GOAL #1: Vibrant downtown
1.01: Implement key and feasible recommendations from Downtown Vision Plan (2018) The 2018 Downtown Vision Plan includes a number of recommendations that provide opportunities for the City to strengthen the downtown area as a central gathering place for the community. Advancing this work is a key task. Some of the proposed projects in the current Downtown Vision Plan may be difficult to carry out, so an update to the plan should be considered.
1.02: Work with Downtown Mebane Development Corporation (DMDC) and other community partners to develop and implement strategy to extend downtown to Mebane Community Park along West Clay Street Work in partnership to prepare a strategy to extend downtown with its main street-style street-scape design, building design, and mix of commercial, office, and residential uses west to the entrance of the Mebane Community Park to connect these two community assets. The approach might combine updated development standards with public and private investments and other policies and projects to advance this work.
1.03: Evaluate the development of a form-based code or design standards to promote expansion of downtown and development of mixed-use nodes Examine the potential use of development standards for downtown and planned mixed use nodes that emphasize high-quality design and the physical form of development to create a walkable, mixed-use environment. If the exploration is positive, prepare a form-based code or design standards for these parts of the community as identified on the updated Future Land Use Map.
1.04: Work with DMDC and other community partners to help catalyze rehabilitation/reuse of upper floors in downtown and/or possible private-public parking partnerships Explore implementation of incentives such as a Downtown Opportunities Fund and/or other strategies to help encourage building rehabilitation and partnerships to provide additional parking as needed in the downtown area.
1.05: Work with DMDC and other community partners to conduct a space inventory to identify a downtown public space revitalization project Assess publicly owned land downtown to identify a site that could be revitalized through updated design and investment. Define potential uses, purposes, and programming, and develop a funding plan for consideration by the City Council.
1.06: Develop initiative to promote infill housing in the downtown Collaborate with public and private partners to support the development of infill housing in a manner consistent with the design of downtown in manner that transitions appropriately to adjacent residential neighborhoods. Activities might include a market study, site inventory, streamlined development regulations for small-scale infill housing projects, and public and private investments.
1.07: Acquire land for future public parking in downtown Prepare an updated downtown parking study, and implement the resulting recommendations.
GOAL #2: Safe, walkable, and
bikeable streets
2.01: Implement key recommendations from City of Mebane Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation Plan (2024) and 2040 Comprehensive Transportation Plan (2018) Pick several of the top projects listed in the City’s most recent transportation plans, and find the funding to build them. Update and create small area plans for new roadway recommendations. This includes updating the Cameron Lane Thoroughfare Plan and drafting a new plan for a roadway connection from Lake Latham Road to the NC-119 Bypass.
2.02: Utilize local and NCDOT resurfacing projects as opportunity to improve mobility for all users Help create more complete streets with additional transportation options in a cost-efficient manner by leveraging planned repaving projects to reconfigure existing right of way to add bike lanes, turn lanes, and other transportation facilities.
2.03: Seek funding from MPOs and/or NCDOT for several high-scoring transportation projects Leverage regional, state, and federal funding to help deliver needed transportation projects.
2.04: Leverage appropriate development payments in lieu to use as a match for local pedestrian and bicycle projects In cases where it makes sense to accept payments in lieu of construction of new transportation facilities from developers, leverage these resources as a match to help secure regional, state, and federal funds.
2.05: Evaluate whether to levy vehicle registration fee and use proceeds for transportation purposes Assess whether to authorize a local vehicle registration fee as allowed under state law to generate matching funds to help build needed transportation projects.
2.06: Evaluate potential funding and financing options to advance transportation projects Assess other funding options such as general fund expenditures, general obligation bonds, special assessments, and other techniques and resources to build needed transportation facilities.
2.07: Conduct traffic safety analysis to identify opportunities for appropriate traffic calming measures and/or safety programs Advance the goal of reducing or eliminating transportation injuries and deaths by identifying unsafe locations in the community and installing safety measures to improve them.
2.08: Conduct gap analysis to identify links to connect existing segments of pedestrian and bicycle facilities Identify missing links in the system of sidewalks, trails, and bike lanes, and identify ways to close them to create a connected network that serves the community.
GOAL #3: Protected natural areas
3.01: Connect with potential partner organizations to explore possible collaboration to protect local green space Work with local partners to identify and protect essential green space in the community to help protect water supplies, reduce flooding, protect trees, and provide more passive recreational opportunities.
3.02: Evaluate possible agricultural economic development project with Alamance and Orange Counties Identify and implement collaborative project that helps support rural economies through agricultural product development, agritourism, or other means, while bringing more customers to city businesses.
3.03: Update standards to encourage conservation subdivisions in environmentally sensitive areas such as watersheds Review and revise existing cluster development standards to refine the approach to allow for development while protecting watershed lands and other environmentally sensitive areas.
3.04: Evaluate whether to expand tree installation and protection standards in UDO Review and revise the City’s tree protection and replanting standards as appropriate to protect more native trees and preserve the tree canopy to help provide shade and maintain community appearance.
GOAL #4: Celebrated cultural history and community character
4.01: Establish Team Mebane initiative to celebrate what people like about the community Help build local pride through an initiative that celebrates what people love about the community to help energize participation in community improvement pro-jects.
4.02: Evaluate whether to establish design standards in UDO to protect character of historic neighborhoods Review characteristics of historic neighborhoods that people want to protect and explore potential design standards to help preserve those features.
4.03: Establish community matching grant program for self-directed improvements such as historic markers, small outdoor gathering places, and public art Work to empower local residents and businesses to improve the community by offering matching grants to catalyze creative projects that make Mebane a better place.
4.04: Work with partner organizations and other experts to celebrate historic features of the community Honor the history of Mebane by working with local groups to recognize local historic features and use them to help tell the story of the community.
GOAL #5: Plentiful recreation
5.01: Implement key recommendations from Recreation and Parks Comprehensive Master Plan (2024) The 2024 Recreation and Parks Comprehensive Master Plan includes a number of recommendations that represent valuable opportunities for the City to continue to improve its recreation programs and parks system. The City should pick several key projects from this list and develop the necessary funding resources to advance this work.
5.02: Investigate opportunity for park in south part of city A key opportunity identified in both the 2024 Recreation and Parks Comprehensive Master Plan and in the Mebane 2045 Comprehensive Plan was the need for a major park on the south side of the city. This project should identify the desired type of park, location, funding, and design based on the Recreation and Parks Comprehensive Master Plan, and recruit potential partners to help fund it.
5.03: Evaluate potential funding and financing options to advance recreation and parks projects The City has done important work in recent years to identify key recreation and park needs for the community in the years ahead. Now the City has an opportunity to evaluate potential funding sources in order to advance some of these key improvements.
5.04: Make additional trail connections to sidewalk network and greenways A key task for the City is linking its greenway system to neighborhood sidewalks to connect local facilities with the city-wide network. The City should identify some key opportunities to do this, and design and fund projects to make this happen.
GOAL #6: Welcoming and inclusive
community
6.01: Collaborate with community partners to support projects to celebrate cultural traditions in community Build appreciation of all cultures in the community through special projects involving food, crafts, and/ or other activities. Work with community partners to pilot one or two events or projects a year, and build on this work.
6.02: Collaborate with partners to study the market for expanded and diversified food service and dining options Prepare a market study for new types of cuisine and facility options (e.g. restaurants, food trucks, etc.) in collaboration with partner organizations to identify opportunities to expand dining options and help celebrate different cultural traditions.
6.03: Work with counties and other organizational partners to help implement action plan to address needs of aging population In collaboration with Alamance and Orange Counties and other partners, prioritize actions to make Mebane more senior-friendly to help better serve this growing segment of the community population. Opportunities for improvement might address transportation, the built environment, and programs, among others.
6.04: Assess in-person social infrastructure and identify ways to enhance social connectivity and civic engagement Combat growing social isolation by evaluating the existing social infrastructure and develop ways to help people in the community connect with one another and participate more actively in civic affairs.
GOAL #7: Flourishing and innovative local businesses
7.01: Collaborate with organizational partners to advance entrepreneur assistance programs Work with partner organizations to provide support services that help catalyze development of small businesses and new businesses.
7.02: Conduct industrial and commercial land capacity analysis to help identify land supply needs and zone to meet them Prepare study to estimate current land available for industrial and commercial uses and how much will be needed based on market projections in the years ahead. Then identify adequate acreage in the Future Land Use Map and Zoning Map to accommodate this development.
7.03: Review UDO to support emerging business opportunities and pop-up/micro retail arrangements Identify ordinance provisions that would support the development of small-scale and emerging businesses, including micro retail formats such as cottage retail spaces. Then update the Unified Development Ordinance to facilitate these development types in an appropriate manner in suitable locations.
7.04: Assess permit review procedures to look for ways to streamline them without sacrificing quality Explore ways to make development review procedures more efficient without sacrificing the quality of review. Then get input from stakeholders and work with appointed and elected boards to update the Unified Development Ordinance to implement the revised procedures.
7.05: Periodically review conditional zoning process used by City (also included as 10.04) Examine the conditional zoning process to identify potential ways to improve it to support local business development. Then get input from stakeholders and work with appointed and elected boards to update the Unified Development Ordinance to implement the revised procedures.
7.06: Encourage continued development of co-working space including addition of possible incubator function Work with organizational partners to support the continued availability and expansion of co-working space to aid small business development. Encourage the provision of business incubator services to help new businesses grow and develop.
GOAL #8: Sustainable and dependable
infrastructure
8.01: Identify one or several key projects from the US70 Multimodal Corridor Study (2024) to pursue in partnership with other organizations The US70 Multimodal Corridor Study (2024) includes a number of potential transportation pro-jects that represent an opportunity for the City of Mebane to work with partner organizations to improve the US70 corridor. The City and its partners should pick several of these projects and implement them.
8.02: Align utility extension priorities with new Future Land Use Map and new Long Range Utility Plan Coordinate the extension of water and sewer service with the policies included in the new Future Land Use Map and the new Long Range Utility Plan to help ensure that land use considerations and utility service provision factors are both taken into account as part of these investment decisions.
8.03: Encourage private service providers to expand local broadband service Work with private service providers to increase availability and access to broadband service in the community. In North Carolina, local governments are prohibited from providing this service directly and so must partner to support this work.
8.04: Prioritize storm-water management pro-jects to replace aging infrastructure and reduce local flooding/flood risk
Ensure the continued proper functioning of stormwater management facilities by rehabilitating and replacing aging lines and making other improvements to reduce flooding.
8.05: Continue to implement and update Mebane Wastewater Capacity Policy
Ensure continued phasing of access to Mebane’s available wastewater treatment capacity in a manner consistent with City policies to ensure balanced growth and fuller utilization of City’s available utility capacity.
8.06: Continue conducting pavement condition study of Mebane City street system to rank resurfacing and repairs Continue to prioritize resurfacing and repairs of local streets with the help of a regularly updated pavement condition study to make appropriate and efficient use of public resources.
GOAL #9: Range of community services
9.01: Continue business recruitment/retention program Continue to work to retain existing businesses and attract desirable new companies to the community.
9.02: Develop Long-Range Personnel Plan to program expanded staffing needed as city grows Plan for City staffing needs to serve a growing population by preparing a long-range personnel plan in the same way that the City plans for major capital projects.
9.03: Expand project delivery resources and capabilities to catalyze effective plan implementation Continue to develop the City’s capability to manage and successfully complete projects to help ensure successful implementation of the new comprehensive plan and other City plans. Do this by using techniques such as providing staff training on project management techniques, developing a project portfolio management system, providing small-dollar funds to clarify project designs so that initiatives can get underway, and providing progress reports to keep projects moving forward to successful completion.
9.04: Secure partnerships to advance delivery of transit services in Mebane Work collabora-tively to develop appropriate transit service for Mebane.
9.05: Continue to explore and advocate for siting an AMTRAK station in Mebane Work with transportation and community partners to build support for developing a local AMTRAK station.
9.06: Review key implementation projects for Mebane in updated Eno-Haw Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan Identify some key implementation projects that will increase Mebane’s resiliency to include in the updated regional hazard mitigation plan, and work to advance them on the ground.
9.07: Explore the development of Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) to help with community preparedness Evaluate whether to form teams of local volunteers to train and support so that they can better help their neighbors and the community before, during, and after a natural disaster or other local emergency.
GOAL #10: Abundant and affordable
housing choices
10.01: Work with community partners to develop a community land trust to help protect affordable housing where neighborhood interest exists Support and empower neighborhoods that want to protect and develop affordable housing by helping them create a community land trust to provide low-cost ownership and rental options, particularly for community residents.
10.02: Review UDO to identify opportunities for expanding housing options Look for opportunities to support more housing options in the community through revisions to the Unified Development Ordinance.
10.03: Support the development of Accessory Dwelling Units through the use of pre-approved plans and other techniques Explore ways to help expand the development of garage apartments and other accessory dwelling units (ADUs) by offering pre-approved plans and other means.
10.04: Periodically review conditional zoning process used by City (also included as 7.05) Examine the conditional zoning process to identify potential ways to improve it to allow more housing choices. Then get input from stakeholders and work with appointed and elected boards to update the Unified Development Ordinance to implement the revised procedures.
10.05: Assist non-profit housing developers with identifying potential land for affordable housing Support non-profit housing developers and other community partners in identifying and securing sites to build affordable housing in the community.
