Southern Pines residents will have one more opportunity to weigh in on the proposed Comprehensive Long-Range Plan.

The Planning Board voted unanimously Thursday night to recommend that the Town Council approve the plan, after a public hearing and brief discussion. The board made no changes in the plan.

The council is expected to hold a public hearing on the plan during its regular meeting at 7 p.m. March 9 at the Douglass Community Center.

Two residents spoke during the Planning Board hearing, which was sparsely attended. Both stressed the importance of the West Southern Pines neighborhood to the town as a whole.

"For the spirit of the community," said Dorothy Brower, "I would encourage citizens, and I'm including myself in that, in doing whatever we can to to enhance West Southern Pines starting as soon as possible."

Brower said residents and town officials need to work together to bring the town closer together, eliminating what she felt is a divided town.

The West Southern Pines neighborhood is mentioned prominently in the plan. One of the recommendations call for development of a West Southern Pines neighborhood plan. The neighborhood is viewed as a key area that can unify the town because of its location.

Other key areas in the 219-page document are the downtown and Horse Country. The plan identifies the town's four areas of expected growth - Morganton Road, downtown, West Southern Pines and the Pine Needles area - and prioritized recommendations that should be addressed following the adoption of the plan.

The third area of importance of the document is the need to review, and in some cases, adjust the town's ordinances to be consistent with the plan.

During the Planning Board's discussion, Joan Strawson asked how the plan becomes a functional document.

Town Manager Reagan Parsons said there are a few key areas of the document that will help the Planning Board do its job. One of those, he pointed out, is the land-use map in Chapter 4, and the implementation matrix and the list of goals and recommendations in Appendix B. The matrix includes a list of 14 recommendations and time frames for the future development of the town.

"Quite honestly, if it's an outside development coming in, I think there should be an expectation that they take a look at the matrix and tell us how they meet that policy or goal," Parsons said.

Board members expressed some disappointment in the turnout for the meeting.

"I wish more people would come out," Chairman John McInerney said. "No offense to any of you who are here, but there are a whole lot of people not here. That happens. Maybe more will show up at Town Council."

Board member James Simeon added, "It was a year and a half in the making, and I was sort of anticipating a larger turnout."

The town hired Studio Cascade, a consulting firm based in Spokane, Wash., in June 2008 to help develop the plan. A 20--member advisory committee also contributed to the plan. Several members attended the meeting.

A a copy of the plan it is available at the Southern Pines Library, the Planning Depart-ment office or online at www. southern-pines.studiocascade. com.

Contact Tom Embrey at (910) 693-2484 or by e-mail at tembrey@thepilot.com.