Former Mayor Kevin Foy will chair a new town 15-501 South Corridor Discussion Group tasked with recommending how that part of town should grow.

It will study the area including Southern Village, the park-and-ride lot, the U.S. 15-501 entrance to Chapel Hill and the Obey Creek property. The group will recommend land uses to Chapel Hill 2020, the community planning process under way to help guide the town’s overall future growth and spending priorities.

Foy’s role is to serve as an impartial moderator, according to the release. A consultant, Urban Collage, will provide professional support, the data and background information that citizens have said they need to strive for consensus on a land use recommendation for this corridor.

The southern part of town is much in the news now because of a new Walmart coming to northern Chatham County. East West Partners, the developer of the proposed Obey Creek, has said the town needs to act quickly to take advantage of the retail opportunities in the southern part of town, although company head Roger Perry has also said the developers will wait for the 2020 process to conclude before finalizing plans.

Here's a look at today's local headlines:

First, watch OrangeChat later today for news about last night's county commissioners and aldermen meetings.

GRAFFITI GROWS: According to Chief Hutchison anyway, who says the anarchists are "marketing their territory." I called the only anarchist I know, but he said he hasn't seen an increase and told me to go look online. I had better luck in Durham, where Impact Team manager Darryl Hedgepeth called me back three times to make sure we reported how the Bull City handles its graffiti problem. Thank you, Darryl.

BIG BOX VS. BIG BUILDER: A couple of months ago now outgoing Chapel Hill economic development officer Dwight Bassett told me a Chatham WalMart could deal a crippling blow to retail demand in the southern part of Chapel Hill (Read Obey Creek). Now local business leaders including the Obey Creek developers are saying not necessarily. Read Dave Hart's story. 

THE COST OF COMPETITION: I wondered if Faith Gardner's family might think we overemphasized the finances of her competitive riding.  I had asked correspondent John Sharpe to rework the story after a first draft to play up how hard the family works to support her hobby. But Faith's mom, Adrienne wrote us a note this morning:

"It was a pleasure to work with both your writer and photographer, both of whom were so nice and professional. Mr. Sharpe was very careful to get all the details correct and I think he did a great job."

And ... Tom Hartwell reports on the closing of Pope's hardware in Cole Park Plaza in the second of our new semi-monthly business features, Lynden Harris says some kids need to be treated like kids when they break the law, and Hillsborough is considering a possible 6-cent-tax rate increase, about a $110 increase on a $200,000 house. The town is getting an early start on budget season, telling folks what it's looking at so residents can have meaningful input in this spring's budget talks.

And there's more ... Ed Holland makes OWASA's case for Jordan Lake (not everyone will agree). John Wooding has a prescritpion for culling Orange County's deer herd. And Daniel Becton gives a shout out to CHCCS guidance counselor Mary Gratch.

Thanks for reading,

Mark   

The proposed Obey Creek development could create a new southern gateway into Chapel Hill. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

“The aesthetics of this are going to be critical,” Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt said as he reviewed the concept-plan for 1,200 multi-family homes and 570,000 square feet of commercial space across from Southern Village on U.S. 15/501. “We need some signature kind of place that says, ‘You are now in Chapel Hill.’”

That’s exactly what some rural residents don’t want. They don’t all consider themselves part of Chapel Hill, said John James, whose family has lived in southern Orange County outside the town limits for the past 50 years.

“A lot of us don’t tend to come into town,” he said. “What we see is a jump straight away from our little part of the county. It’s clearly designed to change the area. We thought that when Southern Village was approved, that that was going to be the last big thing.”

Though Southern Village brought neo-urbanism to the rural countryside, even village resident Elliot Baron fears Obey Creek’s buildings – which developer Roger Perry said could reach eight stories – will block northbound drivers’ view of the green hill on which the UNC campus sits.

“You won’t see Chapel Hill,” Baron said. “(Obey Creek) is what you will see. This will be the new entryway.”

Councilwoman Donna Bell said when Perry returns with a formal application, she hopes the tallest buildings would be six stories or less. Councilman Jim Ward worried that Obey Creek would rise taller than the UNC Hospitals complex that now dominates the view entering Chapel Hill from the south.

“The hospital itself is considerably taller,” Perry assured.

The recession may be nearing an end, at least in Chapel Hill.

The development moratorium the Town Council enacted in 2007 in response to feverish activity near N.C. 86 and Interstate 40 got a de facto extension as the credit markets collapsed in 2008.

But the moratorium is over, and developers all over town have submitted new proposals in recent months, including one giant subdivision on Homestead Road and one gargantuan mixed-use project across from Southern Village.

Capkov Ventures plans 1,200 multi-family housing units and 570,000 square feet of commercial space, including a hotel. The project, dubbed Obey Creek, would comprise 120 acres with three access points along U.S. 15/501 South near Market Street and Southern Community Park.

Capstone Development Corp., meanwhile, plans 330 homes in 137 buildings, including single-families, townhomes and apartment-style units. If approved, The Cottages subdivision would sit on 33 acres with 1,175 parking spaces.