The proposed plan also highlights undervalued parcels of land that could be marketed for industrial purposes.
One such area, Halifax Development Commission Executive Director Cathy Scott said during a steering committee meeting this evening, lies just south of the Music and Entertainment Overlay District.
“Economic development is tough,” Scott said during the meeting. “We're competing with 99 other counties. We have some real assets here. We really have to market ourselves.”
The identification of undervalued land, she said, will help. “Roanoke Rapids is a hub. It is great to know we have an opportunity to grow south.”
Scott said after the meeting that having these parcels mapped out, as per the plan in the overhaul, will give council a guideline. “If approved, it will make rezoning requests so much easier.”
City Planning and Development Director Kelly Lasky told the committee a mixed use of residential and commercial would fall in well with the overall aim of the plan's health component by having places people can walk to.
Afterward, she said, the idea would be to have residential clusters with commercial development setbacks in place that still encourage walking or biking.
The steering committee is to the point it is ready for a final review of the plan before it goes to the planning board and then to city council for consideration.
Goals of the committee in drafting the plan, which hasn't been revised since 1989, include maintaining all infrastructure for water, sewer and drainage; focus on improvement of the Roanoke Avenue area, and support the reuse of buildings currently being underutilized.
The goals also focus on maintaining the city's current transportation system, and protecting the city's existing residential areas.
The comprehensive land use plan seeks to develop the former WestPoint Stevens site and the entertainment district, while preserving the city's historic district.
It also seeks to support an environment that is friendly to business and industrial development, while preserving the city's environmental quality.
