Hope Mills reviews survey results as residents prioritize recreation, walkability and clearer town communications

The Hope Mills Board of Commissioners on Tuesday evening reviewed results from a community survey that will guide the town’s strategic plan, with residents emphasizing parks and recreation, traffic and better communication from town government.

Ashley Anderson, the presenter for the strategic-plan update, told commissioners the survey gathered 253 responses from in-person and online participants and produced a community “report card” that will feed into the plan’s priorities and initiatives. "We had a total of 253 responses to the survey," Anderson said, adding that many handwritten responses were long and detailed.

The survey showed strong support for emergency response services and public safety: 59% of respondents identified emergency response (fire, dispatch, ambulance) as among the town's most important services, and about half rated police services positively. But mobility was a notable weakness. Anderson said public-transportation awareness scored especially low and residents repeatedly asked for a "greenway connecting all around the lake," improved walking and biking infrastructure, and safer connections to the lake.

Economic and downtown development came up in both closed- and open-ended responses. While only a small share (about 2%) marked "creating jobs" as the town’s top function in the multiple-choice section, many open-ended replies asked for more sit-down restaurants, boutique retail, and local shops. Anderson summarized that respondents wanted “less chains, less fast food, more healthy options” and more family-friendly gathering places.

Town Manager Chancellor McLaughlin told the board the town recently rezoned roughly 80 acres of Camden Commons to commercial, which staff expects will attract retail investment and some of the amenities residents requested. McLaughlin said the rezoning and several ongoing DOT infrastructure projects should help support new commercial development.

Board members and staff discussed next steps for turning the survey findings into concrete goals. Anderson said staff will provide a draft report card and recommended micro-surveys to narrow priorities (for example, to prioritize among specific recreation projects); she asked commissioners to indicate what data they want distilled and requested feedback by the end of the week. "If you want to prioritize the top recreation items, we can ask people to rank them," Anderson said.

A board member also noted a separate, regional effort on an aquatic center led by Cumberland County officials; the first steering‑committee meeting was described as scheduled for Aug. 29. Commissioners flagged funding and regional coordination as outstanding issues for larger projects such as an aquatic center.

Procedural items at the meeting were brief: the board approved the agenda by voice vote at the start of the session and later moved to adjourn after the presentation. The town will incorporate the survey appendices and detailed responses into the draft strategic-plan materials and return to the plan as a working document in September.

The meeting adjourned after staff requested the completed worksheets collected from commissioners; Anderson said she would compile those comments into the draft report card for the board’s review.