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North Carolina General Statutes (NCGS) Related to Road Closings: <br />NCGS § 153A-241 states that “A county may permanently close any public road or any easement <br />within the county and not within a city, except public roads or easements for public roads under the <br />control and supervision of the Department of Transportation. The board of commissioners shall first <br />adopt a resolution declaring its intent to close the public road or easement and calling a public <br />hearing on the question.” <br />NCGS § 136-63 (a) provides that “The board of county commissioners of any county may, on its <br />own motion or on petition of a group of citizens, request the Board of Transportation to change or <br />abandon any road in the secondary system when the best interest of the people of the county will <br />be served thereby. The Board of Transportation shall thereupon make inquiry into the proposed <br />change or abandonment, and if in its opinion the public interest demands it, shall make such <br />change or abandonment.” Part (b) states “In keeping with its overall zoning scheme and long-range <br />plans regarding the extraterritorial jurisdiction area, a municipality may keep open and assume <br />responsibility for maintenance of a road within one mile of its corporate limits once it is abandoned <br />from the State highway system. <br />2.4. Staff posts a notice of the road closing and public hearing in at least two prominent <br />places along the road. This will be done about three (3) weeks prior to the public <br />hearing. <br />2.5. Staff publishes the Resolution in the Chapel Hill Herald, the News of Orange and the <br />Durham Herald-Sun once a week for three (3) successive weeks before the public <br />hearing <br />2.6. Staff sends a copy of the resolution by registered or certified mail to each owner as <br />shown on the county tax records of property adjoining the public road to be closed <br />and any residents in the immediate vicinity who would be affected <br />2.7. At the public hearing, the BOCC hear all interested persons who attend with respect <br />to whether the closing would be detrimental to the public interest or that no individual <br />owning property in the vicinity of the road would be deprived of reasonable means of <br />ingress and egress to his/her property <br />2.8. The Board may take action if the NCBOT has removed SR 1734 from the State <br />Maintained System. However, the Board usually does not take action at the time of <br />the public hearing, but at a subsequent meeting. If the NCBOT has not taken action <br />on this item the Board of County Commissioners may act at a subsequent meeting <br />after the road has been removed from the State Maintained System <br />3.Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (DCHC <br />MPO)Transportation Advisory Committee Amends the 2040 Metropolitan <br />Transportation Plan (MTP) <br />3.1. In the 2040 MTP, the DCHC MPO identified Pickett Road, (SR 1734 in Orange <br />County, SR 1303 in Durham County) as a thoroughfare. If the BOCC and NCBOT <br />move to close the road, the DCHC MPO would need to amend the LRTP to <br />demonstrate conformity with air quality requirements. <br />33