The concept of the Trinity is usually reserved for religious contexts, but some hope that one recently completed project will similarly help unify three distinct Durham communities.
Trinity Heights, the University's housing development off East Campus for staff and faculty members, finished construction earlier this fall in what is designed to be a catalyst for faculty and staff interaction with students and with citizens from the surrounding community.
The project includes 25 single-family homes, modeled after older residences in the area, and 15 brick townhouses. All but two of the 40 units have been sold, and most of the residents, who must be Duke employees, have already moved in.
"It's a really nice neighborhood. It's great to be near other Duke people and to be with other community members as well," said John Willis, an associate professor of biology who lives in one of the new Berkley Street homes. "These are really just great houses."
The homes stand on what used to be a vacant lot. The University has owned the property in Trinity Heights for decades, dating back to when planners foresaw an East Campus expansion. When that vision faded, the land existed as a park for local citizens until the mid-1990s when Duke began renovating older houses in the area and planned to build new ones.
Now, the new vision of a small community of Duke professors, researchers and other workers living together just off campus is nearly complete. The development has attracted a diverse group from both the Medical Center and the University, including some who work on East Campus.
"It doesn't seem that we have two of the same person," said Jeffrey Potter, director of real estate administration.
Prices for the single-family homes and townhouses range from about $150,000 to $233,000. Although a clause in the purchase of the buildings requires new owners to also be Duke employees, the residents do own the units. Another goal of the project, which is part of the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership Initiative, is to increase home ownership in the area.
For some, the convenience of the area was a major selling point.
"This is such a built-up, sprawling area, the Triangle, that it's just nicer to be able to walk everywhere you go, to Ninth Street or to Wellspring," said Sue Willis, John's wife. "There are a lot of dog owners here, too, and runners."
With large front porches, high ceilings and wood floors, the homes were modeled after existing ones built decades ago in the surrounding Walltown neighborhood. The townhouses, on Markham Avenue behind Branson Theater, were designed to look more urban, with underground garages and alleyways. The project received an award last year from the Historic Preservation Society of Durham.
Townhouse residents and single-family house residents pay $140 and $55 per month respectively, to maintain the common areas of the development. In addition, all the homes have an Internet connection equivalent to T-1 speed.
"This is one of those projects that is so clearly a win-win in any way you can imagine," said John Burness, Duke senior vice president for public affairs and government relations. "There was concern that there would only be faculty and staff living there, but that was for us a deal-breaker."
The development has had opponents. Local residents criticized the original plan, citing a parking crunch and environmental concerns with the lot they had used as a park. Eventually, University administrators agreed to preserve two trees older than 100 years old, maintain some open space and provide off-street parking. Residents unanimously agreed to the plan in the fall of 1998.
This is not the first time faculty and staff have been housed on or near campus. Many of the buildings on Campus Drive were built as homes for professors, largely to attract top faculty from other schools, but Trinity Heights may serve as a model for similar projects in the future, said Tallman Trask, executive vice president, suggesting Central Campus as a possible location.
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