CITY & COUNTY

10/15/2019 7:16am

A crowd crosses the street at the intersection of Franklin Street and Columbia Street on Friday, Oct. 11, 2019. In a 2016 survey conducted as part of Chapel Hill's ADA transition plan, respondents prioritized bus stops, commercial areas, and schools as locations to improve accessibility.

Beyond reasonable modifications: What it's like getting around town with a disability

By Alice Bennett

“I pretty much have to calculate every step, which is a very common experience for people with mobility issues like myself,” Simpson said. “There’s definitely certain locations that I can't go.” In 2017, the Town of Chapel Hill created an Americans with Disabilities Act Transition Plan in hopes of increasing the town's accessibility for people with disabilities. This plan came about after reports showed Chapel Hill's low level of compliancy with accessibility standards.  

Editors Picks

10/8/2019 10:05pm

CH population change graphic-01.png

Chapel Hill’s population growth dropped off in the last decade. Is it a concern?

By Brent Van Vliet

The Town of Chapel Hill's population is decreasing, despite popular assumptions. In fact, growth in this decade so far has been the slowest the town has seen since the 1970s. While this may sound alarming, it's more complicated than that. The rising cost of living has caused people to move to places right outside of Chapel Hill and Orange County, but this poses additional questions for the future of development and growth in Chapel Hill. How will the town expand, and how will they get people to stay?

10/8/2019 8:13pm

Patrick Conway mugshot; June 22, 2019 – photo courtesy of Randolph County Sheriff’s Office 

Ousted Blue Cross CEO still eligible to treat UNC Hospitals children after charges

By Evelyn Gandy

Details emerged publicly last month regarding the arrest of Patrick Conway this past summer, when he drunkenly crashed his vehicle into a tractor trailer while his two young daughters were in the backseat. Conway, who was CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina at the time, stepped down at the urging of the his company's trustees amid the public backlash. However, the incident hasn't cost Conway all opportunities in the health industry. Despite his currently-pending charges, which include DWI and misdemeanor child abuse, Conway still "has privileges and works occasional shifts" at UNC Hospitals' N.C. Children's Hospital, and it's unclear if his pediatrician privileges will face any impact from the arrest.