DRAFT
Responsible Regionalism
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Regional Approach to Housing Development
o Outcome: Diversity Housing choices within neighborhoods
 Short term recommendations:
 Partner with Cape Fear Housing Coalition to assess current and future
needs
 Identify barriers to housing diversification in current policies/regulations
 Review current zoning
 Ensure any new housing development addresses need for higher density
resources and efficiencies of scale
 Identify underused/vacant/abandoned buildings for infill purposes
 Incorporate ‘age-in-place’ features in new housing developments
 Look at Habitat for Humanity model
 Partner with homebuilders and realtors to assist in Comprehensive Plan
 Address and identify rural housing issues and opportunities
 Reduce the permit fees for non-profit/affordable housing developments
 Long term recommendations:
 Amend housing/land use/development policies if necessary
 Conduct/contract out economic analysis of regional real estate markets
 Diversify housing types, such as small houses on smaller lots, duplexes
and tandem housing, condos and townhouses, multi-family conversions,
etc.
 Develop affordable retirement community housing
 Create a housing bond or housing trust fund to accomplish things the
market is not accomplishing on its own
 Promote safe neighborhoods
 Adhere to historic preservation guidelines
o Outcome: Easier access to quality low-income/workforce housing
 Short term recommendations:
 Partner with Cape Fear Housing Coalition to assess current and future
needs
 Assess current public, subsidized, mixed and low-income housing
availability region-wide
 Long term recommendations:
 Create region-wide minimum housing standards
 Establish inclusionary zoning policies in areas zoned for future
residential development
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Incentivize development of mixed and low-income housing units; give
incentives to builders committed to providing subsidized housing
 Expand bus routes to incorporate newly constructed lowincome/workforce housing areas
 Access to multimodal transportation
Regional Approach to Economic Development
o Outcome: Retention and expansion of existing businesses
 Short term recommendations:
 Establish support centers/incubators offering small businesses, startups,
and entrepreneurs low-cost space, technical services (legal, financial),
software support, sharing common area maintenance such as electric,
water, and sewer
 Coordinate with Chamber of Commerce on opportunities for local
businesses to connect and network through breakfasts/lunches,
workshops, outreach, and interactive websites
 Increase performance-based grants to worthy businesses to spur
investment (e.g., half-million dollars over 5 years to Fortron Industries)
 Identify and assess existing incentives (tax credits, grants, mentoring
services, etc.)
 Establish criteria for existing incentives and future incentives
(distinguish between incentives used to attract versus incentives used
to retain businesses)
 Promote all incentives to businesses
 Long term recommendations:
 Provide information, technical assistance, solution-based advice,
mentoring, and job training on business issues and operating concerns
through CFCC, UNCW/CIE, Chamber of Commerce, Wilmington
Downtown, Inc., etc.
 Identify innovative incentives (naming rights, other)
 Develop marketing campaign to position region as desirable place to do
business
 Designate a consultant position to assist businesses with applications
for tax credits, grants, etc., and to support existing local businesses in
other critical ways(i.e., a county employee who is an ambassador for
businesses and a liaison between county and businesses)
o Outcome: Attraction and support of new businesses
 Short term recommendations:
 Create a County Department of Economic and Community
Development and hire a Director.
 Coordinate efforts of various economic development organizations to
recruit new businesses
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Hold publically funded organizations accountable for demonstrating
measurable results (Identify how public funds are being usedTRANSPARENCY)
 Promote coastal lifestyle and uniqueness of place as major reasons to
locate in region focusing on mild weather, beach, historic downtown
and the river walk, higher education facilities, art/culture,
gardens/parks, restaurants, port, and other amenities
 Attend national trade shows to market the region to identify and attract
new businesses to region
 Long-term recommendations:
 Develop improved strategies for short and long term economic
development
 Implement specific strategies that maximize our county and
regional potential for sustainable growth and development
Outcome: Regional economy diversity and resiliency across all sectors
 Short term recommendations:
 Evaluate barriers to entry resulting from existing regulations or policy
 Encourage greater coordination/communication among public agencies
and nonprofit organizations having vested interest in economic
development (CFEDC, DBA, FOCUS, CofC,WBD,WDI,MPO,etc.)
 Explore options for balancing needs for minimum regulations with
reasonable protections (business vs. environmental interests)
 Take advantage of benefits associated with Foreign Trade Zone (defer
duty taxes and ad valorem taxes)
 Upgrade aging infrastructure
 Long term recommendations:
 Perform regional shift-share analysis every 5 years
 Survey open land around existing transportation routes (421, 17, 50, I40, I-140) for locating possible business parks, industrial/flex centers,
warehouses, incubators as well as domestic cottage/artisan industries
and startups (e.g., craft breweries)
 Expand capabilities/assets of port and airport to accommodate needs of
new industry
 Extend water and sewer to industrial corridors
 Encourage major existing companies to reach out to other professional,
scientific, and technical services to help “sell” the region. At same time,
devise ways to attract light manufacturing
Outcome: Strong connection between goods and services produced and consumed
 Short term recommendations:
 Identify existing links and gaps between goods and services produced
and consumed in the region
 Strengthen the existing links between production and consumption
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Close the existing gaps between production and consumption
Explore opportunities for export of agriculture, forestry, and
manufactured products
 Leverage relationships with Wilmington’s sister cities and other
overseas entities to promote trade and tourism (both inbound and
outbound) and support international business development
 Start a “Buy Local” campaign
 Long term recommendations:
 Maximize interface of all regional transportation
infrastructure/facilities/logistics port, railroad, airport, highway, bridges
 Increase cold-storage capacity at Port as well as facilities to handle
wood pellet exports and other niche products
 Support State Legislation to restore railroad from Wallace to Castle
Hayne (27 miles) and then on to Port
Outcome: Support and promotion of local/regional agriculture (also coincides with
previous outcome)
 Short term recommendations:
 Partner with Feast Down East and other farm-to-table initiatives to
develop long-term strategies (such as NC Farm to School program)
 Work to create a fully integrated local food system and educate
consumers on benefits of good nutrition, healthy eating, and
environmentally sound practices
 Expand number of farmers’ markets, pick-your-own farms, and roadside
farm outlets as well as access to community-supported agriculture
allowing consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from farmers
 Encourage more high-end restaurants and institutions to incorporate
locally sourced food into their menus
 Encourage production of sustainably raised organic fruit, vegetables,
and meat
 Research new/expanded uses of existing agricultural and forestry
products that have gone unrecognized or require modern plant
breeding support (e.g., re-engineering tobacco for other purposes)
 Cultivate interest in urban agriculture and micro-farming
 Promote agri-tourism; actively market Poplar Grove Historic Plantation
attractions, events, and tours
 Long term recommendations:
 Increase export of NC-grown agricultural products
Outcome: Expansion of knowledge-based regional exports
 Short term recommendations:
 Work with local educational institutions to strengthen programs in
STEM disciplines
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Build awareness of existing high tech industry in region to increase its
innovation presence
 Promote existence of flexible research labs (e.g., CREST Research Park)
to attract knowledge-based industry
 Seek out support fields such as lab testing, biostatistics, medical writing
to grow/complement technology base
 Focus on strategic industry and seek them out while maintaining
transparency
 Tie Branding Initiative into the process when seeking out new
businesses and industry
 Long term recommendations:
 Market region as digital hub to attract biotechnology,
marine/environmental sciences, pharmaceutical R&D, cyber security,
and related businesses
Regional Approach to Transportation Planning and Management
o Outcome: Decreased traffic congestion throughout the region
 Short Term recommendations
 Create a county transportation fund to partner on projects that would
increase the likelihood of receiving desire/necessary transportation
improvements
 Increase the diversity of transportation options and incentivize the use
of those options
 Encourage users to choose the appropriate mode of transportation for
their needs
 Focus investment on freight corridors to minimize freight impacts to
local communities and infrastructure
 Adjust stoplight intervals at major intersections
 Encourage housing and commerce options in close proximity to
employment centers
 Improve current bus service through the addition of express service and
better efficiency, especially in high-use areas
 Expand bike lane system within more densely populated regional
centers
 Provide education for drivers, bikers, and pedestrians (example of
current NHC bike awareness program is “Watch for me NC”)
 Continue with programs like “Bike to Work Week”
 Encourage ride sharing programs with development of park and rides
served by bus routes, especially to facilitate commuting into Wilmington
from surrounding areas
 Consider one-way streets certain times of day (morning/afternoon rush
hours)
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Long-Term recommendations
 Continue effort to develop passenger rail service to Wilmington
 Explore merits of bike and car sharing; HOV lanes
 Develop additional river crossing between New Hanover and Brunswick
Counties
 Implement road way improvements (adjust stoplight intervals at major
intersections, add turn lanes at busy intersections, explore efficacy of
traffic circles at key choke nodes)
Outcome: Improve local and regional congestion through roadway improvements
 Short term recommendations:
 Adjust stoplight intervals at major intersections
 Long term recommendations:
 Add turn lanes at busy intersections
 Explore efficacy of traffic circles at key choke points
 Develop additional river crossing between New Hanover and Brunswick
Counties
Outcome: Increased cooperation in prioritizing transportation projects
 Short term recommendations:
 Utilization of citizen committees/focus groups (such as this one)
 Get NCDOT more involved at city and county level
 Prioritization and completion of projects through innovative uses of
funding opportunities and legislative work
 Coordinate with MPO’s 2040 Plan
 Long term recommendations:
 Conduct a regional needs assessment (see Blueprint for Impact,
conducted by UNCW MPA students in 2005 on behalf of United Way of
Cape Fear Region
 Use of new Community Platform for improved regional data sharing and
GIS technology (http://uncw.edu/chhs/engagesenc.html)
Outcome: Enhanced safety across all transportation modes
 Short term recommendations:
 Work with local law enforcement to identify common causes of
accidents
 Reduce collisions, injuries, and fatalities through better enforcement
 Long term recommendations:
 Design construction projects that make bike, pedestrian, and vehicle
travel safer
 Increase education and outreach programs
o Reinforce safe driving practices, such as no texting, and no
drinking, while driving
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Emphasize “sharing the road” with cyclists and pedestrians in
crosswalks
Regional Approach to Environmental Management
o Outcome: Conservation and preservation of regionally significant environmental
resources
 Short term recommendations:
 Coordinate with City of Wilmington, Pender County, Brunswick County,
NCDENR Natural Heritage Program, FOCUS, and/or others to identify
regionally significant environmental resources
 Identify wetlands more accurately and create a working inventory
(Important for utility providers to know the extent of
services/infrastructure needed)
 Evaluate impending threats to identified resources (e.g., Tidal creek
pollution and storm water runoff)
 Address threats to resources through policy and regulations
 Expand education/outreach programs for the public
 Long term recommendations:
 Reevaluate inventory and status of resources every 5 years
o Outcome: Maintenance of high water quality standards
 Short term recommendations:
 Identify impaired water bodies
 Look at impediments of water capture and reuse
 Encourage Native Plants to improve water quantity
 Promote LID development in support of water recharge
 Establish ownership and responsibility of Ocean Resources
Management (our coast is our physical and financial responsibility)
 Create and outstanding water resource protection plan for Intracoastal
 Long term recommendations:
 Implement mechanisms for graywater irrigation within the Subdivision
Code
 Consider watershed-based (and sometimes cross-jurisdictional)
planning and regulations, such as overlay districts, to address individual
and unique watershed concerns
o Outcome: Improvement in air quality
 Short term recommendations:
 Review current air quality and composition of pollutants
 Identify sources contributing to negative air quality
 Create strategy for acceptable new pollutant sources that offsetts
existing pollution sources in order to balance economic development
needs
 Encourage diversity of transportation modes
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Long term recommendations:
 Review air quality status and sources every 5 years
Outcome: Assurance of safe, reliable drinking water sources
 Short term recommendations:
 Identify current water sources as well as imminent and potential threats
to quantity or quality of sources
 Create quality and quantity protections and safeguards through policy
and/or regulations
 Ensure inter-local agreements and expansion plans for service allocation
coincide with location and timing of economic development and
residential development
 Coordinate with CAMA to actively update CAMA regulations with an
ever changing environment
 Address Sea Level Rise when making Capital Improvement decisions to
allocate financial resources most efficiently
 Long term recommendations:
 Review threats to water sources every 5 years
 Increase public access to environmental assets