Town of Wiggins Comprehensive Plan Community Survey #3

Welcome!

Over the last year, several hundred community members have provided input as the Town of Wiggins has developed a new Comprehensive Plan to guide the Town over the next two decades. The plan outlines a vision for Wiggins and how the Town will address and plan for parks and open space, infrastructure, housing, transportation, economic development and related aspects of the Town.

Input from the community on two previous surveys provided information that guided the creation of the draft Comprehensive Plan. This survey provides the highlights from the draft plan and asks for your input and reaction to these highlights. Thank you for your participation!

The Draft Future Land Use Plan provides a vision for the types of land uses that the Town anticipates in areas in and around Wiggins over the next 20 years, if property owners decide to make changes to, or develop, their properties.

The Future Land Use Plan does not force any property owner to make any changes to their property, or to enter the Town via annexation (if a property is not located within the Town’s boundaries). The Plan is a guide that Town leaders will use to evaluate any proposals that may come forth from property owners in the future.

The following are highlights of the Draft Future Land Use Plan:

• The Plan allows for potential future commercial growth to the north and east of Wiggins (focused along and north of I-76 and US 34), including light industrial properties (or a business park) to attract employers, and areas to attract retail, highway commercial, and related uses. The intent of these areas is to build the commercial tax base of Wiggins over time, which would provide more money to make improvements in town (such as paving and upgrading streets, adding park and trail-related amenities, etc.)
• The Plan envisions redevelopment (over time) of areas along Central Avenue, to the west of Main Street, as well as along Main Street in Downtown Wiggins, to add more restaurants, shops, and space for businesses, in addition to some options for residential housing. This idea (“mixed-use” development) would present a “Main Street” feel along these main streets entering Wiggins and provide spaces for more amenities (such as a farmers’ market, plazas, areas for food trucks, etc.), over time.
• The Plan identifies areas for *potential* new residential neighborhoods (if desired by property owners) to the east of the older residential neighborhoods in Wiggins (that are to the east of Main Street)
• The Plan anticipates the build-out of “The Farm” subdivision (already approved by the Town), to the south and west of Wiggins High School
• The Plan allows for potential retail and business uses around the interchange between I-76 and County Road 3
• Beyond 20 years from now, the Plan envisions potential development of neighborhoods to the north of I-76, to the east and west of North Main Street (County Road 4) – This is viewed as a long term area for additional neighborhoods.
• As neighborhoods grow over time, the Plan anticipates the introduction of additional neighborhood parks
• The Plan envisions the creation of trails along the Kiowa Creek corridor and in other locations, to link different neighborhoods together and to connect to the main Town destinations (the school campus, Town Park, Downtown, etc.)

The following illustrations highlight the long term, draft plan for Central Avenue, from Main Street west to County Road 3. The draft Comprehensive Plan for this part of Wiggins includes the following:

• As funding becomes available, completion of upgrades to Central Avenue to add a turn lane in the middle, as well as features such as street trees, landscaping, curb and gutter, crosswalks (for people walking), and other qualities of a typical Main Street in small town America.
• As properties are developed along Central Avenue (or as property owners may elect to renovate or redevelop their properties), plan for the development of buildings closer to the street, to help slow traffic along Central Avenue and increase visibility for local businesses.
• As properties are developed or redeveloped, plan for buildings to be constructed to allow for the integration of housing, offices, and other land uses, along with stores, along Central Avenue. These buildings could be developed as two story buildings, with stores or businesses on the first floor and apartments, offices, or other uses on the second floor.

The following illustration highlights the long term plan for improvements to the historic Downtown of Wiggins (Main Street, from the railroad south, past 5th Street). The draft Comprehensive Plan guidance for Downtown includes the following:

• Adding more street trees along Main Street, for shade and to increase the comfort of walking in the area
• Adding curb extensions and crosswalks at street corners, to improve safety and increase comfort for people walking, and to improve the look and feel of Downtown
• Adding seating areas along Main Street
• Installing a plaza or facilities for a farmers’ market along Main Street
• Constructing a new Town Hall (long term) along or close to Main Street
• Adding more stores, with housing or offices on the second floors, on vacant properties along Main Street, over time

The following illustration provides a draft plan for the Town Park area in the future. The following are highlights of this long term plan for improvements to the Town Park:

• Construction of a multi-purpose indoor building for events (already in progress)
• Construction of a community recreation center (to include workout facilities, indoor sports areas, game room, activity room), in or near the park
• Over the long term, expansion of the park to the south of 5th Street, to provide additional areas for picnics, open play areas, and other amenities
• Additional parking areas for the Town Park
• Construction of trails and sidewalks to connect to the Town Park

The draft plan for parks and open space (for the rest of Wiggins) over the next 20 years includes the following components:

• Having the Town or property owners (of new neighborhoods or developments) locate additional neighborhood parks (as needed) so that every resident of Wiggins (in the future) is located within a 10-minute walk of a nearby park or open space area
• Design future parks and open spaces to use native plantings and minimize the amount of irrigated grass, to conserve the Town’s water supply
• Focus the design of future parks on creating as many areas of shade as possible (through shelters, or tree canopy) to increase the level of comfort and usability in the parks and open spaces
• Have each park include at least one area for picnics or similar gatherings
• Have each park include bike parking stations (for people to store their bikes when riding to a park)
• Have each park include benches and seating areas
• Design trails connecting around Wiggins and the surrounding area to be wider, to accommodate people walking and biking

The draft plan for housing, to be included in the Comprehensive Plan, includes the following highlights:

• Working with the school district and local property owners / developers to identify opportunities to develop housing for teachers and other essential personnel serving Wiggins (police, fire, etc.)
• Allowing / encouraging properties along Main Street and Central Avenue to include smaller housing units on second floors of buildings (to provide additional housing options for local residents and enhance the vitality of the downtown commercial area).
• Encouraging the construction of a mix of housing unit types and sizes, to meet the needs of residents of different incomes, ages and household types.
• Exploring incentives to encourage developers to include workforce housing in new projects
• Supporting the renovation of homes which are in need of repair, refurbishment, or modification to meet health, safety and energy efficiency standards, particularly homes that may be occupied by less affluent residents.

The following are highlights of the economic development strategy to be included in the Wiggins Comprehensive Plan:

• Having the Town purchase land or coordinate with landowners to market (and eventually develop) a Business Park or light industrial park in the northeast part of Wiggins (near I-76) to attract additional employers and grow the tax base
• Having the Town actively market Wiggins to investors in additional highway-oriented commercial / retail along I-76 (such as truck stops, convenience stores, quick service restaurants, etc.)
• Over time, making improvements to Downtown Wiggins to make the Downtown an attractor of outside investment and visitation
• Coordinating with the school district to develop or add to existing apprenticeship and internship programs, serving businesses in the Wiggins area
• Encouraging new employers in Wiggins to provide employee housing
• Emphasizing a “shop local” campaign, to encourage residents to spend their money locally, to help the Wiggins community

The following are highlights of the transportation section to be included in the Comprehensive Plan:

• Fixing / paving / upgrading the existing, local streets in the older part of Wiggins (as the Top Priority)
• Exploring the construction of a grade separated crossing (bridge or underpass) at one of the railroad crossings in the Wiggins area (over the long-term) to improve traffic flow and increase safety for people walking and biking
• Pursuing funding with CDOT to make the interchange on I-76 at County Road 3 a full interchange (including an exit ramp on westbound I-76 and an on-ramp to eastbound I-76)
• Partnering with CDOT to pursue funding for improvements to Central Avenue, as illustrated in the Comprehensive Plan
• Developing a local bike route and trail network

The water component of the Wiggins Comprehensive Plan includes the following components:

• Reducing the amount of irrigated turf in current and future parks and open spaces to minimize water usage
• Securing grants or funding to upgrade the Town’s water system to maintain sufficient capacity to serve existing and future neighborhoods and businesses
• Requiring any additional developments to “bring their own water supplies” to the Town
• Securing funding (grants) to provide incentives for water customers to install water conserving appliances and fixtures
• Encourage the use of water-wise landscaping (such as xeriscaping)

Thank You!

Thank you for completing our survey. For more information about the Wiggins Comprehensive Plan, please visit www.wigginsconnected.com. Follow the Town of Wiggins on social media. You may also send additional comments or questions to us at bpalmberg@rickengineering.com.