In October 2008, the Pulp was the sole source reporting on the misjustice slowly being perpetrated by the Carrboro town staff on a widow with a disabled child who doesn’t even live in Carrboro. The local media was silent despite a public hearing by the Carrboro Boa that clearly demonstrated how taco truck operators are treated better than the few remaining local farmers.

Unexpected change is in the local media coverage wind. At least one person in the local media hasn't forgotten the role of jounralism isn't to prop up authority, but to examine it. Mr. Dan Way, new editor at the Chapel Hill Herald, is starting to pay attention.

The Odious Horse Rescue Shelter Barn Apartment
Carrboro’s Developer Service Department aka (town planners, zoners, or inspectors - PZI) has the ability to tell people who don’t live in Carrboro how to live their lives. It’s called extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ), a power to make second class citizens, approved by the General Assembly. Unfortunately, Ms. Marilyn Kille owns a 19.47 acre operating farm/horse rescue shelter at 219 Old Fayetteville Road that falls within the clutches of the Carrboro ETJ. According to her, in 1997 she had a 3,600 square foot barn built in which a 520 square foot auxiliary apartment was included. The barn is for animals, not cumbayah circles. The apartment is for an animal caretaker, not a trustafarian.

In October, the Pulp reported her words, “Extensive photos, receipts and other documentation, and the testimony of contractors support that the apartment was constructed at the same time the overall barn was constructed; and thus existed throughout the five-month inspection process and at the time of the final inspection. Specifically, all plumbing and electrical installations were embedded in the concrete floor poured in October 1997 and, thereafter, were readily visible during weekly inspections.” Now the Pulp has additional information to report.

The Mysterious Town Claim Of A “Hidden” Apartment
Someone in town hall goofed. They won’t admit, but they goofed. According to the land use ordinance in 1997, Carrboro’s outside contractor attorney, Mr. Brough, claims that when the barn was permitted over a decade ago (when he was also an outside contractor attorney), an apartment shouldn’t have been approved. Under the Carrboro residential building code, the apartment was considered a distinct residence and, thus, needed a separate piece of land.

To justify Town staff mistakes, the claim is now being made that the apartment was built “secretly” after inspection was complete. Town staff and the Boa ignore clear evidence to the contrary, for as Mayor Mark Chilton has said before “I defend our town staff”.

It's apparently of little consequence to Mayor Chilton that Ms. Kille has documentation contrary to his vaunted opinion. She has Piedmont Electric documents showing electric service separate from a barn electrical service being put in place for the apartment in October 1997. Her first billing cycle started for the apartment on 3 December 1997. That's two days after the Town admits it did a final inspection.

Ms. Kille must have a special in with local contractors in order to finish an apartment in such a short time. However that town staff conclusion ignores the fact that Ms. Kille also has photographs showing the apartment construction occurring at the same time of the barn construction.

The Legal Eagle Money Machine
In early 2007, the Town’s outside Counsel, Mr. Mike Brough, advised the town to sue Ms. Kille. Carrboro residents paid for this legal advice, lining Mr. Brough’s pockets.

In December 2007 the Town’s outside Associate Counsel (who works for Mr. Brough, the town’s outside attorney) acknowledged that the barn apartment could comply with the Residential Code via the text amendment process. Ms. Kille was told this change would be “a routine procedure”. Carrboro residents paid for this legal advice, lining Mr. Brough’s pockets.

However, Mr. Brough overrode the advice from his own employee. Ms. Kille was subsequently informed in early 2008 that a text amendment wasn’t possible. Carrboro residents paid for this legal advice, lining Mr. Brough’s pockets.

In 2008 the town forced Ms. Kille to apply to the town subdivide her land, based on legal advice from Mr. Brough. Carrboro residents paid for this legal advice, lining Mr. Brough’s pockets.

Later in 2008 Ms. Kille did so apply to the town, further requiring Mr. Brough’s services. Carrboro residents paid for this legal advice, lining Mr. Brough’s pockets.

At least one town contractor is doing well in an ailing economy.

The Bureaucratic Flim-Flam
Ms. Kille submitted a text amendment application on 2 January 2008. There’s no dispute over the application being submitted.

Showing his sincere sympathy for a widow with a child having a permanent disability, on 15 January 2008, Mayor Chilton refused to consider that text amendment. Mr. Chilton is the Boa agenda gatekeeper. Without his permission, nothing gets on the Boa agenda. (Ms. Kille is not an Hispanic immigrant, and thus, can’t receive the special treatment afforded lonchera operators. (See Pulp Lonchera Safety Story.)

Mayor Chilton has given no reasonable explanation as to why he won’t give Ms. Kille a text amendment, but he jumps through hoops for taco truck operators. Perhaps as a land developer, Mr. Chilton values Ms. Kille’s land being used for “higher town purposes” than a horse rescue shelter. Yes, the Town staff has discussed voluntary annexation of the land into Carrboro.

Pulpsters should note that further town legal bills would be needed for Mr. Brough for this scenario, cha-ching.

The town’s official excuse is that allegedly Ms. Kille didn’t provide an application fee of several hundred dollars. That she took the time to fill out a complex form requesting a text amendment and to submit it to the town is not in dispute. Did anyone from Town staff communicate with Ms. Kille to ask for the fee? Apparently not. Town staff haven’t publicly explained why they simply didn’t contact Ms. Kille for the fee. Why wouldn’t they bother to ask someone completing such a form for the application fee. (Ms. Kille indicates she did submit the fee.)

Ms. Kille is not the only one scratching their head. In the words of Ms. Sharon Cook, a Carrboro Planning Board member, ”I think the town has not fully explained why this cannot be done as a text amendment and why there was a text amendment prepared and then it was pulled.” Ms. Cook is familiar with the routine approval of text amendments for projects with more complicated issues than a barn apartment. Of course, those approval are for Boa pals. (See Chapel Hill Herald Kille Apartment Story.)

Ms. Cook is also wondering why when a conditional use permit came to the planning board in late 2008, the Town planning staff “forgot” to tell the Planning Board the text amendment story. She also wonders why that same Town planning staff “forgot” to tell the Planning Board that Ms. Kille had been sued by the town and was facing fines.

The Dangerous 9 Acre Bathroom
In 2009 Ms. Kille capitulated and sought ways to avoid subdividing her land by seeking to remove the apartment. She wished to use the space for the operation of her horse rescue operations. She just wanted to eliminate the status of the space as an apartment. The Town staff has concluded, under the watchful money-metered eye of Mr. Brough, that this move is simply not possible.

Originally, Carrboro demanded that two acres be set aside for the apartment and its watershed endangering bathroom. However, after Ms. Kille went through the conditional use permit hoops, Carrboro changed its demands. Now it wants 9 acres.

Financial Thumbscrews
The Town “forgot” to tell Ms. Kille that if she subdivided her land she could lose her residential mortgage and farm-tax status. The loss of which could mean $350,000 or so in back taxes and $58,000 in additional property taxes thereafter.

The Town also “forgot” to tell Ms. Kille that her pain was not over after subdividing. She would have to upgrade the barn to current building codes, not those of 1997.

The Town also “forgot” to tell Ms. Kille that having subdivided her land, she might not ever be able to divide it further, unless of course the owner is a Boa pal.

All Illegal Apartments Aren’t Created Equal
One can hardly walk down any street in older Carrboro without running into an illegal apartment. Yet no official explanation has been given as to why Ms. Kille’s alleged “illegal apartment” is the only one under the microscope.

In one instance of note, an illegal garage apartment (off Poplar Avenue) was brought to the attention of town officials, the response was not to sue or to impose subdivision, but to suggest that offended neighbors should go to the local (you guessed it) tax exempt, spread-the-love, Carrboro mediation center to get quiet enjoyment of their homes.

No word on how much taxpayer money (in addition to the six figure retainers) has been spent on the town’s outside attorney suing one of the last operating farmers in Carrboro.

No word on whether or not the slowdown in residential construction in Carrboro is leaving town staff feeling the need to justify a $1,000,000 a year Developer Service Department.

Another art gallery leaves Chapelboro. Bill Hester Fine Art has closed its doors after three years. ”My business plan was based on the possibility of creating an arts and cultural complex downtown. I no longer think that's possible. My collectors don't come to downtown Chapel Hill any more.” In a stunning rebuke to those in denial over lost mojo, Mr. Hester charges that the town lacks the vision to incorporate visual arts as part of a vibrating downtown.

The recently hired Chapel Hill public arts administrator, Mr. Jeffrey York, who oversees the whereabouts of about 100 pieces of public art at the cost of $63,000 per year counterdenies. ”Categorically, no. The town doesn't lack vision. Do we have that big iconic piece that's a draw for downtown? Not yet. Do we have artists working downtown? Not yet. But the idea that the arts are important to downtown Chapel Hill is very much alive.” After all the town hired Mr. York.

Mr. York is backed up by ED guru and fellow town employee Mr. Dwight Bassett. Allegedly he's currently recruiting a nationally renowned, ”incredibly unique” artist to relocate to Chapel Hill. Exactly why such an artist would locate here remains a mystery.

Mr. Hester, who actually works in the for-profit fine arts business arena disagrees with the town experts. ”Someone asked me what is the problem with downtown Chapel Hill when it comes to the arts. I said … denial.”

(See Chapel Hill New Arts ED Leakage Story.)

Shades of the 605 West Main development debacle in Carrboro have come to Chapel Hill, but, of course, on a much grander scale. Not quite two years ago, the Chapel Hill governance board approved a mixed use village type project called East 54. Now that the “cruise ship” buildings have docked, rising six stories from the ground, in their permanent berths alongside NC 54, those same enthusiastic approvers of East 54 are hedging their bets.

What Is East 54?
East 54 is a new “luxury urban village” built on NC 54 at the old site of the University Inn. Developer dream team pal East West Partners (Mr. Roger Perry, Meadowmont developer and UNC trustee) is the lead group building another Chapel Hill mixed use village having 113,000 square feet of class-A office space and 60,000 square feet of retail space. These spaces support about 400,000 square feet of residences. At an average of 1300 square feet per residence, that’s over 300 residences.

Pulpsters can take a virtual tour of the coming 580,000 square foot luxury urban village that’s about half the area size of the Durham SouthPoint mall.

It’s SO Big!
That anyone who approved the project is now surprised by what’s being built is a condemnation of the town of Chapel Hill’s land development approval process. The sketches glibly tossed around at the East 54 approval are not binding on what the developer builds. What you see at a development approval public hearing has nothing to do with what you will get. (The Carrboro Board of Alderman found that out when 605 West Main was built and roundly condemned for its appearance.)

Developers don’t have to get approval for the style, elevations aesthetics, or facades of what they build.

According to Town Councilor Mark Kleinschmidt, a dense devotee, ”It's challenging for me when I see these buildings going up because they are so large. Just seeing something of that size go up, I think it's emotionally evocative because the change on its face seems so great. … My emotional response is, 'Wow, that's so big.'.”

Mr. Kleinschmidt offers no explanation why he or anyone else didn't know how “big”, big really was.

Fellow Town Councilor and dense devotee Laurin Easthom said people “did not realize how big and how dense and how much that has changed that particular area. I'm hearing that a lot. When I drive down that road, it's just a total change visually to the skyline.”

Ms. Easthom offers no explanation why she or anyone else should be surprised.

Faith In The Catechism of Density
Dense is as dense does. Chapel Hill Mayor Foy wants people to know, the town governance board really knows what it’s doing.

”Is that going to line 54 in and out of Chapel Hill? Are those the kinds of projects that are going to line Martin Luther King from downtown to 40? Is that what our future looks like? No, it doesn't have buildings lining all of those corridors. It's much more focused than that. I think people need the assurance that we've thought this through. The council has not just plopped down density just in a random fashion. [East 54] has been approved because it was within walking distance of a proposed transit stop.”

Mr. Perry, who is being rewarded handsomely by the approval of East 54 by Mr. Foy and company, believes that a dense future is the only option. ”I think the vast majority of the people in this community recognize that this is the kind of development that needs to occur on transit corridors. … This town's drawn an urban growth boundary around itself. The only way it's going to be able to survive as an economically sustainable community is with dense development.”

Mr. Perry doesn’t explain how Chapelboro will ever be able to get beyond being a factory town beholding to UNC. As such, Chapelboro can never be economically sustainable. UNC draws its economic marrow from the bones of 99 other counties in the state. By definition, can't be a sustainable economy except by the legislative fiat of state taxation.

Faith In The Catechism of Light Rail
Although there is no funded light rail transit system for the Chapelboro area and there's no rail at all along NC 54 in Chapelboro, the town of Chapel Hill has faith that it's coming. According to Town Councilor Bill Strom said projects like East 54 can pave the way for a “more robust” mass transit system. ”It's a change in the development pattern, but the guiding principle there is that it is at a regional rail stop. In order to get federal and state support for these projects, you have to have density organized in a way that promotes ridership.”

Mr. Perry's town governance pals are working diligently towards getting a commuter rail station built behind East 54 at taxpayer expense.

Infiltration Of The Heretics
But hereteical winds of change are blowing. For the first time in a very long time, not all members of the Chapel Hill governance board are true believers in dense growth for growth sakes. Town Councilor Matt Czajkowski, who wasn’t a board member at the time of the East 54 approval said “Virtually all the reaction I get to East 54 is negative. Clearly, that tract was going to get redeveloped, but developed with these monoliths right along the highway? That block the view of the hill, of Chapel Hill? That cast a shadow on the road? Is that what we want?”

Newest Town Councilor Jim Merritt, appointed to replace the late Bill Thorpe in October, and thus, not a board member at the time of the East 54 approval, has also heard complaints. He attended a forum last weekend for Glen Lennox residents, another community under dense growth assault. In his words, ”I'm not sure that was the appropriate place to put something that large. It's quite a bit of development there, just coming into the town of Chapel Hill.”

(See Chapel Hill News East 54 Story.)

How Big Is The Debt?
Unfunded healthcare benefits in North Carolina for state and local municipal employees are $24,600,000,000. That's the fifth highest amount in the nation. That exceeds the amount for the entire FY 2007-2008 General Fund budget. For a family of four today in North Carolina, that’s over $11,000 of hidden debt.

Moreover, the above $24 billion plus figure doesn’t include North Carolina county and municipal unfunded retiree health benefit liabilities. With county governments returning 20% of their local sales tax revenues to the state (½ cent of 2 ½ cents) in exchange for the state assuming the counties’ share of Medicaid costs, further pressure is put on increasing local taxes without increasing services.

The GASB Bomb
The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) changed the playing field in in 2005 with GASB 45. This accounting guideline calls for states to calculate and disclose the total costs, in current dollars, of financing the accrued health benefits for current and future state retirees.

As with many actuarial reports, the devil is in the details. The above North Carolina figure is based on healthcare costs not rising as they have in the past. Over the past decade, costs have been rising annually in the range of 10% to 14%. Many state actuarial reports are forecasting 5%. What does this mean as to the actual debt for North Carolina? For the state of Hawaii, a 1% increase (from an assumed base of 5%) in the annual healthcare cost rise means a 20% increase in the unfunded liability. (See NC State Authored Paper.)

The North Carolina Plan
Since the inception of the current state system (which includes local school and state university employees), unfunded healthcare benefits spending has increased 720%. For those thirty years, the General Assembly never set aside enough funds to pay for retirees, despite the known demographic baby boomer bulge working its way through the population. North Carolina finances retiree healthcare premiums on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Until CY 2006, state workers needed only five years of state service to be eligible for free enrollment in the state health plan upon retirement. Now, with a change in state law, (S.L. 2006-174), future retirees are required to accumulate 20 or more years of “retirement service credit” to be eligible for fully subsidized health insurance premiums. With 10 to 20 years of service, half of the insurance premiums are covered by the state. With 5 to 10 years of service you can enroll in the state health insurance plan at your own cost. (Even this drives up state healthcare insurance benefit liabilities by raising the average insured policyholder age of the pool.)

How Much Would It Cost To Pre-fund The Healthcare Retirement Benefit?
After thirty years that figure is now over $2,400,000,000 annually, more than the entire FY 2007-2008 Justice & Public Safety budget. That figure assumes that healthcare costs don't increase as they have in the past. That figure would be an additional increase in the General Fund budget of about 11%. And the problem grows. During Governor Mike Easley’s term as governor, the state added over 25,000 new employees.

What Do Other States Do?
In response to the GASB 45 bomb, over 12 states passed legislation establishing an account or fund in which money is to be set aside to pay for future retiree healthcare costs. North Carolina was not among them.

Some states (such as neighboring Virginia and South Carolina) have longer eligibility requirements (10 and 15 years, respectively). Some states have increased the co-pay for retirees. More and more states are looking at adopting fully paid funding. The State of Nebraska has no healthcare retiree debt.

Early Warnings Of Unsustainable Taxation
For years the Pulp has had postings beating the drum on how unsustainable it is to expand your local taxes faster than the income of your citizenry. It’s simple economics really. If you double the taxes while citizens increase their median income by half, then you are reaching ever deeper into their pockets. At some point there’s little disposable income left. Their homes are mortgaged to the hilt. However, in a “facts optional” political atmosphere, it’s what you want and how you feel about getting what you want that matters.

None other than Mr. Mike Nelson proclaimed while running for commish in 2006 that people in Orange County “want a high level of services and that requires taxes”. That was back when he had to explain how Carrboro taxes (not tax rates) more than doubled under his mayoral leadership.

Back in the open forum days of the Pulp, the usual crowd of political apologists (Mr. Fred Black, Ms. Terri Buckner, Mr. Joseph Capowski (as “Weaverguy”), Mr. George Entenmann, Mr. Marc Marcoplos, and Ms. Ruby Sinreich) all sung the praises of Mr. Nelson and howled about how Orange County was different. Here people wanted the “high level of services” and knew they must pay more for them. The fact that other counties and towns offer equal or better services at lower tax burdens was assiduously ignored.

Cracks Show As Even UNC Professors Feel Your Pain
The cracks in the Orange tax-and-spend foundation are finally showing. In a recent Chapel Hill News editorial, Mr. John J. Pringle, (C. Knox Massey Professor of Finance (Emeritus) at the Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC) laid out the case supporting the Pulp’s proposition. Orange County had practiced, and is practicing, unsustainable taxation. Mr. Pringle pointed out that median house prices in the US averaged 2.1 times median income for two decades prior to 2001. Housing prices almost doubled to 4.1 times median family income post 2001. When the housing bubble burst by late 2008, prices had fallen by 25% for the bubble peak, according to a widely used national home price index used by Mr. Pringle.

Mr. Pringle cites his personal experience, “since 1993 when we moved into our house, our property tax has increased 249 percent, while during this same period the consumer inflation index increased 46 percent. Over the 15 years, inflation has averaged 2.5 percent per year, while our property taxes have increased by an average of 8.7 percent per year. In a single year, 2005, our property tax increased 42 percent, and from 2000 to 2008 more than doubled.”

Did income keep pace with this taxflation? No. “During the peak years of the housing bubble, from 2000 to 2006, house prices nationally rose 88 percent, while personal income rose only 30 percent. Social Security income is tied to the Consumer Price Index, which rose 17 percent.”

Orange Tea Party?
Will an “Orange tea party” tax revolt happen, much like what happened in Boston, Massachusetts in 1773? No. Unlike King George III, our local politicians are much more skilled in straddling fences and speaking out of both sides of their mouths.

Most importantly, the local media and political apologists will be sure not to place any responsibility for the present tax mess on incumbent local officials. Without someone connecting the dots, “It just happened”.

Mike Nelson – Archtypical Politician Without Responsibility
Sociopathic behavior is acceptable if exhibited by a politician. Deception, dishonesty, feigned interest may still be repulsive for many in personal interactions, but as a society, we accept such behavior in our politicians. It’s considered “part of the game”. It’s okay to say one thing and do the opposite. It’s okay to pretend to be what you aren’t. It’s okay to say you’re against tax rises while promoting a new tax.

After a decade of doubling the tax burden in Carrboro, in 2006 Mr. Nelson ran for the commish spot as the next rung in his climb for political glory. When questioned about his taxation record, he confidently responded that here people want a “high level of services” and know “they must pay more for them”. In part, his confidence exuded from a reliance that no one in the local media or political establishments would question his statement. The fact that other counties and towns offer equal or better services at lower tax burdens would not be mentioned.

After being elected in the Democratic primary, Orange County having one party rule, in 2007 during his first commish retreat, Mr. Nelson opined ”We need to dig down and find out really why we've had 18 years of tax increases. Eighteen years in a row is a long time.”

Then one year after speaking aloud about 18 years of tax increases, in 2008, Mr. Nelson was advocating for another tax. Mr. Nelson, like his successor as Carrboro mayor, Mr. Chilton, advocated vociferously for the ill-fated and highly rejected local option transfer tax. He even used the case of his retired elderly mother to support taxing home sales even more, claiming he would raise property taxes less, even though the proposed tax wasn't requried to be revenue neutral. Eluding Mr. Nelson’s steel trap financial mind is the fact he has raised the county tax burden more than the funds the transfer tax would've yielded. (See Carrboro Citizen Nelson Transfer Tax editorial.) Quite an accomplishment Mr. Nelson has achieved in less than one term in office as commish.

Retreats must be especially insightful times for Mr. Nelson. For in 2009, one year after asking for the transfer tax increase, Mr. Nelson again felt bad about county taxes. He noticed that the county is spending faster that county property taxes are rising. (Mr. Nelson ignored the fact that property taxes are rising faster than median income.) He was concerned that county spending would rise 5.8% annually over the next five years while property values were projected to rise just 3.9%.

In Mr. Nelson’s immortal words, ”I have a fundamental, philosophical, ideological problem with the way this organization had done budgeting. It's brought about tax increases.” This revelation comes from the person who oversaw a doubling of the Carrboro tax burden, far outpacing both median incomes AND property values in Carrboro. (See N & O Nelson Philosophy Story.)

A Hope For Change - Coming Campaign Converting The Image of Tax-and-Spenders Into Fiscal Conservatives
With 2009 bringing about a confluence of a local municipal election and a severe recession sliding into a depression, Pulpsters should be alert in looking for the coming campaign to remake the image of local incumbents. Local media and political apologists will create a wave of disinformation portraying incumbents as “holding the line”, “showing a tight fist”, and the ever popular “making the painful cuts” with regards to local budgets, and thus, local taxes. That these incumbents used the good times to build a bureaucratic infrastructure unsustainable even in the good times, much less the bad times, is irrelevant. That they raised your taxes way beyond increases in your income even in the good times is, likewise, irrelevant.

Pulpsters should not expect to hear cogent explanations as to why taxes have risen so in the last decade, except, of course, here at the fiercely non-partisan Pulp.

Almost one year after Mr. Kevin Foy, Chapel Hill mayor, made an official statement at the 10 March 2008 town meeting regarding the senseless killing of Ms. Eve Carson, a student at UNC-Chapel Hill, prior to the arrest of the above-pictured alleged killer(s), a federal grand jury indictment has been amended to include a special finding of fact. Ms. Carson’s senseless murder involved “torture and serious physical abuse” and was carried out in “an especially heinous, cruel, and depraved manner.” These special findings are needed in order to seek the death penalty.

As the Pulp noted almost a year ago, Mr. Foy has made no public mention of a key element of closure necessary in any senseless killing – that of society seeking justice. The question remains, will town officials support the seeking of the most severe penalty against any person convicted of Ms. Carson’s murder? This question takes on increased importance as the federal indictment now enables the invoking of the death penalty if a conviction is made against one of those indicted.

Current Chapel Hill High School (CHHS) Principal Ms. Jackie Ellis has submitted her resignation in January 2009, effective 20 March 2009. She is the sixth principal in the last decade for CHH, having served about two years. Ms. Ellis replaced Ms. Karla Eanes, who served for just a year and a half. In the past decade, the longest term of being a principal at CHHS belongs to Ms. Mary Ann Hardebeck She served for six years.

In Ms. Ellis words, ”It’s probably one of the most difficult decisions, and yet at the same time one of the easiest decisions … of course because it’s going to be much better for my family. I get my life back, and my family gets me back. There are some things that almost make the high school principalship humanly impossible.”

Superintendent Neil Pedersen responded to Ms. Ellis saying, “Speaking in general terms, I believe that high school principalships are very challenging jobs and turnover in those positions is not unusual.” He couldn’t explain how East Chapel Hill High School has had the same principal, Mr. Dave Thaden, for thirteen years. Demonstrating his sagacity and his outstanding ability to select executive talent, Dr. Pedersen said, “Frankly, I don’t know how that’s possible”, a great assurance that such talent won't be discovered again. (See Carrboro Citizen CHHS story.)

Amidst an economic slide into a depression, Mayor Kevin Foy has used his recent “State of the Town” address to call among the faithful for supporting yet another local tax. This time it’s a local transportation tax. Calling for “bold steps”, Mr. Foy said, “The reason I bring it up is because there is doubt in the General Assembly as to whether this region is willing to impose a tax on itself.” Mr. Foy’s proposed tax wouldn't pay for the transit system. In a call for faith from Orange Progressives, Mr. Foy believes that you should tax yourself in support of an undefined rail transit system in order to “prove commitment”. Again, in his words, ”So it's a good deal.” (See Chapel Hill Herald Rail Tax Story.)

Überplanning “growth is good” bureaucrats, forced residential densification, and profits for politically connected pals are the holy trinity behind faith-based, municipally imposed, non-bus-based public transportation systems sweeping the country. Portland has one. Charlotte has one. Why not the Raleigh metro area, including Chapelboro?

Mr. Foy wants a light rail system no matter what. It’s part of the “smart growth” catechism. He's not concerned with making your life better. He wants to make it economically feasible for intense residential development to occur at “transportation nodes” (aka neighborhoods) that are linked by light rail. He needs it to repopulate the historic business district, supproting the UNC agenda. Mr. Foy shows his faith by not needing any detailed plan in order to call for a tithe (aka local tax) on the faithful. Just believe in light rail and smart growth will happen.

Although catastrophic climate change is the religious banner under which überplanners crusade, will a light rail system really be better for you than a bus-based system?

Cracks are beginning to show in the light rail crusade. Even Vancouver “sustainability” high priest Mr. Patrick Condon is calling for using electric streetcars over light rail systems to promote urban redevelopment. (Pulpsters should note in reading the Condon paper that the city of Portland, Oregon gave away $665,000,000 in taxpayer subsidies to developers along its first new streetcar line, in addition to the $15,000,000 per track mile and $2,000,000 per vehicle transit capital costs. They also should note that major false assumptions are made regarding vehicular use in the USA. Cars average 1.6 people per trip (not 1.0) and public transit averages 16% occupancy (not 50%).)

According to one überplanning critic ( Mr. Randall O’Toole of the Cato Institute) most rail transit systems (emphasis on the word “system”) use more energy per passenger mile, and many generate more greenhouse gases, than the average passenger automobile. By “system”, Mr. O’Toole includes the total energy consumption, including that of the bus feeder lines that support a light rail system.

Mr. O’Toole proposes the following heretical alternatives to a light rail transit system. 1) Power buses with hybrid-electric motors, biofuels, and nonfossil fuel sourced electricity. 2) Concentrate bus service on heavily used routes and use smaller buses during offpeak periods and in areas with low demand. 3) Build new roads, using variable toll systems, and coordinating traffic signals to relieve highway congestion that wastes nearly 3 billion gallons of fuel each year. 4) Encourage people to purchase more fuel-efficient cars. Getting 1% of commuters to switch to hybrid-electric cars will cost less and do more to save energy than getting 1% to switch to public transit.

No word on whether or not Mr. O'Toole will be invited to address the Chapel Hill Town Council any time soon.

No word on whether or not the Chapelboro light rail system will stop at the unemployment office.

Nom de plumes, the use of an anonymous or false name to concel one's identity, are a hallowed American tradition in the expression of ideas. Why? Because those who can’t stand the author’s message often resort to attacking the author. If you don’t know who the author is, then who do you attack? Usually, the answer is the party publishing the message.

In most progressive communities, the concept and heritage of anonymous publishing would be embraced. One must judge the message alone on its content. One can’t engage in judgment based on the messenger if anonymity is involved. Knowledge of the author cuts both ways. For many unthinking or dogmatic progressives, who the author is decides acceptance of the message. If the author is liked, then the message can be accepted without serious thinking. If the author is disliked, then no matter how insightful the message, it can’t be accepted.

Locally, the Orange Chat newspaper blog of the News and Observer has been struggling with how to deal with posters not using their real names. One of its posters uses the nom de plume “elvisboy77”. He is a self-described “International Man of Mystery” who is “big in Japan”. In the words of Chapel Hill News editor Mark Schultz, “elvisboy77 is our most prolific commenter. He cuts through the prevailing political logic. And he occasionally offends.”

Translation, elvisboy77 doesn’t agree with most of the Orange Progressive commentators dishing out “groupthink”. He or she has crossed pens with such local political pundits as Mr. Fred Black, Mr. Marc Marcoplos, Mr. Brian Russell, and Ms. Ruby Sinreich.

Interestingly, all of these luminaries want to know, who is elvisboy77? Do they want to know in order to applaud him? No. Do they want to know so as to help him in his private endeavors? No. Do they want to know to better understand his message. No. They want to know for one purpose. They want to see if they can apply pressure for him to stop.

Chapelboro is a factory town. If elvisboy77 is a UNC employee, then how simple would it be to make him stop? If, elvisboy77 is an N&O reporter, as one reader thought, then how simple would it be to make him stop? Nom de plumes are all about freeing the author from coercion or extortion. How easy is it to get to someone through their children, who must attend a system dominated by Orange Progressives?

For Mr. Marcoplos, ”I don't understand why anonymity is being celebrated & encouraged here when there has been considerable effort to get contributors to register and to achieve more honest dialogue. … His posts most resemble stall graffiti. He is also Exhibit “A” on the type of tripe that gets posted when someone doesn't have the guts to post under their own name.”

Yes, for Mr. Marcoplos, who supported Alderman Dan Coleman in not resigning when he lied to the public about using his car to assault a woman, honest dialogue requires knowing the author. As Mr. Marcoplos said to elvisboy77 in Orange Chat, ”So elvisboy, you realize that your anonymous comments will have less effect on changing the problems you comment upon than if you took full responsibility. So the net effect is that all these people choosing anonymity becuase [sic] of fears of backlash, actually facilitate the system that wants to discourage critical feedback. So what to do? I doubt criticizing those who take responsibility for their statements, but disagree with you, is going to help - this even erodes what's left of your anonymous credibility.”

Ms. Sinreich, follows her ad hominem habits for those who don’t agree with her. She has accused elvisboy77 of being a former Pulp poster under the nom de plume of Jessie Beard. That it’s not true is of little importance. (Back in its open forum days, Ms. Beard published facts about Ms. Sinreich’s privileged upbringing, her bourgeoise rentier, trust fund poseur status, which didn’t match her Chapelboro persona of coming from humble beginnings. Ms. Sinreich vehemently objected to the publication of contrary facts.)

Curiously, the miasma of Orange Progressive conspiracy involves this humble publication. Apparently, the mastermind behind the Pulp is none other than elvisboy77, at least it was in the mind of Mr. Russell, Ms. Sinreich’s spouse. Thankfully, that erroneous assumption has been put to rest by none other than elvisboy77. In his or her words, “That cracks me up.”

What better way to grow and perpetuate a non-governmental, tax exempt organization (NGO) than to use the current chaos from the excesses of junk mortgaging to pull at the heartstrings of local governance officials. On 4 February 2009, Robert Dowling, the executive director of Orange Community Housing and Land Trust did so, bringing in an unfortunate person facing foreclosure this month.

In the words of Housing Lord Dowling, ”In these difficult times, our focus has changed. We are seeing more homeowners who are delinquent and looking at foreclosure.” Mr. Dowling’s answer to the current mortgage mess is to give more money to OCHLT. He wants an increase in OCHLT funding from the town of Chapel Hill from the current $201,386 to $230,000, or an increase of about 14%. How this increase paid for by Chapel Hill town taxes will help a person in foreclosure distress is unclear.

Not to be outdone, Ms. Delores Bailey, director of Empowerment, Inc., yet another non-governmental, tax exempt organization, asked for $200,000 in federal block grant funds to purchase more property for Empowerment, Inc..

Which then brought to the town feed trough yet even another non-governmental, tax exempt organization. Showing her considerable marketing skills, Ms. Susan Levy, executive director of Habitat for Humanity in Orange County, asked for $450,000 in federeal HOME and CDBG funding for Phoenix Place, a “green” development of approximately 50 homes. (See Chapel Hill Herald Housing Feed Trough Story.) No explanation is given as what makes a “green” development, but it sounds nice.

Multiple requests for more NGO feeding begs yet another question be asked of the Chapel Hill governance board. Why are you funding these NGOs when the town has its own housing empire backed by 18 full time town employees?

Extent of the Town Public Housing Empire
Chapel Hill is a town of less than 75,000 with an above average regional median income. Yet, it maintains an impressive public housing infrastructure of 336 units. Tenant rents (about $403,000 or about $100 per unit per month) are subsidized by federal housing grants to the tune of $1,161,069 per year (or about $288 per unit per month). In that manner, local residents aren’t aware of the true cost of public housing. A federal tax increase isn’t the same as a local tax increase to most citizens.

To maintain this public housing empire, Chapel Hill employs 18 full time employees, in addition to private contractors. The town pays housing employee salaries of about $1,000,000 annually, or about $55,000 per employee. For the actual housing units, the town pays $127,000 for utilities, $52,000 for liability insurance, and $282,000 for maintenance. That’s a total operational cost of $1,640,629 per year or about $4882 per housing unit ($406 per unit per month).

If you do the math ($100 plus $288 per month in, $406 per month out), then you can see that the town subsidizes each housing unit to the tune of $18 per month. (All numbers are based on the reported Town FY 2008-2009 Housing Budget.)

What the town doesn’t report on is the value of such housing. The town owns public housing units in the following locations: AMP 1 - Lindsay, Craig Domains, Trinity, Pritchard Park, Church/Caldwell, North Columbia Street; and AMP 2 - S. Estes, S. Roberson, Colony Wood, Eastwood, Oakwood, Rainbow Heights. However, it doesn’t report on the variety and average size of each unit. That way, you can’t tell if the private rental marketplace is more efficient or not.

Extent of the Town Housing Loan Trust Fund
Chapel Hill contributes “feudal tithes” annually to Lord Dowling’s empire, along with the town of Carrboro and Orange County. In FY 2006-2007, the town was budgeting $106,180 for the loan trust fund. By FY 2008-2009, the town had increased that amount to $201,386, an increase of 89% in two budget cycles.

Extent of the Town Block Grant Largesse
In addition to supporting Lord Dowling’s empire and running its own housing empire, the town dispenses federal block grants to “rehabilitate” certain neighborhoods. The town’s 2007 project ordinance budget provided $596,282 to rehabilitate public housing, assist in home ownership, and revitalize the Northside and Pine Knoll neighborhoods. Nowhere does the town report on the actual number of residents benefited by these grants. By not doing so, the town makes an assessment of program effectiveness and efficiency impossible.

In most North Carolina towns, the mayor, the town manager, the town attorney, and the town clerk would notice if their email didn’t have receive a copy of a general notice to the town email listserv notifying the media and the public of a town public meeting subject to state “sunshine” laws. Not so in Carrboro, where Mayor Mark Chilton, Town Manager Steve Stewart, Town Attorney Mike Brough, and Town Clerk Sarah Williamson all “forgot” to check on the local media notice of Town’s annual BOA and staff retreat. Apparently, the fact that it's an election year has nothing to do with the error. (Pulpsters should note that these meetings are not only attended by the local media, but also by interested citizens, some of whom might be considering a run for local office.)

According to Mr. Chilton, the Town had a problem sending official notification to anyone outside of Town Hall, beyond that is a piece of 8.5” by 11” paper stuck on a bulletin board in Town Hall. According to Mr. Chilton, that’s all that’s needed to comply with state law. (You can read the law below and decide for yourself.)

State law requires that the public be informed of the retreat. In particular state law requires, in part, that Carrboro send a written notice to the media. The law reads that such a notice should “… be mailed or delivered to each newspaper, wire service, radio station, and television station, which has filed a written request for notice with the clerk or secretary of the public body or with some other person designated by the public body. The public body shall also cause notice to be mailed or delivered to any person, in addition to the representatives of the media listed above, who has filed a written request with the clerk, secretary, or other person designated by the public body. This notice shall be posted and mailed or delivered at least 48 hours before the time of the meeting. The public body may require each newspaper, wire service, radio station, and television station submitting a written request for notice to renew the request annually. The public body shall charge a fee to persons other than the media, who request notice, of ten dollars ($10.00) per calendar year, and may require them to renew their requests quarterly.” (See NCGS § 143 318.12.)

How the notice snafu happened wasn’t fully explained. (See Carboro Citizen Story.) More importantly, how did the mayor, the town manager, the town attorney, and the town clerk each miss the fact that none of them received a copy of any email from the town IT department notifying the media or public of the meeting? If the Carrboro IT system doesn’t send these officials such a notice, then why not? If it does, then why did none of these people notice that no one came to the meeting? Why did that not seem strange?

One curious reaction to this “clerical error” is that of former Carrboro Alderman candidate and BOA pal Catherine DeVine, who said, “The town manager shouldn't have to apologize for meeting with the mayor and BOA without members of the press in attendance. They need this freedom when there's hard stuff to discuss out of the public eye.” Of course, the illegality of such an action is of little concern for Orange Progressives. After all, the “right” people are in charge. They only have your “best interests” in mind.

When the retreat started, Messrs. Brough, Chilton, and Stewart and Ms. Williamson all knew that no one from the local media was there. They knew that was an unprecedented occurrence for a town retreat, much less one held before an upcoming election and in a time of economic turmoil. Yet, they went ahead with the meeting anyway. This misfeasance begs the all important question, why was the meeting not adjourned? Why did they knowingly hold a meeting when even a UNC journalism student knows proper public notice wasn't given to the media?

It’s an old saying on Wall Street, if you want to know how a company is really performing, then look at what executive insiders are doing. So consider that UNC insider and Carolina North branding expert (Mr. W. Mark Crowell) is leaving UNC and moving to the Scripps Research Institute headquartered in sunny La Jolla, California. As vice president of Scripps business development, Mr. Crowell will “lead technology transfer efforts, oversee research partnerships and industry relations, and launch business development initiatives for Scripps Research on both the California and Florida campuses.”

Although Mr. Crowell has a degree in regional planning from UNC, he introduced himself into the world of university technology development in 1987 when he became director of the Office of Technology Transfer at Duke University. Five years later at the beginning of the Centennial Campus over-promotion, he switched to North Carolina State University and visiting lecturer at the College of Management as associate vice chancellor and director of the Office of Technology Transfer and Industry Research. Three years later (2000), he moved over to UNC Chapel Hill as associate vice chancellor for economic development and technology transfer, as well as adjunct instructor at the Kenan-Flagler School of Business.

In describing his opportunities at Scripps, Mr. Crowell said, ”There's incredible science and scientists at Scripps Research. I welcome the opportunity to work with the institute's technology transfer team to build the program, support existing collaborations, and make new connections between the institute's technology and community partners.” Mr. Crowell offered no words to describe the opportunities at UNC, in general, and for Carolina North, in particular. (See Scripps Press Release.)

Part of the Scripps allure for Mr. Crowell is the opening of three state of the art buildings in Scripps new Jupiter, Florida campus next to Florida Atlantic University. Over 350,000 square feet of laboratory and administrative space for 300 Scripps scientists has been built and 300 more are scheduled to be hired in the next four years.

The facility was built with state funds of $310,000,000 and with Palm Beach County supplying 100 acres of land, plus $150,000,000 for building construction. (See Florida Bio Investment Scripps Story.)

While these developments bode well for Mr. Crowell, what do they say about Carolina North? Is Mr. Crowell saying that the prospects of Carolina North and UNC research don’t equal that of the Scripps Florida venture? Is he saying that, having used UNC moneys to feather his career nest by investing UNC time as the head of the Association of University Technology Managers organization, the grass is greener elsewhere? Or is he voting with his feet on the tortuous development of Carolina North that may be a decade late and hundreds of millions of dollars short?

Chapelboro progressives are all a twitter about a recent pronouncement on Chapel Hill’s municipal brand. The “lost mojo” blow occurred at a Community Leadership Council (CLC) meeting. It’s no longer cooler to be in Chapel Hill than Durham or Raleigh. (The CLC is a group of pro-growth, pro-UNC “business, university, civic and community leaders [who meet] to discuss and address current cross-cutting community issues and anticipate future needs, trends and challenges”. The CLC membership selection process is not transparent to the public. Even some of the local media aren’t invited to these heady meetings.)

According to ED guru Mr. Ted Abernathy, Chapelboro is barely growing and exclusive. “You used to be the coolest place.” Worse, its residents are “rich and white”. What a recipe for a “coolness” brand disaster.

After making these pronouncements neither Mr. Abernathy nor any of the CLC attendees provided an explanation as to who has been responsible for the crumbling of the Chapelboro brand. Apparently, local municipal ED offices shouldn’t take any responsibility. Apparently, local elected officials shouldn’t take any responsibility. Apparently, no one should have taken the leadership role to head off this “branding disaster”.

So who is Mr. Abernathy? Why should his pronouncement send shivers down local progressive spines?

According to his bio, Mr. Abernathy has spent a distinguished 28 year economic development career focused on strategic competitiveness and economic positioning. He has worked in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina since 1990. In fact he returned to North Carolina as the head of economic development in Orange County for about six years in the early 1990s.

Having achieved great ED enhancement for Orange County, he moved over to work ED “mojo” magic for the city of Durham. While at Durham, a city-sponsored small business loan program was bilked of tens of thousands of dollars by a local tax-exempt company (the Triangle Economic Development Corp) that was engaged to run the ED program for the city. According to published reports, “All of the city employees directly involved with the small business loan program have resigned or been dismissed – including the city's manager of property and facilities management, Kendall Abernathy, and her husband, former city economic development director Ted Abernathy. Kendall Abernathy received an e-mail message warning of Bennett's problems in Raleigh before Bennett was hired in Durham.”

Tax exempt, government funding-dependent organizations continued to play a role in the focusing of ED. In 2001, Mr. Abernathy was hired as a vice president & COO of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership (RTRP). This organization is “a business-driven, public-private partnership dedicated to keeping the 13-county Research Triangle Region economically competitive through business, government and educational collaboration. RTRP comprises economic development agencies across the region who works with the N.C. Department of Commerce and a wide range of partners to market the 13-county region for inward investment [and to] direct strategic efforts to ensure the region remains economically competitive.”

In 2008, Mr. Abernathy moved to bigger ED problems, moving from focusing on the Raleigh metro region to work his ED mojo magic on a consortium of thirteen Southern US states. He became executive director of yet another, tax-exempt, government funding-dependent organization called the Southern Growth Policies Board. This organization is a “public policy think tank that develops economic development policies for 13 Southern states. It specializes in the areas of technology and innovation, globalization, workforce development, community development, civic engagement, and leadership.”

What’s truly sad is how skin color and ethnicity are interjected into a discussion of a town’s economic development. Was Chapelboro that much less “white” twenty years ago when it was cooler? The census facts speak otherwise, i.e., there were more Euro-Caucasians in Chapel Hill when it had its mojo than now. In fact, Chapelboro’s “open sanctuary” policy has led to an influx of Hispanic immigrants reducing the Euro-Caucasian population. The Pulp just posted a story on the almost minority status of Euro-Caucasian students in Chapelboro.

Over forty years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said “I have a dream, that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” Apparently, municipal “coolness” is still judged within the field of economic development, at least in part, by color.

Or perhaps Pulpsters should keep in mind another saying by Dr. King. “Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.”

In most North Carolina communities if offered a federally paid-for program to remove criminals brought to the county jail off the street, even if on a minor infraction, they would jump at the chance to use that system. Not so in Orange County, where concern for lawbreaking is focused on the breaking of local laws.

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has created a comprehensive plan to assist municipalities in removing high-risk illegal aliens who are criminals. It’s called “Secure Communities”. DHS is offering a cost-effective information exchange linkage between the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI’s) Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS) and DHS’ Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT).

Criminal aliens potentially removable under the Secure Communities program are aliens illegally in the United States who have been convicted of any crime as well as lawful permanent residents (such as holders of a U.S. Permanent Resident Card) who are convicted of a removable offense as defined by the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). The estimated pool of criminal aliens currently in the USA is between about 300,000 to 450,000.

Instead of welcoming the removal of criminal aliens (not someone who has confined their lawbreaking to entering the country illegally, which is not considered an offense in Orange County), the Orange County Commishes immediately grilled Sheriff Lindy Pendergrass about how the Secure Communities program would hurt lawbreaker aliens who refuse to enter the country legally.

Mr. Pendergrass explained to the Commishes that his staff aren't acting as immigration agents under the ICE 287(g) program. The county is checking the fingerprints of any detainee jailed in Orange County against a national database of criminals (i.e., for offenses other than entering the country illegally). He told the Commishes that deputies aren't even notified of someone's immigration status unless U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) contacts them to detain the person.

The Commishes are worried that local participation in the Secure Communities program violates a 2007 county resolution forbidding local officers from enforcing immigration laws. In the words of Commish Barry Jacobs, the system could be manipulated ”to take advantage of people we don't want to take advantage of [namely, lawbreakers who refuse to enter the country legally]”. (See N & O Sheriff Grilling Story.)

In response to this solicitous concern for lawbreakers, Mr. Dan E. Way, new editor of the Chapel Hill Herald, recklessly and without checking for the progressive “groupthink” asked the following questions, “Does Eve Carson ever cross the minds of the seven Orange County commissioners? Did they think of her as they grilled Sheriff Lindy Pendergrass about his law enforcement agency's involvement in a federal program designed to protect American citizens and national interests?” Perhaps not knowing that the local media isn’t supposed to ask probing questions, he went further. “One thing is sure. When probation violators are identified as recurring lawbreakers, they can be jailed and dealt with. But Orange County commissioners favor a double standard that gives greater protection to immigrants violating federal law than is granted to native Americans on probation, and that is wrong.”

Clearly, Mr. Way has not been given a suffcient dosage of Orange Progressive Cool-Aid before assuming his position. In Orange County it would be an outrage if federal government officials refused to cooperate with Orange County officials in returning someone into county custody who had violated Orange County law. However, the reverse is not true.

Showing the acute respect of Chapelboro elected officials for obeying the law, Carrboro Mayor Mark Chilton chastised Mr. Way with the following reminder of selective law enforcement. “There are thousands of immigrants in our community who are just trying to make a living. Some of them have the correct paperwork from the feds. Some don't. Personally, I am far more concerned about criminals who are hurting people and stealing property - no matter where they are from or how they got here.”. That the Secure Communities program is designed to do precisely that has escaped the steel trap mind of Mr. Chilton.

Yes, illegal immigration is reduced by Orange Progressives from a conscious decision to flaunt the legally authorized system for entering this country into simply not having the right paperwork. Perhaps in Orange County grand theft auto also isn’t a crime. It’s simply not having the right paperwork for possession of someone else’s car.