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2 <br />1 portions of the Rural Buffer outside of the University Lake Watershed Area, and clarify text <br />2 associated with the minimum lot size within the University Lake Watershed Area. <br />3 Michael Harvey presented the following PowerPoint slides: <br />4 <br />5 MARCH 27, 2014 <br />6 AGENDA ITEM: C -1 <br />7 JOINT PLANNING PUBLIC HEARING <br />8 ORANGE COUNTY, TOWN OF CHAPEL HILL, TOWN OF CARRBORO <br />9 JOINT PLANNING IN ORANGE COUNTY: <br />10 Began in 1984 with a call for the development of a land use plan. <br />11 Participants adopted a Joint Planning Land Use Plan October 13, 1986 outlining <br />12 acceptable levels of development in identified areas outside of existing extraterritorial <br />13 jurisdictional (ETJ) areas. <br />14 Management of area(s) formalized on September 22, 1987 with adoption of Joint <br />15 Planning Agreement by all involved parties. <br />16 Agreement established: `a method of coordinated and comprehensive planning' in <br />17 identified areas. <br />18 <br />19 JOINT PLANNING IN ORANGE COUNTY: <br />20 Plan envisions 2 primary development areas: <br />21 — Transition Areas: Administered by the Towns under their individual land use and <br />22 zoning regulations in accordance with the Plan. Areas characterized as <br />23 transitioning from rural to urban development. <br />24 County has review authority for projects, text, and map changes in <br />25 identified Transition Areas. <br />26 — Rural Buffer: Areas outside Transition Areas under County regulatory control <br />27 intended to remain rural in character where annexation is prohibited and urban <br />28 services (i.e. public water and sanitary sewer) are not a necessary component to <br />29 support development. <br />30 Town(s) has review authority for projects, text, and map changes in Rural <br />31 Buffer area. <br />32 Joint Planning Land Use Plan — Land Use Category Map <br />33 <br />34 ISSUES /CONCERNS: <br />35 Agricultural Areas land use category is not depicted on maps contained within the Plan. <br />36 No properties appear to be designated within this category. <br />37 — NOTE: Current language could be misconstrued as establishing limits with <br />38 respect to allowable locations for agricultural operations, which is inconsistent <br />39 with State Law. This needs to be corrected. <br />40 Rural Residential land use category does not specify a density limit (minimum lot size <br />41 only). <br />42 — NOTE: County staff has interpreted there to be a `defacto' density limit in the <br />43 areas of the Plan not located within the University Lake Watershed Area of 1 <br />44 dwelling unit for every 2 acres. <br />45 Clustering of lots is not viable within Rural Residential land use category as the Plan is <br />46 currently written. <br />47 — NOTE(s): There is a minimum required lot size for properties within this land use <br />48 category of 2 acres. <br />49 — Under County regulations, Cluster Subdivisions allows for the reduction of <br />50 required lot sizes, not below 1 acre in area, so long as 33% of a parcel is <br />51 preserved in open space and established density limits are observed. <br />