Eric Martin

News

Town eyes teenage drinkers

By Eric Martin | March 29

A Chapel Hill-Carrboro organization became one of more than 1,000 community organizations in the country to take a new approach Tuesday night to fighting underage drinking. In coordination with the federal substance abuse and mental health services administration, the Coalition for Alcohol and Drug Free Teenagers held a town meeting to educate the public on recent statistics and trends of underage alcohol and drug users. Special guests of the event, part of a national effort, included N.C. First Lady Mary Easley and Linda Hayes, chairwoman of the N.C. governor's crime commission.

News

County makeup put to vote

By Eric Martin | March 22

It's official. In a November referendum, voters will be able to decide if what is now a five member Orange County Board of Commissioners will expand to seven. The commissioners voted four to one Tuesday to put a proposal for an expanded board to a public vote, with only Moses Carey Jr. voting against the proposal. Immediately after, the board voted three to two against a motion to have at-large elections of any district representatives. "I still do not support seven commissioners, because, if you go to seven commissioners immediately, there's no returning back to five," Carey said.

News

Police put in call for help

By Eric Martin | March 10

In response to continued safety concerns and general growth, the Chapel Hill Police Department is asking that the 2006-07 town budget include funding for heightened security downtown. "We get calls from business owners frequently saying they get complaints from customers who get harassed on the street," said Maj. Brian Curran, who named panhandlers and "late-night visitors" as causes of most disturbance complaints. As a response to a seeming increase in complaints, police are requesting that $481,624 be used for the development of a permanent downtown patrol district.

News

Joint meeting in HIllsborough; parks and trails developments discussed

By Eric Martin | February 24

The Hillsborough Town Board and Orange County Board of Commissioners held a joint meeting Thursday night to discuss plans for the upcoming Fairview Vision project. Director of Orange County Environment and Resource Conservation department David Stancil began the meeting with a presentation of Fairview Park that soon will be developed in Hillsborough. Stancil said four meetings in three months were held for park planning, and on Jan. 19 developers agreed upon the final plan.

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Town, UNC keep volley alive

By Eric Martin | February 17

Members of the Horace Williams citizens committee finally got a chance to talk about the letter they've been waiting for two years. On Thursday the committee met to discuss Chancellor James Moeser's response to its property report on the proposed development site for Carolina North. The meeting marked the committee's first gathering since Moeser issued the UNC take on the its recommendations in a letter to Mayor Kevin Foy. Committee Chairwoman Julie McClintock said she was pleased with the response.

News

Trail to cut through county

By Eric Martin | February 15

Local nature lovers and hiking aficionados might find a path from the Great Smoky Mountains all the way to the Atlantic Ocean running right through their backyard in the foreseeable future. The Orange County Board of Commissioners discussed Thursday plans for a possible Hillsborough passage of the Mountains to Sea Trail. The trail was started in 1973 and runs 908 miles through 37 counties. Once completed, it would span 1,000 miles from the Tennessee border to the Cape Fear River Basin.

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Chilton chats on local carrboro station

By Eric Martin | February 10

In a discussion broadcast Thursday morning from local community radio station WCOM 103.5, Carrboro Mayor Mark Chilton reached out to residents by admitting his frustrations and defending his actions. The interview, conducted predominantly by radio show Events, Sex and Politics co-host Geoff Gilson, focused on last week's appointment of Dan Coleman to the Carrboro Board of Aldermen. Gilson, who promised a somewhat interrogative "English-style" discussion, began with a statement that set the mood for the rest of the hour.

News

Traffic deaths shock town

By Eric Martin | January 27

Due to an editing error this story incorrectly suggests that Chapel Hill police spokeswoman Jane Cousins said that pedestrians were at fault during five recent car accidents. Cousins only was referring to four accidents, not the one on campus involving a UNC law student. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the error. Chapel Hill has experienced an unusual number of motor vehicle accidents this week, resulting in the deaths of three area residents. Five accidents involving pedestrians or cyclists have occurred in only three days.

News

Residents eager to calm traffic

By Eric Martin | January 18

On Thursday, Pinehurst Drive resident Debbie Norman spoke of the vehicles that race past her home, come to a screeching halt, reverse at the same speed and make a turn onto the adjacent road, Gurnsey Trail. As she said this, a pickup truck roared past, reversed and did just that. In hopes of stopping this problem, the Chapel Hill Town Council approved a proposal Jan. 9 that allows for the installation of speed tables and stop signs on seven city roads.