Land Use Plan Update-1986

Division of Coastal Management
LAND USE PLAN UPDATE
PREPARED FOR:
THE TOWN OF KURE BEACH, N.C.
BY:
SIQMLA PLANNONG
PLANNERS ❑ LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS
ADOPTED JANUARY 7, 1986
CERTIFIED BY THE COASTAL RESOURCES COMMISSION
FEBRUARY 7, 1986

LAND USE PLAN UPDATE
Kure Beach, North Carolina
Prepared by:
WOL LA pLARRONS
PLANNERS E-11 LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS
P.O. BOX 1110, ST. MARM GEORGIA 31558
Adopted January 7, 1986
Certified by the Coastal Resources Commission
February 7, 1986
The preparation of this report was financed in part through a grant
provided by the North Carolina Coastal Management Program, through funds
provided by the Coastal Zone Managment Act of 1972, as amended, which is
administered by the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management,
N.O.A.A.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
INTRODUCTION
1v
EXISTING CONDITIONS
1
Existing Land Use
1
Policy Documents and Land Use Controls
10
Economic Conditions
11
Traffic and Parking Conditions
11
Community Facilities
12
Physical and Environmental
Constraints
16
Community Design Structure
22
GROWTH TRENDS.
24
Population
24
Impacts on Community Facilities
26
POLICIES
29
Resource Protection
29
v
Areas of Environmental Concern
29
The Estuarine System
29
Ocean Hazard Areas
30
Natural and Cultural Resource
Areas
32
Stormwater Runoff
32
Marinas, Floating Homes, and Sound
and Estuarine Islands
33
Off -Road Vehicles
33
Shoreline Management
33
Erosion Control
33
Commitment to State and Federal Channel
Maintenance and Beach Renourishment
Projects
33
Dune Maintenance and Protection
33
Protection of Wildlife
34
Resource Production and Management
34
Potable Water
34
Tourism
34
Commercial and Recreational Fisheries
34
-. Provision of Services to Development
35
Public Sewerage System
35
Public Water System
35
Transportation
35
i

Solid Waste Disposal 37
Fire Protection 37
Police 37
Town Facilities 37
Financing Shoreline Protection 37
Recreation Improvements 38
Economic and Community Development 39
General Land Use Policy 39
Location of Development 40
Timing and Density of Development 40
Central Business District 40
Extension of Sewage Treatment Services 40
Commitment to State and Federal
Programs 40
Intergovernmental Cooperation 41
Storm Hazard Mitigation and Post Disaster
Planning 41
Continuing Citizen Participation 44
I LAND CLASSIFICATION
ii
46

16:1
LIST OF MAPS
page
MAP
1
EXISTING LAND USE
2
MAP
2
VACANT LAND OWNERSHIP
9
MAP
3
COMMUNITY FACILITIES
13
MAP
4
FLOOD HAZARD AREAS
19
MAP
5
COMMUNITY DESIGN STRUCTURE
23
MAP
6
LAND CLASSIFICATION
49
LIST OF.TABLES
Table 1 EXISTING LAND USE ACREAGE COUNTS 3
Table 2 DWELLING UNIT COUNTS AND RESIDENTIAL
DENSITY 5
iii

INTRODUCTION
The Coastal Area Management Act of 1974 establishes a coop-
erative program of coastal area management between local govern-
ments and the State. Land use planning is intended to be central
to the local government's involvement, because it gives local
leaders an opportunity to establish and implement policies to
guide the development of their community.
The Kure Beach Land Use Plan is an expression of long range
planning goals in which the local government has set forth its
major policies concerning desirable future development over the
next ten years.
The land use plan is an important policy document at local,
regional, state and federal levels. The users, in addition to the
Town of Kure Beach, are regional councils of government, state
and federal permitting agencies, and public and private funding
and development groups.
Local Government Uses
The plan provides policy guidance for decisions related to
overall community development, and provides the basis for land
development regulations and capital facilities programming. Plan-
ning for the provision of capital intensive services, such as
central sewer and water, is aided by the land use plan's identi-
fication of likely growth trends and by plan policies which will
effect growth.
Local Land Development Uses
Developers and investors (including prospective residents)
can use the land use plan as a primary source of information
about the community. The plan provides data and analysis on
present development patterns, capacity of community facilities,
population and growth patterns, and physical limitations, all of
which are useful in market analyses and other feasibility stu-
dies. The plan also provides the investor with information about
the community's preferences for development types, densities, and
locations.
Regional Uses
The Kure Beach Land Use Plan will be used by the Cape Fear
Council of Governments for regional planning purposes and in
their function as regional clearinghouse (A-95) for state and
federal funding programs. The local plan indicates to this agency
what types of development the community feels are likely and
where the development should take place.
iv

State and Federal Uses
Local land use plans are used in the granting or denial of
permits for various developments within the coastal area. State
and Federal agencies must ensure their decisions consider the
policies and land classification system established by this plan.
The Coastal Area Management Act stipulates that no development
permit may be issued if the proposed development is inconsistent
with the local land use plan. Similarly, decisions related to
the use of federal or state funds within the community and pro-
jects being undertaken by state and federal agencies themselves
must also be consistent with the local plan.
v

EXISTING CONDITIONS
The existing conditions section of the plan presents brief
descriptions of the conditions pertinent to land use in Kure
Beach. General section headings include: Existing Land Use,
Policy Documents and Land Use Controls, Economic Conditions,
Traffic and Parking Conditions, Community Facilities, Physical
and Environmental Constraints, and Community Design Structure.
Sources for the existing conditions section are generally cited
in the course of the text and include the N.C. Department of
Natural Resources and Community Development, N.C. Department of
Transportation, the N. C. Department of Administration, local
officials, and personal observations by Satilla Planning, Inc.
Existing Land Use
Land use in Kure Beach is in the process of undergoing a
dramatic change. The original platted portion of the town re-
mains a mix of single family and 2, 3, and 4 family dwellings
with commercial uses (primarily motels) located in the central
part of town along the beachfront and U.S. 421. To the north and
south of the original Kure Beach, large tracts of oceanfront and
oceanview property, undeveloped at the time of the last land use
plan update in 1980, are being developed or are planned for
development.
The following is a brief summary of land use as it was found
by field survey in late 1984. For purposes of simplification,
land scheduled to be annexed by May 31, 1985 was counted within
the Kure Beach town limits. Acreage counts are noted on Table 1
(page 3); residential density figures are detailed in Table 2
(page 5). Existing land use is graphically displayed on Map 1.
Residential
Generally, residential land use in Kure Beach has been
placed in five categories: single family; 2, 3, 4, and 5 family;
condominium/multi-family; motels and cottages; and mobile homes.
The motel and cottage category could arguably be placed in the
commercial category; it has been included under residential for
purposes of peak population estimates. A summary of dwelling
unit counts and residential densities is given under Table 2.
Single Family
The predominant residential land use in Kure Beach is single
family residential, with 45.7 acres in that category within the
town limits. There are 442 single family dwellings in Kure
Beach. Net residential density for these units is 9.7 dwellings
per acre. This density, rather high by most suburban standards,
where lots are generally 10,000 square feet or greater, is attri-
butable to the preponderance of 5000 square foot lots.
1

Ir
M
LEGEND:
RESIDENTIAL
.. SgVGLE FAMILY DETACHED
MOBILE HOME
DUPLEX' / TRIPLEX
MULTI --FAMILY
COMMERCIAL MOTEL
COMMERCIAL
=_ TRANSPORTATION & UTILITIES
PUBLIC & INSTITUTIONAL
PARKS & OPEN SPACE
0 VACANT
KURE BEACH, N.C.
EXISTING LAND USE
MAP 1
PfWamd BY: SATILLA PLANNING
200 MborM StrNt
St. s N7% O.ur9b
1
MWPkv o.w. JANUARY. 1N6
To.n LWts: M.Y. lass
The preparation of this map was financed in part through a grant pro-
vided by the North Carolina Coastal Management Program, through
funds provided by the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as
amended, which is administered by the Office of Ocean and Coastal
Resource Management, N.O.A.A.

Table
1. EXISTING LAND
USE ACREAGE COUNTSI
. Land Use
Town Limits
Extraterritorial
Total
(to May 31, 1985)
. Single Family
45.7
12.1
57.8
2, 3, 4, 5 unit
Multi -Family
7.7
.9
8.6
Multi -family
(6 or more
units)
24.2
0
24.2
Motels/Cottages
8.7
.7
9.4
Mobile Homes
2.8
6.7
9.5
Total Residential 89.1
20.4
109.5
• Planned
Residential
158.6
0
158.6
• Non -Motel
Commercial
2.2
.1
2.3
Institutional
2.0
0
2.0
Utilities
6.6
.5
7.1
Recreation
22.4
0
22.4
Industrial
29.5
0
29.5
Streets and
Roads
62.0
14.1
76.1
Vacant Land
43.6
13.8
57.4
Subtotal
416.0
48.9
464.9
Fort Fisher AFB
0
150.0
150.0
Buffer Zone
76.4
820.7
897.1
TOTALS
492.4
1019.6
1512.0
` 1 From Satilla
Planning field survey conducted October
- Novem-
ber, 1984.
3

In the Wilmington Beach/Hanby Beach extraterritorial area,
12.1 acres of land are developed with 102 single family units.
This yields a slightly lower density of 8.4 units per acre. The
average single family density for the total planning area is 9.4
dwellings per acre of land developed with single family uses.
Two, Three, Four and Five Family
Some 128 units in Kure Beach fall into this category, at an
average density of 16.6 units per net acre. Only 10 units were
counted in this category in the extraterritorial area, lowering
the average density for the full planning area to about 16 units
per acre of land in this category.
Condominium/Multi-family
This category accounts for the oceanfront developments of
Ocean Dunes (156 units) and The Riggings (36 units). These
developments account for 24.2 acres of land, giving this cate-
gory, traditionally the most dense residential land use, the
lowest residential density figure in Kure Beach (7.9 units per
acre).
Motels/Cottages
This category is easily the most intense residential or
commercial land use in Kure Beach. There are some 329 motel
rooms and cottages within the town limits, located on only 8.7
acres of land. One 24-unit motel, on .7 acres, is found in the
Hanby Beach/Wilmington Beach area. Together, this use averages
37.6 rooms/units per acre; about normal for most motel uses.
Mobile Homes
By far the largest concentration of mobile homes is located
in Wilmington and Hanby Beaches: 57 units are located on 6.7
acres there. Twenty-eight mobile homes can be found within the
Kure Beach town limits. Average density for both areas is 8.9
units per acre.
Planned Residential
A total of 158.6 acres has been placed in the planned resi-
dential category (see Table 1). This category accounts for
undeveloped land slated for development at Ocean Dunes and the
newly masterplanned Kure Beach Club, on lands formerly owned by
International Nickel (INCO). Another 200 units (all multi -fami-
ly) are planned at Ocean Dunes; the Kure Beach Club masterplan
calls for a total of 1400 units.
The Ocean Dunes property contains some 31.2 acres, of which
17.5 acres have been developed on the oceanside (156 multi -family
units). Full development is planned for 356 multi -family units,
of which 22 non -oceanfront units had been constructed as of late
4

Table 2. DWELLING
UNIT
COUNTS AND RESIDENTIAL
DENSITYI
Single
2 to
5 Mobile Multiple
Motel/
Family
Units Homes
Family
Cottages
Total
Within
Town
Limits
Units 442
128
28
192
329
1119
Acres 45.7
7.7
2.8
24.2
8.7
89.1
Density
(du/acre) 9.7
16.6
10.0
7.9
37.8
12.6
Extra-
territorial
Units 102
10
57
0
24
193
Acres 12.1
.9
6.7
0
.7
20.4
Density
(du/acre) 8.4
11.1
8.5
0
34.3
9.5
Total
Planning
Area
Units 544
138
85
192
353
1312
Acres 57.8
8.6
9.5
24.2
9.4
109.5
Density
(du/acre) 9.4
16.0
8.9
7.9
37.6
12.0
Planned Residential
Single Family
Multi -family
Totals
Units 310
1290
1600
Acres 54.2
104.4*
158.6
Density
(du/acre ) 5.7
15.9
11.8
1 From Satilla Planning
field survey conducted
October -
Novem-
ber, 1984.
*Acreage counts included
for Kure
Beach Club property include
all
open space and recreation
areas.
5

1984. When completed, this development will have an average
density of 11.4 units per acre.
The first phase, of development in Kure Beach Club will
contain 396 multi -family units on 22.76 acres. The entire mas-
terplanned area, which contains 144.9 acres, will eventually
provide 310 single family lots and 1090 multi -family dwellings.
The project includes 14.8 acres of green space and beach fron-
tage, and a club house on one acre of land. Single family lots
will average 5 to 7 units per acre (6000 to 8000 square foot
lots). Multi -family areas will have a net density of 19.6 units
per acre; if open space and recreation areas are added, this
figure drops to 12 units per acre.
Residential: Summary
A total of 89.1 acres of residential land can be found
within the town limits, 21.4 percent of the non -buffer zone or
Air Force Base land within Kure Beach. Planned residential land,
all of which will lie within the town limits before it is devel-
oped, accounts for nearly twice this acreage, 158.6 acres. Once
the residentially planned land is developed, residential land
will account for sixty percent of the non -buffer zone/Air Force
Base acreage in Kure Beach.
A total of 1312 dwelling units now exist in Kure Beach and
its extraterritorial planning area. Over forty percent of these
(544 units) are single family dwellings. Some 27 percent of all
units in Kure Beach and its extraterritorial area are motel
rooms. Condominium/multi-family units now make up 15 percent of
all dwellings in the planning area. This figure will increase,
perhaps dramatically, in the next few years as new multi -family
construction outstrips the slow pace of single family develop-
ment. The remaining categories, 2 to 5 unit dwellings and mobile
homes, make up about 11 and 6 percent, respectively, of the total
dwelling count.
Nearly half (42 percent) of the land in the Hanby and Wil-
mington Beach area is residentially developed. Of the remaining
land in these subdivisions, 29 percent is allocated to streets
and roads, and almost all of the rest (28 percent) is vacant.
Residential densities are fairly high compared to most com-
munities; they are probably fairly typical for North Carolina
beach communities, however. Ranked in order from highest (most
dense) to lowest (least dense) for the total planning area, the
motel/cottage category is highest, with an average density of
37.6 rooms or units per acre. This category is followed by the
two to five family category (16 units per acre). The single
family category is third, with 9.4 dwellings per acre. Mobile
homes are only slightly less dense than single family dwellings,
at 8.9 units to the acre. In last place is the condominium/mul-
ti-family category, at 7.9 dwellings per acre.
When planned residential developments are added to existing
dwelling counts, rankings are affected as follows:
1.1

o The single family category falls from 9.4 units per
acre (third) to 7.6 units per acre (fifth).
o The condominium/multi-family category increases from
fifth place (7.9 units to the acre) to third by doub-
ling in density (14.1 units per acre).
o The other categories maintained their previous posi-
tions.
While the shift in the condominium/multi-family category
seems dramatic, it should be remembered that development of the
Kure Beach Club property (1090 multi -family units) will be phased
in over a number of years, subject to market conditions.
The planned dwelling unit count (1600 units) exceeds that of
the present dwelling count (1312). The planned units, which will
be developed over a multi -year time frame, depending on market
conditions, will result in the doubling of Kure Beach's housing
stock at some point in the future (see Growth Trends, page 25 -
28).
Non -Motel Commercial
When motels are counted in the residential category in Kure
Beach, the amount of land in commercial uses drops to a very
small percentage of overall developed land. Only 2.2 acres of
commercial land is found within the town limits. Most of this
commercial acreage is found in the central business district
located on K Avenue on the ocean side of U. S. 421. Only one
business, located on .1 acre, is located in the Hanby/Wilmington
Beach area. Commercial uses include convenience stores, three
restaurants, and small shops. (The Kure Beach Pier is accounted
for under the recreation category).
Institutional
The two acres in this category includes the Kure Beach Town
Hall, storage and maintenance property owned by the Town, the U.
S. Post Office, and churches and church -owned property.
Utilities
This category includes the newly activated sewage treatment
lagoon in the buffer zone near Dow Road, well sites, and a radar
tower.
Recreation
This category includes acreage leased by the Town from Sunny
Point Military Base within the buffer zone for recreation pur-
poses, a small park at the corner of K and Atlantic Avenues also
leased by the Town, and the privately owned Kure Beach fishing
pier.
7

Industrial
The 29.5 acres in this category are those still in use for
testing by the International Nickle Company.
Streets and Roads
There are 62 acres of streets and roads within the Kure
Beach town limits, nearly two-thirds the amount of land currently
used for residential purposes. In Wilmington and Hanby Beaches,
a similar proportion of the land (14.1 acres) is used for streets
and roads.
Vacant Land
Due to the masterplanning of most of the currently vacant
land in the Kure Beach planning area, this category is limited
primarily to vacant lots within previously platted areas. There
is about two-thirds as much acreage in vacant lots (43.6 acres)
within the Kure Beach town limits as there is in residentially
developed lots (64.9 acres). These lots will probably continue
to develop at a slow to moderate pace through infill development.
The same ratio is true for the Wilmington/Hanby Beach extra-
territorial area, with 20.4 acres of developed platted land and
13.8 acres of undeveloped property.
Vacant land by category of ownership is displayed on Map 2.
Most of the undeveloped land in Kure Beach has received prelim-
inary or final development approval and is owned by development
firms or corporations. Undeveloped platted lots are largely
owned by individuals.
Summary: Developable Land
There are about 465 acres of developed or developable land
within Kure Beach's planning jurisdiction. A little less than 50
acres of this falls into the Hanby/Wilmington Beach area. About
12 percent of the land is vacant; 58 percent is developed resi-
dentially or planned for residential development.
Other lands within Kure Beach's jurisdiction include the
Fort Fisher Air Force Base (150 acres), and the Sunny Point
Buffer Zone. Due to military restrictions, the likelihood of
future development in these two areas is remote. The buffer zone
contains twice the acreage of the developable land within Kure
Beach's planning area, nearly 900 acres. Although there are over
1500 acres within Kure Beach's planning jurisdiction, less than a
third can be developed (30.7 percent) at the present time.
Land Use Compatibility Problems
At the present time, there are no major land use compatibil-
ity problems in Kure Beach. Potential problems include:

M
LEGEND:
IF INDIVIDUAL OR FAMILY
CA DEVELOPMENT COMPANY
WITH PRELIMINARY
APPROVAL FROM TOWN
DC DEVELOPMENT COMPANY
LL SUNNY POINT LANDS
LEASED TO KURE BEACH
SUNNY POINT BUFFER ZONE
• r�.. r� e e e a.
KURE BEACH, N.C.
VACANT LAND OWNERSHIP
MAP 2
sATLLA PLANNINGV
St. NWY46 eaerot.
troona one JANUARY, 19U
re.a u.nc uar. +ass ��f0°�
The preparation of this map was financed in put through a grant pro-
vided by the North Carolina Coastal Management Program, through
funds provided by the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. as
amended. which is administered by the Office of Ocean and Coastal
Resource Management. N.O.A.A.

o the U. S. 421 corridor as traffic loads increase
o the remote possibility of development or alteration of
the Sunny Point Buffer zone
An analysis of traffic potential on U. S. 421 is discussed
under Impacts on Community Facilities - Transportation (pages 29
- 30). At this time, there are no known plans to alter the prohi-
bition on development within the Sunny Point Buffer zone.
Policy Documents and Land Use Controls
In addition to an on -going, CAMA approved land use planning
program, the Town of Kure Beach enforces a zoning ordinance and
subdivision regulations within the town limits and extraterri-
torial jurisdiction. Kure Beach has passed various ordinances
affecting its municipal jurisdiction; the most recent of these is
cited here. The Town also enforces the North Carolina Building
Code, the FEMA Flood Insurance Program, Coastal Area Management
Act (CAMA) minor permit regulations and a Sand Dune Protection
Ordinance for areas in its jurisdiction.
1980 Land Use Plan
This document, authorized under the Coastal Area Management
Act, superceded the first Kure Beach Land Use Plan and contains
basic land use information and policy statements on issues re-
lated to land use and environmental protection in Kure Beach. The
Coastal Area Management Act requires that participating communi-
ties update their land use plans every five years. The 1985 Land
Use Plan Update supercedes the 1980 Plan.
Carolina Beach - Kure Beach Thoroughfare Plan (1973)
This plan maps proposed improvements in the Carolina Beach -
Kure Beach area. The recommendations of the plan for the Kure
Beach area are more fully discussed under Traffic and Parking
Conditions (page 12) and Transportation - Impacts on Community
Facilities (pages 29 - 30).
Zoning Ordinance
The Kure Beach Zoning Ordinance was codified in 1974. The
Ordinance divides the Town into twelve zoning districts, of which
nine are residential and three are commercial. The ordinance
prescribes allowable uses, maximum height limits, minimum parking
requirements, and other requirements for the various districts,
and contains provisions for variances and non -conforming uses.
Subdivision Regulations
. This ordinance was adopted in September, 1981 and provides
10

procedures and site requirements for the subdivision and platting
of land in Kure Beach and its extraterritorial area. Included by
amendment are exceptions for planned developments.
Annexation Ordinance
Adopted October 2, 1984, this ordinance extended the Town"s
boundaries to include new areas south of E Avenue and north of N
Avenue, effective May 31, 1985. The Town boundaries (as of May
31, 1985) are shown on Map 1 (see page 2).
Water and Sewer Tap Fee Ordinance
Kure Beach's Water and Sewer Tap Fee Ordinance was estab-
lished in August, 1982. The fees apply to all residential uses
and motels.
Economic Conditions
Kure Beach is a quiet beach community with limited retail
commercial and service businesses. Its nearest neighbor, Caro-
lina Beach, is witnessing a housing boom, with spinoff effects on
the construction and development industry and the provision of
retail service businesses. Within the next five years, Kure
Beach is scheduled to witness the construction of over 1000
dwelling units. Services and additional commercial businesses
are likely to follow any substantial new construction.
The Town contains two roughly defined areas which contain a
mix of commercial uses: along K Street between the Atlantic
Ocean and Third Street, and along U.S. 421 between K Street and
the town limits. Actual commercial zoning is more extensive,
including most of the motel areas and an area near the town
limits where K Street approaches Dow Road.
Significant amounts of the commercially zoned land are not
intensely developed. With the exception of larger motels and
businesses in or near the oceanfront block of K Street, many
buildings in the commercial zone are old and/or prime for redev-
elopment. Constraints on future development or redevelopment of
land in the commercial zones include the small sizes of most
lots, the lack of areas for offstreet parking, and, along the
oceanfront, the combination of minimum zoning setbacks and exist-
ing CAMA setbacks.
Traffic and Parking Conditions
Kure Beach is accessible
via U.S. 421 and Dow Road.
Wilmington to Carolina Beach.
lina Beach; however, U.S. 421
Carolina and Kure Beaches.
Southport via a ferry service
Fort Fisher.
from Wilmington and Carolina Beach
U.S. 421 is a four lane road from
It decreases to two lanes in Caro -
is paralleled by Dow Road between
It is also possible to travel to
located five miles south of town at
191

N.C. Department of Transportation ADT's (average daily traf-
fic counts) for 1983 for U.S. 421 near the Kure Beach central
business district are 2,800 cars per day. Traffic counts on Dow
Road, which runs through the Sunny Point Buffer Zone, average 650
ADT. Counts on K Street near its intersection with U. S. 421 are
also 650 ADT.
At present, traffic circulation generally presents only
seasonal problems, with the exception of the Dow Road - K Street
intersection. Dow Road, a higher speed alternative to U.S. 421
between Carolina Beach and Kure Beach, curves into K Street at an
awkward angle which poses a serious safety hazard. The Town has
made several efforts to get N.C. DOT to reduce the sharp angle of
the curve.
A transportation plan for the Carolina Beach - Kure Beach
area adopted locally and by the State in 1973 calls for the
extension of Dow Road from its intersection with K Street to a
point just north of the Fort Fisher Museum on U. S. 421.
Parking
Parking poses a problem in Kure Beach during the peak summer
months when the Town's population and day visitorship are high-
est. Problems include congestion in the central business dis-
trict, where onstreet parking serves beach, fishing pier and
commercial users. Unauthorized roadside parking along unpaved
shoulders in beachfront areas poses environmental and maintenance
problems as well.
The Town is planning to erect beach access signs at its many
beach access locations. These signs will also be used to direct
traffic to access points served with parking areas.
Community Facilities
Kure Beach's key community facilities include sewer and
water distribution, oceanfront bulkheads, police and fire, the
Town Hall, and beach access and recreation areas.
Sewer
Kure Beach's existing sewage treatment collection system
extends to all of the areas within the current town limits,
including the present satellite annexation area. Flows are
linked to the Carolina Beach waste treatment plant via a main
lift station near the center of town and two forced mains located
at Ocean Dunes and The Riggings.
The Carolina Beach wastewater treatment plant is a regional
facility with a capacity of 1.5 million gallons/day (mgd). Kure.
Beach's flow allocation is 365,000 gpd.
12

0
LEGEND:
EXISTING BEACH ACCESS CROSSOVER POINT
.Q UNDEVELOPED BEACH ACCESS POINT
1-POST OFFICE
2-TOWN HALL, WELL t1 & WATER TOWER
3-CHURCH
4-CHURCH
S-TOWN SHOP
S-LUTHERN RETREAT
7-TOWN TENNIS COURTS
S-RECREATIONAL LANDS LEASED FROM ARMY
9-SEWAGE LIFT STATION
10- WELL f2
A T L A N T I C O C a A n
❑ PRIMARY FIRE DISTRICT
11-WELL #3
12-WELL t4
13-WELL is
14-KBC PHASE 1 WELL UNDER CONSTRUCTION
16-KBC PHASE III PROPOSED WELL
18-TOWN PARKING- 74 SPACES
17-LAND LEASED BY TOWN
18-KURE BEACH PIER
19-BEACH ACCESS PARKING
20-SEWAGE TREATMENT FACILITY
KURE BEACH, N.C.
COMMUNITY FACILITIES
MAP 3
PMPA,od ar: SATRLA PLANNING
t/anorStrN
st. atar
I D
s1 ys. G.«or
wWOW4 ww. JANUARY, 1985
1o.n LNnpL: M.Y. nes
The preparation of this map was financed in part through a grant
provided by the North Carolina Coastal Management Program, through
funds provided by the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as
amended, which is administered by the Office of Ocean and Coastal
Resource Management, N.O.A.A.

The two communities are currently working on an agreement to
increase sewage treatment capacity by 350,000 gpd at a cost of
over $230,000. Kure Beach has indicated a desire for an alloca-
tion of approximately 24 percent of the new capacity, which would
make an additional 84,000 gpd available for Kure Beach develop-
ment.
A further expansion of 750,000 gpd is also being considered
for the regional facility. Kure Beach may participate in this
expansion on a percentage basis, but is not yet committed due to
uncertainties regarding cost of the expansion.
The Town of Kure Beach recently reactivated a 100,000 gpd
sewage treatment lagoon in the buffer zone just off K Avenue in
order to provide sewage treatment for the first phase of the
Ocean Forest development, Kure Beach Club. The work was financed
by the developers of Kure Beach Club. The reactivation was the
first phase of an extensive sewage treatment expansion agreement
between the developers of Ocean Forest and the Town of Kure
Beach. The 144.9 acre Kure Beach Club tract has been annexed
into the Town as a result of this agreement. The sewage treat-
ment expansion will increase lagoon treatment capacity to 575,000
gpd. Ninety percent of the resulting capacity is expected to
serve the planned Kure Beach Club development, with about 60,000
gpd remaining for future needs in other parts of Kure Beach.
This is further discussed under Growth Trends (p. 21).
Water
Potable water is supplied in Kure Beach through a municipal
system which taps the tertiary aquifer. There are presently four
wells in operation in Kure Beach; a fifth, which will serve the
first development phase of Kure Beach Club, is under construc-
tion. The location of these wells is shown on Map 3. Well depth
of active wells ranges from 158 to 202 feet.
The Town owns a 75,000 gallon elevated storage tank and has
a 1000 gpm (gallons per minutee) pumping capacity. Peak use
averages 500,000 gpd in .summer, and 150,000 gpd in winter. Two
more wells will be added in the near future: one at Ocean Dunes
(west side of U. S. 421), and one additional well in conjunction
with the Kure Beach Club development. A new water tower will
also be added on the north end of town.
A discussion of water quality and use capacity issues rele-
vant to Kure Beach can be found under Physical and Environmental
Constraints (see pages 17 - 18).
Bulkheads
Most of the beachfront between the Kure Beach Pier and N
Avenue along Atlantic Avenue is bulkheaded. These bulkheads are
maintained by the Town of Kure Beach. About 100 ' of wooden
bulkhead (between L and N Avenues) was damaged during Hurricane
Diana and was repaired with federal funds.
14

Police and Fire
Kure Beach maintains a volunteer fire department consisting
of 19 members. The main fire house is located in the Town Hall
building on Third Street. The department has two Class A pump-
ers; one capable of pumping 750 gpm, the other 1000 gpm. There
is a mutual aid agreement in effect with Carolina Beach. The
fire department serves the corporate limits of Kure Beach, inclu-
ding satellite annexation areas. The Town's fire rating is
currently 8.
The Town of Kure Beach employs a police chief and four
fulltime police officers. The force is supplemented by unpaid
auxillary officers when necessary. The police department is also
housed at Town Hall. During the summer months, the Town main-
tains a staff of 6 to 8 lifeguards.
Kure Beach has established a primary fire district in its
downtown area (see Map 3). This area, which has long been devel-
oped, is characterized by minimal or non-existent setbacks from
property lines and public right of ways. Construction standards
within the primary fire district are more stringent than other
areas of the Town for fire code reasons related to the relaxed
building setbacks.
Town Hall
The Kure Beach Town Hall, located on Third Street, currently
houses the police and fire departments, building inspections, and
administrative offices. As part of the October, 1984 annexation
agreement between the Town and the developers of Kure Beach Club,
a one acre tract has been donated to the Town for purposes.of
building a new Town Hall. The property adjoins the old town
limits line at N Avenue.
Beach Access
There are numerous beach access points along Kure Beach's
long oceanfront. One of these access points, located near the
south end of the Ocean Dunes development, includes 20 parking
spaces and a dune crossover walk (designated on the Community
Facilities Map with a star). There are four other dedicated
beach access points within the Ocean Dunes project. Current Town
plans are to direct as much beach access traffic as possible in
the Ocean Dunes vicinity to the crossover supported by the park-
ing area.
The main improved beach access point in "traditional" Kure
Beach is located at K Street and Atlantic Avenues, at the heart
of the Town's commercial district. Over 80 parking spaces are
located here, serving the needs of commercial, beach and fishing
pier users.
Additionally, there are ten (10) unimproved street -end ac-
cess poinnts within the (May 31, 1985) town limits. Many of these
15

have room for several parking spaces. The Town is in the
process of acquiring beach access signs for these access points.
There are also several access points in the Hanby Beach/Wilming-
ton Beach extraterritorial area. Additionally, there is informal
use of property along the beachfront now owned by the developers
of Kure Beach Club for beach access.
The Town of Kure Beach applied for beach access funds for
improvement to three of the street -end access points in Septem-
ber, 1985. The Town's future plans are to develop access points
on an incremental basis utilizing existing street ends, which
will provide limited parking at regular intervals along the beach
strand.
Recreation
Most recreation activity in Kure Beach centers around the
beach itself and the Kure Beach fishing pier. Facilities availa-
ble in the Town include over twenty acres within the buffer zone
leased for recreation purposes from Sunny Point Military Base
and over 80 parking spaces along K Street and Atlantic Avenue
providing access to the beach, pier and main commercial areas. A
50 ' by 50' lot on the northwest corner of Atlantic Avenue and K
street (in the vicinity of the Kure Beach Pier) is used as a
picnic area through an informal arrangement with the owner.
Use of the buffer zone recreation area is limited by the
primary use of the buffer zone, which serves as a blast zone for
Sunny Point Military Terminal on the west side of the Cape Fear
River. Recreation activities excluded under the terms of the
lease.agreement include:
o Overnight camping
o Any activity involving the congregation of more than 25
persons per city block at any one time
o Activities which require the construction of habitable
buildings
The Town maintains two tennis courts and a basketball court
in the leased area.
Physical and Environmental Constraints
Physical Limitations to Development
Soils
Soils in Kure Beach were analyzed according to their devel-
opment suitability for five indicators:
16

o depth of seasonal high water table
o drainage conditions
o bearing capacity
o septic tank capability
o local roads and streets
Based on these five indicators, soils have been classified
in one of four categories:
o suitable
o moderately suitable, some drainage needed
o marginally suitable if drained
o highly unsuitable, flooding common
Most soils in the Kure Beach planning area fall within the
suitable or moderately suitable categories. Soils classified as
suitable have slight limitations for all of the development
indicators and generally are excessively well drained. Soils in
the suitable category include Kureb sand and Rimini sand.
Soils classified as moderate include Newhan fine sand and
Newhan-Urban Complex. These soils, which together accommodate
most of the developed areas within the Kure Beach planning area,
have slight to moderate characteristics for the indicators.
Two soil classifications were placed in the marginally suit-
able category. Leon sand and Lynn Haven fine sand, poorly drain-
ing soils which require substantial site alteration in order to
undergo development, have been placed in this category. Newly
annexed areas to the north of N Avenue are characterized by these
soils.
Potable Water Supply
Kure Beach draws its potable water supply from the tertiary
limestone aquifer, commnly known as the Castle Hayne aquifer.
The N. C. Division of Environmental Management conducted a water
use survey in the Kure Beach area in 1974. At that time, water
usage ranged from a low of 30,000 gallons per day (gpd) to a high
of 125,000 gpd. Present usage has increased substantially since
that time. Daily water usage in winter is about 150,000 gpd;
peak use in summer ranges up to 500,000 gpd.
The potential for salt water intrusion into the Kure Beach
water supply is presently unknown. Salt water intrusion can
occur either laterally (due to the proximity of brackish water to
the well field) or vertically (in which a cone of depression,
caused by the withdrawal of large amounts of water, taps brackish
water and draws it into the well field).
17

Because peak water usage has increased several times in the
last ten years, and because the potential for salt water intru-
sion does exist, Kure Beach should consider establishing a water
monitoring program to test for chlorides (an indicator of salt
water intrusion) for each of its well sites.
Hazard Areas
Sunny Point Buffer Zone
A substantial amount of the land within Kure Beach's
extraterritorial planning jurisdiction lies in the Sunny Point
Buffer zone. The buffer was established by the U. S. Government
to prevent damage and loss of life from possible explosions
associated with the Sunny Point Military Base, a munitions depot,
across the Cape Fear River. Generally speaking, the Town has
limited control over this area.
Hurricane Hazard Areas
In 1983, the North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission
adopted rules for hurricane hazard planning for all coastal
communities. One of the first requirements in planning for storm
hazards is the identification of hazard areas and those struc-
tures at risk within them. As part of the hurricane guidelines,
classifications for hazard areas were defined as follows:
Severity Rank 1: Ocean Erodible AEC's, Inlet Hazard AEC's, and
Estuarine Shoreline AEC's
Severity Rank 2: Federal Emergency Management Administration
(FEMA9 V-zones and Coastal Wetlands AEC's
Severity Rank 3: FEMA A -zones
Severity Rank 4: Rest of community
Due to the unusually high elevations found in this beach
community, the only hazard area applicable within Kure Beach's
jurisdiction is the Ocean Erodible AEC (Hazard Area 1). These
areas are potentially subject to erosion and scour, wave action
and battering, flooding and high winds in hurricane or tropical
storm conditions. Hazard areas in Kure Beach are shown on Map 4.
Within Town Limits:
22 Single Family Residential 1 Restaurant
6 Duplex/Quadplex units 1 Commercial Fishing Pier
6 Motels
Within Extraterritorial Area:
7 Single Family Residential 2 Duplexes
7 Mobile Homes
W

A 1 . . . r . . o . a . .
LEGEND:
FLOOD HAZARD AREA -100 YEAR
FLOOD PLAIN (`A' ZONES)
10 FLOOD HAZARD AREA (" V' ZONES)
KURE BEACH, N.C.
FLOOD HAZARD AREAS
MAP 4
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st. Yarpa, Goofs"
M.00rw tr": .uttuany, taw
T... trw.: K.Y. less m r
The preparation of this map was financed in part through a grant pro-
vided by the North Carolina Coastal Management Program, through
funds provided by the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as
amended, which is administered by the Office of Ocean and Coastal
Resource Management, N.O.A.A.

By comparing Map 1 (Existing Land Use, page 2) with Map 4
(Flood Hazard Areas), the reader can get a picture of land uses
at risk in Kure Beach. Most of the residential uses located in
the hazard area are older buildings which probably could not be
replaced with other or newer structures given applicable local
and state setbacks. The most significant uses at risk are the
motels, only one of which is an aged structure. The six motels
mentioned here represent a total of 166 rooms, about half the
motel rooms available in Kure Beach. Most of these structures
are protected by a seawall, portions of which date back to the
1940"s. The Kure Beach community has a vested interest in the
continued protection of these structures, as they constitute a
substantial portion of the commercial tax base.
With the exception of high tax value uses (primarily motels)
located in the Ocean Erodible Area, the built environment in Kure
Beach is exceptionally well -protected from unneccessary risk from
tropical storms and hurricanes in comparison with most other
beach communities.
Fragile Areas
Areas of Environmental Concern
Areas of Environmental Concern (AEC's) are sensitive envir-
onmental and cultural areas protected by the Coastal Area Manage-
ment Act (CAMA). General categories of these areas are identified
through state guidelines according to the Administrative Proce-
dures Act, as administered by the Division of Coastal Management.
Special areas of local or regional environmental or cultural
significance can be nominated as AEC"s by individuals, groups or
governing bodies.
AEC's lying within Kure Beach's jurisdiction include Coastal
Wetlands, Estuarine Waters, Estuarine Shorelines, Public Trust
Areas, Ocean Erodible Areas, High Hazard Flood Areas, and Natural
and Cultural Resource Areas.
Coastal Wetlands are defined generally as any marshland
subject to regular or occasional flooding by tides. These wet-
lands are the breeding and nursery grounds for fish and shellfish
species which make up over ninety (90) percent of North Caroli-
na's commercial catch.
Estuarine Waters are defined as all. waters of the Atlantic
Ocean within the state boundaries and all waters of the bays,
sounds, rivers and tributaries seaward to the dividing line
between coastal fishing waters and inland fishing waters, as
defined by North Carolina law. Their productive significance is
similar to that of coastal wetlands. Additional benefits include
the stimulation of the coastal economy through operations re-
quired to serve coastal ly-oriented commercial and sporting indus-
tries.
20

Estuarine Shorelines are
especially vulnerable to erosion
ward a distance of 75 feet from
all estuarine waters.
non -ocean shorelines which are
and flooding. They extend land -
the mean high water level along
The significance of estuarine shorelines lies in their prox-
imity to sensitive coastal systems. Estuarine shorelines are
also subject in many areas to intense development activities
which may have a potentially detrimental impact on those sensi-
tive systems.
Public Trust Areas can be generally defined as all estuarine
water areas and all lands under such waters, and may also include
artificially created bodies of water (and the lands underneath)
to which the public has rights of access and/or navigation.
Ocean Erodible Areas are areas were there exists a substan-
tial possibility of excessive erosion and significant shoreline
fluctuation. The seaward boundary of Ocean Erodible areas is the
mean low water line. The landward boundary is variable and is
determined on a site to site basis, calculated from the first
line of stable vegetation to a recession line based on past
erosion rates for the area as determined by the Coastal Resources
Commission . .
High Hazard Flood Areas are those areas subject to high
velocity waters in a storm having a one percent chance of being
equaled or exceeded in any given year. These areas correspond
with "V-zone" areas mapped on flood insurance rate maps prepared
by the Federal Insurance Administration, U. S. Dept. of Housing
and Urban Development.
Natural and Cultural Resource Areas are defined as areas
containing environmental, natural or cultural resources of more
than local significance in which uncontrolled or incompatible
development could result in major or irreversible damage to
natural systems or cultural resources.
Fort Fisher Coquina Outcrop
The Fort Fisher Coquina Outcrop is a yellow marl rock forma-
tion composed of seashells and.fossilized animal remains located
along and underlying the beach strand in the vicinity of Ocean
Dunes Condominiums. Rock formations of any kind are rare along
the North Carolina shoreline, and the outcrop was placed on the
N.C. Registry of Natural Heritage Areas in March, 1982.
Beach Erosion
Like all beachfront communities, oceanfront property in Kure
Beach is subject to erosion. The Town is concerned with certain
current CAMA regulations and feels that the Department of Natural
Resources and Community Development needs to review these regula-
tions with respect to certain unique situations that exist in the
Town of Kure Beach (see Ocean Hazard Areas policies, pages 32 -
21

33). The Town feels that the regulations regarding setbacks in
ocean hazard areas as now written are severely restricting the
low density, controlled growth of the Kure Beach community.
The Town of Kure Beach has placed a formal request with the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to fund a beach renourishment pro-
gram.
Areas With Resource Potential
Areas within Kure Beach's planning jurisdiction which may be
considered to have resource potential include forested lands
within the Sunny Point Buffer Zone.
Community Design Structure
Some of the key characteristics which help to define the
Kure Beach community are displayed on Map 5, Community Design
Structure. This map highlights significant community features,
recent changes, and development trends through the use of
designations such as:
o Districts: these are sections of town with a two-dimen-
sional character, which an observer mentally enters "inside
of", and which are recognizable as having some common
identifying character. There are many such districts in
Kure Beach: Fort Fisher AFB, the proposed Kure Beach Club
area, the primary fire district.
o Landmarks: these are usually simply defined physical
objects that serve as reference points; a building, a sign,
or, as in the case of Kure Beach, a fishing pier.
o Nodes: these are strategic points in the community which
can be entered, such as an intersection or central gathering
place. The center of Kure Beach's business district, on K
Avenue east of U.S. 421, forms such a place.
o Pathways: these are the main channels along which an obser-
ver moves. In Kure Beach, U.S. 421 and Dow Road serve as
key pathways.
o Edges: these are linear elements that can be seen but which
are not used *or considered as paths. Kure Beach's
bulkheaded shoreline forms such an edge.
22

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DISTRICT
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LANDMARK
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KURE BEACH, N.C.
COMMUNITY DESIGN
STRUCTURE
MAP 5
vr.sr.a Dr. SAT0.1A PLANNING
200 099°rM SV"t
9L atlryl, O.orols
i
MWPkV D. JANUARY, 19"
T... Lk*.! may. +ses
The preparation of this map was financed in part through a grant
provided by the North Carolina Coastal Management Program, through
funds provided by the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. as
amended, which is administered by the Office of Ocean and Coastal
Resource Management, N.O.A.A.

GROWTH TRENDS
This section forecasts permanent and peak seasonal popula-
tion over the ten year planning period and discusses likely
impacts on community facilities during that time frame.
Population
The 1980 Census found that Kure Beach had a permanent popu-
lation of some 611 persons. This represented an increase of some
55 percent over the 1970 population of 394. The average increase
per year, 5.5 percent, represents a healthy rate of growth for a
community with a largely seasonal economy.
The N. C. Office of State Budget and Management published an
estimate of Kure Beach's July 1982 population in late 1983. This
figure, 649, is a six percent increase over the 1980 census
count.
If the average annual rate increase for the period 1970 to
1980 (5.5 % compounded) is used, the estimated population for
1985 would be 798. It should be kept in mind that this figure is
based on 1980 town boundaries and does not account for new extra-
territorial or annexed jurisdiction.
Data gathered during the recent citizen's survey can be used
to project both permanent and peak seasonal population. Roughly
36 percent of survey. responders who indicated they resided at
least seasonally in Kure Beach said they were year round resi-
dents. This figure multiplied times the total number of housing
units in Kure Beach, times the year round average occupancy rate,
results in an estimated population of 1081 for the Kure Beach
planning area for 1985.
Components of peak population include population groups that
can be accounted for in terms of temporary, seasonal and long-
term occupation of dwellings (a designation that for these pur-
poses includes hotels, motels and other short term rental accom-
modations), and day visitors. For planning purposes here, a
range of estimates for peak seasonal population has been calcu-
lated using a variety of data from the survey. Multipliers in-
cluded occupancy rates by tenancy type (year round or seasonal)
and an overall occupancy rate by tenancy type. Thus the calcula-
tion for the high estimate for year round residents involves
multiplying a very high overall occupancy rate (95 %) times the
number of year round units (472), times the peak seasonal occu-
pancy rate for that group (6.9 persons per unit).
Table 3, Peak Seasonal Population, 1985, is found on the
following page.
24

Low
Table 3. Peak Seasonal Population 1985
Occupancy Persons Per
Rate Dwelling Total
Year Round-(472) .9 2.29
Seasonal (840) .6 3.3
Total 2,636
Moderate
Year Round (472) .9 4.5
Seasonal (840) .8 5.5
Total 5,608
High
Year Round (472) .95 6.9
Seasonal (840) .95 7.7
Total 9,239
Speaking generally, it is difficult to project future popu-
lation in a meaningful way for a community the size of Kure
Beach. Factors other than past trends in birth, death and migra-
tion rates can sometimes provide more meaningful insight into
potential population increases. Factors affecting future popula-
tion in Kure Beach include:
o Planned developments which are expected to more than
double housing stock in Kure Beach over the next few
years.
o The seasonal nature of peak population loads.
o Kure Beach's location in a growing resort/retirement
area.
o The desirability of Kure Beach and vicinity as a re-
sort/retirement location.
o The availability of land suitable for development of
resort/retirement homes in Kure Beach and its immediate
area.
o Proposed changes to the .federal tax code which may
curtail the economic viability of resort and retirement
residential developments, or other market factors which
may accomplish the same end.
25

A key factor in future growth for Kure Beach is the planned
development of all but a small portion of presently vacant land
within the next five years (Kure Beach Club and the completion of
Ocean Dunes). The legal agreement for the provision of services
between the Town of Kure Beach and the developers of Kure Beach
Club calls for a "build out" of the development within five
years. Assuming the market for first and second home and resort
development remains healthy, it is likely that these units will
be built and occupied, on at least a seasonal basis, within the
next ten years.
The projections below have been calculated using the same
variables as were used in making the 1985 estimates. However, it
is difficult to anticipate whether or not occupancy and tenancy
rates for these new units will be similar to those currently
found in Kure Beach.
Peak Seasonal Population Estimates - 1995
Low 5,851
Moderate 12,447
High 20,506
These estimates indicate a more than doubling of peak sea-
sonal population within this time frame.
Impacts on Community Facilities
The doubling of Kure Beach's housing stock over the next few
years will require the Town"s continued attention to the provi-
sion of necessary municipal services. Areas which can be expect-
ed to require increases in personnel include police and fire
protection, town administrative staff, and building inspections.
Town facilities, particularly for office space, may need to be
expanded to keep pace with increasing personnel requirements.
Sewage Treatment Capacity and Water Supply
The Town has a formal agreement regarding the provision of
wastewater treatment facilities and water storage and delivery
systems for the planned development which is expected to provide
most of the'new growth within the planning timeframe (see Sewer,
and Water, pp. 12 - 14 )..
There are 57.4 undeveloped acres within the Town"s jurisdic-
tion, mostly in the form of 5,000 to 8,000 square foot lots,
which will require sewage treatment capacity in order to be
developed. Additionally, about 150 units planned for Ocean Dunes
do not yet have a commitment for sewage treatment capacity.
Using multipliers of 5 to 8 units per acre for undeveloped lots,
26

infill potential for platted land ranges from 290 to 460 units.
Based on past growth trends for lot by lot development, this
infill development can be expected to occur slowly, with perhaps
only a few such units added each year.
Kure Beach recently obtained approval for the reactivation
of a 100,000 gpd capacity sewage treatment lagoon which is ex-
pected to serve the first phase of the Kure Beach Club develop-
ment. The Town is in the process of establishing an agreement
with the Town of Carolina Beach to help finance a sewage treat-
ment capacity expansion of 350,000 gpd. The Kure Beach share is
expected to be 24 percent of the total, or about 85,000 gpd.
This allocation can be expected to serve roughly 225 new residen-
tial units (based on an average unit size of 2.5 bedrooms per
unit at 150 gpd per unit). Treatment capacity retained by the
Town in conjunction with the Kure Beach Club agreement should
result in capacity for about 150 units based on the same ratio.
The placement and capacity of new wells, water storage
facilities and water delivery systems planned in conjunction with
masterplanned development is expected to be sufficient for these
needs with enough additional capacity to serve infill develop-
ment.
Transportation
U. S. 421, which runs directly through the heart of Kure
Beach within one block of the Atlantic Ocean, provides the only
route to the N. C. Marine Resources Center, Fort Fisher Histori-
cal Museum and its recreation area, a regional beach accessway at
Fort Fisher, and the state -run Fort Fisher - Southport ferry
landing. These facilities attract a large day visitorship, parti-
cularly during the summer, and subsequently, a sizeable amount of
pass -through traffic for the Town of Kure Beach. The State main-
tains a traffic counter in this vicinity which indicated peak
daily use during the summer of 1984 ran as high as 5,000 vehi-
cles.
The 1973 Throroughfare Plan for Kure and Carolina Beaches
called for the extension of Dow Road from its present intersec-
tion with K Street to a point just north of the Fort Fisher
Museum on U. S. 421. The State has no immediate plans to con-
struct the extension. Additionally, the planned extension would
not correct the sharp right angle curve which directs traffic
onto K Street from Dow Road.
Average Daily Traffic (ADT) counts as measured by the State
Dept. of Transportation indicated loads on U. S. 421 at 2,800
vehicles per day. However, according to trip generation stan-
dards derived by the State of Florida, peak seasonal traffic
loads may be much higher. The standards use a multiplier based
on residential land use which is then multiplied by density per
acre times the number of acres for each category. (Figures used
are: single family, 11 trips per day per unit; multi -family, 8
trips per day per unit; mobile home, 5 trips per day per .unit.
P•Y]

These figures result in higher trips per unit ratios than pre-
sently used by the North Carolina D.O.T.)
Using this method to calculate peak traffic loads, current
summer traffic counts could be as high as 11,680 ADT. If accur-
ate, this traffic load is distributed over the entire roads
system in Kure Beach; however, a majority of the load would be
placed on the major arterial, U.S. 421.
The same methodology can be used for planned residential
development. The planned 1,600 units, at full occupancy, would
generate more than twice the estimate given for existing residen-
tial development in Kure Beach, about 13,700 ADT. Unless a traf-
fic link is developed to connect the development with Dow Road,
more than 75 percent of this figure would impact directly on U.
S. 421.
Figures also generated by the State of Florida can be used
to estimate the number of extra lanes needed to accomodate the
expected additional traffic. According to this formula, a two
land road serving residential areas can accomodate 11,775 ADT
adequately (this places the road classification in the "C" cate-
gory, where "A" is very low utilization and "F" is maximum utili-
zation).
With the development of all known planned residential areas
in Kure Beach, the combined peak ADT counts for U. S. 421 and Dow
Road would be in the vicinity of 20,000 ADT. If most of this
traffic is funneled onto U. S. 421, the road will require widen-
ing to four lanes, or it would drop into the "F" classification.
If about 75 percent of the newly generated traffic can be accomo-
dated on Dow Road, no lane -widening would be required for either
road.
There are several prerequisites for handling the additional
traffic on Dow Road. First, the road must be extended to serve
the Fort Fisher area. Second, there must be an access linking
Kure Beach Club and Dow Road. Ideally, this access should be
designed as the primary access for the most heavily populated
portions of Kure Beach Club.
The timeframe for the development of most of the new dwel-
lings associated with Kure Beach Club (over 1000 multi -family
units) is relatively short. Plans now call for development of
all multi -family units within five years.

LAND USE POLICIES
RESOURCE PROTECTION
Areas of Environmental Concern
Kure Beach will support and enforce through its CAMA permit-
ting capacity the State policies and permitted uses in the Areas
of Environmental Concern (AEC's). The State policy statements
for AEC's offer protection for Kure Beach's fragile and signifi-
cant environmental resources through CAMA permitting procedures.
In accordance with those policies set forth in subchapter 7H of
the North Carolina Administrative Code, Kure Beach adopts the
following policies concerning AEC's within its jurisdiction.
The Estuarine System
Although very little of Kure Beach's jurisdiction falls into
or affects the estuarine system directly, in recognition of the
enormous economic, social and biological values the estuarine
system has for North Carolina, Kure Beach will promote conserva-
tion and management of the estuarine system as a whole, which
includes the individual AEC's: coastal wetlands, estuarine wa-
ters, public trust areas, and estuarine shorelines.
The management objective for the system shall be to give
highest priority to the protection and coordinated management of
all the elements as an interrelated group of AEC's, in order to
safeguard and perpetuate the above stated values, and to minimize
the likelihood of significant loss of private property and public
resources.
Specific policies regarding acceptable and unacceptable uses
within the individual AEC's of the estuarine system are stated
below. In all cases the particular location, use, and design
characteristics shall be in accord with the general use standards
for coastal wetlands, estuarine waters, and public trust areas as
stated in NCAC Subchapter 7H.
o Coastal Wetlands: Acceptable land uses may include
utility easements, fishing piers, and docks. Unaccept-
able uses may include, but would not be limited to,
restaurants, businesses, residences, apartments, mo-
tels, hotels, floating homes, parking lots, private
roads, and highways.
o Estuarine Waters: Appropriate uses may include simple
access channels, structures which prevent erosion,
navigational channels, boat docks, marinas, piers, and
mooring pilings.
o Public Trust Areas: In the absence of overriding pub-
29

lic benefit, any use which significantly interferes
with the public right of navigation or other public
trust rights which apply in the area shall not be
allowed. Projects which would directly or indirectly
block or impair existing navigational channels, in-
crease shoreline erosion, deposit spoils below mean
high tide, cause adverse water circulation patterns,
violate water quality standards, or cause degradation
of shellfish waters shall, in general, not be allowed.
Uses that may be allowed in public trust areas
shall not be detrimental to the public trust rights and
the biological and physical functions of the estuary.
Examples of such uses include the development of navi-
gational channels or drainage ditches, the use of bulk-
heads to prevent erosion, the building of piers, docks
or marinas.
o Estuarine Shoreline: Suitable land uses within the
estuarine shoreline AEC are those compatible with both
the dynamic nature of estuarine shorelines and the
values of the estuarine system.
Residential, recreational, and commercial land
uses are all appropriate types of use along the estua-
rine shoreline provided that all standards of NCAC 15
Subchapter 7H relevant to estuarine shoreline AEC"s are
met.
Ocean Hazard Areas
In recognition of the critical nature of ocean hazard areas
due to their special vulnerability to erosion and dynamic proces-
ses and their possible danger to life and property because of
natural forces, Kure Beach supports the efforts of the Coastal
Resources Commission to protect coastal property.
The Town of Kure Beach has requested an informal evaluation
of circumstances unique to ocean hazard areas within its original
corporate boundaries through the N. C. Department of Community
Development and Natural Resources. This section of oceanfront is
unique along the coast due to unusually high elevations (in most
cases above the 100 year flood plain), a long history of bulk -
heading (certain sections have been continuously bulkheaded since
the 1940"s), and unusually low erosion rates.
Kure Beach is additionally unique in that its central com-
mercial district is located directly adjacent to the bulkheaded
oceanfront. Geographical and development patterns leave few
choices for the location or relocation of further commercial
development in other areas. Kure Beach is bounded to the west by
the Sunny Point Buffer Zone, and to the north and south by pri-
vate residential developments. Its major north -south corridor,
U.S.. 421, bisects commercial areas which are affected by ocean
erodible setback standards.
30

Because of these limitations, the continued imposition of
ocean hazard setbacks based on the standards used for commercial
structures of 5,000 square feet or more or residential structures
of four units or more may have a profound effect on the economic
viability of Kure Beach's central business district. Many of the
structures in the central business district which are located in
areas subject to these setbacks are old and/or in need of major
rehabilitation. Rehabilitation or new construction of uses per-
mitted or encouraged by the Kure Beach Zoning Ordinance may not
be possible in these areas under the conditions imposed by the
setbacks.
The ocean hazard area designation for Kure Beach includes
the AEC"s of ocean erodible areas and high hazard flood areas.
Suitable land uses in ocean hazard areas generally are those
which eliminate unreasonable danger to life and property and
which achieve a balance between the financial, safety, and social
factors involved in hazard area development. Ocean shoreline
erosion control activities and dune establishment/stabilization
are acceptable types of land uses. Residential, commercial and
recreational land uses and parking lots for beach access are also
acceptable types of use in ocean hazard areas provided that:
o The setback measurements established by Subchapter 7H
are met.
o Mobile homes are not located within high hazard flood
areas.
o Development does not involve the significant removal or
relocation of frontal dune sand or vegetation thereon.
o Development is consistent with minimum lot size, set-
back requirements, or other relevant requirements esta-
blished by local regulations.
o Development implements means and methods to mitigate or
minimize adverse impacts of the project as required by
NCAC 15 Subchapter 7H.
o Development of growth -inducing public facilities such
as sewers, waterlines, roads, bridges, and erosion
control measures occurs only in cases where:
o national or state interest and public benefits are
clearly overriding factors,
o facilities would not exacerbate existing hazards
or damage natural buffers,
o facilities would be reasonably safe from flood and
erosion control related damage, and
31

o facilities do not promote growth and development
in ocean hazard areas.
o Development will not create undue interference with
legal rights to public access and use of such areas.
Natural and Cultural Resource Areas
These fragile coastal natural resource areas are generally
recognized to be of educational, scientific or cultural value
because of the natural features of the particular site. Indivi-
dual AEC's included in this general category are: coastal complex
natural areas, coastal areas that sustain remnant species, unique
coastal geologic formations, significant coastal architectural
resources, and significant coastal archaeological resources.
No natural or cultural resource AEC "s have been designated
in Kure Beach. A potential area for such designation would be
the Fort Fisher Coquina Outcrop, located near Ocean Dunes. How-
ever, this area has been placed on the N.C. Registry of Natural
Heritage Areas, and is also classified as Conservation on the
Land Classification Map.
Kure Beach supports State policies described in NCAC 15
Subchapter 7H regarding use standards for development in desig-
nated fragile coastal natural or cultural resource areas.
Stormwater Runoff
Urban type development, often well outside designated AEC's,
can pose a serious threat to the health and productivity of the
estuarine system through the rapid discharge of pollutants washed
off impervious surfaces such as streets, roofs, and parking lots
by rain.
Kure Beach's location (adjacent to ocean -oriented AEC"s and
buffered from wetland and estuarine water areas by the Sunny
Point Buffer zone) means its stormwater impacts on these systems
are slight.
The Town presently requires a drainage plan review in con-
junction with new residential development and also requires that
a minimum of twenty (20) percent of the area planned for develop-
ment remain as open space.
o Kure Beach will continue to enforce its current poli-
cies regarding drainage and stormwater runoff and work
to ensure that future development impacts on the estua-
rine system are kept to a minimum.
32

Marinas, Floating Homes, and Sound and Estuarine Islands
Because of the prohibition on most kinds of development
within the Sunny Point Buffer Zone, these issues are not applica-
ble to areas within Kure Beach's jurisdiction.
off -Road Vehicles
Off -Road Vehicles are not
Beach as specified in the terms
Ordinance.
Shoreline Management
allowed on the strand at Kure
of the Town"s Off -Road Vehicle
Kure Beach will institute a comprehensive system of shore-
line management that produces the most financially feasible -and
environmentally acceptable means of protecting and managing the
economic and natural values represented by the beach. Specific
policies and implementation methods are described under erosion
control, channel maintenance and beach renourishment, dune main-
tenance and protection, and protection of wildlife policies (see
below).
Erosion Control
The maintenance and reconstruction of existing groins and
bulkheads shall be the preferred method of erosion control if
there is a threat to life or property. If state and/or federal
financing for beach renourishment becomes available, the Town
retains the right to consider beach renourishment options for
unprotected areas, protected areas, or any combination of the
two.
Commitment to State and Federal Channel Maintenance and Beach
Renourishment Projects
The Town of Kure Beach supports State and Federal efforts to
maintain channels within its jurisdiction. It supports all State
and Federal efforts to determine, finance and implement environ-
mentally and aesthetically acceptable methods of beach renourish-
ment consistent with locally adopted policies.
Dune Maintenance and Protection
The Town has had success with its pilot program to rebuild
dunes on a voluntary lot by lot basis using sand fencing to
stabilize eroding dunes. The Town encourages interested property
owners to take the next step of reseeding existing dunes in order
to increase stabilization, and will continue to offer sand fen-
cing at cost.
o Dune maintenance and protection will continue to be
used to supplement other erosion control methods and
policies.
33

o Additional methods of dune maintenance and protection
include the restriction of pedestrian traffic to desig-
nated beach access points and prohibition of motorized
vehicles on the beach and the dunes system.
Protection of Wildlife
Shoreline erosion projects shall not take place in beach
areas which sustain important wildlife species unless adequate
mitigation measures are incorporated into the project design.
Project construction shall be timed to have minimum adverse
effect on biological activity on the site.
RESOURCE PRODUCTION AND MANAGEMENT
Kure Beach's natural resources play a vital role in its
economy. Protection of these resources is a prime concern to the
Kure Beach community.
Potable Water
Because peak water usage has increased several times in the
last ten years, and because the potential for salt water
intrusion does exist, Kure Beach should consider establishing a
water monitoring program to test for chlorides (an indicator of
salt water intrusion) for each of its well sites.
Tourism
Kure Beach's waters and beaches are used for all types of
water and beach oriented recreation, including fishing for plea-
sure. These resources are vital to the community's "family
tourism" oriented economy. The Town of Kure Beach is committed
to the protection and enhancement of its waters and beaches.
Commercial and Recreational Fisheries
The Town of Kure Beach encourages the protection and en-
hancement of North Carolina's sport and commercial fisheries
industry.
Any development which will profoundly and adversely affect
coastal and estuarine waters will be discouraged. Only those
structures which are water dependent will be allowed to be placed
near and to affect coastal and estuarine water habitats. In the
design, construction and operation of water dependent structures,
efforts must be made to mitigate negative effects on water
quality and fish habitat, as determined by NCAC 15 Subchapter 7H
and the Coastal Resources Commission. The developer and/or owner
will bear the cost of any required mitigation.
34

PROVISION OF SERVICES
Public Sewerage System
It is the policy of Kure Beach that all residential and
commercial development within the Town limits be served by the
central sewage treatment system.
Kure Beach currently has an allocation of 24 % of the sewage
treatment capacity of the regional facility at Carolina Beach.
Discussions are presently underway to add additional treatment
capacity to this system. Kure Beach expresses its intention to
participate in any future expansion on a cost equitable basis
based on its current allocation. Kure Beach reserves the right
to evaluate expansion proposals in light of community needs and
modify its participation as appropriate.
Public Water System
Kure Beach will continue to improve and maintain its central
water distribution system in keeping with State standards and in
order to provide adequate capacity for anticipated planned devel-
opments within the Town"s jurisdiction. To this end, a detailed
improvements schedule for water facilities has been formally
adopted to coincide with the planned development of Kure Beach
Club. The planned improvements will be adequate to serve both
existing and planned needs plus additional capacity for infill
development.
Transportation
According to the transportation needs assessment ( see Im-
pacts on Community Development - Transportation, page 23), traf-
fic volumes on the major roads serving the Kure Beach area should
increase significantly over the next five to ten years." If cer-
tain improvements are made to major corridors in the Kure Beach
area, present roads and already planned improvements should be
adequate to accommodate the forecasted increases.
In order to adequately accommodate the expected increase in
traffic volumes, Kure Beach supports implementation of the fol-
lowing improvements.
o Extend Dow Road to U.S. 421 at Fort Fisher as shown in
the present Thoroughfare Plan in order to accommodate
at least half the projected traffic loads estimated to
be generated by current combined uses and planned resi-
dential development scheduled to be completed within
the next five years. This item should be given highest
priority.
o Correct the hazardous curve at the intersection of Dow
Road and K Street. The Town should actively pursue
acquisition of a right of way easement through the
35

Sunny Point Buffer Zone from the U.S. Army in order to
facilitate this improvement.
o Correct the hazardous curve leading to the N.C. Marine
Resources Center south of Kure Beach.
o Add paved shoulders to U.S. 421 to accommodate bicycle
traffic between Carolina Beach and Fort Fisher.
o Add designated crosswalks at beach access facilities
offering parking to accommodate pedestrian traffic to
the beach.
o Designate Dow Road as a bypass route to Kure Beach and
other points south and erect signs directing through
traffic to Dow Road at the U.S. 421 - Dow Road inter-
section in Carolina Beach.
Additionally, the Town supports the amendment of the exis-
ting Thoroughfare Plan, or the development of a new Thoroughfare
Plan, to reflect the improvements supported by the Town of Kure
Beach. The new or amended Thoroughfare Plan should recognize the
following elements:
o The impact of peak seasonal traffic counts on major
thoroughfares
o The impact of known planned development on average
daily and peak seasonal traffic counts
o The need for traffic linkages between Dow Road and U.S.
421 to adequately serve the anticipated development of
the non -buffer zone lands between N Avenue and the
Hanby/ Wilmington Beach area.
The most critical elements in accommodating the expected
increase in traffic volumes are the Dow Road Extension and the
need for traffic linkages connecting planned development areas
and Dow Road. If the extension is not built, traffic which could
be adequately handled by the combined capacity of Dow Road and
U.S. 421 will overburden U.S. 421, leaving Dow Road underuti-
lized.
Similarly, if linkages to Dow Road are inconvenient or
inadequate to divert a substantial amount of newly generated
traffic away from U.S. 421, the same situation could result. In
either case, four-laning of U.S. 421 would probably be required.
This would necessitate the acquisition of expensive and valuable
property within one block of the ocean for rights of way.
A linkage which would resolve these problems would be cost-
effective and of most benefit to both the State and the locality.
There are several possible ways such a linkage could be estab-
lished. The Town"s policy regarding this issue is as follows:
36

o The Town, through its development review process, is
requiring a connection to feeder streets to Dow Road
and U.S. 421 as a condition of development approval.
Solid Waste Disposal
Kure Beach will continue to provide solid waste disposal
services to its residents in an efficient, safe, and sanitary
manner. The Town will pursue options to ensure that its service
meets the needs of part-time or seasonal residents as well as
full-time residents.
Fire Protection
Kure Beach will continue to support its volunteer fire
department and abide by the existing mutual aid agreements with
neighboring jurisdictions.
Police
Kure Beach will continue to provide law enforcement within
its jurisdiction and make every effort to meet state standards
for manpower in relation to population.
Town Facilities
The Town will investigate means of improving its current
Town Hall, police and fire department facilities in conjunction
with the development of a new Town Hall site.
o A spatial needs assessment should be conducted to de-
termine the size of facilities required to carry out
existing town government functions and meet any ex-
pected future needs (i.e., a building program).
o An analysis of desired facilities which might be accom-
modated on existing town land, such as a community
center or park area, should be prepared. On completion
of the needs analysis, the Town can assess the feasi-
bility of acquiring any additional land needed to carry
out specific improvements.
Financing Shoreline Protection
The costs of shoreline protection projects should be distri-
buted on an equitable basis to those who derive the most economic
benefit from it. Alternative methods for local share financing
of needed improvements include:
o The establishment of an annual appropriation for shore-
line improvements as part of the Town Budget. The
source of these funds could come from:
o the general property tax fund
o room tax revenues, or a continuation of the coop-
37

erative arrangement with New Hanover County for
the distribution of erosion control funds derived
from room tax revenues
o special assessments or service districts
The Town will consider and make estimates of the potential
revenues to be generated through the various means described
above and will pursue those methods found to be most equitable.
Recreation Improvements
Beach Access
In order to achieve several goals, the Town will develop a
gradual improvements schedule which will implement long range
improvements over a period of several years. These improvements:
o Should be small in scale, such as a dune crosswalk, or
dune crosswalk with a small parking area, with trash
containers scheduled as part of the regular pickup
route.
o Should be scheduled to make maximum use of State Beach
Access funds (generally, one to two projects such as
that described above could be funded under one grant
cycle).
o Should be distributed strategically throughout the
Town's jurisdiction so that improved sites are not
concentrated in one area.
o Should generally feature smaller parking areas rather
than concentrations of parking. Smaller parking areas
(four to eight spaces per crosswalk) are generally less
expensive to build, police, and clean. Parking areas
should have clearly marked spaces to prevent improper
use of space.
Improvements handled in this way should minimize the chances
of overuse or abuse of facilities. Additionally, the gradual
implementation schedule will allow the Town to assess the impacts
of the first round of improvements and make any modifications
necessary to correct problems or abuses prior to making further
improvements.
Other Recreation Facilities
Parks and Picnic Areas: The Town leases a 50' by 50 site dir-
ectly across from the Atlantic Ocean and Kure Beach Pier on K
Street which is currently used as a picnic area. Alternatives
for consideration:
o The Town could pursue the establishment of a more
permanent arrangement regarding ownership or the right
to improve this property, and/or identify other areas
m

which could be developed or improved as parks or picnic
areas.
o The Town could negotiate for easements to desirable
park areas as part of its development review or service
provision arrangements with new developments.
o A park/picnic area could be developed as part of a
community center concept (see below).
Community Center: The Town is currently planning to expand town
government facilities using land acquired through negotiation
with Kure Beach Club. If it is possible to meet several needs
given existing town facilities, the following option may be
considered:
o Any spatial needs assessment conducted to determine
town government space needs should also examining the
feasibility of incorporating a town community center or
other recreation facilities, such as a park or picnic
area, within Town expansion plans.
ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Kure Beach supports the development of residential, commer-
cial and recreational uses within the Town consistent with other
relevant policies and local land use regulations. The land use
controls of Kure Beach are and will continue to be written and
enforced to insure that proper and adequate measures are incor-
porated into the design, construction and operation of such
developments so that any substantial negative impacts to neigh-
boring land uses and the environment are minimized. All existing
and new development shall be provided with necessary public
services.
General Land Use Policy
It is the policy of the Town to permit only those land uses
which enhance the Town as a family -oriented community for living
and recreation. Examples of land uses consistent with this
policy include single and multi -family residential uses, tourist -
oriented businesses, including motels and vacation cottages, and
supporting or service uses.
Uses specifically considered inconsistent with the .above
policy include manufacturing or other industrial uses which would
create negative effects either on the Town"s tourist -oriented
economy or Town citizens in the enjoyment of their residences.
Examples of such uses are energy facilities, landfills, and any
expansion of military installations involving the storage or
handling of explosives.
W

Location of Development
It is the policy of the Town to allow the location of
development as consistent with local ordinances and state and
federal regulations. Additionally, development shall be consis-
tent with Natural Resource policies. The general location of the
types of development suggested under this policy are graphically
displayed in the Land Classification Map.
Timing and Density of Development
It is the policy of the Town that future development be
consistent with existing and any future zoning or other regulato-
ry limits imposed by the Town, and that development proceed in
conjunction with the development of all necessary urban services.
Central Business District
Kure Beach supports the continued viability of its present
central business district, particularly for those uses which
support its general land use policy regarding tourist -oriented
businesses. The Town"s policy is to encourage development and
redevelopment of these areas to meet these goals.
Extension of Sewage Treatment Services
It is the policy of Kure Beach to require annexation of
adjacent areas desiring the extension of sewage treatment capa-
city. The intent of this policy is to insure that the potential
for growth in or adjacent to Kure Beach does not exceed the
limiting factor of sewage treatment capacity. This is in keeping
with the Town"s broader policy to insure that urban services are
adequate for all development within the Town"s jurisdiction.
Implementation methods:
o The Town will review and revise all Town land use
ordinances as necessary to insure consistency with the
above policies.
o The Town has adopted appropriate zoning classifications
for recently annexed areas and for its extraterritorial
jurisdiction in accord with the above policies and the
Land Classification Map and will continue to do so as
necessary.
o The Town will continue its policy of requiring annexa-
tion as a condition of the extension of sewage treat-
ment services, and will continue to assess the impacts
of all proposed developments on its general service
base.
Commitment to State and Federal Programs
Kure Beach supports those State and Federal programs and
policies affecting its jurisdiction consistent with locally adop-
40

ted plans, policies and ordinances.
Intergovernmenntal Cooperation
The Town of Kure Beach maintains regular lines of both
formal and informal communication with Carolina Beach and New
Hanover County on issues of mutual concern. Kure Beach will
continue to work together with neighboring governmental jurisdic-
tions on important issues of mutual concern.
STORM HAZARD MITIGATION AND POST DISASTER RECONSTRUCTION PLAN
Very little of the land area within Kure Beach lies within
the hazard areas defined in Before the Storm (McElyea, Brower,
and Godschalk, Center for Urban and Regional Studies, UNC-CH,
1982). These lands, which lie within the ocean erodible hazard
area, are subject to a number of local, state and federal stan-
dards which limit the placement or replacement of built struc-
tures within the hazard area.
Speaking generally, Kure Beach's existing mitigation poli-
cies meet the requirements for hazard mitigation planning out-
lined in Before the Storm. These policies consist of a com-
bination of accompanying Land Use Plan policies and regulations
established by the Town"s land development ordinances. Specifi-
cally:
o Lands within the hazard areas are subject to CAMA setbacks
for the Ocean Erodible AEC in combination with streetfront
setbacks imposed by the Town"s zoning ordinance, which in
some instances severely limit or makes impossible the dev-
elopment of such lands without variances.
o The Town"s policies support and are consistent with State
policies and regulations for development in Areas of Envi-
ronmental Concern.
o All new development must conform with the provisions of the
North Carolina Building Code.
o The Town"s flood plain development policies conform with all
Federal and State requirements. New rate maps for the Town
are under consideration and will be adopted shortly.
The Towns Post Disaster Reconstruction Plan is provided as
a separate document. A summary of Post Disaster Reconstruction
policies and procedures is outlined below. These policies pre-
sume intergovernmental cooperation with the New Hanover County
Evacuation Plan and recovery procedures operations.
41

Kure Beach's Post Disaster Reconstruction Plan is organized
in the following sections:
o Introduction
o Organization of Local Damage Assessment Team
o Damage Assessment Procedures and Requirements
o Organization of Recovery Operations
o Recommended Reconstruction Policies
The following provides a summary of the plan"s most impor-
tant provisions and policies from each of these five sections.
(1) Introduction. Defines plan purpose and use; identifies
three distinct reconstruction periods: Emergency, Restora-
tion and Replacement/Reconstruction. Outlines sequence of
procedures to be followed to meet State and Federal Disaster
relief regulations: 1) Assess storm damage and report to
County, 2) County complies and summarizes individual commun-
ity reports, 3) State .compiles County data and makes recom-
mendation to the Governor, 4) Governor requests presidential
declaration, 5) Federal relief programs available.
(2) Organization of Local Damage Assessment Team. Outlines
personnel available and sets up means for mayoral appoint-
ment of team.
(3) Damage Assessment Procedures and Requirements. The
purpose of this phase is to rapidly determine immediately
following a storm disaster: 1) number of structures damaged,
2) magnitude of damage by structure type, 3) estimated total
dollar loss, and 4) estimated total dollar loss covered by
insurance. To accomplish this, the plan establishes four
categories of damage: 1) destroyed (repairs > 80 % of val-
ue), 2) major (repairs > 30 % of value), 3) minor (repairs <
30 % of value), and 4) habitable (repairs < 15 % of value).
A color coding system is recommended for this phase of
damage assessment. Total damage in dollars is estimated by
taking the tax valuation times a factor to make prices
current, then factoring these figures according to number of
structures in each of the above damage classifications.
Estimated insurance coverage is made by utilizing informa-
tion as to average coverage obtained by insurance agencies
on an annual basis.
(4) Organization of Recovery Operations. The Mayor and
Board of Commissioners assume the duties of a Recovery Task
Force. The Task Force must accomplish the following:
o Establish re-entry procedures.
o Establish overall restoration scheme.
o Set restoration priorities.
o Determine requirements for outside assistance and re-
42

questing such assistance when beyond local capabili-
ties.
o Keep appropriate County and State officials informed
using Situation and Damage Reports.
o Keep the public informed.
o Assemble and maintain records of actions taken and
expenditures and obligations incurred.
o Proclaim a local "state of emergency" if warranted.
o Commence cleanup, debris removal, and utility restora-
tion activities undertaken by private utility compan-
ies.
o Undertake repair and restoration of essential public
facilities and services in accordance with priorities
developed through situation evaluations.
o Assist individual property owners in obtaining informa-
tion on the various types of assistance that might be
available from Federal and State agencies.
(5) Recommended Reconstruction Policies. The policies out-
lined are for the Mayor and Commissioners to consider after
a storm occurs. It is impractical to determine at this time
what specific responses are appropriate, since the circum-
stances surrounding a given storm can vary greatly. The
following policy areas are discussed:
o Re-entry. Not allowed until the Mayor determines it
safe and initial damage assessment is complete. A list
of property owners will be maintained and kept at S. R.
133 entry to town.
o Permitting. Permits to restore previously conforming
structures outside AEC 's issued automatically. Struc-
tures suffering major damage allowed to rebuild to
original state but must be in compliance with N.C.
Building Code, Zoning, and Flood Hazard Regulations.
Structures with minor damage allowed to rebuild to
original state before the storm. Structures in AEC "s
allowed to rebuild only after determination has been
made as to adequacy of existing development regulations
in these special hazard areas.
o Utility and Facility Reconstruction. Water system
components repaired or replaced must be floodproofed or
elevated above the 100 year flood level. Procedures
established to effect emergency repairs to N. C. 133 if
necessary.
43

o Temporaryy Development Moratorium. To be considered
after major storm damage for AEC"s if existing regula-
tions appear inadequate to protect structures from
storm damage.
CONTINUING CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
Kure Beach actively encouraged citizen participation in the
preparation of the 1985 Land Use Plan Update. Meetings of the
Land Use Plan Task Force were announced to the public through
press releases to local media and through the posting of notices
at Town Hall. At least six meetings were held over the course of
the planning process, usually on a monthly basis.
A citizen's survey was developed and mailed to all residents
and property owners in Kure Beach in early March of 1985. The
results of the survey were analyzed by the planning staff and
discussed with Town officials prior to the development of new
Town policies. The survey results provided insight into communi-
ty values and were used to guide policy development and refine-
ment. Particularly helpful were the results related to permanent
and seasonal occupancy rates, which were invaluable in projecting
future population, and the results of the recreation facilities
and beach access questions, which helped form specific policies
in these areas.
Additionally, the Kure Beach planning staff cooperated on a
regular basis with the Town of Carolina Beach, exchanging inform-
ation relevant to both communities, and with the New Hanover
County Planning Department, which was most helpful in providing
information relevant to hurricane evacuation issues.
In keeping with the Town"s actions in the development of the
1985 plan update, the following public participation policies
will continue to be implemented:
It is the policy of the Town to insure that all residents
have equal participation status in land use or other public
decisions that may affect them. While full participation rights
shall be afforded to all citizens, the Town"s first responsibili-
ty shall be to permanent residents.
In consideration of the relatively small resident population
and geographical areas of the Town, and in recognition of the
inability of some persons to participate in the land planning
process, the Town of Kure Beach will utilize a variety of public
education and participation techniques. These should include
citizen surveys, public meetings and workshops, use of the news
media to the extent that cooperation can be obtained, required
public hearings and draft review.
The Town will follow a continuing land use planning process
of problem identification, data collection, development of alter-
44

natives, policy formulation, development of implementation stra-
tegies, and monitoring.
Methods of implementation:
o In addition to required public hearings, no fewer than
two public meetings and workshops should be held to
discuss land use policies and alternatives.
o Citizen surveys should be distributed so that citizens
unable to attend meetings and workshops will have an
opportunity to express their opinions.
o Draft copies of the plan should be distributed to local
officials for review and made available to the general
public at Town Hall and other appropriate places.
o To insure that the planning process is continuous, the
Town should conduct reviews of the policies set out in
this plan as determined necessary by the Town Commis-
sioners or Planning Board.
Several other methods may be used by the Town to further
involve citizens. These techniques may include a registry of
interested citizens who will be contacted concerning meetings,
information available, or other developments in the land use
planning process; distribution of educational brochures; and,
taping of meetings and workshops so that interested individuals
review actions taken at land use meetings.
t'W

LAND CLASSIFICATION
The land classification system for Kure Beach provides a
graphic representation of Kure Beach's general land use policies.
Classifications reflect existing land uses and the presence of
urban services and have been devised to correlate with the Town"s
general land use policy, its policies on location, timing and
density of development, and its policies on the provision and
extension of urban services such as water and sewer lines.
Land classification is not intended as a regulatory mechan-
ism but is only a tool to help implement policies. It provides a
framework to be used by the local government to identify future
land uses.
The land classes used here are derived from the five broad
classifications desribed in NCAC 15, Subchapter 7B, the State
land use planning guidelines. The five classes are Developed,
Transition, Community, Rural and Conservation. Three of these
categories are applicable to Kure Beach: Developed, Transition.
and Conservation.
Developed
This classification is intended to provide for continued
intensive development and redevelopment of existing areas that
are at or approaching the following densities:
0 500 dwelling units per square mile, or
o three dwelling units per acre, or
o where a majority of lots are 15,000 square feet or less, and
which are currently served by public water, sewer, recreational
facilities, police, and fire protection. The Developed category
has been broken down into several sub -classes as described below.
Residential Low Density
This classification is intended primarily for low density
residential development and related institutional uses such as
churches and schools. The major purpose of this classification
is to promote and protect single family neighborhoods.
Low Density/Professional Service
This land classification is intended to allow a controlled
mix of low density residential dwellings with certain low
intensity professional businesses and institutional uses.
Residential - Medium Density Tourist
46

The purpose of this classification is to encourage a mix of
multi -family dwellings with tourist accommodations as well as
institutional uses but not business uses.
Central Business
The central business classification is designed to
concentrate the location of trade and commercial enterprises that
may have a negative effect on residential areas into one
centrally located area.
Neighborhood Business
This classification is intended to establish controlled
areas where the major uses are retailing of goods and services to
surrounding residential neighborhoods. Uses in this area should
be regulated to reduce traffic and parking congestion so that the
surrounding residential areas are protected.
Transition
The Transition category has also been broken down into
subclasses: Transition - Medium Density and Residential -
Business. The intent of the transition classification is to
provide for future intensive urban development at the densities
specified above under the developed classification. These areas
are or will be served with the same urban services as those areas
in the developed land classification.
Residential - Medium Density
This purpose of this classification is to allow a mix of
single family residences, townhouses, condominiums, and housing
for seasonal tourists. To the maximum extent possible,
development should not interfere with rights of beach access,
visual or pedestrian.
Residential - Business
This classification is intended to serve single family,
multi -family and tourist -oriented uses. Retail and personal
service uses are acceptable in this category if such uses are
clearly incidental to the principal use, are not detrimental to
the environment, and will not change the character of the area.
Conservation
The purpose of the conservation class is to provide for the
effective long-term management and protection of significant,
limited, or irreplaceable areas. Management is needed due to the
natural, cultural, recreational, scenic or natural productive
47

values of both local and more than local concern.
This class is generally applicable to major wetlands,
undeveloped shorelines, and important wildlife habitat. Within
Kure Beach, the major application of the conservation
classification is along oceanfront lands. Most wetland and marsh
areas within the Town"s jurisdiction lie within the Sunny Point
Buffer Zone.
The Conservation class in Kure Beach has been further
subdivided into two subclasses:
Public Use
This classification is generally intended to extend from the
seaward property line of oceanfront property and is intended to
protect and preserve the public's right of access along the
beach. Within this area no additional private bulkheads, piers,
groins or jetties should be constructed that will restrict access
along the beach or accelerate erosion of adjoining properties.
The exception to this guideline is the maintenance and
reconstruction of existing bulkheads, jetties or piers, owned or
constructed by the Town in accord with the resource protectiun
policies.
Access
This classification is intended to extend from the eastern
limit of the Conservation - Public Use classification to U. S.
421 and Atlantic Avenue. The purpose of this classification is
to insure that the public rights of access to the beach, both
visual and pedestrian, are preserved. This classification is not
intended in any regard to conflict with Town development-.
ordinances but only to encourage the location and design of
structures that will protect the public rights of access.
48

LEGEND:
DEVELOPED
ML RESIDENTIAL —LOW DENSITY
MP RESIDENTRIAL—LOW DENSITY/PROFESSIONAL SERVICE
MT RESIDENTRIAL—MEDIUM DENSITY/TOURIST
DCB CENTRAL BUSINESS
DNB NEIGHBORHOOD BUSINESS
TRANSITION
TRM RESIDENTRIAL—MEDIUM DENSITY
TM RESIDENTRIAL—BUSINESS
CONSERVATION
PUBLIC USE
ACCESS
KURE BEACH, N.C.
LAND CLASSIFICATION MAP
MAP 6
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:ao o.eame a. Stre sa.at
1t. Mary., gaalr IV
►Mar aar May. 1185
Z.r kTo" tawMay.. v, tasa '
The preparation of this map was financed in put through a grant pro-
vided by the North Carolina Coastal Management Program, through
funds provided by the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as
amended, which is administered by the Office of Ocean and Coastal
Resource Management, N.O.A.A.