Holy Trinity Anglican Church has outgrown its longtime home on U.S. 15-501 in Chapel Hill, and now it wants to build something much bigger a few miles away: a 10,000-square-foot, two-story church paired with affordable housing for people who can’t otherwise afford to live in the area. The proposal, which includes up to eight affordable duplex tiny homes for people transitioning out of homelessness, went before Chapel Hill and Orange County leaders at a joint public hearing Tuesday night.
The project would rise on a 15.5-acre parcel at 1651 Old Lystra Road in southern Orange County, according to ABC11. The site sits within Chapel Hill’s designated Transition Area and Extra-Territorial Jurisdiction, land that under the town’s joint planning framework requires sign-off from both Orange County and Chapel Hill before anything gets built, according to the Town of Chapel Hill. That dual-governance requirement is why both bodies convened together this week rather than acting separately.
David Hyman, connected to the church’s plans, told the station that many people who work in the area have to live somewhere else because they simply can’t afford to live where they work. He said the church hopes to support families until they become stable, describing the tiny homes as a bridge for people leaving homelessness rather than a permanent landing spot. Hyman said he hopes to break ground next year and, if the proposal wins approval, move into the new facility by 2028.
Two Separate Votes, Two Different Dates
Tuesday’s joint hearing was for public input only. Neither the Orange County Board of Commissioners nor the Chapel Hill Town Council took a vote that night; the proposal’s review timeline is outlined on the Town of Chapel Hill’s project page…