Agenda - 05-24-1989 - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

to an informed citizens watch group which effectively spoke for the rural Orange County community. She stated that the members of SCRAP researched the environmental impact of the airport, as well as the legal rights of property owners to sue airport owners and management for noise annoyances. She indicated that SCRAP members felt the information found in the Task Force Survey and Consultant's report was misleading and superficial. Lastly, she thanked the Commissioners for their recent flexibility and sensitivity to the voice of the people. MS. FRANCIS DOUGLASS presented a plan to channel the energies of the neighborhoods across Orange County who were involved in the SCRAP effort into the Economic Development Plan and Rural Character Study. She proposed the Orange Multi-Neighborhood Information Network (OMNI). The purpose of the network would be to promote, maintain and enhance the quality, stability and vitality of the residential neighborhoods in Orange County. The OMNI network would research and take positions on issues affecting any member neighborhood, and would collect and distribute information , to stimulate awareness and interest in those issues. A neighborhood will be defined as an ongoing, private, formal and representative organization, from a defined geographic area, composed of at least 40 households and accounting for at least 15% of the households in the area, the purpose of which is not inconsistent with that of the network. There will be one voting representative elected, or appointed, by the governing body of each neighborhood, as well as one alternative representative. Other members of the neighborhood will be encouraged to serve on committees of the network. Ms. Douglass requested that citizens interested in participating in OMNI indicate that by signing their name on the sign-up sheet. MS. TERESE WEAVER spoke in opposition to the airport. She stated that her family had been residents of Orange County for five generations and that our area, and our ability to attract desired economic development, is truly unique. She mentioned that she worked with SCRAP on the financial analysis of the airport. Finding long-term solutions to the County's economic problems is very difficult. She stated that Orange County citizens are an important resource and need to be included in the process of finding these solutions. She volunteered to help Orange County government pursue the goals which have been established. MS. MADELINE LEVINE mentioned that she had earlier addressed the Commissioners at a Rural Character meeting. She stated that she believed the process followed in pursuing the airport was flawed. Communication was lacking between the Commissioners and the citizens. An example of poor communication was that the Report to ehe People did not include the plans for an airport. The economic goals proposed to be reached through the construction of an airport were not articulated early in the process. Also, the survey mentioned by Ron Kumin convinced her that the Commissioners were not listening closely enough to the citizens. She did, however, agree with Commissioner Willhoit that the vote on the airport should have been delayed until after the Public Hearings. She stated that the questions that need to be answered are "why do we not have water and utilities and job training programs in place". She suggested using local citizens as volunteer consultants to come up with ways to attract desirable commercial enterprises. Finally, she suggested that the Commissioners need to be more in touch with what State Agencies, including UNC, plan for the county. Initially, it was assumed that UNC would be closing the Horace Williams Airport. However, that now turns out to be untrue. Also, Sunday's Chapel Hill Herald mentioned that the head of the Division of Airport Transportation at NCDOT said that if the Commissioners go ahead and decide on an airport then the State will go ahead and ask the FAA to designate the Orange County Airport as a "reliever airport" for RDU. She felt that this was frightening.