In Chapel Hill, biscuits and fried chicken under heat lamps can only mean one thing.

But in about a month, N.C. State University students will also be greeted by photos of famous hands forming the familiar “T” when a new Time-Out Restaurant opens in Raleigh.

The 24/7 restaurant, known for its long lines of students hunting for comfort food to soak up the night’s adventures, has been a fixture on Franklin Street for 32 years.

In a typical year, the Ronald McDonald House of Chapel Hill turns away 500 to 700 families that want a place to stay while relatives are treated at UNC Hospitals.

After a planned expansion of the local charity, more could be accommodated.

The U.S. Census Bureau will mail  2010 Census questionnaires to residents nationwide this week.

This year’s Census forms have only 10 questions and ask general questions about each household and each individual living in the residence. Responses are due by April 1.

Boats, trains and a 14-foot skyscraper drew crowds to the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center ballroom Saturday and Sunday for the sixth annual LEGO-palooza.

The N.C. LEGO Users Group hosted the event, which showcased 16 exhibits, including a display of 12 scenes from the Harry Potter novels and a 16-ship pirate battle.

Champagne glasses filled with sparkling grape juice toasted the end of a Kentucky-fried era on Thursday.

A small group of demonstrators, some in chicken suits, gathered outside of the KFC at 313 E. Main St. in Carrboro to celebrate the store’s closing.

By today’s end, Greenbridge will be one step closer to achieving its environmentally friendly claim.

Greenbridge, a two-building development property on West Rosemary Street, began the installation of 45 solar panels on the roof of its 10-story East Building.

Junior Scott Rodgers wants to eventually become the mayor of Chapel Hill.

The charismatic economics major from Raleigh took his first step last month: e-mailing current Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt for advice about how to become qualified.

More than two years and $490,000 later, no one is quite sure how Orange County should take out the trash.

Local governments are currently trying to sort out the ramifications of the county’s latest decision: come 2012, when the local landfill reaches capacity, county trash will be trucked directly to a transfer station in Durham.

Members of the county Board of Commissioners say the December decision, which brought an end to a contentious search process, is a temporary fix.

But it also has its consequences, from higher greenhouse gas emissions to the potential of millions of dollars in higher costs.

A proposal that would bolster Carrboro’s gay-friendly reputation will likely be passed this spring.

The town’s Board of Aldermen discussed a policy at its retreat Sunday that would make any private contractor working with Carrboro have non-discrimination policies for its employees.

Chapel Hill Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt is taking action to reverse a change in health coverage that requires some employees of towns across the state to ask for abortion coverage.

The recession has shifted the gender ratio in the workplace. Women stand poised to make up a majority of the workforce for the first time.

Last month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that female workers made up 49.9 percent of job force, up 1.1 percent from when the recession began in December 2007.

A discarded cigarette caused the fire that destroyed a home and displaced four students Monday, fire marshal Matt Lawrence said.

The Chapel Hill Fire Department found evidence of smoking materials on the porch, Lawrence said, which started the fire at 506 Church Street before 3 p.m. Monday.

The fire quickly spread from the porch up through the attic space of the wooden house.

A discarded cigarette caused the fire that destroyed a home and displaced four students Monday, fire marshal Matt Lawrence said.

The four students who lived at 506 Church St. always had friends over.

So it’s a wonder only one person was inside when the house caught on fire at 3 p.m. Monday.

Junior Austin Monroe got out in time, uninjured. He was about to take a shower when he heard glass breaking, then opened the door to find the front part of his house engulfed in flames.