New restaurants come to Franklin Street

Franklin Street is an iconic Chapel Hill landmark — during the school year, students can be seen enjoying an after-class snack, studying at coffee shops or buying UNC merchandise. Visitors, town residents and students dine, shop and work alongside each other. It is a bustling hub of UNC community life. However, due to decreased patronage during the COVID-19 pandemic, some storefronts on Franklin Street have closed their doors permanently, and the effects are still being felt to this day — for instance, Linda’s Bar & Grill, a staple to the Chapel Hill community, closed this January citing loss of revenue and problems with staffing. Despite this, new developments are coming to Franklin Street. Two storefronts at the intersection of Franklin and Columbia streets, — which previously housedMidici and Seafood Destiny Express — will soon have new life. “Those spaces were empty for quite a long time. And I know everybody in our town was hoping that somebody would come along and fill those spaces,” Jeri Lynn Schulke, executive director for Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership, said. “So thankfully, we saw Raising Cane’s come in last year, and with the two other corners being full, it just gives a lot of vibrancy to downtown that was missing with those empty storefronts.” Starbucks, currently located next to Raising Cane’s, will be moving into a larger space across the street to accommodate more patrons. Raising Cane’s purchased the whole building including the retail space Starbucks currently occupies, and what comes next for that space is still to be announced. Playa Bowls, an acai bowl chain based out of New Jersey, will open next to Starbucks' new location later this summer. Playa Bowls will serve a variety of smoothies, acai bowls and drinks inspired by the founder's travels while surfing. Pulp Juice & Smoothie Bar will move into what was previously Seafood Destiny. Dame’s Chicken and Waffles, which closed earlier this year, will be replaced by Voodoo Wings. In May, Cosmic Cantina moved from its location on 128 E. Franklin St. to 118 E. Franklin St. to expand services and make way for developments related to UNC’s Campus Master Plan. “The biggest change is that we're a storefront. Now we're not so much a hole in the wall,” Yeshua Sanchez, manager of Cosmic Cantina, said. The business is now located on the street — attracting more foot traffic — and is decorated with tiles and memorabilia celebrating Chapel Hill. While the new location may be different aesthetically, the menu remains the same, with the addition of a liquor license and a pressed juice bar. "There's a lot of energy that has been put forward both by the Town and the University in trying to bring more workers to downtown and more people working downtown," Schulke said. Michele Phipps, a junior at UNC, said she wishes that there was somewhere students could sit down and chat without having to pay for food or coffee, or places centered around activities rather than dining. “We have the on-campus spots, but it’s difficult to ask people that don’t specifically go to UNC to meet you at UNC places,” she said. “If you have a lot of friends or family outside of it, it’s annoying.” Schulke said that having more places where people work and people live is going to be beneficial to downtown, including for non-student, year-round residents outside of those associated with UNC.  “[For] so long, we have been a nine-month economy just really focusing on students. So much of the livelihood of downtown businesses has been reliant on students. When they go away for the summer — or the vast majority do — some businesses really struggled through that,” Schulke said. “So changing our economy to one downtown that can be sustained year-round, is really the right move that the town is making.”

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Downtown Chapel Hill had over 9 million visitors in 2022 — an increase of over 1.6 million from the last year — according to the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership. Following decreased numbers from the COVID-19 pandemic, the highest visitation day was April 5 — overlapping with UNC's run in the Final Four. Numbers are expected to increase in 2023, according to Matt Gladdek, executive director of the CHDP. He said the increase was consequential of many different factors, including UNC sporting events and students returning to classes after breaks. “You know, I think that it's a broad mix,” Gladdek said. "I would like to think that more visitors coming downtown during the pandemic helped to change people's perceptions of downtown.” Additionally, downtown improvements in Chapel Hill that took place during the pandemic, such as expanding downtown sidewalks and adding outside seating for restaurants, contributed to the higher numbers, according to Gladdek. “I think specifically for our downtown businesses, these numbers matter, because when you come downtown, you're more likely to spend a little money and support a local business,” Gladdek said. "That helps our businesses stay open and hire more people, and that makes downtown more attractive when you've got local businesses doing well.” With numbers expected to continue rising, Dwight Bassett, director of Economic Development and Parking Services for the Town of Chapel Hill said his department is continuing to address current issues like parking, traffic safety and public restrooms. Bassett said restrooms in Wallace Parking Deck are now open 24 hours a day and a new parking garage downtown will also have restrooms available at its east entrance.  With people driving into downtown and more visitors expected to come in, Bassett said the Chapel Hill Parking Services Department is also going to have to consider how it will manage Chapel Hill's parking resources.

As the calendar year comes to a close, it marks what’s widely regarded as the most “normal” year since the coronavirus pandemic began. What did that mean for downtown foot traffic and tourism, as events started to pick up and people became more confident in public health? Some local experts report that for Chapel Hill, downtown numbers are outpacing not only surrounding communities but most of North Carolina. While Chapel Hill is home for many in our community, the vast majority of those who visit Franklin Street or the edges of UNC campus qualify as visitors. Matt Gladdek with the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership said his organization uses a data tracking company called Placer.ai to see how much foot traffic the downtown streets experience. “We can take a look at where our visitors are coming from,” he said during the 2022 For’Em On The Hill . “Right now, about 80 percent of visitors to downtown are people that don’t live in that district or are not employees working there. Of those visitors, 50 percent of them are traveling from [more than] 50 miles away. “So, we have a decent chunk of people that are here [year-round],” said Gladdek, “but we’re really bringing in a lot of people that come to visit Chapel Hill.” Like all communities, Chapel Hill saw a significant drop in downtown activity during 2020. But Gladdek said locally, that traffic began to return sooner than many other places – and at a higher rate than before. Data from Placer.ai shows that this past summer, Chapel Hill outperformed its pre-pandemic retail chain and domestic tourism numbers compared to 2019. Gladdek said this most recent fiscal year, which finished this summer, not only marked a five-year high for foot traffic but also outpaced Durham’s recovery of pedestrians. “Looking at our calendar year, we’re on track for 9.5 million visits downtown. That’s a really impressive number for only 85 acres that we have here. Huge thanks as we look at where our high visit [times] come from – those are our hotel visits and stuff like that around football and basketball [games]. So, thanks to UNC sports for being so good this year.” 

The Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership is a 501c3 charitable organization that, according to its website, “is here to strengthen the cultural relevance and financial stability of downtown.” XDCH is an initiative working to celebrate the opportunities happening now, while paving the way for an exciting new chapter in this unique and growing hub for arts, innovation, food, and retail in Chapel Hill. “We are so thankful to you, the vital members of our community, for all the support and patronage you’ve given our local businesses on Franklin and Rosemary streets — from Henderson to Merritt Mill — throughout the last year,” said Matt Gladdek, executive director for XDCH. “Each small shop, bar, restaurant salon and local favorite continues to need your business.”  With a series of programs and promotions in place and set to begin in the near future, XDCH is part of the movement to push Chapel Hill’s downtown out of the pandemic and into a brighter future — one that includes new facades on buildings, live music downtown and a step up into a vibrant, inclusive tomorrow.

Veterans and current members of the US military are eligible for discounts at the following Downtown Chapel Hill restaurants: Bandido’s: 15% Ben & Jerry’s: 15% Bonchon: 10% Brandweins Bagels: 10% Bul Box: 15% Carolina Brewery: 10% Carolina Coffee Shop: 10% Cholanad: 12% Cosmic Cantina: 10% Crumbl: 10% Might As Well: 10% Raising Cane’s: 10% Vegan Flava: 13% *Be prepared to show your veteran/military ID

Following our 2020 Action Plan, we’ve researched and developed recommendations for a social host ordinance alongside community partners. We’re sharing this with the Town of Chapel Hill Town Council in the form of a petition. Town petition status can be checked here. CCC-Social-Host-Ordinance-Petition-FAQ-2024.01.17Download

By Mae Golden

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! No, not Christmas; college basketball season! While a great season for the Tar Heel men’s and women’s basketball teams can be exciting, there are also some things to remember in order to stay safe while celebrating in Downtown Chapel Hill. Here are some tips for staying safe and having fun from your friends at the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership, the Campus & Community Coalition , the Town of Chapel Hill , and UNC Student Wellness .

Excessive drinking leads to harm that often impacts the wider community, not just the drinker. This cost-of-illness analysis of excessive drinking in Orange County (OC), North Carolina uncovers just how much the community is paying, both literally and figuratively, for these behaviors. Excessive drinking cost OC $111.8 million in 2017 and is a leading cause of death in OC. The cost breakdown includes healthcare costs ($8.2 million), miscellaneous costs ($11.5 million), and productivity losses ($92.2 million). There were 234 alcohol-attributable emergency department visits and 237 alcohol-attributable hospitalizations involving both chronic and acute conditions. 15.9% of deaths in 2017 were due to excessive drinking, and those due to suicide and homicide largely impacted younger populations. While impactful, these analyses do not account for intangible losses like pain and suffering; excessive drinking impacts numerous aspects of society, and overall, the harms are preventable and can be mitigated.  CCC-The-Burden-of-Excessive-Drinking-in-Orange-County-NC-Final-ReportDownload

You can’t imagine Franklin Street without Julian’s. The retailer has been a downtown fixture for nearly a century, clothing local dignitaries, businessmen, and, of course, UNC athletes. Still family-owned and operated, the retailer maintains the highest standards by celebrating the old school sense of “prep” style mixed with a contemporary feel.