Maybe Town Council’s next intercity visit should be to Paris, a city that Raleigh Mayor Nancy McFarlane cited as her favorite because of its low buildings. At council’s Nov. 15 meeting, we reviewed a concept plan for a 5-story building of apartments, offices and retail, with 68 parking spaces on less than 4 acres at […]
All posts in category Housing
Will we always have Paris?
Posted by Nancy Oates on November 27, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/11/27/will-we-always-have-paris/
Sitting on the Historic District Commission
In an interview aired on National Public Radio recently, Magazine Editor Hall-of-Famer Tina Brown described her desk-on-a-treadmill, noting, “Sitting is the new smoking.” That shot a little dart of fear in my heart, because my role as a Town Council member requires me to sit a lot. Council meetings, work sessions, committees, task forces and […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on October 23, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/10/23/sitting-on-the-historic-district-commission/
Economics of affordability
A council member told of going to dinner at a new restaurant in town and having to wait a half-hour for a table. Initially, he took that as a good sign of how well the new business was faring. But once he was seated, he noticed that several tables had been removed since the last […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on October 9, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/10/09/economics-of-affordability/
Conflicting Priorities
Bonnie Hauser, founder of Orange County Voice, shares her insight into factors that affect housing affordability: Last month the N.C. General Assembly (NCGA) took away Orange County’s authority to collect impact fees on new home construction. It was a low blow by Raleigh politicians but brings new insights into the important topic of affordability. Thirty […]
Posted by NancyDon on August 7, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/08/07/conflicting-priorities/
High-Rent District
I sat on the stoop of my 1940 Cape Cod and surveyed the view — one-bedroom brick-ranch duplexes and frumpy 1930s bungalows, SUVs spilling off gravel driveways onto lawns of hard-packed red clay tufted with weeds — and thought, “Wow, I’ve made it. I now live in the high-rent section of town.” According to a […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on July 17, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/07/17/high-rent-district/
Better planning for affordability
Last year, when Orange County commissioners proposed a $5 million bond to be used for affordable housing, I pushed for a plan. The county commissioners instead offered a slogan — 1,065 homes for $5 million — that was so unlikely to be achieved that it didn’t rise to the level of a goal. Trying to […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on June 26, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/06/26/better-planning-for-affordability/
Building community
When the Habitat for Humanity staffer asked, “Who’s not afraid of heights?” I raised my hand. I should have thought it through. But at 8:30 Saturday morning, with the temperatures still in the 70s and standing in the shade of a large, leafy tree, I didn’t pay attention to the fact that the unroofed part […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on June 5, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/06/05/building-community/
Use housing market forces to help
So much for the law of supply and demand. Council has approved a plethora of high-end market-rate apartments because a majority of council members believe that flooding the market with high-rent units will saturate housing demand and eventually inhibit rent hikes. These council members ignore the fact that in Chapel Hill, as in most cities, […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on May 22, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/05/22/use-housing-market-forces-to-help/
Funding Our Bubble
Chapel Hill’s bubble has been both boasted about and blasted, depending on the politics of the critic. We have a reputation of being a haven for bleeding-heart liberals, a sanctuary city in sentiment and practice, albeit not codified. But a sneak peek at the proposed Trump administration budget indicates that our bubble is about to […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on March 20, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/03/20/funding-our-bubble/
DOLRT’s Cost-Plus
If anything could sway me toward taking on the crushing debt of the Durham-Orange County Light Rail it would be the promise of getting some affordable housing in return. And sure enough, in its presentation about planning DOLRT stations, GoTriangle reps dangled that yarn ball before Town Council — including affordable housing in the mix […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on February 20, 2017
http://chapelhillwatch.com/2017/02/20/dolrts-cost-plus/