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As the Triangle continues to grow, the arc of fringe cities surrounding the region will start to evolve. Rocky Mount’s bones and convenience make it an intriguing destination.

Continuing our Triangle Fringe City series with a look at the future of Rocky Mount. Be sure to check out the introduction and Henderson features if you missed them.

Rocky Mount is a city of roughly 55,000 roughly 60 miles East of Raleigh and 80 miles East of Durham located at the interchange of I-95 and US 64 / Future I-87. The city has been largely focused on agriculture, manufacturing, and the railroad throughout it’s history.

The Downtown features a typical Main Street setup with early 20th century brick buildings centered along the railroad and is split between Nash and Edgecombe Counties. While the Downtown could be considered large for a city of this size in the South, decades of suburban flight led to significant urban decay. In the past decade, the city has put a big focus on revitalizing Downtown and the results are starting to be evident.

The City also recently purchased and restored the Historic Rocky Mount Mills property (pictured above). It now features restaurants, apartments, offices, and restored historic cottages.

Within the walkshed of Downtown you’ll find dozens of three bedroom properties for under $300,000.

Looking toward the future

While Rocky Mount is around a hour from Raleigh, it features an urban core full of possibilities where residents are able to access daily needs, entertainment, and recreation. As the Triangle continues to grow, it’s vital that we shift our growth from purely sprawl based subdivisions to making use of the bones of these fringe cities like Rocky Mount.

Rocky Mount’s mix of historic mills, underused parcels, and a grid system to support mixed-use growth within the walkshed of Downtown.

Efforts should also be made to establish a sense of connection between Downtown Rocky Mount and the Rocky Mount Mills riverfront area which is about a mile away to ensure seamless levels of activity.

Rocky Mount’s location also falls on an Amtrak corridor providing easier access to Raleigh, Charlotte, DC, and the entire Eastern seaboard.

Stay tuned next time as we explore the future of Wilson.

Phil Veasley is a registered Professional Engineer in NC and GA. Opinions and insights are my own and are not representative of my employer or any organization. Any ideas displayed on this site are purely that – just ideas to help improve the future of the built environment and begin discussions.

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As the Triangle continues to grow, the arc of fringe cities surrounding the region will start to evolve. Henderson presents a unique opportunity.

Continuing our Triangle Fringe City series with a look at the future of Henderson. Be sure to check out the introduction if you missed it.

Henderson is a city of roughly 15,000 roughly 45 miles North of Raleigh and 45 miles Northeast of Durham located at the interchange of I-85 and US-1. The city has been losing residents at a pretty steady rate since 2000 but has a Downtown full of great bones.

The Downtown features a typical Main Street setup with early 20th century brick buildings featuring shops and restaurants flanked by a healthy grid system for a city of this size.

Henderson also features a decent supply of 3 bedroom homes for under $300,000 within the walkshed of Downtown.

Looking toward the future

As the Triangle continues to grow, it’s vital that we shift our growth from purely sprawl based subdivisions to making use of the bones of these fringe cities like Henderson. While Henderson is around a hour from Raleigh and slightly less to Durham, creating an urban core where residents are able to access daily needs, entertainment, and recreation will reduce the travel needs.

Henderson features a multitude of historic mills, underused parcels, and a grid system to support mixed-use growth within the walkshed of Downtown.

There is also undeveloped land adjacent to downtown but still within the walkshed that could potentially be used for a mixed-use neighborhood in the future. This high level sketch I developed shows a community containing single family, cottage, duplex, multi-plex, apartment, and condo style housing nestled among commercial developments, parks and a town center that would compliment Downtown Henderson.

Henderson’s location also falls on the S-Line corridor which is a future high speed rail line between Raleigh and Richmond, adding to the possibilities of the future.

Stay tuned next time as we explore the future of Rocky Mount.

Phil Veasley is a registered Professional Engineer in NC and GA. Opinions and insights are my own and are not representative of my employer or any organization. Any ideas displayed on this site are purely that – just ideas to help improve the future of the built environment and begin discussions.

Cover photo via Google Street View

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This is a running gallery of Urban Space ideas I’ve sketched through the years. I will continually add to this. Articles from these sketches can be found on the Urban Spaces and / or Reconnecting Communities pages.

Phil Veasley is a registered Professional Engineer in NC and GA. Opinions and insights are my own and are not representative of my employer or any organization. Any ideas displayed on this site are purely that – just ideas to help improve the future of the built environment and begin discussions.

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As the Triangle continues to grow, the arc of fringe cities surrounding the region will start to evolve.

It’s no secret that the Triangle continues to grow. Despite efforts to add missing middle housing in cities like Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill, the sheer lack of density and infill has led to endless sprawl and sharp increases in home costs.

As greenfield sprawl type development (hopefully) becomes less attractive, the opportunities in the Triangle fringe cities may begin to present themselves as viable options. Each of the following cities have a historic, walkable Downtown core ripe with infill potential along with the bones of being a self-sufficient city.

In the coming weeks, we’ll explore each of the following cities in depth.

City	2000 Population	2020 Population	Miles to Raleigh	Miles to Durham	3 BR < $300,000*	Current AMTRAK?
Henderson	16,100	15,100	44	41	22	No*
Rocky Mount	55,900	54,300	59	82	58	Yes
Wilson	44,400	47,900	51	73	78	Yes
Goldsboro	39,000	36,700	54	79	40	Yes*
Smithfield – Selma	17,400	17,500	29	54	28	Yes
Sanford	23,200	30,300	43	50	66	Yes*
Pittsboro	2200	4600	34	37	2	No
Siler City	7000	7700	51	44	3	No
Burlington – Graham	57,100	74,100	58	35	33	Yes

*Number of 3 bedroom for sale properties within municipality address on Zillow as of 7/30. Henderson is along the future S-Line corridor. Goldsboro is AMTRAK connecting bus service. Sanford is on the AMTRAK line but currently has no station.

Hybrid work is here to stay and most of the chosen cities have direct train access to Raleigh and Durham. They will become an increasingly attractive option to people looking for affordability, access to a walkable downtown core, outside of a sprawl subdivision, all while still having easy enough access to Raleigh and Durham.

Stay tuned in the coming weeks as we dive into my thoughts surrounding each of these cities.

Phil Veasley is a registered Professional Engineer in NC and GA. Opinions and insights are my own and are not representative of my employer or any organization. Any ideas displayed on this site are purely that – just ideas to help improve the future of the built environment and begin discussions.

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