AGENDA #3a(1)

To:          Mayor and Council

From:      Neighborhoods for Responsible Growth (NRG)

Subject:  Development Project Status

Date:      September 23, 2008

Rational:

We appreciate the Council’s attention to maintaining an open process by providing opportunities for the public to give input on development proposals for your consideration.  However, we see the need to improve awareness of the status of proposed projects as they work through the Town’s permit process before they arrive for Council review.  Most citizens, like you, have busy lives and may be unaware or lose track of where a proposed projects are in the pipeline.  A proposed project may be of concern because of impacts to nearby neighborhoods or possibly significant enough to cause broad based concern. 

NRG has proposed to the staff the idea of giving the public access to the status of current development proposals underway by providing a GIS maps via the Town’s website.  Asheville offers a possible model.  This city offers a permit tracking tool on their website:  http://www.ashevillenc.gov/online_services/default.aspx?id=5544&ekmensel=22_submenu_0_link_4 .  We have heard that this idea was discussed at the Ann Arbor trip, sponsored by the Chapel Hill / Carrboro Chamber of Commerce in September 2008, and we understand some aspects of this idea may now be under consideration by the staff.

Our Proposal:

We propose that until a more comprehensive solution as described above is implemented, that the Town Manager ensure that a simple table of Status of Pending Developments be put on the Town website within the next month.  The table would list all concept plans and development projects in the pipeline for Council review.  A similar table could also be maintained for projects awaiting for Planning Board and/or staff approval.  Such a list is currently available on the Town of Carrboro’s website. The table would provide the name of the project, the location, the number of square feet, projected public hearing date, and status in the pipeline of staff review process. 

We believe that this proposal if implemented will improve Town-community communications, broaden citizens’ abilities to share their views, and will be relatively easy and inexpensive to accomplish.