Meadowmont Village :: 116 West Barbee Street, NC, 27517 :: 919.367.8158

Personal Finance | Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill | Community Bank | Harrington

I sure wish Harrington Bank - supposedly in the business of protecting assets - would cease putting door hangers on front doors in Southern Village. Their cause seems ot be laudable, but hanging a flyer on the doorknob of a house where no one may be home is a threat to their security, and any bank should know better - if, indeed, they protect assets.

No formal application for Chatham County Walmart yet - Chatham County - NewsObserver.com

Recycling

How are we doing in Southern Village?

OWASA | Orange Water and Sewer Authority

I just called OWASA to ask what the average water consumption is for their residential cusotmers. The answer is 2,000 gals/month, a figure that has remained quite steady. How do cusotmers in Southern Village measure up against that?

"Streetscapes — The Pedestrian Loses the Way" - NYTimes.com

We should head back to this time.

"Sheep Lawn Mowers, and Other Go-Getters" - NYTimes.com

Imagine the advantages of having sheep "mow" all of the grass everywhere in Southern Village!

"Most City Parks Earn Solid Marks, With Some Lagging" - NYTimes.com

Something to be learned for Southern Community Park? Is it really a park or an athletic and dog-pooping facility with a nice kids' playground? What makes a park a park?

Trail

This from the Chapel Hill Town Council meeitng notes:
"Morgan Creek Trail Improvements: The Council accepted $750,000 in Direct Allocation funds through the Metropolitan Planning Organization's Surface Transportation Program, for phase 2 of the Morgan Creek Trail project. Preliminary estimates indicate that the total project will cost about $2.8 million. The entire Morgan Creek Trail/Fan Branch Trail system is envisioned to be a 10-foot wide trail that will allow pedestrian and bicycle traffic to travel from the southern tip of Southern Community Park to University Lake in Carrboro, with a side trail to Merritt's Pasture.

Phase 2 of the project will connect the existing Fan Branch Trail with the existing section of Morgan Creek Trail. It will involve the construction of about 1,200 linear feet of trail with 2 bridges and an underpass of Culbreth Road. In addition it would directly connect the existing Phase 1 project to the existing 1.6 mile Fan Branch Trail to create a 2.7 mile paved trail that would link Southern Community Park, Southern Village, Scroggs Elementary School, and various neighborhoods south of NC 54."

"Hitting the Road to Get to Work, and Back" - NYTimes.com

I'd love to see a lot more parents undertake "active commutes" in picking up or dropping off their kids at Scroggs, and perhaps other schools. It's embarrassing to imagine what a short distance so many of them likely drive their behemoth automobiles and trucks to and from the school.

"On Facebook, Recalling Neighborhoods as They Once Were" - NYTimes.com

Are we making highest and best use of Facebook for Southern Village?

"The Modern Day HOA" - WUNC

I missed this when aired earlier.

"Help Wanted - Busybodies with Cameras" - NYTimes.com

Something like this might cut down on a lot of the ignored-stop-sign-driving around Southern Village!

Welcome to Southern Village Market Street!

I guess the blog in the last post is connected to this site, but not sure how or where. Odd.

Southern Village Marketplace

I frankly had not seen this blog until just now. It's curious as there is no indication at all of who is responsible for it.

HOME

I hope they'll have a report here on what happened this year. Of special interest is knowing which groups received the profits of the event? Or is this a commercial enterprise?

"Chapel Hill may cut WISE funding for energy improvements" - Daily Tar Heel

Note Rainer DAMMERS mention here. He lives in Southern Vilage at last check and I think is on the HOA board. He is responsible fo this, but it seems like it became a bit of a dead-end effort. Perhaps he will add more details there of all the money he has gotten from various governments for his home improvement projects.

"Turning a Blighted Area in Central Suffolk Into a Hub" - NYTimes.com

Good luck, no? How close did we wind up with Southern Village?

"Small-Town Gossip Moves to the Web, Anonymous and Vicious" - NYTimes.com

This is worth considering.

Races

Why not use the Southern Community Park for races such as last weekend instead of Southern Village streets? It means no extra demands on police and few people deployed to try to detour cars. And MUCH MORE safety for all concerned?

"Woman restores slave cemetery" - The Daily Tar Heel

How about here in Southern Village?

"American History, Seen Through A Shot Glass" - NPR

It's worth thinking about how we could make this work in Southern Village either in one of he places we have or one we need.

Garbage et al

Why do so many people feel that they need to put their garbage cans out on the street - or behind their houses - in the middle of the day prior to pickup? I don't understand. We always put ours out first thing on the day of pickup and we'ver never missed a pickup as a result. Am I missing something?

"Super Cooper's Little Red Wagon Foundation - Story"

I am sure the rest of this story is very touching, and perhaps very important, but the only way you can get to it is to sign up on one more site. Some of us have reached our limit of such signups. It's a shame not to share the current story of this impressive young guy here so we all can know it.

gmap-pedometer.com

I sure hope that if they are "painting" any roads along this route that they use - unlike a recent race - "paints" that wash off. If they don't, I'll certainly be one looking for the sponsors to pay to have the markers removed instead of having them around for years.

"The Day: Bike Sharing vs. Sidewalk Sharing" - NYTimes.com

How do we make this work best here?

Chapel Hill Police Department P2C - provided by OSSI

This looks like it will be a very good resource.

"At Colleges, the Marketers Are Everywhere" - NYTimes.com

A little national limelight for UNC.

"Barking Dogs Can Turn Neighbors Into Adversaries" - NYTimes.com

I wonder how exceptional Southern Village may be in terms of neighbors not figthing with one another, or am I missing great stories of battles being wage?

Town of Chapel Hill : Chapel Hill 2020

Fascinating. Some of the people involved have not been especially tolerant of dissenting views, and my fear is that this will turn out to be a huge waste of time. But this will give a lot of people with too much time on their hands something to do, and I suppose this is good. Whether it will lead to a downtown without these sorts of incidents is highly unlikely, nor is this likely to produce sustainable jobs and spending opportunities for the wealthy of Chapel Hill.

Going Green but Getting Nowhere - NYTimes.com

"Terra Vita"

What's still lacking on this site is any explanation of who is doing this, and whether it is a profit-making exercise or a non-profit venture. The flow of money determines likely value for many of us, and there is no indication of how that works here.

It's curious that they provide this information about last year (with no mention of how much was donated), but nothing about an event scheduled for 15 days from now.

The Daily Tar Heel :: Chamber of Commerce president, Aaron Nelson, bartends to connect with members

The Daily Tar Heel :: ‘Peeping Tom’ in local neighborhoods worries residents, police

UNC-Chapel Hill Virtual Tour

The Daily Tar Heel :: Tornado warnings test Alert Carolina’s revised system

If warnings are important for the UNC campus in such situations, why not simply extend them to Southern Village and the rest of Chapel Hill as well?

OC Animal Services - Administration

Seventh Annual "Allstate America's Best Drivers Report™" Reveals Safest Driving Cities - News Releases - Allstate Insurance Digital Newsroom

Raleigh comes ou in the middle of the pack, slightly into the better half. Whatever the results, I can imagine a few drivers in Southern Village who surely would bring the results down, consideraly.

54 resurfacing finished?

It looks like they have stopped to the east of the turn off for 15-501 South. I suppose they will be back in future years to keep going west. Seems like an odd place to stop.

Ford and Zipcar Join Forces - NYTimes.com

Don't forget that there are Zipcar stations at UNC.

Shooting at University Mall

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: August 28, 2011

Contact: Inv. Nikeisha Tabron
Police Seek Information in Shooting

The Chapel Hill Police seek information about a shooting which occurred in the parking lot of the Kangaroo Express at University Mall on August 28, 2011 at 2:27 AM. Two people suffered non-life threatening injuries and were treated at UNC Hospital. The suspect who fired the shots is described as a young black male, wearing a white T-shirt and a black hat. If you have any information about the suspect, please contact Investigator Nikeisha Tabron, Chapel Hill Police Department at 919-968-2767 ext. 113, or Crime Stoppers at 942-7515. Calls to Crime Stoppers are confidential and anonymous, and the caller may be eligible for a cash reward up to $2,000 for information that leads to arrest."

The Herald-Sun - BELIEF BRIEFS

Note poverty simulation at the Lutheran church.

Recyclebank

Department of Dermatology - UNC School of Medicine - Southern Village

reesenews | Your link to Chapel Hill and the University of North Carolina

Christopher B. Leinberger

How interesting it would be to get his view of Southern Village and environs. A lot more interesting I think than leaving Southern Village to sip French wines across town, but that's an observation related to an event about which I have gotten a couple of repetitive press release announcements.

How Anchor Stores Keep Neighborhoods Afloat : NPR

I sense that we all have to work a lot harder to make Southern Village a success of the scale of Reston, VA (where I used to work). It requires a concerted effort not just for Southern Village but for the area within 2 miles of Southern Village, the reasonable distance than one can (and should) be expected to walk. That means all along 15-501, the walk to Chapel Hill and the Botannical Garden and the mysterious end of the new trail headed north into the power line shaded forest toward Carrboro.

The Herald-Sun - Fugitive arrested in northern Chatham County

In the Lowes parking lot!

Why We Should End Homeownership Subsidies - NYTimes.com

Measuring Your Plastic Footprint - NYTimes.com

Queens Councilman Wants English to Dominate Store Signs - NYTimes.com

Not a big problem in Southern Village, I would say, and just did!

Emergency calls

Merlion's Pad Thai is all about heat and timing | Guidance For Gourmands | Independent Weekly

The Dutch Way - Bicycles and Fresh Bread - NYTimes.com

Two Cities Find an Effective Way to Combat Distracted Driving - NYTimes.com

I have increasingly come to the conclusion that the dumbest people around us are those who smoke and those who use a telephone of any sort while driving. It really is a question of basic intelligence which anyone doing either or both of those things really lacks. That's where laws wind up doing what intelligence does for most of us.

Signs to Help Pedestrians, New Yorkers or Not - NYTimes.com

Durham, NC - City of Medicine

Are we being urged to do the same thing by OWASA?

Welcome to Southern Village Market Street!

I thought I had signed up for their e-mails with "event details and specials" some time ago, but I don't recall getting one for the NC Symphony concert this evening. Had I gotten one, I might have walked up for a few minutes. Have just signed up again and perhaps that will resolve the problem for future events.

Freshman Leads UNC Past Maine 4-0 - NYTimes.com

The "Park" again.....

I walked around Southern Community Park again yesterday at about 5:30 PM. There were a total of 6 people there.
We need to ask the Town for some sort of review of the utilization of the Park. Filling it up for a couple of hours or even half a day every 10 days or so for some of the year, does not seem to be as much of a success as we all hoped it would be.
What would it take to change this?

Tharrington fire

Here is a description of what happened from the Town. I'd still like to find the time to ask the Fire Department for more details; far more important, to ask them for any lessons learned for the rest of us from the experts.

"Structure Fire, 107 Tharrington Place, Chapel Hill


Posted Date: 5/31/2011

At approximately 1:37 p.m. on Friday, May 27, 2011, the Chapel Hill Fire Department was dispatched to a reported structure fire at 107 Tharrington Place. The fire occurred during a time when a severe thunderstorm was passing over the Chapel Hill area. A lightning strike was determined to be the cause of the fire.



Upon arrival, fire crews found heavy fire coming from the front gable of the two-story single family home. Firefighters worked through heavy rains and brought the fire under control in approximately 15 minutes.



Five fire companies from Chapel Hill and Orange County EMS responded to the fire. There were no reported injuries associated with the fire.



Damage is estimated at $175,000.



Please be aware that the summer months are approaching and severe thunderstorms are more prevalent during this season. We strongly encourage every household to have an emergency plan and be vigilant during severe weather."

Another reckless driver

I saw a white SUV-type vehicle exit Graylyn today heading up Aberdeen - about 5:50 PM. Driven by a blond woman with one hand on the steering wheel, the vehicle never came close to stopping at the stop sign. This, as I have mentioned earlier, is within only hundreds of feet of Scroggs school. It's a shame that so many people drive around here so recklessly.

Neighborship for Friendly Neighborhoods

Who is running this remains pretty unclear, but some may find it useful if they have time to burn. There is some sort of area inside that seems to try to focus on Southern Village and I leave it to others to sort it out.

Free Wi-FI

I thought we had some free wi-fi places in Southern Village. Do they appear on a list somewhere?

Morgan Creek Trail to open!

"Chapel Hill Celebrates National Trail Day with Opening of New Trail


Posted Date: 5/27/2011

The Town of Chapel Hill has planned a grand celebration on Saturday, June 4, National Trails Day, with the opening of the Morgan Creek Trail. Shuttles start at 10 a.m. from Frank Porter Graham School on Smith Level Road, and the event begins at 11 a.m.

The new trail provides access to open space to the south and west of Fordham Boulevard, a woodland corridor that James Taylor called "Copperline." Chapel Hill is creating a network of more than 38 miles of linear open space. The total land area of Chapel Hill is 21.3 square miles, and about 11 percent of this is dedicated to parks and open space. There are about 1,200 acres of park, open space, and greenway easements totaling 12 miles of trails.

The ribbon cutting event will include speakers Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt, Greenways Commission Chair Christine Berndt, Johnny Randall of the Botanical Garden Foundation and Public Arts Commission Chair Gerald D. Bolas. After the ribbon cutting, participants will be invited on a hike of the trail and Merritt's Pasture. Watch the Chapel Hill VID to learn more about this project.

Morgan Creek Trail is located on the north side of Morgan Creek, from Merritt Pasture to a new parking lot east of Kingswood Apartments. The Town of Chapel Hill was awarded $347,000 in federal stimulus funding to complete the $1.2 million project. Funds also came from the Federal Highway Administration allotted through the Metropolitan Planning Organization ($640,000), and 2003 Town bond funds ($220,000).

The celebration marks the completion of the first phase of the project, which features a .85 mile concrete trail that includes two new bridges, a section of boardwalk, and an underpass of the James Taylor Bridge (Hwy 15-501). Residents of the Southbridge neighborhood can access the new trail by using an informal path on Town open space property.

Hikers can follow the main trail along the north side of the creek, eastward to the edge of Merritt's Pasture. From the end of the paved trail, walkers can continue hiking along a natural surface path that circles the Pasture. Bicycles are not allowed in Merritt's Pasture. All dogs must be on a leash. There is no public access downstream (east) of Merritt's Pasture, along Morgan Creek.

Phase Two of the project is expected to begin in 2012. This will connect Phase One of the Morgan Creek Trail with the existing Fan Branch Trail. The combined trails will be about three miles long and will connect Southern Community Park, Southern Village, Scroggs School, Merritt's Pasture, and open space along Morgan Creek. Phase Two will likely be completed in late 2012 or early 2013.

Currently, there is limited public access to the Morgan Creek area, which is protected by a conservation easement. The 92-acre nature preserve stretches along Morgan Creek from Merritt Pasture to the Chapel Hill town limit at Smith Level Road. The land is bounded by Merritt Pasture on the east, the Carrboro Town line on the west, Culbreth Road to the south, and Fordham Boulevard to the north. The open space was amassed in a series of acquisitions that were finalized in March 2007.

For more information about the ribbon cutting event or access to this new trail, contact Bill Webster, assistant director of Parks and Recreation, at 919-968-2819 or bwesbster@townofchapelhill.org.

Morgan Creek Trail from Town of Chapel Hill, NC on Vimeo."

Southern Community Park

Who is in charge? When the basketball backstop falls over - for whatever reason - who is the right person to call to get it fixed?

Lightning blamed for Chapel Hill house fire | NBC17.com

I hope no one was hurt, and that the damage was less than feared. It appeared that one of those afer-fire rescue companies was hard at work helping the owners minimize the loss early Friday evening.
It would be good for the rest of us to know if there was anything about the house, its location on the top of the hill, etc. that might be worth knowing. At some point, it might even be worth reviewing all of the fires in Southern Village to be sure that everyone is doing all that they can to prevent these tragedies. (Here is another story that does not add much to the first.) It would be so helpful to know if there are lessons to be learned for the rest of us.

Chapel Hill Hotels | Hotels near Chapel Hill | Aloft Chapel Hill Hotel - Overview

What to Do at a Yellow Light? And Other Things American Drivers Don't Know - NYTimes.com

Note the color for NC. I think we'd come out bright red among Southern Village drivers.
Today, I saw a SUV on Aberdeen and a blue Volvo on Graylyn where drivers left the engines running (probably to keep the air conditioning running) and got out of the car while kids remained inside. Those kids and the rest of us were put at risk because these drivers could not take the time or trouble to turn off their engines before getting out of the car. If there were a criminal statute prohibiting such practices, the parents - if that is who was driving - ought to be in handcuffs.

Beyond Popcorn: Theaters Try Seat-Side Food Service : NPR

Morgan Creek Trail

I walked across the James Taylor Bridge to check out the state of the trail work below. It seems to be largely finished under the bridge and over to the field off 54. Very nice!!! It's all concrete.
The rest - in the other direction - seems to have progressed tremendously, but still closed off for walkers.
There is a bit of a sewage smell, alas, and I recall that from last time as well. Maybe that can be addressed? Should be addressed? Is there a leak of some sort?
The light to cross the road to get there is really disappointing, tho. Takes forever to give a clear walk signal for pedestrians. I wonder if this cannot be improved? What is the current program and response time to a push of the button?

Bear still sought in Chapel Hill - Wake County - NewsObserver.com

Book Review - Join the Club - By Tina Rosenberg - NYTimes.com

You Are Here - Germany’s Anti-Chaos Crusaders - NYTimes.com

Let's hope that people here can behave on their own! This sounds awful. But with all the people in Southern Village who thumb their noses at basic safety because they think they are in a hurry - usually to be important, or seem so - one has to wonder what it would take for them to behave more safely.

A Spooky Reminder to Obey the Speed Limit - NYTimes.com

Southern Village Farmers Market | Upcoming Events

Southern Village Farmers Market

Pulling the chord

I learned something yesterday. On at least some of the Chapel Hill Transit buses, you must pull the chord in order for the driver to open the doors in the back, even on scheduled stops. She told me to pull the chord whenever I want to get off at the next stop.

Plaque in Southern Community Park

I noticed the plaque that is mounted on a stone next to the parking lot for the Southern Community Park for the first time yesterday.

How much did that cost?

It looks like a cemetery marker for a very long list of city and county officials! Surely, "we" should not be paying for their memorial. I look forwad to learning how much it cost and who paid for it.

Kinetix Health Club

I found one of their flyers on my front door the other day. Any business that promotes using door hangers never gets my business. They create a security risk that's just really bad judgment on their part.

Whose Life Looks Greener? Towns Compare Notes - NYTimes.com

.56 mile?

We seem to have several new posts in the ground around the Southern Community Park paths. Each one that I saw had a line drawing of a hiker of some sort and ".56 mile". What does that mean?

Could it be that this is the distance on the path around the playing fields?

The Herald-Sun - Long and winding roads

Note Smith Level Road.

Getting To Know Your Neighbors: Worth The Effort : NPR

"Water for Elephants" Premieres at the Lumina - Chapel Hill Magazine

In the Neighborhood - Books by Peter Lovenheim - Penguin Group (USA)

Bad design

It is really a shame that they did not design Southern Community Park well enough to acommodate the trucks that apparently have to get to the rest room area and the fields now and again. The sidewalks are not wide enough and so they churn up the grass on either side and make quite a mess. I hope someone has noted this design error for admonition of the responsible parties.

Fiber optic service

Does anyone know the current state of fiber optic service to homes in Southern Village?

Stop signs

Yesterday at 1:45 PM, a silver sedan driven by a man with a white baseball cap went through two stop signs without stopping - one at Graylyn and Edgewater and then again at Edgewater and Brookgreen. I was not able to get the license plate and did not get the make of the vehicle. I do not know if he lives in the neighborhood.

Spraying to Make Yards Green ... But With Paint, Not Water - NYTimes.com

"Chapel Hill is a dangerous place"

A letter from today's Herald-Sun.

chapelhillnews.com | Weaver Street Market growing, profitable

Social media

This came from the homeowners association in Southern Village. The e-mail address for the woman mentioned does not work:

"Social Media Committee Forming
Mary Jo Coppola, a new board member is acting as the chair for a recently formed Social Media Committee. The goal is to improve communication within community using Facebook and an enhanced website. In addition, residents have expressed interest that groups or clubs be formed to bring like minded residents together who share similar interests. For example, a book club, gourmet club, wine tasting, runners, barter & trade of goods, list of services available such as babysitting, a welcome committee, etc. Please contact Mary Jo at maryjjoryan1@gmail.com if you would like to be involved and attend our first meeting."

PS:
This seems to be the correct one: "my correct email is maryjoryan1@gmail.com"

Weaver Street Geoff: Geoff's Weavernomics Lesson #5 - How To Make A Profit, And Pay A Dividend, The Co-operative Way

This is of considerable concern.

Chapel Hill won't set sights on deer - Orange County - NewsObserver.com

southbridge drive, chapel hill - Google Maps

Location of rabid raccoon. See this story.

Chapel Hill Police Need Residents Help in Solving Crime | NBC17.com

Southern Village HOA » 2011 » February

Southern Village HOA » Blog Archive » SVHOA Annual General Meeting Summary

The Herald-Sun - Council considers relaxing sign ordinance

Danger Is Pent Up Behind Aging Dams - NYTimes.com

We've got a couple "upstream" from Southern Village and it has never been clear to me if anyone ever examines them.

Pond-view benches

Wouldn't it be nice to have some benches overlooking our two ponds in Southern Village? I wonder why that has not been done. I, for one, am happy to contribute both "working" time on the project and a few dollars.

Trash along 15-501

Wow, when I walked along the trail near 15-501 and Culbreth Road, there sure is a lot of trash that must fly over the guard rail and down the bank, or at least the top of it. It is a good reminder of how much stuff gets tossed out of vehicle windows and blows out of trucks and other vehicles as they drive along that road. If people were more careful, there should be next to none of it.

And we should organize a clean up project to attack that. Consider me a volunteer.

The Commuter Bike Redesigned and Electrified - NYTimes.com

I wonder how it would do on the Southern Village hills?

Blue Sky Film Festival » Schedule

Plant Information Center - NC Trees - Loblolly Pine

Is this the pine tree planted in Southern Community Park?

Cell Carriers Explore Ways to Limit Distracted Driving - NYTimes.com

Sure would help on Southern Village streets!

Old Movie Theaters Reinvent Themselves as Art Destinations - NYTimes.com