Town Council is ready to fall in love – with Shortbread Lofts. (You’ll only get the joke if you’re among the subset of council meeting viewers who flip channels to “The Bachelor” during some of the more tedious PowerPoint presentations. We won’t ask for a show of hands.) The development team for Shortbread Lofts on […]
All posts in category Housing
Loving the Loft
Posted by Nancy Oates on February 28, 2012
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/02/28/loving-the-loft/
Hope springs eternal
A developer walked into a Town Council meeting, armed only with a PowerPoint presentation and high hopes. Does this joke sound familiar? You’ve heard it twice in the past couple months, first with Shortbread Lofts and most recently with Charterwood. So you know how it goes. Neighbors will object to the building height and density […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on February 21, 2012
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/02/21/hope-springs-eternal/
Who belongs?
Yet another Town Council meeting ended after midnight last night. That’s late for the members of the deliberative body making decisions about what’s best for our town. I believe all nine council members hold some type of job other than to represent us. I doubt they serve on council solely to support themselves. When you […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on February 14, 2012
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/02/14/who-belongs/
Roger’s job gets tougher
At Monday night’s Town Council meeting, Town Manager Roger Stancil gave his periodic update on the state of the town budget. His PowerPoint presentation showed that the town is way behind in development fees this year from what it expects – some $200,000-plus. So what did the council do? Kill the Charterwood mixed-use project off […]
Posted by Don Evans on February 1, 2012
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/02/01/rogers-job-gets-tougher/
Train wreck
A penny placed on the track can derail a train, and three pennies laid on the track of progress derailed Charterwood last night. Donna Bell was absent last night, so Gene Pease moved that her absence be excused so that her empty chair did not count as a “yes” for every vote council took that […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on January 31, 2012
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/01/31/train-wreck/
Affordable housing
Northside and Pine Knolls face a losing battle to remain affordable (and black, for that matter) unless we, as a town, address the demand for student housing near campus. Tonight Town Council will receive the Planning Department’s update on the town’s affordable housing strategy, a plan the council adopted in June of last year. One […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on January 23, 2012
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/01/23/affordable-housing/
Shortbread hearing long on complaints
During last night’s public hearing on the Shortbread Lofts, I had to knock my head against the wall a couple of times to make sure I wasn’t stuck in a time warp. It sure felt like Aydan Court all over again. You have a developer who has taken pains to fit the changing demands of […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on January 19, 2012
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/01/19/shortbread-hearing-long-on-complaints/
Short shrift for Shortbread?
What better circumstances, if you’re a developer wanting to build an 85-unit apartment building, than to have the town change the ordinance, a week before your presentation, effectively limiting the housing supply of your target market in a neighborhood a few blocks away. No wonder the developers, known only as “Shortbread Lofts LLC,” who have […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on January 18, 2012
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/01/18/short-shrift-for-shortbread/
Who controls the condo market?
Whenever a development that includes residential condos comes before Town Council, count on a small but vocal contingent to object to condos being included in the affordable housing mix. Families with children want single-family detached houses surrounded by lawn, this group claims. Adding one- and two-bedroom condos to the workforce housing pool amounts to substandard […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on July 11, 2011
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2011/07/11/who-controls-the-condo-market/
Cost of living
A light bulb went on when I read Ed Harrison’s comment implying that Carol Ann Zinn was wrong in her assessment that $400,000 was moderate-priced housing in Chapel Hill. Sally Greene had asked Zinn at Monday night’s public hearing what her moderately priced condos would cost. Zinn did not put a dollar figure to it […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on June 22, 2011
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2011/06/22/cost-of-living/