February 2010
Cross posted from www.NCDOTscandal.blogspot.com :
Here's an interesting story from WRAL about stolen/lost/damaged state property:
http://www.wral.com/news/local/wral_investigates/story/6999284/
Buried within is this:
"Yet another high dollar loss for the state comes from damaged property. For the Department of Transportation, much of that damage happens on the side of the road. 'Trees are considered as assets,' said DOT engineer Ted Sherrod. The DOT has reported hundreds of thousands of dollars in tree losses, mostly from businesses clearing around signs in the right of way. 'We'll have about as many as 50 cases a year,' Sherrod said."
Good to hear that DOT considers trees assets. Let's hope they start treating them that way.
The Clinton
Tapes: Wrestling History with the President
Lecture by author and journalist Taylor Branch
Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2010
Reception at 5 p.m. | Program at 5:45 p.m.
Wilson Special Collections Library, UNC-Chapel Hill
Free and open to the public
Information: liza_terll(a)unc.edu, (919)
962-4207
Historian and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Taylor
Branch will speak about his new book "The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History with the
President," based upon the White House interviews Branch
conducted with Clinton
between 1993 and 2001.
Why stop a consultant’s recommendation to spend $3 million of taxpayers’ funds to put cement next to Bolin Creek?
This portion of Bolin Creek between Estes and Homestead is unique because it encompasses 400+ acres of assets that include a natural creek, wildflowers such as the coneflower, and wildlife such as coyotes, salamanders, heron and woodpeckers. The Adams Tract was acquired by Carrboro and the County for preservation four years ago. Next to this gorgeous forest sits the P.H. Craig tract, as yet unprotected, and finally the 300 acres of UNC property that will be protected by contract under the recently signed Development Agreement.
All together these intact woods are of immense beauty and significance, as noted by the Inventory of Significant Natural Areas of Orange County. A scientific baseline, moreover, was established by the Eco System Enhancement Program Local Watershed Plan for Little Creek (which includes Bolin Creek).
This morning, the west end of downtown Chapel Hill was immobilized when someone called in a bomb threat against the rising Greenbridge development. I understand that some people have issues with tall buildings in Chapel Hill, although I don't especially. But I do share the concerns that many have about the gentrification of Northside. However, the fact is that Greenbridge didn't create either of those problems, and stopping it isn't going to help solve them either.
After a year heading up the Employment Security Commission, former Orange County Commission chair Mosey Carey was appointed this week as Secretary of Administration in Governor Perdue's cabinet
Prior to his appointment to the ESC, Moses Carey worked for NCCU Department of Health Education under contract for the NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund. He worked in local and state departments of health in Florida and served as executive director of Piedmont Health Services, Inc. in North Carolina for 18 years. Carey is a native of Tampa and currently lives in Chapel Hill. He earned his B.S. in Health and Physical Education at Fort Valley State College and a Masters in Public Health Administration at the University of North Carolina’s School of Public Health. He holds a law degree from North Carolina Central University School of Law.
The Orange County Commissioners are apparently considering a proposal from the County Manager to reduce the number of citizen advisory boards and commissions. This may not be a bad idea since the county has over 70 such advisory groups.
Until last week I was a member of the Human Services Advisory Commission (HSAC) which I think is likely to be disappear - transferring its responsibilities to various existing boards, such as, the OPC mental health board, the DSS board, etc. I think eliminating HSAC will not have a detrimental effect because the advice of this group was not taken very seriously, anyway.
However, I do wonder if the elimination of some of the other boards and commissions might cause problems.
What do you think of the proposed tree ordinance? Personally, I value Chapel Hill's canopy and wooded neighborhoods, including my family's own heavily wooded lot. That said, I see this as good intentions gone way, way awry. If adopted, the town and its citizens will face increased regulatory costs (more staff to review proposals and police tree removal) and more delay, uncertainty and cost for citizens who need or just seek to remove trees on their own property. What about clearing space for solar panels, culling saplings to better support larger growth trees, or removing diseased trees? Even if the ordinance allows for those activities (and admittedly, it might, I just don't know for sure), the added time and expense necessary for completing paperwork, then waiting for inspections, or, more likely, relying on neighbors to police each other, seems the wrong tack to take. Is this really a problem?
I'm hoping some folks are planning on attending tonight's second meeting of the NC 54/I40 corridor study group at the Friday Center between 5 and 8PM (2-25-10).
Basically, it looks like they are going to ask folks to choose between three possible scenarios, one in which they assume less growth along the corridor and no light rail or rapid bus transit, one in which they assume more growth along the corridor and no light rail or rapid bus transit, and one in which they assume a lot of growth along the corridor, with light rail and rapid bus transit occurring and the current park and ride lots moved adjacent to I-40.
Right about now, the Chapel-Hill Carrboro NAACP is holding a press conference/rally at Lincoln Center, the administrative home of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School System (CHCCSS). I'm pasting their entire (long!) announcement below as it has a lot of interesting information, including a history of segregation in the school system.
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