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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 09-30-1998 - 2ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: September 30, 1998 1 Action Agenda Item # SUBJECT: JOINT PLANNING AGREEMENT AMENDMENT - TEMPORARY DEVELOPMENT MORATORIA DEPARTMENT: PLANNING ATTACHMENT(S): - Proposed Amendment to Joint Planning Agreement - DRAFT 4 -8 -98 JPA Public Hearing Minutes - 7 -14 -98 Planning Board Minutes PUBLIC HEARING: Yes _x —No INFORMATION CONTACT: Gene Bell TELEPHONE NUMBERS: Hillsborough - 732 -8181 Durham -688-7331 Mebane -227-2031 Chapel Hill -967-9251 Ext. 2592 PURPOSE: To consider a proposed amendment to the Joint Planning Agreement presented at the April 8, 1998 Joint Planning Area (JPA) Public Hearing. BACKGROUND: From time -to -time a development moratorium is appropriate in order to address exigent circumstances or the results of a study of density designations, plan classifications or other matters prescribed by the adopted Joint Planning Area Land Use Plan, the Joint Planning Area Land Use Map or any of the land use ordinances of the Towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro for their Transition areas and Orange County for the Rural Buffer. Currently, the Joint Planning Agreement does not provide for development moratoria. The need for such a provision in the agreement was highlighted in October, 1997, when Carrboro proposed a moratorium on processing special use and conditional use permit applications in the Northern Study Area pending completion of land use ordinance amendments. Orange County did not object to Carrboro's Land Use Ordinance text amendments establishing a six month moratorium. An extension of this moratorium to September 30, 1998 was proposed in May 1998, and again, Orange County did not object. The proposed amendment to the Joint Planning Agreement would preserve the status quo pending the consideration of a land use ordinance amendment designed to address exigent circumstances or the results of a study. It would allow for adoption of a moratorium of 2 no more than six months that could be extended one time for no more than six months. The amendment was approved by the Carrboro Board of Aldermen on May 26, 1998 and by the Chapel Hill Town Council on June 8, 1998. The Orange County Planning Board considered the proposed amendment on July 15, 1998 and voted unanimously to recommend approval. This item was one of several presented at the JPA Public Hearing on April 8. Staff practice generally is to bring back all public hearing items for BOCC decision at the same time rather than spreading them over several meetings. However, Carrboro has requested that decision be delayed on the Facilitated Small Area Plan until drafting of ordinance language specific to it is completed. In that an extension of the moratorium now in effect has been requested, a decision on this item will establish a process for addressing such requests and eliminate the ad hoc nature of the current approach. RECOMMENDATION: The Administration recommends approval of the proposed amendment to the Joint Planning Agreement. r AN ORDINANCE DING THS JOINT PLANNING AGRUnNT PZRTJIINING TO 32MLOPSMT K031 ►TOAIA AR TICLE 2 STANDARD, s ?u�ARDs AMaNISTRATION AND AX Z=M3WT O? 2.3 pssait'Administration witbin the Transition Area C. From time to time a development moratorium i;, appropriate in order to address exiQenL circumstances or the results of a study of density designations, plan elaecificationc or other mattoro Prcaeribed by the adopted Joint Planning Area Land Use Plan, the Joint Planning Area Land Use Map or any of the land use ordinances of the Town of Chapel Hill or the Town of Carrboro. To preserve the status quo pending the consideration of a land use ordinance amendment designed to address exigent circumstances or the results of a study, the Town of Carrboro or the Town of Chapel Hill may propose the adoption of a development moratorium pending consideraLion of the ordinance amendment. With respect to the CJDA, any proposed moratorium shall not be effective until adopted by the Town of Carrboro and approved by Orange County following a public hearing conducted by the Town of Carrboro. with respect to the c'HJnA, any Proposed moratoria= shall not be effective until adopted by the Town of Chapel Hill and approved by Orange County following a public hearing conducted by the Town of 3 4 Chapel Bill. Any such adopted and approved moratorium shall initially be no more than six months in duration and may be extended one time for no more than six months for the reasons and following the procedures prescribed here. 2•4 'Ps it Administration within the Rural suffer C. From time to time a development moratorium is appropriate in order to address exigent circumstances or the results of a study of density designations, plan classifications or other matters prescribed by the adopted Joint Planning Area Land Use Plan, the Joint Planning Area Land Use Map or any of the land use ordinances of Orange County. To preserve the status quo pending the consideration of a land use ordinance amendment designed to address exigent circumstances or the results of a study, Orange County may Pt-OPose the adoption of a development moratorium pending consideration of the ordinance amendment. Any proposed moratorium shall not be effective until adopted by Orange County following a public hearing conducted by Orange County. Any such adopted moratorium shall initially be no more than six months in duration and may be extended one time for no more than six months for the reasons and following the procedures prescribed here. � 1-. 1- The Joint Planning Agreement is amended effective the amendment contained in this ordinance havin I _ 4 been approved by the Town of Carrboro and the Town of Chapel Hill and this ordinance having been adopted by Orange County on the effective date. lsg -10 morator.doc 5 DRAFT 6 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS CARRBORO BOARD OF ALDERMEN CHAPEL HILL TOWN COUNCIL JOINT PLANNING PUBLIC HEARING APRIL 8, 1998 MINUTES The Orange County Board of Commissioners, the Carrboro Board of Aldermen, and the Chapel Hill Town Council met for a Joint Planning Public Hearing on Wednesday, April 8, 1998 at 7:30 p.m. in the Carrboro Elementary School, 400 Shelton Street, Carrboro, North Carolina. ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Margaret Brown, and Commissioners Moses Carey, Jr., William Crowther, Alice M. Gordon, and Stephen H. Halkiotis. CARRBORO BOARD OF ALDERMEN PRESENT: Mayor Mike Nelson and members Hank Anderson, Hilliard Caldwell, Jacqueline Gist, Diana McDuffee, Alan Spalt and Alex Zaffron. CHAPEL HILL TOWN COUNCIL PRESENT: Mayor Rosemary Waldorf, and members Julie Andresen, Flicka Bateman, Joyce Brown, Joseph Capowski, Pat Evans, Kevin Foy, Lee Pavao and Edith Wiggins. OPENING REMARKS FROM THE CHAIR: Chair Brown convened the meeting. PUBLIC CHARGE: Chair Brown dispensed with the reading of the Public Charge. PUBLIC HEARING ITEMS: A Public Hearing was held for the purpose of giving all interested citizens an opportunity to speak for or against proposed amendments to the Joint Planning Agreement and Joint Planning Area Land Use Plan and Map. All amendments require the approval of the governing boards of Orange County, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro. 1 ORANGE COUNTY: Joint Planning Agreement Amendment — Temporary Development Moratoria: This item was 3 presented by Interim Planning Director Gene Bell for the purpose of receiving public comment on a 4 proposed amendment to the Joint Planning Agreement. From time to time a development moratorium is 5 appropriate in order to address exigent circumstances or as a result of a study of density designations, 6 plan classifications or other matters prescribed by the adopted Joint Planning Area Land Use Plan, the 7 Joint Planning Area Land Use Map or any of the land use ordinances of the Towns of Chapel Hill and 8 Carrboro for their transition areas and Orange County for the Rural Buffer. Currently, the Joint Planning 9 Agreement does not provide for development moratoria. The need for such a provision in the agreement o was highlighted in October, 1997, when Carrboro proposed a moratorium on processing special use and 1 conditional use permit applications in the Northern Study Area pending completion of land use ordinance 2 amendments. Orange County did not object to Carrboro's Land use Ordinance text amendments 3 establishing a six month moratorium. The proposed amendment to the Joint Planning Agreement would 4 preserve the status quo pending the consideration of a land use ordinance amendment designed to 5 address exigent circumstances or the results of a study. It would allow for adoption of a moratorium of no 6 more than six months that could be extended one time for no more than six months. COMMENTS AND /OR QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS, CHAPEL HILL TOWN COUNCIL AND CARRBORO BOARD OF ALDERMEN: None COMMENTS AND /OR QUESTIONS FROM CITZENS 1 Mr. Randy Danzinger, of 212 Dairyland Road, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, commented that he was 2 strongly in favor of the moratorium being adopted. He stated that he is not in favor of the development 3 proposals that Carrboro has presented. He expressed his concern that Carrboro officials do not have the 4 best interests of the Calvander community in mind. This is a particular concern to them because they are 5 not voting members of the Carrboro community. They need to have their concerns taken seriously by the 6 Board of Commissioners as they are the only elected officials that the residents of Calvander have. 7 8 Ms. Fay Hogan Daniel, a Calvander landowner, expressed her displeasure that Carrboro could 9 make decisions regarding her land but she could not vote for them. She requested that the Board of 0 Commissioners be the decision makers for this area. She strongly supported the moratorium. 1 2 Mr. Curtis Hogan stated that this land represented his retirement fund. He did not support Carrboro 3 having power over the future use of his land. 4 5 JEF, a Calvander resident, spoke in support of this proposed moratorium. It is important that there 6 be time to complete the planning process for future development. 7 8 Mr. Stephen Dear, a Stony Hill Road resident, spoke in support of the proposed Moratorium. 9 0 Ms. Carol -Ann Greenslade spoke in support of establishing a moratorium. She stated that it would 1 be in the best interest of the community to complete the planning process before allowing future 2 development. 3 4 Neil Alderman indicated that he was speaking on behalf of one of the property owners and that he 5 did not support this proposal for a moratorium. 6 7 A motion was made by Commissioner Carey, seconded by Commissioner Gordon, to refer the 8 proposed amendment to the Joint Planning Agreement to the Towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro for a 9 decision at which time the matter will be referred to the Orange County Planning Board to be returned to 0 the Board of Commissioners no sooner than June 22, 1998. 1 MOTION: APPROVED 2 3:, TOWN OF CARRBORO: 4 JPA -2 -98- Facilitated Small Area Plan For Carrboro's Northern Study Area — 5 Mayor Mike Nelson presented a brief history of this item. He indicated that a year ago they 6 engaged in two -day long work sessions on the Small Area Plan. Everyone in this area was invited to 7 attend and there were more than 150 participants at those two meetings. It was led by Randall Arendt and 8 all decisions were unanimous and made by consensus. The plan you see before you came out of that 9 meeting. There were very diverse views from the participants. It was important such a wide range of 0 views and issues could be resolved by consensus. 1 2 The item was presented by the Carrboro Planning Director Roy Williford for the purpose of 3 receiving public comment on a proposal to amend the Joint Planning Area (JPA) Land Use Plan and Map 4 to incorporate the facilitated small area plan accepted by the Board of Aldermen on August 19, 1997. In 5 February 1992, the Board of Aldermen for the Town of Carrboro determined that a comprehensive 6 planning effort was needed for those areas of the town's jurisdiction which are expected to receive the 7 bulk of any growth and development occurring in the coming years. Population projections at the time 8 indicated this growth was expected to include nearly 12, 000 new residents by the year 2010, and 9 associated civic, business, and commercial ventures. Due to environmental constraints associated with 0 the protection of the University Lake water supply to the south and west of Carrboro, growth was expected 1 to occur primarily to the north and east of the town in areas where public water and sewer service could be 2 extended. The Northern Study Area plan proposes to cluster a bulk of the new residential development by 3 encouraging village -scale development to conserve natural and environmentally sensitive areas, allow PLANNING BOARD MINUTES - JULY 15, 1998 Cameron reported that the Board of Commissioners approved the Local Historic Landmarks Program on June 22 and Staff is in the process of notifying the applicants. d. Ordinance Review Committee Cameron reported that the Committee met prior to this Planning Board meeting to review items proposed for the August 26 public hearing. e. Shaping Orange County's Future Allison reported that a series of meetings have been scheduled for the next two months to edit and refine the information that was presented to the Assembly of Governments in June. Each issue will be better defined and the next steps can be determined. f. Bicycle Committee Selkirk reported that recommendations have been compiled and maps have been drawn of a bicycle plan for the County and State. Transportation and recreation routes have been determined; mileage and the costs for paving bike lanes has been tabulated; routes have been ridden and potential hazards have been tabulated by members of the committee and a final report is being prepared for presentation to the Planning Board. Once the report is presented to the Board of Commissioners, it can be determined whether the committee should continue to meet and prepare recommendations for funding at the State level. AGENDA ITEM #8: MATTERS HEARD AT JPA PUBLIC HEARING (4/8/98) 10, a. Joint Planning Agreement Amendment - Temporary Development Moratoria Presentation by Gene Bell. From time to time a development moratorium is appropriate in order to address exigent circumstances or the results of a study of density designations, plan classifications or other matters prescribed by the adopted Joint Planning Area Land Use Plan, the Joint Planning Area Land Use Plan Map or any of the land use ordinances of the Towns of chapel Hill and Carrboro for their Transition areas and Orange County for the Rural Buffer. Currently, the Joint Planning Agreement does not provide for development moratoria. The need for such a provision in the agreement was highlighted in October, 1997, when Carrboro proposed a moratorium on processing special use and conditional use permit applications in the Northern Study Area pending completion of land use ordinance amendments. Orange County did not object to Carrboro's Land Use Ordinance text amendments establishing a six month moratorium. The proposed amendment to the Joint Planning Agreement would preserve the status quo pending the consideration of a land use ordinance amendment designed to address exigent circumstances or the results of a study. It would allow for adoption of a moratorium of no more than six months. The amendment was approved by the Carrboro Board of Aldermen on May 26, 1998 and by the Chapel Hill Town Council on D June 8, 1998; the respective municipal resolutions are attachments to these minutes on pages .Z2 --�.5- This item will be presented to the Board of Commissioners at the September 1, 1998 meeting. The Planning Staff recommends approval of the proposed amendment to the Joint Planning Agreement. Strayhorn asked about the affect on minor subdivisions. Bell responded that minor subdivisions (5 lots or less) would not be included in the moratorium. McAdams asked if all three jurisdictions have to approve the moratorium for it to be in effect. Using a map, Bell indicated the areas affected which are the Chapel Hill Transition Area, Carrboro Transition Area and the Rural Buffer in Orange County. He noted that Chapel Hill could place a moratorium on its Transition Areas, Carrboro on its Transition Areas and Orange County on the Rural Buffer. Selkirk asked about the administrative process among the three jurisdictions for solving problems during the moratorium. Bell responded that the amendment has been proposed to address situations where changes are in progress such as the Carrboro Small Area Plan. It would set a cutoff date until the plan and implementing ordinances are through the process so that developers and/or landowners are not caught in the middle of that process. Barrows asked whether there had been a moratorium in this area in the recent past. Bell responded that there is no provision in the current Joint Planning Agreement for a moratorium. He continued that there has been one in the Carrboro Small Area Plan area which was a case in which the Carrboro Board of Aldermen voted to enact one and Orange County did not object if Carrboro wanted an extension to get through the planning and ordinance writing process. This amendment would establish definite guidelines for a moratorium. Woods asked the rationale for the exception for minor subdivisions. Bell responded that minor subdivisions are handled administratively in the office in Orange County. The applicant works one -on -one with Planning Staff, Register of Deeds, Land Records and County Attorney to meet requirements. The largest minor subdivision is five lots. On an average, minor subdivisions in Orange County are two lots. It is also a matter of impact; a minor subdivision of one or two lots as opposed to a major subdivision of fifteen to twenty lots (average size of a major subdivision in Orange County). Strayhorn stated that he felt it was very important to continue to allow minor subdivisions. He felt that there are times when the allowance of a minor subdivision prevents a major subdivision of a large tract of land. MOTION: Brooks moved approval as recommended by the Planning Staff. Seconded by Selkirk. VOTE: Unanimous.