News
November 6, 2008
Council Amends Horseshoe Farm Park Master Plan
The Raleigh City Council voted on Nov. 4 to amend the master plan for Horseshoe Farm Park regarding the Phase 1 design process. The amendments reflect action taken by council members in January when they revised the previously adopted master plan to reclassify Horseshoe Farm Park from a community park to a special park with a focus on environmental stewardship.
The council clarified its previous approval of the following recommendations:
- No clearing or paving will be allowed in the park’s Significant Natural Heritage Area (SNHA) for the canoe launch or trails, as recommended by the North Carolina Natural Heritage Program. Allow only a gravel road to the canoe drop-off area outside of SNHA and investigate alternate sites for a “more robust, hardened canoe launch facility”;
- Move the parking lots from the middle of Horseshoe Farm Park to a location closer to the existing gate but not in the fenced horse pasture in order to maintain the natural vistas of the park;
- Incorporate the environmental stewardship recommendations currently in the master plan committee’s cover letter into the draft master plan under the section titled “Environmental Stewardship”;
- Trails, wildlife habitat enhancements, picnic facilities and restrooms should have the highest priority for development after improvements to the access road have been addressed;
- The Horseshoe Farm Park Wildlife Habitat Zones Advisory Team should report its comments and recommendations to the council’s Public Works Committee in January;
- City staff will provide the City Council with recommendations regarding the construction of two bridges for pedestrian and bicycle traffic. The bridges would span the Neuse River in the park. Specifically, staff will investigate whether the bridges could be built without using helicopters;
- Install additional picnic tables and trash receptacles; and,
- Investigate whether a barn in the park can be used as a group picnic shelter and permit horseshoes to be played in the park.
In addition, council members directed City staff to issue a request-for-proposals for the Phase 1 design for Horseshoe Farm Park.
Horseshoe Farm Park is an undeveloped 146-acre park located off of Ligon Mill Road on a bend of the Neuse River just north of U.S. 401. In May 2007, the City Council approved a master plan for the park that deferred certain elements, preserving the bulk of the site in its current form.
Prepared by:
John Boyette
Public Affairs Specialist
Public Affairs Department
For More Information Contact:
David Shouse
Senior Parks Planner
Parks and Recreation Department
333 Fayetteville Street, Suite 300
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-996-4788
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