Council member Gene Pease wants the Chapel Hill Town Council to get tough when it comes to improving the Rogers Road neighborhood.

Pease said at the end of the council meeting Monday that he wanted two "tough sons of bitches" on the task force that will work on a plan to bring sewer lines and a community center to the Rogers Road neighborhood, near the county landfill.

Appointing two council members to the Historic Rogers Road Task Force was the last item of business on the council's agenda Monday. Four council members were vying for two spots on the group.

Pease was not one of them, but said he wanted to make sure the people the council appointed would make sure the county doesn't make big financial decisions without input from Chapel Hill.

"Well, I want two tough sons of bitches on it," Pease said

Durham Mayor Bill Bell, Carrboro Mayor Mark Chilton, Hillsborough Mayor Tom Stevens,  and Chapel Hill Town Councilman Ed Harrison (who lives in the Durham County part of Chapel Hill) did a radio talk show together today on WCHL.

Transit, downtowns, greenspace and mixed-use developments were moderator Ron Stutts's suggested topics of discussion, but it seemed like no matter what the panelists had to say they were talking about money.

At one point, Harrison let it all hang out:

"It's something we're facing every [council] meeting, more and more: How do we pay for our quality of life? If you want this quality of life, you have to pay for it.

"Getting stuff paid for is the major challenge right now," he said. "Chapel Hill citizens can be very demanding."

The dignitaries' conversation went on in front of a live audience at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' office in Durham.

Harrison mentioned one specific price: a half-cent sales tax to be put toward regional transit. Durham, Orange and Wake counties are considering a simultaneous referendum on such a tax in November 2011.

"If we pass the referendum and give ourselves a small sales tax, very small, the benefits will be tremendous," he said.

Carrboro Mayor Mark Chilton, Hillsborough Mayor Tom Stevens, Durham
Mayor Bill Bell and Chapel Hill Town Councilman Ed Harrison (who lives
in the Durham County part of Chapel Hill) did a talk show together
today on WCHL.

Transit, downtowns, greenspace and mixed-use developments were
moderator Ron Stutts's suggested topics of discussion, but it seemed
like no matter what the panelists had to say they were talking about
money.

At one point, Harrison (right) let it all hang out:

"It's something we're facing every [council] meeting, more and more:
How do we pay for our quality of life? If you want this quality of
life, you have to pay for it.

"Getting stuff paid for is the major challenge right now," he said. "Chapel Hill citizens can be very demanding."

The dignitaries' conversation went on in front of a live audience at
the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' office in
Durham.

Harrison mentioned one specific price: a half-cent sales tax to be
put toward regional transit. Durham, Orange and Wake counties are
considering a simultaneous referendum on such a tax in November 2011.

"If we pass the referendum and give ourselves a small sales tax, very small, the benefits will be tremendous," he said.

The condominium proposal that ended in a fiery showdown last winter between former mayor Kevin Foy and developer Carol Ann Zinn recently reignited over alleged trespassing by Councilman Ed Harrison and a state official on Zinn’s land.

Harrison said he and Misty Buchanan, a botanist with the N.C. Natural Heritage Program, visited the land in February where Zinn had proposed the 58-unit Aydan Court townhouse project. With permission, they had joined a group of consultants hired by UNC-Chapel Hill to assess the natural resources on adjacent land owned by the university and intended for the expansion of the Kenan-Flagler business school’s Paul J. Rizzo Conference Center.

“I said, ‘I think we’re moving off UNC property,’” said Harrison. “They knew this. I told them. I was not the one who did the wandering. They did.”

Two weeks after the second of two visits, Zinn’s lawyer Michael Brough wrote a letter to Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos complaining that Harrison might not be able to consider the merits of any future proposal for Zinn’s land “without having a fixed opinion prior to hearing the matter,” as required by law.

Karpinos agreed that a council member can’t independently investigate property under review for a permit without making the developer aware but since Zinn hasn’t submitted a new proposal, Harrison was in compliance. Anyone can walk on someone else’s land unless the owner tells them otherwise, as with a “No Trespassing” sign, Karpinos said.

Jim Merritt started a landslide of campaign slogans at the League of Women Voters forum Monday.

"Remember," he said in his closing statement,"Chapel Hill has Merritt."

Next in line was Matt Pohlman: "I don't have any catchy phrases. Pohlman is limiting."

Ed Harrison revived his slogan from 2005: "Common Sense for an Uncommon Town."

Laurin Easthom deconstructed the whole endeavor: "Chapel Hill Has Merritt. Everybody Votes Raymond. For Pease in a Pod. DeHart of Chapel Hill. All I ask is to just, 'Vote Easthom'. I can't think of anything."