Agenda - 10-20-2009 - 6b - Laserfiche WebLink

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1 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: October 20, 2009 Action Agenda +^ Item No. CaD J r✓ SUBJECT: Approval of Contract to Purchase Real Property from the Draper- Savage Memorial Foundation (Historic Moorefields) DEPARTMENT: Environment and Resource PUBLIC HEARING: (Y /N) No Conservation ATTACHMENTS INFORMATION CONTACT: 1) Vicinity Map David Stancil, 245 -2590 2) Site Map Rich Shaw, 245 -2590 3) Appraisal Summary 4) Offer to Purchase and Contract PURPOSE: To authorize Orange County's purchase of approximately 13 acres of land from the Draper- Savage Memorial Trust (Historic Moorefields) for an important addition to the planned Seven Mile Creek Preserve. BACKGROUND: In the 1970s, the County purchased 160 acres of land in the Seven Mile Creek basin southwest of Hillsborough for watershed protection purposes. In 2001 the County acquired another 134 acres with plans to establish a Seven Mile Creek nature preserve. The County property (294 acres total) is located between Mt. Willing Road and Moorefields Road (Cheeks Township). The property is managed by ERCD and is not yet not open for public use, pending further acquisitions and public access development. The Seven Mile Creek Preserve has long been a high priority for further acquisition through the Lands Legacy program. The area remains largely undeveloped, includes two significant Natural Heritage areas, is recognized by the County as an important wildlife corridor, and is along the route of the planned NC Mountains -to -Sea Trail. Over the past two years ERCD has explored the possibility of acquiring a key portion of the Historic Moorefields property (ca 1785) for an addition to the Seven Mile Creek Preserve. Moorefields is an historic site located off Moorefields Road three miles southwest of Hillsborough (Cheeks Township). The 84 -acre site is owned by the Draper- Savage Memorial Foundation and administered by the Friends of Moorefields (a non - profit organization) as the Foundation's trustee. A vicinity map is provided as Attachment 1. Recently ERCD completed negotiations with the Friends of Moorefields for the proposed purchase of approximately 13 undeveloped acres for a strategic addition to the Seven Mile Creek Preserve. The proposed addition could serve as a future public gateway to the Preserve, thus making the entire County property accessible for low- impact recreation. If acquired by the County, a small parking area for visitors to the site could be constructed at this location which could also be used in the future for access to the planned NC Mountains - to -Sea Trail as well as a limited public access area. A map of the proposed 13 -acre acquisition is provided as Attachment 2.