Chapel Hill Town Council members met Monday to discuss a concept plan that could turn local restaurant, Breadman's, into a mixed use complex. 
The proposal, presented by Phil Post and Associates, spans a 2.2 acre site comprising Amity Station apartments, Breadman’s and the parking lot adjacent to these lots.
The 242,500 square feet apartment complex would include apartments housing 155 to 165 residences, an underground parking lot of 315 to 340 spots, recreational facilities, covered bike racks and a greenway alongside the building.
The lot would also include a level reserved for retail and "incubation" spaces — offices given to startups and entrepreneurs at a lower cost. The incubation spaces are designed to attract daytime traffic to the area and make Chapel Hill a hub for entrepreneurship — a stated goal of the Downtown Imagined plan the town has been working on.
Originally these apartments were presented as student housing, but the proposal has been adapted to include anyone interested in living downtown. A percentage of these houses would be leased to the city for them to rent out as affordable housing.
"There is kind of a sweet spot," council member George Cianciolo said. "To bring this entrepreneurial class where you bring this attractive office and incubator, while bringing space that is attractive to young professionals."
The lot's position is problematic because it straddles two districts, one being the historic Northside neighborhood. Nearby, Shortbread Lofts and The Warehouse have already aggravated members of the community.
“This is a huge tract of land in the heart of Rosemary," said Hudson Vaughan, deputy director of the Jackson Center. "What happens here will come to define this entire section of West Rosemary."
Some in the community already complain about noise, late night traffic and rising prices that push out longtime residents. Residents raised concerns about the size of the structure — which would be three stories taller than Shortbread and Warehouse — its low percentage of affordable housing and the largely student demographic.
Residents were also concerned with the plan's extensive number of parking spots which cater to commuters and runs counter to Chapel Hill's vision of a walkable downtown.
These issues highlight the frustrations of residents who feel the town functions as an extension to the university, ignoring the historical and social structures that have been around for generations.
"I’ve heard developers relate to the (neighborhood conservation district) as, and I quote, 'antiquated thinking,' but even the most forward thinking designers and developers use antiquities as character pieces or focal points in modern designs," said Brentton Harrison, the assistant director of education for the Jackson Center. "It's what gives something soul or meaning."
Noteable:
The town council also heard public comments on the form-based code for the Ephesus-Fordham development.
Quoteable:
"There ain't no love in the heart of this village. And ain't no love in using communities as doormats to progress false visions of hearts and people who have sustained this community, oops I meant this town, in order to progress pocket puffing projects," said Brentton Harrison in a poem directed to the town council.
city@dailytarheel.com
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