Greater Downtown Plan

Downtown Wilmington

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

View larger 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 01-15-2025

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

Phase 1 GDP Public Engagement Photos

Phase 1 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, 2open 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.

View the Phase 1 Survey Results

Phase 2 of Public Engagement

The Wilmington Greater Downtown Plan project team conducted a second phase of engagement from July – December 2024. In Phase 1, we gathered information from the community on what they want Greater Downtown to be like, how we should create more housing, things that would make them visit Greater Downtown, and more. We took the 2,785 community voices from Phase 1 and identified strategies to address them. We worked with the Implementation Committee (Executive City Staff) to ground the strategies and ensure they are workable, and with the Steering Committee (appointed community members) for additional guidance. Phase 2 was focused on ensuring we were on the right track in addressing goals and concerns while learning which strategies were most valued by the community.

We attended 22 community events in Phase 2 and heard from about 1,160 residents in person. We popped up with an engaging activity that asked residents to vote for which strategy in each theme was most important to them. The four key themes have remained the same since Phase 1:Local Character, Economy, Small Business, and Mobility. We also had an online survey and paper surveys running from September to December that mimicked the in-person activity. The survey reached about 1,215 residents. In total for Phase 2, around 2,375 residents shared their voice. Overall, combining Phases 1 and 2, more than 5,100 people have participated in shaping the Greater Downtown Plan.

View the Phase 2 Engagement Results

Phase 2 GDP Public Engagement Photos

Pop-up Event Locations

Next Steps

Thank you to all who have shared their voice and contributed to shaping the Greater Downtown Plan so far. After confirming we are on the right track and what strategies the community values most in Phase 2, we are developing specific actions to achieve each strategy and drafting the final plan. Each theme, Local Character, Economy, Small Business, and Mobility, will include a review of the community data leading the way, description/purpose, strategies, and actions. Strategies and actions have been developed directly from community engagement data, organizational priorities, and planning best practices. After taking a year getting to know community members and collecting valuable input, we are dedicated to ensuring the final plan clearly represents the Greater Downtown community. A draft of the plan is expected to be shared with the community for public comments in the Summer of 2025. Once a final rendition of the Wilmington Greater Downtown Plan is drafted, the project team will seek City Council approval in the Fall of 2025.

Check out our newsletter

Our project newsletter recaps our engagement actions and shares the strategies we have identified so far.

GDP Newsletter

Project Team

Travis Henley
Project Manager, Comprehensive
Planning and Urban Design
Email (910)341-5885

Haley Hopkins
Planner I, Comprehensive
Planning and Urban Design
Email (910)341-0171

Hillary Taylor
Planner I, Comprehensive
Planning and Urban Design
Email (910)765-0862

Back to top