Good Neighbor Plan approved by Chapel Hill Town Council

The Inter-Faith Council for Social Service (IFC) would like to thank the Chapel Hill Town Council for unanimously approving the IFC’s Good Neighbor Plan (GNP) on June 11.

The IFC in cooperation with the GNP advisory committee worked hard to spell out as many concepts and details as we could about our new program and IFC concerns for safety for neighborhoods and our homeless population. All meetings were open to the public and advisory committee representatives were encouraged to share information widely. Andy Sachs of the Dispute Settlement Center facilitated our meetings and discussions. IFC believes that our new transitional housing program will be a safe and better place because of the participation of neighbors and stakeholders, their many suggestions and diligence during the lengthy GNP process.

A number of minor changes were made to the GNP by Town Council members, including some additional reporting requirements.  We are pleased to post the final version of the Good Neighbor Plan here, along with the Town’s Resolution and letter of support.

The Town Council had to approve the Good Neighbor Plan before executing the lease for the site.  At the same June 11th Town Council meeting, a 50-year land lease agreement was approved by a vote of 6-1. The State of North Carolina will lease the land at 1315 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. to the Town of Chapel Hill for $1 per 50 years, and in turn the Town will sublease the site to the IFC for the Community House transitional housing program for homeless men.

Some GNP advisory committee members will continue their role as stewards of good neighborhood relations by serving on the permanent Community Housing Advisory Committee (CHAC). The CHAC will monitor and participate in reporting on the implementation of the Good Neighbor Plan to the IFC Board and the Chapel Hill Town Council on a quarterly basis for the next two years. The Board and staff of the IFC are committed to being good neighbors and maintaining open to ongoing communications with neighbors, the Town and other interested parties. Advancing positive relationships, developing viable support systems and sharing regular reports about our work can bring those in homes and those without homes a little closer together.

The IFC will now turn its attention to launching a capital campaign to fund our new Community House. As always we rely on financial support from our community to offer critical safety-net programs to our neighbors in need.