The Fayetteville City Council met on April 21, 2026, to consider a range of items including an annual housing needs assessment, amendments to the city code for insurance claims and the farmers market, a rezoning appeal, and two rezoning ordinances. The meeting lasted approximately 3 hours and included public comments, committee presentations, and multiple votes.
Housing Needs Assessment Presentation: Marley Stark, Housing Director, presented the annual housing update. Key points:
C1: Ordinance to amend insurance adjuster claims (Section 39.10 C and 39.11 C): Councilmember Berna introduced an amendment to replace the three-day dislocation expense limit with per diem rates set by the U.S. General Services Administration, as determined by the adjuster. The amendment passed 7-0. The ordinance was then read on third reading and passed unanimously with an emergency clause, taking effect immediately.
C2: Sewer damage claim for 516 North Fallon Avenue: The item was tabled to the next council meeting to allow the adjuster to re-evaluate lodging costs under the newly passed ordinance.
C3: Ordinance to amend CCR zoning district (Section 161.38): Councilmember Turk proposed an amendment to prohibit detention/retention ponds in CCR districts unless they serve a permitted use in Use Unit One. The amendment passed 7-0, and the ordinance was adopted on third reading with an emergency clause.
C4: Ordinance to expand the Fayetteville Farmers Market footprint, days, and times, and allow limited alcohol sales: The original ordinance included on-site alcohol sales. Councilmember Turk presented an amendment to limit on-site alcohol to one vendor per event. After debate, the amendment passed 5-2. Later, Councilmember Moore moved to reconsider and remove the on-site alcohol provision entirely; that motion passed 7-0. The final ordinance allowed off-premise alcohol sales only, expanded the market footprint to Mountain Street, added Tuesday evening markets, and extended the season from mid-March to Christmas. It passed 7-0 with an emergency clause.
D1: Appeal of preliminary plat for 82-lot subdivision (PPL 2025-5): The appellant, Krista Henson, requested denial due to traffic safety and tree loss. Councilmember Berna initially proposed a motion to grant the appeal but add a condition for a traffic calming study, but after procedural confusion, the motion was withdrawn. The council voted 7-0 to deny the appeal, upholding the planning commission's approval. The administration committed to conducting a traffic calming study after development.
D2: Rezoning of 620 South Crossover Road from RSF-4 to UT (Urban Thoroughfare): The item passed unanimously after suspension of rules. Councilmember Moore noted concerns about auto-centric uses like gas stations and car washes being permitted by right in UT.
D3: Rezoning of 325 South Washington Avenue from NC to RIU (Residential Intermediate Urban): The item passed 6-1, with Councilmember Turk dissenting due to concerns about proximity to a streamside protection area and an ongoing local historic district designation.
Okay, I would now like to call the April 21st meeting of the Fayetteville City Council to order. Clerk Paxton, will you please call the roll? Ms. Moore. Present. Mr. Wheaker? Here. Mr. Berna. Here. Ms. Bunt? Here. Ms. Chair? Here. Minister Jones. Mr. Stafford. Here. Dr. Jones. Mayor Ron. Here. Please join me as we read. Okay. First item of business is Mayor's announcements and proclamations. We proclaimed it Earth Week in Fayetteville on Saturday. So make sure that you are following along with all of the city's social media channels so that you can be aware of what we're doing with regard to Earth Week. And first on our agenda is a presentation from Marley Stark. This is a um housing needs and assessment presentation. And I will turn the floor over to Marley. Okay, perfect. I'm gonna pass out some one pagers. For members of the council. Okay. Thanks, Marley. Whenever you're ready. All right. Good evening, everyone. Uh tonight the annual housing update will look a little bit different, but it will include a high-level look back at what we've achieved together in 2025 and an update on our progress to date in 2026. I'll also highlight some immediate NES steps that we see as staff, as well as three key housing goals for the city to accomplish by 2028. In 2025, investments were made across multiple departments to power Fayetteville's housing work moving forward. Can you hear me okay? Sorry, guys. Is that better? Perfect. Uh some of these roles were aimed to target known bottlenecks in the development review process. Others reflect the city's commitment to deepening community engagement around housing moving forward.