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ORANGE COUNTY <br />BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br /> Meeting Date: April 17, 2018 <br /> Action Agenda <br /> Item No. 4-b <br /> <br />SUBJECT: Board of Adjustment Overview <br /> <br />DEPARTMENT: County Attorney <br /> <br /> <br />ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />1. Board of Adjustment Information from <br />Other Local Governments <br />2. Available Training for Boards of <br />Adjustment in North Carolina <br />3. Brochure on Boards of Adjustment in <br />North Carolina <br />John Roberts, 919-245-2318 <br /> <br />Professor David Owens, UNC School of <br />Government <br /> <br />PURPOSE: To receive information regarding the purpose and operations of the Orange County <br />Board of Adjustment, including a brief presentation from Professor David Owens, Gladys Hall <br />Coates Professor of Public Law and Government, of the UNC School of Government. <br /> <br />BACKGROUND: Orange County residents have expressed concerns regarding the operations <br />of the Board of Adjustment and staff appointed to assist the Board of Adjustment. The Board of <br />Commissioners directed staff to recruit a neutral third party to present an overview of the <br />purpose and operations of boards of adjustment. The County Manager, County Attorney, and <br />staff have been reviewing the issues raised and associated solutions and costs. In addition to <br />questions related to process concerns were expressed regarding availability of public records. <br />Orange County is in the midst of converting to a process in which most public records subject to <br />requests would be published on the County’s website. This conversion is ongoing, but once <br />complete will eliminate situations in which a record may be provided in a format not acceptable <br />to the requesting party. Per newly enacted state law most records will be posted electronically <br />in response to requests. <br /> <br />Below is a brief overview of county boards of adjustment. <br /> <br />The Orange County Board of Adjustment is a quasi-judicial hearing panel appointed by the <br />Board of Commissioners. The term quasi-judicial usually refers to the adjudicative acts of an <br />elected or appointed official or board. In Orange County the quasi-judicial hearings before the <br />Board of Adjustment generally fall into three categories – appeals of final decisions, applications <br />for special use permits, and variances. <br /> <br />Unlike legislative hearings in which the public at large may comment on all conceivable policy <br />issues associated with the subject matter of the legislative hearing, there are restrictions on who <br />may participate in quasi-judicial hearings. The participants of a quasi-judicial hearing may only <br />be those interested parties with standing. Interested individuals with specific knowledge or <br />1