Streetscape Communications and Stakeholder Involvement Plan
February 2008

Purpose
This plan details the Town of Cary’s communications and stakeholder involvement efforts in support of the design and construction of a new downtown streetscape.

Goals
1. Create an awareness of the Downtown Cary Streetscape Project.
2. Ensure that those living, working, visiting, and traveling in downtown Cary have timely, accurate, and complete information about the
    project through its many steps and milestones.
3. Enhance relationships with downtown Cary residents, business owners, and other target audiences.
4. Utilize communications as one element to help create and maintain a positive opinion about the project.

Objectives
General evaluation measures/performance indicators are written in parenthesis following each objective.
1. Ensure all target audiences are engaged throughout the project (at least 100 public comments received during the project, at least 50     or attendees at the three public meetings, and stakeholder representation from all 20+ target audiences at the three public    
    meetings).
2. Maintain a positive relationship with Town Center residents and businesses during construction (90 percent study team response    
    rate within a 24-hour period following public inquiries, less than 20 complaints per month during the 18-month construction period,
    and an over 75 percent public approval rate of the participation process as indicated by informal surveys/comment sheet
    questionnaires).
3. Establish effective, ongoing, and timely communication updates during construction (up to six news releases per year; at least one
    project e-newsletter per month during the construction phase; web site updates at milestones and prior to public involvement
    opportunities, construction changes, and travel detours; and effective use of other communications tactics during construction).
4. Provide stakeholders an appropriate level of input into the decision-making process by integrating feedback into final design
    aesthetics, art concepts, and construction staging and planning (provide at least two public comment summaries on the project
    website, conduct project team feedback meetings following the three public meetings, and utilize a post-project evaluation survey).
5. Make information available, accessible, and relevant to target publics through use of effective, context-specific communications and
    outreach tools and techniques (meeting attendance and representation, comment sheet responses, and updates to the
    Communications and Stakeholder Involvement Plan during each phase).

Strategy
Develop and implement a multi-layered, multi-phased communications and outreach effort designed to reach target audiences through an array of tactics.

Tactics
– Cary TV 11
– Internet, including the Town’s Website, e-mail, and Project Website
– 24-Hour Town Hall Message Line and Project Hotline
– Speakers Bureau
– Regional Media
– Project Newsletter
– Public Workshops (handouts, displays, and presentations)
– Small Group Meetings
– Kiosk
– Dynamic Message Signs
– Ambassadors/Leadership Group
– Greeting Signs
– BUD, the Town of Cary’s Utility Bill Newsletter
– Special Events

Target Publics
– Town Staff
– Town Council
– Town Boards & Commissions, including Economic Development Commission; Information Services Advisory Board; Parks, Recreation,
   and Cultural Resources Advisory Board; Planning and Zoning Board; Public Art Advisory Board; Sister Cities Commission; Town
   Center Review Commission; Utility Board of Adjustment; and Zoning Board of Adjustment
– Downtown Property Owners
– Downtown Residents
– Downtown Merchants
– Downtown Churches
– Banking Community
– Heart of Cary Association
– Cary Chamber
– Greater Raleigh Chamber
– Motorists
– Pedestrians
– Cyclists
– Realtors
– Developers
– Special Event Organizers, including Cary Band Day, Jaycee Christmas Parade, Town of Cary Lazy Daze Committee, Heart of the
   Holidays organizers
– Wake County Government (Library)
– Wake County Schools
– US Postal Service, including Cary Post Office
– NC Department of Transportation
– Legislative Delegation
– Friends of Page Walker
– SHIPPO
– Emergency Responders
– C-Tran
– Triangle Transit Authority
– Arts Community
– Utility companies—Town of Cary, Progress Energy, Time Warner Cable, Public Service Gas

Key Messages
1. The Downtown Cary Streetscape Project is one of several public efforts designed to spark private investment in Cary’s downtown
    including the rehabilitation of old Cary Elementary and the implementation of the Civic and Cultural Arts Master Plan.
2. The Downtown Cary Streetscape Project will serve as the “front porch” of Downtown Cary – creating a signature gateway that
    leads to a unique, vibrant, and pedestrian-friendly destination. The project is setting the stage for: creating a unique identity and
    visual character for downtown; strengthening the community’s sense of place; serving as a catalyst for economic development;
    improving mobility for pedestrian, bicycle, and transit travel in downtown Cary; and providing opportunities to integrate public art into
    downtown.
3. The Streetscape vision and design was created with significant citizen input.
4. The Streetscape vision and design are part of the Town’s implementation of the Town Center Area Plan (TCAP).
5. The Town and our contractors and consultants are committed to minimizing impacts from the construction portion of the project,
    including preparing and working according to reliable, updated schedules and ensuring access to those who live, work, travel, and
    conduct business in the area.
6. Public art will permeate the overall project design. Art will be integrated into elements such as street furniture, gateway signage,
    gathering areas, and sidewalks.
7. The Downtown Cary Streetscape Project includes approximately 11,000 linear feet of streetscaping and roadway improvement
    design on Academy Street, Chatham Street, and North Harrison Avenue as provided in the Downtown Cary Streetscape Master
    Plan. The estimated project cost is $36.6 million, which includes $2.6 million for the replacement and upgrades to underground
    utilities. The design phase began in Spring 2007, and the estimated project completion date is Summer 2011.
8. The Town and our contractors and consultants are committed to protecting the environment and integrating sustainable design
    principles into the overall project design. Our project will meet or exceed all applicable environmental laws and regulations during
    project implementation. Best management practices will be adhered to during the construction phase of the project.

Primary Activities
Logotype
Develop an attractive logo that’s in keeping with the existing look and feel of other Town of Cary products. The logo will appear on all communications materials associated with the project.

Slogan/Tag Line
Develop a short phrase that captures what is being accomplished with the project. The short phrase should be included as part of all communications materials. The phrase could transition into a marketing catch phrase for the area once the project is complete.

Leadership Group
Identify, convene, and regularly engage a representative sample of the target publics to serve as ambassadors and grassroots communicators for the project.

Speakers Bureau
Town staff will ask to be invited to make educational presentations to nearly 200 Cary civic groups, professional associations, and homeowners’ groups.

Bud
For each project milestone, but no less than three times a year, write and publish a project update in the Town’s utility bill newsletter, Bud. These stories will also be carried on Bud TV.

News Releases and Public Service Announcements (PSAs)
For each project milestone and for all traffic shifts, write and distribute news releases and public service announcements to regional media. Traffic shifts will be posted on the appropriate dynamic messages signs.

Video
Produce a short video that illustrates the stages of and what will be accomplished by the project. The video will be shown regularly on Cary TV 11 and used during Speakers Bureau presentations and special events.

Gateway Signage
Create and post attractive informational signs about the project at the northern, southern, eastern, and western edges of the project. All signs must meet all applicable regulations.

Kiosk
Construct and maintain an attractive project kiosk located in the heart of the project area designed to educate pedestrians on the project purpose, phases, current status, and directions for where to go for more information. The kiosk should be referenced in all communications materials.

Newsletter
Create a monthly newsletter during construction to educate target publics on the project purpose, phases, current status, and where to go for more information. Multiple copies of each edition will be distributed to downtown merchants, institutions, and agencies, who will be encouraged to make them available to patrons by placing them near cash registers or in other public areas. Residents will be notified of upcoming public meetings through project newsletters. Each edition will be placed on the project’s website.

Special Events
Organize and hold both a groundbreaking ceremony and ribbon cutting events that may include a downtown festival and parade.

Public Meetings
Conduct public meetings during the final design process to allow interested citizens an opportunity to review project history and current status, review plans and view art concepts, and understand the timing and nature of activities during construction. The meetings will serve to update and detail the public’s vision for the project. Public comment, including construction concerns and other impacts, will be collected. More in-depth input on the public art (locations and concepts), as well as design aesthetic elements (especially those incorporating the artistic vision), will be sought.

Small Group Meetings
Hold small group meetings with study area businesses and other stakeholder groups to share project information and collect additional input with a focus on maintaining the vision of the project outcome, while identifying any concerns, particularly regarding construction.

Project Office
Staff a location prior to construction to allow the public an opportunity to view and collect project materials, including construction information (will be initiated on a part-time basis and evaluated).

Mobile Display Station
Employ a mobile display station to create awareness of the project. The project team will visit locations where people frequent to discuss the project, including neighborhood facilities, shopping centers, and local festivals.

Project Web Site
Create and maintain a project web site to educate and create awareness for the project and to solicit public feedback. The web site will include a project schedule indicating public participation opportunities, construction information, a public art section, project-related documents, and information for contacting the project team. The web site will be updated prior to, during, and following major project milestones, as needed.

Project Hotline
Support a dedicated project hotline to provide updates on the project, including construction activities, schedule, and traffic impacts, and to obtain feedback from the public.

Advertising
Advertising for special events, such as the Groundbreaking Ceremony and Ribbon Cutting Events, will be determined during the construction phase of the project.

Timeline
Communications and stakeholder involvement activities began in Spring 2007 and will extend through Summer 2011. Communications and stakeholder involvement associated with final design, public art, and other pre-construction activities began in Spring 2007 and will extend through Fall 2009. Communications will continue through active construction.

Detailed schedule information will be provided to the public as communications and stakeholder involvement activities are scheduled. The anticipated project schedule for the primary activities is presented below. The schedule may be refined as feedback is received from the public and techniques are evaluated and modified, as needed.

Documentation
– Review and analyze public comments using an extensive comment analysis process. Capture comments submitted using various
   formats, including comment sheets, e-mails, letters, phone calls, and verbal comments.
– Maintain a comment database that sorts, filters, and retains all comments received. Identify the method for comment submission,
   document personal contact information, summarize main topics/issues needing to be addressed, and identify specific action item
   requests.
– Review, summarize, and respond to substantive public comments and action item requests provided during each phase of the
   project.
– Provide periodic public comment summaries on the project website.
– Provide public comments to pertinent study team representatives for review, evaluation, and incorporation into the project planning
   process, plans, and/or construction activities as determined necessary.
– Use monthly project team meetings to discuss public input as it relates to project planning.
– Respond to requests from the public in a timely manner.

Monitoring/Evaluation
The effectiveness and success of the Communications and Stakeholder Involvement Plan will be monitored throughout the project for both process and outcome evaluations. Processes that proved effective and beneficial to the project will be documented, and lessons learned will be identified. The evaluation results will demonstrate the usefulness of particular techniques and the overall benefits achieved by the community.

– Comment sheet questions will be reviewed to assess the level at which the program is meeting stakeholders' needs (especially
   process feedback from questions regarding how project notification/information was received, how useful were public meetings,
   and the value of the project information disseminated through other communications and outreach methods).

– Monthly project team meetings and Communications team meetings will be held to discuss the Communications and Stakeholder
   Involvement Program status.

– The program design (such as this Communications and Stakeholder Involvement Plan and specific outreach techniques) will be
   modified, as necessary, to respond to stakeholder feedback.

A specific evaluation of the goals and objectives presented in this Plan will determine overall program success. The relevant
   performance indicators were presented along with the corresponding objectives.

Budget
The following costs include the estimated design, production, and distribution costs (as applicable) associated with the primary activities being employed for the project. Costs may be refined as feedback is received from the public and techniques are evaluated and modified, as needed.

Contact

Kyle Hubert
Project Manager
Town of Cary Engineering Department
P.O. Box 8005
Cary , NC 27512-8005
kyle.hubert@townofcary.org
Project Information Hotline: (919) 233-DWTN