February 2016
Casting a vote in North Carolina’s presidential primary that might actually make a difference this year is a good reason to get to the polls on March 15th, but you can’t just stop there.
Choosing party nominees for a number of statewide races to be decided in November is one thing, but for the Orange County Board of Commissioners races this year, the Democratic primary is the competitive election that matters, as no Republicans filed to run.
Date:
Wednesday, February 10, 2016 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm
Location:
OWASA Community Room, 400 Jones Ferry Road, Carrboro
Date:
Monday, February 29, 2016 - 7:30pm to 9:30pm
Location:
Chapel Hill Town Hall, 405 Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard, Chapel Hill
This forum is for candidates for the District 1 and at-large seats.
Date:
Sunday, February 28, 2016 - 4:00pm to 6:00pm
Location:
Lake Hogan Farms Clubhouse, 101 Commons Way, Carrboro
This forum is for candidates for the District 2 and at-large seats.
Date:
Wednesday, March 2, 2016 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm
Location:
Orange County Public Library, 137 W Margaret Lane, Hillsborough
In just a few short weeks, we will go to the polls and vote for county commissioners. I am a candidate for the at-large seat and running to provide a different perspective and bring a different kind of leadership to county government. While some talk about stepping stones, I’m focused on building blocks for our community. I believe my experiences, not just those on my resume, offer an opportunity for those whose voices are not always heard to have a seat at the table.
We need more diversity on the Board of County Commissioners. We need someone who comes from a generation of less opportunity because the economy has shifted beneath our feet. The Millennial Generation has a lot to offer Orange County, but as a member of this generation, I recognize the fact we need more opportunities for affordable housing and well-paying jobs. Even as a college graduate with a good paying job, I still struggle with these issues. If I struggle, I know there are those with few opportunities and fewer options that struggle even more.
Seven people applied for the vacancy on the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Board of Education created when Michelle Brownstein resigned last month.
We asked the nine candidates for Orange County Board of Commissioners to answer five questions, and all provided responses. On each the next five Mondays, we will post the responses to one question. We begin today with the first question: Why are people poor? What tools or programs is the county using and/or should the county use to address poverty?
I'm an old school Orange County boy, raised knee-deep in the band of red mud that streaks across our county. My wife, though, was born on Long Island and grew up in Manhattan. Its a trying mix of cultures at our house at times, but its fun.
We've shared a few trips to the Big Apple and even she, given the distance of years, can see the New York-centric viewpoint of her friends that remain there. You know, of course, about [NY socialite, mayoral candidate, etc...] that - can you believe it? - did [something New Yorkers think is silly]? What? You don't know about that? Cue sidelong glances and suggestions that living in the boonies has seriously dampened one's ability to discern Important News. Anything that happens in New York City is worldwide news, right?
This is nothing new. People have been poking fun at overly New York-centric New Yorkers for decades. We all know the salsa commercial where even the flies stop buzzing when the cowboy relates the address of the maker of the offending competitor: New York City?!
Well, we progressive Orange County sorts have a similar problem. I'm pretty sure I'm not the first to notice. ;)
Last night, I attended the Chapel Hill - Carrboro NAACP forum for county commissioner candidates, where all nine candidates for four seats were in attendance. Candidates answered a variety of questions on everything from the upcoming bond referendum to affordable housing to charter schools. In case you missed it, here's a recap of the coverage of the event on Twitter, which I live-tweeted via @OrangePolitics. Thanks to Editor Emeritus Damon Seils for providing some excellent color commentary on the night.
We asked the nine candidates for Orange County Board of Commissioners to answer five questions, and all provided responses. Every Monday, we are posting the responses to one question. Today, we continue with the second question: Is the allocation of funds in the county's proposed 2016 bond referendum appropriate? If not, how would you have designed the bond proposal differently?
On Saturday, February 20, the second community forum on school equity was held: "Excellence with Equity: The Schools Our Children Deserve." The event was cosponsored by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro NAACP, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools PTA Council, Organizing Against Racism (OAR)-Orange, the NAACP Youth Council, Movement of Youth, and the Special Needs Advisory Council (SNAC). The event was live-tweeted by OrangePolitics and a number of other attendees.
We asked county commissioner candidates to answer five questions, and all provided responses. Today, we continue with the third question: How would you characterize the relationships between the county and each of our community’s two school districts? In what ways could these relationships be improved?
It's time to start thinking about how to get the western edge of the Triangle more involved in the growing community of open government events taking place this year. As a past attendee of several of these events, I wanted to make sure these upcoming events are on your radar, and ask you to get involved in the growing collaboration between civically minded citizens and the fast-growing local tech sector.
The Orange County Schools Board of Education has appointed Millicent Rainey and Jessica Aguilar to fill vacancies on the board. Both will serve until June, to be replaced by winners of the March 15th election.
The Sierra Club has issued its endorsements in the 2016 primary election. The endorsed candidates are:
- At Large: Mark Marcoplos
- District 1: Mark Dorosin, Penny Rich
- District 2: Renee Price
[Cross-posted from the Chapel Hill News]
We’re fortunate to live in a community with many resources and services. That’s a large part of what makes southern Orange County so appealing to newcomers, and so hard for natives and Carolina graduates to leave.
But our community isn’t perfect. We don’t have it all. The way we live is changing, and so our community and the things we want to see in it have to change, too. How we currently live and how people will live in 50 years are sure to be different. It’s important that we keep this evolution in mind in making decisions now that shape our community later.
We should start today to identify what’s missing in our community. For example, community conversations have already identified a desire for things like an arts district, more robust public transit options, more green space, housing options that are affordable for everyone, retail choices that don’t require driving to Durham, and commercial space to support microenterprises and makers.
I just received an invite to complete this transportation survery. Hope everyone does the same.
DCHC MPO Seeks Public Comment on Transportation Priorities
April 1 Deadline to Complete Online Survey; Workshop & Public Hearing Set for March
Share your thoughts on the 2045 Metropolitan Transportation Plan through an online survey, by email or at a public meeting.
Post Date: 02/25/2016 1:29 PM
The Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (DCHC MPO) is seeking public feedback on the draft goals and objectives for its 2045 Metropolitan Transportation Plan, which will drive future policies and decision-making processes for highway, bicycle, pedestrian, and transit projects in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties.
Residents and stakeholders can now review and provide input on the draft goals, objectives, and performance measures using a variety of methods:
Five candidates are running for the Orange County Board of Education in the upcoming election on March 15th. Unlike the several primary election items on the ballot, the school board race is a nonpartisan general election. The winners will take office in June.
- Full 4-year term (3 seats): Stephen H. Halkiotis, Tony McKnight, Matthew Roberts
- Unexpired 2-year term (1 seat): John D. Hamilton, Michael H. Hood
OrangePolitics asked the candidates to answer five questions. The responses from four of the candidates are provided below. Candidate Matthew Roberts did not respond.
Date:
Saturday, March 5, 2016 - 2:00pm to 4:00pm
Location:
Orange County Public Library, 137 W Margaret Lane, Hillsborough
Weaver Community Housing Association would like to voice its support of the IFC locating the Food First community kitchen in downtown Carrboro. WCHA is concerned about public safety for all of its residents and that includes those of low-income and marginalized populations. Hence, our organization does not support criminalization of the homeless by spreading fear of panhandling and loitering.
To RSVP for March 22 hearing, go here: http://www.ifcweb.org/rsvp
Starts at 7:30 p.m. Board Chambers Room 110 of Carrboro Town Hall
From the IFC Website: "The IFC has met with the Board of Aldermen to start the process for FoodFirst, but we need your continued advocacy and support to bring this vision to reality! A public hearing will be held on Wednesday, March 22, 2016, and we would love to see as many friendly faces as possible to speak on behalf of FoodFirst. You can find more details about this project at www.ifcfoodfirst.org!"
Statement of Support for IFC Community Kitchen in Carrboro:
Weaver Community Housing Association would like to voice its support of the IFC locating the Food First community kitchen in downtown Carrboro. WCHA is concerned about public safety for all of its residents and that includes those of low-income and marginalized populations. Hence, our organization does not support criminalization of the homeless by spreading fear of panhandling and loitering. The existence of poor residents is not a public safety issue. Tactics such as these have been used by many cities to push the poor and homeless farther out of town where they are invisibilized. We stand with the National Coalition for Homeless and their Homeless Bill Of Rights and recognize that violence and marginalization of the homeless is a national problem.
We also recognize the the Food First kitchen will be supplying groceries to many families who plan to cook meals in their homes and that a focus on fears of “idle persons” is largely unwarranted. Roughly 1.7 million people in North Carolina live in poverty, which amounts to about 1 in 5 people. There is an overwhelming need for centralized, community services especially now that the state of North Carolina has stopped supplying food stamps to those without work. We also recognize that people of color disproportionately make up these affected groups at, by some estimates, roughly 78% of those who live in poverty in our state. When we choose to make these services less accessible, we do so at a detriment to these marginalized groups. We ask that Carrboro businesses and the town make the decision to support these community efforts downtown and stand up for those who are struggling in our communities. We also ask for other local organizations to sign on to this statement.
Weaver Community Housing Association is a non-profit housing association that is owned and managed by low-income residents in Carrboro, North Carolina. Our mission is to provide permanent, affordable and sustainable housing for low-income families and individuals, and to empower them to make decisions to maintain their homes and communities. See www.Wcha.coop for more info
Date:
Tuesday, March 22, 2016 - 7:30pm to 10:30pm
Location:
Room 110 Carrboro Town Hall
It's the season for candidate forums. Yesterday, the Orange County Democratic Party and the Orange County Democratic Women held their forum for District 1 and at-large Candidates for the Orange County Board of Commissioners. The event was held at the Lake Hogan Farms club house. We live-tweeted the forum.
Nine candidates are running for the Orange County Board of Commissioners in the upcoming Democratic primary election on March 15.
-
At Large (1 seat): Andy Cagle, Matt Hughes, Mark Marcoplos
-
District 1 (2 seats): Jamezetta Bedford, Mark Dorosin, Gary Kahn, Penny Rich
-
District 2 (1 seat): Bonnie Hauser, Renee Price
OrangePolitics asked the candidates to answer five questions, and all provided responses. We're posting the candidates' responses to one question every Monday. We previously posted the candidates’ answers about the county-schools relationship, the 2016 bond referendum, and poverty. Today, we post the responses to the fourth question:
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