Planning staff presented the draft goals, objectives, policies and a proposed future land-use map for Destination 2050 — New Hanover County’s comprehensive plan update — and commissioners signaled directionally that the draft accurately captures board priorities and may proceed to public review, staff said.

Rebecca Roth, the county planning staff lead for the project, told the board the presentation focused on goals grouped under quality of place, infrastructure and support services, environmental stewardship and resiliency, and coordination and engagement. The draft plan pairs measurable targets with implementation strategies and refines future land-use “place types” to be more targeted than the 2016 plan, Roth said.

Roth said the plan will function as the county’s coastal resources plan under the Coastal Area Management Act and will inform development regulations, rezoning and special-use permit review, capital investments, and future studies. Staff told the board the draft will be released for public review next month, followed by a planning board hearing in January and a board of commissioners public hearing in February.

Commissioners praised the document’s emphasis on conservation, green space, and clearer communication with developers and the public. One commissioner requested that staff add measurable indicators for percent open/green space and percent of the population served by public transportation; Roth said staff would flesh out the measures based on board direction.

The board voted to provide direction to staff to finalize the draft for public release and subsequent hearings. Commissioners said the vote did not change existing policy; rather, it affirmed that staff’s direction and the draft materials should proceed through the statutory public-review process.

Staff named several team members who worked on the plan, including Katia Boykin, Carlene Ellis Batalas and Dylan McDonald. The board’s action was recorded as a motion to direct staff and commissioners voted in favor by voice vote.