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23 <br /> MEMORANDUM <br /> TO: ORANGE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS <br /> FROM: DAVE STANCIL, AICP <br /> Planner II/Land Use and Environment <br /> DATE: FEBRUARY 22, 1994 <br /> SUBJECT: MEETING SUMMARIES FROM JANUARY <br /> RURAL CHARACTER COMMUNITY MEETINGS <br /> COPIES: ORANGE COUNTY PLANNING BOARD <br /> MARVIN COLLINS, AICP, PLANNING DIRECTOR <br /> GENE BELL, AICP, PLANNER III <br /> This memo serves to supplement information in the March 1, 1994 agenda abstract on the results <br /> of the three rural character development options meetings in rural Orange County. <br /> As you know, the County Commissioners and Planning Board Commissioners asked staff in <br /> March 1993 to conduct meetings with the rural Township Advisory Councils to solicit further <br /> input on the specifics of recommended development options to help protect the rural character <br /> of "Rural Orange", as defined by the Rural Character Study Committee (RCSC). Specifically, <br /> citizens were to be asked to compare the Committee's development options of January 21, 1993 <br /> with a Planning Staff Alternative of March 10, 1993 - which addressed Planning Board <br /> concerns. Staff suggested using facilitated meetings to enhance input from residents, and Andy <br /> Sachs of the Dispute Settlement Center agreed to help design the meetings for optimum input. <br /> Originally planned for May 1993, the community meetings were postponed to allow for adequate <br /> notification and further work on meeting design. In July 1993, Planning and Dispute Settlement <br /> Center staff noted the potential for substantial confusion about the ongoing watershed zoning and <br /> its impact on development options, and recommended that the meetings be delayed until <br /> watershed zoning issues were resolved in the rural areas. This was anticipated to occur in <br /> October 1993. However, deliberations on watershed standards required further time, and the <br /> watershed zoning was not adopted until December 21, 1993. During the interim, staff had <br /> designed three facilitated, small-group based community meetings to be held in Northern, East- <br /> Central and Southwest Orange. These meetings would be the fifth round of community/township <br /> meetings held on the Rural Character Study since 1990, and were built around the basic format <br /> of the successful 1991 Community Information Meeting at the Hillsborough Exchange Club. <br /> On January 18, 25 and 27, community meetings were held at three locations in the rural portions <br /> of the County. The January 18 meeting was held at Walnut Grove Methodist Church Fellowship <br /> Hall in northern Orange, while the January 25 meeting was held at New Hope Elementary <br /> School. The January 27 meeting was held at the Orange Grove Community Building in <br /> southwest Orange. A total of 261 notices were mailed to citizens on a number of <br />