Weekly Update, September 4

Hello, Carrboro. With a few days more of this oppressive heat dome still ahead, how are you staying cool? Carrboro resident Ahnie Rising reports that the pans of water she regularly puts out daily for critters are needing to be refilled multiple times a day during this heatwave. The timing of the release of the UN's report "Limiting Overshoot" feels real and urgent. It avers that Earth can no longer avoid crossing the threshold set by the Paris Climate Accords and should now aim to limit that peak warming in both duration and intensity. That report came out just after the disbanding of the G20 forum that had met this week at the Carolina Inn to discuss AI and emerging technologies--but not climate change mitigation.

In happier news, the annual bird migration in North America that begins in late-August has started! It peaks in September and October. If you want to check out an amazing resource, visit the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Bird Cast and discover a live count of the birds that have flown over Orange County this very day. This Saturday and Sunday nights, millions birds will be migrating above us, and to help them navigate safely, it's recommended that we turn off outdoor lights. A local favorite are the roosting Chimney Swifts. The first of a series of organized watch parties will take place at 7 pm on Tuesday, September 8, under the Davie Poplar on the UNC campus. To join the free event, co-hosted with the UNC Avian Society, just meander up McCorkle Place, south of Franklin Street near the Old Well, and consider bringing a fold-up chair or a blanket. Enjoy what has been branded a "swift-nado" of swifts as they circle the Davie Poplar Tree before dropping into it for the night!

This weekend the Really, Really Free Market returns to the Town Commons from 2 to 4 pm on Saturday. Among the things you'll find for free: copies of the hot-of-the-presses September issue of The Carrborean! Copies are also distributed around town and in Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, Pittsboro, and Durham, and you can find them in the handful of newly installed newspaper boxes, like this one:

Tomorrow the Carrboro Farmers' Market will have a special Labor Day Weekend cookout to showcase the meat that local farmers sell.

And the United Methodist Church at 200 Hillsborough Road is hosting the American Red Cross for a blood drive from 1 to 5:30 pm on Wednesday, September 9. The blood supply is low.

Online this week

September rolled in under a heat dome, and The Carrborean explores the local impacts in this story.

While on the topic of climate events, The Carrborean interviewed Ian Fowler, Assistant Chief of Emergency Management, as part of National Preparedness Month. Read the story about lessons learned from Tropical Storm Chantal, how to ready yourself and your neighborhood for weather-related and other disasters, and how to register for OC Alerts.

And The Carrborean profiles local nonprofit Family Reading Partners now that it has a new executive director.

On The Carrborean Radio Hour

We sat down with Carrboro-based author and musician, Adam O'Fallon Price, who discussed his new short story collection, Objects of Desire. Listen to the interview here.

On Monday from 4 - 5pm on WCOM-LP FM 103.5 (wcomfm.org), we'll be talking about Hunger Action Month with Kristin Lavergne from IFC and Reverend Robert Campbell from the RENA Community Center.

The Carrborean Radio Hour is now sponsored in part by Logan Carter Realty, providing residential real estate services for twenty-eight years in Orange, Durham and Chatham Counties. For more information: LoganCarter.com.

After each radio show, join us at a pop-up newsroom to discuss all things Carrboro and stories you'd like to read, hear, or write. In September, you'll find us at Weaver Street Market on Mondays from 5 to 6 pm.

News from CHCCS, Town, and County

CHCCS is celebrating the release of rankings by U.S. News & World Report of public high schools, which ranked ECHHS #16 in the state, CHHS #22 in the state, and CHS #30 in the state. At the same time, the failures this fall with regard to transportation and technology have many families frustrated with the school system. In its second week of the school year, CHCCS has yet to assign bus routes to many families who had requested transportation. Hundreds of high schoolers are also finding difficulties accessing the Internet on their Chromebooks at home.

The CHCCS School Board met Wednesday night and discussed Mandarin Pathways, Budget Outlook, and Bus System Fallout: The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education hears sharp criticism over its decision to separate the Mandarin language pathways, sets a public timeline for filling a board vacancy, and votes to join a national social media lawsuit. The board also reviews a dramatically changed budget with major state-funded raises, a narrowed local deficit, and an in-depth response to recent transportation failures affecting families across the district. 

This afternoon from 4:30 to 6 pm at the Drakeford Library Complex, teens are welcome to come for Free Time at the Teen Center. This free drop-in event takes place every first, third, and fourth Friday of the month and welcomes kids ages 13-17 to come and hang out, play games, read, and relax. The Carrborean wants to know why this Teen Center isn't open more frequently and regularly. Stay tuned.

Starting today, the Town of Carrboro is working to improve accessibility and infrastructure through its Street Resurfacing Project. The target streets include sections of Berryhill Drive, Fidelity Street, Harvest Court, Lauren Avenue, Lavender Street, Stable Road, Wannaker Place, and Weathervane Drive. Learn more about the project and the lists of requests the Town is making during the project here.

Between now and the end of October, eligible homeowners who install qualifying stormwater practices on their property may apply for financial assistance through the Town's Watershed Residential Assistance Program (WRAP). Read more about this program here.

The perpetrator and victim of last week's homicide have been identified by the Carrboro Police Department. Carrboro resident Desmond Cook, 42, has been charged with Second Degree Murder and Assault with a Deadly Weapon Inflicting Serious Injury with Intent to Kill and is being held without bond in the Orange County Detention Center. The investigation into the death of Shayna Watson, 38, of Cedarwood Lane, is still active.

Carrboro Voices, the Town's oral history project that seeks to collect stories of Carrboro's past, will be soliciting stories at the upcoming Carrboro in Motion event on Sept. 19, at the Carrboro Music Festival on Sept. 27, and at the Carrboro Farmers' Market on Oct. 17. Read more about the project here.

Carrboro's Planning Director, John Fussa, who stepped into the role only ten months ago, has resigned. This important position is responsible for leading the Town's Planning, Zoning, and Inspections Department. The Town posted the position in the past week.

In observance of the Labor Day Holiday, government offices and facilities will be closed on Monday.

The Orange County Board of Commissioners met Wednesday evening and named a new behavioral health crisis care center in memory of Commissioner Jamezetta Bedford.

At their meeting, county commissioners also wrestled with a proposed overhaul of a Unified Development Ordinance, which failed on a 4-3 split vote. The Commissioners also discussed the newly published 2026 Resident Survey Findings Report. This report summarizes the responses of the 419 households that completed the anonymous survey that was mailed out in the spring and provides data about community opinions on quality of life, housing, affordability, and public trust. To access the full report of the survey, go here. Watch highlights of this meeting here.

The Orange County Health Department has named September 9 a day for raising awareness of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

The Orange County Council on Aging Department on Aging has invited a grief counselor to guide a discussion on grief from 4 to 5:30 pm on Tuesday in Hillsborough. Register by Monday by calling (919) 245-2015.

Other Interesting Things

The month of September will be the last that the NC DMV will issue registration cards and plate stickers. The annual registration requirements are going electronic.

Final Notes

The Community Bulletin Board has announcements and opportunities for giving and civic engagement and is updated weekly.

There's so much going on in Carrboro! Check out The Events Calendar to see what's happening and help us keep it up-to-date.

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Poetry Moment

With the death this week of Wendell Berry, the poetry world lost a giant. With the passing of Gloria Steinem, we all lost a trailblazer. For this week's Poetry Corner, we remember Berry with his "The Peace of Wild Things" and honor Steinem with an apt-for-the-moment poem by Kaylin Weir.