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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 03-05-2003 - 6bf ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: March 5, 2003 Action Agen Item No. -~ SUBJECT:. Friends of Bolin Creek Presentation DEPARTMENT: Environment and Resource PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No Conservation ATTACHMENT 1) Presentation Summary 2) Map of Bolin Creek (under separate cover) INFORMATION CONTACT: David Stancil, 245-2590 Rich Shaw, 245-2591 Durham 688-7331 Mebane 336-227-2031 TELEPHONE NUMBERS: Hillsborough 732-8181 Chapel Hill 968-4501 PURPOSE: To receive a brief presentation from the "Friends of Bolin Creek," anewly- formed conservation group interested in preservation of the Bolin Creek corridor. BACKGROUND: In April 2002, a group of citizens interested in preservation of the Bolin Creek corridor came together for an initial meeting. The group, constituted in July 2002 as the "Friends of Bolin Creek," .have since met on several occasions to discuss strategies to preserve the creek corridor, which stretches from Eubanks Road and areas northwest of Carrboro through Chapel Hill before merging with Booker Creek near the Durham County line (as it enters the New Hope/Jordan Lake system). In recent months, the "Friends of Bolin Creek" have made presentations to the Carrboro Board of Aldermen and Chapel Hill Town Council regarding a proposal to create a Bolin Creek Corridor Open Space Master Plan, using the model created in the late-1980's for the New Hope Creek Corridor Master Plan. Representatives from the Friends have requested an opportunity to present the Master Plan concept to the Board, and a summary of their presentation is attached along with a map (produced using data from the County's Comprehensive Resource database) of the corridor. Specific County interests in the Bolin Creek corridor include much of the headwaters portion of the basin which is in the Joint Planning Area, the 193-acre Chapel Hill Township Park and Educational Campus site, and the joint efforts to purchase and preserve the Adams Tract in 2 Carrboro. Some of the properties in the corridor were identified in the County's Inventory of Natural Areas and Wildlife Habitat and are thus priorities in the Lands Legacy Program. FINANCIAL IMPACT: The group's presentation materials make note of a request to help identify funding sources for a consultant to develop the Open Space Master Plan. Among the potential sources noted are County "Open Space bond funds" and grants from the Clean Water Management Trust Fund and Land and water Conservation Fund. The estimated total cost of the consultant services is $30-50,000. RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board receive the presentation and discuss the group's request, and that the proposal be placed on the April 9~' Joint Planning Public Hearing or the April 29'h Assembly of Governments agenda for discussion by Chapel Hill, Carrboro and County elected boards. CREATING AN OPEN SPACE MASTER PLAN FOR THE BOLIN CREEK CORRIDOR Presentation to the Orange County Board of Commissioners (February 17, 2003) Summary of presentation to be made by Dave Otto, Chairman of the Friends of Bolin Creek; Doug Nicholas, Liaison from Triangle Land Conservancy; and Julie McClintock, Public Relations Chairman for FoBC. We want to make you aware that the Friends of Bolin Creek have initiated a campaign to preserve this special corridor which runs from the northern transition area of Carrboro through the Horace Williams Tract and then eastward through Carrboro and Chapel Hill to merge with Booker Creek east of the 15-501 bypass. The Bolin Creek Corridor includes one of the last stretches of significant native forest habitat left in southern Orange County. At several public meetings last year, we were encouraged by the enthusiasm of many citizens who also desire to help us save this creek and the lands around it. We believe that creating a Bolin Creek Corridor Open Space Master Plan is the next appropriate step in our community's effort to save and preserve Bolin Creek. We envision a process similar to that used in developing the New Hope Creek Corridor Master Plan more than ten years ago. In that case, the governing boards of Chapel Hill, Orange County, Durham and Durham County passed a common resolution recognizing the value of the New Hope Creek Corridor. The governing boards appointed an Advisory Committee representing each of the jurisdictions that worked with planning staffs and a consultant to prepare an Open Space Master Plan. On February 17 we will be presenting an overview of our concept and asking Orange County to join with Chapel Hill and Carrboro to begin a similar process for the study of the Bolin Creek Corridor. We propose that the three governing bodies appoint an Advisory Committee representing each of the jurisdictions and other key stakeholders along the following lines. We recommend that the Advisory Committee be composed of 15 members, four each appointed by Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Orange County, and one each appointed by key stakeholders including UNC-Chapel Hill (Horace Williams Committee), Duke University (Duke Forest interest in the northern reaches of the corridor) and OWASA. We suggest that the governing bodies appoint representatives asfollows: an elected member of the board or designated representative; amember of agovernmental environmental advisory committee; a member of the Friends of Bolin Creek Steering Committee residing in that jurisdiction; and a landowner in proximity to Bolin Creek residing in that jurisdiction. The Advisory Committee will be charged with hiring a consultant and working with that consultant and planning staffs to conduct a thorough biological examination of this valuable regional resource, leading to recommendations to guide its protection. A significant aspect of this study will be to integrate current planning processes initiated by the three jurisdictions and other key stakeholders. Additionally, we ask the County to assist in funding or in identifying funding sources to hire a consultant to develop the Open Space Corridor Master Plan described above. (Possible funding sources outside operating budgets include Orange County Open Space bond funds, the 4 ~' NC Clean Water Management Trust Fund and the US Land & Water Conservation Fund) We have obtained rough consulting estimates ranging from $30,000-$50,000. We made a similar request to the Chapel Hill Town Council last November and the Carrboro Board of Aldermen in January. Both towns responded enthusiastically to our proposal. We are keenly aware of the success of the New Hope Master Plan which has served as a blueprint in identifying critical parcels for acquisition and protection over the past decade and believe that this approach will be similarly useful in guiding the acquisition and preservation of the Bolin Creek Corridor. Why should we preserve the Bolin Creek Corridor? We believe the following four reasons are very important: (1) With burgeoning growth in southern Orange County, this is a critical period where it is essential to carefully manage urban growth in the Bolin Creek Watershed. If the watershed is not preserved over the next few years, the opportunity will be lost forever. Although the Chapel Hill sections of the watershed are largely built out, construction upstream in Carrboro and the Northern Transition Zone could have enormous impact on the entire watershed, exacerbating the chronic flood problems in the University MalUCameiot Apartments area. (2) There is an important need to establish connectivity of natural areas, existing and planned parks and greenways. Chapel Hill has built a very popular, extensively used greenway/bikeway stretching along Bolin Creek from the Community Center on Estes Drive to Airport Road, but it is a long way from there to the headwaters! It is our dream to continue the Chapel Hill Greenway from Airport Road to Umstead Park and Estes Drive, to have the state DOT restore the streambed under Estes Drive Extension and build a bridge over the creek wide enough to allow wildlife and greenway corridors (as part of the improvements that will be made to Estes Drive to accommodate traffic to the new Horace Williams Campus), connect to Wilson Park and the planned Carrboro Greenway, run connectors to Seawell Elementary, Smith Middle and Chapel Hill High Schools, a possible connector along the tributary which arises on the Greene Tract, and another segment continuing through Winmore up Jones Creek to the planned County Park. (3) We want to preserve the last intact stretches of native forest habitat remaining in southern Orange County. Two studies by Triangle Land Conservancy within the last five years identified much of the forest areas in the Horace Williams Tract and the Northern Transition Zone as botanically sensitive and ecologically valuable (A Landscape With Wildlife for Orange County and A Landscape With Wildlife for Orange County, Part II by Haven Wiley, Steve Hall and Livy Ludington). Another natural treasure is the Adams Tract, about 30 acres between Estes Drive and Wafters Road in Carrboro. This jewel is an important gateway and access to the park and preserve that we want to establish. Carrboro has already obtained about 200K from the NC Clean Water Management Trust Fund, has requested 750K bond funds from Orange County, and is exploring a variety of other funding sources to purchase this tract. We view acquisition of the Adams Tract as the first critical step in realizing the proposed master plan! 5 (4) We want to leave a natural legacy that our children, our grandchildren and future generations can enjoy. Christopher Alexander and his colleagues have expressed it well in A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction: "When the countryside is far away, the city becomes a prison" and "Every city inhabitant should be within a 10 minute walk of a natural area." We have. a critical opportunity to preserve the natural corridor along Bolin Creek before it is engulfed by the rising tide of development in this area. It is essential to act now while considerable open space still exists! We will be coming to you on Monday, February 17, to request your support- political, physical, monetary and spiritual. Realization of this dream will require the joint efforts and support of many people and many jurisdictions-Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Orange County, the State of North Carolina, and perhaps the federal government. It is a dream that has the enthusiastic support of a large cross-section of the local population- hikers, joggers, dog-walkers, bikers and nature lovers. We respectfully invite you to join and support us in our efforts to create a Bolin Creek Corridor Open Space Master Plan! ~ `7. {~.,' <> ~~ ~" ~ ~ sl .Area 1 Bolin .Creek Stu~dY >, U ~~ ~'-~ O ~ Chapel Nili ,~ ~~~ r~ • - t ~ ~~` -, ' ~ ,, r ~ ~'~~/ td i i 1 ~ ~ . • ~t ~:~ c ~ 'a ,~ '.~~ "~ ., ~ ~ ,1' ~ ~~_'. .M, Carrboro r T ~ peat ° X00 _~ County parcel Boundary p City N,,,t~cate, 6YP~s S~°~-S ~ Natural ~~ reeriwaY n, f Railroad ~arrb°rO ~ /~```! 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