10/23 Carrboro Council Chooses Preferred Alignment
On October 17, 2023 the Carrboro Council voted 6-1 to approve an alignment for a multi-million-dollar 2-mile bikeway route cutting through Bolin Forest and running in the riparian buffer of Bolin Creek from Homestead Drive to Estes Drive Extension. While many residents expressed a preference for this route based on a town engagement survey, we’ve discovered several serious flaws with the survey.
- Notably, the Council did not allow the staff to present alternative practical options to their chosen route in their survey.
- The Town collected uninformed opinions on a route without providing regulatory barriers, cost and environmental impact information to the public.
Members of the public, including Friends of Bolin Creek, learned about a study commissioned by the planning staff during the October 17th Council meeting, the same meeting the Council approved the creekside alignment. The Planning Director asserted to the Council that no regulatory barriers were found in Sungate Design’s review of the 2009 Bolin Creek Conceptual Plan. However, upon obtaining and reviewing the report afterward, we discovered numerous problems and regulatory barriers. It remains uncertain whether Council members have since digested the contents of this report.
The failure of the Carrboro staff to fully inform the Council before the vote is perplexing. Council member Randee Haven O’Donnell requested a copy of the Sungate report and publicly lamented the lack of good governance because the Council lacked pertinent information from the report when the vote was taken on October 17th.
During the November 29th Council Meeting, Martha Hoelzer, Co-Chair of Friends of Bolin Creek, presented key points in this letter. She highlighted several regulatory barriers that would need to be addressed. In light of this new information, we strongly urge the Council to reconsider their vote.
Keep Bolin Wild is a group of Carrboro residents who wants to keep Bolin Creek wild and natural, believing that a cement structure will effectively clear an area of vegetation right next to the creek, just where it is most needed to support wildlife and provide infiltration of pollutants. Although they are a separate group, we support their initiative. We provide a link to their recent substack post that deserves a careful read.
Friends of Bolin Creek will persevere in our commitment to conserve the Bolin Creek Natural Area and safeguard its vital wildlife corridor. Considering the numerous regulatory obstacles to constructing a bikeway in the riparian buffer of Bolin Creek, and the availability of several viable alternatives, we will continue our efforts to safeguard the “green we’ve got” and keep Bolin Creek natural.