[RCAC] Comp Plan Concerns

At the last RCAC meeting, it was agreed the RCAC would compile a list of concerns related to the latest draft of the Comp Plan. These concerns will be forwarded to the City Council for consideration as it begins its final review of the Plan. Below is my input for institutional impacts. I consider this a transition issue between uses; however, most of the discussion about transitions has focused on transitions between the Central Business District (CBD) and the adjacent neighborhoods. INSTITUTIONAL IMPACTS As Raleigh has grown, churches, schools and civic centers are morphing from relatively low impact neighborhood facilities to relatively high impact destination facilities. As a consequence, the quality of life in neighborhoods is either threatened or eroding as residents experience the adverse effects from more noise, intrusive lighting and additional traffic and parking congestion. Because most of these institutions were considered neighborhood facilities in the past, they are typically zoned residential. However, the increases in scale and activity make the residential zoning classification obsolete. A change of use or more robust regulations are now needed for these properties to mitigate the adverse impacts on adjacent properties. Philip W Poe PWPoe(a)att.net 919.832.6777 voice 919.522.1078 mobile 919.832.6775 fax