Craven County, NC Ordinances (2026)

Craven County requires a premises license before any massage parlor, massage establishment or health club may operate, plus a separate individual operator's license for every masseur…

Craven County does not run its own pawnbroker licensing office; instead, Craven County Code § 10-75 forces every pawnbroker, pawnshop, dealer, currency converter, E-buyer and…

Craven County requires a sheriff-issued permit before anyone can operate an adult establishment in the unincorporated county, bars entry to anyone under 21, and bans locating within…

When Craven County's Solid Waste Director orders a junked vehicle towed without the owner's consent, the tower that hauls it earns a statutory lien for towing and storage fees…

Unincorporated Craven County bars construction and demolition tools between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. when the noise crosses a residential property line or reaches a noise-sensitive…

Unincorporated Craven County enforces a general 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. quiet-hours scheme under Section 24-22. Noise disturbances are barred at any hour, but the code singles out…

Unincorporated Craven County treats leaf blowers, lawn mowers and other domestic power tools like saws, sanders, drills and grinders as unreasonably loud when run outdoors near homes…

Unincorporated Craven County bars operating a motor vehicle, motorcycle or motorboat with a defective or modified exhaust, unreasonably rapid acceleration or tire squealing, or…

Craven County Code § 24-22(b)(1)-(2) bars operating radios, musical instruments, sound amplifiers or loudspeakers between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. in a way that creates a noise…

Anyone selling or leasing property inside the Air Installation Compatible Use Zone around Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point must give the buyer or tenant a written AICUZ disclosure…

In unincorporated Craven County, recyclables placed in a county recycling container at curbside become the property of Craven County or its recycling franchisee immediately. Craven…

Craven County lets residents set out solid waste for pickup four ways: bagged with a paid sticker, in a 33-, 64-, or 90-gallon cart matched to its weight limit and sticker count, or…

Craven County requires weekly curbside collection of solid waste and recyclables for every residence and hand commercial establishment in the unincorporated county. Craven County Code…

Craven County runs curbside recycling through franchisees the Board of Commissioners licenses for designated areas of the unincorporated county. Craven County Code § 32-102(1)…

Craven County Code § 32-164 bans dumping litter, garbage, or solid waste into any drain, gutter, street, lot, or waterway anywhere in the unincorporated county, and makes property…

Craven County lets residents keep grass clippings, leaves, and branches on their own property under § 32-164's yard waste exception, and its staffed convenience centers take leaves and…

Craven County residents and small businesses set out solid waste in a bag or in a 33, 64 or 90-gallon cart, each capped by weight and each requiring one, two or three purchased…

Craven County makes it unlawful for anyone not authorized to place, throw, deposit or dump litter, garbage or solid waste into a privately owned commercial dumpster or container. Sec…

Unincorporated Craven County regulates vehicle horns and other signaling devices under Section 24-22(b)(9)c, the subsection car alarms and vehicle sirens fall under as a motor vehicle…

Unincorporated Craven County bars loading, unloading, opening, closing or otherwise handling boxes, crates, containers or building materials between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. when the…

Unincorporated Craven County requires any stationary internal combustion engine, including a generator, to discharge its exhaust through a muffler or similar device that effectively…

Craven County's off-premises sign standards bar unshielded floodlights, beacons, spotlights, search lights, and stroboscopic lights on billboards, and any illumination that glares into…

Unincorporated Craven County closes its public recreation areas outside posted hours of operation. Section 28-1(3) makes it unlawful to enter or remain in a county park, recreation…

No one may start building a solar energy facility in unincorporated Craven County without first getting County approval under the Developmental Regulations. The Planning Board reviews…

Property used for bona fide farm purposes is exempt from Craven County's zoning article entirely, covering crop, livestock, and forestry production plus farm residences and support…

Craven County's Voluntary Agricultural District Ordinance is built to shield farms from encroaching development: it exists to inform non-farming neighbors and land buyers that farming…

Craven County bans animated signs outright, including anything with flashing, scintillating, or moving light, but allows changeable-copy signs, such as electronic message boards that…

Off-premises billboards visible from Craven County roads cannot exceed 378 square feet per face or 40 feet in height, must sit roughly half a mile apart, stay clear of schools, parks…

In unincorporated Craven County, no one may erect, construct or alter a building or structure until the Inspection Department (Planning and Inspections) issues a building permit under…

Craven County's inspection department, staffed by inspectors the county manager appoints, must issue a building permit before any building or structure is erected, constructed or…

Craven County Code Chapter 18 applies to every special flood hazard area in the county's jurisdiction, and § 18-8 requires a floodplain development permit before any development…

Craven County Code § 18-41 requires the reference level of every new or substantially improved residential structure in a special flood hazard area, including manufactured homes, to be…

Craven County's subdivision ordinance requires new development to protect downstream streambanks and channels from erosion caused by land-disturbing activity. Where a storm drainage…

Craven County imposes extra stormwater design standards on subdivisions near primary nursery areas or their tributaries. Developers must leave a 75-foot no-disturbance conservation…

In regulated floodways and non-encroachment areas within Craven County's special flood hazard areas, § 18-41(10)(b) sends retaining walls involving fill to the encroachment limits of §…

Craven County's code does not set a general at-large law for dogs countywide, but it does require a leash no longer than six feet at all times for any dog brought into a county-owned…

Craven County requires every dog or cat adopted from a releasing agency, such as the county shelter, to be spayed or neutered within 30 days of adoption, funded by a nonrefundable…

Unincorporated Craven County allows big cats, bears, wolves and similar wild and dangerous animals only inside a double enclosure system meeting sheriff-inspected specifications, with…

Craven County law treats anyone who feeds or shelters a stray cat for 72 hours as its legal owner or keeper, and every cat four months or older must have a current rabies vaccination…

Craven County regulates dogs by behavior rather than breed, declaring a dog vicious, dangerous, or potentially dangerous based on unprovoked attacks or attack training. A vicious dog…

Craven County's zoning ordinance (Article III) doesn't apply to property used for bona fide farm purposes, and the code specifically counts raising livestock and poultry as a bona fide…

Craven County bans fireworks of any type in every public recreation area and at both county boat landings, allowing them only at events the Recreation and Parks Department has approved…

Craven County bans skateboards, bicycles, hand scooters, roller skates and in-line skates from the walkways, tennis courts, and the areas around concession/restroom buildings and…

Craven County confines smoking to the parking lots of every public recreation area it owns or controls, meaning county parks, the recreation center, playgrounds, ball fields and tennis…

Craven County makes it unlawful to solicit, peddle or beg inside any public recreation area it owns or controls, unless the activity is part of a county-approved event, an authorized…

Anyone wanting to hold an exhibitor show in a Craven County park needs approval from the Recreation and Parks Department first, and the sponsoring organization covers every license fee…

Craven County confines open fires and grilling in its parks and boat landings to fireplaces or grills the county itself provides, and requires every fire to be fully extinguished…

Craven County makes it unlawful to keep a junked motor vehicle anywhere within its ordinance-making jurisdiction. A vehicle counts as junked if it carries no current license plate and…

Inside Craven County's Coastal Carolina Regional Airport zoning district, a home occupation can't take up more than 400 square feet or 25 percent of the primary structure, whichever is…

Near Coastal Carolina Regional Airport, Craven County caps structure heights by zone: the horizontal zone tops out at 169 feet above sea level, and the outer conical zone allows up to…