Summary Report

 

 

Needs Assessment Town Meeting

Maggie Valley, North Carolina

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 2003

 

 

 

 

 

Technical Assistance Provided By

 

Table of Contents

 

 

List of Graphics................................................. 1

Summary Report................................................. 2

Appendix.......................................................... 9

 

 

List of Graphics

 

Figure 1.    Map and Chart Exercises

Figure 2.    Work and Community Issue Charts (with Quantified Responses)

Figure 3.    Brainstorming Ideas and Concerns

Figure 4.    Prioritizing Ideas and Concerns

Figure 5.    The Results

Maggie Valley, NC conducted a town meeting on 2 Oct 03 as part of a needs assessment. This report describes the reason for the town meeting, its design, the participants, statistical validity, summary of the results, and conclusions.

 

Reason for Conducting a Town Meeting

Most planning processes begin with a recognition of need for planning and the identification of specific ideas and concerns. Local government officials wanted this assessment to reflect ideas and concerns identified by those who live and work in the town, thereby promoting community ownership in the planning process.

 

The Design

The town meeting lasted approximately 2 hours. The meeting location was the First Baptist Church on Soco Road.

 

The meeting framework consisted of 5 elements: participants signed-in, informally worked on several map and chart exercises, formally worked in small groups to identify specific ideas and concerns, prioritized the collective ideas and concerns generated by each small group, and then commented on both the process and the results. Specific guidelines for identifying ideas and concerns were to focus on things being done now...to continue or do more; things being done now...to modify, change, or stop; and things not being done now...to start.

The Participants

Approximately 175 persons attended the town meeting. Participants included business, professional, and blue collar workers; homemakers and retired persons; full-time and part-time residents; youth, mid-age, and elderly; and both genders.

 

Statistical Evaluation

The town meeting was open to everyone, and attendance at the meeting was random. The community used a variety of means to inform the public about the meeting and to encourage attendance. Advertisement of the meeting included newspaper announcements, flyers, marquees, word-of-mouth, and e-mail networks.

 

It is possible to statistically describe the town meeting results (using attendance data) similar to the way researchers analyze the validity of public opinion survey response data. The variables are the same: confidence level, sampling error, and proportion of incidence. Assuming that attendance at the meeting was random and using the most conservative proportion of incidence (i.e., 0.5), the results obtained from the town meeting have a confidence level of 95 percent and a sampling error of ⁺/_- 8 percent.

 

Summary of the Results

A summary of the town meeting results includes both the map and chart exercises and outcomes from the small work groups. The map and chart information, although informal, helps to describe the participants. In addition, it is sometimes informative to compare participant responses concerning important community issues done before participants began working in small groups to categorized results developed after working in small groups.

 

Map and Chart Exercises... Informal Information about Participants (Figure 1)

• Where people live...defining a sense of community or place

◊ Participants came from all parts of the community…the incorporated town boundary, the extra territorial jurisdiction, and adjacent areas.

◊ When asked to identify neighborhood boundaries, participants generally selected areas defined by local topography. They identified over 40 small neighborhoods, most being along collector roads and streams or creeks. In addition, several participants identified the water basin (i.e., northern and southern ridge lines) as the greater community.

 

Figure 1. Map and Chart Exercises

 

 

• Where people work (Figure 2)

◊ About a third of the employed participants work in the trade and services sectors.

◊ The finance/insurance/real estate and construction sectors employ about 16 percent of the participants who work.

◊ None of the participants work in the manufacturing sector.

◊ The largest number of participants are in the other category (e.g., which included retired, stay-at-home spouses, et al.).

Figure 2. Work and Community Issue Charts (with Quantified Responses)

 

Chart Question	Total Responses	Percentage of Total
Which category best describes your job?
• Industry/manufacturing	0	0%
• Education	1	1%
• Transportation, communication, and utilities	1	1%
• Government/public administration	2	2%
• Construction	5	6%
• Finance, insurance, and real estate	9	10%
• Retail/wholesale trade	13	14%
• Services (other than education)	18	20%
• Other (to include retired)	41	46%
Total	90	100%
Most important community issues over next 5-10 years
• Small town atmosphere/community character	43	27%
• Economic development/tourism	36	23%
• Physical environment	16	10%
• Retail and grocery stores	14	9%
• Recreation/entertainment	12	8%
• Transportation, roads, and streets	10	6%
• Public services (to include crime and safety)	10	6%
• Education	9	6%
• Annexation	4	3%
• Youth activities	3	2%
• Other	1	1%
Total	158	100%

 

(Note – percentage data is rounded to the nearest whole number)

 

 

• Most important community issues over the next 5-10 years (Figure 2)

◊ Five issues account for approximately 69 percent of the responses: small town atmosphere/community character, economic development/tourism, physical environment, retail/grocery stores, and recreation/entertainment. In addition, the first 2 issues received the most responses (about 50 percent), and the remaining top-5 issues received a balanced number of responses.

 

• Favorite and least favorite places

◊ Things that make Maggie Valley a great place to live, work, and play...these things help to create a positive image or identity for the town: the Blue Ridge Parkway, several local roads, the town hall, Pavillion, Saint Margaret’s, Cataloochee ranch and ski resort, Laurel Ridge subdivision, the country club area, and Seven Springs. Several participants identified the entire valley (i.e., to include ridge lines) as their favorite place.

◊ Things that create a negative image or identity for the community: the Blue Ridge Parkway, several local roads, perpetual yard sales along US 19, Kozy Corner, Wheels through Time, Laurel Ridge subdivision, dumpsters in the RV park, and the junkyard on US 19 east of town. One person wrote, I have none.

 

• Favorite and least favorite streets

◊ Participants identified several street/road segments in the town as their most favorite: the Blue Ridge Parkway, US 19 (especially the mid-town portion of Soco Road), Black Camp Gap, Fie Top Road, Memory Lane, Rich Cove Road, Moody Farm Road, Country Club Drive, Jonathan Creek Road, Fox Run Road, Appalachian Trail, Timberline Drive, and Campbell Creek Road.

◊ US 19 (both eastern and western parts of town), Rich Cove Road, Soco Road, Moody Farm Road, Riddle Cove Road, US 276 (north of the town), Summit Drive, Dogwood Drive, and Timberline Drive were the least favorite roads.

 

• Favorite and least favorite attractions, events, and activities

◊ Most favorites were: the Blue Ridge Parkway, churches/chapels/reflection centers (Methodist, First Baptist, Saint Margaret’s, and Lizzuri’s), Cataloochee ranch and ski resort, Market Square, Wheels through Time, Maggie Valley Country Club, Seven Springs, restaurants and motels along Soco Road, Eagle Nest, the zoo, Spring House, and hiking south of Campbell Road.

◊ Least favorites were: strip development along US 19 west of town, blue butterfly, Wheels through Time, noisy events (e.g., motorcycle and monster truck), Spring House, Stone Bridge campground, and craft shows.

 

• For walkers only...

◊ Primary interests for walking trails were along Campbell Creek Road, Soco Road, and Country Club Drive.

◊ Secondary interests for walking trails were along divide trail, Memory Lane, Laurel Ridge Road, and Waterrock Knob.

 

• For bikers only...

◊ Recommendations for bike lanes/trails were along Soco Road, Campbell Creek Road, Country Club Drive, US 276, and Gaddis Branch Road.

 

• About the participants…

◊ One person was under 21, two were 21-35, and the others were evenly split between 36-65 and older than 65 years of age.

◊ Although most were full-time residents of the Maggie Valley area, several part-time residents were also present.

 

Small Work Group Sessions...Specific Ideas and Concerns

Participants identified 368 ideas and concerns (Figure 3). The Appendix contains a complete listing of the consolidated ideas and concerns from the town meeting.

 

Figure 3. Brainstorming Ideas and Concerns

 

 

 

In order to analyze the ideas and concerns as a unit or package, it is helpful to group them by need category. Seven need categories accommodate all ideas and concerns: economic development and tourism; services, local government, communication, and cooperation; transportation, community facilities, infrastructure, and programs; land use and controls; aesthetics and community appearance; physical environment; and parks, recreation, and open space. Although each category is distinct, it is common for ideas and concerns within one category to have linkages (or overlap) with one or more additional category. In addition, some ideas and concerns can fit in multiple categories.

 

Participants prioritized their ideas and concerns during the meeting (Figure 4). Each participant had 10 votes (i.e., allowing each participant to identify their 10 most important community needs). Figure 5 is a summary of the voting results by category.

 

Figure 4. Prioritizing Ideas and Concerns

 

 

 

This prioritization method makes 3 assumptions: the greater the number of votes, the higher the priority; when the same idea/concern occurs more than once in the consolidated listing of ideas and concerns (Appendix), the greater the consensus (i.e., more than one work group identified the same idea/concern); and when a high degree of correlation exists between the number of ideas and concerns generated by category and the number of votes by category (Figure 5), the outcome is very reliable.

 

Some choices that the participants made earlier during the chart exercises differed from choices made later while working in small groups. For example, transportation scored lower during the chart exercises than after working in small groups. The reason for such a change relates to a combination of factors: different choices, group dynamics, and the power of synergism.

 

Conclusions

Participants at the town meeting identified a wide range of ideas and concerns. Some are simple, and others are complex; some will be easy to execute, and others will

Be tough; some will be expensive, and others will be inexpensive; some are very important, and others are less important. When one looks holistically at all the ideas and concerns (Appendix), they represent Maggie Valley’s needs – as identified by those who live and work in the town and extended community – for the next 5-10 years (i.e., future directions for how Maggie Valley can/should grow and change).

 

Figure 5. The Results

Note – Percentages are rounded to nearest whole number and do not add up to 100

Appendix

 

 

 

 

Consolidated Ideas and Concerns from Town Meeting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

401		Economic Development and Tourism
	23	• Make Maggie Valley a family vacation destination
	20	• Promote heritage and historical aspect of town
	16	• Capitalize on our magnificent beauty and proximity to Smoky Mountain National Park by advertising the area as a destination resort and retirement community
	16	• Get Ghost Town re-opened
	16	• Promote winter season for tourism (i.e., lights, etc.)
	15	• Open Ghost Town
	15	• Revitalize Ghost Town
	14	• Create year-round town (i.e., businesses operating all year long for tourists and residents)
	14	• No fast food chains
	13	• Encourage local shopping including grocery stores
	11	• Create incentives for business to locate here
	11	• Establish a theme for the business community (such as Helen, GA or Leavenworth, WA) to assist in creating a destination resort in Maggie Valley
	11	• Explore possibility of a winterfest
	9	• Pass a sign ordinance requiring businesses to use a uniform format
	8	• Maintain small town atmosphere
	7	• Decrease festival activity such as Harley rallies
	7	• Establish a theme for Maggie Valley
	7	• Host theme events based on mountain heritage
	6	• Build grocery store
	6	• Develop more family-oriented tourist attractions
	6	• Encourage tourist attractions
	6	• Hire a festival director
	6	• Increase family entertainment options
	6	• Need nice grocery store in town
	6	• Promote development, and partner with developers; have the city bear its fair share of the cost
	6	• Revitalize Ghost Town (apply for grant) and other tourist-related industries
	5	• Create jobs with higher than minimum wage
	5	• Develop community activities for the winter months
	5	• Move festivals and large, rowdy gatherings out of downtown
	5	• Need chain restaurants

 

	5	• Promote and assist with the development of a walking mall, and assist in the establishment of basic shopping malls (such as pharmacies, grocery stores, and drycleaners) so that Maggie Valley can be self-sufficient
	4	• Attract young residents
	4	• Bring in a bakery
	4	• Build supermarket
	4	• Initiate a historical association
	4	• Invite freelance musicians to play around town
	4	• Promote the sale of Ghost Town Amusement Park
	3	• Bring in a laundromat
	3	• Capitalize on elk capital of the world
	3	• Develop more year-round businesses
	3	• Need lower taxes
	3	• Promote more competitive gas prices
	3	• Promote tourism
	3	• Return public power to the people by holding public officials accountable for tax increases and the public use of the festival grounds
	3	• Use festival grounds year-round
	2	• Continue craft shows
	2	• Create economic development committee
	2	• Expand events in town
	2	• Extend tourist season
	2	• Form search committee to locate Ghost Town buyer
	2	• Incentives such as lower or no taxes to entice businesses to come to Maggie Valley
	2	• Need a pharmacy/medical facility
	2	• Need children/family attractions
	2	• Need family variety stores
	2	• Need family-owned drug store/grocery; no major chains
	2	• Need more chain (non-home cooking) restaurants
	2	• Plan an event at festival ground every weekend
	2	• Promote Maggie Valley by working together
	2	• Provide tourist information center – make it more visible
	2	• Support Soco Zoo
	1	• Attempt to attract retail-oriented residents instead of tourists
	1	• Cooperate better with civic association
	1	• Create more entertainment that is affordable for families
	1	• Desire incentives/package deals for tourists
	1	• Diverse use of festival grounds
	1	• Encourage residents to support local businesses
	1	• Enlarge ski area to attract more tourists
	1	• Hire an event coordinator, and let them do their job without interference
	1	• Let the festival grounds go to a private party
	1	• More jobs for youth
	1	• More special events (car shows, etc.)
	1	• Need major grocery store
	1	• Need more entertainment for seniors
	1	• Need supermarket and drug store