Winston-Salem/Forsyth Co. Planning & Zoning.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 1
HOUSE BILL 1226

Short Title: Winston-Salem/Forsyth Co. Planning & Zoning. (Local)
Sponsors: Representatives K. Brown and Baker (Primary Sponsors).
For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
Referred to: Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
May 6, 2026
*H1226-v-1*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF WINSTON-SALEM TO DELEGATE REZONING 2
AUTHORITY TO THE JOI NT CITY -COUNTY PLANN ING BOARD SUBJECT TO 3
APPEAL AND FINAL REVIEW RETAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL. 4
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5
SECTION 1. Section 23 of Chapter 677 of the 1947 Session Laws, as amended by 6
Section 1(d) of Chapter 777 of the 1953 Session Laws, Section 1 of Chapter 381 of the 1973 7
Session Laws, Section 1 of Chapter 587 of the 1993 Session Laws, Section 1 of Chapter 5 88 of 8
the 1993 Session Laws, and Section 1 of S.L. 1999-98, reads as rewritten: 9
"Sec. 23. Zoning. The city City and the county County may by ordinance jointly or separately 10
confer upon the joint City and County Planning Board the authority and the duty of 11
recommending revisions of existing zoning ordinances or preparing new zoning ordinances or 12
resolutions for the city City or county County, or any portion thereof, in accordance with the 13
present zoning ordinance of the City of Winston -Salem and any amendmen ts thereto and in 14
accordance with the authority for county zoning as herein authorized. The City may also by 15
ordinance confer the authority for the rezoning of property, including site plan amendments, to 16
the joint City and County Planning Board . Prior to conferring such authority, the City Council 17
shall establish rules, regulations, and guidelines under which this authority shall be exercised by 18
the joint City and County Planning Board, and the City Council shall provide appropriate rights 19
of appeal and final review. 20
The Board of Aldermen City Council of the City of Winston-Salem is hereby empowered, in 21
accordance with the conditions and procedure specified in this act, by ordinance to regulate in 22
any portion or portions of the City of Winston -Salem the u ses of buildings and structures for 23
trade, industry, residence, recreation, public activities or other purposes, and the uses of land for 24
trade, industry, residence, recreation, agriculture, water supply conservation, soil conservation, 25
forestry or other purposes. 26
For the purpose of increasing the availability of housing for persons of low or moderate 27
income, and thereby promoting the public safety and welfare, the City may by ordinance provide 28
a density bonus or other incentives of equivalent financial value to a developer of housing if that 29
developer agrees to construct multifamily residential units or single family residential units for 30
rent or sale to persons of low or moderate income, or to donate land to the City or the City of 31
Winston-Salem Housing Authority to be used for the purpose of the development of housing for 32
persons of low or moderate income, in the manner, and in accordance with the standards, 33
requirements, and regulations specified therein. For the purposes of this paragraph, 'density 34
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 1226-First Edition
bonus' means a density increase over the otherwise maximum allowable residential density under 1
the applicable zoning classification. 2
For any or all these purposes, the City may divide its territorial jurisdiction into districts of 3
any number, shape, and area th at may be deemed best suited to carry out the purposes of this 4
section; and within those districts it may regulate and restrict the erection, construction, 5
reconstruction, alteration, repair or use of buildings, structures, or land; those regulations may 6
also provide for density bonuses or other financial incentives to developers as specified 7
hereinabove. All regulations shall be uniform for each class or kind of buildings throughout each 8
district, but the regulations in one district may differ from those i n other districts; provided, 9
however, that the City may provide for the creation of special use districts in addition to general 10
use districts. 11
It is the purpose and intent of this section to permit Winston -Salem to create general use 12
districts in which a variety of uses are permitted, and to also create special use districts in which 13
a single use is permitted upon the issuance by the Board of Aldermen City Council of a special 14
use permit prescribing the conditions under which such use will be permitted. 15
A person petitioning for rezoning of a tract of land, where special use districts are authorized 16
by ordinance, may elect to request general use district zoning for said tract, or he may elect to 17
request special use district zoning for said tract. 18
If he elects to petition for general use district zoning, he may not refer, either in his petition 19
or at any hearings related to the petition, to the use intended for the property upon rezoning. The 20
Board of Aldermen City Council may not consider the intended use in determining whether to 21
approve or disapprove the petition, but shall consider the full range of uses permitted within the 22
requested general use district. If the petition is approved, the re-zoned property may be used for 23
any of the uses permitted in the applicable general use district. 24
If the petitioner elects to petition for special use district zoning, the petition must specify the 25
actual use intended for the property specified in the petition, and the intended use must be one 26
permitted in the corresponding general use district. If the petition is for special use district zoning, 27
the Board of Aldermen City Council is to approve or disapprove the petition on the basis of the 28
specific use requested. If the petition is approved, the Board of Aldermen City Council shall issue 29
a special use district permit authorizing the requested use with such reasonable conditions as the 30
Board of Aldermen City Council determines to be desirable in promoting public health, safety 31
and general welfare. The act of issuing a speci al use district permit shall be deemed to be a 32
legislative act of the Board of Aldermen, City Council, and the procedural standards applicable 33
to the legislative acts shall apply to the consideration and issuance of a special use permit. 34
The conditions con tained in a special use permit issued by the Board of Aldermen City 35
Council may include: location of the proposed use on the property; the number of dwelling units; 36
the location and extent of support facilities such as parking lots, driveways, and access s treets; 37
location and extent of buffer areas and other special purpose areas; the timing of development; 38
and such other matters as the petitioner may propose and the Board of Aldermen City Council 39
may find appropriate. With approval of the petitioner, the conditions may include that upon the 40
occurrence or nonoccurrence of a specified event or events, including a stated time period or time 41
lapse, the property automatically reverts to its immediately preceding zoning classification 42
without further notice, proceedings, hearings, or Board action. 43
It is the further intent of this section to permit the creation of districts for specific uses and 44
the imposition of reasonable conditions in order to secure the public health, safety and welfare, 45
and insure that substantial justice be done. 46
For the purpose of promoting the health, safety, morals and the general welfare of the City of 47
Winston-Salem and its inhabitants, and in order to give full effect to the zoning ordinance of the 48
City of Winston-Salem, as amended from time to time, said zoning ordinance, together with the 49
zone map, and any amendments thereto hereafter adopted, shall operate and have effect within 50
three miles of the corporate limits of the City of Winston-Salem, as now or hereafter established. 51
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
House Bill 1226-First Edition Page 3
The Board of Aldermen City Council of the City of Winston-Salem may adopt ordinances from 1
time to time zoning and rezoning all or so much of said three mile area as, within the judgment 2
of the board, should be brought under the operation and effect of the city zoning ordinance. The 3
board of adjustment and the administrative officer, within said three mile area, shall have and 4
may exercise all the powers and duties now or hereafter conferred upon them by the zoning 5
ordinance of the City of Winston-Salem. 6
The extension of said zoning ordinance to said three mile area and the ordinance adopted by 7
the Board of Aldermen City Council of the City of Winston -Salem from time to time shall 8
conform with the general development plan for this area, if and when promulgated by eith er of 9
the planning boards herein created. 10
Wherever in this Act the City Planning Board or the Board of Aldermen City Council of the 11
City of Winston -Salem or the Board of Adjustment of the City of Winston -Salem are given 12
authority in the territory outside of the corporate limits of the City of Winston-Salem, the exercise 13
of such authority beyond one mile from the corporate limits of the City of Winston -Salem shall 14
be subject to the approval of the Board of Commissioners of Forsyth County." 15
SECTION 2. Section 41 of Chapter 677 of the 1947 Session Laws reads as rewritten: 16
"Sec. 41. Definitions. The words "amend," "amendment," "amendments," or "amended," in 17
this Act, shall be deemed to include any modification of the text or phraseology of any provision 18
of any zoning resolution, or amendment thereof, or any repeal or elimination of any such 19
provision, or part thereof, or any addition to the ordinance, or to an amendment thereof, and shall 20
also be deemed to include any change in the number, shape, boundary or are a of any district or 21
districts, any repeal or abolition of any map forming part of or referred to, in any zoning 22
resolution or any part of such map, any addition to such map, any new map or maps, or any other 23
change in the map or any map. The terms "Board of Aldermen" and "City Council" in this Act 24
shall be deemed to have the same meaning." 25
SECTION 3. This act applies to the City of Winston-Salem only. 26
SECTION 4. This act is effective when it becomes law. 27