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(08/21/07 4:00am)
A lawsuit filed against the town of Chapel Hill concerning a moratorium on construction has been dismissed by a Superior Court judge.
The moratorium, passed by the Chapel Hill Town Council in May, temporarily halts all development until January 2008, including projects still in the planning stages.
The area affected by the moratorium includes land surrounding Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Eubanks Road and Weaver Dairy Road.
The CAI Group VII filed the lawsuit after the council's action limited its ability to proceed with plans for an orthopedic clinic on Weaver Dairy Road near N.C. Highway 86.
Judge Michael Morgan denied the motion to exempt the orthopedic clinic from the construction freeze.
The group submitted the first site plan the day the council approved the moratorium, May 21.
The land for the orthopedic clinic was purchased before the moratorium took effect.
The lawsuit filed by the group asserted that the moratorium was not legal because it limited a project under way.
"They believe . that it was not a proper moratorium underneath the statute that governs moratoriums," said Seth Neyhart, an associate lawyer for the group. "It also has put a dent in their plans to develop."
The town maintained that for the moratorium to be successful, all projects had to be halted.
"It's really important for development to stop moving forward in that part of time," said Tom Jensen, who is vice chairman of the town's Planning Board and a member of the Northern Area Task Force. "In order for it to really succeed, there can't be any exceptions."
In his decision, Morgan said that the town had "satisfied its statutory burden . to show compliance with the procedural requirements."
The moratorium was approved to give the newly formed Northern Area Task Force a chance to meet and make recommendations to the council before advising the town on how it should proceed with development.
Town Manager Roger Stancil said that with the exception of the CAI Group's complaints, developers and the public have not been vocal about any opposition.
"Other than (the legal challenge), I haven't heard much negative feedback," he said.
In addition to the CAI Group's project, four other projects already in planning stages were halted temporarily. This includes University Station, a multi-family housing unit which would contain 374 residences.
Jensen said the task force's meetings have been productive so far.
"It was just really key to take a step back," he said. "There's just really a large volume of potential projects coming up in the northern area of the town."
The six-month long moratorium is giving the town a chance to step back and evaluate how the area is developing, Jensen said. It also presents an opportunity to look at areas that might present future problems.
The task force has been meeting since mid-May. The group met weekly through much of the summer.
They are scheduled to make a recommendation to the council Sept. 24.
A public forum will be held before then to give the residents and developers a chance to provide feedback on the task force's recommendation.
"I think we've put together a really solid recommendation," Jensen said.
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(08/21/07 4:00am)
Longtime Northside resident Velma Perry said she doesn’t expect her student neighbors to keep quiet all the time.
(08/21/07 4:00am)
A new position to help manage Chapel Hill's future economic development has been created and filled by the town.
Dwight Bassett began work June 4 as the town's first economic development officer. His annual salary is $78,000.
Bassett comes to Chapel Hill after leading redevelopment projects in Rock Hill, S.C., and in Statesville. In Rock Hill, he led a $200 million project to develop a "College Town" near Winthrop University. In Statesville, he was project manager for a depot restoration.
"He was very successful at helping private developers put it all together to make a financially profitable project consistent with the town's interests," Town Manager Roger Stancil said. "I got consistent comments that he was very good at bringing resources together to help the developer make money and the town achieve its goals."
Stancil said he interviewed about seven other candidates before selecting Bassett, who comes here from Parkers Lake, Ky.
Bassett said he was interested in the position's challenges.
"It's an interesting community for a lot of different reasons," he said. "It's a university town. I had worked in Rock Hill. I saw this as a similar opportunity, and I saw the challenges for Chapel Hill as far as its growth."
But Bassett said he thinks there are more differences than similarities between Chapel Hill and where he has worked previously.
"The challenges that face Chapel Hill are different from the challenges that face 99 percent of towns," he said. "In most places there's land to grow. . We're at such a high land use - that does not exist."
Instead of looking at new land for development, Bassett said he will be researching how to redevelop specific areas. He cited commercial areas along Fordham Boulevard as one location he and the town are watching.
Stancil said he expects Bassett to spend his first year focusing on three main goals: reviewing town plans to help create an economic development strategy, streamlining how the town handles development requests and moving forward in a redevelopment project.
Bassett said he wants to develop an economic strategy consistent with the actions the Chapel Hill Town Council already has taken.
Making sure the town doesn't overlook any options for redevelopment while it re-evaluates its goals also is a priority, he said.
"I want to work within the context of the development to make sure we don't lose development opportunities along the way," he said.
Bassett said he has spent his first two months getting to know the council.
"I've been working with them on this strategy," he said. "I've begun meeting real estate developers to let people know that I'm here. It's been incredibly positive."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(08/21/07 4:00am)
N.C. House speaker Joe Hackney, D-Orange, started the second annual State Legislative Breakfast by issuing a report card for the past legislative session.
"I'd give us at least a 'B' and maybe an 'A,'" he said.
Hackney was joined by fellow Orange County Democrats Reps. Verla Insko and Bill Faison on Monday at the Carolina Inn to speak with members of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce.
The breakfast is held to create a forum where local leaders can hear from their state representatives, said Aaron Nelson, president and CEO of the chamber.
"We wanted to give local business and community leaders the opportunity to hear and listen to their government leaders," Nelson said.
Hackney was elected speaker of the House in January. He told the chamber that he started the session wanting to make the House a more civil body.
"We had fallen into a little bit of a shouting match mentality," he said. "I started out asking for cooperation to conduct our debates in a civil way. People want their House of Representatives to be where debate occurs in an orderly manner."
The House began its session Jan. 24, still amid the controversy that landed former House Speaker Jim Black, D-Mecklenburg, in prison for federal charges of public corruption.
Hackney said ethics reform was a major component of this year's House session.
"We made a big push on ethics," he said. "We implemented some of the nation's most far-reaching ethics reforms."
Faison commended Hackney for his efforts this year to make the House more civil.
"The House needed a new hand, and it needed a strong hand and an honorable hand," he said. "We had not seen openness in the process for a long time."
The three Democrats said relations with the minority party are improving. Hackney said he made it a goal to meet with or talk to Minority Leader Paul Stam, R-Wake, at the beginning of each week.
"He would say what they would do to us, and I would say what we were going to do to him," he said.
The breakfast also gave members of the chamber the opportunity to ask the three legislators questions.
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School Board member Pam Hemminger asked if the school system could expect to have more flexibility with the beginning and ending dates of the school year. All public schools in the state run on the same schedule.
That flexibility isn't likely, Hackney said, because the Senate supports a standard calendar that gives more time for summer tourism and travel.
The three legislators also answered questions regarding the Horace Williams Airport off of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. That airport is being closed and is set to become part of the University's Carolina North research campus.
Faison noted the benefits of having an airport for the purposes of directing business to the town. The statewide trend is to expand airport services, he said, adding that he thought closing the airport from an economic point of view was "nuts."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(08/20/07 4:00am)
A new bakery and gelato shop will create a sweet spot in downtown Chapel Hill where Julian's clothing store once stood.
The shop, called Sugarland, might open for the Oct. 6 football game against Miami, owner Katrina Ryan said.
Ryan is the pastry chef at La Residence and also a candidate for a spot on the Carrboro Board of Aldermen.
Renovations already have begun at the 140 E. Franklin St. address. When it opens, Ryan said the sweet shop will serve everything from sticky buns and chocolate chip cookies to espresso and alcohol.
"We're serving at Sugarland the things that we love and would like not to have to make ourselves," Ryan said. "Just sort of the things we wish we had time to make."
Sugarland is a joint venture between Ryan and her husband, Chris.
Opening a bakery shop like this was something the pair has always dreamed of, Ryan said.
When the space on Franklin Street became available, they acted quickly.
"It was one of those things that we were going to do someday, and it was this spot that took us from someday to now," she said.
Ryan wouldn't disclose how much she was paying for the space but said it was "expensive."
University officials could not be reached to disclose the price of the space.
"We love the fact that the space has such history," Ryan said.
Julian's occupied the space from 1942 until February, when it closed to move across the street. The building is owned by the University. In honor of the building's former occupant, Ryan has Julian's-style plaid curtains to hang from the windows.
Ryan hopes Sugarland will become a popular hangout.
Liz Parham, executive director of the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership, said she's glad to see a new business move into the space.
"A bakery is such a traditional downtown use," she said. "I just think it's a great use for the space."
Parham said other businesses on the street, such as Starbucks, Caribou Coffee and 3 Cups, do well in the mornings selling coffee to students and residents.
"If (Sugarland) can get the right mix of coffee and pastries and stuff like that, it will become a real hangout for morning traffic," she said.
"I don't think this is adding too much to the mix."
Beyond the morning coffee rush, Sugarland will, starting at 3:15 p.m. each day, offer fresh cookies just out of the oven each hour, what Ryan calls a "hot cookie happy hour."
Sugarland's goodies will all be made in the shop, including 22 flavors of gelato. Ryan plans to be there every day.
"I'll be there every morning," she said.
"You can come in for cinnamon rolls."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(08/20/07 4:00am)
Chapel Hill police have arrested a third suspect for the murder that occurred July 29, 2006, outside of Avalon Nightclub on Rosemary Street.
Montaray Martese Self, 21, of Durham's 3801 Townsend St., turned himself in to authorities Tuesday. He faces charges of accessory after the fact for his failure to come forward earlier with information about the shooting.
"We believe he was in the suspect's vehicle and that he failed to report any others at that time," Chapel Hill police Capt. Jackie Carden said.
(06/21/07 4:00am)
Where there's smoke there's fire - unless it's a fire-safe cigarette.
(05/24/07 4:00am)
Senate deliberations which began Monday on an immigration reform bill have brought together an unexpected group of allies in opposition to the legislation's provisions.
(04/27/07 4:00am)
The impact of national illegal immigration policies were brought closer to home following the Chapel Hill Police Department's arrest and detainment of two residents for federal civil immigration warrants.
The arrests of Sima Fallahi and Nelson Herrera-Ventura for federal civil immigration warrants sparked a debate on immigration policies.
Fallahi, 48, was arrested Nov. 29 when police found deportation orders in a federal database.
She never renewed a 1985 student visa, and her application for political asylum was denied in 2001.
She was released March 6 from Mecklenburg County Jail, and her asylum case was reopened.
Nelson Herrera-Ventura also was arrested on a civil immigration warrant in March. He was detained for three days before being released.
It is police department policy to detain individuals only if they discover criminal warrants, interim Chapel Hill police Chief Brian Curran told the town council at an April 11 business meeting.
A police department investigation into the March incident is under way but not complete.
Chapel Hill Town Council member Mark Kleinschmidt said he still is concerned with making sure no other arrests are made enforcing federal civil immigration warrants.
"I think it was outrageous and just embarrassing for the town for that to have happened again," he said. "We need to be hearing from the police department something that's going to give us confidence this isn't going to happen again."
He said that he is anxious for the police investigation to be presented to the council but that he respects the wish to handle it internally.
The issue that has become evident with both arrests is the changing role local police agencies play in enforcing federal immigration laws.
In North Carolina, Alamance, Mecklenburg and Gaston counties all have agreements with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement to help officials arrest individuals, but counties are not required to.
The Orange County Board of Commissioners passed a resolution Jan. 23 urging local municipalities not to enter into such agreements.
Kleinschmidt said asking local police to enforce immigration law is "outside their realm of expertise."
"Generally, local and federal cooperation is critical to effective police policy . but what we're talking about here is something different," he said.
William Gheen, president of Americans for Legal Immigration, said local agencies should help enforce the federal laws.
"We have an illegal immigration crisis in this state, and if we do not enforce our laws, then much of what we love will be destroyed," he said in a February interview. "We need more illegals leaving North Carolina than coming in."
Still unknown is if the town will have to pay to redress the wrongs Fallahi said her arrest caused.
She faces up to $15,000 in legal costs in her quest to overturn her deportation order, her lawyers said.
The Orange County Bill of Rights Defense Committee petitioned the council to redress those wrongs by contributing to her legal fund, but town staff recommended the council take no action on the petition.
Instead, Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos said the town should encourage residents to make contributions of their own.
Fallahi also was given the option of filing a claim with the town insurance agency, and she has said that she plans to do so.
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(04/26/07 4:00am)
Northside resident Karen Rasmussen longs for police to staff the substation at 501 Sykes Street at night.
"If there was someone there at nights, they would hear everything I hear," she said. "I wish there was someone there at night."
Concerns about police responses to crime in Northside were raised at Monday's Chapel Hill Town Council meeting.
Resident Adam Brown said he was pleased with the initial response he received from police when someone threw a rock at his vehicle.
But his frustrations arose when he said police discouraged him from pressing charges against the suspect because they were concerned the suspect might retaliate.
"When the officers who we see on a daily basis driving around and who we respect without hesitation . encourage us not to press charges, I think that's an interesting fact that you are not aware of," Brown said.
Council member Cam Hill said that he received a similar response from police when his former Cameron Avenue residence was broken into and that he would like to hear an explanation from police regarding the Northside incidents.
Community Services Officer Lori Pati
(04/19/07 4:00am)
The studios of News Talk WCHL 1360 were teeming with local bigwigs Wednesday during the station's annual Chapel Hill-Carrboro-Orange County forum.
The forum, meant to encourage interaction among bodies of leadership, spanned 10 hours and five topics thought key to local affairs.
This year's program, titled "Growing, Living and Learning Together," included sessions such as sustainability in the economy and the local arts scene.
One topic during the town-gown panel that seemed to embody the forum's overarching theme was discussion of town- and University-brainchild Carolina North, UNC's satellite campus to be built about two miles north of the main campus.
"I think both the most exciting thing and the most challenging thing is Carolina North," said Ken Broun, former chairman of the Leadership Advisory Committee. "It is the largest project ever in Chapel Hill since the beginning of the University."
Carrboro Alderman Dan Coleman said the town hopes to see diverse housing at Carolina North.
"The towns have very high goals in terms of what we hope the University will do," he said.
But UNC Trustee Roger Perry said the University has several issues with Carolina North to focus on before housing.
Maintaining sustainability
The forum shifted gears for the second session, eyeing the maintenance of a sustainable economy.
Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce President Aaron Nelson said the town and its residents must consider economic, environmental and social impacts of sustainability.
Tim Toben, vice chairman of the board of visitors of UNC's environmental program, said the Chapel Hill-Carrboro area needs to be a leader in this regard.
"If we can't do sustainable design in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, it's really not going to happen at all in North Carolina," he said.
Another issue discussed was keeping high-school graduates who do not attend college in the area.
Creighton Blackwell, Chapel Hill marketing executive for RBC Centura, suggested a way to encourage them. "We need to show children there are jobs around here."
One suggestion that has been made before was the creation of a local job fair.
Town crime and safety
The section on crime and safety was intended as an opportunity to discuss local issues, but the Monday shootings at Virginia Tech left leaders reflective.
Chapel Hill has dealt with similar incidents on a smaller scale, such as when alumnus Mohammad Taheri-Azar drove through the Pit in March 2006, injuring nine students.
"This community can associate somewhat with the community of Blacksburg because we've come so close ourselves," said Dan Jones, Chapel Hill fire chief.
Capt. Charles Blackwood, of the Orange County Sheriff's Office, said he felt the Va. Tech emergency response was the best possible given the magnitude of the tragedy.
"I think they did as good a job as they can, and I think we would do the same," he said. "You try to have a good plan in place, and you hope you can respond in such a situation."
Keeping students engaged
During a panel on education, Sharon Ritchie, co-director of FirstSchool and the Frank Porter Graham Development Institute, said that while preparing students for the world after graduation is important, the main goal of a school system should be making sure the students graduate high school.
"I think we have to make sure we don't lose kids," she said. "Most of the time when kids fail to graduate, they lose interest in middle school.
"We have to make sure they avoid hitting the wall that exists around eighth grade."
Denise Morton, associate superintendent of curriculum instruction for Orange County Schools, advocated what she called the "Three R's" of education- - rigor, relevance and relationships.
"We have to have connections in our schools," she said. "Teachers have to make connections to their students through lasting relationships, and they have to connect their course material to the real world."
Supporting the local arts
At the arts session, Joseph Haj, producing artistic director for the PlayMakers Repertory Company, said lack of interest from young people and students is part of the cause of Chapel Hill's dwindling attendance at arts events.
"We struggle, sectorwide, in getting young people to theaters," Haj said. "It's about a sense of invitation; the barrier to entry is not a financial one."
Mac McCaughan, co-founder of Chapel Hill-based Merge Records, and Glenn Booth, owner of Local 506, both said the student presence at local venues and concerts seems to have declined in recent years.
"The most surprising thing I've found since owning Local 506 is seeing how few students come out to see bands at this level," Booth said.
But he said there have been signs of change. He said the free show put on by his venue and The Daily Tar Heel's Diversions saw great success, despite the fact that two of the bands that performed previously had drawn only small crowds.
"That's one of the things that I've been trying to work on, is forming these synergistic relationships."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(04/16/07 4:00am)
Alvin Ailey saw his first dance performance on a school field trip.
(04/12/07 4:00am)
Town staff recommended Wednesday that the Chapel Hill Town Council take no action on two immigration-related petitions presented to the council in February.
The petitions consist of two resolutions addressing the November 2006 arrest of Iranian-born Carrboro resident Sima Fallahi asking the town to contribute to her legal costs and to review its immigration policies.
"I didn't get the sense that the council felt enough responsibility to comment on even individuals contributing to the fund," said Margaret Misch, an Orange County Bill of Rights Defense Commission member who presented the petitions.
Fallahi was arrested by Chapel Hill police Nov. 29 after a background check found her in violation of a federal deportation order.
Fallahi, 48, failed to renew a student visa issued in 1985.
She was held in Mecklenburg County Jail until March 6 and was released after a judge ruled to reopen her political asylum application.
The first resolution requested that Chapel Hill make a "significant contribution" to the legal costs Fallahi has incurred, which her lawyers say could run as high as $15,000.
The State Supreme Court has ruled that public expenditures must benefit the public, not particular persons, Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos advised the council in a memo.
Karpinos also wrote that Fallahi still is able to file a claim of alleged wrongful action, which the town's insurance program would handle.
Fallahi said she has not decided whether to pursue that option.
"I have to see because my life has been interrupted," she said.
Karpinos suggested encouraging contributions to the legal fund that has been set up for her defense instead of using town funds.
Those interested can send donations to the Bill of Rights Defense Commission at 106 Purefoy Road.
The second resolution asks the council to alter town policy to arrest individuals only if the warrant is criminal. Fallahi's offense was civil.
Maj. Brian Curran, interim Chapel Hill police chief, said the police department already has reevaluated its policy on detaining individuals.
Curran said police will not detain anyone without a criminal basis. Officers are instructed to notify the police chief or attorney if they discover a civil immigration warrant.
Council member Mark Kleinschmidt shared concerns the policy is not being enacted. He cited the March arrest of Nelson Herrera-Ventura, also on a civil offense.
"When a town department twice in four or five months violates the express policy of this council, that is an issue that deserves a report."
Curran said that the department is investigating the incident, but that it is a personnel matter he could not comment further on.
The commission will meet at 7 p.m. today at Carrboro Town Hall to discuss the council's decision.
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(03/26/07 4:00am)
Vandals with possible gang ties targeted 10 area properties and businesses last week.
Unknown suspects spray painted "L.b.u." and other designs at seven of the locations. Police think these incidents might be related, but they are unfamiliar with what "L.b.u." represents.
"All of those have similar spray painting," police spokeswoman Jane Cousins said. "They were different colors, but the same pattern."
Cousins said that police are looking into the incidents but that no suspects have been identified.
"It's a difficult crime to solve, obviously," she said.
The other three incidents are not believed to be related but also are being considered as incidents of possible gang activity.
All 10 incidents occurred between March 12 and March 20, according to Chapel Hill police reports.
"It's some tagging that we have not seen before," Police Captain Christopher Blue said. "We saw it in enough places to think it may have some (gang) relationship."
Owner Brenda Honeycutt's Plaza Dry Cleaners at 111 S. Elliot Road was targeted March 17.
"L.b.u." and other designs were spray painted along the 75-foot-long side of the building.
Honeycutt said designs also were spray painted on the sidewalk and near the front of the store.
"When . I saw what it was, it kind of confused me," Honeycutt said. "It was unusual looking."
Police officer Mitch McKinney said he is familiar with "L.b.u." tagging in Wake County, particularly in the Raleigh area.
"It probably is going to be gang-related, but we haven't confirmed that completely."
Honeycutt said that she didn't feel threatened or targeted by the event but that she does "not want gangs of any sort."
"(The police) said it's territorial, that that's what they do, and I didn't feel threatened by it because they didn't break any windows or anything like that," she said. "If something had been broken or really torn up, that would be a different story."
Cousins said the police department worked with the vandalized businesses to make sure the graffiti was removed promptly.
"The first thing we do, as soon as we see it, is we make arrangements to have it removed," Cousins said. "Research shows if you leave it there it encourages more vandalism."
The landlord had the graffiti painted over by March 19, Honeycutt said.
"Fixing it was very fast, and I was pleased with that," she said.
Cousins said officers have been made aware of the "L.b.u." designs and are keeping an eye out.
Honeycutt said she, too, would be keeping watch.
"I don't want any trouble or anything like that," she said. "But it makes you think. It makes you wonder just what is going on."
Staff writer Dioni Wise contributed to this report.
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(02/28/07 5:00am)
Sima Fallahi and her daughter Leila haven't hugged since Nov. 29.
Sunday, the two will be able to meet outside the glass partition that has separated them for the past three months.
"I get to see my mom and touch her and hug her," 11-year-old Leila said. "She took a parenting class, and now we get to do activities together when I visit."
Detained by Chapel Hill police last November after a routine background check found an outstanding warrant for her deportation, Fallahi was confined at Mecklenburg County Jail on Dec. 1.
(02/27/07 5:00am)
The Chapel Hill Town Council heard a petition Monday from supporters of the Carrboro woman who is being held in Mecklenburg County Jail awaiting a decision about deportation to her native Iran.
Sima Fallahi, 48, was arrested by Chapel Hill police Nov. 29 after a routine background check found federal orders calling for her deportation.
The council received two resolutions presented by Margaret Misch, co-founder of the Orange County Bill of Rights Defense Committee but referred the resolutions to town staff and to Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos for further consideration.
The first resolution would make it town policy to arrest or take into custody individuals only when the person is known to have committed a criminal felony violation.
Fallahi was arrested on the basis of the federal immigration violation, a civil matter.
The second resolution relates more closely to Fallahi and calls for the town to make a "significant contribution" to the legal costs she has incurred while attempting to reopen her case and seek political asylum.
Misch also asked that the town clarify police department policy about what is to be done with civil immigration violators.
"I'm asking you with the resolution that the town understand that (Fallahi's arrest) was a mistake," she said.
Misch requested that the council take action on the two resolutions Monday, but Mayor Kevin Foy said more staff and community input was needed.
"It's not customary to pass a resolution the first time we see it," Foy said. "Other people may have an interest in speaking about this."
Robert Wright said legal costs so far total $7,635. Wright is a friend of Fallahi who, with his fiancee Kathleen Barton, has taken temporary guardianship of Fallahi's 11-year-old daughter, Leila.
Wright said Fallahi's lawyers have estimated a total legal cost ranging between $10,000 and $15,000.
The first resolution was modeled after one passed by the Carrboro Board of Aldermen on May 16, which established a policy of not arresting individuals charged solely with civil immigration law violations.
The Orange County Board of Commissioners also adopted a resolution Jan. 23 that officially encourages local governments not to get involved with enforcing federal illegal immigration law.
Leila appeared at the meeting with Barton and Wright. Barton said she was disappointed, but not surprised, that the council didn't pass the resolutions Monday.
"It's maddening to get your hopes up so high and then to have them shot down."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(01/22/07 5:00am)
The Franklin Hotel is no fishbowl, but Chapel Hill Town Council members and town department leaders created their own on Saturday.
The two groups met at The Franklin Hotel, at 311 W. Franklin St., for their annual retreat to discuss priorities for 2007 and ways the two groups can work together in the upcoming year.
The fishbowl was an exercise that ended the retreat to evaluate the day's accomplishments.
"Fishbowl is an observed conversation, and when it works, it's really powerful, and when it doesn't, it's really dreadful," said Tim Dempsey, a consultant hired to coordinate the retreat. "But today it's going to be really good," he said.
The fishbowl exercise got council members and staff to reflect on the goals, issues and ideas for the town they discussed earlier in the day.
"The feeling is that we're all in this in a big fishbowl together, and we all are participants in trying to make this town a better place," council member Laurin Easthom said. "I'm not an expert on computers or transportation. I'm just an elected citizen interested in learning more."
Police Chief Gregg Jarvies, said the retreat was successful because it focused on the future and on ways the town can better serve citizens.
"We spent very little time talking about the past," Jarvies said. "The other thing I didn't hear was, 'No, that can't be done.' There was pretty much agreement that we're not going to forget about any of these ideas."
Council members and staff said they wished the openness of the retreat could be transferred to the two groups' daily interaction.
"There was great sharing of information," Transportation Director Steve Spade said.
"I think we understand there's a difference between what our roles are in the town, and what I saw today was a good step in making that process work better together."
In the retreat's morning session, council members and department heads were asked to prioritize a list of 51 agenda items from previous meetings as 2007 budgetary goals.
The items ranged from Carolina North zoning that would affect the University's proposed satellite campus to aging town facilities, carbon reduction and citizen call tracking.
The 30 attendees split into four groups that discussed the 51 items and made a recommendation of the top five priorities they wished to see in the year's budget.
Many technological improvements, including a Web-based payment system, were on the initial list, which participants decided to combine into a technology category rather than lose individual projects.
"We saw the commonalities and the benefit of planning for them together, instead of in isolation," council member Mark Kleinschmidt said.
When the groups reported back, staff development, carbon reduction, zoning, improving public safety and technology dominated main spots.
The group was to finalize 2007 objectives, but postponed it when Dempsey and the planning committee decided the issues should be discussed at a Feb. 7 budget meeting.
"You have to do what the people in the room want to," Dempsey said.
Roger Stancil, the newly hired town manager, said the sessions were informative even if no budgetary decisions came out of the meeting.
"Some things faded, and some things came to the front," he said.
"Part of what we can do is give some of these more thoughts about how to accomplish them."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
Last year's priorities
Rising fuel costs
The new Town Operations Center was increasing the amount of fuel town vehicles used. The Town Operation Center project will come to a close in the next few months.
The Rogers Road
residential area
The project had been deferred to 2006. Council members planned ways to include the town of Carrboro and Orange County in planning for the Greene Tract. The Greene Tract small area plan is now underway.
Carolina North
Council members wanted to see if the University's new Carolina North committee, the Leadership Advisory Committee, had similar concerns as the town. Since the 2006 retreat, town
representatives participated in several meetings of the Leadership Advisory Committee and collaborated to draft
principles for construction of Carolina North. Continued
cooperation with the University as Carolina North develops also will be a priority for 2007.
(01/22/07 5:00am)
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Superintendent Neil Pedersen can add runway model to his resume.
The district announced Friday the new colors and mascot for Carrboro High School, the district's newest school that will open in August, and Pedersen was on hand to model the school's spirit wear.
The white T-shirt Pedersen sported will be seen on many of the 800 students who will attend the school and be known as the Jaguars. Their colors will be purple, black and white.
"It's great to have it as a part of the cat family," Pedersen said. "It just begins to give some identity to the school."
"The cat family" includes Chapel Hill and East Chapel Hill high schools, whose mascots are the Tigers and Wildcats, respectively.
Students who have been assigned to attend the school were responsible for voting on the mascot and school colors.
A committee of students and teachers from area schools that will feed into Carrboro High oversaw the mascot and color selection.
The committee gathered suggestions from students before narrowing the field.
Write-in suggestions from students garnered ideas for mascots such as the Clams, the Worms and the Rainbows - ideas that were quickly dismissed.
The mascot and colors could not duplicate those of any other city school or any school in Carrboro High's athletic division, the Mid-State 1-A/2-A conference.
Based on suggestions from students, the committee narrowed the selection to three choices - the Kodiaks, an Alaskan bear; the Cardinals, North Carolina's state bird; and the Jaguars.
Of the more than 500 students eligible to vote on the mascot and school colors, almost 200 cast ballots.
It was a close race between the Cardinals and the Jaguars, but ultimately the stealthy and stalwart feline took the upper hand.
"I'm thrilled. I like the Jaguar anyways," Principal Jeff Thomas said. "The selection will only add to the pride parents and students have in the school and the Carrboro community."
Students on the design team, a planning group made up of parents, teachers and students, said they were surprised the Jaguars won.
"We were hoping to be the Carrboro Kodiaks, but the Jaguars was definitely our second choice," Chapel Hill High sophomore William Burgo said.
Thomas said the selection will allow the school to move forward with preparations for the August opening. Now that the colors and mascot have been picked, uniforms and athletic equipment can be ordered and games scheduled.
Everything is on schedule and going as planned, Thomas said.
Design team members will get an early look at the school Thursday, when contractors will give the group a first look inside the new building.
In March, the school will hold open meetings for prospective students.
Excited as they were about the new mascot and school colors, students and parents said they were still a little nervous about what to expect.
"You're always going to have some bumpy things in the beginning," said Patti Spaulding, whose daughter will be a junior at the new school.
"But the people I've talked to have been very excited to come here."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(01/17/07 5:00am)
DURHAM - Lisa Kukla said she had the barrel of a shotgun in her face before she really understood the full power of guns.
"We see guns everyday and don't understand," the East Chapel Hill High School teacher said. "The power of a gun is amazing. Frankly it makes me so angry that anything can be so powerful."
The shotgun pointed at Kukla on April 24 was held by William Barrett Foster, then a student at East who took Kukla and Chelsea Slegal, another student, hostage after school.
Kukla and Slegal were eventually able to talk to Foster, and they convinced him to shoot out a window instead of killing them.
Tuesday night Kukla was presented with the Citizen of the Year Award for her remarkable bravery and skill in negotiating with a distraught, armed student.
The award is given each year by the North Carolinians Against Gun Violence Education Fund. Kukla received the honor at the group's annual membership meeting at the Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy at Duke University.
The group, formed in 1993, educates people in the Triangle about gun violence prevention and works to get new, tougher gun laws passed.
"The ultimate goal is to prevent all gun violence," said Lisa Price, executive director of NCGV.
"Short of that we want to reduce the number of people injured and killed by guns."
Price said stricter laws and enforcement was needed to keep guns out of the hands of students.
"We have to take a long view of the situation."
Price said the United States has easier access to more guns than other industrialized nations.
"We can talk until we're blue in the face about the dangers of guns and it doesn't change things very much."
Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Center and Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, gave the keynote address at Tuesday's meeting and said anti-violence groups must reframe the debate.
"We need to wake up those who have been in the dark about what we're trying to do," he said.
"And we need to take back the initiative from those on the other side of this issue."
Since the shooting, Kukla, other teachers and parents at East have worked to improve school safety.
Kukla will present a 14-item list of goals for the school and the district to address, including fixing doors so they lock properly and adding more surveillance cameras. So far 85 teachers have signed in support of the goals.
"They are a variety of things that other schools locally are already doing," Kukla said.
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School Board Chairwoman Jamezetta Bedford attended the meeting and said the East shooting forced the district to re-examine its safety procedures.
"We have plans for during the school day, but it really showed us we need to increase security after school," she said.
"We don't want a fortress, but we need to make it safe."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
(01/16/07 5:00am)
It was a day on, not off for those who attended Martin Luther King Jr. Day events held in Chapel Hill.
"We are here to say we have not overcome. We are here to continue the struggle," said NAACP member Yanni Chapman on Monday morning at a rally in front of the post office at 179 E. Franklin St.
More than 300 students, residents and local officials attended the town's 26th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration to continue the civil rights movement.
Sponsored by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance, Monday's events included the rally followed by a march down Franklin Street to the First Baptist Church for an annual service.
"I am hopeful that this will not be the only time and place we come together to fight injustice," Minister Michelle Laws said at the rally. "I am hoping that we will renew this fight."
Sophomore Charlie McGeehan attended both the rally and the service. He attended last year, as well.
"I just feel it's very important to be here," he said. "At home I used to go with my family to an event like this, and I needed to find something like that here."
After the rally participants quickly organized for the march down Franklin Street, singing "We Shall Overcome" and carrying banners that read "Free at Last" and "War is the enemy of the poor."
Once at First Baptist, participants packed the benches.
During the service two awards were presented for local activism. Tony Mason received the first annual Rebecca Clark Community Leader Award for his work registering some of the first black voters in Orange County.
Mason thanked the crowd for the award, saying, "I always felt it was among one of the most important accomplishments of my life."
Orange County Board of Commissioners Chairman Moses Carey was presented with the Dr. Martin Luther King Community Service Award.
The main event came in the keynote address given by the Rev. Curtis Gatewood, second vice president of the N.C. NAACP. His speech emphasized education.
Gatewood urged schools and communities to work together to create more equal learning environments.
"Our children are being lynched academically," he said.
Gatewood said the effect of educational inequality already is being seen in the black community.
"You got all these people telling you 'Meet me at the club; it's going down'," he said. "You need to meet someone at the library. Yeah, it's going down. The whole community is going down. We need education."
Gatewood also asked those in attendance to mark Feb. 12, the 98th anniversary of the NAACP on their calendars. To recognize the date the N.C. NAACP has plans Feb. 10 for HK on J, or Historic Thousands on Jones Street. State NAACP leaders have plans for a march to the state capitol to promote the progressive and civil rights communities.
"We are sick and tired of being sick and tired," Gatewood said. "We are going to march on, move on and rally on."
"This is not a moment; this is a movement. We're going to mobilize like it's 1955."
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.