Wilmington Board of Adjustment Special Meeting - May 28, 2026
Wilmington Board of Adjustment Special Meeting - May 28, 2026
The Wilmington Board of Adjustment held a special meeting on Thursday, May 28, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers to consider two variance requests and approve updated board rules and procedures. The board approved minutes from April 16, 2026, granted one variance with conditions, denied another, and unanimously adopted the new procedural rules.
Consent Calendar
- Approved the minutes of the April 16, 2026 meeting (5-0).
Discussion Items
1. Variance Request for 4945 University Drive & 524 S. College Road (BADV-27-526)
- Proposal: The applicant sought two variances for a proposed Wawa convenience store and fuel station: (a) removal of a 32-inch longleaf pine (specimen tree) located within a 35-foot wide access easement, and (b) reduction of the drive-thru setback from 200 feet to 138 feet (a 62-foot reduction) from the adjacent residential district to the north. The applicant argued the fly-through (mobile order pickup) is quieter than a traditional drive-thru and that an eight-foot tree line and six-foot fence would buffer the residential property.
- Discussion: The applicant's representatives, including attorney Sam Frank and arborist Everett Jones, presented evidence that the tree's critical root zone spans the entire width of the easement, making retention infeasible, and that the easement had been unused for over 50 years. Board members questioned the need for the second access point and explored permeable pavement options, but the arborist stated any excavation within the structural root zone would compromise the tree. Staff recommended conditions including tree mitigation and prohibiting dumpsters between the building and College Road.
- Vote: Motion to approve both variances with the dumpster condition passed 4-1.
2. Variance Request for 5026 Market Street (BADV-23-526)
- Proposal: The applicant requested a variance to allow a 521-square-foot wall sign for an O'Reilly Auto Parts store, exceeding the 200-square-foot maximum for the multi-unit building (three units).
- Discussion: Applicant Tori Rocka stated the building is set far back from Market Street and that a 200-square-foot sign would not be visible. Board members noted that granting the variance would require future variances for the other two units (5022 and 5024 Market Street) and that similar previous requests had been denied. The board found that the application did not meet the four statutory findings of fact for a variance.
- Vote: Motion to deny the variance passed 5-0.
3. Board of Adjustment Rules and Procedures
- Discussion: Staff presented updated rules to align with city code and state statute, including mandatory quasi-judicial training through UNC (failure could result in removal), a two-consecutive-term limit (three years each), and clarification that appeals from the Historic Preservation Commission go directly to Superior Court rather than the Board of Adjustment. The rules require city council approval after committee review.
- Vote: Motion to approve the rules as presented passed 5-0.
Key Outcomes
- Approved minutes of April 16, 2026 (5-0).
- Granted variance for 4945 University Drive & 524 S. College Road (BADV-27-526) to allow specimen tree removal and a reduced drive-thru setback, subject to conditions: dumpsters must not be located between the public right-of-way and any building or canopy, and tree mitigation must comply with the Land Development Code (vote 4-1).
- Denied variance for 5026 Market Street (BADV-23-526) for exceeding the maximum wall sign area (5-0).
- Approved updated Board of Adjustment Rules and Procedures (5-0), which will proceed to committee and city council for final adoption.
Meeting Transcript
I'd like to call the May twenty-eighth Board of Adjustment meeting to order. I'll read the Board of Adjustment Introduction. Hearings before the Board of Adjustment are quasi-judicial in nature. Decisions of the board are based on the record of these proceedings. To grant a variance requires a concurrent vote of four-fifths of the members of the board. To reverse or modify the determination of an administrative official requires a simple majority. Evidence submitted to the board for review becomes part of the record. Appeals of board decisions are to Superior Court and are based on the record. Appeals must be filed within thirty days of the date of the filing of the board's order in the planning division. State your name and address and speak clearly. Opposed. Food services, little Caesars and Banking, Wells Fargo to the west, and food services again, Bojangles to the east. Property to the north is a residential site, formerly a multifamily development, and currently under review for a new multifamily project with the city. Here you have an aerial view of the subject properties. Some additional views of the properties, the access easement for tree removal to the left and the current building on site as viewed from South College Road. Here we have the site plan showing the tree to be removed, which is a 32-inch long leaf pine, and the 138-foot setback, which is a reduction of 62 feet from the 200 foot requirement of a setback from a drive-through facility at a commercial restaurant or drive-through facility. Staff has reviewed this through the TRC on December 3rd of 2024, as well as on December 4th of 2025. Subsequently, on February 5th, we had a separate meeting to review the deficiencies in the site plan and the requested variances that would need to be achieved in order to build this site. On April 7th of this year, the applicant submitted a request for a variance to the city codes. A second variance request from section 18 205 drive-thru facilities, which requires a 200 foot setback from any residential district. Currently, the MD district to the north is defined as a residential district within the current LDC. The applicant has uh chosen a location for his structure drive-thru within the 200 feet and is requesting a variance of 62 feet or 138 foot setback. The applicant asserts in their application that the proposed drive-thru facility facilitates mobile order pickup and thus reduces noise common of a traditional drive-through facility as we normally see. Should the board choose to grant the proposed variances, staff recommends the following conditions uh that dumpsters not be located between the public right-of-way and any building or canopy, and that tree mitigation be done in accordance with the land development code. This concludes my presentation. I'd like to submit my presentation into the record. And here you'll see the findings of facts and the specific waiver requests. Thank you. Any questions for staff? Thank you very much. Uh Mr. Robert Michael. Um question can you describe for us a little bit more in detail what the uh mitigation requirements might entail? Sure. Thank you. So it is uh man, my mind's flaking me right now. What is the mitigation requirement? My mind's blaking. It's two for every for 32-inch long leaf pine, it's going to be uh multiplied times two. So you'd end up with 64 inches of mitigation multiplied again by uh 175 to get your mitigation cost. All right, thank you very much. Anything further for staff? Thank you. Yes, sir. Uh I would like to present. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, members of the board. My name is Sam Frank. I represent the applicant. Several folks with me here today.
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