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16 <br /> 1 Commissioner Marcoplos asked if there should be an "intangibles" category in this <br /> 2 process. He said this is a rigid process, and some flexibility may be needed to allow for <br /> 3 creativity and innovation. <br /> 4 Chair Dorosin said the goal was to make this more of an objective process, and the <br /> 5 Board did demonstrate flexibility by funding the EmPOWERment projects via more subjective <br /> 6 decision-making. <br /> 7 Bonnie Hammersley said the new housing director had similar concerns about the <br /> 8 criteria, and if it is possible to look at projects that do not necessarily fit the mold. She said she <br /> 9 told her yes, and that such ideas can be brought to the BOCC. <br /> 10 Commissioner Price agreed with Commissioner Marcoplos. <br /> 11 Commissioner Jacobs said both are right, and the Board did make exceptions with <br /> 12 EmPOWERment. He said perhaps 5 points could be added to the criteria for intangibles, such <br /> 13 as creativity. <br /> 14 Commissioner Jacobs asked Jeff Thompson, Asset Management Services Director, if <br /> 15 he could provide the BOCC with some figures about moving structures. <br /> 16 <br /> 17 7. Reports <br /> 18 a. Mountains to Sea Trail — Report on Segment 11 Trail Planning <br /> 19 The Board received a report regarding the results of community meetings, information <br /> 20 gathering, and trail planning efforts undertaken to identify a route(s) for the "Segment 11" <br /> 21 portion of the NC Mountains to Sea Trail (MST), from Hillsborough to Alamance County, and <br /> 22 provide direction to staff on next steps. <br /> 23 <br /> 24 BACKGROUND: <br /> 25 The North Carolina Mountains to Sea Trail (MST) is a continuous off-road trail that will link <br /> 26 Clingman's Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to Jockey's Ridge State Park on <br /> 27 the state's Outer Banks. The trail is part of the North Carolina State Parks system. At present <br /> 28 over 650 miles of the roughly 1,000-mile trail route is open for use. <br /> 29 <br /> 30 In 2014, the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation contracted with consultants to complete a <br /> 31 statewide MST Master Plan. The statewide master plan, approved in 2015, includes an <br /> 32 established corridor (or "swath") for the MST across the state, broken into defining segments. <br /> 33 The plan includes information about each segment, prioritization and plans for further work <br /> 34 along the MST, centralized web-based content about progress along the trail corridor, and a set <br /> 35 of tools and guidelines to assist trail planning partners. <br /> 36 <br /> 37 One of the regions in the state where the trail corridor was in need of further identification is the <br /> 38 Eastern Piedmont section, from Greensboro to Durham. Segments of the adopted MST corridor <br /> 39 traverse Orange County, entering from southwestern Orange County at the Haw River or <br /> 40 Alamance County line, and continuing northeast through lands owned by the Orange Water and <br /> 41 Sewer Authority around Cane Creek Reservoir. The MST corridor continues northeast to the <br /> 42 Orange County Upper Eno Nature Preserve (Seven Mile Creek) lands, before entering <br /> 43 Hillsborough along the Town's Riverwalk and heading eastward into Eno River State Park and <br /> 44 Durham. In the statewide master plan, these are defined as two segments —the section from <br /> 45 Alamance County to Occoneechee Mountain at Hillsborough being "Segment 11", and the <br /> 46 section from that point eastward to Durham County identified as "Segment 12". These <br /> 47 segments are also reflected in the adopted Orange County Parks and Recreation 2030 Master <br /> 48 Plan. <br /> 49 <br />