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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 09-11-2017 - Agenda Orange County Board of Commissioners Agenda Quarterly Public Hearing Note: Background Material September 11, 2017 on all abstracts 7:00 p.m. available in the Richard Whitted Meeting Facility Clerk's Office 300 West Tryon Street Hillsborough, NC 27278 Compliance with the"Americans with Disabilities Act"-Interpreter services and/or special sound equipment are available on request. Call the County Clerk's Office at(919)245-2130. If you are disabled and need assistance with reasonable accommodations,contact the ADA Coordinator in the County Manager's Office at(919)245-2300 or TDD#644-3045. 1. Quarterly Public Hearings No Quarterly Public Hearing Items 2. Agritourism Information Item (We would appreciate you signing the pad ahead of time so that you are not overlooked.) a. County staff will present information on County authority and limitations regarding the regulation of agritourism activities. (30 minutes) b. Public Comment- The Board of Commissioners will seek public input on how, within the confines of its legislative authority, it may best achieve a balance between expanding economic opportunities for farmers and protecting surrounding areas from the secondary impacts of more commercialized land uses. 3. Adjournment Note: Access the agenda through the County's web site, www.orangecountync.gov Orange County Board of Commissioners' regular meetings and work sessions are available via live streaming video at orangecountync.gov/occlerks/granicus.asp and Orange County Gov-TV on channels 1301 or 97.6 (Time Warner Cable). INTRODUCTION AND MEETING PURPOSE The Board of Commissioners directed staff to conduct this meeting to listen to residents,to learn about concerns, and share some basic information about agritourism,the Orange County Unified Development Ordinance, the statutory limitations on the County's authority, and the Board's polices on agritourism. This meeting is not a hearing on any particular situation, a forum for offering comment and/or updates on pending litigation, nor is this a question and answer session. Rather this meeting is an opportunity to improve communications and develop some shared understandings about County policies and the limitations of those policies. AGRITOURISM LEGAL SUMMARY Agritourism is a state and nationally recognized means of providing farmers the opportunity to generate streams of income outside the traditional production of crops or livestock. Many states have laws that authorize agritourism activities in conjunction with or related to traditional farming activities. Some states, including North Carolina, authorize agritourism activities without requiring traditional farming activities so long as same are conducted on a parcel or parcels that qualify as a bona fide farm. Some of the many activities recognized by the State of North Carolina as agritourism include but are not limited to: • Barnyard Animals, Fiber Animals, Farm Riding Trails, Walking Trails • Camping, Bird Watching, Fishing, Hunting • Farm Bed & Breakfasts, Country Cabins, Retreats, Parties, Weddings, Honeymoons • Hay Rides, Mazes, Pumpkin Patches, Quilt Barns, Farm Craft Events • Historic Farms, Reunions, Museums, Holiday Farms, Christmas Trees • Pick Your Own Farms, Farm Roadside Stands, Nurseries, Flowers, Picnics • School Field Trips, Summer Camps, Farm Vacations • Slow Food, Dining,Vineyards, Wineries Due to the broad authority for bona fide farms to host agritourism activities it has become increasingly difficult for local governments to distinguish, and thus prohibit, non-agricultural commercial activities from agritourism activities. In fact, local governments are specifically prohibited by Article 18, Chapter 153A of the North Carolina General Statutes from enforcing zoning regulations on properties that qualify as bona fide farms. LEGISLATIVE PREEMPTION AND LOCAL RESTRICTIONS Since approximately 2011 the North Carolina legislature has consistently expanded the authority of bona fide farm properties and agricultural operations to engage in activities that, while beneficial to the farm, have either been traditionally located in more urban or suburban environments or typically require a heightened/public review and approval process. The State legislature has even decided to punish local governments that attempt to enforce zoning and development ordinances against uses or activities occurring on bona fide farms by giving courts the authority to require the local governments to pay all the costs and the property owner's attorneys' fees resulting from the enforcement action. This could result in local governments facing hundreds of thousands of dollars in unbudgeted costs for enforcement actions that aren't clearly and specifically supported by law. In recent years North Carolina Courts have followed a similar path that restricts local government authority particularly with regard to property rights. A prime example of this is the case of Byrd v Franklin County, 765 S.E.2d 805 (2014) in which the Court held "Zoning regulations are in derogation of common law rights and they cannot be construed to include or exclude by implication that which is not clearly [within] their express terms. It has been held that well-founded doubts as to the meaning of obscure provisions of a Zoning Ordinance should be resolved in favor of the free use of property." Session Law 2017-108 changed the law related to agritourism and also local authority by adding new language to the laws related to agriculture and amending the definition of agritourism. On a positive note, the law removed language that was most easily subject to abuse, that being that a property with a Federal Farm Identification Number as issued by the US Department of Agriculture automatically qualifies as a bona fide farm. The new law exempts from local regulation farm buildings used for agritourism purposes if the operation is on a property that "(i)is owned by a person who holds a qualifying farmer sales tax exemption certificate from the Department of Revenue pursuant to G.S. 105-164.13E(a)or(ii)is enrolled in the present-use value program pursuant to G.S. 105-277.3." This language has the effect of exempting from local regulation large buildings if they are situated on a farm and the owner meets either of these two qualifications. The new law broadly defines agritourism as follows: "For purposes of this section, "agritourism"means any activity carried out on a farm or ranch that allows members of the general public,for recreational, entertainment, or educational purposes, to view or enjoy rural activities, including farming, ranching, historic, cultural, harvest-your- own activities, or natural activities and attractions." It goes on to define a building used for agritourism activities as "any building or structure used for public or private events, including, but not limited to, weddings, receptions, meetings, demonstrations of farm activities, meals, and other events that are taking place on the farm because of its farm or rural setting." UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCE RELATED TO AGRITOURISM As noted above the State of North Carolina has determined that local governments may not regulate agricultural activities. In addition to the production of crops and/or the raising livestock, North Carolina law includes many activities within the definition of agriculture, as contained in G.S. 106-581.1,that are considered agriculture or farming. Among them, G.S. 106-581.1(6) provides that agritourism, when conducted on the farm, is agriculture. This means that agritourism activities are agriculture as a matter of law and if the agritourism venture occurs on the farm, no other agricultural activity is required to be active or ongoing. Pursuant to this statute if an agritourism activity occurs on a property that qualifies as a bona fide farm, a local government may not regulate that activity. Orange County's land use enforcement staff members recognize the State restrictions on local government authority and thus the corresponding limitations on their enforcement authority. It is for this reason that some activities that may look commercial in nature can occur on a property that qualifies as a bona fide farm and County staff are unable to take action to regulate or restrict the activity. In acknowledgement of state law various provisions of the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO), most notably Section 1.1.8, excludes agricultural activities from the UDO's development regulations. The UDO also specifically allows what may be considered nonfarm activities to occur on a farm. For several years the Board of Commissioners sought ways to expand the financial opportunities available to farmers in Orange County. This culminated in, among other things, the adoption of various text amendments into the UDO including creation of the Agricultural Support Enterprises (ASE) Conditional Zoning District that benefits farmers by allowing them to conduct farm activities on non-farm properties as well as various land uses permitted by right (i.e. staff review and approval only)to operate on a property designated as a bona fide farm.This includes the Rural Special Events land use. The Rural Special Events provision of the UDO allows the owners and/or operators of properties that qualify as bona fide farms to engage in activities that may traditionally have been considered commercial or more urban in nature consistent with the overall intent of the County elected officials. More specifically, it allows meetings and other activities that may not necessarily qualify as agritourism activities to be conducted on a farm. Such events involve more than 20 guests and are permitted by right under the terms of the UDO. Permitting staff have minimal discretion in any use or activity that is permitted by right. As with any law or authorization, ASE and Rural Special Events permits are capable of being abused within the confines of the law, but overall these UDO authorizations provide needed benefits to farmers in a time when farms are increasingly being eroded by development. BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS POLICY AND GOALS The Board of Commissioners is seeking public input on how, within the confines of its legislative authority, it may best achieve a balance between expanding economic opportunities for farmers and protecting surrounding areas from the secondary impacts of more commercialized land uses. RESIDENTS CONCERNS AND COMMENTS