AGENDA #9

MEMORANDUM

TO:                  Mayor and Town Council

FROM:            W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager

SUBJECT:       Revised Draft Downtown Small Area Plan

DATE:             March 27, 2000

We have revised the Downtown Small Area Plan in response to Council review and comments that took place in conjunction with the Town’s draft Comprehensive Plan. At the Council’s retreat on January 14, 2000, the Council agreed to adopt the Downtown Small Area Plan by April 1, 2000, as one of its priorities for the year.

A resolution is attached that would adopt the Downtown Small Area Plan as a component of the Comprehensive Plan as of March 27, 2000.

HISTORY

• In October 1996, the Town Council adopted a resolution charging the Planning Board with developing a Downtown Small Area Plan for the Council’s consideration.

• The Town Council appointed the Downtown Small Area Plan Work Group in January 1997, consisting of the Planning Board, plus additional citizens representing downtown, the adjoining neighborhoods, and the community as a whole.

• The Work Group met monthly from February 1997 to August 1998. Two public forums were held during that period: one on April 15, 1997 and the second on June 16, 1998. The first forum was held to gather ideas at that early stage from citizens on issues, goals, and objectives that might be incorporated into the plan. The second forum was held to obtain feedback on specific planning concepts and the draft conceptual plan for the downtown that the Work Group had developed.

• October 12, 1998, the Work Group presented its draft Downtown Small Area Plan to the Town Council.

• The Council included the draft plan in its proposal to update the Town’s Comprehensive Plan.

• At the Council’s retreat on January 14, 2000, the Council agreed to adopt the Downtown Small Area Plan by April 1, 2000, as one of its priorities for the year.

• The Town Council made comments on the Draft Plan at its Comprehensive Plan Worksession February 7, 2000. Council members submitted additional comments regarding the Downtown Small Area Plan shortly thereafter.

SUMMARY OF THE DRAFT PLAN

• The plan begins with a vision statement expressing, among other ideas, the fundamental position that downtown is, and should continue to be, the heart of the community. The preservation and extension of the vital pedestrian-oriented character of downtown is a key corollary of this principle.

• Goals and objectives are identified for four basic organizing topics that encompass the issues having a major influence on the future of downtown:

1.      Economic vitality

2.      Town character/land use

3.      Infrastructure/public services

4.      Transportation

• Data on existing conditions of the downtown have been gathered, listed and mapped.

• Key planning concepts include:

• identification of areas in which more intense retail/commercial or office/residential uses would be appropriate or beneficial;
• identification of buildings or groups of buildings and open spaces which contribute most to the character of downtown and are proposed for preservation/conservation;
• identification of areas, lots, buildings which have not been utilized to their full potential and represent opportunities for future new initiatives;
• a program of design guidelines to help to ensure that new initiatives are compatible with and contribute to the downtown environment; and
• transportation initiatives, including improved parking facilities, additional sidewalks, bicycle routes, enhanced transit systems, and the development of regional rail connections to the downtown.

• The draft plan concludes with implementation strategies, including:

• identification of methods to ensure preservation and compatible redevelopment of properties;

• a recommendation for the Council to adopt Design Guidelines (see Attachment 2) specific to the Town Center;
• a recommendation to develop new regulatory review process(es) to provide incentives for desirable development;
• a recommendation to move forward with the development of Lot #5 between West Franklin and West Rosemary Streets;
• developing a scaled physical model of computer-aided visualization of the downtown as a tool for elected officials, planners, and citizens to envision principles described in the plan and new development proposals as they are submitted;
• increasing funding for, and implementation of, the streetscape program improvements; and
• a recommendation for further study of parking and refuse collection issues.

REVISIONS MADE TO THE PLAN

We have made revisions to the Plan in response to comments from the Town Council. The comments and responses are detailed in Attachment 3. Most of the revisions are updated data in the existing conditions section, which are not highlighted in the conventional strikeout / underline format for changes. All other changes to the Downtown Small Area Plan are highlighted in this manner.

MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATIONS

We recommend the Council adopt the attached resolution adopting the Downtown Small Area Plan as a component of the Town’s Comprehensive Plan.

ATTACHMENTS

1. Downtown Small Area Plan (begin new page 1)

2.  Design Guidelines (begin new page 1)

3.  Responses to Council Comments Made Regarding Downtown Small Area Plan