I'm gonna call to order the Board of Adjustments.

Meeting for the City of Wilmington.

Today is Thursday, April 16th, 2026.

It is one o'clock.

Uh before we started, I'm gonna read the Board of Adjustments introduction.

Hearings before the Board of Adjustments are quasi judicial in nature.

Decisions of the board are based on the records of these proceedings.

The grant of variance requires a concurrent vote of four-fifths of the members of the board to reverse or modify the determination of administrative official requires a simple majority.

Evidence submitted to the board for review becomes part of the record.

Appeals of the board's decision are to Superior Court on based on the record.

Appeals must be filed within 30 days of the date of filing of the board's order in the planning division.

A hearing before the board is conducted in accordance with its rules and procedures.

Those who want to testify in a case are sworn as witnesses.

Chairperson recognizes those who want to testify or their attorneys for presentation of evidence during the hearing.

To ensure that all testimony is properly recorded, please come forward to address the board.

State your name, address, and speak clearly.

Next thing we'll do is swear in.

Anyone that might speak to you.

If I could have all staff, applicants, and members of the public, anyone who's planning to speak today must stand up and raise your right hand.

Do you swear that the testimony you're about to give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

Thank you.

All right, thank you.

Um, our next item will be the approval of the minutes from the March 19th, 2026 meeting.

If there isn't any change, I entertain a motion for approval.

I'll make a motion to approve the minutes.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Anyone opposed?

The minutes are approved.

Our next item is new business.

It involves 646 Longleaf Acres Drive.

It's an appeal of a zoning officer's determination that a fence located within the front yard of a residence does not meet criteria as set forth in City Code 18-325.

And before we start this one, I did want to ask Mr.

Satterfield.

This is one that's the determination of a zoning official, so it's different than our variances.

And you just want to overview that.

You are correct.

This is a uh appeal of a determination, and uh, unlike a variance, uh, it's based on the evidence before you to determine whether the correct decision was made and uh majority vote.

And uh there's no four findings of fact at all that are involved in this one.

Okay, thank you.

Appreciate that.

Patrick, go ahead and present for the city.

Yes, sir.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair, members of the board.

Um, as mentioned, this site is located at 646 on Leafacres Drive.

It's currently zoned R 15 residential and contains a single dwelling structure.

Just to give you an overview of the process that got us here today before um this appeal case.

Um, there was a site inspection, a notice of violation, uh, an appeal which was submitted to the city clerk on March 2nd, uh, which led us to today for this appeal hearing in front of the board of adjustment.

So to run through uh the case, uh zoning compliance staff inspected the site uh following an anonymous complaint regarding a structure located within the front and side property lines at the subject property uh along Leaf Acres Drive.

The zoning compliance staff observed the following and is shown in the pictures here on your presentation.

Uh a fence exceeding or approximately 12 feet in height had been installed along the southwest property line.

The fence is located within the front setback of 20 feet and intersects with the front property line, and the structural support of the fence uh face the adjacent property to the southwest.

On February 6th of 2026, compliance staff send a notice of violation to the property owner stating uh that this was in fact a fence and it was in violation of land development code requirements.

Here's some more photos of said fence uh with the measurement taken by uh zoning officer uh in the field.

So the land development code of the city does not provide a specific definition for what constitutes a fence.

However, we've taken uh two common definitions, um, one being from the dictionary of architecture and construction, that a fence is a barrier that defines a property line and closes or borders on a field yard or the like.