The Town will hold an open house Tuesday, May 27, from 5 to 7 p.m., in the Pitts Center, to inform residents, property owners, and other members of the public about the Entry Corridor Enhancement Committee’s initiative to “revitalize and enhance” the U.S. Hwy. 158 corridor, as well as the N.C. Hwy 12 entry corridor, into Southern Shores.
The event will be an informal give-and-take between the public and members of the committee, the Town Council, and Town staff. It will be an opportunity for those who travel the two corridors and shop the retail businesses or use the services along them to learn what the committee’s mission, goals, and plans are for revitalization and to share their perspectives.
Approved by the Town Council last year, the seven-member Entry Corridor Enhancement Committee has been meeting the past six months to define its purpose and goals and to discuss how to “shape a community-oriented, beautiful, and functional entryway [into Southern Shores] that reflects our Town’s heritage and values.”
The aim of the committee, according to a statement it published online, is “to promote a welcoming identity for the Town; enhance green spaces and landscaping; improve accessibility and safety; and establish cohesive architectural standards.”
In short, it aspires to make the entryways into Southern Shores more appealing and more in keeping with the community values of the Town.
The committee has delineated the entry “corridor” into Southern Shores as depicted in the photo above to include the Town’s property frontage along Hwy. 158 from just east of Martin’s Point to the Town Hall, where the property is zoned governmental use, and the area fronting N.C. 12, where the Southern Shores Crossing and the Southern Shores Realty properties are located.
This area obviously encompasses the Town’s commercial property district, with the largest development on the corridor being the Southern Shores Marketplace, whose architectural design and retail and service choices rate mixed reviews from Town residents.
The Entry Corridor Enhancement Committee recently released a community survey to solicit views and ideas from those who live, work, shop, visit, and otherwise have a vested interest in the future of the Southern Shores entry corridor(s). (The survey primarily addresses the U.S. 158 entryway.) It is clear from the survey the direction the committee would like to take corridor improvements: toward a more aesthetically pleasing, community-promoting, unified, walkable, and green area to enjoy.
Our impression is that the committee’s vision aligns with a town-square concept. Among the ideas it is considering are the creation of “pocket parks,” which are small gathering places typically found in urban areas that lack green space, and the construction of mixed-use development that would offer diverse and more affordable housing.
You may access the survey at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeIbVtiRAcbPEN7pVV-pttq57pSJY47djgr2R68vNlhgbchsA/viewform.
The suggested deadline for responses is June 6.
The Entry Corridor Enhancement Committee’s website contains its full mission statement, its seven goals, and minutes of its meetings, and may be accessed at https://www.southernshores-nc.gov/bc/page/entry-corridor-enhancement-committee. You will find that the goals are well expressed and thoughtfully elaborated upon.
Members of the committee are Mayor Elizabeth Morey, Mayor Pro Tem Matt Neal, Deputy Town Manager/Planning Director Wes Haskett, and Southern Shores resident property owners Jim Gould, Linda Lauby, Matt Price, and Michael Zehner.
The committee will meet tomorrow at 9 a.m. in the Pitts Center.
THE SOUTHERN SHORES BEACON, 5/20/25
The Southern Shores Beacon 