Blogs
The North Carolina chapter of the Sierra Club proudly announces its endorsements for the 2011 Chapel Hill town races. The Sierra Club supports candidates with demonstrated knowledge of local environmental issues who will provide strong leadership on matters including growth and conservation.For mayor of Chapel Hill, the Sierra Cub endorses incumbent Mark Kleinschmidt. For Chapel Hill Town Council, the Sierra Club endorses incumbents Donna Bell and Jim Ward and challengers Jason Baker and Lee Storrow. Mayor Kleinschmidt, who has held the mayor’s office since 2009, earns the Sierra Club’s continued support for his leadership on mass transit, solid waste management, and carbon reduction.Jason Baker has a long history of interest in and passion for environmental issues and has served on the town Transportation, Planning, and Comprehensive Plan advisory committees. He is a strong supporter of transit-oriented development and strengthening the local economy in environmentally appropriate ways.
Tonight makes the second stakeholder meeting in the Chapel Hill
2020 comprehensive urban planning process. If you’ve been following the 2020 Buzz blog that I posted about a
few days ago (Get
the Buzz on Chapel Hill 2020), you’ve probably already seen that some
themes and vision statements have been posted. I like what the facilitator and
planning staff have come up with and think it’s a great jumping off point, but
from the perspective of my group’s discussions at the first meeting I think a
lot has been left off.
The main thing I think is missing is coverage of the social
aspects of Chapel Hill. My thinking on this was sparked mostly from what my
small group talked about the first meeting. We spent a lot of time talking
about making Chapel Hill a community that supports youth (ages 0-25) and that
has a servant mindset. We also spent a good deal of time talking about Chapel
Hill as it fits into the larger regional context. I can see how these topics
might fit into the themes listed, but I think they deserve more specific
treatment.
On September 26, members of the Chapel Hill Town Council suggested that the Community House Good Neighbor Plan Advisory Committee expand its membership . Hence, the IFC is seeking applications for committee membership. See http://ifc-gnp.blogspot.com/ for more detail. The application form can be found at http://ifcweb.org/GNP-app.htm. Applications should be submitted to the IFC before October 14.
I'm at the Orange County Board of County Commissioners meeting tonight to hear the latest on the landfill and Rogers Road mitigation. I'm spending a night outside the school district and talking about issues that won't help me get elected, so it must be important. The attachment (link below) has a county manager proposal that closes the landfill in 2013, and also addresses some of the mitigation items requested by the community. Looking forward to BoCC reaction -- are we going to finally do something for this community or push it further along the road?
An article in the Chapel Hill News on Sunday gave me pause on the candidates for the Chapel Hill town council. When asked to speak on town spending, all resorted immediately to either vague plans for reductions or, astonishingly, proposals to charge for transit, which is by far the most effective service Chapel Hill offers.
Instead of deciding which items to cut, the candidates for the council should commit to a pro-growth agenda. Rezone the entire downtown core as TC-3-C, and consider removing the height cap for downtown. Allow people to build along the planned light rail corridor to Durham. Expedite the review process so every proposal doesn't get dragged down in years of bickering.
Pages
About Us
OrangePolitics is a not-for-profit website for discussing progressive perspectives on politics, planning, and public policy in Orange County, NC. Opinions are those of their authors. Learn more.
Community Guidelines
By using this site, you agree to our community guidelines. Inappropriate or disruptive behavior will result in moderation or eviction.
Zircon - This is a contributing Drupal Theme
Design by
WeebPal.
