David W. Owens

As faculty member at the School of Government, David Owens taught, advised, and conducted research on local government planning and development regulation. 

He joined the Institute of Government in 1989. Previously, he was an attorney and senior planner for the Wisconsin State Planning Office and spent 10 years with the NC Division of Coastal Management. His publications include numerous books and articles on zoning law, including the basic legal reference, Land Use Law in North Carolina, and two widely used guides for citizen boards—Introduction to Zoning and Development Regulation and the Quasi-Judicial Handbook. He has also written on a wide variety of land use law topics, the scope of local government authority, urban growth management, regulation of religious land uses and adult businesses, conflicts of interest, planning legislation, and various aspects of coastal management law and policy.

He was named the School's Gladys Hall Coates Professor of Public Law and Government. Additionally, he earend the University's Edward Kidder Graham Faculty Service Award and the Governor's Order of the Long Leaf Pine.

 Owens earned a bachelor's degree, a master's degree in planning, and a J.D. from UNC-Chapel Hill.

Selected Publications

Owens, David. 2019. Land Use Law in North Carolina. Chapel Hill, NC. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Government.

Lovelady, Adam and Owens, David. 2017. Quasi-Judicial Handbook: A Guide for Boards Making Development Regulation Decisions. Chapel Hill, NC. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Government.

Owens, David. 2017. Introduction to Zoning and Development Regulation. Chapel Hill, NC. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Government.

Lovelady, Adam, and Owens, David. 2020. Chapter 160D: A New Land Use Law for North Carolina. Chapel Hill, NC. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Government.

Owens, David. "Plan-Consistency Statements." Planning and Zoning Bulletin #27. (November 2018). Chapel Hill, NC. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Government.  

Owens, David. "2018 Survey Report: Adoption and Administration of Local Development Regulations, Conditional Zoning, and Subdivision Administration." Planning and Zoning Law Bulletin #30. (December 2020). Chapel Hill, NC. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Government.