The Chapel Hill Town Council voted Wednesday to move forward with a bond referendum for affordable housing – but not for as much money as many residents wanted.
Council members passed a preliminary resolution to pursue a $10 million bond referendum for affordable housing on the November ballot.
Watch the Town Council’s Wednesday meeting here.
Affordable housing has been a major issue in Chapel Hill recently, particularly with residents of two mobile home communities facing imminent eviction to make way for redevelopment. Stakeholders came together in February for a countywide affordable housing summit, and Council members around that time identified General Obligation bonds as the best funding source for the plan. The town adopted a framework, as well as annual and five-year targets, to develop and preserve affordable housing opportunities in Chapel Hill.
Wednesday’s meeting had over 15 public comments delivered by residents – all of them supporting a bond referendum and highlighting the critical need for more affordable housing in town.
“Chapel Hill has the reputation for being ‘the Southern part of heaven’ – but for whom? The white and the wealthy,” said Megan Stanley, the education coordinator at the Marian Cheek Jackson Center. “I am…a student and working professional who is unable to live in the community that I have become invested in, due to the lack of affordability…
“Northside activist Harold Foster, a primary figure within the civil rights movement here, says, ‘Man, this town is hard to crack. They call it a liberal place, but that’s just a mirage…every time you get water, you just get a mouthful of sand.’ Now is the time to stop making affordable housing a mirage.”
Jackson Center public historian Heidi Dodson said at the meeting that she can only afford to live here in exchange for house sitting.
“But the minute that changes, I’m not sure what I’m going to do, because I can’t afford the rentals in this area,” she said. “I would love to stay here – this is my home – but I have a feeling I’m going to have to leave…
“Even if I get a full-time, well-paid professional position, I don’t think I could ever afford to own a home here.”
Hundreds of residents emailed the town this week asking Council members to raise the bond referendum from $10 to $15 million. The public speakers at Wednesday’s meeting reiterated that call, and Council members Donna Bell and Karen Stegman said they agreed.
A majority of the Council, though, said they weren’t ready to support a larger bond: $10 million represents a penny on the property tax rate, and Council members said they worried that borrowing $15 million might lead to higher interest rates down the road – particularly with other expensive projects looming.
“The passion from the community is very heartfelt, (and) everyone here agrees we want to do more,” said Mayor Pam Hemminger. “(But) I don’t think we can do $15 million in this window of time with the other things that we have out there…
“My biggest concern is the municipal services building: I know we need it, (and) I just know it’s going to over budget.”
The motion to pursue the bond passed 8 to 1 with Donna Bell voting no.
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