS ................................... 2
III. MAJOR FINDINGS................................................................................... 4
A. Actual Land Utilization..................................................................:..... 4
Residential.........................................................................................11
Office and Institutional...................................................................... I I
Commercial.......................................................................................11
Transportation, Utilities and Communications .................................... 11
Industrial............................................................................................11
Recreational.......................................................................................11
Undeveloped...................................................................................... 12
Summary of Actual Land Utilization..................................................12
B. Land Use by Parcel Size....................................................................13
Summary of Land Use by Parcel Size................................................18
IV. LAND UTILIZATION COMPARED.......................................................... 18
V. LAND USE AREAS OF CONCERN
IN THE UNINCORPORATED COUNTY...................................................18
Commercial Development..................................................................18
Transportation....................................................................................19
Sewer Services and Land Development..............................................19
VI. LAND USE AREAS OF CONCERN
IN THE CITY OF WILMINGTON............................................................. 20
LandUse Conflicts............................................................................ 20
Transportation.................................................................................... 20
Redevelopment of the Inner City ........................................................ 21
VII. APPENDICES
Appendix One-Methodologies............................................................ 22
Appendix Two-PCS Land Use Codes List of Figures ......................... 23

n
Map 1
LIST OF FIGURES
NewHanover County.......................................................................................... 3
Figure 1
Unincorporated County and City of Wilmington,
Actual Land Use Acres in 1990,
Percent of Developed Land in Combined Area .................................................... 6
Figure 2
Unincorporated County, Actual Land Use Acres in 1990,
Percent of County's Developed Area................................................................... 8
Figure 3
City of Wilmington, Actual Land Use Acres in 1990,
Percent of City's Developed Area.....................................................................10
Al

LIST OF TABLES
Table 1
Unincorporated County and City of Wilmington,
Actual Land Use Acres in 1990........................................................................... 5
Table 2
Unincorporated County, Actual Land Use Acres in 1990.................................... 7
Table3
City of Wilmington, Actual Land Use Acres in 1990.......................................... 9
Table 4
Unincorporated County and City of Wilmington,
LandUse by Parcel Size............:....................................................................... 14
Table 5
Unincorporated County, Land Use by Parcel Size ............................................. 15
Table 6
City of Wilmington, Land Use by Parcel Size..................................................16
Table 7
LandUse Ratios................................................................................................17
ES

Appendix One
located page 22.
Appendix Two
located page 23.
Table 1 located
page 5.
Figure I located
page 6.
EXISTING LAND USE
IN NEW HANOVER COUNTY
I. INTRODUCTION
This document is the 1991 update to the 1986 "Existing Land Use in New Hanover
County," one of the County's technical reports ofthe Coastal AreaManagement Act (CAMA)
Land Use Plan. The purpose of this report is to present current statistics on existing land uses
in New Hanover County and compare these values with the 1985 data. This information can
be utilized to identify land use trends, provide a basis for comparison in future studies and
to help ascertain future growth potential and land use needs.
. . As part of the data collection process for this study, color -coded land use maps were
prepared on current County and City property maps (1 "=400'). These are available for
review and use within the respective Planning Departments. Two sets of data were generated
for this report. The 1990 actual land utilization values are summarized in a series of tables
for the unincorporated County and City of Wilmington, and each separate jurisdiction. A
second set of data containing parcel size statistics for 1985 and 1990 is presented in tables
following the land utilization data. The methods used for collecting and calculating Cach set
of data are described in detail in Appendix One. The Land Use Codes assigned to each parcel
are given in Appendix Two.
It is important to note that each of the two summary tables (Table 1 and Table 4)
presents a different set of data which may not be directly comparable to data shown in other
tables or to data from previous land use studies. Briefly;
Table 1, using the methods described in Appendix One, shows the actual land being
used for each land use type for the combined area of the unincorporated County and City for
1990. The Planning staff believes this data represents the best estimate of current, total land
use for the entire planning area. This data is illustrated in Figure 1.

Table 2 contains values which represent the actual land utilization acres for each land
use type in the County for 1990 and is illustrated in Figure 2.
Table 3 shows the actual land utilization acres for each land use type in the City in 1990
and is illustrated in Figure 3.
Table 4 compares the total parcel acreages per land use type for the combined area of
the unincorporated County, the Beaches, and the City of Wilmington for 1985 and 1990.
Table 5 shows the total parcel acreages perland use type forthe unincorporated County
for 1985 and 1990.
Table 6 shows the total parcel acreages per land use type for the City of Wilmington
for 1985 and 1990. Note that the values in Tables 4, 5, and 6 represent total acreage, by parcel,
for each land use category and not actual developed land use acreage.
II. COMPARABILITY OF LAND USE STATISTICS
It should be noted that several difficulties exist in collecting and computing land use
information. These problems can reduce the accuracy and hence the comparability of the
results from one year to the next. Some of the major difficulties that affect the results of a
study such as this include:
1. Judgmental decisions in assigning the properland use code. The land use categories
used in this report are listed in Appendix Two.
2. Utilization of different data sources and methodologies for calculating statistics in
1985 as compared to 1990.
3. Verifications of whether ornot a parcel is developed or undeveloped. For example,
a two acre lot with one house may be considered to be fully developed even though
additional lots may be subdivided in the future.
Because of these types of problems, some fairly large differences are apparent when
one compares data from 1985 to 1990. Some of these differences are obviously due to
methodology and do not reflect trends in the County's land use.
The values given for Tables 1, 2, and 3 have been calculated using methods which were
not used in 1985, therefore these values are not directly comparable to the data in Tables
4 - 6. These methods are explained in Appendix One. Again, the same kinds of problems
were encountered as mentioned above in collecting and calculating these data.
Table 2 located
page 7.
Figure 2 located
page 8.
Table 3 located
page 9.
Figure 3 located
page 10.
Table 4 located
page 14.
Table 5 located
page 15.
Table 6 located
page 16.
Appendix Two
located page 23.
Table 1 located
page 5
K
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17

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TO BURGAW
b.
NEW HANOVER COUNTY
QTO CLINTON
TO WHUEVHLE
Wilmington
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o
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Q
CAROLINA BEACH
Nip
INLET
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awes-+cvr
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CAROLINA BEACH
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Ir
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Scale
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OApproximate
1' = 3 Miles
0
NEW INLET
\ TO JACKSONVI LE
Unincorporated County
® City of Wilmington
& Area Beaches
3

X
X
III. MAJOR FINDINGS
A. ACTUAL LAND UTILIZATION
Appendix One
Using the methods described in Appendix One, Tables 1, 2, and 3 provide a breakdown
located page
of actual land utilization statistics for 1990 for the combined area of the unincorporated
22.
County and City of Wilmington, and each separate jurisdiction. These tables show the total
Table I located
acres, perland use type, that are actually utilized within each specified area, rather than totals
page 5.
computed by using parcel size. The data shown in Table 1 is the sum of data generated in
Table 2 located
Tables 2 and 3.
page 7.
Table 3 located
page 9.
The Planning staff believes that these totals are the best estimates presently available
of current land use in the County because the values in Tables 1- 3 reflect total acres in actual
use perland use category rather than total acres ofparcel sizes perland use. Because this data
was collected utilizing different methods than were used for generating the countywide
parcel acreage data, a direct comparison between these two groups of data is not possible.
Nonetheless, a very general comparison between total actual utilization acres shown in
Table 4 located
Tables 1 - 3 and total parcel acres shown in Tables 4 - 6 indicates that much of the area that
page 14.
is considered "land in use" is not totally utilized. For example, Table 1 shows a total of only
Table 5 located
35,195 acres actually utilized while Table 4 shows a total of 53,996 acres developed and
page 15.
designated for a particular land use activity.
Table 6 located
page 16.
More specifically, some large differences exist within individual land use categories
when these two types of data are roughly compared. Some of these differences are easy to
explain. For example, some of the discrepancies between proportions of actual land use and
total parcel acres in the residential category are probably due to the rural aspect of the County,
wherein many single family residences exist on relatively large parcels ofland. In such cases,
the entire parcel was not necessarily considered fully developed, therefore fewer residential
acres may have been tallied as actually utilized.
Similarly, comparing the amounts of industrial land use by actual land utilization
versus parcel acres shows that large portions of many of these parcels remain vacant, yielding
a smallernumberof acres actually utilized than are classified as industrial land use. The same
conclusion can be reached when comparing the total of "parcel size" versus "utilization"
of some of the other land use categories. Once again, however, it should be noted that the
- parcel size data does show some major inconsistencies.
0

TABLE I
Unincorporated County & City of Wilmington Actual Land Use Acres in 1990
Acres Percent of Combined Area's
Land Use Category Utilized Developed Acres
Single Family
14,298
40.6
-.Paml . .. . . ....................
. .. . i ... . ... . .. ..
. .
.............
................................ .....................
......... ................................. ..................
.................................
.............. . . .............
.... . .. :.....
. . ... -V24.4 . ................
....... .
.. . ............. . ... ....................
I ......... ..............................I
-:-: ... ......................
... .......
.... ..........................
............ ..................
...... . ............
.........
........
. ...... .. ......... ........
> ...... ....... ..... ..............
. ... ........
...................
. .. . . ....... ....... ........
.... I .. ........
...................
.................... .............
............. . .. ........
Mobile Home
1,366
3.9
.............
....... .....
....... ..........
. . ........ .................
. . ...................
. ..............
..........
...... . ........
....... .. .... ... . ....
........... ..........
.. ....
........
....
Commercial
2,171
6.2
....
. .... . ............... ..........
.........
.... ........
....... U'lli ....... ...
..............
.....................
. . ..........
....... ...... .
.........................
. ......... ......................
Industrial
R*­ .......... T
Commercial
Total Developed
Water
35,195
19,493
9.3
5.1
100.0
N
Note: These figures reflect land use in the unincorporated County and City of Wilmington but exclude the beach communities.
Source: New Hanover County Planning Department and City of Wilmington Office of Planning
5

U
Inc
K
Trans.
& Co
O
Recreation
%, vininci c.Lu&
Office &
Institutional
zl
LEGEND
0 County Portion
City Portion
6

TABLE
Unincorporated County Actual Land Use Acres in 1990 to
Acres
Percent of
Land Use Category
Utilized
Developed Acres
....... ....... A.... iqdaui� E.
...........
.1. 10 ...............
......
..... ................
.... ..........
...........
...... ....
..........
........ . .......
........... ............
.............
.........
..............
...............
minim.. ................
Single Family
9,510
48.1
...........
.... . . ............. ... ...... ..
............. .......... ......... ..................... ...... . .... I .......... I II .... ......
..............
...... . . ..... . .
... .............
.................
I. .........
..........
............
... ........
. . .... ..
. . ........ . -------.. . .....
------ ----........... . .....
......
..............
- --- ----... .......
... ........
... . . .
... ..................
.........
..... . . ... . ................
........ . ..........
Mobile Home
1,366
6.9
..........
.. .......
..... ..... . �.--x
..... . ..........
. . .... ..............
.... ...........
................
X
..... . . . .
..................
.............. .......
Xt
. .............. ... . .... .. .......
...... I...'."..-. .... * ......... X. . .............
RX ...... .
Commercial
857
4.3
... ........... . ..........
1,922
NA
5.4
..............
...............
.............. .. ..........
..........
100.0
..............
............ ..............
............. ..............
....... ... .. ..... ... ....... ....
..........
..............
...............
Note: These figures reflect land use in the unincorporated County. 0
Source: New Hanover County Planning Department
7

K
Indu:
Trans., Util.
` & Comm.
Cor,
C
�orrontin»
3.2%
Office &
Institutional
M

TABLE 3
City of Wilmington Actual Land Use Acres in 1990
Acres Percent of
Land Use Category Utilized Developed Acres
. .......... ..... .
Tea
.......... ... ... ...... . .............
. ................. . . .....
... ......... .....
. .................. ..................... . ............ . ..................
...... ....................... V. - .... . ..... .. M ..... .........
......................................
........................... ... .............
. ........ ow, . ...... ......... .. .... . .....
............ .. ... ........ .........
..... . .......... ...................... ..
.......... . ............... ..
... ..... ........... ....
............ . . . . ...... o......................
..................
- ...............
.......... ................ ......... ....
............................
... ........... .................. . .... ....
.......... .. ...
.........
....................
......................
. . ......... ............
... .......... ........
................. ....... . . . ...................... %
. ..... . . ... . ... ..... . . . . .
tibii ............. ............... ........
... . . ............. ..... . .......... .
.. . . ... .. ........................... .. ..... . .... ... ....... .. ......... ......... ... . . .. . .
. .......... ............ ...... .... .
MEM ..... .. . . .. . . . ....... ...... ..................... ........ . .. ......... . .......... ...... ..... . . . .... ................ ...................................... ... . ............. . ...... ................. ................ ... .. V..... .......... % ..... ... ...... ... . ............... .....
... .. . ...............
Industrial
Commercial
Total Developed
Water
511
Note: These figures reflect land use in the City of Wilmington.
Source: City of Wilmington, Office of Planning
9

FIGURE 3
City of Wilmington
Actual Land Use Acres in 1990, Percent of City's Developed Area

Residential Land Utilization
O
As with parcel acres, this category comprises the largest land user in each of the
jurisdictions. Forthe combined area, 48% or 16,908 acres (ac) of developedland countywide
is utilized for this land use, with the unincorporated County accounting for 1 1,100ac and the
City 5,808 ac.
Office and Institutional Land Utilization
This land use makes up 6.4% (2,255 ac) of the combined areas'.developed lands. The
County accounts for 635 ac and the City 1,620 ac.
Commercial Land Utilization
A total of 2,171 ac of commercial property is utilized in the combined area of the County
and City, making up 6.2% of the total developed area. Of this total, the County has 857 ac
and the City accounts for 1,314 ac.
TI ansportation, Utilities and Communication
0
Most of the property in this category is located in the City as a result of its high
proportion of road acreage, which was not tallied for the County. The combined area contains
19.6% (6,907 ac), with the County having 2,900 ac and the City 4,007 ac. As mentioned in
the previous section, the County airport includes 1,500 ac and the Carolina Power and Light
complex off US 421 covers 1,150 ac.
Industrial Land Utilization
The combined area of the County and the City utilize 3,280 ac of Industrial property.
Although many large industries are located in the unincorporated County, large portions of
these properties lay vacant. The County has 1,922 ac actually utilized forindustrial purposes
and the City 1,358 ac.
Recreational Land Utilization
In this report, recreational land use has been divided into two subcategories:
O
a.) Commercial - to include golf courses, driving ranges, and other limited -access
recreation centers; and,
11

b.) Public -to include public parks, ballfields and other types of recreation areas which
are accessible at no cost, or very minimal cost, to the patrons.
Other data sources show that the unincorporated County has 1,075 ac commercial
recreation land and 1,297 ac public recreation land. The City is documented with 712 ac
commercial recreationland and 590 ac public recreation land, fora total of 3,674 ac recreation
land as of 1990. The County's Parks Department has recently obtained several large tracts
of land for future park development. In addition, in 1990, the State formally dedicated
Masonboro Island as part of the N.C. Estuarine Research Reserve Program, and the 620 acres
of upland areas on the island have been included in the County's low intensive, public
recreation acreage statistic. In total, the County has 2,372 ac recreation land in its planning
area and the City 1,302 ac.
Undeveloped Land Utilization
This category includes all property which is not actively utilized in one of the above
land use categories and includes vacant properties, agricultural and timberland. The
combined area of the County and City is shown to have 79,426 ac in this category, with the
County having 75,437 ac and the City 3,989 ac.
Although the amount of land in the undeveloped category is substantial, many of these
areas are not developable due to their wetland status, conservation classification, or poor
drainage which makes development costly and problematic. It should also be noted that the
County has lost about 20% of it's farmland since 1986 and 18 % of it's timberland since 1973.
Currently, the County has about 5,000 ac agricultural land and about 49,300 ac timberland.
SUMMARY OF ACTUAL LAND UTILIZATION
Table 1 located
As previously discussed, the values shown in Tables 1, 2, and 3 were obtained by
page 5.
determining how much land is actually utilized per land use type, as determined from the Tax
Table 2 located
Appraisal Office's Data Bank, currentland use maps, and 1990 aerial photography. The data
page 7.
generated in this manner is considered to be the best estimate of current land use in the
Table 3 located
County.
page 9.
Table 1 shows that residential land use has the largest total acreage for the County. A
significant amount of land is also utilized for transportation, utilities and communications
and recreation. It is interesting to note that the proportions for the combined area are fairly
consistent when examined by each separate jurisdiction.
12

B. LAND USE BY PARCEL SIZE
Table 4 shows the land use acreages for the combined area of the unincorporated
County, the City of Wilmington, and the beach communities, using total parcel acreages per
land use category. It also shows the percentage of each land use as part of total developed
acres. Table 5 shows the same type of information for the unincorporated part of the County
only and Table 6 for the City only.
The values used in Tables 4, 5, and 6 were obtained from the County Tax Appraisal
Office's Data Bank for 1990 and 1985, thus.these data are generally not comparable. As
mentioned in Section II in the discussion of the comparability of land use statistics, some of
the major differences between the 1990 and 1985 statistics can probably be attributed to
inconsistencies in assigning land use codes in the Tax Appraisal Office's Data Bank. It
should be noted that these values reflect total land use by parcel size and do not indicate actual
land utilization acreages. —
Values contained in the Tax Appraisal Office's Data Bank are constantly being
updated. Many of the discrepancies which occurin the Data Bank will be reconciled overtime
as new technology makes the measurement of land features more accurate and less time
consuming. Surveyors frequently discover lots which have been recorded in deeds for
hundreds of years that are much larger than stated in the deed. Improvements in the way this
spatial data is stored and accessed also will aid in the classification of land use types and the
compilation of utilization statistics or parcel size tabulations.
It should be noted that data by parcel size was not available for the City of Wilmington
alone. Thus, the City of Wilmington acreages include Wrightsville Beach (851 ac), Carolina
Beach (1,075 ac), and Kure Beach (518 ac). However, because these values are quite small,
and constitute less than 2,500 acres of the City's approximately 21,000 acres, they have only
a minor affect on the overall totals and proportions per land use type for Wilmington.
SUMMARY OF LAND USE BY PARCEL SIZE
The values in Tables 4, 5, and 6 were obtained from the County Tax Appraisal's Data
Bank for 1990 and 1985. It is important to note that these values reflect totals by parcel size
for each specified area and DO NOT indicate actual land utilization acres.
Examination of the land use totals in Table 4 shows that residential land use constitutes
the largest category of developed land for the combined area of the unincorporated County
and City of Wilmington. The residential land use category shows an increase in total acreage
from 1985 to 1990, while decreases are recorded for all other land use categories. As
mentioned before, although there are problems with using parcel size as an indicator of land
use and with using the Tax Appraisal Data Bank, the overall proportions for each category
are generally consistent with other land use data.
13
Table 4 located
page 14.
Table 5 located
page 15.
Table 6 located
page 16.
Ee

IN
1985 1990
Percent of Percent of
Parcel Developed Parcel Developed
Land Use Category Acres Area Acres Area
Single Family
30,081
51.3
33,303
61.7
M t Fad.
..
:
::
::_::
.:I
:::.::::::
::
Mobile Home
1,948
3.3
1,337
2.5
... ........ ... .... .. s:::..
.•......_. �..... ..... ::. a:i::
`.`:' :..:i:......:-..7:Gi:.::.:::..: is .ii`�::;:':.i.`i:'..�
���:i::;:i.��'::::::[..
.....- ...:.. t>.......
Commercial
4,458
7.6
1,733
3.2
8,529
14.6
2,3 1 .....:...:.......
4 0
58,639
100.0
44
19,493
/
7,689
14.2
53,993
100.0
NNEM
19,493
/
Note: These figures include the City, Unincorporated County, and the beach communities.
OSource: Tax Appraisal Office Data Bank
14

r
TABLE 5
Unincorporated County Land Use, by Parcel Size 10
1985 1990
Percent of Percent of
Parcel Developed Parcel Developed
Land Use Category Acres Area Acres Area
V. TQ
:::::::.......:::::.:�.. ...�i :::::.. :iiii::::i:i:;'i:'.'+'.:.:
iii ..-.LB,ii©9 ; ..:..::::.:....
:::>::;:.; .:.....:....:......
62:.�::.:::...:.�:::::::::::::
22.175
::.. .......
6i2?::>:;<:::<.';';..:<
Single Family
25,597
57.0
20,858
57.5
...
:`>'.....Mttlti..Famtl: ::<:>: ' ::':;;::;`'
:::::::::::::::::.:.................................::::::::.:.....:.::........64..................................,
y:::::.:::::::::::::::............:.....:.::::..::::::::::::..:.:.::.._::....:.:::.:::::::.:.:::_.::.:._::.:.::::::::::::.::.:::::::.:..::.:..:.:
`:::`::`:`::;:;,
..........................................28:::::::::::::::::........................Q......................
:.:::::::::::::::::>
Mobile Home
1,948
4.3
1,289
3.6
Cil$tftutl(?Till::::::::;::>::`:.
:'>><'...... 71 :>[:`>`:'.:>:.>:'
:.::::.;:...:.......;:.>::.;:.:
`':>;` »'>:>....
.
.::.::...........................................................:
Commercial
3,263
7.3
938
-2.6
Industrial
7,265
16.2
6,827
18.8
t
Total Developed
44,910
100.0
36,253
100.0
-U e 1
;.::..;:;............
:.;:.;::.:..........:::.
j
. ;.::.::.:.:.;;:.;:.::.::.::;::.;
Water
18,982
/
18,982
/
Note. These figures reflect land use in the unincorporated County.
Source: Tax Appraisal Office Data Bank O
15

IN
1985
1990
Percent of
Percent of
Parcel
Developed
Parcel
Developed
Land Use Category
Acres
Area
Acres
Area
..-. -.-.-..-.-.-.-.4....
7...............
.................... -.-..-..-..-..-..-..- .... ..........................
........ .......
7
�..-
7.,-- .........
Single Family
4,484
32.6
12,445
70.1
Mobile Home
2
0.0
48
0.3
O—Commercial
1,195 8.7
795
4.5
Industrial
1,264
9.2
862
4.8
R
. ........
Total Developed
13,729
100.0
17,743
100.0
Water
511
511
Note: These figures reflect land use in the City of Wilmington.
OSource: Tax Appraisal Office Data Bank'
16

TABLE 7
LAND USE RATIOS, I
A comparison of the County and City with 22 small cities and 46 large cities
in the United States, Percent of Developed Land.*
New Hanover City of
County Wilmington Small Large
Land Use (1990)** (1990)** Cities Cities
Commercial 6.2 8.6 7 9
Office & Institutional 6.4 10.5 13 NA
Transportation, Utilities,
& Communication 19.6 26.0 19 NA
* Source: Longhini, G., & Sutton, M., "Land Use Ratios", American Planning Association, Planning
Advisory Service, Memo 83-5, May,1983.
** Actual Land Utilization Values
Note: Direct comparison is not recommended due to the different methods utilized to calculate each
land use data set.
101
On
17

L
Table 7 located
page 17.
101
IV. LAND UTILIZATION COMPARED
In a study of land use ratios by Loghinin and Sutton (1983), land use was examined for
22 small cities and 46 large cities. Ratios per land use were calculated and compared. As
seen in Table 7, New Hanover County and the City of Wilmington are fairly consistent with
the trends identified in the Longhini and Sutton study. It should be pointed out however, that
the methods used to generate the actual acreages for each individual study are probably not
the same, thus only general trends can be deduced from this comparison.
V. LAND USE AREAS OF CONCERN IN THE
UNINCORPORATED COUNTY
The 1980's were a period of rapid growth forNew Hanover County and its surrounding
environs. As the County has risen to become the regional service and trade center for
southeastern North Carolina, some problems have evolved. For example, urban services
need to be provided, land use conflicts have been created and must be solved, and traffic
congestion has increased in some areas. The following land use issues are of particular
concern:
1.) Commercial Development - It is obvious that a certain amount of commercial
development is needed to service the local area. However, New Hanover County has
developed into a regional retail center, providing shopping opportunities for people well
beyond its geographic borders. As a result, a disproportionate share of commercially zoned
lands can be found within the County's borders.
While the retail opportunities may be good for the local economy, they are not without
problems. First, the push to provide commercial opportunities to satisfy regional demands
means more lands are rezoned. When that happens, land use conflicts occur, especially when
located adjacent to residential uses. Second, commercial expansion is sometimes ill -
planned, resulting in strip commercial development. In addition, there is concern about the
amount of over -development in some areas, which has resulted in the creation of under-
utilized commercial properties. Though many of these are vacant, they still are allotted
services, reduce openspace andpotentially impactthe environment. And cumulatively, these
sites will also generate traffic which in turn adds to congestion.
2.) Transportation The opening of Interstate 40 was projected to be the impetus for
rapid development of all types in the County. Although that prophecy has not as yet been
entirely fulfilled, the interstate has had a majorimpact on some types of growth in the County.
I40 has aided access into and out of the County, but construction of new companion roads
to facilitate cross county travel has not kept pace.
18

Two study areas, located just north of the City, have been selected for the location of
the western link of the Wilmington ByPass connecting I-40 to US IT The specific corridor O will be identified in the spring of 1992. A route for the eastern link of the -Bypass is also
expected to be identified soon. Additionally, local officials continue to prioritize various
road projects as identified in the Wilmington Thoroughfare Plan. Several inner-city
thoroughfares have already been constructed, such as Racine Drive, South 17th Street
Extension, Randall Parkway, Holly Tree Road, and Independence Blvd.
It is important to remember that new roads, particularly thoroughfares, will have a
dramatic impact on land use patterns. The County and City should be prepared to identify
specific needs and possible conflicts as these roads are constructed. If this foresight is
achieved, long -tern negative impacts can be minimized.
3.) Sewer Services and Land Development -As can be expected, development in the
unincorporated County has been brisk where County sewer service has been installed. Areas
once undevelopable because septic tanks couldn't be utilized have now been transformed
into buildable lots.
The County continues to construct the County -wide sewer system, but funding
shortfalls have delayed completion of some parts of the system. Alternative revenue sources
are being pursued, but no decisions have been reached.
O
If and when the needed funding is identified, the County must be prepared to insure that
the availability of sewer services does not open up lands to development that would not
ordinarily be considered suitable. For example, wetlands are still abundant in the County but
several large tracts containing these resources are rapidly being destroyed. Septic tanks
cannot function in poorly -drained soils or wetland areas and although public sewer
availability eases the sewerage concern, it subjects these wetland resources to development
pressures. To the greatest extent practical, these wetlands should be protected. The County
must demonstrate that it is committed to striking a palatable balance between development
needs and the larger issue of environmental conservation and resource protection.
iL�

V. LAND USE AREAS OF CONCERN IN THE' CITY
O OF WILMINGTON--
1.) Land Use Conflicts An issue of concern in the City of Wilmington is the conflict
between land uses and the need for a balanced approach to the placement of land use
activities. The Zoning Ordinance of the City of Wilmington was designated to minimize the
conflicts between land use activities through the provision of setback requirements and more
recently, revised landscaping standards and sign regulations. There has been a concerted
effort to balance the need for residential, office & institutional, commercial and industrially
classified properties, and to weigh the impacts of these activities in placement decisions. In
the instance of commercial development, there has been an effort to provide services at
neighborhood, community and regional levels, and to properly place zoning classifications
to achieve that goal.
The Wilmington -New Hanover County Policies for Growth and Development recom-
mend against allowing commercial strip development along major thoroughfares. The
pressure to continue the commercialization of these thoroughfares is very strong, however,
and will continue to be a prevalent issue. The City of Wilmington has recognized the need
for thoroughfare planning through an emphasis on corridor --wide planning efforts. The
completion of the Dawson -Wooster Corridor Plan, the Wrightsville Avenue Land Use Plan,
the Carolina Beach Road Corridor Study and the North Kerr Avenue Land Use Study, are
all examples of the City's efforts to provide a blueprint for the development of these
corridors, and to provide a comprehensive planning approach to land use evaluation, rather
than incremental changes in zoning. There has been a greater recognition of the impacts of
commercialization, including increased traffic and reduced effectiveness of thoroughfares to
handle existing traffic loads. There has also been anincreased awareness of the need to protect
areas of affordable housing which are in transition in neighborhoods adjacent to commercial
activity.
The City of Wilmington has recently engaged in the process of developing a City
Master Plan, which will provide further direction in the placement of land uses in a manner
that will minimize the negative impacts of conflicting land uses. This plan is currently in the
draft phase and will be reviewed by the Planning Commission and the City Council prior to
adoption. The City Master Plan is designed to provide a framework for the development of
the City of Wilmington into the next century.
2.) Transportation - The City of Wilmington has engaged in an aggressive plan to
build new thoroughfares within the city limits. The newly constructed streets include the
O South Seventeenth Street Extension, Independence Boulevard Extension, Holly Tree Road
Extension and Randall Parkway. Other roads, including George Anderson Drive, are in the
20

final planning stages for completion. There has been an awareness of the need to protect these
new thoroughfares from strip development as a means of enhancing their function; to safely O
and effectively handle traffic loads to the newly developing areas of the city. The South
Seventeenth Street Extension Land Use Plan has provided the blueprint for development
within that area, and other similar studies will be needed to provide a framework for
development of these newly accessible areas within the city limits.
The construction of the Smith Creek Parkway has gained new urgency with the opening
of I-40 and the increased traffic impacts on the Market Street corridor. The City of
Wilmington will continue to push for the development of this parkway as a means of
alleviating traffic congestion and providing greater access to the redevelopinginner city area.
3.) Redevelopment of the Inner City Area - Within the past five years, the City of
Wilmington, in partnership with private residential and commercial property owners, and the
Historic Wilmington Foundation and DARE, Inc., has had great success in the redevelop-
ment of the historic core of the inner city. The preservation and reuse of significant portions
of the downtown have been accomplised through this effort. New Hanover County has also
contributed to the stabilization of the downtown through the revitalization of the historic
New Hanover County Courthouse for administrative and meeting space.
However, continued effort is needed in the residential neighborhoods within the
National Register Historic District, including Hemenway and the Bottom, and the North
Fourth Street and Castle Street commercial areas. The Department of Housing and
Neighborhoods, in conjunction with Wilmington Housing Finance and Development, are
continuing their efforts to provide affordable, rehabilitated housing within these neighbor-
hoods, as well as redevelopment of the historic commercial corridors on North Fourth Street
and Castle Street. The Historic Wilmington Foundation and DARE, Inc. will continue to play
key roles in the respective residential and commercial rehabilitation efforts.
O
21

K
K
pa
Table 1 located
page 5.
Table 2 located
page 7.
Table 3 located
page 9.
Table 4 located
page 14.
Table 5 located
page 15.
Table 6 located
page 16.
Appendix Two
located page 23.
APPENDIX ONE
METHODOLOGIES
1. Methodology for calculating 1990 statistics for the combined area
of the Unincorporated County and City of Wilmington.
In order to determine more accurately how much land is actually being utilized for a
particularland use type in the unincorporated County and City, a second set of statistics was
generated. Land use information for the unincorporated area of the County was obtained
from the County's Tax Department and verified in the field. The actual portions of properties
being utilized was determined from an examination of 1990 ortho photography. Using the
County's PCs codes, information derived from the aerial photographs and field data, the land
use information was color coded and transferred to 1 "=400' property maps. The 1990 Land
Utilization Statistics for the unincorporated County were calculated by totalling the amount
of land utilized for each land use type and then determining the percentage of each land use
category. The same methodology was used to calculate the City of Wilmington's land
utilization data. These values are shown in Tables 1, 2 and 3 of this report The data generated
for Tables .2 and 3 were combined to produce the data shown in Table 1.
Land use information for the combined area of the unincorporated County and City of
Wilmington was calculated by a computer program. This program summed the 1990 parcel
acreages for each land use type specified in the County's PCs code, as listed in Appendix
Two of this report This land use information is maintained by the County Tax Department
as part of its appraisal system. Acreage information was sometimes omitted in the computer
files for parcels less than one acre. Therefore, an average figure of 0.625 acres per lot, based
on a survey of lots without acreage information, was used in the program to calculate land
use acreages for parcels without acreage information. These values are shown in Tables
5, and 6 of this report.
2. Methodology for calculating 1985 statistics for the combined
- area of the Unincorporated County and City of Wilmington.
Land use statistics for 1985 for the combined area of the unincorporated County and
the City of Wilmington were calculated by a computer program. This program summed the
parcel acreages for each land use type specified in the County's PCS code, as listed in
Appendix Two of this report. This land use information is maintained by the County Tax
Department as part of its appraisal system. Acreage information was sometimes omitted in
the computer files for parcels less than one acre. Therefore, an average figure of 0.625 acre/
lot, based on a survey of lots without acreage information, was used to calculate land use
acreages for parcels without acreage information.
22

APPENDIX TWO
0
LAND USE CODES
As indicated in Appendix One, the land use codes assigned by the County Tax Office
served as the basis for determining the existing use of each land parcel in 1985 and 1990. The
following list represents the manner in which these codes were grouped for this survey and
analysis. The numbers shown are those assigned by the Tax Office for each land use.
Single Family Residential
01...................................
Family Residential
04...................................
Season Residential (1) Family
19...................................
Other Residential
Mobile Homes
10...................................
Mobile Home
14...................................
Mobile Home Park
Multi -Family Residential
02...................................
Family Residential
03...................................
3 or more Family Residentail
05 ...................................
Season Residential 2+ Family
Office and Institutional
61...................................
Finance and Real Estate
O65
...................................
Physicians and Dental Services
65A................................
Hospital Services
65B................................
Sanitoriums, Convalescent and Rest Home Services
65D................................
Other Medical and Health Services
65E.................................
Legal Services
67...................................
Governmental
68...................................
Educational
69A................................
Religious Activities
69B........II ........................
Religious Activities and Educational School
12...................................
Group Quarters
Commercial
52...................................
Retail - Building Materials, Hardware, and Farm
53...................................
Retail - General Merchandise
54A................................
Groceries - Retail Convenience Food
54B................................
Fish and Seafoods - Retail
54C................................
Other Retail Trade - Food
55...................................
Retail Auto
55A
Tires, Batteries, and Accessories - Retail
55B................................
Gasoline Service Stations
55C................................
Marine Craft and Accessories - Retail
55D........ .................:......
Marina - Marine Craft Docking and Services
55E.................................
Retail Trade Auto, Marine Craft, Aircraft, Accessories
56
Retail Apparel
57...................................
Retail Home Furnishings
58A................................
Eating Place - Consumption on Premises
_ _ 23

Commercial Continued
58B................................. Fast Food Services
58C.................................. Drinking Place (Alcoholic Beverages)
13................................... Residential Hotel
6..................................... Travel Trailer Park
73 ................................... Amusements
84A................................. Sport Fishing
84B................................. Commercial Fishing
84C................................. Other Fishing and Related
62................................... Personal Services
64................................... Repair - Auto Services
66................................... Contract Construction
59.. Other Retail
15................................... Transient Lodging
Transportation, Communications, Utilities
41................................... Rail Transit
42................................... Motor Vehicles
43 ................................... Aircraft
44................................... Marine Craft
45................................... Street Right -of -Way
46 ................................... Auto Parking
47................................... Communications
48................................... Utilities
49................................... Other Transportation, Communication, and Utility
Wholesale, Warehousing, and Distribution
51................................... Wholesale Trade
Industrial (Intensive)
21................................... Food and Kindred
23................................... Apparel and Similar
27................................... Printing and Allied
34................................... Fabricated Metal
35................................... Professional, Scientific and Controlling Instruments
36................................... Boat and Ship Construction
39................................... Miscellaneous Manufacturing
84................................... Fishery
Industrial (Extensive)
22................................... Textile Mill
24................................... Lumber and Wood
25................................... Furniture and Fixtures
26................................... Paper and Allied
28................................... Chemical and Allied
29................................... Petroleum, Refining and Related
31................................... Rubber and Plastic
32................................... Stone, Clay and Glass
33................................... Primary Metal
85................................... Mining and Related
101
EO
NO
24

w
Recreation
71.................................... Cultural or Nature Exhibition
72.................................... Public Assembly
74.................................... Resorts and Camps
76.................................... Parks
Undeveloped and Agriculture
81.................................... Agriculture
82.................................... Agriculture Related
83.................................... Forestry and Related
91.................................... Unused Land
92.................................... Non -Commercial Forest
Miscellaneous
89.................................... Other Resources
69C................................. Other Services
79.....................................Other Cultural, Entertainment, and Recreation
94.................................... Vacant Floors
95.................................... Under Construction
__ 25