Agenda - 11-09-1999 - 4 - Laserfiche WebLink

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6 and water services provided by the City at some point in the future. Likewise, the UGA represents the area that the City will likely annex in the future. . A. UGA Policy and City Council Goals .~ ~ ~ ~ . Durham's urban growth policy is simple and direct: prohibit the extension of public vyater and sewer utilities outside of the UGA. The City Code makes exceptions for extensions~to schools, industries and propertfes.with existing health hazards from failing wells or septic .systems. The fundamental purpose of the UGA is to communicate to community leaders and citizens where the City prefers to grow. The 2020 Plan's Community Growth Map shows the UGA, indicating the boundary between future urban and suburban neighborhoods and rural areas. The UGA and urban growth policies directly support three of the City Council's adopted goals: • To improve the livability of the City by managing the City s growth, protecting and preserving the environment and maximizing use of public infrastructure. • To provide economic development activities that increase citizen access to high quality jobs while increasing the City's tax base. • To support the success of the community goals by maximizing the effectiveness and ef~ j`tciency of the City s workforce, programs; facilities and financial assets. Establishing the UGA formally communicates to property. owners and developers the... City's preferred location for urban land uses and future extension of public utilities. This information assists developers in particular in planning for private development projects related to housing and employment centers. The information also helps managers of public services and facilities plan for logical extension as the City grows. The UGA also protects sensitive environmental resources, such as drinking water supply reservoirs, by directing growth elsewhere. In addition, the UGA increasingly delineates service area boundaries or municipal boundaries of other jurisdictions. B. The 2020 Plan A central theme of the 2020 Plan (adopted in December, 1995) is to stimulate new development in and around regional transit corridors and to encourage less reliance on auto travel. The 2020 Plan generally encourages future growth closer to the already built-up 'areas of Durham County and away from rural and sensitive enviroimnental areas.. It also 'recognizes that some continued suburban growth is desirable and inevitable because suburban areas continue to be attractive choices for many citizens. However, the 2020 Plan calls for a UGA boundary that doesn't~expand significantly as a way to encourage . ., development in more central areas. The 2020 Plan identifies one area for UGA expansion and two areas for UGA contraction, and these are described in~Section E. below. C. Setting the UGA Boundary Durham desires to manage a logical expansion of the City, providing opportunities for developing its tax base.while protecting sensitive environmental resources. Since the.mid- 1980s, Durham lias relied upon several general policies in establishing the UGA boundary, including agreements with surrounding jurisdictions; public service ei~ciency and water supply watershed protection. These three policies identify limits and opportunities for 2 , • :~ .