Orange County NC Website
30 <br /> What are your Board/Commission's most important accomplishments? <br /> • In 2015, reviewed and recommended approval for <br /> 17 additional farms as Voluntary Agricultural District and Enhanced <br /> Voluntary Agricultural District farms, adding 3202 acres to these <br /> programs. This amount increased the total enrollment into both <br /> programs to 10,395 acres on 69 farms throughout Orange County <br /> all Districts.ll of the seven Agricultural increased acreage in g <br /> • Assisted Economic Development in reviewing and <br /> evaluating new applications for the Ag Economic Development Grant <br /> Program funded by the "Article 46" tax; two members of the APB <br /> serve on the grant review committee <br /> • Continued installing new road signs to identify <br /> farms enrolled in the Voluntary Agricultural District programs, as <br /> well as to recognize participating farmers and increase program <br /> visibility <br /> • Implemented revisions to the County's Voluntary <br /> Farmland Protection Program Ordinance to conform to recent <br /> changes to NC General Statutes, including removal of the present- <br /> use tax value requirement which potentially restricted new farmers <br /> and some small farm operations from participation in the Voluntary <br /> Agricultural District programs <br /> • Partnered with Animal Services to develop <br /> language to better define nuisance livestock for the proposed Unified <br /> Ordinance <br /> • Promoted the creation of an "Agriculture <br /> Investment Grant" program as one of the projects to be funded by <br /> revenue generated by the new one quarter (1/4) cent"Article 46" sales <br /> tax enacted in 2012 (5% of the annual revenue, or approximately <br /> $60,000) <br /> • Creation and approval of the Orange County <br /> Agricultural Development and Farmland Protection Plan (2007) <br /> • Preparation of educational materials on Voluntary <br /> Agricultural Districts, right-to-farm law, and other agricultural topics <br /> • Assistance in planning the annual Agricultural <br /> Summit <br /> • Developed list of livestock operations throughout <br /> the county for the Animal Services department <br /> • Convening meeting of all county agricultural <br /> boards and committees for joint goal-setting and planning <br /> .. i <br /> List of Specific Tasks, Events, or Functions Performed or Sponsored Annually. <br /> The APB is responsible for reviewing and approving applications from <br />