Round four

This Thursday will be UNC's fourth and final (?) "community meeting" to get feedback on plans for Carolina North. I missed the last meeting but I've been reviewing the presentation and comments from May. June's sessions will be Thursday, 6/21, at 3:30 and 5:30 p.m. in the School of Government, room 2603. (The 5:30 session duplicates the 3:30 session.)

The original three concepts have narrowed to two (below), one that follows the airport runway's east-west axis (left), and another that goes north-south (right). I instinctively feel like the east-west plan works better and feels more cohesive, but I don't really have enough information to understand them.

I must say, I find the info much harder to follow not having been there to hear the plans explained. Also (possibly related) it doesn't feel like UNC is doing much to respond to any feedback that goes beyond the surface of these concept plans. A lot of comments collected by UNC focused on transportation, such as the transit alignment, whether and how UNC will get people out of their cars, pedestrian and bike connections, impact on existing traffic patterns, and the road connection to Homestead/Weaver Dairy Extension (which is in both plans). There were also many concerns about proposed energy solutions, and a general preference for the east-west plan. The housing questions, well-articulated by Carrboro Mayor Chilton and others, don't seem to be addressed by UNC at all.

At this week's meetings, UNC will have narrowed the plans to one concept and promises to get more in-depth. I wonder how much of our time they will spend on irrelevant program presentations? These have been included in every session so far, and every time the community asks for more time with the plans and less time with the PR. Let's see if UNC listened.