Minutes 06-01-2010 - Laserfiche WebLink

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� Board of County Commissioners and there was no motion or suggestion by the Board of County Commissioners acting as a Board to make the protected area conform to the 1994 line. He said that there is something going on here that does not make sense to him. He said that in looking at the map from October 13th, it shows a proposed protected area that tracks the original protection to the Seven Mile Creek area. He thinks that the original suggestion was to revisit the Seven Mile Creek Critical Area in light of the changing expectations for a reservoir there. He said that this area may be critical to the water quality, but no one has seen evidence that protection of this extent is necessary. Craig Benedict said that in 1994 Orange County used the State rules to designate some critical areas, but the State rules had minimum requirements. He said that there have been elaborate conversations with Environment and Resource Conservation about having an Upper Eno Conservation District that marries with the critical area designations. Commissioner Gordon said that her understanding about the reasoning behind this was that it had nothing to do with the underlying assumptions or reasons for designating a critical area. Instead, the question was whether the boundaries could be better defined given the better technology. She views it as a refinement. Commissioner Yuhasz said that the question is how much land is being kept in the critical area that does not need to be kept. Commissioner Jacobs said that with the Efland/Mebane Small Area Plan, the point was to address that area that should be served with water and sewer that was north of the Interstate. He asked Craig Benedict if this was successful. Craig Benedict said that the Efland/Mebane Small Area Planning Task Force, which had members of the Board of County Commissioners and Mebane Commissioners started in 2004 and was adopted in 2006. One of the important recommendations was that the red line (critical area from 1994) limited the potential of the investment Orange County was making with the water and sewer in Efland. The recommendation was made to reexamine the need for the Seven Mile Creek Reservoir and see if more land should be protected. He said that this amendment reflects this recommendation to pull the line to West Ten Road. He said that another 200 acres of economic development potential would be added into this area based on these amendments and further amendments that are necessary. Commissioner Jacobs clarified that most of the properties affected by this amendment would not have to change. Craig Benedict said that 92% of the critical area from 1994 will remain the same. The other 8% are either being added to the critical area (5%) or taken out of the critical area (3%). Commissioner Jacobs asked about the issue of flow as asked by Mr. Ben Lloyd. Craig Benedict said that it would be difficult to use GIS to survey every stream and develop as the water flows. Commissioner Jacobs made reference to the memo from Dave Stancil on page 69 and he read: "It is highly important to maintain supplemental protection for Seven Mile Creek area of the watershed. This area is recognized by Orange County and the State of North Carolina as an important natural area and wildlife corridor. Seven Mile Creek and its tributaries contain high quality surface waters that provide habitat for state and regional flora and fauna. He said that there are documents in here that extend the rationale beyond merely reservoirs. Commissioner Pelissier asked how many acres were being put in this time round as compared to the original public hearing. Craig Benedict said that the difference is 53 acres from the February Quarterly Public Hearing until now. Commissioner Pelissier said that one of the big questions raised is regarding Seven Mile Creek. She said that she appreciates the letter from the Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation (DEAPR) and she is supportive of protecting habitat, but it confuses the public that the real rationale for this is really related to water quality. She thinks