January 2016
After five years of looking at the chain-link fence and deteriorating building on the corner of Weaver and Greensboro Streets, I'm starting to get irritated. Isn't it about time to take some action?
The town seems impotent- they are glad to "facilitate a conversation", but that's about it. Meanwhile, CVS's developer, Mark Pantlin, told a group of us that he is planning on submitting a scaled-down plan to squeeze a CVS on the property. He also said he would- as a show of good faith- "clean up" the property, but then renigged. From an email string:
> I will be happy to clean up the site upon receiving the Rezone but not before. I've made that clear to the Town staff as well. Rezone in exchange for a clean up.
> That's because of the excessive monies already spent by both myself and CVS for approvals and nothing to show for it.
So if we bend over he will "remove the eyesore", but not before. We can not take him at his word, he has proven that. Pantlin claims to control the property for CVS, and is not the least bit interested in what the community needs or wants.
What can we do?
Last week, the Town of Chapel Hill sent out an email announcing that Town Council work sessions will now start at 7pm at the Chapel Hill Public Library. Work sessions previously began an hour earlier than regular meetings of the Town Council, starting at 6pm. Tonight’s work session will be the first to start at the new time.
Mayor Pam Hemminger seems to be the driving force behind the change in start time. She touted the change as one of her early priorities in an interview with WCHL’s Aaron Keck back in December. The reason given for the change by Mayor Hemminger was to make the meeting times more consistent, less confusing, and more accessible to town residents.
The Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP, Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce, Organizing Against Racism-Orange, Movement of Youth, and the NAACP Youth Council are sponsoring their second in a series of community forums on equity in our Orange County schools.
The commuity forum will now be January 23rd, 2016 February 20, 2016 from 1 to 4 pm at the United Church of Chapel Hill.
Information provided by the sponsors follows:
For Chapel Hill-Carrboro parents, students, and all who are invested in our having schools that are excellent for ALL students, please come to this forum. We will discuss the recent report and recommendations from the Campaign for Racial Equity and get your input and priorities on these important issues. On-line registration is requested, if possible to help us plan logistics.
The N&O ran a piece at the start of 2016 about the “new generation” of leaders in the Triangle. Missing from their list? Any “new generation” leaders from Chapel Hill.
But this omission isn’t the N&O’s fault. If you look at Chapel Hill, you’ll find that the town has a shortage of the types of young professionals the N&O was looking for on this list – and a shortage of the kinds of amenities and resources required for young professionals to succeed. How can we have a new generation of leaders without any of the next generation living in town? Why don’t we have that next generation in town? And what does it mean for the future of Chapel Hill if an the next generation is missing from our community?
I attended the January 13th forum on the future of the American Legion Post 6 property, hosted by Woodfield Properties. As a resident who lives within walking distance of Post 6, I wanted to go beyond the headlines and see and hear for myself the details of Woodfield’s vision for the site.
Here are eight observations and perspectives from the forum:
Last October, the Campaign for Racial Equity in Our Schools—a coalition of students, parents, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools staff, and concerned community advocates—released a report detailing the racial inequities that plague the Chapel Hill-Carrboro schools and making recommendations for beginning to resolve those inequities.
This election year, we’re doing things a little differently. Instead of holding our usual live online candidate forums, we have asked the candidates for the Orange County Board of Commissioners to complete a brief questionnaire.
Orange County historically has a lot going on and it's always challenging for any political leader to stay in front of issues important to the broad diversity of Orange County constituents. With the great economic downturn finally behind us, but with questionable policy coming out of Raleigh and a growing economic disparity here at home, those challenges will only increase over the next few years. Now is not the time for political lightweights, for folks without proven track records. Now is the time for experienced leadership.
Two of the races for Orange County Commissioner in the upcoming March primary offer just such a candidate. For the county-wide at-large seat Mark Marcoplos is the clear choice. No other candidate for the At-Large seat on the Orange County Board of Commissioners has anywhere near Mark’s experience and expertise. Similarly, Bonnie Hauser in the District 2 race has such a strong background in finance, accounting, and community organizing that she stands out as the obvious choice for commissioner.
Should the InterFaith Council for Social Services' food servies and a Piedmont Health clinic be co-located with Phoenix Academy and the state-run preschool program at a redeveloped Lincoln Center? This is the question before the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education.
The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools today announced the process for filling the vacancy on the Board of Education resulting from the resignation of Michelle Brownstein.
So far, we've heard only that 2015 school board candidate and former Carrboro alderperson Joal Hall Broun intends to apply for the vacancy.
North Carolina statute requires the vacancy to be filled by appointment by the remaining members of the board until the next election of board members. Applications for the vacancy are due in the superintendent's office by noon on February 5th. The school board will interview candidates on February 11th and make the appointment on February 18th.
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