Neighborhood mulls over possible conservation district status

Pine Knolls residents met Tuesday night about their neighborhood's bid for Neighborhood Conservation District status.

Pine Knolls is the fifth Chapel Hill community to consider becoming a NCD.

In addition to discussing the adoption of the new status, the meeting gave residents a chance to express concerns about the community.

As Kofi Boone, a professor at N.C. State University, explained, NCD status gives communities an opportunity to "think creatively about zoning and planning in order to keep what we have and what we want here."

The Chapel Hill Town Council created NCDs to provide communities with a way to preserve their cultural and historical values.

By giving community members a method to alter their local zoning laws, NCDs provide communities with a mechanism to influence their growth and development.

Paul Weaver, a student at N.C. Central University who is helping to educate the neighborhood about the proposal, emphasized the positive effect NCDs have on community development.

"Gentrification isn't a good deal for the community," he said.

Designating Pine Knolls as a NCD would prevent developers from buying out locals and building high-density housing.

After speakers explained the purpose and impact of NCDs, the attendees were given an opportunity to discuss their views and opinions.

Approximately 20 Pine Knolls community members attended the meeting.

Residents said they are proud of their community and its diversity.

"The neighborhood is integrated but I can still see people who look like me," said Damita Hicks, the president of Pines Community Center Inc.

Some residents said they were disappointed by what they saw as the town's lack of support for the historically black neighborhood.

"The town hasn't done squat down in this community," said Ted Parrish, a longtime Pine Knolls resident.

"They need to stop viewing Pine Knolls as a stepchild. The town is obligated to help us with recreation and other aspects of community development."

Some residents noted the lack of respect shown by some of the student renters as well.

Some students who reside on Merritt Mill Road display a "Honk and We Will Drink" sign very close to the local school.

Permanent residents don't like their youth to constantly be exposed to what they view as a negative morals system.

"If the situation were reversed and black students did the same thing in a white community, community reactions would be different," Parrish said.

Not all student-local relationships are negative, however.

Jackie Parker, who has lived in Pine Knolls for 18 years, said her student neighbors are very considerate. "They invite me over, and they tell me if they are having parties."

Hicks said that she heard Chapel Hill is one of the best places to live in the United States, but still wanted to improve her neighborhood and lessen the divide between the haves and the have-nots.

"I want to live in the best place in America and feel like it."