 A New Vision for Downtown Carrboro - The Follow Up Presentation  November 11, 2001 Dan Burden of Walkable Communities returned to Carrboro today for a follow up presentation of the Downtown Visioning Workshop. Using data compiled at the initial workshop held here in September, he explored possibilities that include 4 to 5 story multi-purpose buildings, roundabouts, and a number of other ideas he and his staff feel would work to the advantage of our downtown community. More than 150 people, most from Carrboro, were on hand at Century Hall to hear what Burden had to say about the future of downtown Carrboro. Folks were encouraged to ask questions during the presentation, and many took advantage of the opportunity to receive clarification on points or voice their concerns over the possibilities that were being presented. 
"I think Dan did a great follow up," James Harris, Economic Development Manager for the Town of Carrboro, said in an interview Sunday morning. "The thing folks need to keep in mind is that these changes won't be happening overnight. It will take years to implement them, with both developers and people from the town contributing their input. None of these changes will happen without plenty of chances for folks in the community to sit down at the table with the planners and respond to their ideas." Not everyone was as positive about the follow up presentation. "I don't want to see the Citgo gas station replaced by a Ben and Jerry's," says newly re-elected Alderman Jacquie Gist. "I don't want to see Carrboro turned into a boutique town. This really concerns me," she stated in a conversation after the presentation. "What some of these developers have in mind really bothers me." Gist is not alone in her apprehension. While Carrboro does want to strive to be a well-rounded, diverse community with plenty of arts and loads of green space, Ben & Jerry's is not our style. There are some folks in our community who feel the town has been bamboosled by once again paying outside consultants thousands of dollars for information we could've figured out on our own. Alderman Alex Zaffron disagrees. "It can be difficult to accomplish what we did without someone from the outside participating," he said in a conversation Monday. "While there probably are lots of folks who could come up with a multitude of ideas, in a case like this we really need someone who is removed from the situation to give us a different perspective. I believe the entire process was very successful in that it brought many folks out to voice their opinions that we hadn't heard from before. The question and answer process addressed many issues we may not have thought of. I'm pleased with what we have accomplished up until now." Dan Burton and his associates have the next 30 days to compile the information into a final report that will be presented to the community. The bottom line is that it's up to the folks who live and work here to look at what's in the best interest for the future of Carrboro. We're all aware that our tax base needs to broaden to relieve the burden on homeowners here in Carrboro, but we need to figure out a way of doing that without losing our down-home charm. There are enough creative minds in Carrboro to figure out a way to satisfy both ways of thinking. Finding the perfect balance between growing and keeping our unique character isn't out of the realm of possibility. As for carrboro.com... We were surprised to see 3 of our pictures used in the presentation at the Charrette. Not only did they not ask to use our pictures, there was no acknowledgement that the pictures were taken from our website. To add insult to in injury, the Walkable Communities folks went as far as to remove our logo from the pamoramic view of Town Hall. If this is the way big business behaves, we're glad we're small pototoes. Click here for the Downtown Visioning Workshop Saturday session. Computer Stuff | Downtown Carrboro Map | Events | Prices | Restaurants | UniqueOrn Enterprises 
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