King, NC zoning: where a drive-thru restaurant is allowed
Is a drive-thru allowed in King, NC?
A drive-thru restaurant is allowed by right (no conditional use permit, special exception or rezoning) in these zoning districts: B-2, L-I, PD-RC.
It is not allowed in 12 districts: B-1, H-I, O-I, R-15, R-20, R-MF-A, R-MF-C, R-MF-T, R-MH, R-MH-1, R-MH-2, R-R.
Drive-thru restaurant rule by zoning district
| District | Drive-thru restaurant | What the code says | Section | Source | Read on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B-1 | Not allowed | Table: 'Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through' blank (B-1 allows restaurants without drive-thru). Blank cell. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| B-2 | By right | Table: 'Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through' marked x in B-2, PD-RC and L-I. x = permitted (legend not read separately). | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| H-I | Not allowed | Table: 'Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through' blank (B-1 allows restaurants without drive-thru). Blank cell. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| L-I | By right | Table: 'Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through' marked x in B-2, PD-RC and L-I. x = permitted (legend not read separately). | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| O-I | Not allowed | Table: 'Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through' blank (B-1 allows restaurants without drive-thru). Blank cell. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| PD-RC | By right | Table: 'Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through' marked x in B-2, PD-RC and L-I. Planned district - site plan also applies. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-15 | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-20 | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-MF-A | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-MF-C | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-MF-T | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-MH | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-MH-1 | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-MH-2 | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
| R-R | Not allowed | Restaurants, including drive-in/drive-through: blank in residential columns. Residential district. | Zoning Ordinance table of permitted uses | zoneomics.com | 2026-11-14 |
"By right" means permitted with site plan and building permit review only. Overlay districts, planned developments (PD/PUD) and conditions attached to a past rezoning can change the answer for a single parcel.
Sources
How to confirm before you buy
- Look up the parcel on the official zoning map to get its district and any overlay.
- Open the code section linked in the table and read the use table and the drive-thru standards.
- Call the planning office and ask whether a drive-thru restaurant needs anything beyond site plan review at that address.
Why this library exists
I'm Luke Smith. I find land for drive-thru brands like 7 Brew, Ellianos Coffee and Starbucks, sign the tenant, build the shop and sell it as a net lease property. Every deal starts with the same question: is the use allowed here without a rezoning? Getting that answer takes too long, so we read the codes (with AI research help), and I publish what we find with a link back to every source so you can check it yourself.
If you have a site that fits a drive-thru, or you want to learn how these deals are put together, join the free Reverse Deal Finder community on Skool, see cap rates and land prices by brand, or call 1-760-392-1525. Brokers welcome: I pay commissions.