With the election over, Wilmington’s city leaders, as well as those in New Hanover County, will turn their attention to the challenge of managing the area’s projected growth.
The city and county are developing future land use plans that are addressing how to fit new people moving into the area, while managing resources and delivering the type of residents politicians and planners report that people say they want: pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly communities that utilize green space and mix neighborhoods with shopping, restaurants and work.
With as many as 123,000 additional residents projected within the next 25 years, growth plans are crucial to avoid the traffic and sprawl while preserving New Hanover County’s beauty and character, city and county leaders say. And whether it’s the city’s or the county’s plan, future growth is mainly built around the concept of mixed-use development, where residential and commercial properties are built hand-in-hand.
Wilmington, with a projection of as many as 60,000 new projects in the next 25 years, took a step closer with its growth plan last week when it reviewed its plan, the Create Wilmington Comprehensive Plan, with the city council, the planning board and the steering committee that helped draft it.
The meeting revealed not only the strengths of the plan, but also the challenges that officials will face in implementing it. For instance, New Hanover County planner Jennifer Rigby said for mixed-used to work, neighborhoods need to be built to certain densities.
New Hanover County has identified three town centers around which to manage growth and build density: Monkey Junction, Porters Neck/Kirkland and Cape Fear Community College Town Center. Rigby said a population growth of nearly 123,000 over the next 25 years was like adding the current population of Wilmington into the surrounding areas.
While people may like the idea of mixed-use, they are also likely to be resistant to change in their neighborhoods, said Wilmington City Council member Kevin O’Grady.
“Make my neighborhood denser” is not on the list of the plan’s goals, he said. “People want to preserve their neighborhoods.”
Newly elected Wilmington City Council member Margaret Haynes said development of mixed-use properties is the most important part of the growth strategy.
“Focusing on walkability and connectivity is critical to reduction of traffic,” Haynes said.
Despite the thoroughness of the plan, outside organizations can disrupt its implementation. One is the N.C. Department of Transportation, which has the road-building authority the county lacks.
“The DOT is 180 degrees opposite of this plan. Their goal is to move as many cars as possible,” city council member Laura Padgett said. “We have a lessening say about regional projects.”
She cited proposed projects at the intersections of Military Cutoff and Eastwood roads as an example.
Another sticking point could be the New Hanover County School Board, which must comply with state rules on school building, officials said. While planners may envision mixed-used developments that conserve space, high schools must be built on 20 acres, middle schools need 10 acres and elementary schools require 5 acres.
To meet these requirements, the school board looks for the cheapest possible land, which is generally located on the outskirts of current development and which, therefore, furthers sprawl and transportation problems.
Neither the Wilmington nor the New Hanover County plan addresses Wrightsville Beach. While the town line may end at the Intracoastal Waterway, there are about 20 extra town parcels across the Heidi Trask Drawbridge that are on the town’s water system and receive police services, town manager Tim Owens said.
However, while Owens said there was some participation in the planning process at the beginning, the plan has no relevant impact on the town’s own future land-use plans. Mayor Bill Blair said since Wrightsville Beach is largely built out, its future land use focuses on much different goals and priorities than Wilmington and New Hanover County.
The Wilmington plan does plan for several adjacent areas, particularly along Eastwood Road.
In the plan, Eastwood Road and Wrightsville Avenue to Military Cutoff Road are designated as existing green connection routes, characterized as roads with bike paths, multi-use paths and other pedestrian and bicycle-friendly routes.
The Wilmington map places a “transit hub” near the intersection of Wrightsville Avenue and Eastwood Road.
The map also puts “transit oriented mixed-use centers” at the intersections of Wrightsville Avenue and Eastwood Road, as well as the intersection of Eastwood and Military Cutoff roads, and in several places around Mayfaire Town Center, which is also designated as a transit hub.
Both the Wilmington and New Hanover County plans are online:
http://createwilmington.com/documents/
http://planningdevelopment.nhcgov.com/plan-nhc/future-land-use-map/
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