oct-2017

234 235 Sanford,NorthCarolinahasmadea significant comeback,leveraging its manyassets inorder toredefine its character andchart itsgrowthfor the future. “This is awonderful time in the historyof Sanford to be talking about growth and redevelopment,” saysMayor Chet Mann,whowas first elected in 2013with an“Open for Business”platform,focused on job creation,qualityof place,com- munitypride,and establishing San- ford as a destination location; an agenda that dove- tailedwith a $14.5 bond package approved by the voters the same year.“We’re a community that is about 35 percent manufacturing-based; we’ve always been a city that made things,”Mann continues.“Upon the downturn of 2010,wewere hit very hard andwhatpromptedme torun, andothers toget involved,waswe felt likewehadtogetourcitybackon itsfeet,andreinvestinitself.Thisarea isripeforinvestmentandoureffortsto revitalizeandredevelophavebrought intripledigitreturnsinthelastthreeor fouryears.Itspeaksvolumesofwhat acommunitythatdecidestowork togethercando.” AccordingtoMann,partofbothhis,andthebondref- erendum’s,goalswas tomakeSanfordamorewalkable, SANFORD, NORTH CAROLINA AT A GLANCE SANFORD, NORTH CAROLINA WHAT: A city of 30,000 WHERE: Lee County, North Carolina, approx. 42 miles southwest of Raleigh WEBSITE: www.sanfordnc.net pedestrian-friendly,andconnectedplace.“So,whatwe’ve doneover the last threeor fouryears isconstruct aseries ofgreenwaysandsidepaths,”heexplains.“We’ve renovat- edor revitalizeddowntowncorridorsand,for the first time inmany,manyyears,we’restartingto focuson infill.Ina townour size,downtown livingwasnot somethingthat wewereseeinghappen,or evenpromotinga lot,butnow we’restartingtosee the revitalizationof olderbuildings into loftsandapartmentsandretail shopping.” “The investment inthedowntownstreetscapehas beencompleted,”saysMarshallDowney,Sanford’sDirec- torofPlanningandDevelopment.“Andweareseeinga marked interest inredevelopmentopportunitiesdown- town; an interest innewtypesofbusinesses,including micro-breweries,restaurants,mixed-use typeof occupan- cieswithhousingunits,andadaptive re-useof facilities, includingconversionof a formerhorseandbuggymanu- facturing facilityintoa“one-stopshop”for all development inquiries,activities,andpermitting.” “Thestreetwe’reon,ChathamStreet,sevenor eight yearsagohada taxbaseof about$400,000,”Mannadds. “It’sbeenredevelopedwithamixtureof retail andoffice operations,andnow,thenextquarter,we’ll haveoneof our firstdowntown investments for loftsandresidential livingwithretail underneath.This street,now,tax-base- wise,is seventoninemilliondollars.It’sagreat example ofpublic/privatepartnership. Andwhatwesawhappen hereonChathamStreethas spring-boarded all through our downtown corridors.So,we’re continuing towork on those kinds of investments–undergrounding pow- er lines,putting in side paths,makingwalkabilitya real emphasis.And I think it’s paying off with the qualityof