Greater Downtown Plan

Downtown Wilmington

Are we on the right track?

In phase one, we received input from over 2,700 residents through 17 pop-up events and our online survey. Phase one was focused on learning more about our community and understanding the general desires and goals. Utilizing input from phase one, we have worked to identify strategies that will help the City achieve the desires voiced by the community. In phase two, we are reaching back out to the community to ensure we have accurately represented your concerns in the strategies. Let us know which strategies matter most to you in our phase two survey.

Take the phase two survey here!

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

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!

Project Process

Project Process 8.8.2024

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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

Steering Committee

The steering committee will play a vital role in providing big picture strategic direction and better connecting us to the many communities of greater downtown. This committee will help to ensure the feedback from those communities is accurately reflected in the plan and its recommendations. The committee will review community input gathered by the project team, share personal input, and provide further direction for project actions.

Who makes up the Steering Committee?

The Steering Committee is made up of stakeholders representing community organizations (5), business and development (6), public safety (2), greater downtown neighborhood residents (6), and other local agencies (4). The community was asked to apply to fulfill these roles and those selected were appointed by the City of Wilmington Appointments Committee and approved by City Council.

Greater Downtown Neighborhood Residents

Andrea Arth
Downtown Core

Denis McGarry
Historic Wilmington

Tony Peele
Northside/Love Grove

Linda Higgins
Dry Pond/The Bottom

Dana Sargent
Southside/South Front/Greenfield

Suzanne Wertman
Carolina Heights/Winoca Terrace/Carolina Place/Ardmore/Delgado

Community Organizations

Jermaine Armour, Brock Meyer
Faith-based Organizations

Rhonda Bellamy, Executive Director
Arts Council of Wilmington and New Hanover County

Travis Gilbert
Historic Wilmington Foundation (HWF)

Cierra Washington
Commission on African American History

Business and Development

Christina Haley, President
Wilmington Downtown Inc. (WDI)

Terry Espy, Board of Directors Member
Downtown Business Alliance (DBA)

Stephanie Norris
Developer: Affordable Housing

Andrew Hewitt, Zeke Nathans, Mike Normandeau
Developer: Emerging Districts

Public Safety

Wendy Gianini-King, Risk Reduction Coordinator
Fire Department

Lt. Jason Nichols, Downtown Task
Police Department

Other Governmental Agencies

David Kanoy, Executive Director
Cape Fear Community College

Dr. Stephanie Willis, Assistant Principles of Snipes Academy
New Hanover County Schools

Stephanie Ayers, Director of Planning and Development
North Carolina Ports

Tyrone Garrett, Executive Director
Wilmington Housing Authority

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Phase 1 of Public Engagement

What We Heard

Thank you to all who participated in the first survey and in our pop-up event activities. Over 1,400 residents completed the survey, and 1,370 residents participated in our pop-up event activities. We appreciate you taking the time to share your concerns, opinions, and needs for the future of Wilmington’s Greater Downtown.  

We popped up at 17 local events within the Greater Downtown area, and held 11 focus group conversations, 2 open house events, and Project Steering Committee and Implementation Committee meetings. We also worked with local community organizations to get the word out and elicit survey responses.  

The survey and pop-up voting results and comments have demonstrated that Mobility, Local Character, Small Business, and Economy are priority themes in our community. Comments and feedback about Mobility were mainly centered around the desire for a more pleasant and safe environment for walking and biking and creating a stronger multi-modal transportation network. Regarding Local Character, we heard concerns about public gathering spaces and accessibility, preservation of our cherished historic character, desire for additional green space, and the overall need to strengthen community relationships and branding. Residents are also invested in the development and support of a more diverse workforce, and support for small businesses that meet a variety of needs.

Checkout our project newsletter for the strategies we have identified so far!(PDF, 5MB)

Where We've Been

Our project team has enjoyed the discussions and valuable input we gathered during the pre-engagement and phase 1 of engagement. Below, find a map of the locations and events where our team popped-up.

View larger map

Survey Results

Result - I want GD to be...

Results - Likely to visit downtown

Results - Walk or Bike

Results - Housing types

Results - Inclusion and belonging

Respondent Demographics

Respondents identify as...

  • White, 81.2%
  • Black or African American, 7.2%
  • Hispanic, Latino, or Latinx, 4.4%
  • Other, 2.7%
  • Asian or Asian American, 2.1%
  • American Indian or Alaskan Native, 1.6%
  • Arab or MENA, 0.5%
  • Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, 0.4%

Results - Live

Results - Age

Next Steps

We've gathered information on topics most important to the community, ideal methods for growth, and general comments regarding Greater Downtown, now what do we do with it? Our project team (City staff and consultants) is analyzing the results for key trends in demographics (age, race, and location), and beginning to identify strategies that seek to achieve the priorities shared in the survey and pop-up activities.

As the project team works to identify strategies, they will work with other city departments to find achievable ways to implement them. The strategies will address potential changes in land use policies, zoning regulations, local incentives, and programming to address the top concerns shared by staff and the community.

Next, the project team will share the strategies with the community and ask for input. Bringing the strategies back into the community and clearly tying them to community input allows the project team to ensure they understood the desires of the community and are properly addressing their concerns.

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.

Upcoming Events...

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