Ruby Sinreich's blog
I took some photos today but they are truly horrible. Wlil post later. Some of my biggest impressions so far:
- The
empty Pfizer campus, and the Chamber director talking about nearby
businesses that are about to go under from losing the business from
2,000 employees & 1,000 contractors that used to work there. Are
you listening Carolina North folks?
- There
are lots of tall buildings (5 - 10 - 15
feet stories) and most of them look
really nice and seem to work well. Some of them don't though. I
talked with some folks tonight about how Chapel Hill lacks the
regulatory tools to analyze tall buildings. How do we know how tall is
"too tall", what are factors that make it work or make it fail? One
local suggested that I meet a woman from their downtown commission, but
I'm really more interested in the perspective of a City Council or
Planning Board type.
I'm not even sure if this is a story, but it seemed interesting to me. It seems that UNC's new chancellor Holden Thorp was a partner with an RTP-based venture capital business that supports biotech start-ups. The chancellor had planned to continue his role there, but his brother Clay Thorp (who went to UNC with me) is the general partner there and felt it would be best to cut official ties.
Thorp is no longer a venture partner at Durham’s Hatteras Venture
Partners, says his brother, Hatteras general partner Clay Thorp. And
Holden Thorp’s equity stake in Hatteras has been put into a blind trust.
Clay Thorp says the decision was made as Holden Thorp took over the top spot at UNC on July 1.
“We decided mutually that it was best for him to have no formal role,” Clay Thorp says, “and to avoid any confusion.”
Holden and Clay Thorp still have informal discussions about science
and business, Clay Thorp says. But that’s as far as Holden Thorp’s
relationship with Hatteras goes.
I hope none of you were surprised to hear about this development. (If so, it's because you apparently didn't read my recent rant about "the problem with downtown." Hint: It has something to do with negligent landlords.)
The bank filed a request late last month for a foreclosure hearing in
Orange County Superior Court, saying Spencer C. Young Investments
wasn't making payments on $2.63 million it had borrowed in 2005 to buy
the property.
[...]
In June, a collection agency sued Young, saying he had defaulted on
a $15,000 credit line from Citibank. Earlier, Wright Co. Electrical and
Maintenance Services sued Young in Orange County small claims court,
claiming almost $3,000 in unpaid services there and at a shopping
center he owns in Durham.
This summer, Raleigh-based Benjamin
Construction Inc. sued Young for more than $550,000, saying he did not
pay for construction of Baba Ghannouj, a Middle Eastern restaurant, and
various general improvements to the property.
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