Blogs
I was looking for some information on the Town of Chapel Hill web site about Halloween logistics yesterday, and I came across some interesting data. It seems that since the town instituted the new "Homegrown Halloween" rules in 2008 to keep the the downtown party more manageable, they have greatly reduced the size of the party, but the cost to the Town is about the same!
I don't doubt that the evening is a much safer and probably healthier one for most of Chapel Hill, but I worry that the clamp down may also put a damper on the fun.
CVS is in the process of buying up properties in downtown Carrboro across from Weaver Street Market to potentially build a 2 story building that would house a retail tenant (presumably CVS) on the 1st floor and office space and/or apartments on the second floor.
Ruby talked a little bit about the new development on the corner of Greensboro and Weaver Street in a previous post. To recap: Weaver Street Market needed money to help pay for debt they have incurred the passed few years and they sold 3 downtown properties to CVS. (See Map) They sold the property on the corner of N. Greensboro and Weaver Street (where WCOM and Community Realty used to be), the parking lot next to that building and 104 Center Street. The house on 104 Center Street is an historic Mill House built around 1910. This house will most likely be torn down in the near future. The developer working for CVS is close to purchasing 203 N Greensboro St (Debra Seaton’s Dental practice) and the hair shop on the corner of Short and Center Street. This would mean CVS will own all but one the property on the block.
There was a mention of this on CHL the other night; Did anyone else catch this public hearing popping up?
The net net as far as I can tell is that the manager wants to refinance our debt (sounds like a good thing), saving $4.6m over the life of the debt. And then he proposed $2m in new spending right along with it.
We were told over and over again this past budget cycle that everything had to be cut because there's no money. Now, instead of balancing all those things which were cut against this new proposal, some glitzy technology thing gets to jump to the front of the line with little public input to gobble up a large portion of savings that are found.
What I really don't understand is how we can cut basic services in the county and then go spend large amount of $ on "nice to have" like a better property info system (I have no idea if the radios are really needed or not). I've certainly used the current property info system enough to know it isn't the best. But can we really afford right now to buy a better one?
It has come to my attention that some coaches in the Chapel HIll Parks and Rec. football league are requiring their players to say the Lord's Prayer before and after their games. This is in direct violatoin of separation of Church and State. I contacted the P and R dept. in September and Mark Troutman replied that he would "address this issue with the coaches." Well, it is mid October and the team is still saying the prayer! I'm not anti-religion but since this is a government sponsored league and we have a very diverse population, it seems like this activity is inappropriate at the least and possibly uncomfortable for any Jewish, Muslim, Buddist, etc family that chooses to participate in Rec. League football. What do others think?
The need for signs to help people find their way around town has been discussed for several years. The Town of Chapel Hill recently installed their first wayfinding signs. This initial step is welcome, but I'm a little disappointed with the implementation. First of all, I think they are needed downtown much more than at our entryways, which is where the program is currently focused.
A few nights ago I was driving home on MLK Blvd and got my first look at the signs. They appear to be white text on a light blue background, rendering them nearly impossible to read! In addition, the UNC branding would seem to indicate that these are signs for how to get to the University, rather than to a variety of local destinations. And of course if the signs can't be read from a moving car, then they aren't doing much good on a 5-lane road.
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