As Pittsboro’s growth kicks into overdrive, Anna Tuell is trying to make sure the people who keep the town running can still afford to live there. Tuell is steering Chatham Habitat for Humanity’s push for a major new cluster of affordable homes, a project supporters say could put dozens of working families into houses they can actually buy.
The proposal centers on a planned development dubbed “Robert’s Run” off Toomer Road. In a memorandum and accompanying letter included in the Town of Pittsboro’s planning materials, Tuell lays out how Chatham Habitat would tackle the project, according to the Town of Pittsboro. In that packet she writes that a proposed private contribution would “directly support our Roberts Run development, where Chatham Habitat for Humanity plans to build 72 affordable homes to be sold to hardworking families.” The documents also spell out early expectations that the town and Habitat will collaborate on site design and greenway connections as the plan moves forward.
County officials have been drawn into the effort too. A 2023 resolution cleared the way for Chatham County to transfer three surplus parcels to the nonprofit, positioning that land for future homebuilding, according to Chatham County Legistar. Those parcels, identified in county documents, are being lined up as additional sites where Habitat can keep construction costs lower for future homeowners.
A Project Born Of Regional Growth
Pittsboro’s sprint into the future, fueled in part by the massive Chatham Park master plan, has town leaders scrambling for ways to keep housing even remotely attainable as new subdivisions rise out of the red clay. The Chatham Park affordable housing component does include set-asides and a phased strategy, but critics argue the numbers do not come close to matching real-world demand, according to Town of Pittsboro. Tuell’s project is being framed as one concrete attempt to close that gap before more teachers, nurses and service workers are forced to look elsewhere.
How Habitat Plans To Get There
Tuell, who serves as president and CEO of Chatham Habitat, has been working the phones and the meeting circuit to stitch together the financing that makes a development like this pencil out, according to Chatham Habitat. That means raising private donations while coordinating closely with town and county officials to cover expensive upfront needs like infrastructure and site preparation.
She laid out those goals in public remarks at the 2026 Chatham Development Briefing, where the organization’s strategy was outlined for local business and government leaders, per the Chatham Chamber. Habitat leaders say the basic formula is straightforward, even if the execution is not: combine county land conveyances, town assistance and private contributions to make the numbers work for 72 affordable homes.
For now, the key ingredients, including the private donations, land transfers and a formal agreement with the town, still need final approvals, engineering and funding before any ground is broken. Early coverage of Tuell’s role and the broader housing push first surfaced in the Triangle Business Journal.
