How the Process Works

The Short Version

A rezoning application goes through two stages: review and recommendation by the City Planning Commission, followed by a vote by City Council. Both stages are opportunities for community input. Here’s what that looks like in practice.

☑️Step 1: Application Filed [Revised Application Filed on May 29th, 2026]

The developer submits a rezoning petition to the city, pays the required fees, and the application is routed to the City Planning Commission. The city’s planning staff then prepares a report on the application, which is presented to commissioners before the public hearing.

The city is required to publish notice of the public hearing at least seven days in advance in a newspaper of general circulation. That is a short window. It is part of why many neighbors in this corridor only learned about the proposal through informal channels.

☑️Step 2: City Planning Commission Public Hearing (August 18th)

The Planning Commission held a public hearing on Tuesday August 18th. Our community showed up, and after 3+ hours of public testimony and 40 speakers, the City Planning Commission voted to recommend denial to City Council, with a vote of 4-1.  

City Council will now need a three-quarters supermajority (10 of 13 members) to approve the rezoning.

Step 3: City Council Meeting - 1st and 2nd Readings (Date TBD)

Now that the City Planning Commission has issued its recommendation, the rezoning ordinance moves to City Council. Under Wilmington's process, the ordinance must be read three times at City Council meetings before a vote can be taken. City Council meets the first and third Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m.

The 1st and 2nd readings will take place during the same meeting, Date TBD, in Council Chambers at the Louis L. Redding City/County Building, 800 N. French Street.

What you can do: 

• Email and call ALL council members prior to this meeting. Every contact matters.  See Contact City Council for how you can reach out.

• Attend this meeting, even if you don't want to speak. Your presence matters.

Step 4: Community Development & Urban Planning Committee (Date TBD)

Before the final vote, the rezoning goes before the Community Development & Urban Planning (CD&UP) Committee for review. This meeting takes place Date TBD from 5:00-7:00 PM in the 1st Floor Committee Room at the Louis L. Redding City/County Building, 800 N. French Street.

We're hearing that the developer and Councilman Chris Johnson are continuing to push for the rezoning ahead of this meeting, including proposed "voluntary commitments" on building height and density. These are private agreements, not zoning conditions. They don't bind a future owner, and they don't change what the rezoning would permanently allow. If the City believes a specific height limit is appropriate for this site, that limit belongs in the zoning code, not in a side agreement.

What you can do: Attend this meeting. It's a smaller room than Council Chambers, and Committee members need to hear directly that the community's position hasn't changed. 

Step 5: City Council Meeting - 3rd Reading and Vote (Date TBD)

The 3rd reading will occur and then the City Council takes a final vote on the rezoning ordinance, Date TBD at 6:30 PM in Council Chambers at the Louis L. Redding City/County Building, 800 N. French Street. 

Under normal circumstances, a simple majority of Council members is sufficient to approve or deny the rezoning. But City Council will need a three-quarters supermajority (10 of 13 members) to approve the rezoning, based on the CPC's 4-1 vote against. 

What you can do: 

• Email and call ALL council members prior to this meeting. Every contact matters.  See Contact City Council for how you can reach out.

• Attend this meeting, even if you don't want to speak. Your presence matters and we want the room overflowing again.

After a Vote: What Comes Next

If the rezoning is approved, the requested designation takes effect for those parcels. Any subsequent applications for variances, special exceptions, or deviations from standard zoning requirements would then go before the Zoning Board of Adjustment.

If the rezoning is denied, the parcels remain C-1. The developer would have to wait at least one year before filing a new rezoning petition for the same property.

Either way, the decisions made at the Planning Commission and City Council stages are the ones that matter most. That is where this fight will be won or lost.