The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission’s (NCWRC) Green Growth Toolbox program invited the Planning and Community Development Department to submit an application to their Partners for Green Growth grant program. The goal of Partners for Green Growth is to provide support for local government planning projects that consider wildlife and natural resource conservation in land use and development planning, incentives, and ordinances. The program would reimburse cost-share funds of $10,000 and provide 80 hours of technical assistance from NCWRC wildlife biologists. There is no cost to the County other than staff time spent working on this project.
Staff’s proposed project would include the creation of a preferred development guide that would align with the goals of the NCWRC's Green Growth Toolbox. The goal of the preferred development guide would be to incorporate wildlife and natural resource conservation into land use and development planning. The preferred development guide would be a resource for citizens, the Board of Commissioners, the Planning Board, development applicants, and Planning Staff, as it would provide examples of environmentally sensitive development methods and offer policy alternatives.
