Clayton -- The Town Council on Monday adopted a plan to keep the town’s rapid growth going at a smart rate.

Lisa Murphy, a planner with The Louis Berger Group in Raleigh, presented the plan to the council, which last adopted a strategic-growth plan in 2000. Local officials wanted to tweak the plan to keep up with the town’s increased population and commercial growth. Louis Berger sought input from staff and planning board members and 253 citizens through a public survey.

According to the surveys, respondents strongly supported separated land uses and large-lot subdivisions for land-use policies. Also, the respondents listed affordable housing, retail shopping and economic growth as top priorities.

“The implications of these choices are critical for energy consumption, recreational opportunities, community schooling and alternative means of transportation like bus transit,” the report stated. “Clearly, there is a considerable market for neo-traditional housing opportunities as other North Carolina communities have discovered, although just as many would prefer to live in a traditional subdivision development.”

The plan also explored a build-out analysis, which is the number of future households and nonresidential space that could eventually be developed under the current zoning and development rules. According to the plan, the town’s population will jump to 60,000 at a 40 percent build-out. It will increase to 95,000 at 80 percent.

“The population will need a staggering amount of resources in the form of water and wastewater services and schools,” according to the report. “Some of those needs can be absorbed with the capacity currently available in the system, but new facilities will eventually be needed. The planning for these facilities should start now, when land is cheaper and there is more flexibility in available locations.

Council members were not the only ones impressed with Louis Berger’s work, said Councilman Alex Harding. “I took this document to Philadelphia with me this past week and showed it to people,” he said. “They were blown away with how professional it is for a small town in North Carolina. I think every citizen here should take a look at this information.”

Fellow Councilman Michael Grannis echoed those sentiments. “I have to admit, this is pretty impressive, and I acknowledge you and your team for doing this,” he told Murphy, the planner. “It is flattering to know people in a large city were blown away by this.”