This past week, I had the opportunity to speak at the Brunswick County Association of REALTORS® Affiliate Hour, where I shared some thoughts about Brunswick County growth and development. I shared a simple thought that I believe deserves a much broader conversation. Whether we’re REALTORS®, developers, business owners, elected officials, or residents, there’s one thing we all have in common. We’re neighbors, and we have a vested interest in one another’s success.
That brings me to something we need to talk about: Brunswick County growth and development, and whether we’re doing enough to plan for both.
Recently, developers filed a lawsuit following the Planning Board’s denial of a proposed 1,340-home development in Winnabow. I’m not here to debate that particular project or criticize the people involved. What concerns me is the process that continues bringing us to these situations.
A year ago, I couldn’t have told you what a Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) was. Today, I understand that it’s the framework establishing many of the rules developers must follow. Depending on the approval being sought, when a project satisfies those requirements, the government’s ability to deny it may be legally limited.
Think about that. We establish the rules, developers design projects around them, and then we raise concerns about roads, schools, utilities, and infrastructure when those projects reach the approval process.
Why are we trying to solve problems at the finish line that should have been addressed before the starting gun?
We’ve all heard the expression about the insanity of doing the same thing repeatedly while expecting different results. Yet that’s precisely the cycle we risk perpetuating.
Brunswick County does not maintain a county road system. The roads necessary to support our growth depend heavily on decisions made at the state level, where transportation improvements must compete for funding and authorization. North Carolina law also limits the development impact fees counties can impose. These realities make long-term planning essential, because identifying an infrastructure need doesn’t automatically provide the authority or funding to address it.
Changing who makes the final decision on a development doesn’t necessarily change the rules governing that decision. If the underlying problem remains, we’ve accomplished little more than moving responsibility from one desk to another.
I’ve said something for years: Pay now or pay later. Pay now is always cheaper.
Why? Because later is financed.
We can invest in thoughtful planning, updating development standards, and coordinating infrastructure improvements today. Or we can continue reacting to individual developments, potentially spending taxpayer dollars defending legal challenges while the infrastructure problems remain unresolved.
Now we’re paying for the original problem AND the consequences of waiting.
This isn’t about attacking our commissioners. They’re our neighbors, too, and I respect their willingness to serve. It’s about recognizing that we cannot expect better outcomes without examining the process producing them.
And that’s where we, the public, have a responsibility.
We cannot wait until a development is proposed, demand that someone stop it, and expect that to substitute for years of thoughtful planning. We need to participate in shaping the rules before those applications arrive.
With elections approaching, perhaps we should stop asking which candidates are for development and which are against it.
Instead, let’s ask a more important question: What’s the plan?
How are we preparing Brunswick County for the growth we know is coming? How are we coordinating development decisions with infrastructure investments that may depend on state funding? And what are we doing differently today to avoid having this same conversation five years from now?
Simply saying no to development isn’t a growth strategy. Neither is saying yes to everything.
Smart growth requires doing the difficult work on the front end, not scrambling to address the consequences on the back end.
We’re neighbors. Our futures are connected, and we’re all going to live with the decisions being made today.
I’d rather invest in getting it right now than finance the consequences of getting it wrong later.
Because later is financed.