BEAUFORT COUNTY
_ 1960- 1' 66 ' O" UlATION
It would seem, therefore, that the basic concern of the people of our County should
be to ensure that the coming development, with 011 its undoubted benefits, will not
mindlessly ravage the countryside but will insteod preserve as much os possible of
the beouty ond worth of our lands ond waters.
_ _ ". OJECTION Of 1960- 06 TUNO
Gronted, the full impoct of such development as outlined above may be fifty yeors in
coming; then ogain, it may take only ten, or less, The point is thot, however long it
tokes, Our County is going to develop to 0 significant degree along industriol and
urban lines.
••• U" ECTfO caowTH
1. The phosphate deposits in our County already have begun to be tapped, ond
these aperotions may well double or triple in scale within the next ten yeors. While
presently there is but one company octually engaged in mining and processing phos­phote
in Beaufort County, it is expected thot by the turn of the century there pro­bably
will be between three ond six firms mining ond processing the phosphate rock
in our County. These firms ore expected to produce a total of between 12 and 18
million tons of phasphote rock annually. Most of phasphote will be used as fertilizer;
however, part of it may be shipped to other areas of the country for industrial usoge,
and there is a possibility thot some phosphote- based industriol chemicols eventually
moy be produced here in Beaufort County.
2. The existing trend in our County away from small farms toward lorge scale" in­dustrial"
forming, including processing operations, is practically certain to acceler ·
ate in the coming years. In the period 1959 to 1964, the number of farms over 500
acres in size increased by 13~, from 54 to 61; farms in smaller size categories de ·
creased in number by varying percentages. During this same period, commercial
farms with sales of S10,000 and over increosed 92", from 307 to 590, ond the over­age
volue per farm increosed 94%, from S17,022 to S33,028. It will be these more
efficient, more specialized, larger form units thot will have the odvontage in the
coming competition for the exponding farm product morkets of the growing Eastern
Seoboord Megolopolis ( which even now sprawls from southern New Hampshire to
Northern Virginia).
3. The odvent bath of 0 shorter work week and of an increosed reol income for 0
steadily expanding proportion of people in this country will focus greater attention
upon the tremendous opportunities for recreational activities which exist in our
County. Beaufort County is so located that a tremendous number of vacotioners pass
either through or near it. With proper development of its tourist industry potential,
many of the people traveling south from the northern populotion centers ondlor east
to the Outer Banks could be induced to spend part of their time ond money here in
our County.
4. As future development occurs alo'ng the preceding lines, corresponding develop­ment
will take place in the commercial activity in our County. While the particulars
are tao involved to include in this document, there appeors to be 0 relotively solid
growth trend ot present in the retail trode, wholesole trode, ond selected services
categories of commercial activity in Beaufort County. Future development along
other lines cannot help but increase both the solidity and the rote of commercial
growth in our County in the years to come.
... our County, encompasses abundant water assets, vast timberland, rich agri­cultural
land, valuable mineral deposits, and sturdy communities. These immense
resources enrich the lives of each and every resident of our County; it would be a
shame if ever they were despoiled.
In doys gone by, little special attention need have been given to conserving the
naturol riches and beauty of our County. The amount of non- agricultural development
in those days did not amount to much when compared with our County's great re­sources,
hence there was I ittle need for a formal reSOurce conservation and develop­ment
program.
Todoy, however, Beaufort County is on the threshold of an entirely new stoge of de­velopment.
This new development is likely to occur along ot least the following
four lines:
A T ( IPAT ' MOO
;> QPULATIO "'... SR A TI
EE tlLF " T Z
( r-.- y !! 41! l. 000
~
1957 ' E7 C
oJ 40,000
:: l ..... -. - l-
II a 3~, OOO
IL
Jock E. Swindell
M. D. Whisnant
Warren W. Harris
Russell L. Peed
1. 0:: 1
E. S. Mann, Chairman
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Alton Cayton, Chairman
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE RENDERED BY
THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION & DEVELOPMENT
DIVISION OF COMMUNITY PLANNING
George J. Monaghan, Administrator
Coastal Area Office
James R. Hinkley, Director
PROJECT STAFF
Edward R. McFadden, Project Planner
T. J. Haddock, Jr., Draftsman
Marion J. Alligood, Secretary
STATE LIBRARY OF NORTH CAROLINA
[ 11111111 ~~ III i~ III~ I ~ 111111111111~ II ~~ IIIIII[ IIII~
3 3091 007479025
PREPARED FOR
BEAUFORT COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA
PREPARED BY
BEAUFORT COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION
Sam T. Carter
A. Mayhew Edwards
Onnie Boyd
Linwood O. Cayton
2. adoption of subdivision regulations to provide quality control in
residential development;
3. provision for administration of the zoning ordinance and subdivision
regulations;
5. outharization for the Beaufort County Planning Boord to serve as the
coordinating ogent for the various development oriented public and quasi­public
activities.
Once this pockoge has been put together, our County officiols will be in
a position to begin work on a series of basic operational priorities:
Priority 1. Lobby os actively os possible for construction of the bridge
REGARDLESS OF ITS ULTIMATE SPECI FIC LOCATION.
As you can see On the mop, all sections of our County can
expect to benefit from the bridge no matter where in our
County it crosses the Pamlico River.
Priority 2. Three efforts need to be undertaken simultaneously at this
stoge: a) encourage purchase of lond for a Stote Park in the
Both C. reek area; b) seek to interest a private commercial
entertoinment firm in developing the potential of the Black­beord
lore in the Both Creek areo; and c) oct to have the
State Highway Commission give attention to improving the
proposed NC 32- NC 306 north- south access route in a manner
in keeping with the proposed park ond recreation development
in the Both Creek areo.
1. adoption of a zoning ordinance, with the zoning map bo~ ed upon our
Plan map, to prevent the detrimentol encroachment of one type of lond
use upon another, and to preserve for future development those area 5 of
our County best suited for the vorious types of lond use;
b) US 264 - four lone controlled occess from its interchonge with
NC 32 - NC 306 west to Raleigh.
A PROGRAM FOR IMPLEMENTING
... our Pion is necessory for the simple reason that 0 Land Develop­ment
Plan is not an operational document; it is a policy statement. Our
Plan itself does not regulate development; it is simply on officiol state­ment
of the manner in which the people of our County would like their
County to develop. Actuol implementotion of our Plan requires the de­velopment
and execution of a package of inducements and controls de­signed
to constroin development to the desired pattern. Such a packoge
would necessarily include:
4. formation of a Beaufort County Economic Development Commission
to seek to locote desiroble commercial ond industrial firms in the pro­posed
industrial sites and to encouroge the formation of private develop­ment
agencies to provide the necessary preliminary site improvements;
ond
c) US 17 - improved two- lone ( ond some four lane near Washington) con­trolled
access with 0 by- poss to US 264 east of Washington.
d) US 264 - improved two- lone controlled occess from its interchange
with NC 32- NC 306 to the Outer Bonks.
e) NC 33 - improved two- lone controlled occess from Auroro to Green­ville.
Priority 3. Seek to have the State Highway Commission improve the
orterial traffic flow throughout our County according to the
following schedule:
0) NC 32- NC 306 - four lane controlled access ( Note: The proposed
NC 32- NC 306 north- south access route is port of a regionol proposal
which calls for 0 four lane limited- access arteriol highway running from
US 13 south of the Chesapeoke Boy Bridge- Tunnel, passing north of
Elizabeth City, north of Hertford, eost of Ed ", ton, eost of Plymouth,
eost of Washington, ond east of New Bern, to connect with US 17 north
of Jacksonville.).
The best monner in which to begin action an this priority motter probably
would be for our County and the Stote Highwoy Commission mutually to
odopt an official thoroughfare plan bosed upon the improvements listed
above.
Our Plan presently is but an outline of ideas; ONLY YOUR ACTIVE
SUPPORT CAN MAKE IT TOMORROW'S REALITY.