The Buckhorn Plan, a joint project between the City of Mebane, NC and Orange County, is a study conducted to identify the best ways to develop the land off of exit 157 from I-85/40. This area consists of 900 acres of developable land that has been surveyed to better utilize the land for economic opportunity. It is important to note that this is a proposed draft of how to move forward with this land. Though the Buckhorn plan was published in 2020, this is not the first time the community has looked to the area as a point of improvement. Before the Buckhorn Area Plan, The Buckhorn Economic Development District (BEDD) was created by the City of Mebane and Orange County as a development district in 2011 to include a “variety of manufacturing, wholesale, distribution, retail and service uses” describing the same land the Buckhorn Area Plan covers.
Finding the intersection between urban planning and geography will help us understand the importance of the field of geography. In relation to this case study, we have chosen to use the Buckhorn Area plan as a way to exemplify the broader understandings and implications of urban planning. Urban planning impacts communities economically, politically, socially and environmentally, which is necessary to consider when developing urban and suburban areas.
Emma Cutter Stark