Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 20060912APPROVED 1 011 712 0 0 6 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING September 12, 2006 7:30 p.m. The Orange County Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, September 12, 2006 at 7:30 p.m. in the F. Gordon Battle Courtroom in Hillsborough, North Carolina. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Barry Jacobs and Commissioners Moses Carey, Jr., Valerie P. Foushee, Alice M. Gordon, and Stephen Halkiotis COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: Geoffrey Gledhill COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: Interim County Manager Rod Visser, Assistant County Manager Gwen Harvey, and Clerk to the Board Donna S. Baker {All other staff members will be identified appropriately below} NOTE: ALL DOCUMENTS REFERRED TO IN THESE MINUTES ARE IN THE PERMANENT AGENDA FILE IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE. ALL RECORDINGS OF THE MEETING WILL BE KEPT FOR 5 YEARS. Chair Jacobs introduced Rod Visser as Interim County Manager. 1. Additions or Changes to the Agenda Chair Jacobs said that there has been a request to move Item 6-Resolutions, ahead of the consent agenda, and the Board agreed. PUBLIC CHARGE The Chair dispensed with the reading of the public charge. 2. Public Comments a. Matters not an the Printed Agenda Steve Piscitelli said that he is on the board of HYAA Baseball. He thanked the board for helping to fund baseball at $22,000 each year. He said that this money allows them to keep registration affordable and helps with free registration for those families that cannot pay. He gave an update on youth baseball. He said that every year 500 children play in the spring and 250 play in the fall. They now have a t-ball league in the fall and fall registration is up. He gave demographics on the kids that play. He said that HYAA is a volunteer organization. Earl Tye is the President of the Board of HYAA. He said that HYAA has had board turnover this past year and they have been talking about their future and their facilities. They have 47 teams in the spring and 25 in the fall. They maintain all of the fields and equipment an a volunteer basis. They are having some logistical issues with using different field locations. They have looked at what they might want to have on a permanent basis because they have been leasing the fields. They have developed a plan to use 15 acres to accommodate a complex and they just found out that the Collins property is no longer available. They have had conversations with the Town of Hillsborough, Recreation and Parks, and some individual County Commissioners. They want to make the Board aware that this is very critical to them and the community. He said that they would try to work to make this dream happen. He said that they bring a lot to the community and this can be a collaborative effort. Chair Jacobs said that the Town of Hillsborough decided last night with the developers of the Collins property to have an open house far the public to talk about what the community would like to see on this property in the future. b. Matters on the Printed Agenda (These matters were considered when the Board addressed that item on the agenda below.} 3. Board Comments Commissioner Carey congratulated Commissioner Halkiotis because at the NCACC meeting this past weekend he received acknowledgement for his 20 years of service as a County Commissioner. Commissioner Carey said that the NCACC has decided to rebuild its partnership with state government because the partnership has eroded over the past few years. Some of it will come in the form of a legislative committee, especially with fiscal matters. This will be the first look at this fiscal relationship issue since the 1930's and a report will be given to the legislature by May 1St. He said that they would also look at Medicaid relief issues and putting the entire burden on the State. Commissioner Halkiotis said that at the last meeting of the Commissioners, he had distributed pictures of foliage under power lines that had turned brown due to the use of herbicides by Duke Power. He said that after that meeting, Duke Power sent a crew out to cut and clean these areas up. He said that it would have been more cast effective to have done this to begin with instead of using herbicides and then cutting. Chair Jacobs said that he forwarded the information on the herbicide used by Duke Power an this vegetation to Cooperative Extension and they made comments, which he forwarded to the Commission for the Environment. He said that many people in Orange County are organic farmers and they need to be very sensitive and not have this kind of spraying near the properties using organic farming. Commissioner Halkiotis said that he would like to nominate an outstanding employee of Orange County government for recognition. He said that far several years this employee has been consistent in his treatment of all citizens that come in contact with him. He thinks that he is an unheralded outstanding ambassador of goodwill and positive human relations. This afternoon he visited this employee's place of work and he witnessed this employee helping people at the solid waste convenience center. He said that he thought there was a policy for convenience center employees that they are not supposed to empty trash out of citizens' cars, but today this employee helped an elderly man. He thanked the employee for his assistance in helping this citizen. The employee is Leon Morrow. He said that Mr. Marrow told him that he does not mind helping the elderly because someday we are all going to be elderly. Commissioner Halkiotis distributed a PowerPoint handout from the NCACC conference. He said that this group from the Emerging Trends talked about North Carolina's inconsistent revenue stream. He reviewed the hand out. Commissioner Halkiotis said that the meeting of the Energy Task Force was a good meeting and Noah Rannells, Kevin Lindley, and Wayne Fenton are the energy conservation team. He said that they would be bringing a report to the Commissioners in November. They have talked about using different modes of transportation for getting between County buildings. He said that the group talked about, in retrofitting new buildings that they should put in shower facilities for those that want to bicycle to work. He said that this group of employees has come together and they are beginning to gel. He pointed out that there are no bicycle racks at any of the County buildings. Commissioner Gordan said that she attended the Commission far the Environment meeting last night and they discussed this herbicide report. She said that Karen McAdams of Cooperative Extension has said that the chemicals used by Duke Power were within the limits. She said that the commission asked if there was anything officially that Orange County could da. Rod Visser will look into this. Commissioner Gordon said that Ed Holland from OWASA talked about bio-solids at the Commission far the Environment meeting. It seems that OWASA is accumulating bio-solids faster than they can disperse them. The OWASA board wants to gather information about spraying in the water supply watersheds of University Lake and Cane Creek. OWASA also wants to know if the County would be interested in working with them in any way to see if there is a local use for this waste. Commissioner Gordon said that TTA is having the Smart Commute Challenge until September 30~"and she asked Rod Visser to get this information to all County employees. Commissioner Gordon asked the Chair and Vice-Chair when they were going to make a recommendation about the process for the water resources position. Rod Visser said that they met with the Chair and Vice-Chair and the Chairs and Co-Chairs of the Board of Health and the Commission for the Environment and they talked about how the two boards could get a better understanding of their respective roles and responsibilities and how that could lead to a meeting of a smaller subgroup of those two boards. They decided that the two whole boards would meet in a facilitated meeting and to have Andy Sachs from the Dispute Settlement Center to facilitate this meeting. Commissioner Gordon asked if they were going to recommend to the Commissioners a process and Rod Visser said that the main thing is for both boards to get a better understanding of recommendations for this water resources position. Commissioner Gordan said that she thought the Chair and the Vice-Chair were to develop a process. Chair Jacobs said that they are going to hire a facilitator for both boards to discuss this. Commissioner Gordon said that she would like for the Chair and Vice-Chair to come back with a process to this Board. She thinks that the Board of County Commissioners should give a charge to this group. Commissioner Halkiotis said that years ago he could have solved this issue in fifteen seconds. He finds it amazing that the two boards appointed by the Board of County Commissioners have extremely divergent views of haw this one position should be used. He does not understand why adults cannot resolve an issue. He said that the recommendation of letting Andy Sachs facilitate these full boards is good. He said that both subgroups of the two boards were in agreement. He thinks that the process is reasonable. Commissioner Carey asked if anybody has talked with OWASA about funding this position with Orange County. Chair Jacobs said that he will bring this up in his comments. Commissioner Gordon said that it would make sense to have the small group meet before the larger group, to get the meeting set up. Chair Jacobs said that they are going to do the larger groups first. Commissioner Gordon disagreed. Chair Jacobs said that the idea is not to settle this issue but to explore the areas of commonality of the two groups, and they wanted to give the boards an opportunity to meet and talk about this process. Commissioner Gordon said that they need to come back to the Board of County Commissioners because the group needs a charge, and it was agreed that there would be a report to the Commissioners. Commissioner Gordon said that she will not be able to get to the 5:30 p.m. meeting on September 14t" until 6:00 p.m. and Commissioner Carey said that he would also be late to this meeting with the DSS Board. Commissioner Foushee said that the Human Services Advisory Commission would be holding its annual forum -Communities Responding to an Aging Society - on September 20t" at the Chapel Hill Bible Church. Chair Jacobs said that the Board asked the County Engineer to apprise them of water levels in the reservoir and he noted that every reservoir in the County is below capacity. Even though there has been an excess of rainfall for the year, the area is categorized as abnormally dry. Chair Jacobs said that he and the Vice-Chair met with the Chair of the OWASA Board and OWASA officials last week and they talked about formalizing communications on partnerships and the possibility of applying bio-solids on County park land in exchange for developing a park site in Bingham Township at the corner of NC 54 and Orange Grove Road. They also asked OWASA to contact the Commission for the Environment to talk about the possibility of composting. He would like to direct the staff to look at working with OWASA because the County is spending tens of thousands of dollars a year to ship food waste to Goldston for someone else to recycle it. He would like to see the feasibility and benefits of working with OWASA on this. OWASA is also interested in participating in this water resources discussion and they were invited to attend the larger group meeting. Chair Jacobs said that they had their quarterly meeting with DOT representatives. A report will be coming from Karen Lincoln about this meeting. A couple of roads are going to be changed, including the intersection of Walnut Grove Church Road and NC 86 that will be squared off. There will be a concrete divider so that people cannot cut through the parking lot or the store at the corner. Chair Jacobs said that he and Commissioner Foushee have been attending the meetings of the Carolina North group and they keep trying to remind people of the importance of including the County in discussions of the impacts of a facility that will create 10-20,000 jobs. The impacts will be significant for the rest of Orange County, especially in terms of transportation. He made reference to the minutes of the August 7t" meeting of the City of Mebane and information that was received from the Burlington-Graham MPO, a transit survey of the City of Mebane residents. He would like to get this information and find out where people from Mebane are going because the Chair and Vice-Chair met with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Alamance County Commissioners and they expressed an interest in trying to get their citizens to UNC through public transportation. Chair Jacobs said that at the Triangle J Council of Governments meeting today they received a presentation on the Community Transportation Systems Study. This is regarding Human Services transportation. He said that he conveyed to them that, although the County remains committed to regional solutions to problems, the consultants would have to convince the County Commissioners that the level of service for Orange County would not be adversely impacted by merging the three systems under TTA. There will be a report back in February. Chair Jacobs said that there was a meeting yesterday with a number of staff members and the Chair and Vice-Chair regarding tax assistance for people of low income that are seniors and perhaps others. He said that they would prepare a series of possibilities to discuss at the County Commissioners' retreat. He said that there are only three counties in North Carolina that are trying to do anything like this. Chair Jacobs said that, since the last regularly scheduled meeting, they have dedicated the Government Services Center as the John M. Link, Jr. Government Services Center in honor of the service of John Link who was County Manager for 18'/ years. They will now refer to this building as the Link Center. Chair Jacobs made reference to an article in the newspaper that Carrboro has instituted an online services help desk for citizens where citizens can go to one place and it refers them to the appropriate staff person. He would like to ask the Clerk and Information Technology to look at this and to see if this is something they want to pursue to improve customer service. Chair Jacobs said that the County has started to do cultural and archeological studies on any property that it builds on and staff will be bringing a policy for the Board to adopt that codifies this, that any project that the County is going to fund that there be this type of study on the land. He would like to ask the Planning Board to look at adding this to their ordinances for large developments. He would like to ask Planning staff to flesh this out for the November Quarterly Public Hearing. 4. County Manager's Report Rod Visser asked Fletcher Barber, Director of Cooperative Extension, to introduce the new Cooperative Extension Agent. Fletcher Barber introduced Mark Danile. He is a native of Alamance County and comes to Orange County from Randolph County. He has a degree from N. C. State in horticultural sciences. He will be responsible for all of the commercial and residential horticulture to include pesticide education and master gardener education and some agricultural areas to help relieve Karen McAdams. He has over 20 years of experience. Mark Danile said that when he first looked at this position back in January, he heard lots of good comments about this department and he is pleased to be working here. Chair Jacobs asked him about his Treasure Tree program and Mark Danile said that they started cataloguing the historic and significant trees in Randolph County and he is interested in working on this in Orange County. Chair Jacobs said that he would steer him to the Commission for the Environment. Rod Visser made reference to an announcement from OCS about the delayed opening of Gravelly Hill Middle School to early November. He said that there was some discussion that the delays were unwarranted, and he pointed out that this was nat delayed because information was not addressed by County staff members. He said that County staff members and the County Attorney have been meeting weekly since the end of June to make sure that nothing fell through the cracks. He said that the delays were related to bringing water to the site and to making sure that it was sanitary. Commissioner Gordon asked Rod Visser to refresh everyone's memory about what the County did to try to expedite the process. Rod Visser said that the County had intended to rely on a federal grant to provide infrastructure but there were delays last fall from the federal end, and then the Board made a decision to use grant money later and to use County money instead. Commissioner Halkiotis said that the County also put in $1.5 million to upgrade water and sewer, including upgrades in Mebane, and then it put another $60,000 far underground power lines, and then another $37,000 in relocating Mebtel's telephone lines. He said that all the County has done is shown commitment and more commitment to this project. 6. Resolutions or Proclamations a. Resolution Honoring Turnabout Goat Farm The Board considered recognizing Turnabout Goat Farm, recently named North Carolina Meat Goat Association's 2005 Breeder of the Year for Percentage Goats. Noah Rannells introduced the owners Amy Mabe and Earl Brewer. He read the resolution. A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Carey to approve a resolution recognizing Turnabout Goat Farm, recently named North Carolina Meat Goat Association's 2005 Breeder of the Year for Percentage Goats. RESOLUTION HONORING TURNABOUT GOAT FARM WHEREAS, Orange County takes pride in all farmers and agricultural enterprises that enhance the County; and WHEREAS, local farms that produce breeding stock fill a critical niche in animal production by providing breeding stock to commercial livestock producers at all scales of production; and WHEREAS, farming heritage is a strong asset to all residents of Orange County and Turnabout Goat Farm actively farms approximately 10 acres of an original 900-acre land grant tract; and WHEREAS, Amy Mabe and Earl Brewer, fifth and sixth generation descendants on the same farm land, have in the past eight years established Turnabout Gaat Farm as a premier breeding institution using embryo transfer to obtain rare and exceptional traits from bucks all across the nation; and WHEREAS, Amy Mabe is currently serving as an apprentice judge, on her way to becoming a fully accredited United Stated Boer Goat Association judge; and WHEREAS, "percentage goat" refers to the percentage of pure-bred boer (the premier meat goat) in an animal, with goats having more than 50 percent Baer eligible far registration with US Breed Associations: and WHEREAS, the North Carolina Meat Goat Association's 2005 Breeder of the Year for Percentage Goats title was awarded to Turnabout Goat Farm in recognition of its outstanding performance in at least 25 goat shows throughout the South; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Orange County Board of Commissioners heartily congratulates Amy Mabe and Earl Brewer an their successful contributions to local agricultural production and commends them for providing a model for successful agricultural diversity in Orange County. This the 12t" day of September, 2006. Earl Brewer thanked the Board of County Commissioners and said that very few people have achieved the breeding success that they have achieved. VOTE: UNANIMOUS b. Resolution of Commendation for Deputy London Ivey and Mr. Russ LeBlanc The Board considered a resolution of commendation for Sheriff's Deputy London Ivey and Orange High School Driver's Education Instructor Russ LeBlanc for their courage and heroism in protecting the lives of Orange High School students and staff and authorizing the Chair to sign the resolution. Chair Jacobs said that yesterday, September 11t", they had a ceremony in front of the old courthouse in remembering those victims of September 11t" and from Hurricane Katrina. They also took the opportunity to thank those who serve and protect. He said that Deputy Ivey and Mr. LeBlanc are wonderful examples of this. Commissioner Foushee read the resolution: RESOLUTION OF COMMENDATION FOR DEPUTY LONDON IVEY AND RUSS LEBLANC FOR HEROISM IN PROTECTING THE LIVES OF ORANGE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AND STAFF WHEREAS, Orange County Sheriff's Deputy London Ivey, School Resource Officer for Orange High School, and Driver's Education Instructar Russ LeBlanc, who is also a Reserve Deputy and a retired Highway Patrol Officer, risked their lives to protect the lives of Orange High Schaol students and staff on VlJednesday, August 30, 2006; and WHEREAS, Deputy Ivey and Mr. LeBlanc placed themselves between the students and staff at Orange High and an armed assailant; and WHEREAS, the assailant was reportedly armed with multiple weapons, enough to kill or injure numerous individuals present at Orange High that day; and WHEREAS, more than 16 shots were fired toward the school, yet only two students suffered any sort of injury in the ordeal; and WHEREAS, Deputy Ivey and Mr. LeBlanc advanced upon and challenged the assailant; and WHEREAS, within two minutes after the incident was called into 9-1-1 Deputy Ivy and Mr. LeBlanc had the suspect disarmed, handcuffed, and in custody; and WHEREAS, the professionalism of Deputy Ivey reflects well on the training and leadership provided by Sheriff Lindy Pendergrass and his officers, and on the effectiveness of the entire Sheriff's department; NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved that the Orange County Board of Commissioners does hereby recognize Deputy London Ivey and Mr. Russ LeBlanc and salute their courageous and heroic actions protecting the students and staff of Orange High School on August 30, 2006. This the 12th day of September 2006. A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to approve a resolution of commendation far Sheriff's Deputy Landon Ivey and Orange High School Driver's Education Instructor Russ LeBlanc for their courage and heroism in protecting the lives of Orange High School students and staff and authorize the Chair to sign the resolution. Russ Leblanc said that he was glad this incident turned out the way it did and it could have been a lot worse. Deputy Ivey said that they did what they could to protect the kids and they did what they had to do. Commissioner Foushee said to please recognize the families of these gentlemen as well. Commissioner Halkiotis said that, having served as principal at OCS for 15 years, his greatest fear was to lose a student to some act of violence. He said that what these guys did cannot be measured. He said that OCS is fortunate to have the SRO's and the retired highway patrol officers working as Driver's Education teachers. He thanked everyone for what they did. Commissioner Gordon added her commendations. VOTE: UNANIMOUS c. Resolution of Approval and Acceptance of Grant -Agricultural Conservation Easement with Vickie and David McKee The Board considered a resolution to approve the acceptance by Orange County of an agricultural conservation easement from Vickie and David McKee and the acceptance of a grant from the federal Farm and Ranch Land Protection Program and authorizing the Chair and Clerk to sign, subject to final review by staff and County Attorney. Vickie McKee said that this process with the Lands Legacy program began with her dad, Bob Kirk, years ago. Her dad's wishes were to preserve this piece of property. He could not fulfill his wishes and see this process finalized because he passed away, so this Is Why She is here tonight. This property was cleared and farmed by her dad. They are with the McKee Carn Field Maze, and their theme each year promotes Orange County. She reviewed the past years' mazes. This year's corn maze is Kenny Glen's artwork -Dixie Dawn. Kenny Glen is an Orange County artist. They design their own maze and they cut their own maze. Commissioner Halkiotis asked if you could purchase copies of the picture and she said yes. McKee Conservation Easement (most slides were pictures but here is the text that Rich Shaw read from as he went through the slides) ^ This site was used by Mr. Patterson to demonstrate agricultural BMPs to other farmers, including the use of strip cropping and na-till agriculture. Slide -This is another from a series of photos of this property by Mr. Patterson. Shown here are Robert Kirk and his brother Merritt who together operated the Kirk Brothers Dairy until 1985, part of a long tradition of dairy farms in SW Orange County. ^ Over the past several years this property, then owned by Mr. Robert Kirk, gradually went out of active use; it was used for growing hay, and later for wildlife habitat. These 2 photos taken in March 2Q05. Mr. Kirk contacted Orange County to discuss the possibility of a CE. He wanted to protect this family land for future farm use. Early last year, Mr. Kirk (who at that time was very ill) sold the land to his daughter Vickie McKee and her husband David McKee. [He passed away last summer.] The McKees are proceeding with Mr. Kirk's interest in a conservation easement. And David McKee has been working very hard to bring this land back into active use. This is the same location as it looks today. The McKees already operate a successful farm and landscaping business in Little River Township. In recent years, they have added a popular corn maze and petting zoo. This is an image of the site showing key features of the CE. The easement would protect 92 acres of the 96-acre tract. The McKees have carved out 2 small wooded lots for potential future home sites. Otherwise, all future non-agricultural development rights would be extinguished by the easement. In addition to the prime farmland, the easement would help to protect the Cane Creek water supply by preserving forested buffers. ^ Cane Creek (Cane Creek Res <1 mile downstream} ^ Hog Branch ^ One added feature of this conservation easement is that it reserve a potential public trail corridor for the proposed NC Mountains to Sea Trail, which may someday pass through Orange County. ^ The cost of the easement is about $600,000 to be shared by Orange County and the federal FRPP. The federal share will be about $273,000. [Our department worked closely with the local NRCS/S&WC office to secure those funds.] The price is $5,9001ac plus an additional amount for reserving the potential MST corridor. Dave Stancil said that this is another project with great success working with USDA offices and they have been able to acquire grant funding of $273,161. Part of the action is to accept this grant. He read the resolution. RESOLUTION Approval of Agricultural Conservation Easement between Orange County and Vickie and David McKee WHEREAS, Orange County has an adopted goal promoting the preservation of farmland in the County; and WHEREAS, agriculture in Orange County is an important facet of the economy and way of life in the County; and WHEREAS, one component of the Lands Legacy Program is the acquisition of conservation easements on prime ar threatened farmland within water supply watersheds; and WHEREAS, the McKee farm includes approximately 92 acres in the Cane Creek protected watershed, consists of a majority of prime soils, and is located in an agricultural community with good access to farm markets; and WHEREAS, a matching grant was awarded to Orange County from the federal Farm and Ranch Land Protection Program to help protect the future of this farm with an agricultural conservation easement; and WHEREAS, a conservation easement on approximately 92 acres of this farm provides awin- win scenario -ensuring the preservation of this farmland for future generations, compensating the McKee family for this long-term commitment, and establishing a lasting legacy for both the Kirk and McKee families; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Orange County Board of Commissioners does hereby 1) accept on behalf of Orange County the agricultural conservation easement to protect prime farmland owned by Vickie and David McKee; 2} approve the execution of this conservation easement agreement with Vickie and David McKee, in accordance with the terms of the proposed easement agreement, subject to final review by staff and the county attorney; and 3) authorize the Chair and the Clerk to sign the easement agreement on behalf of the Board, with a closing to occur on or about November 30, 2006. This, the 12th day of September, 2006. A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Foushee to approve a resolution to approve the acceptance by Orange County of an agricultural conservation easement from Vickie and David McKee and the acceptance of a grant from the federal Farm and Ranch Land Protection Program and authorize the Chair and Clerk to sign, subject to final review by staff and County Attorney. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Chair Jacobs said that the County Commissioners really appreciates those who are engaged in agriculture in Orange County. Commissioner Halkiotis said that he thinks that Vickie McKee and her husband are great parents, they have a great family, and they are preserving and treasuring their heritage. Commissioner Gordan commended them and said that people like Vickie McKee are the heart and soul of Orange County. Vickie McKee said that their roots run deep in Orange County and they promote Orange County whenever they can. Commissioner Carey asked Ms. McKee to provide information on the maze to the Visitor's Bureau and she said that they do. 5. Items for Decision--Consent Agenda A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Carey to approve those items on the Consent Agenda as stated below: a. Minutes The Board approved the minutes for May 16 and June 8, 16, 22, and 27 of 2006 as submitted by the Clerk to the Board. b. Appointments -None c. Classification Plan Amendment- Add Class of Policy and Compliance Office The Board amended the Orange County Classification and Pay Plan by adding a new class of Policy and Compliance Officer at Salary Grade 27. The salary range for Salary Grade 27 is $63,120 - $100,906. d. Continuation Aareement with the Town of Chapel Hill for Senior Recreation Services The Board approved a continuation Agreement with the Town of Chapel Hill to provide funding in the amount of $46,697 for senior recreation programs on behalf of the Town's Parks and Recreation Department and authorized the Manager to sign the Agreement with the Town of Chapel Hill. e. Aareement Renewal with Respite Care Providers and the Department on Aaina The Board authorized the Manager to sign agreements for respite care providers. Such authorization shall not exceed the amount budgeted for this function in the operating budget for the Department on Aging. f. Resolution for Financing Related to Carrboro High School The Board adopted a resolution required by the North Carolina Local Government Commission (LGC) for approval of the acquisition of financing needed to complete construction of the new Carrboro High School. g_ Bid Award: Articulated Dump Truck for Solid Waste This item was removed and placed at the end of the consent agenda far separate consideration. h. Bid Award: Hydraulic Excavator far Solid Waste This item was removed and placed at the end of the consent agenda for separate consideration. i. Approval of Fiscal Year 2006-07 County and School Capital Project Ordinances The Board approved the pay-as-you-ga County and School Capital Project Ordinances as attached. L Budget Amendment #2 The Board approved budget ordinance and grant project ordinance amendments far fiscal year 2006-07 for Health Department, Planning and Inspections Department, Emergency Management Department, Department of Social Services, Visitors Bureau, and Library Services. k. Orange County Public Safety Volunteers Recognition The Board approved plans to recognize the thirteen (13} volunteer fire and rescue departments and the ham radio operators serving Orange County by having a brief recognition ceremony during a regularly scheduled BOCC meeting and by hosting an ice cream social on Sunday, October 22"d from 2-4 p.m. behind the Sheriff's Office (weather permitting) for both the volunteers and their families. I. North Carolina Governor's Awards and Orange County Key Volunteer Recognition The Board recognized Orange County's outstanding Key Volunteers in 2006 by hosting a reception before a regularly scheduled BOCC meeting on Tuesday, November 14, 2006 at 6:30 p.m. at Southern Human Services Center by a brief recognition during the meeting, and providing video recordings to the recipients. VOTE ON CONSENT AGENDA: UNANIMOUS ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT AGENDA: ,g_ Bid Award: Articulated Dump Truck for Solid Waste The Board considered awarding a bid for an Articulated Dump Truck for Solid Waste at a total cast of $346,043 from Gregory Poole of Raleigh, North Carolina and authorizing the Purchasing Director to execute the necessary paperwork. Commissioner Carey asked about getting a better price on this dump truck and the hydraulic excavator (item h). Purchasing and Central Services Director Pam Jones said that they do research and this is a better price. A motion was made by Commissioner Carey, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to approve awarding a bid for an Articulated Dump Truck for Solid Waste at a total cost of $346,043 from Gregory Poole of Raleigh, North Carolina and authorize the Purchasing Director to execute the necessary paperwork. VOTE: UNANIMOUS h. Bid Award: Hydraulic Excavator for Solid Waste The Board considered awarding a bid far a Hydraulic Excavator far Solid Waste at a total cost of $270,277 from Gregory Poole of Raleigh, North Carolina and authorizing the Purchasing Director to execute the necessary paperwork. See above question for item g. A motion was made by Commissioner Carey, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to approve awarding a bid for a Hydraulic Excavator for Solid Waste at a total cost of $270,277from Gregory Poole of Raleigh, North Carolina and authorizing the Purchasing Director to execute the necessary paperwork. VOTE: UNANIMOUS 7. Special Presentations a. Piedmont Electric Reauest for an Expedited Review of a Replacement Tower The Board considered approving a request from Piedmont Electric Membership Corporation {PEMC) for an expedited review of a replacement tower, setting a public hearing date, and approving the legal ad for a public hearing to be held on October 3, 2006 far a Planned Development amendment with a Class "A"Special Use Permit modification. Planning Director Craig Benedict said that Piedmont Electric wants to remove their present tower, deconstruct it, and replace it. The County Commissioners asked at a previous meeting for staff to come back and set up a process that would have different times and dates that this could be heard in advance of the typical public hearing schedule for these special use permits. This is on page five. Pages one and two of the abstract lists the pros and cons of this new tower. There will be a space reserved on this future tower to allow the County to beam information from the north end to the south end of the County without using underground cable. The negative is that this is a different schedule than usual and this is not the norm. In order to mitigate this different time schedule, they are going to re-notify the public on this tower application public hearing. The schedule includes putting a legal ad in the newspaper, to schedule a public hearing on October 3rd, and after that time the item can be referred back to the Planning Board for review and back to the County Commissioners for a decision in early November. The normal schedule would not have this at public hearing until late November and possible approval in March of next year. Commissioner Halkiotis said that in the northern most tower, that Person County will also co-locate an antennae here. He asked if any surrounding county has ever done this for Orange County. EMS Director Jack Ball said that Orange County is co-located with Chatham County on a tower. Chair Jacobs said that he looked at County Commissioners' minutes from January 31St when this tower was mentioned. He asked why it took so long and Craig Benedict said that they have been in contact with various consultants since January and until they received the letter to ask for special consideration for an expedited review, this was the soonest it could come to the Board. Chair Jacobs said that he presumed that they had asked ERCD to do an environmental analysis and there was mention of the short pulsing rate of lights on the tower. He asked if there has been any discussion with Piedmont on this issue. Craig Benedict said that they have an advisor that is working on this and there is technology to shield these lights from birds and they are amenable to this idea. A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Carey to approve a request from Piedmont Electric Membership Corporation (PEMC} for an expedited review of a replacement tower, set a public hearing date, and approve the legal ad for a public hearing to be held on October 3, 2006 for a Planned Development amendment with a Class "A" Special Use Permit modification. VOTE: UNANIMOUS 8. Public Hearings-NONE 9. Items for Decision--Regular Agenda a. County-Funded Sustainable Design Elements for Community College Campus Building The Board considered authorizing the expenditure of funds for sustainable design elements for the Durham Technical Community College {DTCC), Satellite Campus Building One; and authorizing staff to notify DTCC of the contract amendments details. Pam Jones said that Ken Redfoot was unable to be here tonight. She said that the Board reviewed this an August 22nd. On page two, there is updated information on the park and ride construction. The costs fora 75-space lot and gravelling the 125-space lot are included. She said that these are actual bid costs. The Board of County Commissioners also requested that they ask UNC an the construction costs of their park and ride lot an 15-501. It is a 550- vehicle lot and UNC paid $4,500/space for the construction of the lat. This did not include buffering, fencing, or lighting. The 125-vehicle paved parking lot was bid at $341,000 and that is $2,800Ispace. She pointed out that there are options of expanding the smaller lot in the future. Regarding the grant funding, Durham Tech has agreed to submit an application far funding far $375,000, which is half of what it would take to fund all of the sustainable design alternates plus the park and ride lot. Durham Tech believes that it would need a park and ride lot for overflow parking on evening classes. She said that there is no guarantee of the grant, but the application is favorable. She noted that the bids came in on June 29t" and they have a 90-day expiration period. The outcome of the grant will not be known by the expiration of the bid. Barbara Baker from Durham Tech said that she thinks the grant is very likely. Commissioner Carey asked about notification and Barbara Baker answered November. Commissioner Halkiotis said that he would hope that in their grant application that it be noted that it was another state agency that wanted the aluminum light shelves. Chair Jacobs said that they would like to use this building as an educational tool in and of itself, and he hopes that this will also be in the proposal. Barbara Baker said that they are going to be doing a lot of classes on sustainable construction. Chair Jacobs said that it would be a mistake to reduce the park and ride lot and he is in favor of the sustainable features. He is willing to take a leap of faith and move forward with the sustainable design elements. A motion was made by Commissioner Carey, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to approve authorizing the expenditure of funds for sustainable design elements for the Durham Technical Community College (DTCC), Satellite Campus Building One; and authorize staff to notify DTCC of the contract amendments details. UOTE: UNANIMOUS b. Proposed Changes to Fairview Master Plan from Town of Hillsborough The Board considered proposed changes to the Fairview Public Campus Master Plan received from the Tawn of Hillsborough. Dave Stancil said that they are relaying changes from the Town of Hillsborough with changes in the master plan. On April 10t", the Board approved the master plan, and after that, the Town Board received and considered it on May 8t", and the action was not to consider approval at that time, but far staff to review possible suggested changes. On August 17t", there was an email with information from the Town (page 3). There are three suggested changes from the Town staff. All of the changes are related to the protection of an area of mature hardwoods on the southernmost portion of the property. There was some language added to the master plan, and they recognized the possibility of expansion of a proposed Town Public Works facility. Part of the master plan involved a proposed land swap between part of the Town's property to ga towards future Orange County Public Works or other public facilities in exchange for a portion of the County's property to go for a future Town of Hillsborough Public Works site. All of the recommendations relate to removing language about protecting the hardwood area from the map. The gist is that the Town feels that the language that has been added and the master plan as it stands does not sufficiently address the future possibilities for the Public Works site. The three references are on pages 4-6 of the abstract. They all refer to removing from the map or removing from the text the preservation of the block of hardwoods. This is a significant block of mature forests. Part of it would already be taken out by the addition of the proposed baseball/softball field. The recommendation is to have a meeting scheduled to discuss with the Town Board or a contingent of the two boards to look at this and perhaps go out to the site and look at the property in question. Chair Jacobs said that he talked with the Mayor today and suggested that to him: that they go out to the site with staff and look at this area. Commissioner Gordon asked about the value of the hardwoods and Dave Stancil said that it is larger than the area shown on the map. He would characterize it as a mature hardwood area. Rich Shaw said that this is the nicest forested area on the entire site. He thinks it would be unfortunate if it were removed. Commissioner Halkiotis asked if this was on Hillsborough's immediate list or future list for expansion and Dave Stancil said that it is for possible future expansion. Commissioner Halkiotis asked if there were any creative solutions to this in order to protect the trees and Chair Jacobs said that he and the Mayor discussed some possibilities. Commissioner Halkiotis wants to protect this forest. A motion was made by Commissioner Carey, seconded by Commissioner Foushee to have the two County Commissioners that worked on the master plan meet with the Mayor and staff at the property and discuss the issue about the hardwoods. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Chair Jacobs asked Rod Visser to contact Hillsborough Town Manager Eric Peterson. c. BOCC District Elections Education Process The Board considered tools and processes to increase public awareness of the November 7, 2006 District Election Referendum. Rod Visser said that staff met with the Chair and Vice-Chair to develop a process for public awareness. Chair Jacobs said that Commissioner Carey had some suggestions and this is all a neutral position on this issue. They want to make sure that there is sufficient information for the public so that they understand what will be on the ballot. Commissioner Carey said that the Board has a responsibility when an issue is put out as a referendum, and he thinks that they need to do mare to promote this referendum. He thinks that they should be aggressive about this just like they are with bond issues. He asked about staff support and funding and he wants to incorporate those elements into this process. He would like to begin today to advertise for citizens to serve on this committee. He said that this is a bare bones effort. Commissioner Foushee said that she had the same comments. She said that it would be helpful to know how much funding has been used an band education initiatives. She said that this could be a benchmark since nothing like this has ever been done in Orange County. She said that they should do whatever necessary to make this information available to the public. She agreed about forming an education committee and to advertise for citizens to serve on this committee immediately. Commissioner Halkiotis said that he was called by a reporter about his support far this referendum and he hesitated to answer because they have been trained by the Attorney that the County Commissioners cannot stake out a position on bond referenda. He asked the County Attorney about this. Geof Gledhill said that each County Commissioner could support the passage of this referendum as an individual. There has never been a restriction on the individual County Commissioners. The question becomes what the County can spend on this issue. The focus of the County's spending public money has to be on educating the voters on the referendum. The resolution adopted by the Board was to place this issue on the ballot. Rod Visser said that County staff has a lot of expertise on bond issues and little expertise an the district representation issue. He said that if this is a priority, then they would provide any support that they can to the County Commissioners. He wants to consider how to accomplish this in a way that does not adversely affect other priorities that the Board has. Commissioner Carey said that educating the public would not require the staff to have expertise except to relay the facts. He wants to flesh out the educational effort, move it forward, and decide how much money to spend on the effort. Geaf Gledhill clarified that two or more of the County Commissioners can equally promote and support the passage of this referendum. Chair Jacobs said that the Board wants staff to come back with a specific amount of funding, staff support, and then to advertise far this committee with a charge for the October 3rd agenda. Commissioner Gordon said that the wording of the public ad should be simplified further. Instead of, "District 1 consists of the southern urbanized 2/3," it should just say the southern 213 District 2 would be the remainder of Orange County. This would make it more neutral and not characterized as urban or rural. Commissioner Carey asked about the impact of the Board of Election's designation of a new voting precinct in southern Orange County. He asked if this impacts on the lines of the district that they adopted. Geof Gledhill said no, the district boundary is not drawn with precinct lines. There will be some precincts that would be split by this line. He said that the solution is to make sure that the citizens know which precinct they are in. It is an education issue. Commissioner Carey asked that staff send a copy to each County Commissioner of the lines as they have been drawn with the new precinct. Chair Jacobs also suggested that the County Commissioners get a copy of the ad that was previously run. d. Westhampton - Preliminary Plan The Board considered the Preliminary Plan and Resolution of Approval far Westhampton Subdivision. Craig Benedict said that this item was reviewed at the August 22"d meeting and was tabled to review five items. This 130-acre project is in Chapel Hill Township and has 19 lots, which is approximately 6-7 acres gross density per lot. The average lot size in this project will be 3.8 acres per lot and allowing 41 °k open space. The open space would be owned by the homeowner's association and by some public dedication. The open space would be 52 acres. All of the lots would be on well and septic. Pages four and five of the abstract identify the five items that were of question at the last meeting. He reviewed all of these. 1. A description of an "Ultra Shallow Innovative w/pump" septic system: Anew report from Environmental Health is attached (attachment 9) which describes this type of system, 2. Information provided regarding the no open burning requirements in Orange County: This has been added in the attached Resolution of Approval Item F.fi. 3. Consideration of turn lanes: Conditions in the area do not indicate that there is likely to be a need for turn lanes from Hatch Road into the nineteen-lot subdivision. Current (2003) annual average daily traffic (AADT) counts on Hatch Road indicate 9, 000 vehicles south of NC 54 and 750 vehicles north of Old Greensboro Road. Gapacity of a suburban two-lane undivided road at Level of Service (LOS) C is 91,000 vehicles per day (between 90,500 and 92,000 depending on agency). Nineteen tats will generate approximately 990 vehicle trips per day. The vehicle to capacity ratio (VIC) at level of service G (considering 990 trips per day from the proposed subdivision) is 0.908. A V/C ratio of less than 0.80 (a V/C ratio of 9.0 indicates that the road is operating at capacity) indicates that the road is operating at acceptable conditions with sufficient capacity. At a LOS 0.80, Hatch Road would experience an AADT of S, 80Q. The Triangle Regional Model used to project future traffic and speeds for the regional network, classifies Hatch Road as a local road. Future traffic projections are not available for Hatch Road using traffic projections for the 2030 Regional Long-Range Transportation Plan (see Attachment #11 from Planning Director suggesting consideration of Orange County standards to be established). If outdoor lighting is considered in the future it must meet Orange County's outdoor lighting requirements: This has been added in the attached Resolution of Approval Item F.4. The Commissioners requested additional options be considered for the proposed Dedicated area to Orange County along Phil's Creek. The Planning staff and Attorney's office met with the applicant and developed a dedication and access configuration that exceeds the minimum dedication requirement and creates a better access connection system within the subdivision common areas that also supports the Joint Planning Area greenway system. With further research by ERCD, they found a connection to Neville Road and a dedication occurred in 1992 to provide a connecting pathway that the County owns fee simple that would connect this project to Neville Road and continue along the network. There was also a dedication on the eastern portion. The disagreement by the developer and the Planning Board was that there was going to be a connection over private property up to a public street in this area. After discussions with the developer, they came up with an alternate solution. The original proposal had isolated parcels for dedications. The previous recommendation has now been deleted from the Administratian recommendation, which is consistent with the Planning Board. They have offered to dedicate a 50-foot connector path, which is also consistent with the dedication requirements. There is now a 6.3-acre area that connects the two floodplain areas and the pathway. The applicant has provided a letter on page 55 indicating the willingness to dedicate that area to the County. It would not be used until such time that a connecting pathway continues farther to the east. Administratian recommends approval with modifications as noted. Commissioner Halkiotis asked about the ultra-shallow system. He made reference to page 49 that says, "The approved septic area should be kept free of vehicular traffic, logging, grading, and compacting activities." He asked if this includes horses. Craig Benedict said that he believes it would include horses. Geof Gledhill said that it depends upon the soil. Chair Jacobs suggested that when a subdivision is on the agenda and there is a question about wastewater treatment, there should be an Environmental Health staff person present. Commissioner Gordon commended everyone far these solutions. She asked about the ten-foot path and Craig Benedict said that this is a fee simple dedication to the County that occurred during the Shenandoah subdivision. Geof Gledhill said that it is a deeded tract of land that has not been developed. A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Carey to approve the preliminary plan for Westhampton, in accordance with the Resolution of Approval. VOTE: UNANIMOUS e. Legal Advertisement for Joint Planning Public Hearing -October 19, 2006 The Board considered the legal advertisement for items to be presented at the Joint Planning Area Public Hearing scheduled for October 19, 2046. Craig Benedict said that this area is in Chapel Hill's jurisdiction where the applicant is requesting rezoning for some lands from R-2 to R-4. It is off of Homestead Road near High School Road and Seawell School Road. The request for this item is to put a legal advertisement far an October 19, 2006 public hearing for all three governing bodies. The proposal is the construction of 36 buildings ar 72 units. The joint staffs will be providing their recommendation in advance of the public hearing. Commissioner Gordon asked that there be more information about the R-2 and R-4 designations so that the public can understand what is going on. Geof Gledhill recommended that the staff work with the Town of Chapel Hill in developing this language. He said that this is also part of Chapel Hill's affordable housing strategy. Chair Jacobs suggested having a motion for approval of the legal advertisement, subject to consultation with Chapel Hill staff to clarify and elaborate on the advertisement. A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to approve the proposed October 19, 2006 Joint Planning Area Public Hearing legal advertisement, subject to consultation with Chapel Hill staff to clarify and elaborate an the advertisement. VOTE: UNANIMOUS f. Lands Legacy Action Plan for FY 2006-08 The Board considered adoption of the Lands Legacy Action Plan for fiscal years 2006-07 and 2007-08. This item was presented at a Board of County Commissioners' work session. Dave Stancil said that the recommendation is to adopt this action plan. The specific projects will be coming back individually for approval. A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to adopt the proposed Lands Legacy Program Action Plan for fiscal years 2006-2008, and agree to schedule the topics in the issue papers for subsequent work session ar regular meeting discussion. VOTE: UNANIMOUS 10. Reports-NONE 11. Closed Session A motion was made by Commissioner Foushee, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to ga into closed session at 10:28 p.m. for the purpose of: "To discuss the County's position and to instruct the County Manager and County Attorney on the negotiating position regarding the terms of a contract to purchase real property," NCGS § 143-318.11(a)(5). VOTE: UNANIMOUS RECONVENE INTO REGULAR SESSION: A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Carey to reconvene to Regular Session at 11:20 p.m. VOTE: UNANIMOUS 12. Adiaurnment A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Carey to adjourn the meeting at 11:20 p.m. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Barry Jacobs, Chair Donna S. Baker Clerk to the Board