Hyde County is seeking the public’s input for its updated land use plan.
In 1974, the Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA) was established to regulate development in 20 North Carolina counties of which Hyde is one.
“In North Carolina’s 20 coastal counties, land use plans (LUPs) serve as legally mandated “blueprints” for how a community manages growth while protecting fragile coastal resources,” said Hyde County Manager Kris Noble. “These plans are required by the Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA) and are used by the state to determine whether development projects can move forward.”
The updated version focuses on a Resilience Strategy that will evaluate current and future coastal flood risks and vulnerabilities and identify ways to adapt and become more resilient to flooding.
The plan is overdue for an update since the last one was done in 2008, said Olivia Ranseen, a hazard mitigation planner with WSP, an environmental planning company of Brentwood, Tennessee, hired to update the plan. Ranseen and her team were on Ocracoke Feb. 11 to discuss the plan and get input.
Now, residents can use an online interactive map to mark places in Ocracoke where they thrive or struggle, add brief descriptions and upload photos.
“The goal is to gather community insight on locations that feel supportive and those where challenges exist — information that will directly inform the county’s land use plan,” she said.
Here is the online version of the current map.
“We are also asking residents to send their favorite photos of Ocracoke/Hyde County via this form, so we can include them in the updated land use plan,” she said.
A mainland workshop is scheduled for noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, March 11, at the Davis Center in Engelhard.
The Coastal Resources Commission of the Department of Environmental Quality administers the Coastal Area Management Act using rules and policies of the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission (CRC).
