Greenways and Open Space

I intend to continue the Town's open space and greenways efforts.  When Town residents are surveyed about what is most important to them, open space and greenways always rank at or near the top of the list.   I am pleased that the Town has recently created a Greenways Commission that will be instrumental in many of these discussions. 

The Town’s greenway master plan should be methodically reviewed and publicly accessible so that residents can see where the greenways are planned.  Following are several specific items that need to be fleshed out in conjunction with this.

Standards must be defined for the acquisition of land for both open space and greenways.  Acquisition can occur in a number of ways; for example, proposed developments can include greenways in their site plans; landowners can donate land or easements for greenway use; or the Town or another non-profit entity can purchase land or easements to be used for this purpose.

We also need to adopt standards for the type of greenways that will be part of the system.  For example, all greenways should be of a certain width.  There should be uniformity between trails of similar purpose. The plan should allow flexibility, but stress continuity between greenway types.

Responsibility for ongoing maintenance of greenways that are viewed as part of the Town’s greenway system must be discussed.  Take the example of a greenway that will go through the Winmore development, that connects to other greenways in the system:  once it is built, who is responsible for maintaining and monitoring the greenway?   The responsible party for ongoing maintenance (such as mowing the grass, cutting foliage alongside the greenways, removing limbs from a hurricane, replacing gravel washed out after a heavy rain) needs to be identified. We should also develop and require uniform signage (another maintenance item) that makes it clear that greenways are part of the Carrboro Greenway system. 

These discussions will help the town of Carrboro to develop and maintain a vibrant greenway system.