The primary study area for the project extends from the intersection of Mountain Road and Main Street south along Main Street to the railroad track and Toots Creek Bridge. The context of the downtown has also been included in the study, including the gateways at the Town boundaries and the relationship of the downtown to the Mountain Road Historic District and the Mary Bethune Halifax County office complex.
Issues
Several primary issue areas were identified for the Halifax downtown area, including:
- Overhead utilities
- Roadway and traffic design and management
- Parking quantity and accessibility
- Pedestrian use, including walks, green areas and public plazas
- Streetscape materials and themes
- Signs
- Land use and building facades and access
In order to fully study each of these areas and to develop overall recommendations for addressing the issues, several community subcommittees were formed to provide inventory and analysis. The six subcommittees included:
- Signs, Materials and Themes
- Parking, Walking and Greenspace
- Traffic
- Water, Sewer, Drainage and Sidewalks
- Overhead Utilities
- Land Use
Based on each of these issue areas, recommendations were developed for the following elements. A summary of the plan analysis and recommendations is provided on the following pages, organized around the following elements:
- Traffic and Roadway Design
- Streetscape Enhancements
- Parking
- Pedestrian Circulation
- Signs and Facades
- Community Gateways