Orange County NC Website
Chair Jacobs: Mr. Attorney, please walk us through how we proceed. <br />Geof Gledhill: What needs to happen as part of the public hearing is the applicant or <br />an applicant representative needs to introduce all of the documents and other materials that <br />have not been entered formally into the record. <br />Mike Hammersly: Good evening, I'm Mike Hammersly with Corley, Redfoot, Zack, and <br />I was sworn in earlier at the public hearing. With me tonight in addition from Orange County <br />Schools is Dr. George McFarley, and I'd like to say at this time on behalf of the Orange County <br />school system that I would like to enter all of the information that you have in your packet -all of <br />the maps that have been presented at this hearing as well, be included as evidence in this case. <br />And I'm available to answer any questions. <br />Geof Gledhill: The next thing I would recommend that you do is to accept the Planning <br />Board recommendation as part of the public hearing process. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis: What if you don't agree with the totality of the Planning <br />Board recommendation. <br />Geof Gledhill: It doesn't matter, because you just accept it as being part of the record. <br />You can either discuss the Planning Board recommendation or you can discuss whatever you <br />want to do about the special use permit process or about the special use permit itself. The <br />Planning Board recommendation is what it is. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis; I think it's becoming just like the cable TV industry in <br />Congress, Barry. I think this is a game. And I want to comment, sa if I have to vote yes so I can <br />comment later on some of the stuff I don't really understand, then I'll have to vote for it, I guess. <br />But it reminds me of Cable TV and the federal government. <br />A motion was made by Commissioner Carey, seconded by Commissioner Foushee to <br />accept the Planning Board's recommendation into the record <br />VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br />Geof Gledhill: Accepting it into the record does not mean you agree with it. Next, you <br />close the public hearing, unless in your discussion you anticipate asking questions that require <br />evidence. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis: I don't understand why we would want to make the school <br />system responsible far having bicycle racks on a property where students are going to be <br />bussed to school. This is an alternative school; it is not a regular school. Therefore, you are <br />not going to have children walking to this facility or bicycling along dangerously narrow new 86. <br />So, the recommendation is that they install bicycle racks and George McFarley is saying very <br />clearly in the testimony to the Planning Board that school children will be bussed to this facility. <br />So you've got all of these parking spaces and you've got also the need for bicycle racks. I don't <br />understand that. I was here and so was Moses, I don't believe the rest of you were, when the <br />proposal was made very innocently by somebody else in the Planning Department -different <br />faces, different names - oh, they're going to put softball lights, they're going to play softball, and <br />the Stoney Creek people rase up with concern. If those people knew tonight this proposal for <br />punching a road through, you wouldn't have a seat available here tonight. And I would probably <br />be agreeing with them. They prided themselves and still, I believe pride themselves that they <br />live in a secluded area where they have peace, and tranquility, and harmony and we got people <br />proposing to punch roads through the trees. I've walked that place the last nine years I worked <br />for the school system. When they bought that land, I was present, when Stanback was built, I <br />inherited that building and all of its construction issues, and there was never a proposal to <br />punch a road through there, never. The sanctity of the people living back there was always <br />respected as a given. Somehow or other, that given has vaporized. Now we're talking about <br />punching a road through. You know, it's easy when you look at something from your <br />perspective as a planner. I'm not picking an you guys, I'm just telling you, you need to respect <br />and appreciate the people who live their lives behind the school. The school was already <br />