Oral History Interview with Raymond Rapp, November 17, 2000. Interview K-0253. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007).
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Abstract
In this interview, Mars Hill mayor Raymond Rapp outlines his vision for planned development in Mars Hill and Madison County. He is seeking balance—between the desire for a small-town feel and a big-town economy; between the need for routes in and out of the area and the need to preserve the environment; and between the insularity of a small community and the need to bring in new residents. Rapp is an optimistic and active manager who started small—with the construction of a gazebo—but aims to make Mars Hill the gateway to a thriving, but still naturally beautiful, area. The interview provides a valuable look at the way a community faces the prospect of growth as well as at efforts toward responsible expansion. By making Mars Hill attractive, Rapp hopes to lure new businesses and residents as well as to maintain an atmosphere that will encourage community solidarity and a small-town feel. The interview emphasizes how important extensive planning is in preserving towns against aggressive, wasteful, and ugly development.
Excerpts
Celebrating Mars Hill's community ethos
Using a past development failure as a learning experience
Planning to minimize the negative effects of the I-26 corridor
Maintaining a small-town feel in Mars Hill
Maintaining a small-town feel in Mars Hill
Effort to lure small, productive businesses to Mars Hill
Desire for growth clashes with desire to maintain a small-town feel
Rules and regulations to preserve Mars Hill's ethos
Praise for Mars Hill's leadership for buffering their town against the negastive effects of development
Hoping to maintain community cohesion in a changing cultural environment
Trying to maintain a farm image, without so much stinky farming
Leaving a town like Mars Hill reveals its richness
Further hopes for developing Mars Hill
Prediction for Mars Hill's westward spread
Finding a balance between preservation and growth
Finding a balance between preservation and growth
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Change in the Mountains
Subjects
Mars Hill (N.C.)--Politics and government
Rapp, Ray
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