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Advisory Board Appointments



CFRG believes that Advisory Board member composition should be examined carefully by Mayor and Council before appointments are made. There are many skilled members of the community whose professional and /or education expertise would be beneficial. Thus, we have begun to lobby for the Planning Board and Community Design Commission to have 50% members with related educational and/or professional background, and for the other boards to have 25% with this type of related background.

Vacancies will be filled during the May and June Council meetings for a June 30th appointment. Chapel Hill Boards & Commission appointments have 3-yr. staggered terms, with only 2 consecutive terms. Vacancies of which we are aware at this time are:

  • Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Board: 3 vacancies
  • Board of Adjustment: (sometimes serves as an appeals board) 5 vacancies
    The Board of Adjustment has been granted the power to act independently of the Town Council in most instances but on occasion serves in an advisory capacity to the Council.
  • Cemeteries Advisory Board: 2 vacancies
  • Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership (independent 501(c)3 funded by Town & UNC): 3 vacancies
  • Chapel Hill Public Arts Commission: 5 vacancies
  • Community Design Commission: 2 vacancies
  • Greenways Commission: 2 vacancies
  • Historic District Commission: 3 vacancies
  • Human Services Advisory Board: 2 vacancies
  • Library Board of Trustees: (staggered 4-yr. terms, only 2 consecutive terms) one vacancy
  • OWASA Board of Directors: (autonomous Board of Orange County, Carrboro, Chapel Hill with 3 year terms) 3 vacancies
  • Parks & Recreation Commission: 3 vacancies
  • Personnel Appeals Committee: (no employee or officer of Town) 2 vacancies
  • Planning Board: 3 vacancies
  • Public Housing Program Advisory Board: (in accordance with HUD and towns) 4 vacancies
  • Stormwater Management Utility Advisory Board: 4 vacancies
  • Sustainability Committee: 3 vacancies
  • Transportation Board: 3 vacancies
Task Forces & Ad Hoc Study Groups
  • Glen Lennox NCD Development Committee: (appointments to be made 5-10-10) 15 vacancies
    (15 vacancies: 3 tenants, 3 property owners, 3 reps. Of Grubb Properties, 3 at-large, 2 Planning Board, 1 commercial, 1 Chruch of Holy Family, 1 from existing CH Hill NCD)
  • Justice in Action Committee: 3 vacancies



Proposed Tree Protection & Preservation Regulations for Single Family Lots in Chapel Hill



The Planning Board and staff are proceeding with a slimmed down version of the tree ordinance proposal presented to the Council in February. The primary changes seem to be:
  1. a reduction in required canopy coverage percent for single-family and two-family lots.
  2. elimination of the previously proposed "tree work permit" that would have applied to all single-family and two-family properties greater than 20,000 SF in area.
  3. using the existing Zoning Compliance Permit process and procedure that takes affect if 5,000 SF or more of disturbance is proposed on a property as the trigger for enforcing tree canopy requirements.
  4. cautiously moving forward with the concept of maintaining some minimum tree canopy standard for all property in Chapel Hill, but with a percentage reduced by 1/3rd or more from the prior proposal of the Planning Board.
  5. differentiating the amount of tree canopy required for multi-family development by some type of density stratification (e.g. below 8 du/acre, between 8-20 du/acre , greater than 20 du/acre), and Town Center development (perhaps 1/2 of tree requirements applicable in other locations).
CFRG Comment:
Existing parking lot standards and buffers might satisfy canopy standards, but we are not sure because all the items above were presented only conceptually to the Planning Board. No details and no examples of affect were presented. The Planning Board is committed to going forward with some form of ordinance, the provisions of which we may still find objectionable. A revised draft ordinance is going to Planning Board Tuesday May 4. The Planning Board intends to make a recommendation to the Council for its May 24 meeting, at which time the Public Hearing on changes to the tree ordinance will resume.


Inclusionary Zoning - Proposed Amendment to the Chapel Hill Land Use Management Ordinance



The Council recessed its Public Hearing on the Proposed Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance after public comment that was generally supportive of creating an affordable housing requirement applicable to all residential development of 5 or more dwelling units. The staff referred the proposed ordinance to staff to address several of the suggestions made at the hearing. The Public Hearing is scheduled to reconvene on Monday, June 7, 2010. A report addressing any proposed changes by staff is scheduled to be available on or before Thursday, June 3, 2010.

CFRG Comment:
It will not be possible to provide and post an analysis of any proposed changes between June 4 and June 7. Anyone interested in the changes and what they might mean may contact Scott Radway at scott@radwaydesign.com.


Chapel Hill Public Library Expansion



Voters in 2003 authorized a $16.23 million bond for improvement/expansion of the Chapel Hill Library on Estes Drive. The project has been on hold since then because of economic conditions. The architectural plans are nearly complete, and the Library Building Committee is seeking permission from the Town Council to proceed with bidding/project start in fall 2010. If the project goes forward, this will add to the Town's debt, resulting in a tax increase of $0.0113. This would add about $68 to the tax bill of a house with an appraised value of $600,000.

Beginning in the mid 1990's, the Orange County Commissioners began to contribute $250,000 to the Library for support. At that time this was 20%; of the budget. This amount is now 11%; of the budget. It is estimated that 40%; of those who use the Library are from Orange County and are not Chapel Hill taxpayers.

Issues concerning the Chapel Hill tax increase as well as contribution by Orange County are pivotal at this time.

It is anticipated a Council decision will come in late May, early June 2010.


Glenn Lennox Proposed Neighborhood Conservation District



The Town is beginning the second stage of a multiyear, three stage process to create a Neighborhood Conservation District for Glenn Lennox.

Stage One occurred in 2009 at which time the Town Council defined the boundaries of the Neighborhood Conservation District and determined that the proposed neighborhood met the NCD qualifications.

The goal of Stage Two is to create a Citizen Committee from neighborhood property owners in order to craft the neighborhood's recommendations for proposed NCD zoning rules, with guidance from the Town Staff/Town Consultant to the Committee. On Tuesday, February 2, 2010, the Planning Board voted to recommend to the Chapel Hill Town Council that the Council initiate the development of a Neighborhood Conservation District for the Glen Lennox Area Neighborhood. The Planning Board also recommended that the Council appoint a committee to work on the development of the Neighborhood Conservation District plan and zoning rules.

The next step is to forward the Planning Board's recommendation to the Council. The date of the Council meeting and the schedule for the Council Committee appointment process will be determined during the week of February 15, 2010.

Stage Three will occur when the Planning Board/Town Council actually adopt Neighborhood Conservation District zoning rules for Glenn Lennox.


Redevelopment of University Square and Granville Towers



In the past year, the property and existing buildings of University Square and Granville Towers were purchased by Chapel Hill Foundation Real Estate Holdings, a not-for-profit corporation founded by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Foundation to assist with real estate projects for the University and its affiliated organizations. Cousins Properties Incorporated, a national developer based in Atlanta that specializes in mixed use projects, is assisting Chapel Hill Foundation Real Estate Holdings in redeveloping the site. Elkus Manfredi Architects of Boston, selected by Cousins in fall 2009, will help plan and design the project. A series of three public meetings, as well as input through the project website (www.123westfranklin.com), will guide the development of a concept plan to be submitted to the Town next spring.

The project Mission Statement: To support both the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Town of Chapel Hill through the redevelopment of 123 West Franklin Street into a vibrant, appropriate, and commercially viable project that will enhance the quality of life at the University, in the Town and in the region.

Project goals include:
  • To make 123 West Franklin Street a 12-month destination with a mixed set of uses — retail, office, residential and civic — that will attract more people, more frequently, and for longer visits;
  • To provide a diverse mix of University-related residential options;
  • To deliver a project that is financially feasible and stimulates other commercial prosperity in Downtown Chapel Hill;
  • To provide a vibrant connection between the University and Downtown; and
  • To engage a wide range of stakeholders in the development of a plan that is feasible, durable and that benefits both Chapel Hill and the University.