Tom Hartwell

News

The final frame

By Tom Hartwell | April 25

On Monday, junior Erin McKenney filled the glass wall of the recreation center below the Student Union with enlarged photos of students with butterfly collars, sideburns and tight blue jeans shooting pool, goofing off and bowling. The black-and-white photos commemorate the 49-year history of the bowling lanes, which close for good at the end of the week. Looking through the glass, from the old photos to the lanes today, it's clear that little has changed.

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Freedom ride resonates 60 years later

By Tom Hartwell | April 13

Sixty years have passed since members of a civil rights group were arrested in Chapel Hill for demonstrating against segregated busing on April 13, 1947. White residents assaulted members of the group, who were on a 14-day journey through the upper South to exercise rights secured by a 1946 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said segregation laws did not apply to interstate bus travelers.

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Greenbridge gets the go-ahead from council

By Tom Hartwell | February 28

The environmentally-friendly Greenbridge development approved Monday by the Chapel Hill Town Council will be something new for North Carolina and a benchmark for Chapel Hill.

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Lot 5 may need expensive cleanup

By Tom Hartwell | February 19

Members of the Chapel Hill Town Council are worried that the town might be getting more than it bargained for with the Lot 5 development. Council members are asking for revisions to an agreement reached this month with Ram Development Co. regarding the major development slated for downtown Chapel Hill. Under the agreement, which leases the 1.73-acre tract on Franklin Street to Ram for the price of $1 a year for 100 years, the town assumes expenses for any environmental cleanup the site might need.

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Mail change to ease burden

By Tom Hartwell | February 13

An official redesign of campus mail, planned for next fall, could provide needed relief to employees overburdened by a disorganized system. "It's about time," said Donelle Kelley, a mail clerk who splits his work day between the University Mail Services facility on Mason Farm Road and the package station in Hinton James Residence Hall. Kelley, who sorts mail for the four "high-rise" residence halls, said he sees up to a half tub of misdirected or misaddressed mail every day.

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UNC revamping mail system

By Tom Hartwell | February 12

Valentine's Day can be a painful time of year, but not just for the lovesick. Mail workers on campus say it's hell. The gifts pour in: chocolates, flowers, cards, love letters and candygrams. It's their busiest week. So as mail workers try to stay above water during the St. Valentine's Day inundation, administrators are redesigning the campus mail system, trying to give it some rhyme and reason.

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Town releases Lot 5 draft

By Tom Hartwell | January 31

A major downtown development slated for the corner of Franklin and Church streets, across from Granville Towers, moved forward Monday after months of negotiations. Town Manager Roger Stancil released a draft development agreement, revealing more specific plans for condominiums and commercial space to replace Parking Lot 5. The town is collaborating with Florida-based Ram Development Co. for the project. The agreement released Monday concerns the financial details of the proposed development.

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Town's Friends ready to cheer

By Tom Hartwell | January 26

Franklin Street has a new cheering section. Or at least that's how Pat Evans, executive director of the Friends of Downtown, described the fledgeling organization after its inaugural meeting Wednesday at The Franklin Hotel. ''I look at us as being the cheerleader of all of downtown," said Evans, who conceived and coordinated the booster organization. "It's the heart of the community, and it's important both to the town of Chapel Hill and to the University," Evans said. The group plans to discuss ways to make downtown Chapel Hill more enjoyable, and anyone can attend meetings.

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Habitat project comes into favor

By Tom Hartwell | January 19

Habitat for Humanity, the nonprofit agency that works globally to provide underprivileged families with affordable housing, seems an unlikely foe in a development battle. But Wednesday's Town Council public hearing might spell peace between the nonprofit group and the Chapel Hill residents who long opposed its plans to put houses near their neighborhood at a development now dubbed Bradley Ridge.

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Public reacts to plan changes

By Tom Hartwell | November 14

Chapel Hill residents and officials responded Monday to proposed modifications to the University's development plan. At a Chapel Hill Town Council public hearing many residents expressed concerns about whether the plans would incorporate energy-efficient buildings and the University's commitment to reducing its reliance on carbon fuels. The plan outlines new projects and improvements to the University's campus and facilities.