Greater Downtown Plan

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We need your input! Take this survey for the Greater Downtown Plan and ensure our community's needs are accurately reflected.

Open House Recap

Thank you to all those who attended the first Open House for the Greater Downtown Plan on May 16th at the Harrelson Center! We enjoyed sharing what we have learned from the community and additional research so far and gaining more feedback from the community. We set up six stations for residents to visit consisting of a project overview, Getting Around (transportation), Sense of Place, Doing Business (business diversity), Economy and Dream Big (vision goals). Each station shared the key themes of information gathered so far and asked a new question. We hope you enjoyed the conversations as much as we did and that you grabbed a free scoop from the Boombalatti's 'Sprinkles' Ice Cream van.

If you were unable to attend, we ensure there will be additional in-person events soon to share your thoughts. Please visit this page again soon for upcoming opportunities to share your thoughts. Next up, visit us on July 25th at the Northside Food Co-op Community Dinner from 6:00 PM through 5:00 PM.

What is the Greater Downtown Plan?

The Greater Downtown Plan will be a Small Area Plan encompassing the neighborhoods below. The purpose of a Small Area Plan is to focus the lens on a smaller section of the city than a Comprehensive Plan would and develop specific recommendations and strategies that are tailored to the needs and main concerns of the study area.

Greater Downtown Plan Neighborhood Map

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Our goal for the Greater Downtown Plan is to develop equitable strategies and actionable steps to address growth and resident concerns, and implement outstanding Create Wilmington Comprehensive Plan policies. The plan will be created with robust public involvement and feedback. It will include policy recommendations and action steps/items to guide decision-makers and city staff. To reach this goal, we are working with Agency Landscape + Planning along with several subconsultants.

The Greater Downtown Plan project team will be attending the below events to connect with community members and collect input. By attending existing and popular community events, we hope to make engagement accessible and convenient while collecting input from diverse groups. Attending these events is just the start of our community outreach. We hope to see you there!

Become a Project Ambassador!

The City is accepting applications for Community Ambassadors to host outreach events in their communities. We are looking for residents that are active in their community, invested in Greater Downtown, and have a creative idea for getting their community more involved. Community Ambassadors will be compensated for their time and event-related expenses will be covered. Please fill out the application below, selected Community Ambassadors will be contacted by the project team. Selected ambassadors will be asked to submit an event budget, total cost per event shall not exceed $1,000. 

Apply to be a Community Ambassador 

Greater Downtown Plan Outreach Event: July 25th

What we've heard so far...

We have asked residents to vote for the three most important topics to them for the future of the Greater Downtown area at in-person events and in the online survey. The results below combine votes cast at in-person events and in the online survey. We want to hear from you! Cast your votes in our online survey or/and visit us at one of our pop-up events listed above.

GDP Results 2024-06-11

Want to receive updates about the plan?

Join our email list to receive notifications of outreach events and updates on the plans progress by emailing greaterdowntown@wilmingtonnc.gov with your contact information.

Past Events

  • Kwanzaa Celebration, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church – December 26-29, 2023 
  • MLK Fun Day, MLK Center – January 13, 2024 
  • Azalea Festival, Front St. – April 5-9, 2024 
  • Riverfront Farmer’s Market, Dock St – April 13, 2024 
  • Earth Day Festival, Long Leaf Park – April 20, 2024 
  • Castle Street Makers Market, Castle St. – April 27, 2024 
  • Legacy Spring Market, Legacy Architectural Salvage – May 4, 2024 
  • Greater Downtown Plan Open House, Harrelson Center – May 16, 2024 
  • Black Film Festival, Union Station – May 16, 2024 
  • Good Shepherd (Lunch Soup Kitchen and Grocery Giveaway) – May 29 and June 5, 2024 
  • DREAMS Community Day, DREAMS Center – June 8, 2024 
  • Northside Food Co-op’s Frankie’s Outdoor Market, Portia Hines Park – June 22, 2024 
  • Cape Fear Community College Juneteenth Celebration, Union Station – June 18, 2024 
  • St. Luke’s AME Church Grocery Giveaway – June 26, 2024 
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