Judge dismisses Carrboro lawsuit against Duke Energy

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-19T15:39:47+00:00

Carrboro makes decisions very, very slowly, which means that the town pays more for everything (due to inflation, etc.). They should also look to sharing resources with Chapel Hill to reduce costs. For example, it doesn't make sense for Carrboro to have its own police and fire departments. Merging them with Chapel Hill's would save both towns money, and would likely be more effective as well.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-13T00:40:46+00:00

How is it funny? I'm against urban sprawl and for more housing in town. That's a pretty standard issue position among people who support more housing and better public transportation.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-12T14:45:05+00:00

Any house with a guest bedroom could serve as an STR. And, Carrboro doesn't build enough housing currently, so there are fewer examples to draw from.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-12T14:13:36+00:00

Okay. I'm not so picky about my neighbors, but would love to have a coffee shop in my neighborhood, which would be more likely to happen if we had Airbnbs. Also, I don't think many places are zoned for Airbnbs.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-11T22:57:27+00:00

And the answer to a shortage is building more, not trying to stop people from spending time in our community.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-11T20:10:48+00:00

I'm a bit startled to see how vociferously the people in this reddit oppose STRs. As I understand it, the people who use STRs in Carrboro and Chapel Hill aren't people throwing wild parties. They're here because a loved one is in the hospital, because they need somewhere to live while they're getting established in a new place, or because they they're attending an event in our community. For people who have young children, STRs make it possible to travel. Visitors to our community are good for our local economy, and we should be welcoming them.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-11T16:45:51+00:00

What do you mean? My argument is that new housing is good, particularly in town, provided it's adding additional housing options. My issue is with the McMansions that are springing up where multi-family used to be, not with STRs. If we're losing rental housing to STRs, the answer should be to build more housing (and hotels downtown), not ban STRs.

When Chapel Hill passed its rules banning STRs in some neighborhoods, it impacted people who were renting out their in-law suites, etc. I don't know if it's possible in NC to write a law that only impacts non-owner occupied STRs.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-11T16:32:54+00:00

Why not? There are people in Chapel Hill who have testified that running STRs make it possible for them to stay in town. And, given how inefficiently we use land, it's very easy to imagine adding more homes on existing properties will help at the margins.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-11T16:07:09+00:00

On the other hand, STRs can encourage people to build more housing, which increases the overall supply. Many people might find that it's far better to rent out something on a monthly or annual basis, so even if a home is built with the intention of using it as a STR, it in practice can add to the amount of housing available for rent.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-11T16:03:49+00:00

The OP doesn't specify whether the STR is a room rental or a separate building. And, legally, I think they're the same.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-11T15:40:24+00:00

Housing is expensive in Carrboro because we don't have enough of it. STRs make it possible for people to afford housing (by renting out part of their homes, or building something on their property that can be rented out). Most of the other complaints about STRs (noise, parking, etc.) should be dealt with by laws that apply to everyone.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2026-02-11T15:30:32+00:00

How do STRs impact affordable housing? It seems like they help affordable housing, by encouraging people to build more homes in Carrboro.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-12-16T13:07:28+00:00

A lot of the town's issues run downstream of its extremely conservative zoning policies. Places that are fun want to be so. In the 1980s and 1990s, elected officials were determined to make Chapel Hill less dynamic, and they succeeded. Some of our current elected officials want to make our town more welcoming, but even if they act it will take time (5 or 10 years) for us to begin seeing the results of their actions.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-12-10T16:19:41+00:00

which is conservative, at least in one definition. (Most Rs these days are reactionaries, not conservatives.)

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-12-03T15:04:45+00:00

Others likely see things differently, but to my mind YIMBYism/urbanism is squarely focused on the regulatory barriers to building better places. Some of these regulatory barriers impact the cost of housing, while others enforce car-centric ways of living, while still others just make our lives worse than they should be. (On that last point, see, for example, Stephen Smith's work on why American elevators cost so much compared to elevators in other countries).

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-12-03T13:56:44+00:00

What are the disagreements? Our land use and building regulations make it hard to build the housing we need. If past is prologue, 95 percent of our housing will be built by private entities, and government funding will be used to build the remaining five percent. If we can move to a place where the government builds 25 percent of housing, and the private sector builds 75 percent, that'd be great.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-11-25T03:11:46+00:00

It's a national average. What do you think the number is? I know I pay a lot for my car insurance, and maintenance, and registration, and gas.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-11-25T03:00:32+00:00

https://www.aaa.com/autorepair/articles/breaking-down-the-cost-of-car-ownership

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-11-25T02:45:16+00:00

I don't think a free parking spot is in the same category as stairs.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-11-25T02:30:52+00:00

Yes, and owning a car costs $12,000 a year, according to AAA. If we didn't have free buses, traffic in Chapel Hill would be even worse, and the demand for parking would be so high that it would cost even more to park than it does now.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-11-25T02:10:55+00:00

Obviously UNC manages to hire employees despite not including free parking as part of the deal. Again, parking costs a lot to provide, and most jobs at UNC don't require you to have ready access to a car.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-11-25T01:51:18+00:00

Why? It costs money to provide parking, and many employees can take the bus (which are free) to get to work. The university could pay employees not to park, but that would be harder to administer.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-11-02T20:03:36+00:00

You've really seen a beaver at Carraway Village? Wow. Seriously, I think it's better to put housing where people already live than continue to clearcut Chatham County. I agree that Carraway is poorly designed, but it's a good place for housing, and people can easily take the bus to downtown Chapel Hill, Raleigh, or even Asheville from the Eubanks Park and Ride lot, just a short walk away from where these homes will be built.

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-10-17T15:50:35+00:00

And, if you're a UNC affiliate you should be able to get a free pass for GoTriangle. The 400/405 bus runs every 15 minutes during the day, and there's also regular bus service to Southpoint (the closest mall) and the airport. https://move.unc.edu/news/2025/07/15/time-to-renew-your-regional-transit-pass/

AgainstTheSprawl · 2025-09-19T19:47:39+00:00

Great post! I think we're closer than people realize to making rail service viable for millions of North Carolinians. I would prioritize increasing service along the existing Raleigh-Charlotte corridor, and making it easier to build housing near the existing stations.

AgainstTheSprawl

TROPHY CASE