Chapel Hill Town Council talks housing, zoning and transit expansion

Northside neighborhood feels pressures of increased student presence, housing costs

Northside, which is historically the largest Black community in Chapel Hill, has seen a decrease in homeownership for years and an increasing demand for student rentals.  Along with an increase of new residents moving into the neighborhood, new apartment additions to West Rosemary St. are bringing UNC campus life closer to Northside. “It’s not because of the house, it’s because of the land," resident Loy Long Jr. said. He said he can't imagine his family selling their home. 

Affordable housing explained: A look at public developments in Chapel Hill

The Town of Chapel Hill owns and operates a number of affordable housing units within Chapel Hill and Carrboro, including single up to multiplex residences. Though the Town owns over 300 properties, the area currently faces a deficit of over 5,000 affordable units. 

NC ranks last in national school funding effort, report says

North Carolina ranks 50th in school funding effort and 48th in overall funding level, according to an annual report by the Education Law Center. Parents and administrators cited a lack of instructional staff and inadequate supplies as areas affected by low funding.

Number of active short-term rentals, including Airbnb, increase in Chapel Hill

"Since January 2021, the number of active short-term rentals (STRs) in the Chapel Hill area has increased by about 40 percent."

Despite funding, Chapel Hill sees stall in affordable housing preservation, development

The development and preservation of the Town of Chapel Hill's new affordable housing units struggles to keep up with demand, despite increases in funding. This fiscal year, the Town plans to preserve 350 affordable units and develop 30 affordable units. Last fiscal year, the Town funded the preservation of 509 affordable units and the development of 11 affordable units.

Gov. Roy Cooper signs executive order to ban TikTok from state-issued devices

The executive order, signed Jan. 12, directs the state's Chief Information Officer and the North Carolina Department of Information Technology to develop a policy that prohibits TikTok and other potentially high-risk applications to be installed on state-owned devices within 14 days.

Here's what you need to know about land use ordinances and affordable housing

A land use ordinance is a collection of all of the rules, procedures and guidelines a municipality follows when developing a property. It defines, through zoning, what kind of building can go on a site and what limitations that building has.

North Carolina housing shortage, instability negatively impacts mental health

Housing instability is a prominent issue facing many North Carolina residents. About 348,000 renter households in North Carolina are at an extremely low income level and 69 percent of these households have severe housing cost burdens, according to data from the National Low Income Housing Coalition. 

Residents grapple with differences in pricing between Chapel Hill and Carrboro

The average overall rent in Chapel Hill is $1,917 and $1,419 in Carrboro, according to RentCafe. The average rented space in Chapel Hill is 968 square feet and 857 in Carrboro, meaning the cost per individual square foot in Chapel Hill is roughly 19.6 percent more expensive than Carrboro

An overview of how the local governments are using their remaining ARPA funds

Local governments are carefully planning out their use of remaining funds from the American Rescue Plan Act — the federal effort to help communities with economic hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Orange County received a total of $28.8 million from the act and has $4.45 million remaining. 

'The need is still there': Emergency pandemic food benefits to end in March

Emergency food benefits for North Carolina families — supplied through the federal Food and Nutrition Services due to the COVID-19 pandemic — are set to end in March 2023. The emergency allotments will cease due to the signing of the Consolidated Appropriations Act (2023) at the federal level in December, which terminates Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program emergency allotments in all states after February.

CHCCS board meeting features student perspectives about class rank, long public comment

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education met on Thursday. The school board spent a large part of the meeting hearing community members' public comments and presentations from students and committees across Chapel Hill and Carrboro. 

A look into how the Town of Chapel Hill allocates funding for affordable and public housing

As the cost of rent and homeownership in Chapel Hill continues to climb, the Town of Chapel Hill has increased its public housing budget for the 2022-2023 fiscal year.

Saxsquatch: Local saxophone-playing Bigfoot gains national fame on The Tonight Show, Fortnite

Saxsquatch, a saxophone-wielding, Bigfoot-costume-wearing performer, has amassed a significant social media following and has even appeared on the Tonight Show — but he owes his origins to Chapel Hill. 

CHPD Crisis Unit expands, introduces new positions as it approaches a half-century

As the Chapel Hill Police Department's Crisis Unit approaches its 50th anniversary this year, it has continued to change and grow to keep up with the needs of residents in Chapel Hill. The unit's role has been to provide support and help for people in crisis situations, including domestic violence and mental health issues. 

North Carolina gains over 28,000 jobs, Chapel Hill sees opportunities for growth

Gov. Roy Cooper announced that North Carolina gained 28,690 new jobs in 2022 according to a press release issued by the North Carolina Department of Commerce on Monday. CNBC and Business Facilities named North Carolina the State of the Year for Business in 2022 following an uptick in jobs and economic investment development.

North Carolina Dam Safety Program receives award for technology innovations

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality's Dam Safety Program received the Southeast Regional Award for its recent work pioneering and implementing internal software programs and studies to monitor dam infrastructure across the state. The program has "initiated several innovative projects to provide for the safety of dams, reduction of risks and benefits for the state," according to the Association of State Dam Safety Officials, the awarding body.

Orange County BOCC honors David Price, selects climate action grantees

In its first meeting of 2023, the Orange County Board of County Commissioners honored recently retired U.S. Rep. David Price (D-NC 4th), expanded homeowners’ ability to build secondary dwellings on their property and announced selectees for Community Climate Action Grants.

New NC data shows youth mental health crisis

According to data from North Carolina Healthy Schools, 10 percent of high schoolers in the state attempted suicide in 2021. Among students who identify as gay, lesbian or bisexual, 21 percent surveyed said they attempted suicide during the same year.