The Chapel Hill Town Council and local residents shared similar concerns about the size of a potential student housing development during Monday’s meeting.
Capstone Companies is a firm specifically focusing on student housing development, management and construction across the nation. Capstone has provided student housing for campuses such as Johns Hopkins University and Western Carolina University.
Capstone wants to build on the 33 acres of undeveloped land by Carolina North on Homestead Road. The housing would be called “The Cottages of Chapel Hill.” The development would have 330 dwelling units and around 1,200 parking spaces.
Scott Radway, an employee of Capstone, presented the council with a 3-D PowerPoint presentation of the proposed housing. The cottages would be for undergraduate and graduate students. The apartments would be one, two or three bedrooms.
Members from the Homestead Village Homeowners Association were present to voice their opposition.
“The thought of having 1,100 unsupervised college students by my house is not a good idea,” Robin Wallace said. “I just can’t pick up and move.”
Wallace said the proposed development and her house would only be separated by a few trees and railroad tracks.
“According to the University, there is no additional need for student housing,” Steve Lonegan said, a resident of Homestead Village. “There is no doubt that the cottages would dramatically impact our property values and quality of life.”
Mayor Pro Tem Jim Ward said he was “gagging” on the land size of the housing development.
