We read a lot of slide decks that both towns put up on their website, and they often contain really interesting facts or statistics that don’t surface widely. So we’re starting a new feature: interesting slides we found recently.
1. Housing challenges in Chapel Hill
In April, Chapel Hill’s Town Council received an update on the town’s affordable housing plan from HR&A, a real estate, economic development and public policy consultancy that was hired by the town to create an affordable housing plan and investment strategy.
The entire presentation is worth reading in full. Some eye-opening stats:
- 32% decrease in Black homeownership since 2010
- 1% increase in home since 2010
- 36% increase in median home sales prices since 2019
- 78% of renter households earning under 75K are cost-burdened
2. The Legion Property Dam is really dangerous
Way back in 2022, there was a months-long community discussion around what to do with the future of the Legion Property. The council decided this: to set 9 acres aside for affordable housing and turn the rest of the 39 acres of space from Legion property and the adjoining Ephesus Park into a world-class recreational park. At the time, council said it was waiting for an evaluation of the pond on the property. It just came in, and well….the dam either needs to be removed or repaired pretty quickly, because it’s classified as a hazard that could result in loss of human life. The estimates for removal are $580, 635 and for repair, $806,900 – which doesn’t include anything beyond the initial repair.
3. Chapel Hill residents hold 13% of jobs in Chapel Hill. Durham residents hold 30% of jobs in Durham.
This snazzy little slide is from a presentation given by the Chamber of Commerce in April 2023 during the Economic Development Forum. The percentage of Chapel Hill residents working in Chapel Hill fell from 41% in 2018 to 30% in 2020. (This could be due to an increase in remote work, or it could be due to rising home costs, or another mitigating factor.)
