Agenda - 02-16-1981 - Laserfiche WebLink

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APPENDIX A Activity Centers Because access by motor vehicles to activity centers is essential , the most important consideration in placing these centers is the transportation system. Activity centers should be.located along major thoroughfares which can accommodate the high level of traffic flow. If possible they should be located so that bus service may be provided to them. Because it is a Town policy to avoid strip commercial development and concentrate commercial uses and activities in centers, activity centers should be spaced a minimum of one mile apart (see figure 3) . This provides each activity center with a minimum service radius of one-half mile, which should provide a reasonable economic base for the center. While this spacing represents the ideal , in fact, the density of development of the land immediately surrounding the center and the economic viability of the urban area will be important in determining the final spacing and service radii for activity centers. The Land Use Map shows thirteen activity centers: (1 ) Central Business District (CBD) ( 8) Watts (2) University Mall-Kroger Plaza , ( 9) Pittsboro Road (3) Legion Road (10) Ephesus Church (4) Eastowne ' (11 ) Weaver Dairy (5) Glen Lennox (12) Parker Road (6) Town & Country (13) Timberline (7) NC 86 The first six centers are well developed and the location of each is already determined although they may expand in the future. The CBD, University Mall- Kroger, Legion Road, and Eastowne activity centers serve both regional and subcommunity needs. For the next two activity centers, NC 86 and Watts, there are some existing commercial uses in the area. The final location of the activity center may be anywhere in the vicinity of these existing uses. Finally, the last four activity centers are the most tentative in location. While approximate locations for the last seven centers are indicated on the Land Use Map, the final locations will be determined by economic forces that cannot be accurately predicted. The Land Use Plan, however, does recommend activity centers somewhere in the vicinity of the indicated locations, along the major thorough- , fares and in keeping with the location and spacing criteria discussed above. With the thirteen activity centers, it is anticipated that all residential development will be within approximately 1/2 mile of an activity center. It was decided not to adopt a minimum or maximum site size for activity centers. The squares on the Land Use Map represent 25 acre sites. Existing shopping areas at Town and Country (4.5 acres) and Glen Lennox (6 acres) are considered inadequate in size to function properly as activity centers. Ten acres was one minimum site size standard that was not adopted. However, a 10 to 25 acre standard may serve as a flexible guideline for judging the adequacy of a proposed center. The size of the proposed service area, the density of surrounding development and the uses proposed for the activity center should be considered in setting the final size of a center. Careful consideration should also be given to expansion capability of the site. A small site, adequate at first, may not be adequate once the surrounding area