Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
is the quarry with trucks coming and going all day also. Directly across the street is the go-cart <br /> track and this is also very noisy. Just to the south of the property is Orange County Speedway. <br /> These four acres are not suitable for any type of residential use. He built a 4,000-square foot <br /> home on the site across the road from the concrete plant and lives there full time. He is not <br /> going to do anything that is going to hurt the value. He wants to put some mini storage units on <br /> the four-acre site behind the concrete company. He asked the County Commissioners to sign <br /> into law the conditional use and the ordinance so residents like himself are allowed to do some <br /> type of commercial use. <br /> Dolly Hunter read a prepared statement. The proposed Landscaping Standards for <br /> Plant Material in UDO Article 6.8.5C require using larger plant size at installation than in the <br /> existing Zoning Ordinance. These larger sizes are a hardship for the following reasons: <br /> � The proposed larger sizes can primarily be met by using Ball & Burlap (B&B) instead of <br /> container grown plant material. A B&B plant is dug out of the ground severing two-thirds of the <br /> roots causing root shock in transplanting while a container-grown plant retains all of its roots <br /> and transplants more successfully. B&B's take many more years to get established than <br /> container-grown plants (a smaller container-grown plant outgrows and catches up to the size of <br /> the larger B&B quickly because of less transplant stress. A B&B weighs a minimum of 500 <br /> pounds while a 10 gallon container-grown plant weighs a maximum of 75 pounds, making <br /> transport much easier. B&B's need much more watering and staking and have a lower chance <br /> of survival. <br /> � A primary reason for keeping the existing Zoning Ordinance requirements for plant material <br /> size at installation is that the proposed sizes will double and triple the cost of the plant material. <br /> The UDO should not also cause a financial hardship above the existing regulations. <br /> The following is a comparison of the existing and proposed plant material sizes and their costs, <br /> using a cost list from Taylor's Nursery in Raleigh, a primary resource for landscape installers <br /> (see Attachment). <br /> Canopy or Evergreen Tree: Existing - not less than 6' tall and 3/4" caliper. Proposed: not less <br /> than 8' tall and 2" caliper. A Willow Oak— 10 gallon at 6' tall, 3/4" caliper costs $59.95; B&B at 8' <br /> tall, 2" caliper costs $139.95. A `Savannah' Holly— 10 gallon at 6' tall, 3/4" caliper costs $49.95; <br /> B&B at 8'tall, 2" caliper costs $199.95. <br /> Understory Deciduous Tree: Existing — not less than 6' tall and 3/4" caliper. Proposed: not less <br /> than 8' tall and 1" caliper. A Fringe Tree - 7 gallon at 6' tall and 3/4"caliper cost$49.95; B&B 7' <br /> tall (8' not available), 1" caliper costs $139.95. (Truthfully, there are very few landscape plants <br /> available that are 8' tall and those are 2 %2" plus caliper). <br /> Understory Evergreen Tree: Existing and Proposed are the same. <br /> Shrubs Evergreen and Deciduous: Existing and Proposed are the same. <br /> I recommend that the UDO minimum landscape plant sizes at installation remain the same as in <br /> the existing Zoning Ordinances. One exception is that the Evergreen Tree and Understory <br /> Evergreen Tree size should be a minimum of 4' tall at installation because that is the size most <br /> available in the trade. <br /> Sincerely, <br /> Dolly Hunter <br />