The nonprofit organization Historic Flat Rock, Inc. has submitted an open letter to the Flat Rock Village Council regarding the proposed NCDOT changes within Flat Rock.
Of primary concern to the organization is the historic integrity of the Flat Rock Historic District, designated in 1973 by the State of North Carolina and the U.S. Department of the Interior for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places — a designation encompassing an area of 6.25 square miles, which HFR, Inc. had an integral role in achieving both in 1973 and for the recent amendment of the designation, in 2015.
While HFR, Inc. is not opposed to transportation changes by the NCDOT, the organization would like Village leaders to recognize that the organization specifically requests that planning by NCDOT and other Village of Flat Rock endorsed studies for both bicycle and pedestrian greenways include sensitivity to the historic quality of the potentially affected areas, according to the Comprehensive Land Use Plan for the Village of Flat Rock. The plan calls for preservation of character-defining qualities of place in collaboration with HRF, Inc. and allied partners.
HFR, Inc. has proposed working with the Village Council to develop a comprehensive transportation plan that would incorporate bicycle and pedestrian accessibility as well as trails to connect the Flat Rock Village Park on North Highland Lake Road with other areas of Flat Rock.
In accordance with this proposal, HFR Inc. has requested that the Village Council place a moratorium on the North Highland Lake Road project until a comprehensive transportation plan can be developed and adopted. HFR Inc. is committing both individual resources as well as funding assistance for this proposed community-driven transportation plan.