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Regulatory Issues

Chatham County Places Land Transfer Tax on November Ballot
On November 6th, Chatham County voters will decide whether to pass a ballot referendum to increase the land transfer tax by 0.4 percent. In September, County Commissioners decided to place only the transfer tax on the ballot, excluding an alternative sales tax increase. On August 20th, County Commissioners also agreed to reduce the current school impact fees from $2,900 to $1,900 if the transfer tax were passed. With the reduction in school impact fees, the transfer tax would amount to approximately $2.5 million in new revenue in 2008-09. Most likely the revenue would be used for school facilities and other capital needs, though the county could use the money for any legal purpose. Over the next two months, the Board of County Commissioners has scheduled five different community meetings to educate voters about the transfer tax and its impacts. For locations of those meetings, click here. For more information on the tax, click here.

64 Crossing Project Delayed in Chatham
64 Crossing at Eubanks Road, a 70-acre development in Pittsboro, was stalled for two weeks after the Town Board elected to delay a vote to rezone the property. The project would include retail and office space but no housing. The Board decided to wait for the completion of a land use plan commissioned by the town that is due later this month to ensure that the project is consistent with zoning recommended in the plan. For the full story, click here.

Carrboro Considering Moratorium Extension
At a regular meeting of the Carrboro Board of Aldermen tonight, the Northern Study Area Plan Implementation Review Committee will ask that a moratorium on development in the northern area be extended by another six months. The Aldermen will need approval from the County Commissioners should they decide to lengthen the current moratorium. The meeting will be held at 7:30 pm in Town Hall.

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Schools

Chapel Hill Carrboro Schools see Improvements in ABC’s
The ABC state standard was raised over the past two years but the Chapel Hill Carrboro School System has met the challenge. In a recent press release, the school system reports that four elementary schools (Seawell, Rashkis, Scroggs and Glenwood) all earned the Honor School of Excellence Award, given to schools in which 90 percent or more of students are proficient in reading and math and meet national AYP standards. Last year only Seawell and Rashkis earned that award. Ten other schools earned the School of Distinction label, given to schools where 80 to 90 percent of students are proficient in math and reading. The only school not receiving an award this year is Franklin Porter Graham Elementary which very narrowly missed the School of Distinction mark. For the full story, click here.

Orange County Schools gets new superintendent
Former Orange High School principal and current Durham Public Schools’ assistant superintendent Patrick Rhodes will become Orange County Schools’ superintendent beginning mid-October. The school board voted unanimously Sept. 4 in approval of Rhodes’ $136,000 contract. Rhodes has served as assistant superintendent in Durham for almost two years. The board has been searching for a superintendent since late spring, after Shirley Carraway announced her retirement, effective October 1. For the full story, click here.

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Orange County

Chapel Hill Launches Six Wi-Fi Hotspots
As of September 1st, anyone within 300 feet of one of six wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) hotspots in downtown Chapel Hill will be able to access the Internet for free. The hotspots are part of a pilot program launched by the Town of Chapel Hill to study how free wireless Internet access is used in public areas. For a map of the Wi-Fi hotspots and full story, click here.

Town Operations Center Dedicated
On Monday, September 10th, the Town of Chapel Hill dedicated a new $52 million Town Operations Center, housing the Public Works Department and Chapel Hill Transit. The facility, located on Millhouse Road, features a number of sustainable attributes including permeable pavement, solar panels and bio-retention areas to collect stormwater runoff. In accordance with the Town’s Percent for Art Ordinance, the Center showcases $420,000 worth of public art.
From Chapel Hill eNews

Innovation Center’s New Location Shocks Town Council
In a heated Chapel Hill Town Council meeting on September 10th, UNC-Chapel Hill representatives shocked council members with a new location for their Innovation Center. The Innovation Center is an 80,000 square foot business accelerator that would give UNC faculty and researchers space to turn ideas into businesses. The contentious part of the Center is its location, which was originally slated for the south side of Estes Drive near Airport Road. In August, however, UNC Trustees voted to move the Innovation Center to Municipal Drive, likely the main entrance to Carolina North. UNC then submitted a concept plan to the Town to gain approval for the Center. The change in location and submission of an independent concept plan before the entire master plan upset council members who were preparing to review the Carolina North master plan in its entirety. The Innovation Center concept plan was also submitted prior to the completion of Chapel Hill’s transit study, which one councilman called a “slap in the face.” Chapel Hill’s Community Design Commission will review the concept plan on September 19th. For the full story, click here.

ArtsCenter Scheduled for Redevelopment
The ArtsCenter, located in the 300 block of East Main Street in Carrboro, is scheduled for redevelopment later in 2007 or early 2008. The entire 300 block of East Main will undergo major redevelopment including a new hotel, parking deck and restaurants and shops. Now, the ArtsCenter and Kidzu, located on East Franklin Street, are in preliminary talks to possibly share space in the redeveloped building. The move would be timely as Kidzu has outgrown its Franklin Street space with more than 29,000 visitors in its first year. For the full story, click here.

Residential Permits Down Since 1997
New residential permits issued in Orange County have been steadily declining since 1997, according to the Orange County Planning Department. In 1997, 908 permits were issued for residential construction, compared to 370 issued in 2006. The 370 permits in 2006 are the fewest issued in the past ten years. By comparison, permits were at their highest in 1999 when 1,625 were issued.
From Orange County EDC: State of the Local Economy

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The Triangle

U.S. 15-501 Widening Planned
By August of 2010, sections of highway 15-501 between Durham and Chapel Hill will be widened from four lanes to six. The one mile stretch between Garrett and Mount Moriah Roads, for instance, will be widened from two lanes in each direction to three. Other improvements include constructing longer and higher bridges in the mile stretch as well as adding a fourth lane to the exit ramp for westbound drivers on I-40 turning left onto 15-501. For the full story, click here.

Durham Regency Project Ready to go
Durham’s Regency Plaza is set for redevelopment, to be led by Hawthorne Retail Partners Inc. and Crescent Resources. The development, called University Marketplace, will include 300 luxury residential units and 115,000 square feet of retail space. Construction is expected to begin in late 2008 and will take 12 to 18 months to complete. For the full story, click here.

Property owners plan West Franklin development
Owners of the China House Restaurant at Franklin and Graham streets want to replace the China House and Estetica Silvia salon with three to four stories of offices, shops and possibly condos. Bill Jackson, co-owner of the China House, has contacted surrounding property owners with a proposal of a collaborative mixed-use project and is advertising the site as an opportunity for businesses to buy offices and storefront condos. Inspired by plans for redevelopment at 300 W. Main St. in Carrboro, home to Cat’s Cradle and the ArtsCenter, Jackson and his partner, Richard Gaylord, are planning 50 condos and 16,000 feet of square feet of office space between the ArtsCenter plaza and the Libba Cotton Bikeway. For the full story, click here.

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State

85 N.C. counties declared disaster areas
As a result of the ongoing drought, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has declared 85 of North Carolina’s 100 counties disaster areas, including all 11 counties included in the Charlotte area. To be declared a disaster area, a county has lost at least 30 percent of a significant crop. Farmers in disaster areas now have access to low-interest loans from the federal government as a result. For the full story, click here.

Road authority seeking funding for development
The N.C. Turnpike Authority is sending requests to institutional investors asking for funding to begin the Triangle Expressway toll-road project. Two-hundred fifty million dollars is needed to help build toll roads leading to the recently completed N.C. 540, a section of the Outer Beltline. For the full story, click here.

Triangle Home Sales Slip
Home sales for August were down by about 300 homes compared to August of last year with 3,382 homes sold in 2007 versus 3,688 in 2006. Wake, Johnston and Durham Counties were hardest hit by the slump; Orange County did not see any slide but rather an uptick from 196 homes in 2006 to 199 this year. Interestingly, in the Triangle, active listings were up by nearly 20 percent compared to last year with 17,389 currently listed. For the full story, click here.

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Nation

Foreclosures way up in August
In August, one in every 510 households filed for a foreclosure. For the month 243,947 foreclosures were filed nationwide, an increase of 115 percent from August of 2006. Significantly, August’s figures were up by 36 percent over July figures showing signs that many homeowners are unable to make payments on their mortgages or sell their homes. For the full story, click here.