Town Workers Can’t Afford Local Housing
By Caitlin Clinard

Because housing is so expensive in Chapel Hill, many public workers live in other areas of Orange County and must travel a long distance to get to work. A new sidewalk will soon line Umstead Road, but the people putting it in will probably never get to use it.

Ninety percent of Department of Public Works’ employees don’t live in Chapel Hill. These employees are critical to keeping Chapel Hill running. They take care of street, sidewalk and park maintenance, preserve public buildings and landscape, and collect solid waste. Director of Public Works, Bill Letteri, says affordability for his employees is an issue.

“You know it’s really expensive to travel long distances every day to get here,” Letteri said. “It’s a disadvantage for us because it makes it hard for us to find a reasonable market for those employees we need to hire.”

Public Works’ employees are also first responders in case of emergencies such as inclement weather. Letteri says it’s sometimes a challenge to get people to work in a timely fashion.