Study asks community: What do you want to see in Chatham's future?

But first, they need to find out from the community exactly what that entails.

Those civic groups — Chatham Rotary Foundation, Rotary Club of Chatham and Chatham First — have united to identify priorities and then figure out how to move forward with solutions.

“This is not about specific projects,” Joe Rogers, chair of the Chatham Rotary Foundation, told the Register & Bee in a phone interview.

Instead, it’s aimed at getting a broad concept of what residents and business owners want the town to be, while adding in some strategies along the way to get there.

The first step is to hire a consultant to conduct a study. Rogers didn’t provide the exact dollar amount for the grant — but noted it was “not a secret” — since the contractor hasn’t been selected.

The idea right now inform residents on what’s happening and what they should be looking for in the weeks and months ahead.

A steering community consisting of the civic groups, town officials and business owners will pick the consultant and manage the effort to kick it off.

“It’s all about community input,” Rogers said. “We hope to be very transparent in this process.”

Even before that, they need to identify a brand. Simply put, they need to figure out what to call this project instead of saying “that big study that these people are doing,” Rogers related.

The name is still up in the air.

Once it’s established, a website will launch so the community can keep track of the progress. The groups also plan to have a few in-person meetings to hear the voices of the people directly.

“It’s really across the board,” Rogers explained of the mission. “The concept here is to have a medium through this consultant in which we gain input from a broad spectrum of the community.”

That includes the business sphere, residents and civic organizations.

“It’s really kind of a broad brush approach,” he said of things residents would like to see in Chatham to improve the overall quality of life.

He also likened this phase to an umbrella that would cover the entire community. Under it would be things like business needs and initiatives.

“I think it’s an incredible opportunity for our community,” Chatham Mayor Alisa Davis told the Register & Bee. “I am encouraged to see the groups working collaboratively.”

Davis, also a Rotary Club member and president of Chatham First, said the town has made “some great strides” of the last few years with upgrading infrastructure and revamping operating procedures.

“Those efforts plus, this new effort, really have a lot of promise for the future,” she said in a phone interview.

Davis, a self-described small-town girl, has lived in Chatham since about 2007, growing up in nearby Danville.

“I think Chatham is wonderful as it is for me and my needs, but I know there are others in the community that are thinking of their children and grandchildren,” she said, summing up the forward-looking duty of the initiative.

She wants to build “something wonderful and sustainable” for those future generations.

“I think this is also a wonderful step toward looking to the future,” she explained.

They hope to form a “consensus vision” and then dive deeper into specific areas of development in the coming years.

The goal is to have the study completed by spring or early summer, Rogers said.

This isn’t the first time these groups have forged a partnership for a project. There have been a quite a few over the last decade.

For example, they took what was a barebones, drab alleyway and made it until Competition Alley. The space now has a gazebo, benches and overall inviting atmosphere for a relaxing break in the heart of downtown Chatham.

It’s also of historical significance. It’s the last unchanged street of the original town of Competition — 1807–1852 — which is now known as Chatham. The alley — dedicated as a historical landmark in 2008 — was given a new life in 2015.

“Everybody that lives in Chatham has an idea for a project,” Davis said, stopping short of listing her own thoughts for improvements. “There are many things that need to be addressed.”

Rogers — highlighting he was speaking for himself in general — tossed out the idea of a fresh market in town. Also, a lot of people on the northern part of the town do not have access to good transportation, he said.

“I’d like to see some walking trails,” he said. In addition, with developing walking paths, signs to point out the historical part of town would be of benefit.

Once the study is completed, the next step will be to come up with a plan, including gaining more grants, and then move toward implementing specific goals over time.

For now, the organizations are looking to the public to rally around the cause for the county seat that’s rich in history.

For Davis, there’s no place else she’d rather be.

“I love Chatham,” she said. “This my idea of heaven.”