AGENDA ITEM EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
ITEM TITLE*
title
Discussion and Feedback on Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways Feasibility Study
presenter
RESPONSIBLE STAFF, TITLE, DEPARTMENT*
Britany Waddell, Director, Planning Department
Bergen Watterson, Mobility and Greenways Manager, Planning Department
Ben Berolzheimer, Mobility and Greenways Planner, Planning Department
STAFF RECOMMENDATION*
Staff recommends that Council receive the presentation and provide guidance on the Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways Feasibility Study.
body
ACTION/DECISION POINTS*
Council will be asked to provide guidance on the types of greenways and acceptable tradeoffs for the final feasibility study.
We will be looking for Council guidance on:
• Everywhere to Everywhere vision - how it looks on the ground
• Timing of implementation (when to use existing infrastructure; when to build new)
• Definition of feasible (assigning our resources)
In the feasibility study, Council guidance will help us prioritize recommendations:
• Fastest deliverable?
• Highest user experience?
• Hybrid options where possible?
BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT*
Where We’ve Been: As part of the Complete Community strategy, Council has envisioned an Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways system to provide an alternate transportation system in the Town. After the Town received a federal RAISE grant, the Office of Mobility and Greenways (OMG) kicked off the Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways Feasibility Study in February 2025 and hired the consulting firm, McAdams, to conduct it. Staff introduced Town Council to the project on February 12, 2025 <https://chapelhill.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=7126899&GUID=5B13C8A9-C0C4-4258-BA0F-2D4AA069136C&Options=ID|Text|&Search=everywhere>, provided an update information packet on February 28, 2026, and hosted a Council drop-in Session on June 10, 2026 at Town Hall.
Early in the process, Town staff set up a project Steering Committee comprised of Town staff from various departments and agency partner organizations (UNC, OWASA, Carrboro, Orange County, CHCCS, NCDOT) to guide study development. Through robust evaluation, analysis, and feedback from the project steering committee, the project team narrowed 87 miles of proposed greenways down to 25 miles to move forward for further feasibility analysis. Some of them are small neighborhood connectors aimed at filling network gaps, while others are long new greenway corridors. Key evaluation criteria included equity, connectivity, and land use & development.
Where We Are Now: The study is about half done and we are currently evaluating potential routes for each of the greenway segments so we can understand possibilities and limitations of each project. When complete, this study will help us understand potential challenges early so we can reduce project risks, develop better cost estimates, and make informed decisions about which projects to pursue when.
Why We Are Here: The Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways concept that came from the Complete Community Strategy envisioned a network of connected greenways that residents use for transportation far from busy roads, inspired by some of our signature greenways such as Bolin Creek and Fan Branch. As the team analyzed the potential routes for the various greenway segments, we realized that the ideal off-road traditional greenway options were scoring significantly lower than on-street neighborhood greenways based on our evaluation criteria (Constructability, Cost, Environmental Impacts, Property Impacts, User Experience). The traditional greenway options score high for user experience but lower on constructability, cost, environmental impacts, and property impacts. The neighborhood greenways tend to be significantly cheaper, faster, and easier to implement. Additionally, not every desirable route has open land, creeks, or other natural opportunities to accommodate a greenway.
Because this does not have to be a stark choice, but rather a spectrum of greenway types based on local context, it presents a good opportunity to seek Council guidance.
What We Need From Council: At the September 16th, 2026 work session Town staff will share background information about the Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways Feasibility Study, explain how we conducted our analysis of the 87 proposed miles of greenways, and present examples of the choices we are facing with regards to the types of greenway facilities to include in the study.
We will be looking for Council guidance on:
• Everywhere to Everywhere vision - how it looks on the ground
• Timing of implementation (when to use existing infrastructure; when to build new)
• Definition of feasible (assigning our resources)
In the feasibility study, do we prioritize:
• Fastest deliverable?
• Highest user experience?
• Hybrid options where possible?
We invite Councilmembers to explore the potential routes and types of tradeoffs we will be discussing ahead of the work session on the Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways Feasibility Study Engage HQ site <https://engage.chapelhillnc.gov/everywhere-to-everywhere-greenways-feasibility-study?tool=map>.
After the session, the project team will use Council guidance to determine which types of greenways in which contexts to fully analyze in the final feasibility study and ensure that what we bring back reflects Council’s interests. Staff will return to Council in late 2026 or early 2027 for guidance on prioritization and implementation strategy before finalizing the study.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The project budget is $1.3 million. The Town was awarded a $1 million USDOT RAISE Grant in 2023 to complete this study and is contributing a $300,000 required match from local greenway funds. Initial cost estimates show an average of $2 million to $4 million per mile of greenway for construction only, depending on complexity, Detailed cost estimates and an implementation plan will be developed as a part of the feasibility study.
So far, no funding has been identified for the construction of the network. There is an annual budget allocation of $500,000 for greenways, but that will not come close to funding the design and construction of the Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways network.
COMPLETE COMMUNITY CONNECTION
Goal 2 of the Complete Community Strategy is to ‘Expand and Deliver new Greenways for Everyday Life’, and Council adopted the Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways concept as a pilot project to move forward in December 2022. A key tenet of Complete Community is that Chapel Hill will be a place where people can easily get around without a car and enjoy parks and natural spaces.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Office of Mobility and Greenway and Communications & Engagement staff worked with our consultant, McAdams, to jointly design a communications and engagement plan. An Engagement summary outlining our approach, tactics, and preliminary feedback is attached. Engagement will continue throughout the month of September. A full engagement report will be included with the final feasibility study.
ATTACHMENTS
Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways_Draft Staff Presentation
Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways_Community Engagement Summary
Everywhere to Everywhere Greenways_Past Council Updates
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