Brace yourself. In a couple of weeks, Town Council will once again consider a housing project marketed to students. Landmark Properties is on the March 19 agenda to present another plan for The Retreat, a university student residential neighborhood. Last year, Landmark appeared before council with a concept plan review, and council shot it down. […]
All posts in category Economic development
Landmark proposal
Posted by Nancy Oates on March 7, 2012
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/03/07/landmark-proposal/
Second chance for Charterwood
We can all agree: $4.3 million is a serious amount of money to invest and a foolish amount to gamble. Yet when developers go before Town Council with a development project, the money they spend to plan, present, readjust and repeat frequently comes down to the mood council members are in. The Charterwood developers, after […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on March 2, 2012
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/03/02/second-chance-for-charterwood/
Loving the Loft
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 […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on February 28, 2012
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/02/28/loving-the-loft/
Gym jumps through hoops
Chapel Hill now has two town-owned buildings that can’t be rented out due to overdue maintenance. The Chapel Hill Museum building at 523 E. Franklin St. was shuttered in June 2011 because the town did not have the approximately $800,000 to do the repairs. And last week, Orange County Gymnastics learned it would have to […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on February 27, 2012
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/02/27/gym-jumps-through-hoops/
4 cups
Immediately following the disappointing vote against Charterwood last week, Town Council voted to allow food trucks in Chapel Hill. Council had to strike a balance between local restaurant owners who were unhappy with the prospect of additional competition in a tight economy, and local foodies who wanted an inexpensive meal out, and local kitchen entrepreneurs […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on February 8, 2012
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/02/08/4-cups/
Tavern Talks
“Chapel Hill is a small town that lives large,” someone wrote as part of the 2020 visioning process early on. And at one of the Tavern Talks last night, a large poster-board chart propped on an easel had all sorts of ideas for how the town could live larger still. There was no column for […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on February 3, 2012
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/02/03/tavern-talks/
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
https://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
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/01/31/train-wreck/
The Roger Stancil Show
Town manager Roger Stancil is a completely different person in daylight than he is tucked away at the end of the dais during Town Council meetings at night. As guest speaker at the Friends of Downtown meeting Thursday morning, he was relaxed, gregarious and funny. Stancil referenced signs that have popped up around town since […]
Posted by Nancy Oates on January 27, 2012
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/01/27/the-roger-stancil-show/
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
https://chapelhillwatch.com/2012/01/19/shortbread-hearing-long-on-complaints/