By Diana McFarland

Managing editor

The Windsor Town Council has zeroed in on five focus areas to support its vision for the next 20 years — with opportunities for different types of housing receiving a good deal of discussion.

The vision for Windsor is to be a proactive, strong, caring community of people that is connected to its citizenry, promoting a sense of pride and engagement that is attractive to families and offers a high quality of life. 

The town’s vision, focus areas and ways to get there were devised during a strategic planning session held recently at the municipal building. {mprestriction ids=”1,2,3,4,5,6″}

The five proposed focus areas for the future are economic development, managed growth and beauty, connected and engaged citizens, effective government and infrastructure and lifestyle and wellness.

The Windsor Town Council borrowed some ideas from the towns of Smithfield and Farmville to come up with its focus areas.

Under each focus area, the Town Council proposed several objectives, such as developing a business district to assist with economic development, diversify the type of housing through zoning, increase the number of community events, develop greater water and sewer capacity and offer more recreational opportunities, among others. 

The Town Council counts as strengths its low taxes, the Town Center, low crime rate and Route 460. Weaknesses listed were that Windsor is not well-known, a limited sewer capacity, the six-way intersection, limited useable land and zoning ordinances that limit diversified housing types. 

Some members of the Town Council were intrigued by the tiny house movement — houses of less than 1,000 square feet, either mobile or on a foundation.  

The town could set up an area especially for tiny houses, said Council member Kelly Blankenship. 

Mayor Glyn Willis suggested changing the zoning ordinances to allow for senior housing and other arrangements other than single-family homes on large lots. 

Town Manager Michael Stallings agreed that the zoning ordinances could use more flexibility and variety. 

Town officials also had a sense of humor about Windsor, noting that Route 460 likely wasn’t its most attractive feature.

“460 is probably one of the ugliest parts of town,” said Town Council member Randy Carr. 

Willis described a portion of the highway that runs through town as “no man’s land,” in terms of older buildings. 

At the same time, Route 460 is a major transportation route that brings people through town, the Council agreed. 

The Town Council plans to meet again in August, October and December to continue the discussion.  {/mprestriction}