Orange County NC Website
Approved 12/12/16 <br />OC Board of Adjustment – 10/10/16 Page 104 of 113 <br /> <br /> <br />the farming operation. Especially with the information that we received today; that a farm can be in multiple 1 <br />locations. But I’m certainly sympathetic to what the neighbors are saying about the disruption that this 2 <br />would really cause everyone. So I do feel conflicted. I think the key piece here is that there is an 3 <br />enforcement mechanism and if it comes to find out that the farming activities is not the primary of the land 4 <br />then someone might be out of business. 5 <br /> 6 <br />Barry Katz: It’s hard to view the agriculture as a primary use. You take 150 year old barn from upstate New 7 <br />York and bring it down here, putting in 2 roads, parking for 250 people, septic field for the capacity of 8 <br />running events, which was all presented to us as an event center, and you’re using 25 square feet to cook 9 <br />some chestnuts and etcetera. It was like back filling the agriculture use after the SUP was rejected. And 10 <br />trying to reposition themselves as a farm merely to get this event center approved, as a farm. That’s what 11 <br />we heard. With people who really don’t have any experience in this but, they’re allowed to enter into this 12 <br />thing and fail but as result of this submitted documentation… Perhaps he had inadequate documentation 13 <br />for what we’re considering now and for the testimony we’ve heard to be able to make a determination. You 14 <br />know? 15 <br /> 16 <br />Matt Hughes: That’s very possible. 17 <br /> 18 <br />Barry Katz: And that, in fact, this was destined to end up here because of that. 19 <br /> 20 <br />Karen Barrows: And I think to your point of letting them go ahead and then afterwards Michael might have 21 <br />to say, “Now it’s not being used as a farm speaks to what Susan was talking about. You’ve already built the 22 <br />building and said it was going to be a daycare and now it’s not”. Inaudible 23 <br /> 24 <br />Barry Katz: With the way I read that email I read Mr. Harvey basically telling them future zoning 25 <br />enforcement is a hammer that you really have to face and do you want to face that hammer under these 26 <br />circumstances? But it’s plain as day that this is a wedding venue. That’s what it is. It has some agricultural 27 <br />curlicues on the outside but they’re not relevant to the wedding venue, particularly. And the wedding venue 28 <br />is not particular relevant to what they purport in their agriculture. It’s a separate use. It’s a use that would be 29 <br />appropriate for zoning. As it was when it was introduced without the fig leaf of the agricultural suggestion of 30 <br />chestnuts, bees, and flowers. But we’re not asked to determine that, are we? You have to tell me, are we 31 <br />asked to determine this? 32 <br /> 33 <br />James Bryan: The only thing for the Board to consider tonight is to affirm, reverse, or modify Michael’s 34 <br />determination. If there was a determination made. 35 <br /> 36 <br />Susan Halkiotis: What would a modification look like? What does that mean? 37 <br /> 38 <br />James Bryan: That’s straight from the UDO. I don’t have anything in mind, I don’t recall either party offering 39 <br />any modification but the Board has that prerogative. If they think that Michael’s determination could be 40 <br />affirmed if it was modified in some way we could do that. 41 <br /> 42 <br />Susan Halkiotis: I want to reconcile one thing, and that is the question presented and on page 82 of our 43 <br />packet, which was the prayer for relief… So the point that they intersect is reverse and vacate the May 16th 44 <br />decision? 45 <br /> 46 <br />James Bryan: Right. 47 <br /> 48