Orange County NC Website
6 <br /> <br />Penny Gluck said alternative schedules are being researched, but it is important to 1 <br />ensure that the necessary educational equipment is available to support the instructors. 2 <br />Chair Dorosin said he knows challenges may exist, but co-location is being discussed 3 <br />in other contexts, and it seems wise to consider it here as well, as the high schools and County 4 <br />facilities already exist. He said it is important to be creative. 5 <br />Travis Myren resumed the CIP presentation: 6 <br /> 7 <br />FY2018-19 Recommended CIP Expenditures County Projects: $28.5 million total - chart 8 <br /> 9 <br />• Conservation Easements - $500,000 County share (page 60) 10 <br />Project Description/Justification: The Conservation Easement component of the Lands Legacy 11 <br />program was initially funded in July 2002, and provides matching funds for State and federal 12 <br />grants to acquire conservation easements to conserve prime or threatened farmland, sensitive 13 <br />natural areas, or important water quality buffer lands in keeping with Board goals and Lands 14 <br />Legacy priorities. These lands have conservation values or agricultural operations to be 15 <br />enhanced and protected, and the land stays in private ownership and is not publicly-accessible 16 <br />except upon landowner consent. Over 2,100 acres of prime farmland and natural areas have 17 <br />been conserved to date, with millions of dollars in state/federal grants leveraged. It is 18 <br />anticipated that additional matching funds of approximately 50% would again be leveraged for 19 <br />easements, shown as Grant Funding and Landowner Donations. 20 <br /> 21 <br />FY2018-23 Recommended CIP Continuation Projects 22 <br />• Conservation Easements - $500,000 County (p. 60) 23 <br />o Component of Lands Legacy Program 24 <br /> Protects threatened farmland from development 25 <br /> Protects sensitive natural areas 26 <br /> Protects water quality buffer lands 27 <br />o CIP authorizes $1 million every other year 28 <br />o County costs offset by $500,000 in State/Federal Grants 29 <br />o 10 active projects underway 30 <br />o $45,000 remaining in Conservation Easement Program 31 <br />o $500,000 included in Spring 2018 financing package 32 <br /> 33 <br />Conservation Easement Map 34 <br />Lands Legacy Program Acquisitions 2000-2017 35 <br /> 36 <br />• Land remains in private ownership 37 <br />• Over 2,100 acres conserved to date 38 <br />• Over $3 million leveraged in grant funding and donations 39 <br /> 40 <br />Commissioner Price asked if Lands Legacy can be used for any of these conservation 41 <br />easements. 42 <br />David Stancil, Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation (DEAPR) 43 <br />Director, said historically there have been two pots of money. He said the monies from the 44 <br />1997 and 2001 bonds could not be used for publically accessible lands, and conservations 45 <br />easements typically are not, and this was the origin of the separation of the two funding 46 <br />sources. He said because the conservation easement fund is down to $45,000, staff has been 47 <br />able to go to the Lands Legacy fund, which has existing money, but also has a lot of upcoming 48 <br />potential obligations. He said staff has tapped into the conservation easement monies a bit, 49 <br />but there are some large ticket items in the works, and this would not be sustainable going 50