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• Approval of the Preliminary plan was based on incomplete or erroneous information <br /> • Discriminatory treatment of citizens in the rural buffer being treated as second class citizens in <br /> Orange County <br /> • Planning Board reactions as a result of the presentations on July 10`h <br /> • Comparison of county financial impacts of using planning department averages and more realistic <br /> census data averages. <br /> Regarding premature approval, he said that Craig Benedict pointed out in his memo that lot <br /> size and density in the rural buffer is under review as part of the Comprehensive Plan review. No major <br /> developments should be allowed to proceed during this review period. On May 6, 2002 the Planning <br /> Board sent a letter to the Board of County Commissioners suggesting a moratorium on large <br /> developments in light of the forthcoming revision of the land use element of the Comprehensive Plan. <br /> He said that, according to the Planning Department on page 3 of their presentation, issue #1, the USGS <br /> report used to help determine minimum lot size based on water consumption/discharge, soil <br /> characteristics and rainfall data is under review and will likely be part of future land holding capacity <br /> constraints. No major development should be allowed to proceed while this is under review. The rural <br /> buffer is defined, in part, as land that is rural in nature and will remain rural. Nothing in the preliminary <br /> plan identifies how Tuscany Ridge fits within the definitions of the rural buffer and how it helps maintain <br /> the rural character identified in the joint planning agreement. The joint planning agreement says the <br /> existing nature of the land is rural and it shall remain rural. He said that the County apparently chose to <br /> define rural as having a two-acre lot size. <br /> Bob Johnson then spoke about some erroneous information. Regarding the fiscal impact <br /> analysis, one of the big issues is the demographic data. One of the problems is that this approach uses <br /> averages for demographic data. For Tuscany Ridge, the numbers were 2.5 people per house and 11 <br /> school aged children within the entire development. The neighbors think this is ridiculous because this is <br /> a development of 22 five-bedroom houses priced and designed to appeal to active families. When <br /> realistic data is fed into the equation, the development is a money loser for the County and should not <br /> have been approved based on those criteria. He made reference to water and said that this plan was <br /> approved while the area was in a severe drought. Water availability for household use and for fire <br /> protection has not been adequately addressed. Several wells near the Tuscany Ridge site have gone <br /> dry this summer. He said that 22 new wells in such a small area would be a problem for people living in <br /> Tuscany Ridge and for people living near it. This information was not made available to the Planning <br /> Board or to the County Commissioners during the approval process, nor was there any hydrologic study <br /> done to determine the availability of water and a possible impact on neighboring wells. He then spoke <br /> about the soil in the area and said there have been perking problems in the area. The septic systems <br /> proposed in Tuscany Ridge are more prone to failure than truly "conventional" septic systems. <br /> Bob Johnson then spoke about the notification process and said that notification could easily <br /> have occurred because there is not that many people living in the area. They were not asking for a <br /> public hearing, just notification. He said that it was pointed out in the Planning Board minutes that the <br /> developer had spoken to people in the area and that there were no problems. He said that no one had <br /> heard anything about Tuscany Ridge until he told them about it. <br /> Bob Johnson then spoke about discriminatory treatment of people in the rural buffer. The <br /> subdivision regulations for major subdivisions for all of Orange County, except the rural buffer, require a <br /> neighborhood information meeting. This discrimination of residents in the rural buffer is outrageous. He <br /> said that no major development should be approved without knowledge of or input from members of the <br /> affected community. He said that the joint planning agreement specifically states that developments <br /> within the rural buffer are to be treated the same as developments in the rest of the County except as <br /> specifically noted in the joint planning agreement. He read from Section 2.4.a of the joint planning <br /> agreement as follows: "Orange County shall perform all functions related to the administration of the <br /> ordinances referenced in Section 2.2 in the same manner as if the land were located outside the joint <br /> planning area." He said that Orange County erred in approving Tuscany Ridge without neighborhood <br /> notification, and in so doing, injured Orange County residents in the rural buffer adjacent to the Tuscany <br /> Ridge property. He then spoke about some of the Planning Board members' reactions and said that the <br /> Planning Board in effect reversed their decision on Tuscany Ridge by passing a resolution to request <br />