News Digest for Town of Carrboro, NC 
(Sept. 18, 2024) 

Hey, we see you in downtown and along the Jones Ferry Corridor-- running and biking, shopping for groceries, coming off your work shift, grabbing a bite to eat, or taking in a late night show. If you recognize yourself here, we would love your feedback! Come to our visioning workshop and help create a Downtown Area Plan for Carrboro -- this Thursday!  This is Hispanic Heritage Month, so be sure to enjoy the cultural festivities happening throughout the Triangle. We loved seeing you at Fiestas en la Calle right here on Weaver Street last month (pictured above). Coming up is the  Carrboro Music Festival on Sept. 29! Open this issue for more news from Main Street USA! 

Carrboro celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month

Mayor Barbara Foushee has proclaimed Sept. 15-Oct. 15 as Hispanic Heritage Month in Carrboro. Residents are encouraged to participate in the month’s events and to learn about and celebrate the lives, history, and contributions of Hispanic people during this month-long celebration and throughout the year.

National Hispanic Heritage Month is a time to recognize the contributions and achievements of Hispanic and Latinx people in the United States, to acknowledge their vital impact both locally and throughout the nation, and to celebrate these communities’ diversity, culture, and traditions. 

Events in the Triangle include the following: 

• Sunday, Sept. 15, El Centro Hispano, Africa Unplugged, Arthur Murray Durham and Mambo Dinamico will Embrace Rhythm and Dance at the Living Arts Collective in Durham, NC
• Thursday, Sept. 19, the Orange County Department on Aging will host the Hispanic Heritage Cultural Fair at the Seymour Center in Chapel Hill, NC
• 11th annual Hispanic Heritage Fiesta will be held on September 21st at the Shakori Hills Arts Center in Pittsboro, NC 
• Throughout the month, the UNC Carolina Latinx Center will celebrate Latinx Heritage Month with the theme “Llama De Orgullo – Embracing the Fire Within”

Read more about Carrboro Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month.

Carrboro Celebrates the 50th Anniversary of Chapel Hill Transit

Mayor Barbara Foushee proclaims September 2024 as Chapel Hill Transit Appreciation Month in Carrboro.

Carrboro has partnered with Chapel Hill and UNC for 50 years, developing a local transit system that serves almost 7 million bus trips per year and on average nearly 8,000 boardings per day in Carrboro alone.

Mayor Foushee recognizes and congratulates Chapel Hill Transit on its milestone anniversary, encouraging all residents to participate in celebrating this vital service and to honor the dedicated individuals who have contributed to its legacy.

Learn more about Carrboro's 50 year partnership with Chapel Hill Transit.

Carrboro receives national recognition for communications excellence

 The Town of Carrboro earned top national awards in the Savvy Awards competition of the City-County Communications & Marketing Association (3CMA) this September.  The Town of Carrboro won three awards in categories of Resident Participation, Most Creative Activity with Least Dollars Spent, and Campaign Outreach to Diverse Audiences. 

“It is a great honor for the Town of Carrboro to be recognized nationally among our peers,” Town Manager Patrice Toney said. “Congratulations to our Communication & Engagement Department for their impressive wins at the 3MCA Savvy Awards! It is wonderful to see their efforts recognized nationally!” 

The recognized projects were created and implemented by the Town of Carrboro Communication & Engagement Department, organized as a two-person staff team with Director Catherine Lazorko and Specialist Eve Greene. 

Read more about Carrboro's recognition at the 2024 Savvy Awards.

Town Council Update

The Carrboro Town Council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 24. The agenda will be available at https://carrboro.legistar.com/ 

Members of the public are welcome to attend in person at Carrboro Town Hall, 301 W. Main St. or view the livestream at YouTube.com/CarrboroNC  or  https://carrboro.legistar.com/

Watch the livestream for this meeting on YouTube.

New Council Meeting Time 
A new meeting time has been set for 6 p.m. on those Tuesdays when the Council meets through 2024.  

The Council wants to hear from the community about if the new time works well! Let us know at https://engage.carrboronc.gov/ 

Past Meeting 
The Carrboro Town Council met on Thursday, Sept. 12, and considered an agenda posted at https://carrboro.legistar.com/ 

Council actions included the following: 

• adopted resolutions/proclamations including Diaper Need Awareness Week, Hispanic Heritage Month, Chapel Hill Transit Appreciation Month, Reproductive Rights are Human Rights Resolution. Read the full resolutions and proclamations.
• set a legislative public hearing for Oct. 15 relating to advisory board and commission consolidation and attendance. 
• adopted a resolution supporting the Orange County Contract for Financial Feasibility Services by the Development Finance Initiative (DFI) for the Greene Tract. 
• held a hearing to determine whether a tree on private property poses a danger to public health or safety. The Council directed the Town Manager to take all necessary actions to remove the tree located at 710 W. Rosemary St. The tree was subsequently removed on Monday, Sept. 16. 
• received a presentation by Baker Tilly on the recently completed Town of Carrboro Organization Structure and Staffing Assessment and adopted the changes to the Town of Carrboro Position Classification and Pay Plan in alignment with the recommendations of the organizational assessment.
• changed the start time of the scheduled regular meetings and work sessions for the remainder of 2024 from 7 p.m. to 6 p.m.     
• received information about the Orange County Short Range Transit Plan.
• received results from a public engagement survey about proposed paid parking. Read the full report including survey responses at https://engage.carrboronc.gov/
  
  As background, the public weighed-in on a proposed paid public parking ordinance earlier this summer via an online survey and other feedback options from June 13 to July 19, 2024. A significant majority expressed strong opposition. Many expressed the view that free parking is a fundamental aspect of the town's charm and accessibility. They also said that paid parking would negatively impact local businesses.

• The Council took no action on the paid parking proposal. Council members requested additional information on the following: 
  • impacts of a proposed parking enforcement program (following the opening of the new library and civic building in downtown at 203 S. Greensboro St.)
  • the wayfinding signage parking project
  • how much the Town spends annually on leased parking
  • an exploration of the Carrboro Business Alliance leasing parking spaces from the Town to expand parking choices for employees who work in downtown
  • a study to understand the impact of paid parking on mobile businesses and other overlooked groups.
  • a feasibility study on Weaver Street between Greensboro Street and Main Street being closed to vehicular traffic.
  • a micro-mobility study for downtown which will look at opportunities for mobility options like bike share programs or scooter rentals.

Watch the Sept. 12, 2024 meeting livestream  on YouTube.

Downtown Area Plan Visioning Workshop

Get Involved! Carrboro Downtown Area Plan kicks off this fall  

Come out for the Community Visioning Workshop set for 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19, at Carrboro Town Hall, 301 W. Main St.

The Town of Carrboro invites community input as it prepares The Downtown Area Plan. The study focuses on the Main Street, Jones Ferry Road and Greensboro corridors, as well as all of Downtown Carrboro.

Over the next 13 months, the Town will host a variety of meetings, events, and engagement opportunities that will be open to the public.

Get involved! Here’s what you can do … 

• Check out the webpage about the project 
• Subscribe to receive updates and stay involved.
• What is your vision for Downtown Carrboro? Let us know by taking the survey!

This Downtown Area Plan is a specific implementation step identified in the Carrboro Connects Comprehensive Plan to help guide decisions related to:

• Public spaces
• Land use
• Downtown Infrastructure and Streetscapes
• Branding and Urban Design
• Building Appearance
• Redevelopment and Infill Opportunities

Background about the Plan 

The Downtown Area Plan is part of the implementation of the Carrboro Connects 2022-2042 Comprehensive Plan, unanimously adopted by the Town Council in June 2022.

The Downtown Area Plan is a study with the goal of creating a multi-modal friendly downtown that is inclusive and inviting for all residents.

The planning and engagement process and its recommendations will support and advance Race and Equity and Climate Action in the Town of Carrboro.

Carrboro Poet Laureate releases

new book of poetry

Carrboro Poet Laureate Liza Wolff-Francis is hosting a book launch party for her new book of poetry “48 Hours Down the Shore.” 

The public is invited! It’s being held at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20, at Steel String Brewery, 106 S. Greensboro St.  

 The collection is about going "down the shore" with two poet friends from North Carolina. They look at a Southern identity versus Northern identity, look at America through a lens of Atlantic City, and touch on social issues like the climate, human rights, and day-to-day survival.

 For more information, contact lizawolff.francis@gmail.com 

Carrboro brings some of Triangle's

most beloved community festivals

• Carrboro Music Festival: Sept. 28-29, 2024 
• West End Poetry Festival: Oct. 17-19, 2024 
• Carrboro Film Fest – Jan. 24-26, 2025

Carrboro is proud to continue to showcase a diversity of musicians from the Piedmont with FREE concerts at Town Commons, the Cat’s Cradle, and venues across the town with the return of the Carrboro Music Festival (opening afternoon on Saturday, Sept. 28 with Open Mic from 2 to 4 p.m. at Town Commons, with a full day of outdoor concerts on Sunday, Sept. 29); followed in October by the West End Poetry Festival (Oct. 17-19) featuring Poetry in the Round and a Community Poem Reading. 

The Carrboro Film Festival which has historically occurred in November will shift to January (Jan. 24-26, 2025) and continue offering a lineup of independent films that challenge and expand our understanding of Southern culture.

Read more details about our Fall Festivals

See the Carrboro public parking map

Are you ready? Carrboro Music

Festival coming up!

On Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, the Carrboro Music Festival will host 100 acts all over Carrboro, all for free. The music festival begins at 1 p.m. and runs all day. 

One of the largest free music festivals in North Carolina, the festival marks its 27th year. Established in 1998, the festival was originally held on June 21 as an official affiliate of the Fête de la Musique, which is also known as 'Make Music Day'. 

The kickoff event on Saturday, Sept. 28, is Open Mic at Town Commons, 301 W. Main St, from 2 to 4 p.m. Later in the evening Saturday, Dawn Landes and Chessa Rich will be featured at the Cat’s Cradle backroom. No tickets are required, and all shows are free! 

Get the complete list of shows at the festival website or download the festival app. DON’T MISS the hip-hop show from 2 to 10 p.m. Sunday at the Cat’s Cradle backroom! 

This year, the Carrboro Music Festival is featuring free educational workshops starting at 10:30 a.m. at Town Commons, the Century Center and other locations! These include learning about synthesizers, recording, accordions and more! (some workshops require registration and have limited availability). Register online and look under "Special Events". If you don't have an account, you will need to create one before registering.

To sign-up for a workshop, please go to carrbororec.org then click on online registration. Our workshops can be found under Special Events. 

For all other Carrboro Music Festival information please visit Carrboromusicfestival.com  You can also download the free Carrboro Music Festival App on your smartphone.

The event is a product of a coordinated effort by the Carrboro Recreation, Parks & Cultural Resources Department and the Carrboro Music Festival Planning Committee.

This program is supported by the Town of Carrboro and the Carrboro Tourism Development Authority.  Generous support is also provided by the local business community.  Please visit the sponsorship page for a complete list of sponsors.

Quick links for more information:

• To see the music lineup, visit www.carrboromusicfestival.com .  A festival guide and map will be available soon, along with a sortable Excel database to search bands by name, genre, location, and time.  Any changes that occur after the Festival Guide & Map is published will be reflected on the Excel file.  
• Download the Carrboro Music Festival phone app.!  The phone app. will be a standalone app. available by searching 'Carrboro Music Festival' in your phone's app. store.  
• FREE park & ride shuttle from the Jones Ferry Road Lot. See the Festival Shuttle Map
• There will be limited public parking. Please check the parking map.

Festival Parking, Shuttles and Alternative Transportation

Each year, the festival draws a large number of attendees.  Please consider alternative modes of transportation when accessing the event.

We highly-encourage festival attendees to walk or bike to the venues if possible.  We need to be able to accommodate our performers and allow them to park in designated areas near their respective venues, so public parking may be limited in some lots.  If attending the festival by car, please utilize the FREE park & ride shuttle from the Jones Ferry Road lot.

The Town of Carrboro has partnered with Chapel Hill Transit to provide a free shuttle for festival goers.  The shuttle will run on Sunday from 12 noon to 9 p.m. from the Jones Ferry Road Park & Ride Lot, located just south of the intersection of Old Fayetteville Rd. and Jones Ferry Rd., across from the entrance to Poplar Place Apartment Homes and beside University Lake Rd.

Shuttle service will run approximately every 15-20 minutes and drop-off locations exist near most of the music venues.

Carrboro Town Council Adopts Reproductive Rights are Human Rights Resolution

The Town Council took action on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, to advocate for the right to safe and comprehensive reproductive rights and health care by unanimously adopting the “Reproductive Rights are Human Rights Resolution.”

The resolution condemns the criminalization of abortion and calls for the protection of reproductive healthcare in the United States and in North Carolina.

“The Carrboro Town Council has a history of supporting full access to safe, comprehensive reproductive health care — such as by unanimously adopting 'A Resolution Calling for Repeal of the Hyde Amendment and Supporting the Right of All Women to Safe and Comprehensive Health Care' in 2018 — and rejects in the strongest terms Senate Bill 20 and other legislation aimed at limiting or denying access to abortion.”

Read more about Carrboro's Resolution.

Greene Tract Community Workshop

The public is invited to the Greene Tract Community Workshop from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 22 at Morris Grove Elementary School, 215 Eubanks Road, Chapel Hill, NC. 

Come out to provide feedback on the Greene Tract Master Plan at this "Understanding the Shared Vision for Our Community" workshop. 

The Greene Tract is a large parcel of land located off of Eubanks Road in Chapel Hill, near the Historic Rogers Road Neighborhood. The governments of Orange County and the towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro jointly own the 164 acres which make up the tract.

• Register online for the workshop or request interpretation services.
• Learn more about the Greene Tract.

Community Update for the 203 Project: September 2024

Construction continues to progress on The 203 S. Greensboro Street Project in Carrboro.

Work performed in last 30 days:

• Parking deck stairs and bollard installation continues
• Installation of restroom fixtures and partitions has begun
•  Door hardware installation continues
• HVAC system testing and balancing has begun
• Fire alarm and data cable installation continues throughout the building

Work upcoming in next 30 days:

• Conduit for decorative light poles will be installed
• Curbs, gutters and sidewalks will be installed
• Concrete seat walls and benches will be installed
• Interior finish work will continue, including installing decorative wall panels, ceiling baffles, and cabinetry
•  Installation of restroom fixtures and partitions will continue
• Main fiber and data connections to building will be installed

Read more about the September 2024 Community Update for the 203 Project.

Recreation, Parks & Cultural Resources

Monthly Events Newsletter

View the Monthly Events Newsletter and discover all of the exciting programs and special events that are coming up!

Check out the Monthly Newsletter.

Early Voting Begins on October 17

Orange County offers early voting to all eligible, registered Orange County voters who wish to vote early, in-person rather than voting absentee by mail or on Election Day at your assigned polling place.

Please note that the early voting location in Carrboro will be at the Carrboro Town Hall Complex at 108 Bim St. 

Previously the plan was to use the new Carrboro Library, but the opening has been delayed past the first day of early voting.

Learn more about early voting in Orange County.

2024 Chapel Hill-Carrboro Community Holiday Parade Participant Application Now Open

Walk, dance, bike, and scoot your way through the 2024 Chapel Hill-Carrboro Community Holiday Parade on Saturday, Dec. 7 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.!

We’re looking for local organizations with diverse cultural, faith, and community traditions to participate. We hope you’ll consider joining. A few things to keep in mind:

• Get festive. Decorate your parade unit with a winter theme and add entertainment value. Be a spectacle!
• Get creative. Describe how your unit will entertain/engage spectators. Show us what you got!
• Get ready. This year’s parade will be non-vehicular. Stay on foot, bike, or scooter.
• Please, no ads. No entries for strictly advertising, fundraising, or recruitment activities. No political campaigning or electioneering.

Apply online today to participate in the 2024 Chapel Hill-Carrboro Community Holiday Parade.

Carrboro ventures to Ann Arbor

for Inter-City Visit 

The team from the Town of Carrboro joined fellow community leaders in Ann Arbor, Mich., for the Inter-City Visit and Leadership Conference held Sept. 15-17. 

The purpose of the visit was to discover innovative strategies to addressing community challenges while making connections with leaders from business, government, non-profits, and education sectors. 

Attending from the Town of Carrboro (l-r): Council Member Randee Haven-O'Donnell, Economic Development Director Jon Hartman-Brown, Planning Director Trish McGuire, Town Manager Patrice Toney, Housing and Community Services Director Anne-Marie Vanaman, and Council Member Eliazar Posada. 

Organized by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce, members of several local governments and organizations were in attendance including UNC-Chapel Hill. Pictured below is Chancellor Lee Roberts with Town Manager Patrice Toney. 

Public parking available in downtown Carrboro

It’s easy to find free two-hour public parking in Carrboro, where you can access convenient parking at 10 public lots all over town.

Please remember that the Carr Mill Mall parking area is for mall customers and is not a public parking lot. Leaving the mall premises after parking risks towing. When in doubt, always park in public lots, and enjoy a hassle-free and relaxed shopping and dining experience.

Find more information including an interactive parking map on our Downtown Parking webpage.