21st Century Plan for Old Town Trinity

Full Draft of the Master Plan is Now Available

2009-09-01T13:48:00.003-04:00

Click on the links to the right to download the draft for public review. To submit comments or questions, send an email to Adam Stumb, Planning Director or contact him on the phone at 336-431-2841.

Day 4 - Closing Presentation

2009-05-18T14:58:00.004-04:00

The charrette team presented the preliminary recommendations of the master plan to citizens and stakeholders on Thursday evening. Full of plans and illustrations, the proposals showed participants a glimpse of the preferred future of the Old Town area if the appropriate implementing tools are engaged.

The fundamental premise is the creation of a walkable village in the historic and cultural center of the community - at the old Trinity College campus. From this point, the plan envisions the infilling of the surrounding area with walkable neighborhoods lined with mixed-use corridors. The first century of Trinity was marked by the presence of Trinity College. The second century followed with the old Trinity High School and what would become the Braxton Craven School. Now, with the advent of public sewer and the potential growth that will come to the area as a result, the 21st century will be marked by the creation of a true walkable and readily identifiable place for the entire community.

First and foremost, the plan recommends that NC 62 be immediately renamed as Main Street to better connote this area as as community street rather than as simply a state highway that you drive-through along. A future park is contemplated on City-owned property to form the southern entrance to the village center. Complete with walking trails, a playground, a veteran's memorial, and open lawn areas for community festivals, this property will hopefully serve the community for generations to come.

Surrett Drive, while expected to remain as an employment center for the City, should be upgraded with sidewalks, landscaping, and some new design controls to improve the aesthetics of the buildings. New buildings should incorporate brick in their facades and landscaping in the front yards.

And, at the entrance to the Old Town area from the south at Hopewell Church Road, higher traffic commercial development can be designed in a manner that is both pedestrian-friendly and aesthetically pleasing without making significant changes to the typical site layout.

The plan, though visionary in its proposals today, can be achieved through careful direction of the town leader through its development ordinances and infrastructure investments. Most of the plan will be implemented by the private sector through coordinated private development applications. Only a few key public investments will need to be made to achieve the overall vision.

The complete presentation and booklet of drawings created during the charrette can be downloaded from the the links to the right.

From this point, The Lawrence Group team will finalize the recommendations and create design codes to guide development into the future. Additional material will be posted on this site in the coming weeks. Stay informed and engaged. the future is now!

Day 3 - Idea Refinement

2009-05-14T08:23:00.005-04:00

As we completed the 3rd day of the charrette, the focus shifted from understanding the area and unearthing the key issues to the creation of fundamental approaches. Not surprisingly, the focus has been on how to stage the next evolution of the heart of the community, the old Trinity College campus (present Braxton Craven School). The premise is now that with the hopeful addition of growth in this area, we can expect more people and more potential needs for goods and services. Therefore, the 3rd century should be one in which the center is finally created.

This begins with the creation of a walkable core of shops, homes, civic uses, and a central green. From this point, amenities should emanate out to connect surrounding areas and destinations (neighborhoods, schools, the city park).

Today also included the preparation of illustrations to take the actual conditions of the area and show how new development can help dramatically alter the landscape of the area.

The final presentation of all of the team's recommendations will be on Thursday night at 7 pm. Attend and hear about how Trinity is preparing for the 21st century. And don't forget to bring a friend or three with you.

Day 2 - Testing Ideas

2009-05-12T19:01:00.005-04:00

As Day 2 wrapped our biggest hope is that we were able to enumerate most of the "sacred cows" in the community. Specifically, we wanted to know the highest priorities for places to save/preserve so that we could adequately plan for development/redevelopment opportunities. We identified the following sacred cows:

1. Bell Gazebo - The specific location is not as important as is the fact that it is in a place of prominence on the old campus site.
2. New Gazebo - Not location specific - could there be a more accessible location?
3. Old HS Gym on Braxton-Craven School campus - Constructed/paid for by the community, it includes a nice mural on the north side. The building is not architecturally significant but it is certainly has a lot of public sentiment tied to it.
4. 19th Century homes
5. Early 20th Century home
6. Desire to locate the Veteran's Memorial and the City Hall on the existing City property

We developed plans for the area near the interchange that included some infill housing as well as some light industrial and commercial development. Also today, the team posted up a variety of options for how to master plan the city property. Finally, at the center of everything were 3 options for the creation of the new Village Center in the heart of Old Town. Ranging from re-use of the Braxton-Craven School campus building to their complete redevelopment as mixed-use buildings, this area was clearly identified as the most important piece to the whole puzzle.

Be sure to check back tomorrow for more updates. And don't forget the closing presentation on Thursday evening at 7 pm.

Day 1 - Reconnaissance and Strategy

2009-05-11T22:30:00.003-04:00

At the beginning of each charrette our team spends the first day learning all about the area. This learning continues through the end of the charrette but the key is to identify the most important issues early. Today we discussed history and transportation. We also did a windshield survey of the "Old Town" area to help categorize the actual development opportunities. There are certainly a few, but there are not as many as some people think. Overall, like in so many other communities, the changes will likely be more surgical than comprehensive, though a proposed streetscape plan will make a big difference.

We suggested a realignment of Meadowbrook Drive to High School Drive that would not only improve congestion in the area but could also create an opportunity for a village green in the center of the community. That idea could have some legs and we'll investigate it more tomorrow.

We also created an overall strategy map - it's a way to throw a lot of ideas on paper that help to organize our other efforts.

And finally, we started to create detailed drawings for infill opportunities. Today's focus area was on parcels around the Mendenhall and NC 62 intersection. We illustrated how you can organize a new neighborhood and some mixed-use development that respects the topography and creates a wide range of housing opportunities.

On Tuesday, we will begin discussions about parks and recreation in the area as well as create more detailed drawings that will illistrate the development potential for this area in the next twenty years. Be sure to stop each day 5:30 pm to get a wrap-up of the day and help craft the future of Trinity.

Charrette Schedule is Now Posted

2009-05-05T21:14:00.004-04:00

Click on the Charrette Schedule link to the right to download the schedule of events for next week's Center City Charrette.

Members of the community and all those interested in the future of Trinity are invited to stop-by the design studio throughout the week and participate in any of the focus group meetings. The design team will work on-site creating the plan and invites the community to offer continual input and monitor the work-in progress and will be available to meet with residents, answer questions, and further refine ideas. Come by for one of the specific focus group meetings or drop in anytime from 9 am until 8 pm each day.

Monday, May 11th
9:00 am Design Team Arrive and Tours Area
10:30 am Discussion of General Issues
1:00 pm Transportation & Circulation (MPO, NCDOT, and School Traffic Officer)
2:30 pm Historic Preservation (Mayor, Interested Residents)
4:00 pm Open Design Studio
5:30 pm Daily Project Update/Design Pin-Up
6:30 pm until 8:00 pm Open Design Studio

Tuesday, May 12th
9:00 am Greenway Planning and Development (City, County, Archdale, and Thomasville Officials)
10:30 am Parks and Open Space – City Hall Park Planning
1:00 pm Codes and Design Guidelines
2:30 pm Stormwater Management
4:00 pm Open Design Studio
5:30 pm Daily Project Update/Design Pin-Up
6:30 pm until 8:00 pm Open Design Studio

Wednesday, May 13th
9:00 am Real Estate: Developers, Builders and Brokers
11:30 am Available Time Slot
1:00 pm until 5:30 pm Open Design Studio
5:30 pm Daily Project Update/Design Pin-Up
6:30 pm until 8:00 pm Open Design Studio

Thursday, May 14th
9:00 am until noon Open Design Studio
1:00 pm until 6:00 pm Studio Closed to Prepare for Closing Presentation

Thusday, May 14th: Closing Presentation at 7:00 pm
The design team will present its set of preliminary recommendations for guiding growth, development and redevelopment in this area over the next twenty years.

Plan to attend as often as you are able. We look forward to seeing you there!

A Transportation Network for Trinity: Preserving the Local Character and Sense of Community

2009-05-05T20:54:00.010-04:00

Trinity has a unique opportunity to define and create a City Center. Over the course of the next few weeks, a team of consultants will be working with the residents, Town officials, and stakeholders to define that Vision and understand how it becomes reality. It is anticipated that the City Center will be a place where citizens and visitors alike would meet, stroll the streets, eat at a café, shop, and watch the children play in the park. For all of these things to happen, the City Center must be served by a much different transportation system than the current conditions along NC 62. As we move into the charrette, the consultant team will be working with the stakeholders to develop a true “Main Street” concept for the City Center, a street that can be crossed by pedestrians and is comfortable for everyone who walks along its edges. The term “complete streets” will be used frequently, as it defines what we would envision “Main Street” to be: a street that serves all modes of transportation, whether motorized or not, and lends balance among those modes to create a place and not just a pass-through.

Very few communities have the opportunity to take a proactive position on growth and develop with intention. Like Trinity, Davidson, North Carolina has dutifully planned and has not caved into pressures to develop in a conventional manner. While Davidson’s neighbors were building commercial strip centers along busy, ever-widening highway corridors, Davidson turned away development that did not fit into the overall vision. Instead, Davidson planned its Town with close relationships among land use form, character, and transportation choices to facilitate the realization of the vision as a walkable, livable, and sustainable community.

Davidson preserved its natural and historic assets and has implemented growth on its own terms, with the goal of making a great place even better. One of the key elements that make Davidson a great place is the network of “complete streets” with bicycle and pedestrian amenities connecting with its core area. Complete streets are designed and operated to enable safe access for all users. Pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorists of all ages and abilities are able to safely move along and across a complete street. This type of smart and sustainable transportation network has proven time and time again to create the highest quality “place”.

Like Davidson, Trinity has a rare opportunity to put transportation infrastructure in place that preserves the local character and adds to the sense of community, effectively creating a transportation system that supports the desired buildout Vision. With Trinity’s Center City Master Plan, there are opportunities to take a sustainable approach to transportation that will provide convenient access and mobility for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers who are living, working and recreating in the new core area.

Trinity has already done a great job at planning an extensive network of greenway trails, and there are opportunities to build upon this good work and for these trails to interface with a network of sidewalks, multiuse pathways, and bicycle facilities throughout the Town. The vistas offered by the topography, ponds, and floodplain areas make walking and cycling attractive modes of travel around the community. These new bicycle and pedestrian connections can provide more opportunities for interaction between residents of the community and even enhance “the small town feel”. The transportation network can also knit the Town together and provide a nexus between the Old Town and New Town areas.

Trinity is conveniently located along the I-85 corridor. The regional transportation network provides opportunities for Trinity to attract residents and businesses to the area, supporting new developments of both housing and jobs. The quality regional transportation system can provide a strong foundation for an attractive, economically viable, and sustainable area. It is important, however, for us to make sure that we know where the “highway” ends and the “Main Street” begins, and this can be accomplished through careful, collaborative design during the charrette process.

The collaborative “design charrette” to be held at Town Hall from May 11th to 15th, 2009 will engage residents and stakeholders of Trinity to envision “win-win” transportation solutions that work for the entire community. The type of community-led design process is the basis of “Context Sensitive design”. Context sensitive design philosophy can be utilized to create a smart and sustainable transportation network for Trinity that blend holistically with the landscape, environment, or surrounding community. In the same way that Trinity’s greenway plan is being tied into the new sewer line construction, using a collaborative approach we may be able to identify projects that can be implemented jointly with other projects to expedite their implementation and save money.

Transportation is a key tool in shaping the built environment. In these changing economic times, the future vitality of Trinity’s Center City hinges on how well it is positioned to create the highest quality “place” and take advantage of market forces to realize an ultimate sustainable vision for the future. Trinity’s City Center can be a place where people work, shop, play, and recreate. The needs of all of these types of travelers will need to be met and balanced as part of Trinity’s upcoming planning effort.

Trinity, Davidson, and other communities big and small in this country are embracing smart and sustainable growth principals and designing communities with mobility choices. Trinity has an exciting opportunity to take a proactive approach in designing livable, context-sensitive transportation solutions as part of the upcoming Trinity Center City Master Plan.

What does Sustainability mean to Trinity?

2009-04-27T16:10:00.002-04:00

Sustainability is more than just protecting the environment and using compact fluorescent light bulbs. And it goes beyond making sure that we can afford to maintain infrastructure that is being installed today. In fact, true sustainability is about ensuring the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (World Commission on Environment and Development). It is a holistic approach to community growth and development that helps us better understand why some communities prosper over time while others have a growth spurt then wither on the vine.

Trinity is in a unique position to establish a different type of growth mantra. By establishing a unique and differentiating look and feel to our community we can help to ensure our long-term viability, keep taxes reasonable, and be a place that people want to live in for generations. And we can do this by balancing the necessities of the environment with our urban needs.

For example, the image of the Dushanbe Tea House in Boulder, CO is by most standards an economically and socially successful space with its adjacency to the rushing waters of Boulder Creek in downtown. But, by today’s one-sized-fits-all environmental regulations, the lack of a sizeable buffer to the creek would make this scene illegal to replicate.

This doesn’t mean to suggest that environmental regulations should be disregarded in the name of economics. On the contrary, all planning should strive for the highest level of achievement for each element and then calibrate to adjust for various scenarios. What isn’t shown in the image of Boulder is that the City has aggressively protected the headwaters and the entirety of the channel to the point that it enters and as it leaves the downtown (see image on lower right). This permits the creek to receive some level of pollution in the short stretch it travels through the urban environment because it is otherwise pristine on either end.

Why do we want to develop places like the Dushanbe Tea House and other compact, walkable downtowns? Because places that are energetic and full of activity are also efficient. They require fewer miles of sewer line, less electricity, and less gasoline to accomplish many tasks than the typically shopping center built miles from our homes will offer. In truth, many shopping centers often fall prey to the next, newer shopping center that attracts tenants away. This is evidenced by the fact that there are more than 140,000 stores across the United States that are currently vacant. They fell victims to the newer store which stole their market away and were then hit with a weakened economy. But don’t just blame the economy – even in the best of times the issue of big box blight was already running rampant. We have miles and miles of empty highway strips throughout the Triad.

But that is just a piece of our sustainable puzzle. Another key element is that we are able to hold taxes low for our residents and still be able to provide the services needed to maintain or improve our quality of life. To do this we need to diversify our tax base beyond our current near-exclusive reliance on residential property taxes. We will need commercial tax base to provide not only higher tax revenues with less service demands but we also need to capture all of the sales tax dollars that are currently leaving our borders. We all have to head to Thomasville, Archdale, Highpoint or beyond to get our groceries, buy clothes, or even get gas (until the Sheetz opens). And each one of those trips requires a long car ride that uses gas.

A sustainable community is therefore defined as one that maintains the integrity its natural resources over the long term, promotes a prosperous economy, and hosts a vibrant, equitable society. The Shell Corporation also defines this as “People – Planet – Profit”. Combined, this is called the Triple Bottom Line. Many local governments have considered each of the Triple-Bottom-Line elements in planning efforts – environmental, social, and economic capital, but they rarely are considered as a comprehensive approach to overall community sustainability.

We have an opportunity to change that as we embark on planning the center of Trinity. We can plan for environmental sensitivity and economic prosperity simultaneously. They need not be mutually exclusive. And, in the process we can create a center that is memorable and worth caring for - a place that will be unique - a place that will be our center. Our goal is complete sustainability, and our children and grandchildren will be thankful for our contributions to their future.

Come out and help us prepare a sustainable future for Trinity.

Key Dates:

Kickoff Public Workshop – Trinity City Hall
Monday, April 27th at 7 pm

Public Design Charrette – Trinity City Hall
Monday, May 11th – 14th

Closing Charrette Presentation – Trinity City Hall
Thursday, May 14th at 7 pm

Why Urban Design and Placemaking is Important to Trinity

2009-04-27T16:10:00.001-04:00

When people think of urban design, they often think about big cities. In truth, urban design is a vital part of a planning process for communities large and small, urban or rural. It is more comprehensive than the design of buildings and is best defined as the art of making places for people. It includes factors such as community safety, and the way places work, as well as how they look; it structures the patterns of movement and urban form, the relationships between the natural environment and the buildings within it, and above all between people and the places they inhabit. Urban design therefore involves the design of what is known as the “public realm” – the streets, squares, parking lots, town greens, parks, playgrounds and other open spaces shared by everybody in the community.

The process of urban design is intended to bring order, clarity and pleasing harmony to the public realm of the city, and to establish frameworks and processes to facilitate successful development. It is central to the proposals and policy statements in this Master Plan by illustrating what the planned future might actually look like. As such, good urban design is indivisible from good planning.

The most fundamental of all urban design techniques is the engagement of the building and its facade with the public realm. As one moves from more rural, auto-oriented areas to urban, pedestrian-oriented centers, buildings should naturally align closer to the sidewalk. Streets lined with buildings rather than parking lots provide a safer, more interesting path for pedestrians. These streets create a clearly-defined pedestrian realm not devoid of vehicular traffic, but rather appropriately balanced between the needs of each user. Under these circumstances, buildings force roadways to act as more than just automotive corridors. Instead, the structures and their accompanying sidewalks create a definitive, multi-purpose realm where pedestrians may interact—socializing, shopping, dining, or traveling—in a safe, protected manner.

We all know these places. They are the Main Streets of America. They are great places to study urban design because they were built with people in mind, often long before the age of the automobile. They have wide sidewalks, enlivened shopfronts, and a great sense of community. They are the places that Town Founder’s Day is celebrated, where our 4th of July Parade marches along, and where we celebrate the holiday season with the annual tree lighting on the square.

Yet, Trinity is a community without a defined center. We didn’t emerge as a rail-stop downtown as did so many other towns across North Carolina. Our identity is largely defined by a college campus that visually disappeared generations ago. In this wake we have a crossroads that wants to be so much more. Our challenge into the future is to create a place that says that you have arrived in a special place, a community, a “there-there”. With the precedent of so many other hamlets and villages across the south that have wonderful, walkable historic centers, we need only to travel a few miles in any direction to find a great precedent worth emulating.

Even with a great model, it is important that Trinity establishes an identity that is unique and appropriate to our culture and history. What type of lighting do we need? Should the trees be formally planted or be more naturalistic. Do our shops look more like traditional commercial areas with flat roofs, shared walls and outdoor cafes or are they more like individual buildings with pitched roofs and some front yard? Should we have on-street parking to provide convenience parking and serve as a buffer from moving cars to the pedestrian? And what type of architecture is appropriate to establish our City’s center.
These and more will be part of the discussion as we seek to plan our City’s center as it prepares for the next century. Come out and share your opinions and join in the urban design.

Key Dates:

Kickoff Public Workshop – Trinity City Hall
Monday, April 27th at 7 pm

Public Design Charrette – Trinity City Hall
Monday, May 11th – 14th

Closing Charrette Presentation – Trinity City Hall
Thursday, May 14th at 7 pm

The Planning Process: What is a Charrette?

2009-04-27T15:51:00.001-04:00

The City of Trinity is taking the next bold step in planning their future with the Center City Plan. This roughly 500 acre area, long considered the heart of the community is loosely bounded by NC 62/Interstate 85 to the south, Surrett Drive to the north and west, and Trinity Road/Sealy Drive to the northeast. It includes the historic core of the community as well as the high school (in Old Town) and a large swath of largely undeveloped land near the Interstate (New Town).

Why plan now? Very simply, the welcome extension of public sewer to serve the existing community in this area and relieve the increasing number of septic problems will also make previously undevelopable land much more attractive to developers and builders. And, given the proximity of this area to the surrounding region as well as its ease of accessibility, planners have long identified this area as the next hot zone for growth.

To best facilitate this planning process, the City will be using a planning and design charrette to engage the public and create a workable plan to guide growth over the coming years. The term charrette comes from the French, meaning “little cart.” The word’s origins are traced to an art school tradition from 19th century Paris. A cart was sent around to students’ studios to collect work to be graded by professors. Like most students, these artists and architects in training worked until the last minute and often followed the charrette through the streets making finishing touches on their work as the cart rumbled towards judgment.

The idea has been refined by architects to indicate a process on a fast-track, undertaken in the presence of their clients, in this case the property owners in the study area as well as the entire City of Trinity. By involving everyone who can enable or block decisions and by committing to produce actionable plans within a set timeframe, charrettes can save months – even years – of tedious back-and-forth negotiations and redesign. They also provide an experience that’s increasingly rare for most people: they get to be involved in something organized especially to listen to their ideas and to act on them immediately.

A kickoff public workshop for Trinity’s Center City Plan will occur on the evening of Monday, April 27th to give the general public an opportunity to hear more about the plan and help to generate some ideas to manage growth in this area. It will then be followed by a four-day charrette on May 11th -14th. The charrette consists of an opening presentation and public workshop to be held on, numerous public meetings, design sessions, evening pin-up sessions, and a closing presentation. This will give the design team the most efficient opportunity to meet with a large number of interest groups and citizens, solicit their input, and produce a detailed series of high quality recommendations, plans and renderings that accurately reflect the vision of the community.

There are four guiding principles for charrettes:

INVOLVE EVERYONE FROM THE START: Anyone who might have an opinion or be affected by the plan should be involved from the very beginning. By making people roll up their sleeves and work with the design team, the process gains mutual authorship and shared vision.

WORK CONCURRENTLY AND CROSS-FUNCTIONALLY: The design team should have many different specialties, but during the charrette, everyone becomes generalists, assimilating everyone’s expertise and reflecting the wisdom of each participant.

WORK IN SHORT FEEDBACK LOOPS: The public needs to be able to propose an idea and see it designed for review in a short period of time. The charrette process typically includes pin-up critique sessions every evening to garner input on the preferred direction based upon what was learned during the day.

WORK IN DETAIL: Only through designing to a level of detail that includes both the details of building types, blocks, and public spaces as well as the big picture of circulation, transportation, land use, and major public amenities can fatal flaws be reduced or eliminated.

The keys to a successful plan include a balanced mix of careful analysis of the existing conditions and constraints; extensive and meaningful public engagement; visionary, but practical planning and design; and financially and politically feasible implementation. Regardless of the scale of the project—from a redevelopment of a block in downtown to a county-wide comprehensive plan —each effort must maintain this balance.

A charrette raises expectations. It builds enthusiasm. It draws clear lines of accountability. Because everyone knows who made the plan, everyone knows who’s responsible if it goes sour. When a developer or a government body chooses a charrette process, it means investing resources to assemble and support a team of experts through four to ten days of near round-the-clock work sessions and community discussions. It’s a leap of faith in the citizens, in the design team, and in the process itself. But, the potential rewards are great. The pay-off is not only in terms of time and money saved but in the pleasure of partnering with an entire community on a project everyone can be proud of.

Key Dates:

Kickoff Public Workshop – Trinity City Hall
Monday, April 27th at 7 pm

Public Design Charrette – Trinity City Hall
Monday, May 11th – 14th

Closing Charrette Presentation – Trinity City Hall
Thursday, May 14th at 7 pm