Piedmont Greenway Master Plan - Town of Kernersville

mercial in some parts and open farmland in others. As the corridor heads north into Guilford County, several
road bridges and utilities cross over the creeks.
After passing under Interstate business 40, increasing residential land use lies on both banks of Kerners
Mill Creek and the neighborhoods of Kernersville surround the corridor on both sides. Many open space areas
including recreation sites such as small pocket parks are interspersed along the corridor in this section.
As you approach Triad Park to the east, the land use is urban and commercial/industrial and becomes
suburban neighborhoods near Main Street in Kernersville.
At the time of this writing, the Reedy Fork and Moore’s Creek property ownership and land use has
not been studied intensively. In Guilford County, Reedy Forks Creek’s floodplain is still primarily used for
agricultural purposes in the southern area that includes land to the south of Highway 68 and north of Beeson
Road. The land north of Highway 68 is largely low density residential and is characterized by large tracts of
wetlands and or poorly drained areas north to the confluence of Moore’s Creek. Along the banks of Reedy
Fork Creek there are estates and farmsteads that include agricultural land adjacent to the creek until reaching
Triad Park to the south and land in Forsyth County.
Moore’s Creek’s floodplain is primarily used for agricultural purposes south of its confluence with Reedy
Fork Creek. There are areas that have a sparse amount of residential low-density developments and areas that
support an active equestrian trail system along the eastern banks of the creek. Below Stanley Huff Road, the
few roads that access the creek corridor are mostly private.
Higher density suburban development begins as you approach Northwest School Road. Land use will be
restricted in the Moore’s Creek corridor because of the unique topography and soils associated with the creek
corridor. The land use for the Haw River watershed in Guilford County is 20.5 percent agricultural, 75 percent
or greater forest and 4.5 percent suburban, according to the EPA’s land use data.
Information on land use in the study area was obtained from current zoning information and consultant
field visits. Those lands most conducive to encouraging bicycling and walking contain a mix of residential,
commercial and institutional lands. In general, mixed land use occurs primarily in the downtown area
of Kernersville with commercial use concentrated along main roadway thoroughfares and residential lands
located outside of these commercial strips. Institutional uses, such as parks, schools and community centers
are scattered throughout the study area, usually along main thoroughfares. Land uses within specific areas of
study are described in further detail in subsequent sections of this report.
(Source: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) EnviroMapper for Watersheds-Surf your Watershed Program -
www.epa.gov).
Population
The population of the Piedmont region known as the Triad has been steadily increasing over
the last two decades. In Forsyth County, the population grew from 265,878 in 1990 to 306,067 in
2000, a 15.1 percent increase. The land is 410 square miles with 746 people per square mile. In
Guilford County, the population grew from 331,785 in 1990 to 421,048 in 2000, a 21.2 percent
increase. The county has 649 square miles in land area with 648 persons per square mile. The
twelve counties that make up the Piedmont Triad region are ranked as the third most populated
in North Carolina. Population projections for the study area indicate a steady increase of people
every five years to the year 2015. As the population continues to grow, the need for conservation
of undeveloped lands, such as greenway corridors, will also increase.
Public Transportation
Transportation plans are different from thoroughfare plans. The Winston-Salem/Forsyth
County Urban Area thoroughfare plan is the street and highway system component of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth
County Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP). The plan makes area-wide
recommendations for new streets and highways as well as improvements to existing roads based
on traffic modeling data. The thoroughfare plan for the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Urban
Area was adopted in June 2002. The 2025 Multi modal Long Range Transportation Plan for the
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Urban Area was adopted in April 2002. Two of the objectives of
the transportation plan were:
(1) Environment - Develop a transportation system that respects and enhances the
natural and built environments, and,
(2) Pedestrian and Bicycle Transportation - create a bikeway/sidewalk/greenway network
that is an integral part of the transportation system which provides an alternative means of
transportation as well as recreational opportunities.
Regional Transportation Study
The Winston-Salem Forsyth County, Greensboro, and High Point Area Metropolitan Planning
organizations with Forsyth, Guilford, Davidson and Randolph counties are currently undertaking
a regional transportation study. The study has three elements: organizational, land use and
transportation. The organizational element has been completed with legislation authorizing the
creation of a Regional Transportation Authority. The land use and transportation elements are
combined. Land use projections for the region and subsequent traffic modeling have been accomplished
for the 2025 Trend Line Plan, for the 2025 Transit Directed Plan, which concentrates
future growth in potential transit corridors, and for the 2025 Regional Growth Concept Plan, the
recommended land-use alternative. Adoption of a Regional Transportation Plan will follow pub-
PIEDMONT GREENWAY
Final Master Plan Report 15