Michael Parker's blog
Chapel Hill is a very special place and my wife and I consider ourselves incredibly fortunate to be living here. And while there are many things that I hope to accomplish if I am fortunate enough to be elected, there is one overarching reason why I have chosen to run: I want our Town to be as special for the next generation of Chapel Hillians – folks like my daughter Stephanie and her husband Samuel – as it is for those of us who live here today.
Chapel Hill should be a vibrant, diverse and affordable town. In order to make sure that this is our present and our future, if elected I intend to devote my energies to:
- Creating more and better jobs, especially for our younger residents
- Growing and diversifying our supply of housing so that it is affordable to a broad range of income groups
- Strengthening Chapel Hill Transit and creating new and expanding existing connections with Durham, RDU, RTP, and Raleigh
I am convinced that working with the residents of our Town, the other members of the Council, and our Mayor we can accomplish great things so that the Chapel Hill of tomorrow is even better than it is today.
Yesterday was a memorable day. My wife Linda and I went to Hillsborough and I formally filed for the Chapel Hill Town Council. I’m in the race!
I am truly excited about the campaign ahead. I intend to use it as an opportunity to meet and speak with as many Chapel Hill residents as I can. I want to learn firsthand what my fellow Chapel Hillians’ visions for our Town are. What they see as the opportunities we can take advantage of and what they see as the challenges that we need to address. And what they expect from those who serve them on the Council.
I am also looking forward to the various public forums -- including OP's -- at which I and the other candidates can share our views for our Town’s future and have full and frank discussions about why each of us should have voters support.
Please go to my web site (www.parker4ch.com) and share your thoughts with me. Let me know what’s on your mind. Thank you.
For a number of reasons, primarily the lack of availability and cost of land, the focus of new residential construction has become apartments. All of the major development projects currently moving through the pipeline – Village Plaza Apartments, Obey Creek, Glen Lennox, The Graduate, The Edge – are almost exclusively apartments for their residential components. And in the case of Obey Creek, about half of the apartments are targeted to those over 55.
So where will the kids live?
In Chapel Hill, as in so many communities nationally, apartments are seen as a poor choice for raising children. Historically, many of us want backyards and grass for our kids. In fact, many developers tout the fiscal advantages of creating environments unappealing to families with children – few pupils for our schools and ample school taxes.
As you might know, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce organizes a trip every two years to a city similar to Chapel Hill – almost always a college town. The goals of these visits are to learn from the experiences of another community, better understand our community’s assets, and build relationships among participants that help us successfully address our local challenges and opportunities. This year's Inter-City Visit to Athens, Georgia, is coming up in just a few weeks (September 21-23).
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