If you’re one of those eternal optimists, feel free to view voter turnout numbers the conventional way. But try turning the number around. For example, a 17 percent turnout actually means 83 percent of the registered voters stayed home. Depressing? Well, that’s peanuts compared to a new look at civic participation courtesy of our friends…
Tutoring 101: one-on-one
  Nicole Atwater, 10 years old, completes a writing assignment with her tutor. Photo by Allison Parker By Allison Parker Courtesy of the Carrboro Commons McDougle program helps UNC students learn as well Matthew Coplin, a 10-year-old fourth grader at McDougle Elementary School, says he wants to build things just like his father. “My dad…
Town sets up greenways commission
By Kirk Ross Staff Writer The Carrboro Board of Aldermen approved a plan to set up a town greenways commission to study and plan for greenways along Morgan and Bolin creeks. At its meeting Tuesday night at Town Hall, the board voted unanimously to follow the advice that came out of a greenway summit last…
Broun calls for boost in economic development
By Susan Dickson Staff Writer At a joint meeting of local boards last week, Carrboro alderman Joal Hall Broun urged county and town leaders to develop an economic development plan in line with long-term goals and take a serious look at future revenue needs. The Board of County Commissioners and the town boards of Carrboro,…
Land trust appeals for funds
By Susan Dickson Staff Writer The Orange Community Housing and Land Trust will need $3 million over the next 20 years in order to keep its homes maintained and affordable, director Robert Dowling told county leaders last week at the Orange County Assembly of Governments meeting. “I wish I could tell you that we were…
De-annexation bill underlines concerns
Legislation introduced in the N.C. House would take Highlands neighborhood out of Carrboro By Kirk Ross Staff Writer Residents of the Highlands neighborhood took their complaints about their recent contentious annexation into Carrboro to the legislature and the result, House Bill 1061, would reverse the inclusion of the neighborhood in the town limits. And though…
Duncan wins Southern writers award
Pamela Duncan, of Saxapahaw, has been awarded the James Still Award for Writing about the Appalachian South by the Fellowship of Southern Writers. The award was presented March 30 at the Arts and Education Conference on Southern Literature in Chattanooga, Tenn. Duncan is the first woman to receive the award.
Local filmmakers producing series on ‘multiples’
By Taylor Sisk Staff Writer So many younguns! And each with his or her own personality! That Jon and Kate Gosselin are able to individually identify—not only by physicality but personality traits—each of their 2-year-old sextuplets is perhaps the most amazing discovery in the first episode of a new series, “Jon & Kate plus 8, 
Residents to be surveyed for walking, cycling study
A research team from the UNC Highway Safety Research Center will be surveying pedestrians and bicyclists in April and May at Chapel Hill and Carrboro parks and greenways, shopping centers and other public spaces, including the university campus. The study, which is being conducted for the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), will identify, prioritize…
911 signs offered by Fire Dept.
The Carrboro Fire-Rescue Department has started a new address-marking program to help emergency crews find locations of incidents more quickly. Because many residences are poorly marked, emergency crews may lose time searching for address numbers while trying to respond to an emergency call. Reflective address markers that are highly visible both day and night are…
School briefs: 4/4/07
Busting out the Sod — As work on Carrboro High School proceeds on the inside, groundswork continues outside. Crews started rolling out new sod for the school’s athletic fields this week. Photo by Kirk Ross Carrboro High School to offer wide range of sports Steven Reinhardt, athletic director at Carrboro High, said the school will…
News briefs: 4/4/07
Get your tour buttons for annual farm tour The 12th annual Piedmont Farm Tour is fast approaching, and if you want to pay a visit to any of the 34 farms on this year’s tour you’ll need to get your button. The tour runs over Saturday and Sunday April 21-22. Tickets are $30 per carload…
Letters to the Editor – April 4
Where’s where? I know it was only your second issue, but what happened to the “five W’s of good reporting†(who, what, where, when, why) that are supposed to be part of each story? In the story about the Carrboro moratorium, the “where†was left out, and it was the most important of all the…
Corrections – April 4, 2007
In an editorial about development north of Chapel Hill and Carrboro, Sage Road was spelled wrong.
Grassroots Festival to host sustainability fair
Organizers for this year’s Spring Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival announced this week that in addition to more than 50 music and dance performances, the festival will also host a sustainability fair focusing on environmental awareness and sustainability education. The fair, titled “Abundance Through Harmony and Creativity,†will showcase several area groups and businesses working toward…