zoning
On Monday, Feb 28, the town of Chapel Hill will hold a public forum in response to Lex Alexander's petition to allow food trucks to operate on private property within town limits. Food trucks, such as Parlez-Vous Crepes and Only Burger, have a dedicated following in Durham and Carrboro, but are prohibited by zoning ordinances in Chapel Hill and Raleigh. These businesses are currently required to meet state health department regulations. At the local level, they pay for a variety of licenses, including a business license and an itinerant merchant permit. In Durham, they are required to be "tethered to a brick and mortor kitchen" and they also pay "rent" to the business whose private property they operate from (same as in Carrboro).
CVS is in the process of buying up properties in downtown Carrboro across from Weaver Street Market to potentially build a 2 story building that would house a retail tenant (presumably CVS) on the 1st floor and office space and/or apartments on the second floor.
Ruby talked a little bit about the new development on the corner of Greensboro and Weaver Street in a previous post. To recap: Weaver Street Market needed money to help pay for debt they have incurred the passed few years and they sold 3 downtown properties to CVS. (See Map) They sold the property on the corner of N. Greensboro and Weaver Street (where WCOM and Community Realty used to be), the parking lot next to that building and 104 Center Street. The house on 104 Center Street is an historic Mill House built around 1910. This house will most likely be torn down in the near future. The developer working for CVS is close to purchasing 203 N Greensboro St (Debra Seaton’s Dental practice) and the hair shop on the corner of Short and Center Street. This would mean CVS will own all but one the property on the block.
Date:
Tuesday, February 2, 2010 - 12:00pm
Location:
Chapel Hill Town Hall, 405 Martin Luther King Blvd, Chapel Hill
I saw at the Herald website that at last week’s forum at Town Hall Mayor
Chilton “…suggested telling developers what type of development the town wants
in its commercial districts to make it less risky for developers to spend
time and money on proposals to present to the town.” Hurray for that. The
Board has the ability to put in place street plans. The most recent I’m
aware of is the Roberson St. Plan. This plan addresses widths of sidewalks,
on-street parking, and street trees and landscaping. All of these
components of the plan are intended to improve the general streetscape, to
make our town better for all of us. The plan serves the town, meaning us,
by making pleasant sidewalks, more general parking, and by increasing the
width of the right of way. New buildings are pushed back, making sure that
we’re not too shadowed or leaned upon as pedestrians.
I have been following up on my previous blog regarding small farm development in Orange County. A key to any successful entireprise is being covered by the NC Bona Fide Farm statute. I find the statute wording to be confusing, but a key provision is that 10 acres of land needs to be comprised of land in production or contiguous woodlands or wetlands. Based on this rule, the minimum practical size for a Bona Fide farm in NC is approximately 11 acres, 10 to meet the rule in the statue and at leasts an acre for buildings and roads.
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