Growth increases local schools' needs
If you build it, they will come. And when they come, you have to build again.
Use the fields below to perform an advanced search of The Daily Tar Heel's archives. This will return articles, images, and multimedia relevant to your query. You can also try a Basic search
13 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
If you build it, they will come. And when they come, you have to build again.
The Chapel Hill Town Council voted Monday night to support a grant application for the Bolin Creek Watershed Restoration Project. If the grant is approved by the Environmental Protection Agency, town staff will work together with Carrboro to restore and maintain the water quality of Bolin Creek, which flows through both Chapel Hill and Carrboro and into Jordan Lake. "We want to make sure that the water that runs through Chapel Hill into Jordan Lake as a source of drinking water for many communities in the area is clean and safe," council member Mark Kleinschmidt said. "We also want to protect a highly appreciated recreational waterway." The Bolin Creek Watershed Restoration Team, composed of representatives from the area who work in environmental and engineering fields, is planning the guidelines for the grant. Both towns will provide funding and staff to work with the N.C. Division of Water Quality, the N.C. State University Water Quality Group, the N.C. Ecosystem Enhancement Program, the EPA and the Friends of Bolin Creek to accomplish the restoration team's goals. The grant, which will be submitted in February, likely will ask for about $500,000. The EPA would fund 60 percent of the project, while the other groups would pay the remaining costs. Chapel Hill and Carrboro plan to split their portion of the bill, about $80,000, at 75 percent and 25 percent, respectively, based on their populations. Chapel Hill would spend an additional $70,000 on projects specific to the town. "Watershed restoration is expensive," said Trish D'Arconte, a storm water engineering technician for Chapel Hill and restoration team member, explaining that the high costs and the duration of the project, which could take up to 10 years, makes it a good candidate for the grant. "The EPA has been trying to find local communities or groups that have the energy to undertake full watershed restoration," she said. "It takes many years because of the complexity and the sheer number of projects that would need to be done." Randy Dodd, environmental planner for Carrboro and another member of the restoration team, said Bolin Creek is considered an impaired stream because pollution has affected aquatic insect life. "The diversity and the number of species that are less tolerant to pollution have been declining over time," he said. "It's a biological indicator." The project will use the grant money to combat pollution and keep the water clean in the future. Tasks include studying storm water flow, addressing the erosion problems on the creek's banks and installing a couple of rain gardens to absorb runoff in Carrboro. "There's a variety of things that can be done, and the efforts that we're starting initially are focused on trying to manage the runoff to stabilize the stream channels," Dodd said. The restoration team hopes to hear from the EPA by August. The EPA has a limited amount of grant funds to distribute to similar efforts around the country. "The population of Chapel Hill and Carrboro is very well known to be environmentally conscious and oriented, and several of our streams are impaired," D'Arconte said. "That's something the EPA wants us to address." "If you want to be able to fish in your stream or play with your dog in the stream, then you need a clean stream." Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
Feuding farmers will have to wait to hear who will operate Hillsborough's new Public Market House. Despite months of discussion, the Board of Commissioners said they still have not received enough information to make a decision. "There's not really any analysis of any of these options--," commissioner Mike Nelson said. "I feel like a fish jumping around on the dock. I don't really have any way to evaluate those options." The commissioners could have chosen to let either the Hillsborough Farmers Market, the Farmers of Orange or the county run the market. "There just has to be someone that's in charge," County Manager Laura Blackmon said. Blackmon told the commissioners that she had recommended they choose to have the county run the market so there would be a manager who hadn't been involved in the past disputes. But the commissioners said they were wary of getting the county involved in a project in which they would need to play a larger role than anticipated. "I'm not inclined to adding any more staff to the county's pay roll," Commissioner Moses Carey Jr. said. Nelson said he was afraid to have a county manager making a decision about vendors when there has been so much conflict between the existing groups. "I have some significant reservations putting county staff in that line of authority," he said. Board Chairman Barry Jacobs said the controversy over control of the market marred the opening of the town's Public Market House, which opened last September. "I hate what I've heard and seen in the last few months," Jacobs said. He said that "enough aspersions have been cast over the past months" and that he did not want to use the meeting time for one group to criticize the other. Blackmon said the county had not done any research to determine whether one group's management was better than the other. The commissioners will meet again in February to consider the options once again. "This board never intended to have any operating interest in this facility," Jacobs said. "You have forced us into a position where we have to make a decision." Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
After more than a year of dispute, two feuding groups of farmers in Hillsborough will find out tonight who will occupy the county's newly constructed Public Market House. The Orange County Board of Commissioners might choose the existing Hillsborough Farmers Market or the newly formed Farmers of Orange to manage the market. In the agenda for tonight's meeting, staff have recommended a third option - that the board decide to have a county-run market. The market house, near the Hillsborough courthouse complex, is scheduled to open as early as March, according to the agenda.
Despite ongoing efforts to curb underage drinking, the Chapel Hill Police Department and N.C. Alcohol Law Enforcement agents issued a number of alcohol-related charges against residents and businesses Thursday. The operation resulted in 47 citations against 30 people, including 22 citations for underage possession of alcohol - results that are not abnormal, said Chapel Hill police officer Mitch McKinney. "Any day you can go into a bar in Chapel Hill and probably write a few underage drinking violations," he said. Usually the Chapel Hill police and ALE conduct weekly alcohol compliance checks separately. However, they periodically band together to broaden the scope of the checks. Instead of one or two officers, the police and ALE were together able to send five or six, allowing them to thoroughly check more establishments, resulting in more citations. "I wouldn't say anything that happened Thursday was unusual given that we had a large force working," McKinney said. During typical compliance checks such as last week's, officers visit bars, restaurants and stores to see whether there are individuals or businesses violating underage drinking laws. McKinney said officers and ALE agents can require anyone to show identification. If the person is in violation of the law, officers cite and sometimes arrest the person. Officers issue so many citations calling people to court that it's possible to circumvent the charges. "They have a deferral process because it's difficult for courts to manage these kinds of numbers," McKinney said. Besides the checks, the police and ALE work to end underage drinking by offering free programs to educate bar owners and employees. Bar and eatery Top of the Hill trains bouncers, enrolls staff in ALE courses and prohibits anyone under 21 from entering after 10 p.m. But even a well-trained eye cannot spot every underage drinker. "Some fake IDs are exceptionally well made and difficult to spot," said manager Rebecca Workman. "Sometimes it's difficult to track the people who come in with misidentification, using the IDs of older siblings and friends." Although checks and programs exist, underage drinking persists. "It's the responsibility of the management and owner of the bar to ensure what kind of activity is going on," McKinney said. "We have specific bars that are willing to do as much as they can to prevent underage drinking. There are other bars that are very lax about checking IDs." McKinney said a concern for public health drives the checks. "People are surprised that so many assaults are linked to victims that are under the influence of alcohol." Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
A newly elected Board of Commissioners has outlined its commitment to combat rapid residential growth in Chatham County's 2006-07 highlights report. The report describes a one-year development moratorium that will help limit the growing population of the county, which has increased by 55 percent since 1990, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. "Right now we probably have 15,000 houses waiting to be built," Chatham County Commissioner Patrick Barnes said. "We're not prepared for it." The moratorium will prevent the construction of any development with more than 25 lots and allow county planners additional time to respond to the swelling population. "Land use is critical to us," board Chairman Carl Thompson said. With such a large number of new residential developments, the county is facing difficulties tailoring the school system and sewage system to a larger population, as well as attracting businesses and industry. "Our growth is so rapid that our schools can't handle it," Barnes said. Barnes added that the county needs to allow time to pass a land-transfer tax, which will finance new schools. He also said Chatham County does not have a sewage system and depends entirely on septic tanks and spray irrigation. These systems create environmental concerns because the majority of irrigation runs off into Jordan Lake, possibly taking harmful pesticides into the county's water source. "We seem to be on the path of how fast we can pollute our No. 1 water supply," Barnes said. The lack of a developed sewage system also limits commercial and industrial development, neither of which has grown at the pace of new residential buildings. "We're lopsided with our houses and businesses," Barnes said. Most businesses need specific types of water systems to operate. But the county cannot provide the systems, so they will not open in the area. The new Board of Commissioners has contracted the UNC Center for Competitive Economies to put together a comprehensive plan that will appeal to commerce. "We are looking to attract 21st century industry to the county," Thompson said. Currently 60 percent of people commute outside of Chatham County because there aren't enough jobs, he said. At the center of this move to reduce residential growth and attract new business, the board still wants to preserve the county as it is, Thompson said. "We want to make sure that Chatham County's communities remain rural," he said. In May the Chapel Hill Town Council unanimously approved a six-month-long moratorium on development in north and northwest Chapel Hill. A task force has been meeting since mid-May to determine how development should proceed in that area of Chapel Hill. Chapel Hill Town Council members say the moratorium is giving the town a chance to step back and evaluate how the area is developing. Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
As area reservoirs approach less than 50 percent capacity, the Orange Water and Sewer Authority has declared new water-use restrictions in Chapel Hill and Carrboro. The restrictions, effective Friday, were implemented under a newly designated stage two water shortage and are intended to reduce the current water demand in the area by at least 15 percent - a difference of 1.3 million gallons per day. Residents and businesses in the community are subject to regulations that restrict activities requiring water and limit water consumption levels. "I would have rather seen it earlier," said Cliff Bailin, a Chapel Hill resident. "The drought is quite severe." His family has been taking shorter showers to limit their water use. Ed Kerwin, executive director of OWASA, said the restrictions mostly will affect people who water their lawns with home irrigation systems. If the police or OWASA receive a report of someone in violation of any of the restrictions, OWASA will issue a fine. "My husband is the one they should ask," said Robin Bailin, Cliff's wife. "He sees all the people water their lawns at 5 in the morning when he walks the dog." Kerwin said that on average, a single-family home uses about 5,500 gallons each month - about 200 gallons per day - and if they exceed that level, they are likely not following water restrictions that prohibit lawn watering and other nonessential water-use practices. Billed water-use records for OWASA single-family residential customers indicate that a 10-minute shower uses about 38 gallons of water. One load of laundry uses about 6 gallons. Irrigating the average lawn for 10 minutes requires 21 gallons. Households are classified into "blocks" according to their typical water usage. Surpassing that expected monthly amount will subject a household to a surcharge for every 1,000 gallons in excess, under the new regulations that go into effect Nov. 1. For example, a residence that is expected to use 2,999 gallons of water per month will be charged $1.98 for every extra 1,000 gallons used. "The concept is to serve the penalty by charging them more money," Kerwin said. If a household's water use exceeds 800 gallons of water per day - about 22,400 per month - OWASA may terminate water service. Businesses will be subject to the restrictions, as well. Jennifer Anderson, manager of Spanky's Restaurant, said waiters are not offering customers water unless they request it. The restaurant has also switched to plastic baskets instead of plates, which can be soaked instead of washed. "Customers are happy that we're concerned with water use," she said. All 100 N.C. counties are experiencing drought, with more than half, including those in the Triangle, suffering from "exceptional" drought. The long-term weather forecast indicates that drought conditions will continue into 2008. "Before there was a mandatory call, people did not heed the voluntary restrictions," Bailin said. "And I think this will help." Orange Water and Sewer Authority Stage two water shortage restrictions Goal: To reduce the community's current water demand by 15 percent. Restrictions:
The dedication and grand opening of the new Chapel Hill Town Operations Center on Millhouse Road took place Monday morning. Though employees have worked there since July, the ceremony officially marked the opening of the $52 million facility that houses the town's transit system and public works department. Hundreds gathered to hear speeches, see the ribbon-cutting, and tour the new facilities. One of the town's colorful new buses was also on display. "There had to be at least 175 people," said Kurt Neufang, project coordinator for Chapel Hill Transit. As the keynote speaker, U.S. Rep. David Price, D-Orange, addressed the audience. Other speakers included artist Larry Kirkland, who oversaw creation of public artworks at the facility, and Mayor Pro Tem Bill Strom, who headed the dedication. Price should be praised for backing the project, Strom said. "He has been a true supporter of our public transit efforts here in Chapel Hill, getting us federal funds," he said. Strom also commented on the quality of Kirkland's speech and his role in installing the facility's art. "Kirkland talked eloquently about the people who fabricated the installations and how meaningful they were to the people who work there," Strom said. "It puts us in the mix in the international art scene." Besides the art, the buildings' sustainable design and their improvement from the old facilities make them special, Strom said. The larger facility offers employees much more space than the old building, which was located on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. "Everyone was sitting on everyone else," Felix Bloch, a town transit bus driver, said of the old facility. "Now we have room to relax, even room to urinate with three stalls instead of one." Strom said other town staff and officials covet the building's innovative features. "The people who work in Town Hall are figuring out a way to get out there." Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
CORRECTION: Due to a reporting error, Tuesday's page 6 story, "Residents stress zoning issues with plan," incorrectly states that the discussion was about Orange County's Comprehensive Plan in the first two paragraphs of the story. The discussion was about the Efland-Cheeks Overlay District. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the error. Residents turned out Monday to help shape a plan that will guide Orange County's land use for years to come.
Carrboro Mayor Mark Chilton is doing more than oversee town operations these days as he works to complete his first book. The mayor, lawyer and founder of the nonprofit real estate brokerage company, Community Realty, hopes to finish "An Historical Atlas of the Haw River" in the next month after a year and a half of work. "It's a very local project," Chilton said. "I think it will be a great interest to people who like to spend time on the Haw River and those who are interested in local history." Chilton consulted a variety of sources including local history books, maps from the University's N.C. Collection and documents he found in the courthouses of Alamance, Chatham and Orange counties to show the history of the river. He will compile his findings in a book, beginning with a series of maps of the Haw starting in Rockingham County and following its course until it meets with the Deep River to form the Cape Fear River. Chilton, who has discussed the book with a publisher, said he plans to release about 100 copies. The idea came to Chilton, an avid kayaker, during the 16 years he's paddled on the river, he said. "I'd come across sites where you can see there was a former development, and it's kind of hard to figure out what they were," he said. "I did research and I realized that type of information was there but it's spread over a huge, diverse array of sources, so I thought I really needed to compile them in a book." About half of the estimated 25 pages will be pictures and the other half text, he said. "There is not really a storytelling, narrative aspect so much as raw documentation of when things happened, where the various mills were built, who built them and what kind of mills there were," he said. The book also gives Chilton, who described himself as "an environmental activist before a lawyer," an opportunity to promote interest in the Haw's current ecological state. "There are some serious water quality issues, especially from storm water runoff," he said. Chilton said most people don't realize that runoff is the biggest source of pollution to rivers. "We can either show our rivers the kind of respect they deserve or we can expect to live in a world that's polluted and dangerous to our health," he said. Elaine Chiosso, executive director of the Haw River Assembly, said the book will be helpful in addressing the ecological issues facing the river. "To protect the water it's very important to know where the water comes from," she said. Chilton said he hopes to finish the book in time to present it at the Haw River Festival in Bynum on May 12. He said that he wrote the book to familiarize people with the Haw and its history but that his love of rivers also inspired his efforts. "I think I would probably be in love with whatever river I live near." "It's a beautiful and wonderful recreational resource - go for a walk, go for a paddle or even sit by the banks and quietly reflect." Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
The Orange County Board of Commissioners met Tuesday to consider the 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness in Orange County and the proposed West 10 Soccer Center. Tara Fikes, Housing and Community Development Director for Orange County, reviewed the 10-year plan and answered questions regarding its implementation. "We have a lot of services for the homeless community, and we need to make sure they're in places that are acceptable to the homeless," she said. "We hope to do that by public education and encouraging our community to get involved with programs involving the homeless community." The Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness finalized its 10-year plan in March after working for two years to create it. Fikes presented the final draft, which calls for 40 units of housing for chronically homeless individuals living in the county and outreach programs. The partnership includes representatives from Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Hillsborough and Orange County. The board postponed a decision to accept the plan. "This is going to be a marathon, it's not going to be a sprint," Board Chairman Moses Carey said of implementing the 10-year plan. Before accepting the plan, the commissioners asked local municipalities and the United Way to help more clearly organize plans for implementing the partnership's goals. United Way homelessness specialists worked with the partnership to formulate the plan. There was more public discourse about the six soccer fields proposed for construction in Hillsborough as part of the West 10 Soccer Center. Young soccer players, parents, coaches and town representatives attended the forum to express their opinions of the fields' location. "The theme that emerged was north, south, back and forth," board member Mike Nelson said, of the varied response. Many residents said the fields should be built in southern Orange County, where the population and demand for soccer is larger. "The idea is put the fields where the population is," resident Gary Wallick said. Others said moving the fields south would be unfair to the population in parts of Orange County other than Chapel Hill and Carrboro. Carey said the board needs to make a decision quickly. "If we want to develop a plan within the next three weeks, we have an opportunity to get some wheels on the ground quick." Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
The shootings at Virginia Tech on Monday hit too close to home for some students and faculty at both Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools high schools. Many said they worried that several recent graduates of East Chapel Hill and Chapel Hill high schools who now attend Virginia Tech could have been victims, but no alumni are among those reported dead. "There's great sympathy among our students and concern for graduates from our schools who may have been attending Virginia Tech and to get in contact with the person and make sure they're safe," said Stephanie Knott, assistant to the superintendent for community relations for the district. Linda Klemmer, counseling department chairwoman at Chapel Hill High, said students and faculty expressed anxiety about alumni. "There was some concern for students that had siblings and friends at Virginia Tech," she said. "I got a sense of sadness and shock," she added, as she described the students' moods in wake of the incident. Her department is open to students who want to talk to someone about the shootings, she said. Owen McDonnell, a freshman at Virginia Tech and graduate of Chapel Hill High, was one of the people those at home worried about. "A lot of people were saying they tried to call me and couldn't," he said. McDonnell traveled back to Chapel Hill late Tuesday to be with family after Monday's tragedy struck his campus, but he said he's eager to get back to the daily grind of classes. "I think it's important to get back to normal after having a week to grieve," he said. But students at one of the district's high schools already have experienced gun violence on campus. Last April, William Barrett Foster, then a student at East Chapel Hill High, took social studies teacher Lisa Kukla and student Chelsea Slegal hostage after school. Kukla and Slegal eventually were able to talk to Foster, and they convinced him to shoot out a window instead of killing them. Knott said last year's incident helped calm students' and faculty's fears about the possibility that something such as the Virginia Tech incident could happen locally. The hostage incident forced district officials to prepare campuses for anything. "For the most part we made some revisions to security following the hostage situation at East Chapel Hill High School last year," Knott said. "You'll find in the superintendent's recommended budget about a $206 ,000 request to fund some new safety projects." Knott said she plans to ask principals to encourage students to wear maroon and orange - Virginia Tech colors - Friday for Orange & Maroon Effect Day to commemorate victims of the tragedy. Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
Carrboro residents soon can read all about the news they make in the town's first traditional weekly newspaper. On March 21 the inaugural issue of The Carrboro Citizen will be delivered to subscribers' doorsteps. Publisher and Carrboro resident Robert "Bubba" Dickson and editor Kirk Ross said they hope to create a sustainable community publication. Both men decided to launch the paper when they saw a growing need for Carrboro's own news source. "The time is right," Dickson said. Ross agreed, emphasizing the size of the community. "It's got 17,000 people, seven schools, good schools, growing, annexing; it's next to exploding Chatham County - we think it needs a newspaper," he said. Ross also said he has been unhappy with the way outside papers cover the town. "You read a Carrboro story, and it's not written for Carrboro; it's written to explain things to the Triangle." The idea was born when Dickson spoke to Jock Lauterer's "Community Journalism" class last semester. After talking to the class about his own paper in Raeford, Dickson told the class, "Carrboro needs a paper." Lauterer, who is the director of the Carolina Community Media Project, said he believes every community needs a newspaper. Lauterer's class surveyed 100 people at Weaver Street Market and asked for impressions on the idea of a newspaper, either print or online. Ross said the results were stunning. "Ninety-nine out of 100 people wanted an actual, physical newspaper." The results offered two important pieces of information: People wanted a paper, and they wanted to be able to hold it. Frank Cole, who works in Carrboro, said it will be nice to have media in such an active town. "This is where things are happening," he said. Lauterer's class created The Carrboro Commons, an online biweekly paper, but lacked the finances to make it print. But Dickson and Ross set out to create a printed edition for a town they see as overshadowed by its larger neighbor. "If you put Carrboro 15 miles from Chapel Hill, it would have a killer newspaper," Dickson said. Subscribers will receive the paper free every Wednesday. Ross said the paper will feature stories from town politics and community events to book excerpts and 50th wedding anniversaries. "We kind of let Carrboro and some of the principles that you see around Carrboro guide us," he said. Dickson and Ross will host a staff of part-time reporters and freelance writers. The paper also will publish articles created by Lauterer's "Community Journalism" students. "I'm very interested in the idea of citizen journalism and the idea of the town participating more," Ross said. Although it's not a massive operation, Ross said he has high expectations for The Carrboro Citizen. "It's going to be . everything a community newspaper is supposed to be, which is essentially to write part of the town, to be part of the town's history." Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.