The biggest local story broke after the CHN deadline. We reported it first online yesterday.

BREAK IN MURDER INVESTIGATION: DNA evidence may be helping Chapel Hill police close in on whoever murdered UNC student Faith Hedgepeth. Get the latest and hear from her father in Gloria Lloyd's report. (See newsobserver.com)

JORDAN LAKE QUESTIONS: For years local political leaders have resisted tapping Jordan Lake's water supply, despite having an allocation. So why does OWASA want to make it easier to withdraw water from the lake now? Tammy Grubb talks with OWASA planner Ed Holland and with critics of the move, who fear it will undercut conservation efforts. (See chapelhillnews.com)

ART THERAPY SHOW: Each month Debbie Meyer spotlights a local artistic endeavor in her long-running Brushstrokes column (recently expanded to a second column in our Durham News edition). Today she previews a show by local students working with the Art Therapy Institute in Carrboro. (See chapelhillnews.com)

Lucas Selvidge gets to help choose a new pastor in today's My View. UNC Associate Vice Chancellor Bob Lowman responds to criticism of the university's animal research facility. And speaking of animals, Orange County is holding two information sessions on coyotes. Find out what that's all about.

And on today's opinion page an invitation: Do you follow local policy making? Do you think you may have better answers than the policy makers. If you do, or even if you just have really good questions, we'd like to hear from you. The Chapel Hill News is forming a small group of people to provide signed editorials about local issues on our Sunday opinion page. If you're interested submit a sample essay of about 600 words to me at editor@newsobserver.com

Enjoy the warmth, and thanks for reading,

Mark

Neighbors of UNC’s Bingham Facility will meet with university officials Monday to discuss the latest plans for the animal holding center west of Carrboro.

The facility was in the news last year when UNC planned to add three buildings and expand from 85 dogs to up to 450 dogs and 150 hogs. After repeated leaks of treated wastewater, it shelved the plan and returned a $14.5 million federal grant when it determined it would need another $20 million to make the plan work.

Now UNC is rebuilding the facility’s wastewater treatment system. There are no plans to expand, the university says, but neighbors in the group Preserve Rural Orange are wary. The state last week granted their request for a public hearing on the university’s application to modify its permit, which calls for spreading treated wastewater over a larger area than before.

In an interview, Associate Vice Chancellor Bob Lowman emphasized that UNC is not expanding and that the facility's three buildings are probably all there will ever be, he said. There likely won’t ever be more than 85 dogs or any hogs permanently housed there, he said.

A building that was expected to house specially bred golden retrievers for a muscular dystrophy researcher who is now leaving the university will likely be used for mice, Lowman said.

Look for more on this story coming Sunday in The Chapel Hill News.