September, 2008 |
The Real Estate Report
Local Government News Impacting the Real Estate Industry |
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Orange County School SAT scores up from 2006-07 “Orange County Schools outperformed their state and national counterparts in all ethnic groups and gender groups,” says Superintendent Patrick Rhodes. “We tested 77.5 percent of all seniors. That’s the fourth highest percentage in the state.” Board approves technology pilot program Carrboro High School Names New Principal
ABC Results Released In August, the North Carolina State Department of Public Instruction released the ABC growth results for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School District. Thirteen of the district’s schools attained “high-growth”, up from twelve last year, while four schools met “expected growth”. Growth is a measurement of how much students have improved from one year to the next, with high growth being the highest designation of improvement. The thirteen high-growth schools were Chapel Hill High School, Carrboro High School, Scroggs Elementary, Estes Hills Elementary, Culbreth Middle, Carrboro Elementary, McDougle Middle School, Smith Middle School, Glenwood Elementary, Phillips Middle, Ephesus Elementary, Seawell Elementary and Rashkis Elementary. The expected growth schools were McDougle Elementary, Frank Porter Graham Elementary, the Hospital School and East Chapel Hill High School. The “School of Excellence” and “School of Distinction” awards should be forthcoming. For the full story, click here.
Chamber and Partners Launch Marketing Brochure Woodmont Will Move Forward Representatives from Capital Associates in Cary, who are in charge of the development, presented materials and plans for the proposed 33-acre site that will house office space, condominiums and retail. For the full story, click here. No quarter-cent Increase to Orange County Sales Tax Carrboro Approves New Mixed-use Project Chapel Hill Planning Board Holds Glen Lennox NCD Information Session Innovation Center Backers Urge Town to OK Permit Shelton Earp, director of UNC’s Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, said that major pharmaceutical companies are moving away from the development side of the industry, leaving an unmet need that academics are willing and eager to fill. The Innovation Center would help such researchers stay in town and develop their ideas into businesses. To read the full story, click here. Chapel Hill Creates Sustainability Office County Reaches Highest Unemployment Rate in 18 years Mayor Solicits Public on Library Expansion A more thorough report on the project will be given in October as the Council gets closer to a decision on whether to issue the bonds or not. Issuance of the bonds, approved by a November 2003 referendum, will lead to higher taxes. At the September 8 Council meeting, Mayor Foy asked the public for feedback as to whether the library expansion was an appropriate use for increased tax dollars. For the full story, click here. Courtyard May Face Foreclosure Second Quarter Office/Retail Figures Released by Grubb and Ellis In the Orange County retail market, vacancy totaled 5.27 percent and there was negative net absorption over the past quarter. Around 60,000 square feet of retail is under construction, most of which is located in mixed use projects throughout the County. To provide a relative size comparison, retail project Buckhorn Village, which is scheduled to be voted on by the Commissioners in September, is over 1 million square feet. City of Durham Opposes Federal Foreign-Animal-Disease Research Lab
Going forward, Collier Pinkard forecasts that office vacancy will rise slightly in the coming quarter due to slowing net absorption. Overall, though, the Triangle market should remain strong due to a projected 2 percent employment growth and continued migration to the area.
The grant will be used to develop a new set of requirements for building construction to make homes and offices more energy efficient and to provide training and technical assistance to improve compliance with codes. For the full story, click here. New Study Suggests Most Subprime Loans Went to Wealthier Buyers The Real Estate Report is produced by The Chapel Hill Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Chapel Hill Association of REALTORS. |