INC NEWS - Central Campus Redevelopment Community Meeting

[kjj1 at duke.edu]

Folks:

I'll be out of town and won't be able to attend the community meeting about 
Central Campus redevelopment tomorrow night. But I was perusing the new 
Central Campus website yesterday and I've copied in below the FAQ about the 
current zoning of Central Campus that raised this question: Why can't Duke 
firmly commit to UCD for Central Campus?

I'm hoping that someone out there will take it upon themselves to ask this 
question at the forum tomorrow night. Duke's making a firm public 
commitment to pursue UCD zoning (and to develop plans within the limits of 
the UCD zoning) would go a long way toward easing community suspicions. 
Perhaps it is a burden of my editorial training and profession, but absent 
a firm commitment to UCD zoning, the phrase "it is highly likely that 
[Duke] will include Central Campus in the UC District as its plans develop" 
implies that the planning isn't being developed (or that Duke doesn't feel 
bound in the planning process by) within the limits of the UCD requirements.

Kelly Jarrett

>From the Duke Central Campus website:
What is the current zoning?


Of Duke’s 1,400 campus acreage (which does not include Duke Forest and the 
Primate Center), all but 122 acres on Central Campus are included in 
University College District zoning as of 2004. (UC District zoning allows 
for a mix of university-related, integrated uses linked by pedestrian ways, 
bikeways and other transportation systems. Development in these districts 
should also encourage reduced auto use, mitigate environmental impacts, 
conserve energy resources and achieve visual continuity in the siting and 
scale of buildings.)

The 122 acres that are not zoned UC District are principally zoned for 
multi-family residential. This area was not included in the UC District in 
2004 because future uses had not been determined. If Duke builds anything 
other than new housing on Central, the plans will have to go through the 
city’s rezoning process, which requires public input. Duke has said it is 
highly likely that it will include Central Campus in the UC District as its 
plans develop.