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39 <br /> These sites of regional and County significance have long been listed in the <br /> Inventory of Natural Areas and Wildlife Habitats for Orange County. The planned <br /> Nature Park and the trails that would be constructed for the park/preserve and <br /> the MST would not infringe on the conservation values of these resource lands, <br /> but operate along the edges of the identified Natural Heritage sites, offering an <br /> opportunity to experience the characteristics and visual beauty of the areas <br /> without damaging their inherent features that are being protected. Disincentive <br /> measures along the trail would be utilized to encourage hikers and persons <br /> exploring the area from wandering into sensitive areas. These approaches have <br /> been successful in other locales to protect sensitive natural areas while still <br /> allowing a level of public access. <br /> The County's adopted Capital Investment Plan also envisions this area as the <br /> first to receive attention for securing trail easements, other needed safety and <br /> signage features and building the section of the MST. The CIP and preliminary <br /> planning to date has also identified Seven Mile Creek as a good potential MST <br /> waystation or "trail node" — a location along the trail where there is limited <br /> parking, and an area for overnight camping with water and some level of <br /> convenience services present. This could include a well with water source tap, a <br /> fire ring, an area for camping, and possibly some type of restroom (whether <br /> portable or a composting toilet, to be determined). In this plan, Seven Mile Creek <br /> Nature Park would be a location whether persons could park and hike, or longer <br /> range hikers could stop and spend the night. Eventually, this would be a <br /> waystation/trail node along the full MST route, but in the short term it would <br /> become the southwestern terminus of the trail system headed southwest out of <br /> Hillsborough (or a beginning point for hikers headed east). <br /> As a part of the proposed next steps, staff is asking for the Board's authorization <br /> to begin negotiating trail easements (or trail land purchases, if that is the <br /> landowner desire) for the area from Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area <br /> to the County's Upper Eno Nature Preserve (Seven Mile Creek Nature Park). <br /> As may be noted on the map, the most significant challenge in this section of the <br /> trail is the crossing of Interstates 85 and 40. Two options for crossing these <br /> conjoined interstates (this is right before the point at which the two interstates <br /> split south and east) were identified: <br /> • The Seven Mile Creek and Crabtree Creek stream culverts under the <br /> interstates <br /> • Dimmocks Mill Road bridge over the interstates <br /> Both options have been explored and discussed with NCDOT staff. The length of <br /> the culverts, and the fact that both empty into wetlands on the north side of the <br /> interstate, make the culverts an unlikely solution. This leaves the Dimmocks Mill <br /> Road bridge. Staff is proposing to work with NCDOT to develop appropriate <br /> signage and pedestrian electronic signalization (if feasible) on both sides of the <br /> Dimmocks Mill Road bridge to aid in alerting motorists to the potential for hikers <br /> on the bridge. <br /> 7 <br />