Wendell presents downtown streetscape master plan calling for wider sidewalks, flexible festival streets and nearly 200 new parking spaces

Town of Wendell staff and design consultants presented a downtown streetscape master plan to the Board of Commissioners that envisions new sidewalks, tree planters, street lighting, public art and “flexible” festival streets intended to accommodate outdoor dining and events while improving ADA accessibility.

The plan covers the downtown core roughly between Second and Fourth streets and Cypress and Pine avenues and grew from a year of community engagement that included in‑person events, online surveys and board presentations. Daniel Watley, landscape architect with Withers Ravenel, told the board the project aims to make the space “where people belong” by redesigning the area between buildings and the roadway to support businesses and pedestrian activity.

The plan proposes a net increase of almost 200 parking spaces across the study area, produced by a mix of new striping, conversion of some angled stalls to perpendicular stalls, and the formalization of off‑street surface lots the town already uses. Town staff and consultants told commissioners the increase breaks down roughly into 93 additional on‑street spaces and about 100 from off‑street/surface parking improvements; a tighter estimate given in discussion was about 193 net new spaces. Examples cited included gaining about 35 spaces by restriping West Depot and West Camden and roughly 40 net new spaces on Second Street.

A traffic engineer’s stop‑warrant analysis recommended replacing the existing traffic signal at Main and Third with a four‑way stop to improve pedestrian safety and to recover sidewalk area from dedicated turn lanes. The consultants said the tabletop/flush‑paved design they propose would calm traffic and be easier and cheaper for the town to maintain than signalized intersections.

Accessibility was a central justification for the project. Consultants noted federal guidelines require at least a 6‑foot clear zone along sidewalks; existing Main Street sidewalks are about 9 feet wide and would not meet that standard once outdoor seating and furnishings are added. The master plan shows a 22‑foot “business frontage” zone on Main Street that would accommodate outdoor seating while leaving a six‑foot clear path for mobility devices.

Consultants described construction‑level deliverables to follow the master plan: topographic survey and utility locates, schematic drawings suitable for cost estimating, and ADA‑compliant grading and stormwater concepts such as inverted swales and ADA‑friendly drainage inlets. Watley said the team included a parking study that used drone and in‑person counts and modeling to forecast future parking needs.

Commissioners and staff emphasized phasing. Planning staff recommended doing peripheral work first—adding and formalizing surface lots and off‑street spaces—before reworking Main Street, both to maintain parking supply during construction and to reduce business disruption. Staff told the board construction is not expected within the next year; the town will return with a full master plan, phasing options and cost estimates for CIP and budget consideration.

Board members raised concerns about enforcement and parking behavior. Commissioner Lutz pressed staff on how the town would monitor short‑term parking and keep employee vehicles from occupying customer spaces; staff described potential tools including signage, loading zones, ticketing, parking sensors and a parking‑concierge model. Commissioners also urged a strong communications program to coordinate with downtown businesses during phasing; staff recommended budgeting for a dedicated communications consultant if the board approves future construction phases.

Quotes from the meeting illustrate the tone and issues raised. Daniel Watley said, “What we’re talking about tonight is the downtown streetscape,” and Mr. Coates summarized the project’s drivers: “This project was really spearheaded by the need of our ADA compliance.” Commissioner Lutz said the town had “heard a lot of great feedback” but emphasized the need for careful phasing and communications so downtown businesses can adapt.

Next steps the presenters described include returning to the board with the full master plan for formal adoption, developing construction drawings for a phased segment when funds are identified, and coordinating detailed utility and stormwater work with Raleigh and private utility providers. Staff repeatedly urged that the town identify phasing and funding in the upcoming CIP and budget process.

The board did not take any action to adopt the master plan at the meeting; the presentation generated questions and direction for additional work and follow up.