Overview: The Town of Wake Forest has been searching for land on the northeast side of town for a new fire station for at least four years. There are new subdivisions which need protection – and they have been built – but no land can be found for their protection.
The Town of Wake Forest also continues to need land for new parks and other uses while Wake County is always searching for land for new schools.
How should the town obtain the land it needs for these critical uses? Can it make setting aside a sufficient amount of land for these public uses a condition of approval for new projects? Should the town purchase special land for parks – the properties on Harris Road and the former Wake Forest Country Club land come to mind?
###
Joe Kimray
The new Fire Station is critical to the safety of our citizens, and the town should do everything within its power to obtain the land for its construction. This includes resorting to eminent domain if necessary – public safety should come before all else.
Regarding public open spaces – in January 1953, the following was stated in Information Report No. 46 by the American Society of Planning Officials (https://www.planning.org/pas/reports/report46.htm):
“One of the most difficult and at the same time most important aspects of land subdivision is the provision of public open spaces. It has long been agreed that accessible parks, playgrounds, and schools are as necessary to a good living environment as are proper densities and compatible land uses. Yet, hundreds of square miles of residential subdivisions containing no more open space than the minimum amount required in private yards are being developed every year in the United States.”
As you can see, this issue is something that has been debated at the highest levels of planning for over 70 years – and we are still looking for the answer. A complicated problem like this will not be corrected in a single year, or even during my four-year term if elected. It will take many small measures over a number of years to reach the eventual solution.
Requiring more active uses within neighborhood park spaces is something for which I argued many times as a member of the Planning Board. I believe they are more necessary than passive spaces in a neighborhood setting – and I was able to secure a number of concessions in this realm from developers over the course of my service.
I would like to find ways to purchase land for conservation and new park spaces in our town – but I do not believe that we should raise taxes on current residents to do so. It will require work to find grants and other matching funds that can give us the capital to obtain lands – as well as working with local families that may be looking to leave a legacy by donating land for the betterment of future generations of our community.
In the meantime – we can work to protect plots of lands that are still currently vacant. I was proud to cast a vote recommending denial for development of the Harris Road property across from Joyner Park at my final Planning Board meeting last December.
###
Tom Ballman
A dedicated land agent is a position the Town could create to further attempt to accomplish. It was something I noted to the Town during my time on the Planning Board when two specific rezoning requests in and along Jones Dairy Road were approved, Radford Glen & The Hamlet at Quail Crossing . In that case, I had identified what I considered a ‘lynchpin’ opportunity where a half mile section of sidewalk would connect over 1,500 dwelling units to Downtown, Flaherty Park, as well as Dunn Creek Greenway. This was presented to the Board of Commissioners and was further evaluated by Engineering as being too expensive in early 2022.
Just last night, a significant increase in fire impact fees for development passed, moving closer in line to meeting the capital needs for services towards the eastern growth boundary, and planned Fire Station #6. Land acquisition and land dedication through the development processes should become a high priority for a Town growing so quickly, and I think something that got lost in the shuffle as over 5,000 new dwelling units were approved in the last four years alone. It appears administration is doing its level best to meet the demands for services for what I consider to be unmitigated growth decisions these last few years. However, as you noted, whether it be WCPSS, Wake County, or the Town, these are for the most part, reactive measures in providing for and maintaining quality of life standards for our area.
The updates to the PRCR Master Plan, recently kicked off, is one such data point to identify with as to where and how the Town may be underserving its residents. There are no easy solutions when we are not effectively evaluating the impacts the growth has had on the basic functioning of government, protecting, and serving. Playing ‘catch up’ puts administration in this unenviable position, and if this individual assertion holds true through data, Town officials taking greater care in discerning every growth opportunity provided by the development community would be a significant step. Growth at all costs is, well, costly both quantitatively and qualitatively. Thatistom.com
###
Ben Clapsaddle
The fundamental purpose of our Town is to ensure Public Safety. This must always be the top priority of our Town. The Wake Forest Police and Fire Departments are excellent organizations, and we must ensure they have the appropriate manning, equipment, and training to not only serve our citizens and Town today, but also into the near future.
Response times are critical for all our First Responders. So central locations or just expanding our current locations are a nonstarter. The Towns Planners need to locate suitable sites and begin the process of acquiring them now. The sites for new Fire Stations must be responsive to the population and new neighborhood growth of our Town. As a phased approach, the new sites will be completed as needed to ensure we meet and expand our public safety as our Town grows.
If a new project is requested for approval and it includes the location of a future Fire Station, then as a condition of approval, the developer should set aside that lot.
We must become more active in acquiring land for public use, whether it be for public parks or public safety. Yes, the former Wake Forest Country Club land is an excellent choice for a new park and recreation area.
The decisions this Town makes today about our public safety and our parks will impact 10 to 20 years from now. We need to be purchasing or setting aside land now; we cannot wait until every acre is paved over and turned into a new mattress store.
###
Faith Cross
On our town website there is a statement on community planning, “While this growth presents many opportunities, it is important to carefully plan for the rise of new development to ensure it aligns with the community’s vision and strengthens the Town’s overall character.” The most fundamental and important aspect of carefully planning for new development is making sure we have the necessary infrastructures in place BEFORE allowing new development. This has not been the pattern of our town’s development up to this point.
This concern has been expressed to me an incalculable number of times as I have walked neighborhoods this fall. Where are we going to find the land for what we NEED when it has all been used up on massive multi-unit dwelling communities? Also, if we don’t plan for and preserve green spaces now, won’t the land be gone? These are valid and common sense concerns from residents, and myself, and are a primary reason I am running. We must put first things first.
Infrastructure, and specifically in this question, the land for a fire station, must be a priority over any new developments. Impact fees need to be assessed on new development at the highest allowable amounts to help offset the cost to the taxpayer for this necessary service.
When we consider the word “development,” we need to consider green spaces, open spaces and forests first. When the town has opportunity and access to land that can be set aside for future parks development, that is a priority. And it impacts the well-being of our community. A quick search of green spaces and mental well-being yields numerous articles and studies showing the link between greater well-being, reduced anxiety, depression and disease prevalence with increased access to green spaces. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5663018/
Common sense, and carefully considering the context of our community now (not as it was 5-10 years ago) should lead to different decision making moving forward as we evaluate land and how to use it for the betterment of the community.
###
Jim Thompson
Jim Thompson did not respond to the Gazette by the noon deadline on Oct. 18.
###
Adam Wright
How should the town obtain the land it needs for these critical uses? You mentioned the Fire Station we need – last night, we voted to condemn a property to use the land to build a new fire station. While this isn’t our preferred approach to acquire the land, it’s essential to understand that we exhaustively attempted to purchase the land through fair offers. Unfortunately, the property owner’s reluctance to cooperate left us with no other option. We sincerely hope this action will motivate the owner to engage in negotiations with us, avoiding the need for condemnation. Further, we have a fire impact fee for this reason. We also voted to increase that as well last night. This is a fee that makes developers contribute to help pay for fire projects like these.
Should the town purchase special land for parks – the properties on Harris Road and the former Wake Forest Country Club land come to mind? Absolutely, we should. That’s precisely why I proposed the establishment of a conservation fund. I consistently hear from our constituents that they desire more parks and open space, and it’s our responsibility to provide them with what they want. The exciting part is that we can create this conservation fund without increasing taxes. We’re exploring various funding mechanisms, such as seeking matching grants from federal and state sources, which would significantly reduce the project’s cost. Additionally, we can consider using any leftover funds after the reassessment. We will soon have an in-depth discussion about funding during a Parks and Rec master plan meeting.
###
One Response
What happened to the land at RT98, Jones Dairy and Gateway Plaza??? Have heard for 10yrs that a
new Fire Station was to be located there while building Traditions. The Town had no searches before land became so expensive?? The Town has wasted our tax dollars, and residents safety over Fire Protection issue. Why do we keep electing these people???