Minutes 06-05-2018 - Laserfiche WebLink

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5 tending to cause embarrassment, discomfort, annoyance or nuisance to the neighborhood. There shall not be allowed on the aforesaid property any other things of any sort whose normal activities or existences is in any way noxious, dangerous, unlikely, odoriferous, noisy, unpleasant, or of a nature as may diminish, destroy the enjoyment of other property in the neighborhood by the owners thereof.” The property owners of Keith Arboretum acted without regard to the covenants or the well-being of the residents of the Brights Way residential community. THIRD: The current landowners and their investors purchased the Keith Arboretum with full knowledge of the conservation easements and covenants. Thank you very much for your time. Brian Dobyns said he has worked with many Orange County landowners and residents, putting easements on their properties, and he has concerns about the language in the conservation easements. He said easements need to be updated at times, and there are ways that enforcement can be improved. He suggested that Orange County and the landowner look at the easements, and monitor them better. Marilee McTique read the following comments: Good Evening, my name is Marilee McTigue, and I’ve lived in Bingham Township for over 25 years. The community surrounding the Keith Arboretum and Pickard Mountain became aware of proposed amendments to the Keith Arboretum Conservation Easement hours before the April 17th BOCC meeting. We were shocked that potential amendments were being considered that would weaken the conservation value of the easement just 12 years after it had been established. We were also shocked that the proposal was put on the consent agenda without adequate documentation, discussion, or community engagement. In response, we mobilized the community and have reported our findings and issues to you in a series of messages over the last few weeks. Suffice to sat, the issues we have identified over the last three years are deeply disturbing to the local community and have led to an environment of mistrust. I remember when Commissioner Jacobs, Dave Stancil, Dr. Keith and many of our neighbors gathered at Susan Walser’s home about 20 years ago to begin planning for how to protect this regionally significant land. Bob Nutter kicked things off by putting conservation easements on his property, and that was followed by Bill Burlingame, Hazel and Everett Cheek, Nick and Carolyn Sartor, Tim Toben, and Dr. Keith. We are all extremely grateful for their individual efforts to preserve this land that is a regionally significant stand of chestnut oaks, wildlife habitat, and source of drinking water for Chapel Hill. The County, and other easement holders, promised to protect the land and enforce the easements “in perpetuity.” These properties are now changing hands as the original owners move on with their lives, and the properties are being acquired by new owners and real estate developers. I don’t think anyone anticipated the challenges these ownership changes would rain down upon us, but the question of the level of enforcement of these easements can no longer be ignored. It is unclear to us whether the County is prepared to honor their promises to landowners and strictly enforce the