Office of Community Planning

2012 ANNUAL REPORT OFFICE OF COMMUNITY PLANNING 2012 ANNUAL REPORT NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE Division of Community Assistance Office of Community Planning Office of Community Planning

WORKING IN COMMUNITIES WORKING FOR COMMUNITIES

OUR MISSION To help build communities for a better future by offering land use planning, facilitation, and training.

2012 ANNUAL REPORT OFFICE OF COMMUNITY PLANNING 150 Clients Served in 2012 WHO ARE WE? The Division of Community Assistance (DCA) is part of the NC Department of Commerce. The DCA s Office of Community Planning (OCP) provides technical planning assistance and services to local governments and nonprofits. Established in 1957, the OCP has helped clients, mainly small towns and rural counties, plan their community and economic development futures for over 50 years. The OCP planners work in communities, for communities. Over the past five years, the OCP worked on projects in 92 of the state s 100 counties. 7% Municipalities 19% County Government 53% al/multi-jurisdictional 12% State Agencies/Universities 9% Nonprofits Director: Richard Self (919) 571-4900 al Office Contacts: Western Karen Smith (828) 251-6914 Southeastern Monita McLaurin (910) 829-6384 Piedmont Darren Rhodes (336) 761-2148 Northeastern Lee Padrick (252) 974-1308 Central Oliver Bass (919) 571-4900 OUR PARTNERS The OCP collaborates with partners devoted to improving the economic future of North Carolina. Internal partners within the DCA include the Office of Community Investment (CDBG), the Office of Urban Development, and the Appalachian al Commission (ARC). External partners include other State agencies and nonprofits with a community and economic development focus, such as the NC Departments of Transportation, Health and Human Services, and Environment and Natural Resources; the University of North Carolina system; al Councils of Government; and nonprofits. Today, the OCP operates five regional offices across the state. The OCP staff mainly assists low-wealth rural communities with limited personnel or financial resources to plan their future alone. Our work helps the Department of Commerce achieve its overall mission: To improve the economic wellbeing and quality of life for all North Carolinians. NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE Office of Community Planning Locations of Project Activity 2007-2012 Piedmont Piedmont Central Central Northeastern Northeastern ALLEGHA NY STOKE S GA TES NORTHAMPTON WARREN CURRITUCK CAMDE N HERTFORD S GUILFORD AN CHOWA N FRANK LIN ORA NGE FORSYTH NK M HALIFAX YADKIN TA UI WILKE S AVER Y UO RQ WATA UGA VANCE PERSON GRA NVILLE SQ Western CASWELL PE ROCK INGHA M PA SURRY ASHE BERTIE MITCHE LL Western CALDWELL MADISON ALE XANDE R HAYWOOD PITT POLK CLE VELAND JOHNS TON LEE MONTGOMERY GRE ENE MOORE STA NLY GA STON DARE BEAUFORT HYDE LINCOLN CABARRUS JA CKSON TRANS YLVANIA WASHINGTON TYRRE LL MARTIN RANDOLP H ROWA N RUTHERFORD HENDERSON MACON EDGECOMB E WILSON CHATHA M CATA WBA SWAIN GRA HAM CHEROKEE NASH WAKE DAVIDSON IRE DELL MCDOWELL BURKE BUNCOMB E DURHAM ALA MA NCE DAVIE YANCEY HARNETT WAYNE CRAVEN MECK LE NBURG LEN OIR CLA Y PAMLICO CUMBE RLA ND UNION ANSON RICHMOND HOK E SAMPSON JONE S DUPLIN SCOTLAND Operating Areas ONS LOW CARTE RET ROB ESON al Boundaries PENDER BLA DEN Municipal Clients COLUMBUS Counties with DCA Planning Projects NEW HANOVER BRUNSWICK Multi-Jurisdiction Clients Southeastern Southeastern Projects Multi-Jurisdiction clients include: RLUAC, Sustainable Sandhills, Fort Bragg al Alliance (formerly BRAC), Sustainable Sandhills Combat Air Team, CAMA, and the 21st Century Communities Program

2012 ANNUAL REPORT OFFICE OF COMMUNITY PLANNING OUR SERVICES Driven by our mission, the OCP works closely with local leaders on economic and community development planning projects. Our core services are divided into three categories: Comprehensive and Strategic Planning, Plan Implementation, and Training. Our planners hold pre-project meetings with prospective clients to develop customized services and products that meet their expressed planning needs. Comprehensive and Strategic Planning Our comprehensive and strategic planning services help communities craft their vision for the future and develop prioritized strategies to achieve that vision. We facilitate community-based planning processes to build community consensus on local needs and issues related to: land use and development; housing; neighborhood revitalization; public facilities and infrastructure; economic prosperity; natural and environmental resources; and hazard mitigation, for example. Planning sets forth how community growth will be managed without placing excessive burdens on local infrastructure, financial resources, or economic development. 2012 2022 Clyde Land Use Plan Adopted by the Town of Clyde Board of Aldermen on October 10, 2012 2012 Demand for Services 175 94 89 48 active projects new project requests projects completed comprehensive or strategic planning projects in progress or completed. Plan Implementation Because plans do not have the force of law, the OCP helps communities develop tools to carry out long and short term community and economic growth strategies to achieve their vision. Planners work with clients to prepare and adopt local land development regulations, unified development codes, small area plans, and other tools that support their plan implementation efforts. zoning, subdivision, or unified development codes drafted, 28 revised, or adopted. Training and Technical Assistance The OCP offers training and on-going technical assistance to local governing boards, planning boards, boards of adjustment, and staff with limited planning background. The purpose is to offer guidance on making defensible planning decisions based on state statutes, local plans and ordinances, and sound planning practices. governing board, planning board, and board of adjustment 25 trainings conducted. Other Services The OCP provides planning and support services to other agencies within the DCA, the Department of Commerce, and state government. For example, it performs GIS analysis for the CDBG program, Urban Progress Zone and Agrarian Growth Zone applications, and other state programs. Other OCP services include group facilitation for local government board retreats, Brownfield assistance, economic market reports, and other planning studies. The OCP also develops resource materials to help rural communities become more self-sufficient in their planning efforts.

2012 ANNUAL REPORT OFFICE OF COMMUNITY PLANNING 2012 PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS Projects highlighted below are representative of the diverse planning work in which the Office of Community Planning was engaged across North Carolina in 2012. Greene County Land Use Plan To fulfill a NC Department of Transportation Comprehensive Transportation Plan requirement, Greene County reached out to the OCP Northeast al Office (NERO) to help it develop a land use plan (its first) that protects traditional agriculture and private property rights. The County Planning Board was tasked with the development of the plan and over the course of 12 months it developed the goals, objectives, and future land use map. Newport Strategic Plan The Office of Innovation and Economic Development at East Carolina University (ECU) partnered with Newport as part of its Center for Municipal Management and Innovation (MMI). The MMI initiative leverages the resources and expertise of ECU s faculty, staff, and students on behalf of small, low wealth, eastern North Carolina municipalities with limited resources and capacity. ECU and the Town of Newport invited the NERO to help develop a strategic plan. The OCP met with the Town for over 6 months and walked the Newport Long Range Planning Committee through a visioning and planning process. The committee conducted a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis, crafted a vision, studied socio-demographic data, and developed a 5-year action plan. Red Cross Land Development Plan The OCP s Piedmont al Office (PRO) worked with the Town of Red Cross (population 782) in Stanly County to help it manage growth and develop a plan for its future. With significant citizen input, the Town completed its first land development plan which maps out how the town will grow and develop. PRO staff also collaborated with the Rocky River al Planning Organization and the NC Department of Transportation to help Red Cross develop a Transportation Master Plan. Mount Olive Downtown Master Plan The Downtown Master Plan being created for the Town of Mount Olive is intended to identify roles and opportunities associated with Mount Olive College expanding in Mount Olive Wayfinding Sign Locations and Average Daily Traffic Counts Master Map downtown, and to attract additional public and private investments for future downtown economic and social development. In addition, the plan will recommend implementation of a wayfinding signage program to direct pedestrian and vehicular traffic to points of downtown interest. The project is a collaboration of the OCP Central al Office (CRO), the DCA Office of Urban Development s NC Main Street Program, the Town of Mount Olive, and Mount Olive College. Small Business Technical Assistance Student Capstone Project Partnership The PRO facilitated a partnership with the UNC-Greensboro Bryan School of Business, the City of Mount Airy, and the Surry County Economic Development Partnership, to provide technical assistance and consulting services to hospitality and tourism-based businesses and organizations. As part of a final capstone course required for graduation, students are matched with businesses and organizations to provide a variety of services. Examples include: menu analysis for restaurants, strategic planning for a recreational facility, website analysis for a regional museum, and market analysis for a hotel. Over two semesters in 2011-2012, approximately 15 businesses and organizations participated. Cooleemee Brownfield Assessment In 2012, the PRO helped the Town of Cooleemee (population 971) develop an Environmental Protection Agency Brownfield Assessment Grant proposal. Cooleemee, in Davie County, was established in 1898 as a cotton mill town and became a vibrant community with a population approaching 3,000. Since the mill closed in 1968, town fortunes have been on a slow downward spiral. Recently, the Town was awarded this highly competitive grant and will begin the process of planning for reuse of the mill that will be transformed into a community asset once again. Town of Burnsville Planning Assistance The OCP Western al Office (WRO) has worked with the Town of Burnsville in Yancey County since 2011 to reestablish its Planning Board and assist it with developing a work plan. The WRO conducted a training session to orient the new Planning Board members to their roles and responsibilities, and has assisted the Town with developing a new sign ordinance, reviewing the Downtown Zoning Repair study (prepared by the OCP Central al Office) for implementation ideas, and hiring a local, start-up, planning firm to help develop design guidelines for commercial districts.

2012 ANNUAL REPORT OFFICE OF COMMUNITY PLANNING al Collaboration and Partnerships The OCP Southeastern al Office (SERO) was active in several regional planning efforts to coordinate development around Fort Bragg and other military installations. Fort Bragg al Alliance Coordinates a regional land use and growth plan to support military growth initiatives for the Fort Bragg Army Base (10 of the counties are part of the SERO region). al Land Use Advisory Commission (RLUAC) Board Promotes environmentally sound land use within a 5-mile radius of the borders of Fort Bragg (covers 8 counties within the SERO region) by conducting on-going case reviews of developments surrounding Fort Bragg. NC Eastern Military Growth Task Force Supports regional land use planning, sustainable practices, preservation of training missions for coastal military installations, and the Fuel the Forces biofuels initiative (includes 2 counties within the SERO region). al Training Programs In 2012, the WRO, the Local Government Training Program (LGTP) at Western Carolina University, and the School of Government (SOG) at the University of North Carolina, conducted two regional training programs for local governments. One, for boards of adjustment, was held in Morganton (Burke County). Approximately 27 people attended on behalf of 11 communities in western North Carolina. The other, held in Buncombe County, was for planning boards. It drew 55 attendees from 14 communities. WRO staff and SOG faculty served as trainers for the programs, while the LGTP handled logistics, publicity, registration, etc. Planning Resources The Office of Community Planning also develops new tools that advance the state of planning practice in rural North Carolina. Some have won awards for excellence in their field. Three such tools that are being developed or refined are featured below. These projects showcase the innovative and dynamic work of the planners in the Office of Community Planning. Community Assessment Project The OCP regional offices are collaborating to develop a model community assessment for North Carolina s small towns and rural counties. The Community Assessment Project, which is funded through the ARC, seeks to answer the questions, How does a community determine what it wants, what it needs, where it is now, and where it wants to go? In developing a community assessment process, the OCP is charged with developing the gold standard for how to help a community gather, analyze, and report information about its needs, assets, capacities, strengths, and opportunities. Designing Better Places Resource Video More than ten years ago, the WRO, with funding from the ARC, began developing three PowerPoint presentations on design issues. A CD containing the presentations won a 2005 Award for Excellence from the American Planning Association s Small Town and Rural Planning Division. Thanks to additional funding from the ARC in 2012, the WRO is updating and converting the first presentation, Designing Better Places, to a video format for DVDs and online viewing. The presentation introduces people to general design principles using illustrations and photographs. It compares pedestrian scale development before World War II with development afterwards when design for motorists was a primary consideration. It concludes with a discussion of why it is important to create places that people and cars can share, with examples from different communities. The DVD is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2013. The other two presentations, Making Buildings Fit, and Recreating Neighborhoods: Putting the Pieces Together, will be updated later in the year, and additional presentations on other topics related to design will be created as well. Downtown Zoning Repair Kit A New Approach in Action To help downtowns thrive, the CRO has developed a new approach to zoning called Downtown Zoning Repair. It is a checklist towns can use Report and Recommendations for DOWNTOWN ZONING REPAIR Produced for the Town of Waxhaw by the North Carolina Department of Commerce Community Development Division June 2012 North Carolina Main Street Division of Community Assistance to identify unnecessary regulatory barriers to downtown revitalization. It is a diagnostic approach designed to help towns align their zoning regulations to better support their economic goals for downtown. Developed in concert with the DCA Office of Urban Development for NC Main Street communities, the zoning repair process can be applied to any town with a downtown that it wants to help thrive. The beta version was presented at the 2011 national conference of the American Planning Association. To test-drive the new toolkit, CRO staff worked with Burnsville in the mountains, Waxhaw in the southern piedmont, and Goldsboro in the coastal plain. Their participation is helping the CRO refine the checklist and develop advice for other towns that use it. The WRO is working with Burnsville to integrate some of the recommendations into its zoning ordinance.

Division of Community Assistance Richard Self, Director, Office of Community Planning NC Department of Commerce Division of Community Assistance 4313 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-4313 Phone: (919) 571-4900 www.nccommerce.com/cd/community-planning