North Carolina Construction News staff writer
The City of Fayetteville has been awarded the 2023 North Carolina Marvin Collins Award in the “advancing equity” category from the North Carolina chapter of the American Planning Association (APA-NC) for the Murchison Choice neighborhood plan.
This award recognizes a project or program that “meaningfully involves historically underrepresented groups, positively impacts quality of life for low or moderate-income individuals and achieves planning objectives that address structural inequities”.
“It was important to council that we approached planning for a majority minority community and home to a historically Black college and university with a sense of equity and respect for the diversity that makes our community great,” said Chris Cauley, economic and community development director. “Receiving this award validates the plan we created with our community at the center, supporting our city council’s goals,”
The award was presented at the annual state conference on Oct. 11, in Durham.
The plan is a guide for the revitalization of the public housing units and transform the Murchison Road Corridor. It is part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Choice Neighborhood initiative (CNI) and a partnership between the City of Fayetteville led by the Economic and Community Development Department, the Fayetteville Metropolitan Housing Authority (FMHA), HUD, with coordination provided by COLLABO.
The plan is centered on redevelopment of FMHA’s Murchison Townhouses, including 60 units of low-income housing.