Minutes 04-18-2017 - Laserfiche WebLink

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12 the largest employer in Durham County. She currently alternates between driving to work and taking the 405 bus, depending on her schedule. She works in clinical research and is required to meet regularly with faculty and students. She said working from home is not an option for her, just as it is not for any of the clinicians working in the two large health systems in Orange and Durham counties. Sue Hunter said the data fully supports the proposed light rail path, connecting people to the largest employers in these two counties, as well as three large local universities. She said Wake County, Durham County, UNC and Duke all support commuter rail, and Orange County is the lone outlier. She said she has supported this project for 10 years, and wants to see the light rail built. She strongly encourages the BOCC to continue to work with Durham County to negotiate down Orange County's portion of the light rail cost, and to develop a cost sharing agreement for cost overruns. She said the majority of the voters approved the transit tax and there is the money to do this. She asked the BOCC to live up to its commitments, as well as the vote of its constituents, and continue to support this project. Matt Fajack said he is Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration at the University of North Carolina (UNC), and a resident of Orange County. He said UNC supports the light rail project, and is a partner in Chapel Hill transit. He said this plan is about the next 30 years and beyond, and they need to keep the vision alive in light of the risks that they will overcome. Karen McCall is the Chief Communications Director at UNC Healthcare, which supports light rail and rapid bus transit. Bernadette Pelissier said she wanted to speak on a shared community value: affordability. She said transportation plays a huge part in affordability, and decreasing the cost of transportation can increase affordability. She said public transportation is significantly cheaper than car ownership. David Neal reviewed the following email statement: I am a resident of Hillsborough and I have no plans to regularly commute from Chapel Hill to Durham. Nevertheless, I support public investments in a multi-modal transit plan that can meet the transportation needs of some our most densely traveled and congested roadways. The Durham-Orange Light Rail is a key facet of that plan and deserves your continued support. Consistent with the County's commitment to sustainability in the 2030 Comprehensive Plan, the Board of Commissioners have long shown support for the transit plan, including the Durham-Orange Light Rail. When I served on the Orange County Commission for the Environment, we voted unanimously in 2012 to support putting the sales tax referendum in support of public transportation on the ballot. Voters likewise endorsed the plan, passing the additional tax to support light rail, more bus service, and a Hillsborough train station by an overwhelming 59-41 margin. The issue of light rail was squarely before the voters, and they endorsed this central component of the plan by a wide margin. The Commission for the Environment reaffirmed the importance of alternative transportation in our 2014 State of the Environment report, listing the following as a top sustainability priority for the County: We need to do more to improve our air quality, chiefly by making changes that result in less reliance on cars. Locally, this can be achieved by: (1) increased availability and use of transit alternatives, including bus, rail, bicycle, and pedestrian pathways; and (2) town and county planning that fosters denser, walkable communities, reduces sprawl, and allows the clustering of development in urban buffers.