Ruby Sinreich's blog
Why are the University's community relations people so tight-lipped about their new Carolina North committee? The town's Horace Williams Citizens Committee (HWCC) first learned about it in the paper in October. But at our last several meetings we have asked our University representative, Linda Convissor (UNC Director of Local Relations) for any news and she had none. When I ran into Jonathan Howes (UNC Special Assistant to the Chancellor for Local Affairs) he asked me why we keep hounding Linda for information.
Perhaps it's because we can't collaborate with a partner that doesn't share critical information? It's also because "UNC news" is a standing item on the HWCC's agenda, and we can't do much of anything without it.
The chairman of a new "leadership advisory committee" being set up by UNC to get input on Carolina North planning will be Kenneth Broun, a former mayor of Chapel Hill and former dean of the UNC School of Law.
Don't expect a lot of blogging between now and 2006. You should all be be spending vacation (if you are fortunate enough to have one) with your loved ones anyway.
Here are a few interesting items from all around the county this slow news week:
- The times they are a-changing. Once picketed by preachers and denied permits by the town, PHE is now the Hillsborough/Orange County Chamber of Commerce's "business of the year."
- N&O: Naughty or nice? Shunned firm honored
- First porn (see above), now this. Is Hillsborough turning into Chapel Hill?
- N&O: Pricey condos to top Hillsborough building
Local real estate listings are featuring something never seen before in Hillsborough: $700,000 condos for sale.
In a town where three-bedroom houses still go for $150,000, and bigger homes on an acre can be bought for less than $500,000, the condos may seem a bit pricey.
An OP reader (and a great blogger himself) writes:
Orange Politics has been nominated for the Koufax Award in the category of Best Blog Covering State or Local Issues. Multiple nominations are needed to move on to semi-finals. It is perfectly fine to self-nominate - that is actually encouraged. Also, rally the readers to go and nominate a few more times, then vote for OP once it gets into semi-finals and hopefully finals.
To vote, go to this post this post and type the following - as well any other blogs you want to nominate - in the comments:
Best Blog Covering State or Local Issues: OrangePolitics.org
I don't know how many of you read the News of Orange. I drop into their web site about once a week, which how often it's updated. They have reader polls to which I am strangely addicted. If they are at all accurate, then it certainly validates what folks say about the northern part of the county being way more convervative than Chapel Hill and Carrboro.
For example, this week's questions is "Do you favor the death penalty?" and the response so far is pretty much YES:
Yes 51.9%
Sometimes 11.5%
No 32.7%
Unsure 3.8%
Total Votes: 52
Do you think this is an accurate reflection of the county? If not, perhaps you should take the poll.
I know sometimes things that sound the same mean different things in different parts of Orange County. Could this "strategic growth plan" be an effort to slow and manage growth, which by most accounts has been pretty out of control in and around Hillsborough? It certainly has potential to be a good thing. Maybe some of you north of I-40 readers could help out.
The [Hillsborough Town] Board authorized Town Manager Eric Peterson to negotiate a contract with Chapel Hill-based Clarion Associates to develop a strategic growth plan. The town and Orange County are jointly creating the plan. The town will be recruiting town residents to serve on the steering committee, which will start meeting Jan. 22.
- newsobserver.com | Orange County, 12/15/05
...And former Chapel Hill Planning Director Roger Waldon continues to do well in his second career as a consultant with Clarion.
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