Years later, Carolina North timeline still up in the air

UNC has yet to finalize plans for the 250-acre plot of land it purchased in 2009.

At the annual Carolina North town meeting Thursday, attendees discussed new developments and future plans for Carolina North, a multi-use campus located along Airport Drive near the intersection of Martin Luther King Boulevard and Estes Drive.

The plans for Carolina North were approved in 2009 after the University experienced higher enrollment rates and chose to expand.

“If you think about the construction boom between 2000 and 2007, building (Carolina North) seemed natural to look to expand,” said Anna Wu, assistant vice chancellor for facilities operations, planning and construction at UNC.

Many at the meeting seemed frustrated at the lack of construction and funding.

“When we looked at it in 2009, no one anticipated construction wouldn’t have started by 2015,” said Gene Poveromo, development manager for planning and sustainability for the town of Chapel Hill.

Whether Carolina North will be developed any time soon depends on funding.

Since 2009, very little has happened on the 250-acre plot of land. The University Board of Trustees was interested in developing a plan for another campus in Chapel Hill, and the site originally was set aside to include research facilities, student and faculty housing and the relocated law school.

As of right now, Carolina North is used as a temporary home to University housekeeping facilities and UNC Horizons, which provides support for mothers struggling with addiction.

The project came to a halt due to budget problems caused by the 2008 market crash. Before the recession, the University had experienced higher enrollment rates and planned to expand to keep up with growth.

Advance planning for a new law school was already in effect, but at that point, even money already allotted for new infrastructure was not available. Despite growing enrollment rates, money for future projects like Carolina North was now out of the question.

Since money for new infrastructure is not available and new projects like Carolina North have been put on hold, the University has funneled more money toward renovating and improving existing buildings on campus.

Many buildings have already been upgraded, like Hill Hall and the Mary Ellen Jones Building.

Wu said up to 80 percent of buildings on campus are at least 50 years old and the University cannot afford to wait for state reinvestments toward new infrastructure.

“It’s all up in the air right now. There’s no real timeline,” Linda Convissor, UNC’s director of local relations said.

city@dailytarheel.com