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APPROVED 5115101 <br />MINUTES <br />ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />SPECIAL MEETING <br />NOVEMBER 30, 2000 <br />The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a work session on Thursday, <br />November 30, 2000 at 7:30 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill, North <br />Carolina. <br />COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Moses Carey, Jr. and Commissioners <br />Margaret W. Brown, Alice M. Gordon, Stephen H. Halkiotis, and Barry Jacobs <br />COUNTY ATTORNEY PRESENT: Geoffrey Gledhill <br />COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager John M. Link, Jr., Assistant to the County <br />Manager Greg Wilder and Clerk to the Board Beverly A. Blythe (all other staff members will be <br />identified appropriately below) <br />1. Courtesy Review of Hillsborough Project fA Southern Season) <br />Planning Director Craig Benedict said that this was an opportunity to have a courtesy <br />review of a plan submitted to the Town of Hillsborough. This project, known as A Southern <br />Season, is planned for one of the entranceways into Hillsborough. He explained a process that <br />has been discussed with the Town of Hillsborough, which provides for a courtesy review of projects <br />that are submitted for the EDDs of Orange County. This project is at the intersection of US 70 <br />Business and New NC 86. Hillsborough held a public hearing last Tuesday, November 28`". Next <br />Tuesday, December 5t", the Hillsborough Planning Board will review this project. Tonight the <br />Commissioners have an opportunity to develop some comments and submit them for the <br />Hillsboraugh Planning Board to take into consideration next Tuesday. He said that there were new <br />regulations so the application submitted to Hillsborough was weak in a few areas. This application <br />needs some work because the applicant was not familiar with the new standards approved by the <br />Town of Hillsborough based on work done by the work group. The site is 24 acres. Phase I is 12 <br />acres, Phase II is six acres, and Phase III is four acres. Phase I is to build a 96,000 square foot <br />building for manufacturing and distribution. There would be a private entrance off of Cates Court. <br />The application focused mostly on Phase I, but not enough information was available for Phase II <br />and Phase III. <br />Craig Benedict and Economic Development Director Dianne Reid developed some <br />comments. The comments suggest that there should be a certain amount of open space in each <br />phase. Also, the types of uses should be identified. The land for Phases II and III is currently <br />100°~ wooded, so there is going to have to be additional sensitivity in the development. A <br />recreational amenity, such as a walkway, has also been suggested. There are some concerns <br />about parking and the right-of-ways also. <br />One major consideration the applicant did not address is the traffic on NC 86. Craig <br />Benedict noted that there is a weakness in the landscaping plan that was submitted by A Southern <br />Season in that there is only afive-foot strip allocated far landscaping around the building. The <br />building is 600 feet long, 160 feet wide and 30 feet high. He suggests that the roofline be raised in <br />three places to allow for landscaping enhancements. The applicant did not provide for truck traffic <br />coming in and going out with shipments. <br />Craig Benedict said that Phases II and III need to have some sort of architectural theme for <br />the site. The primary purpose of the entranceway district in Hillsborough and Orange County was <br />to provide a good aesthetic appeal which has three areas - signage, architectural, and <br />landscaping. This project has weaknesses in these three areas. The site does have water and <br />