Chapel Hill is an ideal fusion of everything that makes the term "New South" a compliment. As the gateway to the Research Triangle Park and home of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill embraces the new, the high-tech, and the professional. Yet its southern culture and idyllic aesthetic evoke a warmth and security that makes Chapel Hill a perfect home for families.
It´s impossible to think of Chapel Hill without conjuring an image of the university and downtown area. Franklin Street is the flagpole of Chapel Hill´s business district, a small town main street with metropolitan attractions. Lined with eclectic and high end shops, restaurants, and bars, it has something for everyone. The nearby university dominates the area with its sprawling green commons, oak tree canopies, and white bricked buildings. The oldest public university in the country, the University of North Carolina brings a feeling of vibrancy and youth to Chapel Hill, along with cultural and musical events.
Take a night out on the town with your partner at one of the many dining and drinking options downtown. Or enjoy a Sunday stroll with the kids across the postcard-perfect university campus or one of the dogwood draped lanes spoking off of Franklin Street. But don´t think that downtown is an oasis. Chapel Hill is stocked with other locations for shopping, eating, and playing. Nearby Jordan Lake and the area´s host of parks offer all kinds of recreational opportunities.
Though North Carolina obsessions like barbeque, politeness, and college basketball abound in Chapel Hill, you may just forget that you´re in the South when it comes to working and studying. Wi-fi bubbles aren´t science fiction here and Chapel Hill is advantageously located in one of the highest concentrations of universities and PhDs in the country, the Research Triangle Park. Corporations like IBM, Nortel, and GlaxoSmithKline offer employment opportunities just a short commute away.
It´s only fitting that a University town like Chapel Hill, set in such a cutting edge area as the Research Triangle Park, should have one of the best school systems in the country. Consistently high ranked, the Chapel Hill-Carborro school system sets the standard of excellence for North Carolina public schools.
Chapel Hill has grown into a perfect blend of Southern culture and technological dynamism. And whether you´re a student, professional, parent, or a combination of the three, it has also grown into a perfect place to live.
