'Restless Residents of Rosemary' Upset Over Nighttime Construction

Construction late into the night on Rosemary Street is poorly timed and shows a lack of respect for residents, many of whom are students. That is the sentiment of several residents who e-mailed the Chapel Hill Town Council over the construction.

“I am writing this to you all in my living room, trying to study for an exam that I have tomorrow, while listening to jackhammers and beeping trucks,” one resident wrote in an e-mail dated 11:47 Tuesday night.

Poster being distributed by Town of Chapel Hill apologizing for construction.

Most of the noise seems to be generated from “milling,” which is the process of removing the old pavement.

Another e-mail signed “Restless Residents on Rosemary” said residents were “appalled that the city would allow such noisy construction to take place until 3 AM.” That e-mail was sent to the town at 11:50 Tuesday night.

The general manager at Shortbread Lofts also sent an e-mail on behalf of the 355 residents at the apartment complex wanting “to express my deepest disappointment with the current roadwork project underway on Rosemary Street.”

The e-mail, which was time stamped 11:11 Tuesday night, continues, “It is sad that someone on your team felt the need to hold off the work during the daytime as to not interfere heavily with traffic flow, yet it was deemed perfectly acceptable to perform the work at night.”

The e-mail also questioned whether the status of the residents as students played into the decision.

“I can’t help but wonder if this was your neighborhood if the same project would be happening at 11PM at night.”

Chapel Hill town manger Roger Stancil sent an e-mail to the Town Council just before five o’clock Tuesday afternoon apologizing for the disruptions. Stancil forwarded along an e-mail from Lance Norris, where the Public Works director said the staff had “attempted to balance all of the various interests in scheduling this project.”

Norris wrote that the contractor “will be engaged in a 24-hour operation from the evening of Monday, October 24 through the evening of October 27 with milling overnight and patching and utility adjustments during the day.”

Norris continued that the hope was for the paving portion of the project to be completed prior to Thanksgiving but that the contract allows for a completion date of December 8.

The e-mail from Norris said the work Monday night was more intrusive because logistics delayed the beginning of the work and that the town had asked the contractor to start that work earlier in the evening going forward.

The town sent out a release Wednesday afternoon saying the nighttime milling between Merritt Mill Road and Church Street had been completed but it would be continuing from east of Church Street – near the AC Hotel construction site – to just east of Henderson Street.

The work is part of a $1.6 million road-improvement project.

‘Restless Residents of Rosemary’ Upset Over Nighttime Construction

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