As North Carolina’s premiere mountain destination, Watauga County is home to the state’s most alluring scenery, iconic views, and exciting outdoor recreation.
The “Imagine Watauga” plan charts a bold 15-year vision for maximizing capital infrastructure investments to create projects that elevate the visitor experience and enrich community life.
Plan
Overview
Our team collaborated with the Watauga County TDA, the Town of Boone, and other local representatives, leaders, and residents to craft a plan that will improve access to the community’s wealth of natural resources and recreation opportunities.
The plan includes custom illustrations and design schematics outlining development opportunities for enhancing downtown Boone, its surrounding communities, and the County’s blueways and trail systems, and other outdoor recreation assets.
A detailed implementation matrix suggests timeframes and key partners. Grant opportunities are identified, and recommendations are made for acquiring necessary funds to help implement the plan.
The final Imagine Watauga Action Plan provides detailed project strategies for investing in critical tourism infrastructure.
We identified four primary Action Plan Focus Areas: 1) Federal and State Parks and Trails, 2) Regional and Local Parks and Trails, 3) Rural Villages, 4) Town of Boone.
Community Engagement
The process began with extensive discovery and public engagement, including an inventory of the County’s assets, demographics, geography, and past planning efforts.
A public-facing project website and promotional video promoted a public survey to collect data from residents. A series of focus groups and personal interviews helped identify key themes that guided plan recommendations.
