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APPROVED 5!8102 <br />MINUTES <br />ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />AND <br />ORANGE COUNTY PLANNING BOARD <br />JOINT PUBLIC HEARING <br />FEBRUARY 25, 2002 <br />The Orange County Board of Commissioners and the Planning Board met in joint session on <br />Monday, February 25, 2002 at 7:30 p.m. in the F. Gordon Battle Courtroom in Hillsborough, North <br />Carolina. <br />COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Barry Jacobs and Commissioners Margaret W. <br />Brown, Moses Carey, Jr., Alice M. Gordon and Stephen H. Halkiotis <br />COUNTY ATTORNEY PRESENT: Geoffrey Gledhill and S. Sean Borhanian <br />COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager John M. Link, Jr., and Clerk to the Board Beverly A. <br />Blythe (All other staff members will be identified appropriately below) <br />PLANNING BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Chair Nicole Gooding-Ray, Bob Strayhorn, Crauford <br />Goodwin, Barry Katz, Ted Triebel, Rachel Preston, Howard McAdams and Hunter Schofield <br />PLANNING BOARD MEMBERS ABSENT: Maria Tad and Lynn Holtkamp <br />NOTE: ALL DOCUMENTS REFERRED TO IN THESE MINUTES ARE IN THE PERMANENT <br />AGENDA FILE IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE. <br />A. OPENING REMARKS FROM THE CHAIR <br />A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to add <br />to the agenda a Closed Session "to consult with an attorney retained by the Board in order to preserve <br />the attorney-client privilege between the attorney and the Board," pursuant to G.S. 143-318.11(a)(3) in <br />the case of Orange County versus Nuclear Regulatory Commission AND "to consider the qualifications, <br />competence, character, fitness, conditions of appointment, or conditions of initial employment of an <br />individual public officer or employee or prospective public officer or employee" NCGS § 143-318.11(a)(6). <br />VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br />B. PUBLIC CHARGE <br />The Chair read the public charge. <br />C. PUBLIC HEARING ITEMS <br />1. Petitioner Initiated Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment <br />Planning Director Craig Benedict said that this item is a text amendment to the zoning <br />regulations in article 9, "Signs." The purpose was to receive public comment on a proposed change to <br />the zoning ordinance, which would allow for larger signs for model homes to be unregulated. Presently, <br />four square-foot signs for builders are unregulated. Petitioner Pierre Morin of Biltmore Homes LLC is a <br />developer at Churton Grove and has asked that an amendment be made to the sign code to allow a 16 <br />square-foot sign to be unregulated. The petitioner is also suggesting that there be 12 feet of associated <br />ground landscaping used to adorn the base of the sign. The sign would limit information to the builder's <br />name, phone number, hours the model is open for viewing, and an a-mail address. There is no fiscal <br />impact associated with this decision. Staff is recommending denial of this request at this time because <br />exempting a larger sign from the requirements, when other signs under 16 square feet are regulated <br />{businesses, etc.), would set a bad precedent. The staff believes that a four square foot model sign that <br />