Page 6 - The Fayetteville Press Newspaper October 27, 2023 Edition

Page 6 The Fayetteville Press October 27, 2023 Edition

Murchison Choice Neighborhood Plan Wins

“Advancing Equity” Award for City

(Fayetteville, N.C.) – The City of Fayetteville was
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 mean-
ingfully involves historically underrepresented groups, posi-
tively impacts quality of life for low or moderate-income
individuals and achieves planning objectives that address
structural inequities. Committed to

"It was important to council that we approached plan-
ning for a majority minority community and home to a His-
torically Black College and University with a sense of eq-
uity and respect for the diversity that makes our community
great," said Economic and Community Development Direc- saving you more
tor Chris Cauley. “Receiving this award validates the plan
we created with our community at the center, supporting our
City Council’s goals,” Learn more at foodlion.com/save

Cauley and representatives from the Murchison Choice
Planning Team received the award from APA-NC at the an-
nual state conference on Oct. 11, in Durham.

The Choice Plan is a guide for the revitalization of the
public housing units while simultaneously directing posi-
tive transformation along the Murchison Road Corridor. It
is part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development’s (HUD) Choice Neighborhood initiative
(CNI). The CNI employs a comprehensive approach to neigh-
borhood transformation focused on housing, people and
neighborhoods.

The Murchison Choice Neighborhood is a partnership
between the City of Fayetteville led by the Economic and
Community Development Department, the Fayetteville
Metropolitan Housing Authority (FMHA), HUD, with co-
ordination provided by COLLABO.

About the Murchison Choice Neighborhood Plan
In December 2020, the City of Fayetteville, in partner-
ship with FMHA, was awarded a HUD Choice Neighbor-
hoods Planning Grant for the Murchison neighborhood.
Through the Grant, the City and FMHA worked with resi-
dents and community stakeholders, including nonprofits,
faith-based organizations, anchor institutions, supportive
services agencies, businesses and others to create a forward-
looking Transformation Plan with a strong commitment to
diversity and inclusion.

The Plan is centered on redevelopment of FMHA’s
Murchison Townhouses, which includes 60 units of low-in-
come housing. The CNI Plan is intended to replace 100%
of those housing units within the neighborhood or in other
areas of opportunity as part of new mixed-income develop-
ments.

The City of Fayetteville is a dynamic, culturally-rich
community committed to high performance, transparency
and innovation. Directly adjacent to Fort Liberty,
Fayetteville is home to more than 208,000 residents. The
mission of the City is to provide sustainable, high-quality
public services for our communities to thrive and busi-
nesses to grow. With creative energy, vibrant history and
compassionate people, Fayetteville always finds a way.
That's why we are America’s Can Do City. To learn more
about the City of Fayetteville and City departments or ser-
vices, please visit fayettevillenc.gov or follow us on
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn.