On Tuesday, Aug. 18, Orange County Animal Services received positive rabies results for two bats from the North Carolina Rabies Laboratory. These are the 11th and 12th confirmed rabies cases in Orange County for 2009. On Saturday, a resident in the vicinity of Davis and Orange Grove roads found two dead bats on her property….
Category: News
Board nixes sludge forum
BY Kirk Ross Staff Writer HILLSBOROUGH — After hearing a series of concerns raised about the issue of land application of biosolids, the Orange County Board of Commissioners decided not to go ahead with a public-education forum on the issue. The county’s board of health had suggested shifting $10,000 set aside for an evaluation of…
As economy stalls, so does Carrboro’s building boom
By Beth Mechum and Kirk Ross Staff Writers In late 2007, before swearing in newly elected Carrboro Board of Aldermen member Lydia Lavelle, the board and several citizens said so long to longtime board member Alex Zaffron, who had opted not to seek re-election. Zaffron, who helped guide a change in board policy that would…
County to meet on library services
By Kirk Ross Staff Writer The Orange County Board of Commissioners will hold a work session tonight (Thursday) to discuss ways to improve and better coordinate library services. The board is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center in preparation for a joint meeting with municipal leaders at the Sept….
Bus service to Pittsboro to start
Starting Aug. 24, Chapel Hill Transit will expand its express bus service to provide weekday service between Pittsboro and Chapel Hill along US 15-501. The full trip from downtown Pittsboro to the last stop in Chapel Hill will take less than 45 minutes. For those who want to try out the route, the bus will…
Board of aldermen return
The Carrboro Board of Aldermen will be returning from its summer break and resuming its weekly meetings on Tuesday, Aug. 25. The Carrboro Citizen will post the meeting agenda online when it becomes available.
BOE members sworn in
Three new members were appointed to the Orange County Board of Elections. Selected for two-year terms were Billie J. Cox, chair; Brian Crawford, secretary; and Katherine Knight, member. The board of elections in each county has three members, selected by the State Board of Elections, two of whom are nominated by the party holding the…
Herrera resigns seat
John Herrera, who already had announced he was not planning to run for re-election, has resigned from the Carrboro Board of Aldermen. He has recently remarried and will be moving to Holly Springs. Herrera was first elected in 2001 and won re-election in 2005. He is the second local municipal official recently to resign his…
Castillo murder trial continues
The trial of Alvaro Rafael Castillo, 22, of Hillsborough, who is charged with fatally shooting his father and opening fire at Orange High School, continues this week. Castillo has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to the charges, which include first-degree murder. Castillo’s lawyers argue that Castillo suffers from mental illness and did not…
Schools look for another $2.8 million in cuts
By Beth Mechum Staff Writer With the final version of the state budget signed into law last week, officials with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school system are studying how to cut an additional $2.8 million. The school board meets tonight to discuss the details of a tentative plan outlined last week by schools Superintendent Neil Pedersen….
School board election a crowded field
By Beth Mechum Staff Writer Seven candidates are running for three seats in this year’s Chapel Hill-Carrboro Board of Education election. Issues affecting the board of education this year include a tight budget, overseeing the expansion of the Carrboro High School arts wing, the construction of a new elementary school in the Northside neighborhood and…
Twins arrive early
Chapel Hill Creamery has a new team on board. Born 15 days premature to 8-year-old mother Allison (above), twin jersey bull calves Breis and Fryer will be trained to pull heavy carts and loads that a tractor might otherwise pull. “We wanted to explore the possibility of applying steers to the program by having them…
Fans provided for low-income older adults
The Chatham County Council on Aging has received a donation from Progress Energy to supply electric box fans to low-income older adults. As the summer temperatures rise, the fans can make a substantial difference in the health and well-being of Chatham’s older residents. For more information about the fan program or more information about the…
Town hall meetings
The State Employees Association of North Carolina will host a series of town hall meetings on health insurance reform and U.S. Rep. David Price has confirmed his attendance for a meeting at 6:45 tonight (Thursday) at NCCU’s Miller Morgan Building, 528 Nelson St. in Durham. Fred Foster, a retired DMV employee, will moderate. SEANC and…
WCOM to move
The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Board of Education will hear feedback at their Aug. 13 meeting on an opportunity to allow WCOM community radio to construct a radio station and classroom at Carrboro High School. WCOM-103.5 FM is a low-power, all-volunteer community radio station located on the corner of N. Greensboro and Weaver streets in Carrboro. The…