May 2014

Orange County residents will have a chance to provide input on future Orange County bus services in a series of public meetings in various locations, including the town of Hillsborough.

The Orange County Planning and Inspections Department and Triangle Transit are hosting the public outreach meetings, which will focus on bus services outlined in the Orange County Bus and Rail Investment Plan. Bus routes to be discussed include the Hillsborough Circulator as well as rural and regional service routes. The goal of the meetings is to receive input on specific recommendations for new, expanded and existing bus services that serve central and rural Orange County.

There will be four public outreach meetings, held from 5:30 to 7 p.m., except as noted below:

• May 19 — in the Northern Human Services Center cafeteria at Cedar Grove Park, 5800 N.C. 86 N., south of Hillsborough.
• May 21 — in the Mebane Council Chambers, 106 E. Washington St. in Mebane
• May 22 — in the Hillsborough Town Barn, located at 101 E. Orange St. on the Hillsborough Town Hall campus. Parking is accessed from East Corbin Street. ***This meeting is from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m.***
• May 28 — at Efland-Cheeks Community Center, 117 Richmond Road in Efland

A presentation will be given at the beginning of each meeting, and stations will be set up for attendees to learn more about proposed new bus services and ask questions. Comments about the proposed routes also may provided by e-mail to OCBUSPLAN@orangecountync.gov or by voicemail at 919-245-2336.

For additional information, contact Transportation and Land Use Planner Abigaile Pittman with the Orange County Planning Department at 919-245-2567 or abpittman@orangecountync.gov.

Orange County residents will have a chance to provide input on future Orange County bus services in a series of public meetings in various locations, including the town of Hillsborough.

The Orange County Planning and Inspections Department and Triangle Transit are hosting the public outreach meetings, which will focus on bus services outlined in the Orange County Bus and Rail Investment Plan. Bus routes to be discussed include the Hillsborough Circulator as well as rural and regional service routes. The goal of the meetings is to receive input on specific recommendations for new, expanded and existing bus services that serve central and rural Orange County.

There will be four public outreach meetings, held from 5:30 to 7 p.m., except as noted below:

• May 19 — in the Northern Human Services Center cafeteria at Cedar Grove Park, 5800 N.C. 86 N., south of Hillsborough.
• May 21 — in the Mebane Council Chambers, 106 E. Washington St. in Mebane
• May 22 — in the Hillsborough Town Barn, located at 101 E. Orange St. on the Hillsborough Town Hall campus. Parking is accessed from East Corbin Street. ***This meeting is from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m.***
• May 28 — at Efland-Cheeks Community Center, 117 Richmond Road in Efland

A presentation will be given at the beginning of each meeting, and stations will be set up for attendees to learn more about proposed new bus services and ask questions. Comments about the proposed routes also may provided by e-mail to OCBUSPLAN@orangecountync.gov or by voicemail at 919-245-2336.

For additional information, contact Transportation and Land Use Planner Abigaile Pittman with the Orange County Planning Department at 919-245-2567 or abpittman@orangecountync.gov.

Information from the Orange County Board of Elections website: 

   Absentee Ballots by Mail

• As soon as ballots are available, requested absentee ballots will be mailed.

• All requests for absentee ballots must be submitted on State-approved Absentee Ballot Request form

                                                            Early Voting

July 3 - Early Voting Begins.

• The Orange County Board of Elections office, located at 208 S. Cameron St, Hillsborough, is the Early Voting site for the Second Primary.

                                                                        Hours:

                                         Thursday, July 3 - 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

                                  CLOSED JULY 4TH FOR HOLIDAY

                                Monday - Friday, July 7 - 11 - 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

                                        Saturday, July 12 - 9:00 a. m. - 1:00 p.m.

          Reminder: Registration is no longer allowed during the Early Voting period.   

July 8 - Last day to request ballot by mail.

• Request must be received in Elections office by 5:00 p.m.

July 12 - Early Voting Ends at 1:00 p.m.

July 15 - Absentee by-mail ballots must be returned by 5:00 p.m.

July 15 - SECOND PRIMARY ELECTION. Polls are open 6:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m.

Join us for information, conversation, and imagination at the Rosemary Imagined: Second Community Review Meeting on Monday, June 9!

The purpose of the Rosemary Imagined: Second Community Review Meeting is to gather community feedback on the revised draft concept and the revised draft Rosemary Street Vision and Implementation Plan.

In April, we began gathering input and thoughts from neighborhood and downtown residents, business owners, community members, and many others about the three draft concepts and the draft vision plan for Rosemary Street. We received a lot of great feedback, and thank you to everyone who attended the meetings! We have taken the input and revised the three draft concepts into one draft concept and have updated the draft vision plan. We would now like your feedback about the revised draft concept and draft vision plan!

Two drop-in meetings will be held on June 9 and will be at the following times:

• 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., with a brief overview presentation at 12:15 p.m.
• 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., with a brief overview presentation at 5:15 p.m.

Both meetings will be held in the Sky Lounge at Greenbridge, 601 Rosemary St., Chapel Hill, NC 27516. The format of these two meetings will be identical; the purpose of holding two meetings is to provide multiple opportunities for participants to attend and provide their input.

For information about places to park when coming to the meeting, please visit www.parkonthehill.com.

Rosemary Imagined is an innovative community-led planning initiative that will refine our thinking of how Rosemary Street fits into the development and growth of downtown Chapel Hill. This goal of this effort is to develop a vision for the future of the Rosemary Street corridor that emphasizes the Town's focus on connections, choices, and community.

For more information about the Rosemary Imagined process, visit www.rosemaryimagined.com.

The public is invited to a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of the trail project that connects the Fan Branch and Morgan Creek trails at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 7. The Town of Chapel Hill event coincides with National Trails Day.

The ceremony will take place at the new tunnel under Culbreth Road. The event will be led by Jim Orr, director of the Parks and Recreation Department, with Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt, Peter Calingaert, chair of the Morgan Creek Trail Concept Plan Committee, and Chris Berndt, chair of the Greenways Commission. A hike to Merritt's Pasture will follow the ceremony.

About the Trail Project

The Morgan Creek Trail Phase 2 project connects the existing Morgan Creek Trail on the north side of Morgan Creek to the existing 1.6 mile long Fan Branch Trail on the south side of Culbreth Road. The $1.5 million project creates the longest paved trail in Orange County at 2.4 miles.

The relatively short section of new trail has big impacts. It includes about 1,000 feet of trail, two bridges, and a pedestrian underpass of Culbreth Road. The southern end is located at the Dogwood Acres Drive parking lot in Southern Community Park, while the northern end is at a parking lot just east of Kingswood Apartments off of highway NC 54. A side trail provides access to the Merritt Pasture open space.

The total land area of Chapel Hill is 21.3 square miles, and about 11 percent is dedicated to parks and open space. The Town is working to complete more than 28 miles of greenways and trails that will allow pedestrians and bicyclists to access every part of town. The Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation Department provides numerous opportunities for self-enrichment, adventure, fellowship and quiet reflection.

View the Trail Map at tinyurl.com/oywsc2v.

To Attend the Ribbon Cutting

Join the group at the Morgan Creek Trail parking lot off NC 54/Fordham Blvd. at 9:40 a.m. Saturday. The group will walk or bike about a half mile from the parking lot to the site of the ribbon cutting off Culbreth Road. Plan on a 15-minute walk to the ceremony site.

If the Morgan Creek Trail Parking Lot is filled, check for alternative parking in the gravel parking lot across the street from Merritt's Store on South Columbia Street (but please leave by 11:45 a.m. to accommodate their lunch rush) or use the street parking in Southern Village or park at Southern Community Park. If you are walking from the Southern Community Park, allow for about 25 minutes of travel time.

For more information or to receive special assistance, contact Bill Webster, assistant parks and recreation director, at 919-968-2819 or bwebster@townofchapelhill.org.