Chapel Hill 2020 seeks student involvement

Students form a large part of Chapel Hill’s population, but they make up only a small part of the group planning the town’s future.

Chancellor Holden Thorp will give a keynote speech at an on-campus event this Saturday in what organizers say is a push to increase student involvement in Chapel Hill 2020, the comprehensive planning process.

The “Innovation Unconference” will mix large group brainstorming with smaller discussions and will be held in Hamilton Hall at 9:30 a.m.

George Cianciolo, Chapel Hill 2020 co-chairman, said planners hope to learn what changes could be made to keep students in Chapel Hill after graduation.

“Our greatest export in this area is young professionals who we’ve educated and go off someplace else,” he said.

He said to date, students who have been involved in Chapel Hill 2020 have expressed concerns about housing, parking, nightlife and commercial areas.

But he also said that young people have been underrepresented in discussions so far.

“I don’t think we’ve had as many as we’d like to have,” Cianciolo said.

About 57 UNC students attended the two Chapel Hill 2020 events at the University. Of those students, nine still contribute to the marketing committee, said Faith Thompson, Chapel Hill 2020 outreach coordinator.

She also said that 27 high school students attended the last meeting at Chapel Hill High School.

Saturday’s unconference will differ in structure from previous Chapel Hill 2020 meetings in that attendees will determine discussion topics.

“We hope their input is going to be somewhat representative of young people of this time,” Cianciolo said.

David Parker, an associate vice chancellor and deputy general counsel at UNC, said that they expect mostly business school and planning majors to attend Saturday’s event, though they hope to see students from all disciplines.

Thompson said planners have also attempted to increase student involvement in Chapel Hill 2020 through social networking, invitations to campus organizations and word of mouth.

She said that Chapel Hill 2020 will also hold tavern talks at local bars starting in February.

The first talks will be at Kildare’s Irish Pub and the West End Wine Bar Feb. 2. A later meeting will be held at The Crunkleton.
Council member Lee Storrow has helped raise interest through his involvement in both the student body and the planning process, Thompson said.

Parker said the mayor invited the University to take part in a partnership with Chapel Hill 2020 early on — a sign of the town’s commitment to involving students in the process.

“The goal is that the University will make our expert resources available,” he said. “But also that we will participate as part of the citizenry.”

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