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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 20060223APPROVED 5/4/2005 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS HILLSBOROUGH BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS JOINT MEETING February 23, 2006 7:30 p.m. The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a Joint Meeting with the Town of Hillsborough Commissioners on Thursday, February 23 at 7:30 p.m. in the Government Services Center, in Hillsborough, North Carolina. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Barry Jacobs and Commissioners Moses Carey, Valerie P. Foushee, Alice M. Gordon, and Stephen H, Halkiotis COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: TOWN OF HILLSBOROUGH COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Mayor Tom Stevens and Commissioners Eric Hallman, Michael Gering, Brian Lowen, and Evelyn Lloyd TOWN OF HILLSBOROUGH COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Frances Dancy TOWN OF HILLSBOROUGH STAFF PRESENT: Tawn Manager Eric Peterson COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: Geof Gledhill COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager John M. Link, Jr., Assistant County Managers Rod Visser and Gwen Harvey, and Deputy Clerk to the Board David Hunt {All other staff will be identified below). NOTE: ALL DOCLTNIENTS REFERRED TO IN THESE 1VIINUTES ARE IN THE PERNL~NENT AGENDA FILE IN THE CLERh'S OFFICE. Chair Jacobs welcomed the group. He said that he read in the paper today that the Pittsbaro elected officials met with the Chatham County Commissioners for the third time in 16 years. He thinks that this is the 6t" straight year that the Orange County Commissioners and the Hillsborough Town Board has met. This is a goad tradition of communication. Mayor Stevens said that there are a lot of detailed items on the agenda. He made reference to the recent experience with the Town Board Retreat and said that he was very pleased that there is agreement on the Town Board concerning the future of Hillsborough. The Hillsborough Tawn Board sees it as a vibrant community that continues to grow and has a long history in preserving the historical aspects as well as the natural resources. They would like to see businesses growing and would like to keep Hillsboruogh an affordable place to live. He said that the Town Board set same priorities to focus on, which include quality services for citizens, encouraging economic development, planning for growth and development, ensuring public safety, and maintaining and enhancing the quality of life. They look forward to continuing to work with the County. Chair Jacobs said that they appreciate Hillsborough, the seat of Orange County government. He said that it has always been of interest to Orange County to improve its relationship with Hillsborough. He said that representatives from both entities met to fashion the agenda. 1. Fairview Vision a) Park Plans Environment and Resource Conservation Director Dave Stancil said that this has been a culmination of a number of years of discussion. He gave some background on the project. In 2004, the County and Town agreed to work together to develop a master plan for this site. The County and the Town adopted a memorandum of agreement that laid out the charge and the mission for the Fairview Master Plan Committee, which was able to accomplish the design in four meetings over three months. He made reference to page 3, which outlines the activities of the committee. He said that they knew going into this that they were likely to design facilities in excess of the available funding. The design has pods of activities. The southern pod includes a baseball/softball field, tennis courts, and basketball courts. They were able to make the facility easily accessible because of the boundary of streets. There is also a main trail that connects the southern pad with the police station. Page 5 lists the priorities that the committee came up with. Chair Jacobs asked the staff to mention why the entrance road makes the jag to the parking area and Marybeth Carr said that the road jogs to save a rather large Oak tree. Michael Gering asked about identifying the motor pool. Eric Peterson said that they have made some square footage estimates. He thinks that there is adequate space to do what needs to be done. Eric Hallman asked about the next steps. Dave Stancil said that the next step would be for the individual boards to consider and approve the master plan. Once that is done, the land swap for the public works site would need to be addressed. There is also some discussion about a possible memorandum of agreement regarding operation and maintenance of the park. Brian Lowen suggested that, once the master plan is approved, a large copy of the plan be made for the Fairview community. b) US Highway 70 Redevelopment Project Economic Development Director Dianne Reid said that this relates to the portion of US 70 from Lakeshore Drive west of old NC 86 to the commercially zoned property to the east of NC 86. Planning Director Craig Benedict said that the County worked with DOT with Moving Ahead funds aver the last few years to resurface the road out into Alamance County. This is the start of an infrastructure to improve the image. During the quarterly meetings with DOT, it was suggested that rights-of-way be acquired to have room for sidewalks and turn lanes, which will prime opportunities to leverage grant money for economic development funds available from the State. Eric Peterson said that they are waiting for both boards to endorse this sa that they can get approval for use of staff time, etc. They are anxious to get moving. Commissioner Halkiotis asked about the new Laundromat and the impressive sidewalk. He asked if the builder had to put that sidewalk in or if they did it on their own. Margaret Hauth said that it was required. Commissioner Halkiotis said that it enhances the whole area. Craig Benedict said that an important facet of redevelopment in an area with existing houses is tying a good roadway network sa that there is not a driveway every 50 feet. Hillsborough has some sidewalk and outdoor lighting regulations, and these are all facets of changing the image of the community. Chair Jacobs said that this is a great opportunity to do some smart growth/infill where the infrastructure is there. He said that he would like to ask each board to solicit people who would serve on a group for this project. Commissioner Halkiotis asked if this posed any threat to traditional neighbors and that eventually a saturation point is going to be met where existing homes may be taken down to make way for super homes. He said that Fairview is changing and it could be bought and sold. He asked if any kind of analysis would be done as part of the redevelopment project. Eric Peterson said that, as part of the strategic planning process, it identified west Hillsborough as probably more likely to create some kind of overlay district to help preserve the character of the community. Brian Lowen made reference to the Fairview meeting recently where it was mentioned that the starting price for houses in Kenion Grove {new development across the street) is $279,OOQ. This increases the property value in the area, and may cause tax bills to increase. He said that they should keep this in mind and include the community in this. c~ Animal Control John Link introduced Animal Services Director Bob Marotto. Bob Marotto said that there are issues throughout the Town and they have mechanisms to address these issues. In addition to enforcement, they want to stress education. He wants to listen to and record the issues. Commissioner Halkiotis said that he heard concerns from citizens when a dog park was mentioned for the Fairview Park. There are some roaming dog issues in Fairview. He wants to be of better service to the citizens of Fairview in dealing with this. Brian Lowen said that it would help to identify where the dogs are. He said that there were at least three or four dogs barking loudly at the Fairview substation tonight. He said that it would be a good idea to send out some kind of notification that if someone has a dog it must be licensed, etc. Bob Moratto said that they could work with the community on education and communication about the requirements. There are printed materials and they can do presentations. Brian Lowen will work with Bob Marotto on this. Gwen Harvey pointed out that they have the Animal Services Advisory Board, which brings diverse members of the community together to support the department around issues of concern. The present chair is from Hillsborough. She pointed out that Bab Moratto recently hired an Animal Control Manager, which will help with this service. Commissioner Carey asked what someone should do if they have a problem with barking dogs. Brian Lowen said that there needs to be some communication as to what they should do. Bob Moratto suggested working with the police department and other agencies so that there is a set of information. d} Policing Mayor Stevens said that there is a new Hillsborough Police Chief. He is concerned about the reputation of Fairview and that it is identified as a troubled area. He said that the law enforcement agencies are taking same important steps in the community. Eric Peterson made reference to the recent drive-by shooting and said that the Hillsborough Police Department has spent an enormous amount of time there recently. They have made some narcotics arrests, but there is still a lot of work to be done. Commissioner Halkiotis said that recently Durham made the Discovery Channel on being a center of major gang activity in the United States. He made reference to the report of three carloads of gang members coming from Durham to shoat up houses in Fairview. He asked if anyone had seen gang activity spilling into Fairview from Durham. Eric Peterson said that there are instances of gang-related activity. He does not think that there is a gang problem. Commissioner Foushee asked about the substation and how frequently it is staffed by police officers or deputies. Eric Peterson said that the community policing division has been there since it opened. There are five community-policing officers and an administrative position. The doors are open 9-5, but there is usually someone in there. Chair Jacobs said that they put this on the agenda merely to bring it to a higher level of visibility. They assume that the Sheriff and the Police Department are working closely together and are highly competent in what they do, but they want to encourage better cooperation. He asked them to keep the County Commissioners appraised if there is anything that they can do. e} Adequate Use of Space at Community Policing Center Chair Jacobs said that the County participated in the funding of the center and have reserved some space there. He said that he and Commissioner Halkiotis were surprised when it was brought to their attention that the County was not using the space as originally envisioned and that it might be of better use to Hillsbarough. John Link made reference to the information on pages 2 and 3. When the facility was built in 2002, there were two offices and a storage area. At that time, it was thought that the office space would be used for possible clinics or Social Services. The experience has been that the County has not had the occasion to use the two offices very much. The recommendation is to have the Space Committee look at the space again to see if anything has been overlooked, and if not, then it should be turned over to Hillsborough. Commissioner Carey verified that all department heads have knowledge of this space. Commissioner Gordon suggested that, as the park gets developed, that there might be a need far a presence of a Recreation and Parks employee. Commissioner Halkiotis agreed. He wants to move on with this and get a recommendation from the Space Committee. He was shocked to hear that the space was not being used. Eric Peterson said that Rev. Ronnie Torrain and Shakita Torrain have started the Hillsborough Neighborhood House with another pastor {didn't catch that name). They have been serving 60-70 meals a night Monday-Thursday. This has been done mostly out of the chapel kitchen and they desperately need at least some staging space. He said that he has been getting advice that somewhere along US 70 would be a perfect place to deliver those meals. Eric Peterson announced that there would be a focus group meeting next Tuesday for the Partnership to End Namelessness at 11:00 a.m. at the Town Barn. This is for elected officials only. There will be other meetings for staff, clergy, neighborhoods, and police departments. Commissioner Halkiotis said that he was going to go to this, but he has already committed to going with the seniors to visit senior centers. f} Habitat for Humanity Project Margaret Hauth said that the agenda materials address the bond request. The Town is considering annexation of the 18 lots and it will be coming to the HOME Program Consortium to reallocate the $100,000 they received last year to acquire and rehabilitate iwa houses. They want to use the money instead toward 18 houses to help fund some of the sewer improvements and utility extensions to serve these lots. Gwen Harvey said that the Board of County Commissioners' role in this is to approve the reallocation of the HOME dollars to be used to assist in the purchase price by Habitat. Margaret Hauth clarified that there are bond funds for the purchase price and HOME funds for the sewer system. The current property owner has donated eight lots and Habitat is purchasing the remaining lots. Chair Jacobs asked about the triangle in the middle and if it was same kind of dedicated open space. Margaret Hauth said that it was not dedicated, but as long as she can remember, the lots have been plotted that way. Chair Jacobs wants to look into this as part of the purchase for the Habitat project. Commissioner Gordon said that it should be investigated for the passibility of a neighborhood park. There would have to be an access. Chair Jacobs verified that this is Habitat's initiative and not the Town's. This suggestion will be conveyed to Habitat. Brian Lowen said that all of them support this project. His concern is that the Town Board wants to annex that property. He said that this area and other areas that abut the town limits are really bad, in that there are run dawn trailers, garbage strewn around, etc. Since it is not in their jurisdiction, they cannot send their code enforcement officer out there to do anything about it. This troubles him because when Habitat tries to sell these homes, if that section of Tulip Tree is not cleaned up, no one will buy the homes. He wants the Tawn to work with the County to help control the garbage that is around there. Geof Gledhill said that the County has regulations that would help with this, except they are in the land use plan regulations and the County does not have land use plan jurisdiction in this area. Craig Benedict said that the County does have land use zoning regulations and they could look at the regulations to find out if there are excerpts or some standards that Hillsborough could adopt within its jurisdiction. The County can amend its regulations also. The Town and the County could jointly look at the best zoning enforcement regulations. Discussion ensued about how to enforce the regulations. Commissioner Halkiotis suggested having the County and the Town Attorneys sit down together and figure out how to make this happen and not let it became another Hoyle King matter. Both Boards agreed. gj Town Public Works Facility Siting by Temporary Solid Waste Convenience Center Rod Visser said that the lease for the solid waste convenience center on Highway 57 is expiring on April 1 ~, but the owner of the property has agreed to extend the lease on a bi- monthly basis. In the meantime, the County is looking for permanent and temporary solutions. Chair Jacobs pointed out that anything the County does will be with full community knowledge and participation. One of the sites will help Hillsborough clear for its Public Works facility. The County Commissioners want to confirm that this would indeed help Hillsborough. Eric Peterson said yes. Commissioner Halkiotis said that they asked for a survey to see how many Hillsborough residents that are using the 57 center and there are a lot of residents. It is also a Town issue, and he suggested doing something combined. 2. Planning & Inspections aj Courtesy ReviewlPlanning Process Craig Benedict said that the courtesy review process has been working well. The County has been providing comments in various categories -transportation, senior citizen services, etc. He thinks that there could be some improvement in the communication about annexation proposals. The County has been getting calls from residents that have been approached by future developers of land presently in Orange County and they ask him what is going on and he has no idea. He suggested adding annexation feasibility analyses to the courtesy review process. Chair Jacobs would also like to add that the Town's fiscal analysis might be augmented by the County's fiscal analysis. For example, the changing of housing types at Waterstone has implications on school capacity. Commissioner Halkiotis made reference to senior housing and said that transportation becomes an issue when seniors need to go for non-emergency appointments, etc. This also needs to be considered. John Link said that this is an excellent point to include in proposals for senior housing facilities and whether the facility would provide transport for medical appointments. The facilities should provide this transportation. This is done in other communities. Craig Benedict said that since they have done the courtesy review agreement, there is more awareness of public transit and the programs that the County and Town have been discussing regarding traffic situations in downtown Hillsborough. Orange County is in the process of putting together a plan of handling downtown parking needs. b) Eno Mountain RoadlMaya Street Realignment Craig Benedict made reference to the Orange Grove Road Access Management group and said that there were two Commissioners each from the County and the Towns in 2003 with some community involvement. The recommendations were that, as growth continues, that the road would not be overburdened with traffic. There have been some road improvements. One of the discussions was to realign Eno Mountain Road and Maya Street so that signalization could occur. This would provide better access to west Hillsborough. If right-of-way can be acquired during the development process, there are funds from DOT for economic development. DOT will not spend money if they have to acquire right-of-way. Chair Jacobs said that this was one of the Orange Grove Road Access Management Plan's chief recommendations. He also thinks that it was recognized in the TIP. c} Renovatiansllnspectians far Historic Structures Margaret Hauth said that in September, the Town forwarded a letter to the County regarding the support of the rehab code and an issue raised by the Historic District Commission about the separated nature of the processes. Projects can be reviewed and approved by the Historic District Commission to achieve the appropriate look and material composition and by the time the appropriate building code is applied, it might change the look and materials. There is not a good feedback process established. One suggestion was a series of workshops far cross-training and cross-education so that the Commission will understand the building code and the building inspectors might understand what the Commission does better. Susan Mellot said that the rehab code was adopted by the State of North Carolina in January 2006, and was made available as an alternate code last year. Commissioner Halkiotis asked about some of the stumbling issues. Margaret Hauth said that when someone wants to expand or renovate an upstairs that was previously an attic and raise the roof slightly, there is a requirement for an appropriate sized egress, which requires a certain sized window that might not be compliant with the look. This is one example. Craig Benedict said that there are two codes -there is an existing building code and a rehab code and you cannot mix and match those. Susan Mellot said that they have a quick response team that they worked on with the Historic Preservation Committee in Orange County, and one ar two members are part of the team. When they did a demolition permit application through their office within Orange County's jurisdiction, they alert the quick response team member, and they ga out and assess whether or not the building is of historic district interest. They also have set rules to weed out any newer structures. If the building cannot be salvaged, they at least get a photographic registry of the building. This is a pilot program that started last fall. Eric Hallman said that he wants to relay a request from a citizen that they not only consider structures, but "things in the ground." He said that a beautiful millrace was pushed down recently. Chair Jacobs suggested asking the Historic Preservation Commission and the Historic District Commission to meet jointly to share some ideas and concerns and ask the staff to attend to explain how inspections are done. Michael Gering said that he remembers a request from the Historic District Commission that the Town Board approved to collaborate with the County on issues like this. Margaret Hauth said that the request was for a series of workshops for the cross-training and education. Dates have not been set for this. Craig Benedict said that Susan Mellot has tied in a connectivity for the building permit and zoning permit process to exchange information. This has augmented the communication. 3. Justice Facilities Update Purchasing and Central Services Director Pam Jones said that the justice facility is moving forward. The building that is being done at this point has graven to 38,000 square feet. There have been a number of committees and they are down to finalizing floor plans. There are two other elements -River Park and the farmers market. There is some work to look at the building alternatives for the farmers market and how the structure will be done. The Sheriff will move to the new facility and the present building will be incorporated into the overall use for court facilities. The biggest challenge with this project will be parking. They are looking at parking differently and considering park and ride lots. This plan will be unveiled in April and it will be brought to the Town for approval. Commissioner Gordon made reference to the off-site parking and said that they need to work out what they are doing. She thought they were going to look at multiple solutions and she did not know that they converged an one solution. Pam Jones said that the County Commissioners would have an opportunity to look at the parking plan. Mayor Stevens commended the County for the idea of using the Sportsplex for a park and ride option. He said that it would be a huge economic impact if the courts were to move out of town. This is a big concern for the merchants. Commissioner Halkiotis verified that the economic viability of downtown really needs the County to keep as much of its operation in this vicinity. He said that in years past people have wanted the County government operations moved out of Hillsborough and brought closer to Chapel Hill. Chair Jacobs said that it is important for the County, if it is going to continue to develop in downtown Hillsborough, that the Town needs to help by working creatively with the parking standards and other requirements so that everything can fit. There needs to be some flexibility. Eric Hallman and Mayor Stevens both said that they want the County operations to stay in downtown Hillsborough. 4. Hillsborough Strategic Plan Update Margaret Hauth made reference to the draft list of common goals that the steering committee developed. The committee has met twice and there is a good start. They hope to have a draft plan out in the fall. There will be a public involvement process before the end of the year. Hopefully by the end of next week, they should have a very strong presence on the Town's website. ~. Mountains to Sea Trail Chair Jacobs said that the County Commissioners had this presented to them previously and there were some questions. Environment and Resource Conservation Director Dave Stancil made reference to the map that identifies the corridor. He said that the trail has been around far many years, but there has been a gap in the Piedmont area, specifically how one would get from Greensboro to Falls Lake. The Town Board is waiting to hear about using the River Walk as a conduit for the trail as it goes into the Eno River State Park. One of the most recent ideas is to use the Cane CreeklSeven Mile Creek Connector, which would use some of the lands around Cane Creek Reservoir and move north and connect lands that the County holds towards the Eno River. The other idea has been using the Lebanon Road corridor as a road-oriented corridor coming east out of Alamance County. There were also discussions about a New Hope Creek corridor. Margaret Hauth pointed out that this is not to be seen as a facility that would be parallel to the Appalachian Trail, but as a day hike where people would do more of a loop. Commissioner Halkiotis asked about haw much State money would be available far this. Dave Stancil said that there is a lot of hope that The Land for Tomorrow campaign next year will put a lot of money into the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund. Commissioner Gordon said that the Intergovernmental Parks Work Group discussed using the Hillsborough River Walk and was supportive of Hillsborough's position. Eric Hallman said that the Town Board discussed this and, at a previous Intergovernmental Parks Work Group meeting, he heard that it was possible that the trail would bypass Orange County altogether. The Town Board tasked the Parks and Recreation Board to try and gather as many different entities to sign onto this so that they could make a statement of commitment to the trail and that Orange County wants to be first in line. Chair Jacobs said that it was put on this agenda so that if there are no objections, the County Commissioners could put it on one of their agendas to endorse it. He encouraged the Town Board to look at The Land far Tomorrow and endorsing that effort because it will make monies available to make things like this happen. Mayor Stevens said that he received a resolution from the Town of Carrboro in support. Commissioner Gordon pointed out that Bill Strom from the Town of Chapel Hill said that they had endorsed it also. Eric Hallman asked who would be the lead to gather the resolutions as a unified resolution to the State and Chair Jacobs said that they could ask the staffs to get together to talk about the next step. Chair Jacobs said that he was comfortable supporting going from Hillsborough east, but then there needs to be more discussion about which of the routes going west is the most beneficial. There also needs to be some information about how the State has acquired the land and the public process. 6. Items of Mutual Interest a) Eno River Confluence Dave Stancil said that it might be timely to bring together different jurisdictions and stakeholders of the Eno River -either far conservation purposes, water and sewer provision purposes, etc. They are looking at trying to find some time in early April for a meeting to discuss basic principles for the river corridor. Chair Jacobs asked the Town Board to submit comments to Dave Stancil or him. Michael Gering suggested including the Water and Sewer Advisory Committee in Hillsborough. b) Library Facilities in Hillsborough Chair Jacobs made reference to the resolution sent to the Town of Hillsborough, which was an attempt to try and articulate a principal that they walk in partnership. If there were going to be a County library, it would not be a function of Hillsborough. A neighborhood library or a cybrary would require some collaboration. It would not be a huge cost, but doing something in common to make sure that there is an adequate presence in downtown Hillsborough for a neighborhood library. He said that they appreciate the historic contribution that Hillsborough made far library services this year. Commissioner Halkiotis said that he visited the temporary library facility in the mobile unit while the library was being renovated and was intrigued by the number of walk-ins from the immediate neighborhood to access the Internet every morning. He asked if there has been a survey of how many people using the County library come from Hillsborough versus rural areas. He asked for this information. Chair Jacobs said that since they had the first library services task force meeting, they have been talking about a Heritage Center, which was proposed by the Historic Community in Hillsborough. There are a lot of documents not available to the public because there is not space to display them or make them available. One of the long-term goals in improving the library services has been to create a Heritage Center where the documents would be protected and made available. Eric Hallman said that the Orange County Museum and Burwell School would like to talk about the document storage. Chair Jacobs suggested that they talk to Library Services Director Brenda Stephens because there is some money available if there is a facility that could be renovated or improved. With no further items to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 10:00 p.m. Barry Jacobs, Chair Donna S. Baker Clerk to the Board