Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt says the project of creating a more developed Chapel Hill is a not complete, but instead is a work in progress.
At Monday’s Chapel Hill Town Council meeting, Kleinschmidt gave his third annual State of the Town address Monday night, praising town staff for working to make Chapel Hill a model for other cities when it comes to economic development and environmental sustainability.
He said he thinks there is a great need for an expanded regional transportation network due to the daily movement of people in and out of town.
“I expect Chapel Hill to be Orange County’s leader in passing a half-cent sales tax,” he said about the proposed tax which would fund a light rail line between Durham and Chapel Hill.
Kleinschmidt said the town’s main goal for the future is Chapel Hill 2020, the town’s ambitious comprehensive planning process.
“Chapel Hill 2020’s charge is the most far reaching that the town has ever undertaken,” he said.
Kleinschmidt also said the conversation concerning the police response to the Yates Motor Company incident in November— where police removed occupiers from the abandoned building while carrying assault weapons — needs to continue and the response needs to be broader.
“The biggest mistake we can make as a community is to move past and forget,” he said.
Notable
Council members also passed a proposed ordinance which would limit the use of Peace and Justice Plaza on Franklin Street by groups to no more than seven consecutive days and between the hours of 7 a.m. and 2 a.m.
Town Councilman Lee Storrow said the Occupy Chapel Hill/Carrboro encampment, which was at the plaza for about three months without permits, prevented other groups who had appropriate permits from expressing their views in the space.
Quotable
“If I can’t say it for everyone, I can’t say it for anyone,” said Councilwoman Donna Bell, on why she felt some groups’ access to Peace and Justice Plaza should be restricted. Bell added that there are groups she does not feel comfortable allowing to use the space.
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