Carolina North
Before I elaborate on my mea culpa, let me assure the gentile reader I have not wavered one iota in my opposition to this ill conceived airport idea. In fact I am more dedicated than ever :)
I had the opportunity to exchange emails with House Speaker Hackney on the subject of my claim that S1925 bypasses county zoning ordinances. Speaker Hackney asserted that S1925 did not circumvent zoning and that he had put specific language into the bill that prevented Orange county zoning from being bypassed. I told him was not a lawyer, but I still had concerns.
Speaker Hackney pointed to this specific language in S1925:
As part of our move to sustainable energy practices, the University is partnering with Orange County on a project to turn the landfill gas from the Orange County Landfill on Eubanks Road into energy. On Monday, October 13, from 7 - 8:30 p.m. Orange County will host an information meeting on the project at the Seymour Center at 2551 Homestead Road in Chapel Hill.
Landfills like the one on Eubanks Road produce landfill gas, created as the waste stored there decomposes. The landfill gas then escapes into the atmosphere and is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. This project would collect the gas and transport it to University property where it would be converted to electricity. This electricity would be used for power at the Giles Horney complex on Martin Luther King Boulevard and later for buildings at Carolina North.
This is an exciting project for the community. It is a great example of recycling a by-product of the landfill. Turning the landfill gas into electricity would move the University forward in its effort to become carbon neutral.
According to the meeting agenda:
The Council will seek input from the public regarding the proposed process for guiding development at
Carolina North. At the request of the Mayor this item has been moved to the beginning of the meeting
due to extensive public interest
Date:
Wednesday, October 15, 2008 - 3:00pm
Location:
Chapel Hill Town Hall, Council Chambers
On Thursday evening September 25th, at 7 PM, the Chapel Hill Town Council held a special meeting at the Friday Center. In addition to all of the Council members (except Councilman Bill Thorpe who is absent due to medical issues) the Council Members were joined by UNC representatives Roger Perry (Chair, Board of Trustees), Bob Winston (trustee, Chair of the Building Committee) and Jack Evans, who is is chair of the Carolina North project for the University.
One of the important points that was made early by Roger Perry was that he and Bob Winston speak for the trustees and he gave assurances that anything that they agreed to in principle would be supported by the Trustees. Another important issue was that of timing. Roger pointed out that in July there will be 6 new trustees (out of 13) and that these new trustees would come in with little or no background. Thus he urged the Council to consider a timetable that would complete by the Council's summer recess the necessary steps (e.g., rezoning, development agreement?) to allow Carolina North to go forward.
This is interesting. I may have missed the announcement of this high-level negotiating process between UNC Trustees and the Chapel Hill Town Council. It's not clear to me whether it's open to the public, or if we just get to watch the highlights later.
Report from Joint Policy Meeting Regarding Carolina North: An update was given on the process to plan a future joint meeting of the Town Council and University Trustees to develop a process for considering Carolina North. A special meeting of the Council will take place at 7 p.m. Sept. 25 at the UNC-Chapel Hill Friday Center. The meeting will include Roger Perry, chair of the University Board of Trustees; Bob Winston, chair of the University's Buildings and Properties Committee; and Chancellor Holden Thorp. Information will be posted on the Town website for the public. The meeting will be videotaped to be played later on Chapel Hill Government TV 18 and by streaming video on the Town website at www.townofchapelhill.org.
- Chapel Hill eNews
I wonder if they will take the bus there, in honor of TryTransit week.
Date:
Thursday, September 25, 2008 - 3:00pm
Location:
Friday Center, Chapel Hill
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