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Article 2: Procedures Section 2.7: Special Use Permits Orange County, North Carolina – Unified Development Ordinance Page 2-22 (1) Written notice shall be sent by certified first class 22 mail to all adjacent property owners not less than 15 days at least ten days but not more than 25 days 23 before the hearing date. Adjacent property owners are those whose property lies within five hundred one thousand feet of the affected property and whose names and addresses are currently listed in the Orange County tax records. (2) The Planning Director shall post on the affected property a notice of the public hearing at least ten days but not more than 25 days 24 prior to the date of said hearing.25 (3) Such notice Notice of the public hearing shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in Orange County once a week for two successive weeks, with the first notice to be published not less than ten days nor more than 25 days prior to the date of the hearing. In computing the notice period, the day of publication is not to be included, but the day of the hearing is to be included.26 2.7.7 Notice Requirements for Class B Special Use Permits Notice Requirements for Class B Special Use Permits shall follow the procedures in Section 2.12.6. 2.7.8 Nature of Proceedings (A) The review of Special Use Permit applications shall be conducted during a public hearing by the decision-making board. (B) The review of a Special Use Permit application is a quasi-judicial process, where the Board responsible for rendering a decision acts much like a panel of judges. The Board hears factual evidence and sworn testimony presented at an evidentiary hearing, and then makes findings of fact supported by competent, substantial, and material evidence. (C) The chair or presiding officer of the hearing shall swear all parties intending to present evidence or testimony during the hearing. (D) The chair or presiding officer may take whatever action is necessary to limit testimony to the presentation of new factual evidence that is material to the application, to ensure fair and orderly proceedings, and to otherwise promote the efficient and effective gathering of evidence. Such actions may include: (1) Barring the presentation of obvious hearsay evidence, 22 State statutes do not require mailing via certified mail. Because of the proposed notification distance increase (from 500 feet to 1,000 feet), staff is suggesting that notices be mailed via first class mail in order to keep costs and necessary staff time lower. 23 Language modification is being suggested to be consistent with Statutes and to ensure the outer limit of 25 days is not inadvertently missed. Because notices for the Neighborhood Information Meeting (and Planning Board meeting, if these proposed text amendments are adopted) are sent more than a month before this notice for the public hearing, notification to the public regarding proposed projects is occurring much sooner in the review process than in the past. 24 Language modification is being suggested to be consistent with Statutes and to ensure the outer limit of 25 days is not inadvertently missed. 25 C(1) and (2) are currently (C) and (D) in the adopted UDO but have been indented one level to flow better in this subsection. 26 This language is currently (B) in the adopted UDO. The Staff Attorney had suggested that published newspaper advertisements for quarterly public hearings omit SUP applications since the general public does not have standing in such matters and cannot participate. At the September 8, 2015 public hearing, comments were received to continue to publish SUP notices in the legal advertisements but to add additional language to the legal ad if necessary for legal sufficiency reasons. Therefore, the language has been restored and depicted in orange colored text and has been indented one level to flow better within the subsection. Planning and Attorney staff will work together to ensure future legal ads are modified as necessary. 76