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2 <br />3 <br />4 <br />5 <br />6 <br />8 <br />9 <br />10 <br />11 <br />12 <br />13 <br />14 <br />15 <br />16 <br />17 <br />18 <br />19 <br />20 <br />21 <br />22 <br />23 <br />24 <br />25 <br />26 <br />27 <br />28 <br />29 <br />30 <br />31 <br />32 <br />33 <br />34 <br />35 <br />36 <br />37 <br />38 <br />39 <br />40 <br />41 <br />42 <br />43 <br />44 <br />45 <br />46 <br />47 <br />48 <br />49 <br />50 <br />51 <br />52 <br />53 <br />54 <br />55 <br />Several changes were made to the Board member appointments on various boards and <br />commissions. These will be reviewed on Saturday at the County Commissioners' retreat and a final copy will <br />be attached to those minutes and distributed accordingly. <br />1. ADDITIONS OR CHANGES TO THE AGENDA -NONE <br />2. AUDIENCE COMMENTS <br />a. Matters on the Printed Agenda <br />Commissioner Halkiotis stated that citizens who have indicated a desire to speak on an item on <br />the printed agenda will be recognized at the appropriate time. <br />b. Matters not on the Printed Agenda - NONE <br />PUBLIC CHARGE <br />Commissioner Halkiotis dispensed with the reading of the charge. <br />3. BOARD COMMENTS - NONE <br />4. COUNTY MANAGER'S REPORT <br />a. Report on Piedmont Electric Membership Corporation Distribution Line <br />The Board heard a report from John Link on the Piedmont Electric Membership Corporation's <br />distribution line. <br />Mr. Coley and Robert Cantwell spoke about the Piedmont Electric issue. They are not happy that <br />Piedmont will be taking their land which is part of the rural buffer. <br />A petition was presented with 16 signatures expressing gratitude to the Orange County Board of <br />Commissioners for their support in opposing the routing of Piedmont Electric's proposed transmission line <br />through their neighborhood. They asked to work with the County Commissioners and other concerned <br />citizens and groups to build a strong political consensus around the rural buffer and a stout legislative <br />foundation under the conjoined ideals of rural preservation and sustainable development. <br />A letter from Jennifer Miller was received. She asked that the County Commissioners seek ways <br />to strengthen protection for the rural buffer against increasing sprawl and growth pressures from surrounding <br />cities and towns. <br />agenda. <br />Senior Planner Gene Bell presented background information on the Rural Buffer as included in the <br />Mr. Brickhouser and Dave Overshane outlined the process they followed in determining the best <br />route for distribution lines. Because of growth in the area, they decided that they needed to build a 100 KV <br />line. They started studies in the area in February and March with the help of a consultant. <br />In answer to a question from Chair Brown, Mr. Overshane said that the right-of-way will be 100 feet wide. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis made reference to attachment seven of the abstract and questioned if <br />Piedmont Electric examined alternatives to this plan and the consultant confirmed that they did examine <br />alternatives to this plan, including connecting to Duke Power transmission lines. He said that these <br />alternatives were determined to be either too intrusive or not technically feasible. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis emphasized that the County Commissioners have made a commitment to <br />the rural buffer. He had asked for this presentation so that Piedmont could understand this commitment. He <br />wants the rural buffer to be around for a long time. He hopes that Piedmont Electric will be as least <br />destructive as human beings can be when they run this transmission line.