The public will have an opportunity to comment on the long-range future of Gloucester Court House and how it should be developed during a hearing next Thursday night.
The Gloucester County Planning Commission will meet at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 3, in the colonial courthouse. A hearing on the Gloucester Court House Village Sub-Area Plan will begin at 7:45.
Planning director Anne Ducey-Ortiz said the proposed plan will be an addendum to the county’s Comprehensive Plan, which is currently being revised. The area being discussed extends beyond the usual village boundaries, Ducey-Ortiz said, and includes the village core, heading away from the village slightly north of Riverside Walter Reed Hospital and out Fiddlers Green Road. Also, to the south the area under discussion will include the Fox Mill Centre corridor and down to Burleigh Road, while out toward Mathews the village corridor extends down Route 14 to the 7-Eleven store on Crab Thicket Road.
The public hearing follows two public meetings held earlier this year, Ducey-Ortiz said, and months of discussion by a steering committee working with consultants. The county has been working on the village project in conjunction with the Main Street Preservation Trust.
“We all look forward to hearing the reaction of citizens to the ideas about the vision of the future for the Court House village put forward in this draft plan,” said Jenny Crittenden, executive director of MSPT.
A draft plan indicates possible improvements in transportation, land use and amenities as varied as additional vehicle parking and broadband.
Key components include recommendations for public and private actions aimed at improving pedestrian and motor vehicle mobility, for preserving the historic character of the village, and for enhancing the economic vitality of the area, Crittenden said.
During a public meeting in mid-October, consultant Milton Herd of Herd Planning & Design in Leesburg, illustrated how mixed-use development might be incorporated along portions of Main Street. He said that shops or offices might be located on the first floor, with residential quarters above. One schematic shown at the meeting had such a mixed use in the area of Main Street Center.
The plan also calls for preserving the major historic assets of the village community and using these to enhance the tourism industry, Ducey-Ortiz said. The draft said a priority of the plan is to foster a land use pattern that meets current and future needs through interconnected, mixed-use development patterns, and a compact pattern of housing with a mix of dwelling sizes and types.
Another goal of the plan, Ducey-Ortiz said, is to preserve and stabilize existing residential areas and neighborhoods surrounding the village.
The draft suggests maintaining the current development district boundary for public water and sewer service, so as to focus infrastructure, development and vitality in and around the historic area.
For more information, call the Gloucester Planning office at 693-1224 or the MSPT office at 695-0700.