PITTSBORO, NC— The exciting process to plan the future of Southeastern Chatham County is underway, and Chatham County wants the community to be informed and engaged throughout the project.
The Plan Moncure Small Area Plan is a priority project of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners, which it initiated upon the announcement of the VinFast plant on the eastern side of the Triangle Innovation Point (TIP) site in March 2022. The County’s 2017 Comprehensive Plan, Plan Chatham, provided that a “small area plan” like this would be created upon the occupancy of the first major tenant at the TIP site.
The project team asks the Chatham County community to join them in this important planning process. It is a chance to focus on the Moncure region of the county, to develop a vision for its future of the next 20 years, and to respond to the VinFast project in a deliberate and informed way. The consulting team hired to undertake this process consists of community planners, transportation experts, water and sewer engineers, and a market analyst who are developing baseline data and will, based on the community’s input, propose several policy options to the County for consideration as it plans for the future of this area.
An action plan, public engagement strategy, and project schedule for Plan Moncure was led by the consulting team during the second half of 2022. These efforts resulted in the “Phase 1 Assessment and Action Plan,” which can be downloaded by visiting https://www.recodechathamnc.org/copy-of-documents-work-products.
Plan Moncure Community Engagement Meetings
Hearing from the community about their vision for the future of Moncure is a critical component to the creation of this Small Area Plan. The project team already has been meeting with stakeholders in the community, including residents, business owners, and church leaders, to begin the process of receiving community input. The project team will continue to host several opportunities throughout the planning process, inviting community members to discuss the project, answer questions, and provide more information.
The first community meeting is on March 21st with an open house from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Moncure School, located at 600 Moncure School Road, Moncure, NC 27559. The project team will provide a brief presentation two times during the open house, with the remainder of the time set aside for one-on-one, informal discussions with team experts and the public. Additional community meetings will be held in the upcoming months.
“We want to engage with all members of the community throughout the Plan Moncure process so that they are directly involved in their area’s future following the development of the Triangle Innovation Point mega site,” said Chance Mullis, Chatham County Planner and Plan Moncure Project Manager. “This plan will ensure that the county and project leaders hear the voices of the community members and draft a policy framework that implements that vision.”
Plan Moncure Website and E-notification
The project team has launched a website where all Plan Moncure updates will be placed at https://www.recodechathamnc.org/planmoncure. On the Plan Moncure homepage, community members can sign up to receive project updates directly to their email.
Plan Moncure Information Kiosk
County staff also have constructed a kiosk at the Moncure Solid Waste & Recycling Collection Center located at 2855 Old US 1 Highway, Moncure, NC 27559. The kiosk will display project information and upcoming community meeting details.
Questions about Plan Moncure may be directed to Chance Mullis, project manager, at PlanMoncure@chathamcountync.gov or at (919) 545-8366.
