Agenda - 05-17-1994-X-B - Laserfiche WebLink

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24 committees/mailing lists and the local media. In addition, 200 flyers were distributed at convenience stores and other locations in the rural areas. Citizens were invited to attend any of the three meetings. Meeting #1 (Northern Orange). Walnut Grove Church, January 18, 1994 At the Northern Orange meeting on January 18, 15 citizens braved temperatures in the teens to attend. Despite the size of the group, attendees agreed that it represented a cross-section of the community - containing five farmers and several other longtime residents, as well as a three to four new residents in the area. (All comments from this and the other meetings are an agenda attachment). There were a variety of comments received from the citizens at the meeting, but a few common themes did emerge. None of the citizens recommended one-acre conventional development without open space. A number of reasons were given for this, including farm nuisance suits, traffic, less newcomers in the area, and loss of community character. Conversely, there seemed to be consensus that two-acre lots were more in keeping with community character and represented a good compromise. Several noted that most of Northern Orange was zoned for two-acre lots anyway. The group was unable to select either the RCSC or Planning Staff Alternative development options, finding positive and negative components with both. A slight preference for a modified Committee version, with lower density open-space developments, was noted in the meeting summary. The group unanimously liked the five-acre lot incentive proposal in both packages. Several residents did not like the "clustered" effect of the higher-density open-space developments, recommended capping cluster density at one unit/acre, and were concerned about alternative wastewater systems. Several citizens noted the unique community character of northern Orange and suggested some development options be different in different areas. Meeting #2 (East-Central Orange) New Hope Elementary School, January 25, 1994 24 persons, including one County Commissioner and two Planning Board members, attended this meeting. The majority of attendees were residents of nearby communities in the New Hope community, although several citizens from other areas around Hillsborough, Durham and Caldwell were also present. This group broke into two small groups and provided input on the development options(see attached summary). Again, there were a number of different comments on a variety of subjects, but the following were consistent themes. Both groups indicated that one-acre conventional development was not appropriate as part of a rural character package. Open-space developments were generally preferred, but the groups recommended that open space uses be "tightened up" to restrict some uses (recreational uses, golf courses, et al). Additionally, the groups seemed unanimous in indicating that the open-space developments (OSD's) should be less dense - on the order of one unit per acre overall. Like the Northern Orange group, citizens universally liked the five-acre lot option with incentives - and were unable to select one package over the other. There were a number of other comments about considering yield plans (at two-are lot minimum) and carrying capacity/sustainable development in crafting new development options.