Agenda - 10-07-2014 - 6a - Laserfiche WebLink

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 Chapel Hill - Carrboro City Schools Board of Education (May 15, 2014) Town of Chapel Hill Town Council (June 23, 2014) (Note: City of Mebane did not participate due to lack of school facilities in Orange County). Dave Stancil said this resolution is brought before the Board tonight to complete the process and enable staffs to begin working toward more specific actions to facilitate the usage of facilities. He noted that Commissioner Gordon and Commissioner Rich were a part of this work group. Meredith Stewart said the Health Department is interested in the community use of schools as it relates to their work with the issue of childhood obesity. She passed out a letter to the Commissioners which outlines these issues and the fact that the last community health assessment revealed a need for more access to parks and recreation spaces. She said the Health Department supports the shared use of school facilities for community members. Commissioner Gordon said this is something she has been working on since 2008, and there has been great collaboration between the schools, County and towns. She said this is a thing that has been a long time coming, and she is very pleased. Commissioner Dorosin asked if the substance of this resolution is to help them move forward with a program for shared use of the facilities. Dave Stancil said yes, and the purpose is also to make it cost effective for local governments and public entities to use school facilities. Commissioner McKee said he would echo Commissioner Gordon's comments, and it will be a relief to be able to answer community questions about this issue. Commissioner Rich said this passed wholeheartedly by the school systems and OWASA. She said there was a mutual agreement that these green spaces should be able to be used at an affordable rate. Chair Jacobs noted that he had participated in this process in 2008 as well. Chair Jacobs said in the past everything was always trumped by the principals and /or the athletic directors. He said he hopes that progress has been made with this sticking point. Dave Stancil said there has been some progress here, but it is an issue they will continue to work on. Commissioner Gordon said the two school systems did change their policies, which will facilitate this going forward. A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Commissioner McKee for the Board to adopt and authorize the Chair to sign the Resolution supporting Community Use of School Facilities for Recreation. VOTE: UNANIMOUS b. Approval of an Easement for Two Interpretive Signs in River Park The Board considered approving an easement to permit the Town of Hillsborough to erect two interpretive sign panels along the public walkway within the County -owned River Park and authorizing the Chair to sign. Peter Sandbeck presented a series of PowerPoint maps and pictures of the Town of Hillsborough's new Riverwalk trail, and he reviewed the following background information: The Town of Hillsborough has recently completed a major section of the new Riverwalk, a walking /hiking /bike trail that runs along the Eno River. The trail extends westward from the County -owned River Park (behind the Justice Facility) to Gold Park in West Hillsborough. The new Riverwalk is also a key section of the Mountains -to -Sea Trail. The project includes the