One of the purposes of a Chamber of Commerce is to act as an advocate for its members.  With that in mind, the Vision Committee was formed to start and sustain conversation among Members and in the community regarding what we want New Bern to be like in the future, and to facilitate a process for developing a vision for New Bern for which we can advocate with the City and County governments, and with others whose cooperation is necessary to achieve the goals.

In creating a dialog, the committee’s goal was not to steer your thoughts, but to encourage you to let us know what you are thinking.  So far, we have had thought-provoking, inspirational, and even humorous responses. 

We are looking for common threads that we can discuss further in focus groups, and that may lead us to future action and advocacy on behalf of our members for the benefit of the community.  Below are quotes from a few of the responses we have received. 

 “Growth will happen. Unrestricted, it will create problems and a lot of hard feelings. If we work together now, really plan, we can ease the pain and expense.”

“New Bern has a great history that should be expanded on. Much of the growth of New Bern will depend on its’ infrastructure. ..  The airport, marinas and highways of New Bern will all be a focal point of New Bern’s growth.”

“...the downtown core must provide parking to sustain growth downtown. It would be most appropriate for that parking to be invisible.”

“New Bern/Craven County Municipal Marina – Talk to the folks in Charleston and see how much revenue is pumped into their economy due to the boats in that area.  It’s amazing that we haven’t seized this opportunity, especially with the amount of waterfront property owned by the City/County.” 

“We would like to see New Bern remain relatively unchanged over the next thirty years with the local stores and restaurants locally owned and operated. We moved here from a very progressive area, (Washington DC suburbs), because we hated it so much. It always surprises me when everyone gets excited about a new "chain" moving to the area. It's not progress-it's just large corporation taking advantage and putting local people out of business.”

“Strengthen the retail environment. For some reason many stores bypass New Bern and locate in Morehead City, Greenville or Jacksonville. Figure out why our residents spend so much of their money outside of our city and change it so they spend it here.”

“Natural.  Blue sky meets green horizon, 360 degrees, as far as the eye can see.  Trees dominate the landscape.  Buildings do not exceed three stories.  Architecture remains colonial.  Character remains historic.  Population growth is kept to a minimum, along with traffic.  Businesses specialize in quality, not quantity.  New Bern should never become a place from which many people came here to escape.” 

“One thing I found very neat about St. Augustine was their ability to bring parking to the congested downtown area by building first floor retail space with two and three story parking above all with a facade that kept in concert with the "Nation's Oldest City".  It is well worth exploring.”

“The city needs (to) actively address environmental issues and to spend funds to ensure that we preserve our quality of life and improve water quality.”

“I want a serious developer to take over Twin Rivers mall which is an eyesore and embarrassment for the city.  New Bern needs to control the growth/sprawl that is occurring on US 70 in James City towards Havelock.I moved here because I liked the small town feel New Bern provides.  That is lost forever in Greenville and Jacksonville. I don't want too many stores and restaurants coming here just so we have them, Morehead can have all the new restaurants, it is only a short drive away.”

• “Water access that is plentiful and affordable.
• A relationship between the city and county that is supportive and cooperative.
• A downtown retail vitality that attracts “destination shoppers” in addition to tourists.
• Downtown parking that is ample and convenient.
• Public housing that is a model for low income dwellings.
• A redeveloped Five Points area that is stable, attractive and economically sound.

This community is at an important crossroads, one which will force the residents and the “city fathers” to move away from the parochial attitude about development.  Smart growth can be attained without sacrificing the charm and character of the community.  The attainment of the aforementioned characteristics will still allow people to –

 Say “hello” on the street, revel in the historical charm of the area, and take pride in a community that cares about its residents and visitors.”

“…feel that we (are) putting too much emphasis on tourism. Tourism does not add the type of income  or security to our work force I would like to see.  I feel the same with the Retirement community. I do feel that they add more to the Community in economics and talent, but they are not the best investment as a resource. Our future should be in Business and Industrial Development.”

• “Parking/public transportation – the city has remote parking facilities linked to public transportation.  These could be small busses or trolleys that are electric, hybrid or hydrogen powered.
• New buildings have been constructed to LEED requirements and are certified.  Major renovations have also been implemented to LEED criteria.  Where existing buildings have been removed, LEED deconstruct requirements have been implemented to reuse and recycle as much of the material as possible.”