Agenda - 03-07-2017 - 6-a - Minutes

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6 1 Commissioner Marcoplos said a national definition is lacking. He said a home on a 2 trailer is an RV, and a home on a foundation is a home. He said the law seems to pertain to 3 connections. He asked if one had an RV home on a trailer, with a solar panel and a battery and 4 a composting toilet, and gas cooking and heating capability; could one park in the RV lot without 5 connection and not violate the UDO. 6 Patrick Mallett said from the Planning perspective, there would need to be a plan 7 indicating that this was a temporary residential unit. He said if a unit is off the grid, the 8 classification defers to whether the electrical and composting toilet would match up with 9 Environmental Health and building code requirements. 10 Commissioner Marcoplos said the utility connection is not the only determining factor. 11 Patrick Mallet said it goes back to specifics of building and health codes. 12 Commissioner Price referred to page 51, section 2-C, which states: "no permanent 13 mobile homes or temporary residential units, or other accessory structures shall be permitted 14 within a home park space." She asked if this means there can be no temporary residential 15 units. 16 Patrick Mallett said permanent and temporary structures cannot be located on the same 17 lot. 18 Commissioner McKee said the wording is awkward. 19 20 PUBLIC COMMENT 21 Tom Pritchard thanked BOCC for their questions about this topic. He said his parents 22 founded Spring Hill Park in 1972, which currently houses RVs mostly. He said the Orange 23 County Visitors Bureau has worked with his park for many years, and the park has done much 24 good over the years. He said many people have come to the area to receive health treatment, 25 and have moved into his park during their time here. He said some people stay longer than 180 26 days. He said the amount of income that this brings into the County is noteworthy, and his park 27 uses significantly less water than a mobile home park. He said his park is clean, safe and quiet, 28 offering a place where people can feel comfortable surrounding medical treatments. 29 Planning Board Chair Lydia Wegman said a great deal of thought went into the 30 recommendations from the Planning Board. 31 Commissioner Marcoplos read a letter from resident below: 32 Hi, 33 34 My name is April Kemper. I live and work in Chapel Hill. I've been following the tiny house 35 movement for years now. Like Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Orange County, other communities 36 are trying to provide affordable, energy efficient, sustainable housing for their residents. Tiny 37 houses on wheels are one way to provide such housing. I would be happy to sit down with the 38 Orange County Planning Staff to share what I have learned from other communities who have 39 made tiny houses an option for their residents by revising their local zoning and building codes. 40 Thank you for considering another affordable housing option for our community. 41 42 Commissioner Price reiterated that section 2-C on page 51 was ambiguous. 43 Patrick Mallett said this section can be stricken. 44 Commissioner Rich said this is a good start, with solutions for RV homes. She said she 45 would like to examine the tiny home trend a bit more, along with County ordinances. She said 46 tiny homes could be a viable option for affordable housing, and she does not want to miss it. 47 Patrick Mallett said this is one part of the discussion, and it should continue more 48 completely. He said more thought needs to be given to a tiny home definition. 49 Commissioner Rich said all options should be explored.