When I retired from the Chapel Hill Planning Board, I said I would spend more time paying attention to Carrboro Politics. As promised, I am watching the Carrboro Board of Aldermen meeting (on TV). Tonight's agenda includes the changes at 300 East Main Street (redevelopment of the Arts Center/Cat's Cradle area).
Issues:
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Comments
What the developers are
What the developers are proposing is to build "Phase A" - the west-most building shown above - while leaving the rest of the site intact for now.
Public comment:
Nathan Milian, manager of Carr Mill Mall, is concerned that they are not adding any additional parking. Presumably he doesn't want people to park at Carr Mill across the street.
James Carnahan says the Carrboro Planning Board unanimously supports this project. They also recommend that the developers be required to improve the sidewalk on Main Street between the site and Roberson Street.
Josh Davis, a resident of Broad Street, is also concerned about the parking.
Jenny McMillan, a business owner, agrees with the request to improve the sidewalk as well the need for more parking.
It passed 7- zip.
It passed 7- zip.
It looks great! Such an
It looks great! Such an improvement over the buildings there now, and I really hope the outdoor theater thing makes it to the final stages. Plus it'd be great to have more hotels in the downtown area, and any hotel in Carrboro.
Two important points to note
Two important points to note on the parking:
1) we are planning a review of downtown parking in the fall with a look at the town's long term needs.
2) the Main St project that is getting the temporary parking waiver is also planning to build a parking deck that will make a significant contribution to providing additional downtown parking.
Let me add that I think the building design is great and creates a very elegant entry from points to the west into the new complex.
I have a couple of general &
I have a couple of general & process questions, based on what I have read here and in the press.
Could the BOA have required some type of commitment to build a parking deck? I am not familiar enough with the parties and current legal commitments involved, but what if the deck does not happen, gets downsized, or the owners conclude that they will not allow Main Street Project users to park there?
Is there or could there have been some sort of easement or obligation on the proposed parking deck property as a condition of Main Street Project approval to insure that this additional parking will definitely be made available to Main Street users and under what terms to the users (free vs. fee)? I am envisioning that the Main Street Projects could have paid the owner of the future parking lot property money in consideration for an addition to the deed obligating said parking.
I am concerned about the wiggle room (a vernacular term which resonates when spoken, but looks quite strange in print).
I have been out of town but
I have been out of town but just wanted to keep awareness of the importance of access to and use of the Libba Cotton bike trail. It is heavily used on a daily basis and will be more and more vital as density increases.
The building we approved
The building we approved last night was on a separate application from the rest of the project. So there is not direct connection to the parking deck.
However, Mains St Partners expects to build the hotel next and the parking deck will be needed to serve the hotel.
The parking deck is not yet a certainty but things appear to be moving forward.
"Can we get them to build a
"Can we get them to build a parking deck" is the wrong question. The right question is "how can we get people into downtown most effectively to enjoy the area?"
I recognize that a parking deck is on the plan, and that it may in fact be one of the needed items for the property, particularly regarding spaces for residents of 300 East Main.
However, we should be considering movement in Downtown Carrboro in a holistic perspective. If downtown is an evening entertainment district for Chapel Hill/Carrboro and beyond, we ought to think about whether or not park-and-ride bus services to downtown from the Jones Ferry lot, or Southern Village, or elsewhere-- make sense.
There is a lot of space downtown that is used by parking that could be developed as commercial, mixed-use or residential, or as a public amenity.
If we are serious about doubling the commercial space downtown as a strategy to help ease the property tax burden on the residential sector, not wasting the potential downtown tax base on parking makes a lot of sense.
"Can we get them to build a
"Can we get them to build a parking deck" is the wrong question. The right question is "how can we get people into downtown most effectively to enjoy the area?"
I recognize that a parking deck is on the plan, and that it may in fact be one of the needed items for the property, particularly regarding spaces for residents of 300 East Main.
However, we should be considering movement in Downtown Carrboro in a holistic perspective. If downtown is an evening entertainment district for Chapel Hill/Carrboro and beyond, we ought to think about whether or not park-and-ride bus services to downtown from the Jones Ferry lot, or Southern Village, or elsewhere-- make sense.
There is a lot of space downtown that is used by parking that could be developed as commercial, mixed-use or residential, or as a public amenity.
If we are serious about doubling the commercial space downtown as a strategy to help ease the property tax burden on the residential sector, not wasting the potential downtown tax base on the expansion of parking makes a lot of sense.
Chapel Hill / Carrboro has
Chapel Hill / Carrboro has an excess of non-housing development relative to housing development (as measured in terms of people being forced to drive when they go somewhere). Considering that, I think instead of building more non-housing development, they should build more housing development in this area.
How can we get more people into downtown Carrboro most effectively to enjoy the area, someone asked? Answer: Let more people live in downtown Carrboro. You don't need to provide parking spaces for people that aren't driving in the first place.