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4The Daily Tar HeelMonday, November 6, 1 989
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Environment, noise leve
issues in
By JENNIFER DICKENS
Staff Writer
Students and residents voting
Tuesday for Chapel Hill mayor and
four town council candidates will
find few differences among candi
dates, and a Chapel Hill Town Coun
cil member said he attributed this to
the little controversy within town
issues.
'This has been clearly the quietest
election in the decade, primarily
because many of the details which
annoyed or delighted people have
been settled within the last 10 years,"
said Joe Herzenberg. "There haven't
been any violent arguments."
The town council consists of the
mayor and eight council members.
The mayor serves a two-year term,
while council members serve for four
years, with half the council seats up
"for re-election every two years.
r In this election, the seven candi
dates running for the four open seats
include three incumbents and four
"challengers. The candidate running
for mayor is running unopposed.
Council member David Godschalk
m agreed with Herzenberg and said no
real issues have come forward in this
m election. "There isn't much disagree-
ment among the candidates."
Godschalk said he felt there would
'not be a large voter turnout this elec
tion. "It hasn't been given that much
' attention. In addition, it is a midterm
election. There aren't any state or
' national elections taking place. Plus,
' there hasn't been that much discus
' sion of the issues."
This election is different from those
' in the past, Godschalk said, because
large concerns such as the impact of
Julie Andresen
. Julie Andresen, an incumbent on the
Chapel Hill Town Council seeking her
second term, said any amendments to
the noise ordinance needed to consider
aspects of noise other than decibels.
"I think we do need some sort of
ordinance, but I'm not sure that this one
s, the best possible one because it
measures decibels," Andresen said. "I
do think, however, that it's been effec
tive in monitoring the time and day of
outdoor events. It's definitely not fair
for residents to be exposed to noise at
all times."
j An alternative to measuring decibels
js establishing different zones for vari
ous functions and events, she said. A
committee with students on it worked
tfro years ago to create an effective
Qeise ordinance, but it no longer exists.
Atidresen added she would like to see
$ie committee become active again.
Andresen serves on the town's plan
ning committee to provide downtown
parking and a future pedestrian plaza
oh town-owned property. She said the
town and the University needed to
coordinate plans such as parking decks
because such action also affects down
town. Z "The town is looking into building a
parking deck somewhere downtown. It
really hasn't been decided, though, if it
viill be for student use or for the mer
chants, as I think it should be."
J Park-and-ride lots are another issue
v
David Pasquini
CIn his second re-election campaign,
town council incumbent David Pasquini
sjyd he thought his professional experi
ence working in industry and his past
tfiwn council experience set him apart
fipm his opponents.
Unlike most of the other council
candidates, Pasquini works for indus
try, which he said gave him a different
perspective and background in dealing
wjth issues facing council members.
Pasquini has lived in Chapel Hill for
15 years, eight of which he has served
jpn the town council. Serving on the
Council for such a long time has al
lowed him to learn the history of the
pouncil and the positions of the council
jriembers, he said.
! When he first ran for office in 1 98 1 ,
pasquini just wanted to serve the com
jmunity. "I wanted to give something
rback to the community, wniie i was a
student at the University, Chapel Hill
gave a lot to me. I am running for town
Council to provide my knowledge of
industry and council experience to the
'town."
He has served on the library commit
tee, which made the decision to build a
iiew library, and he has served as mayor
jpro tern. This year Pasquini also com
pleted a term on the Orange Water and
Sewer Authority's (OWASA) Board
Directors.
While the absence of any major is-
council
growth in Chapel Hill have died down.
Godschalk and Herzenberg agreed
the election turnouts would reflect the
fact that this has been a quiet election.
"In a quiet election, incumbents usu
ally have an advantage," Herzenberg
said.
Godschalk said a voter's familiarity
with candidates has usually caused the
incumbents to win in quiet elections.
"Unless there are strong disagreements
between the candidates, people will
vote for someone they know."
Herzenberg said he felt this election
had not only been quiet in terms of
campaign rhetoric, but also in terms of
activity. "I personally have only re
ceived one piece of political propa
ganda in the mail."
. The election issues deal mainly with
protecting the quality of life for resi
dents, and protecting the natural envi
ronment, Herzenberg said. Other elec
tion issues include the following:
The new council will have to con
sider possible changes to the noise
ordinance. After a UNC student party
early in the semester, the Pritchard and
Church Street Residents Group recom
mended that the town council change
the noise tolerance level from 75 deci
bels (dB) to 50 dB, ban the issuing of
noise permits and require bands to stop
playing by 9 p.m. In a report to the
council, Town Manager David Taylor
recommended to change the maximum
permitted sound level in areas outside
the campus noise zone to 70 dB.
Bill Hildebolt, town council student
liaison, said all the candidates proposed
communication as the answer to the
noise problem, and at the conclusion of
the election, he said the council would
have to follow through on this idea. '
Town (Council (Candidates
'
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Andresen said the town should address.
"We've got to decide whether or not
to invest in park-and-ride lots. Before
we spend the money, it needs to be
known that people are willing to ride
the buses. The buses will also have to
leave the lots every 10 minutes or so to
provide adequate, dependable transpor
tation." While she advocates quality devel
opment downtown, Andresen said fast
growth actually costs Chapel Hill
money, and development should be
sue can be attributed to the lack of
controversy about the issues in the town
council, Pasquini said he anticipated
that the issues focused on by the candi
dates would become more important in
the coming months.
One of these issues is parking. The
construction of a new parking lot near
downtown will alleviate any parking
problems that there are in Chapel Hill,
but Pasquini said parking at the Univer
sity was a greater problem than parking
downtown. He noted that the addition
of parking spaces near downtown would
in I
election
'The noise ordinance has come
up too late to be a major issue."
The town council will also have
to face parking and traffic problems
downtown. After the rejection of the
Rosemary Square project, the con
troversial officecondominiumpark
ing complex that folded last year
because of insufficient building
funds, members of a parking com
mittee proposed to build a parking
deck to occupy the available lot at
Rosemary and Henderson streets.
The controversy revolves around
whether this land would best serve as
a parking deck. Alternatives include
building more park-and-ride lots
parking lots on the outskirts of town
where commuters can park for free
and ride a bus into downtown and
increasing the bus system.
In another report Taylor said the
Orange County Regional Landfill
was expected to be full by 1987. In
response to this, the Landfill Owner's
Group (LOG) which consists of
Carrboro, Chapel Hill and Orange
County governments, is working on
recycling and waste reduction proj
ects. A new council will have to
make decisions about the location of
the new landfill and how to build it.
A new council will also be faced
with the homeless issue and afford
able housing. The lease on the old
municipal building for the Inter
Fraternity Council's Homeless Shel
ter and Community Kitchen will
expire in three years upon the com
pletion of the building's $1 million
renovations. The council will have
to decide to extend the lease or find
a new location.
paced.
The council is dealing with such
pace and timing of development, and
Andresen said the council was working
on a proposal to change zoning on some
town property on the outskirts of Chapel
Hill.
"I think our rural buffer should
remain somewhat rural, and Chapel
Hill is committed to that. There are
330,000 acres of land surrounding
Chapel Hill and Carrboro that I'm not
interested in urbanizing."
Andresen said she saw students'
interests moving toward environmental
issues such as landfills and recycling
and toward the homeless problem.
"Students are becoming more sensi
tive to things in the community. I've
had a lot of questions about the home
less and the Inter-Faith Council's
(homeless) shelter."
Andresen, who has a degree in po
litical science from the University of
Pennsylvania, is working toward a
master's degree in public administra
tion from UNC.
During her term on the council,
Andresen served on the Design Task
Force, which is responsible for engi
neering and design manuals for the
town. She also worked with other gov
erning bodies in the area to protect the
watershed. .
bring more people to Chapel Hill for
shopping.
Traffic circulation is a problem in
Chapel Hill that Pasquini said was not
caused by the number of cars on the
streets, but more directly caused by the
overuse of the transportation system.
The antiquated traffic signal system
is not equipped to handle the volume of
traffic on the roads, Pasquini said. This
system could be remedied with money
from a bond issue that should be dis
cussed before 1992, and could result in
a rise in tax rates in Chapel Hill affect
ing everyone in the area.
Pasquini said he supported other
actions that would help traffic conges
tion in town, other than modernizing
the transportation system to handle a
large traffic capacity. He said he sug
gested more park-and-ride lots and more
people traveling by buses or bicycles.
The noise ordinance proposal to
lower the decibel restriction from 75
decibels (dB) to 70 dB is a. good com
promise that would provide good pro
tection to the residents of the town,
Pasquini said.
"The present ordinance works well
to provide quiet zones in residential
areas while allowing students to do
want they want on campus, within rea
son. The noise ordinance just needs to
be fine tuned."
Jonathan Howes
Chapel Hill Mayor Jonathan Howes,
who is running unopposed for his sec
ond term, said he supported the pro
posal to lower the decibel requirement
of the noise ordinance.
This contrasts a Daily Tar Heel in
terview before his election in 1987,
when Howes said he was in favor of in
creasing the decibel level allowed by
the noise ordinance and creating a
campus zone permitting higher noise
levels.
The proposed ordinance would cut
the requirement from 75 to 70 decibels
(dB). The town manager made the
proposal in late October, but the coun
cil decided to postpone a vote until
students returned from break and could
voice their opinions.
"I think a lot of the problems with the
fraternities have been cleared up, but
there are a lot of complaints from neigh
borhoods," Howes said. "I don't think
we know what we can do, but I don't
think it's all students either."
Howes said many complaints had
been coming from areas other than those
near the University.
"I realize we may be swearing out
warrants cn neighbors because of noise.
Although I'd rather see such conflicts
settled by the dispute center."
The issue has caused conflict, he
said, but students should also become
more involved with other issues that
concern them.
"There's been a lot of discussion
among the student body about the noise
ordinance. Noise is an abrasive subject
for students, but I think they have
broader interests other than noise. I
think they're now more concerned with
what the University and the town do
within the state, and how the commu
nity performs its function."
Joyce Brown -
Joyce Brown, a newcomer to the
race for a Chapel Hill Town Council
seat, said she did not see the noise
ordinance as a student vs. non-student
issue.
"I live in an older neighborhood near
campus, and I'm familiar with noise
problems. There are students that I know
in the neighborhood who also value
peace and quiet."
She said that she did not think the
ordinance should be based on the
measurement of decibels, but that
something did need to be done to con
trol the noise.
"I'd like to see it (the ordinance)
taken out of the high-tech, scientific
context of decibels and see it put in a
sort of social context. I think if some
one is disturbing the peace, they should
be stopped."
Brown said she opposed building
additional parking lots and roads down
town and instead supported public trans
portation, bicycling and walking as
means for transportation. She added
that the increased use of automobiles
would cause further environmental
problems.
"We have to increase bus ridership.
If we put money into roads it will in
crease the automobile traffic and leave
less money for mass transit. We have to
do something to make bus riding easier
and more convenient."
Brown said she looked at growth in
Alan Rimer
Alan Rimer, a new candidate for
Chapel Hill Town Council, said that he
believed the proposed reduction on the
noise ordinance decibel level was rea
sonable and that he had what it took to
be a town council member.
The proposed change in the ordi
nance calls for a lowering of the allot
ted decibels by five, and Rimer said he
agrees with this amendment. "It seems
to me that the noise ordinance has
worked reasonably well the way it is.
This change also seems reasonable."
Neighbors should be tolerant of this
noise but respect each other's rights, he
said. "(Students) are not visitors in this
town. There is a certain amount of
noise that goes on with living on both
parts."
Rimer stressed the importance of
student involvement in local affairs.
"There are a lot of other issues (stu
dents) should be involved with. Stu
dents must realize they are a major
voting block. They should use their
voting power."
The town would not exist without
the University and its students, and
students should exercise their freedom
to influence town issues, Rimer said.
"Students control this town."
Rimer said he favored more parking
downtown and more peripheral park-and-ride
lots outside town. He pro
posed an incentive to get people to use
these lots, which affects the people
Candidate
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In other issues, Howes said he
thought planning was in better shape
than it had ever been. The town, he said,
has worked to improve watershed pro
tection and to increase good quality
development. He added that the town
was working with the University to
create a historic district in the Mc
Cauley Street area.
Howes said he supported the work
done by the Downtown Commission to
revitalize downtown. The trolley sys
tem, an idea originated by the commis
sion that was put into effect in Septem
ber, was the first step toward improve
ment. Public transportation is important to
Chapel Hill because of the limited
amount of parking available, Howes
said. The University has a limited
amount of space, which prevents stu
the context of how much more the town
and the environment can take, and she
added that all possible considerations
needed to be looked at closely.
"I'm not pro-growth, but neither am
I anti-growth. I simply choose to look
at all the possible consequences of any
specific action. We cannot continue to
pour into our streams any more pollu
tion. I'd like to see the town work on a
long-range plan to match our growth to
our capabilities."
Brown said she saw a trend among
the student population toward greater
who come into Chapel Hill from out
side the city to work at North Carolina
Memorial Hospital.
"People could punch in on their time
clocks when they arrive at the lots and
start working for the University at that
moment." In that instance, using the
park-and-ride lots would be a conven
ience rather than a waste of people's
time.
Rimer said he felt environmental
issues should be a concern to students.
These issues include solid waste dis
posal, traffic, air pollution and the drain
3 . $ i
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dents from having cars on campus, and
further increases the need for buses. ,
"The University is looking at more
parking decks. Additional on-campus
parking is important, but there's only
so much room. Bus service needs to be
made into an attractive mode of trans?
portation."
The town council is looking for a
place to build a"350-space parking deck.
Howes said the town now has an archi
tect under contract for the deck. ;
"I'm hopeful that we're going to
choose a site soon. The purpose of the
deck will be to serve transients and
shoppers who come to do business
downtown for a few hours. If students
use the space it will defeat the pur
pose." Howes said the relationship between
the town and the University was better
than it was two years ago. He said he
attributed this to cooperation among
himself, Chancellor Paul Hardin, last
year's student body president and Stu
dent Body President Brien Lewis. .' '
"We've all worked together to im
prove campus-town relations," Howes
said. "Brien appointed Bill Hildebolt as
a student liaison to the council. I think
the liaison is a very effective medium
for communication between us and the
University." "2
Howes, who is director and research
professor of the Center for Urban and
Regional Studies at the University,
served 1 2 years on town council before
running for mayor in 1987. He has a
masters in planning from UNC and a
masters in public administration from
Harvard.
Howes said he attributed his interest
in town politics to his education and his
teaching in government.
concern for environmental issues. The
recycling that many student groups are
doing on campus is a good issue, and
Brown said she hoped to see participa-.
tion continue.
"The number of students at last
weekend's SEAC (Student Environ-,
mental Action Coalition) conference
was impressive. I've been really im:
pressed by the amount of student active
ism in the area of environmental is
sues." .,
Brown actively opposed the proposal
to extend Pittsboro Street through Little
Fraternity Court two years ago. She
said she worked hard with neighbors tb
prevent such an extension, and she said
she received strong support from star
dents. .t-
She has also supported the use of
solar energy and lighting in the new
town library.
Brown said she was running for town
council because of her community ori
ented family and because she likes to be
involved in community affairs.
"I'm interested in a lot of issues that
are important to the town. I'd also like
to see greater public participation in
town politics." ..
To improve student participation in
town affairs, Brown said she encour
aged residents to form strong groups td
offer support for neighborhoods.
age ordinance. s.
"Each has an impact on students:
The University is not bound by any of.
the city ordinances such as the drainage
ordinance, but students could ask the
administration to get more involved in
working with the town on such issues."
Rimer said the University lacked a
strong recycling effort, and he sug-,
gested that student government begin a,
recycling project.
"Recycling on campus would have a
strong effect on solid waste reduction.
I bet (students) could even get the town
to cooperate on the picking up of recy
clable materials if you separated them;"
Rimer's political accomplishmenjs
include his two-and-a-half-year serv
ice on the Town Planning Board, which
he still chairs. He also chaired the Design
Task Force that set up guidelines for
and has helped to speed up town devel
opment, -i
Rimer is the principal engineer 'qt
Alliance Technologies Corporation, 'a
national environmental consulting firin
that deals with hazardous waste and a
pollution problems. He said he felt h&
business experience would help a po
litical career.
He chose to run to make an impact on
many of the planning board's project,
he said. "I want to see it carried through;!
I want to be part of seeing the plan
being implemented."
V