VOLUME 113, ISSUE 46
UP IN THE AIR
Trustees favor closing airport; support Senate resolution to move airport services to RDU
DTH/BRANDON SMITH
The University's Board of Trustees voted last week to support closing the Horace Williams Airport. Trustees said the airport prevented developing Carolina North, UNC's proposed satellite campus.
BY JOSEPH R. SCHWARTZ, UNIVERSITY EDITOR
University officials first moved to close the
Horace Williams Airport three years ago.
Now they have data and a resolution
from the Board of Trustees to back the
effort.
In what Chancellor James Moeser called one of the
best board meetings of his tenure, the board received
Thursday a study outlining possible alternate airport
sites and heard testimonials about the need for Carolina
North, the University’s proposed satellite campus.
The airport, which has been under the University’s
control for more than half a century, conflicts with the
first phase of Carolina North’s development.
Amy McLane, an engineer with Talbert & Bright,
the planning firm that conducted the study, detailed a
three-part, presentation for the trustees.
In it she explained that:
■ Raleigh-Durham International Airport is the site
best suited for relocating N.C. Area Health Education
Centers and Medical Air Operations;
■ if the Horace Williams Airport remains open,
almost half of the planned buildings for Carolina North
SEE AIRPORT, PAGE 4
Two future Tar Heels
shine in tournament
Green, Ellington show their skills
BY ROCKY RIVERO
SPORTS EDITOR
The court in the Dean E. Smith
Center is a place where memories
are shared by players and cherished
by fans of North Carolina.
Last weekend, two UNC recruits
playing in the Bob Gibbons
Tournament of Champions personi
fied the future of the men’s basketball
11
■ Strengths:
He can use his
college-ready
body for points
in the paint
and shoot from
beyond the arc
consistently.
CITY
SUMMER BUSINESS BOOM
Chapel Hill restauranteurs look to introduce deals to
entice customers during summer months. PAGE 5
Serving the students and the University community since 1893
(Bite iaihj (Bar Bed
team on the same hallowed court.
Danny Green and Wayne
Ellington excelled in the three-day
tournament that began with 64 elite
AAU teams from across the nation.
Games were also held at venues in
Durham and Raleigh.
Green, who will join the Tar Heels
in the fall as a freshman, averaged
13.5 points during four games for the
WAYNE ELLINGTON. 2006-07 RECRUIT
I Weaknesses:
"I'm trying
to be more
aggressive,”
he said, which
would help
translate into
more rebounds.
CITY
TOP-O' MICROBREWS
Local brewery sells its top lager
and pale ale in six-packs. PAGE 7
www.dthonliite.coxi!
Closing would displace Med Air
Officials fear move to RDU could yield decrease in user frequency
..
■
Mr m ggj
■P fl
jm • 1J
jj
riH’mH I
i jWf li
DTH/ISAAC SANDUN
Passengers walk towards their plane early Wednesday morning at the Horace Williams
Airport. AHEC would move to RDU if the airport closes to make way for Carolina North.
New York Panthers until his team
was defeated in the quarterfinals.
Ellington is a 6-foot-4 junior
shooting guard who committed to
UNC on May 25 for the 2006-07
season. His team, the Playaz from
Philadelphia, advanced one round
further before it was eliminated.
Although Green isn’t wear
ing a Tar Heel uniform yet, the
6-5 swingman managed to score
SEE RECRUITS, PAGE 4
■ Weaknesses:
Defensively,
Ellington has
a tendency to
get beat by the
opposition in
traffic or on
a fast break.
■ Strengths:
Asa junior in
high school, he
could already
start for most
college teams
with his natural
ability and skill.
Officials hear budget worries
School funding
alarms parents
BY CHRIS CARMICHAEL
STAFF WRITER
Perhaps next year the Orange
County Board of Commissioners
will book the Smith Center.
Concerned parents came
in droves for a public hearing
Tuesday on the proposed county
budget for fiscal year 2005-06,
leaving a wake of bumper-stick
ered minivans scattered along
Homestead Road.
Whether at the podium or
crowding around the boardroom
windows wielding signs, their
message was loud and clear: fully
fund school budgets.
“It’s the right thing to do,” said
Lynn Lehmann. “We should not
have to fight for this every year. It
should be the number-one prior
ity in the budget.”
In his recommended budget,
Orange County Manager John
Link calls for an increase of
UNIVERSITY
PROJECT UPLIFT
The Office of Minority Affairs is hosting
potential students this summer. PAGE 2
BY JOSEPH R. SCHWARTZ
UNIVERSITY EDITOR
Some Medical Air and Operations
users say driving to Raleigh-Durham
International Airport would be a poten
tially crippling roadblock for the service.
Med Air, based at Horace Williams
Airport and a part of N.C. Area Health
Education Centers, allows doctors to travel
across the state to treat patients, perform
outreach and teach medical students.
But despite hard numbers that aim to
quantify the impact of the move, it will
be impossible to determine the scale of a
change until it happens, said Tom Bacon,
AHEC program director.
“It’s kind of a hypothetical question until
we say... your flights are now going to leave
from here instead of here,” he said.
A comprehensive analysis by Talbert &
Bright, an aviation planning consulting
firm contracted by the University to study
relocating the program, showed there were
SEE AHEC, PAGE 4
Schools Call for Increases in Funding
In the midst of major county and state budget shortfalls, Orange County and
Chapel Hill-Carrboro school districts are projecting major program cuts.
requested increase #
in funding 5399 per pupil $270 per pupil
actual increase $57 per pupil $57 per pupil
estimated funds from tn *l3 3to-7CO
special district tax > 1
SOURCE: CHAPEL HILL / CARRBORO AND ORANGE COUNTV SCHOOLS DTH/JENNIFER ALLIET
$95 per student for both Orange
County and Chapel Hill-Carrboro
City school systems.
That is well below the amount
that each district has requested,
causing concern over what pro
grams or positions might be cut
to make room for the state-level
increases for salary and health
insurance benefits.
For city schools, the pro
posed allotment falls $1.6 mil
WEATHER
TODAY Showers, H 67, L 58
FRIDAY Showers, H 72, L 51
SATURDAY T-storms, H 81, L 62
THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 2005
BOARD OF
TRUSTEES
* RESOLUTION
Trustees passed
a resolution that
supports the
closing of the
Horace Williams
Airport.
■ MEDAIR
UNC's Med Air
service could
be relocated to
RDU if the air
port is closed.
* EXPANSION
A market study
says the first
two phases of
Carolina North
will create
7,500 jobs and
S6OO million in
business revenue.
s RESEARCH
Officials hope
Carolina North
will attract funds
for research from
private sources.
lion short of requested funding
for the 2005-06 school year. For
Orange County, which requested
an almost S4OO increase per stu
dent, the shortage is more than $2
million.
Many armed with a recent bud
get alert produced by city school
staff, parents and educators took
turns pointing out the perceived
SEE BUDGET, PAGE 4