With With Linkages Through: Ayden Bethel Bethel Farmville Grifton Simpson Winterville Prepared For The Citizens Of Pitt County By The Pitt County Planning Department In Collaboration With The East Carolina University Planning Program Pitt County 2005 Greenway Plan PITT COUNTY GREENWAY PLAN 2025 Recommended for Adoption by the Grifton Board of Commissioners December 7, 2005 Pitt County Board of Commissioners Recommended for Adoption Jimmy Garris, Chair by the Ayden Beth B. Ward, Vice-Chair Board of Commissioners Glenn Bowen December 12, 2005 Tom Coulson David Hammomd Recommended for Adoption Eugene James by the Winterville Melvin McLawhorn Board of Aldermen John Minges December 12, 2005 Mark W. Owens. Jr. Recommended for Adoption Pitt County Planning Board by the Farmville Lyman Hardee, Chair Board of Commissioners Benjamin Forrest, Vice-Chair January 3, 2006 Don Baker Jane Barnhill Recommended for Adoption William Chapman by the Village of Simpson Larry Dilda Council David Harris January 9, 2005 George Hines Jimmy Hughes Recommended for Adoption Steve Little by the Bethel Ron Price Board of Commissioners February 7, 2006 Ayden Board of Commissioners Bethel Board of Commissioners Recommended for Adoption by the Pitt County Planning Board Farmville Board of Commissioners January 18, 2006 Grifton Board of Commissioners Adopted by the Pitt County Board of Commissioners Village Of Simpson Council February 20, 2006 Winterville Board of Aldermen Pitt County 2005 Greenway Plan 2 Pitt County 2005 Greenway Plan Table of Contents I. Executive Summary Appendix A: Statistical Summary of Proposed Greenways II. Introduction a. What are Greenways? Appendix B: Maps b. Benefits of Greenways Map 1 – Overview of Pitt County Greenways i. Health and Recreation Benefits Map 2 - Town of Ayden ii. Flood Control Benefits Map 3 - Town of Bethel iii. Water Quality Benefits Map 4 - Town of Falkland iv. Economic Benefits Map 5 - Town of Farmville v. Plant and Animal Habitat Benefits Map 6 - Town of Grifton vi. Safety Benefits Map 7 - Town of Simpson vii. Education Benefits Map 8 - Town of Winterville viii. Transportation Benefits Map 9 - Briery Creek and Tranters Creek Area c. Trends Influencing Greenway Planning and Map 10 - Chicod Creek Area Development Map 11 - Conetoe Creek Area Map 12 - Contentnea Creek Area III. Vision, Goals, and Objectives Map 13 - East Tar River Area a. The Vision b. Goals and Objectives Appendix C: Funding Sources for Greenway Trails IV. Greenway Trail Design and Development a. Greenway System Components Appendix D: Description of Pitt County i. Greenway Corridors a. Geographic Description ii. Greenway Trails b. Drainage Basins iii. Greenway Destinations c. Climate iv. Greenway Connectors d. Ecological Resources b. Greenway Trail Types and Design e. Historic and Cultural Resources c. Proposed Greenway Development Estimates f. Hazard History and Concerns For Mitigation V. Operational Policies and Procedures g. Socio-Demographics a. Land Acquisition h. Existing Greenway Systems and Related i. Management Plans ii. Regulation iii. Acquisition Appendix E: Policies and Regulations b. Greenway Management i. Land Management Affecting the Plan ii. Maintenance iii. Liability Appendix F: Citizen Involvement iv. Safety and Security a. Public Input b. Identifying Stakeholders VI. Plan Recommendations a. Land Acquisition Recommendations Appendix G: Glossary b. Financing Recommendations c. General Recommendations Appendix H: Acknowledgements Pitt County 2005 Greenway Plan 3 Pitt County 2005 Greenway Plan I. Executive Summary The State of North Carolina and Pitt County are continuing to experience rapid growth in population and development that began over the last decade. By 2020, Pitt County’s current population of 133,798 is projected to increase by 53,000 to about 186,000. In some parts of North Carolina, the percentage of urbanized land has increased several times faster than population growth. The number of farms in North Carolina has also drastically reduced over the last twenty five years. Between 1992 and 1997, rural land in the state was developed at a rate of 18 acres per hour according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service. North Carolina ranked fifth in the nation in the number of acres converted (781,600 acres) over this time period. As North Carolina and Pitt County grow, the landscape becomes more fragmented, the amount of available land decreases and the cost of land increases. The need to protect and preserve green and open space literally becomes more urgent every day. Greenways are linear corridors of open space and land that are either natural, such as along rivers and streams, or human-made, such as abandoned railways and utility corridors. Greenway corridors can range from undeveloped areas of land to areas that include paved or unpaved trails. They can provide vegetated buffers to protect natural habitat, improve water quality and reduce the impacts of flooding in high-risk areas. They allow public access for recreation or bicycle and pedestrian transportation, nature trails, horse riding trails or large areas of preserved natural habitat. Greenways offer a pleasant, healthy and safe alternative for driving to local schools, parks, libraries, stores or other places that people visit on a regular basis and improve the overall quality of life in an area. Community character and quality of life are important assets for our communities to help them attract appropriate development in the future. The manner in which the communities in Pitt County manage growth will fundamentally affect their economic competitiveness and their long-term quality of life for years to come. The creation of a greenway system is a complex task that involves many different groups and individuals, therefore, it is imperative to build broad community support for the plan, prioritize areas for implementation, and employ creative and innovative methods of funding and creating the greenways. The development and implementation of a greenway plan is an ambitious endeavor that may require a very long term commitment (up to 20 years or more) by the County and its citizens. It is also understood that property owners must share a willingness to locate a greenway or trail on or near their property for successful development of the Greenway Plan. The Pitt County Greenway Plan is intended to serve as a guide for the establishment of a countywide network of greenways and trails. It will also support County efforts to achieve other goals in maintaining the natural environment, wetland preservation, and floodplain protection in the county. This proposed plan will also help to link people to the County’s natural, recreational, cultural and commercial resources by connecting the waterways, open spaces and sensitive areas of the county with the existing recreation and greenway plans of regional and local governments and organizations. The Pitt County Comprehensive Land Use Plan of 2002 included a goal for the establishment of greenways in the County and provided the impetus for the development of this Plan. This Plan also serves to expand the City of Greenville’s existing greenway system and proposes extensions from the corridors cited in the 2004 Greenville Greenway Plan. This plan is the first greenway plan for Pitt County and it recommends the consideration of approximately 215 linear miles of greenway network primarily along some of the major, critical streams and rivers in the County. Pitt County 2005 Greenway Plan 4 Pitt County 2005 Greenway Plan The proposed greenways in this plan consist of approximately 155 linear miles within unincorporated areas of the County, approximately 45 linear miles within the Extraterritorial Jurisdiction (ETJ) of county municipalities, and an additional 14 linear miles within city limits of county municipalities. Approximately fifty-five percent (117 miles) of proposed greenways would be designated primarily as recreation; forty-two percent (90 miles) of proposed greenways would be intended to serve primarily as conservation corridors, while the remaining three percent (8 miles) would consist of primarily sidewalk connectors in urban areas. An important aspect of this plan is the potential utilization of the travel-ways that parallel the extensive system of drainage laterals within the County. The drainage laterals are the dredged and channelized segments of the major stream systems in the county. Almost forty-four percent (51 miles) of proposed recreation greenways in this plan are based on drainage laterals that are virtually ready for conversion to use as greenways and would require relatively minimal costs to develop a bare earth or stabilized trail surface at approximately $3,000/mile to develop. Greenways and trails are acquired and constructed to serve a public conservation, recreation or transportation purpose. Therefore, the owner and manager of most of the trails and greenways in Pitt County would be under the jurisdiction of the respective municipalities and local governments within the County. Local governments may obtain their property for trails and greenways by various methods. Each method varies in terms of the transferring process; such as land use management, land use regulation, and land acquisition. There are also some financial incentives in the form of tax credits for land owners who donate land or easements. The most successful method of funding greenways is to combine private sector funds with funds from local, state, and federal sources. Many communities involved with greenway implementation will