BEN H. BRITT, JR., DDS, PA

This past Wednesday night at the new convention center in downtown Raleigh, the city planner’s vision for Raleigh’s future was unveiled. The overall purpose for the Raleigh 2030 plan is to shape the city into more concentrated areas which would cut down on urban sprawl and in effect cut city maintenance bills.

The areas that the city will use to concentrate the population are listed as urban centers. These urban centers are downtown Raleigh, Brier Creek, North Hills, Crabtree Valley, west Raleigh, Cameron Village and North Carolina State University, Triangle Town Center, and New Bern Avenue near WakeMed.

So, what does being an urban center mean for those of us in the Brier Creek area. It means that we should expect a lot of new neighbors. Raleigh expects to build between 72,000 and 120,000 new homes by 2030 and wants 60% of these to be built in these new urban centers. These new homes will be smaller, and built closer to each other and to major roads. There will also be an emphasis placed on non-automobile transportation which includes mass transit.

As far as Raleigh goes, this is a really bold step for shaping what is an ever growing city. However, nationwide, this is a very common occurance as most major cities are pushing similar plans.

I, for one, have lived in North Carolina my entire life and have been here in Raleigh for the past 12 years. Like many of you, I have watched this city seemingly triple in size in the past few years bringing with it some of the joys of big city life and the sorrows of an infrastructure that struggles to keep up. As for this plan, I hope that there is a commitment on the part of the city to invest in the infrastructure that will make this all possible. If they do, I believe that we can have a city that blends a unique mixture of big city amenities while still maintaining a little southern charm.

For more information on this topic or to download the entire 2030 plan for our city, go to
www.planningraleigh2030.com

Until next time…

Dr. B