About the Area Plan

 To contact staff about the Area Plan, email Margaret Stallings at mstallings@cherokeega.com or call (678) 493-6106.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and to allow more flexibility for participants, we pivoted to a virtual format for the Hickory Flat Area Plan. Our intentions were to allow more people to contribute on their own time, thereby creating a plan that benefits all members of the community.

Through the Hickory Flat Area Plan, we strive to develop a community-created vision based on existing demographic trends and market forces. We aim to establish a unified plan, set goals and determine implementation steps to carry out the public’s ambitions for Hickory Flat.

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AREA PLAN STUDY BOUNDARY

The boundary used for this planning process is the colored portion of the map above, outlined in orange. The City Limits of Holly Springs are shown in turquoise. While areas surrounding this outline surely interact and affect the areas within, a fixed boundary was thoughtfully created to provide a focused area for the planning process.

BACKGROUND

The Hickory Flat Area Plan kicked off in late 2019 with the organization of a stakeholder group to act as a sounding board for the planning process, the selection of Bleakly Advisory Group for the undertaking of a market study, outreach to students at Sequoyah High School and the first or three intended public meetings was held in the community. The COVID-19 public health crisis brought the original process to a halt following staff’s March 6th meeting with Sequoyah High’s Chick-fil-a Leader Academy. As the planning process for the Hickory Flat Area Plan was postponed indefinitely, staff explored ways to restart the project.

Following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Georgia, face-to-face meetings ceased and most contact became virtual. Attending numerous virtual meetings, presentations and conferences, even virtual meetings about virtual meetings, staff began to piece together ideas to formulate a strategy for reviving the Hickory Flat Area Plan virtually. With locations such as schools and public facilities operating under increased security and the general public unsure of physical gatherings, restarting where we left off was no longer an option. Virtual engagement will also allow staff to explore some methods to address concerns that arose in previous public meetings and planning projects, such as meeting space constraints, limited meeting time, inconvenient hours or locations for families and hearing the important opinions of those that may be quieter publicly.

Cherokee County Planning and Zoning will pursue the same goals as originally specified for Hickory Flat, albeit in a new form. A dedicated website with robust information sharing and communication options will allow members of the community to learn about the area and the planning process, provide individual feedback for the plan and communicate directly with staff on their own time.

While the 2018 Comprehensive Plan Update and the supplementary Target Area Report provided a broad overview of Hickory Flat’s future intentions, the purpose of the upcoming virtual Area Plan is to utilize technology for developing a more thorough understanding of the current local trends, issues and opportunities as reported by the community. Lessons learned from utilizing virtual methods of planning and public engagement will be applied to future projects as supplemental to in-person engagement. Creating a true shared vision for Hickory Flat can come closer to reality due to the innovative and flexible on-line tools that allow planners to reach a broader audience for building a greater consensus on community ambitions.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

  • Build consensus about a shared vision for the future of Hickory Flat.

  • Proactively collaborate and coordinate with the City of Holly Springs

  • Identify opportunities to preserve the rural and natural character of the community, targeting mechanisms for  transitions from suburban to rural

  • Encourage the development of a mixed-use community village center

  • Explore the feasibility of developing additional office space.

  • Investigate matters related to population aging and any related opportunities for expansion of senior-oriented services

  • Invest in a strong system of parks and green space

  • Move forward with short– and long-term transportation improvement projects

  • Stimulate new roadway connections between developing and existing transportation systems

  • Develop a system of interconnected sidewalks and trails

  • Create a list of action items for implementing this vision for the area.