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Page 4 of 11 individually;ChrisBrewer individually; and Barn of Chapel HillLLC. She noted that under the law, those are all separate 1 legal entities. What shesought from them was informationsubmitted to the North Carolina Department of Revenueor 2 to Orange County regarding theiralleged eligibility or alleged compliance with the statute regarding the farm exemption3 as it has been amended. She noted where the farm exemption provisions can be found in the state statutes, as noted 4 on Page 53 of the agenda packet, and that the session law amends several places in the statutes. The other 5 information shesought is the relationship among these entities because information has been provided to the county, 6 suggesting that a tax certificate that was received identifies Wild Flora Farms and KaraBrewersomehow applied to 7 Southeast Property Group LLC. The statute requires the tax certificate to be issued tothe owner of the property and 8 one of the errors that her party has alleged is that a certificate to Wild Flora Farmor KaraBrewer cannot apply to 9 SoutheastProperty Group LLC. On its face, it does not.Frankly, the income amounts and time increments in the two 10 statutes applying to the North Carolina Department of Revenue do not appear to have been possibly temporally to have 11 been metand so her party thinks the information she is requesting would be helpful to inform them as to whether there 12 is compliancewith those issues. That would be the issue when she comes before this board again. 13 14 LeAnn Brown reviewed that what the statues requireisan annual income from farming forthe previous tax year of15 $10,000 or an average for three years ofthat amount. There are conditional exemptions for tax purposes but that 16 provisiondoes not qualify a property owner. The letterto Kara Brewer with an exemption identification number for Wild 17 Flora Farm is dated September 22, 2017. Wild Flora Farm was created February 14,2017, so it had only existed a few 18 months. There is annual record of an assumed name certificate for Wild Flora Farm dated October 12, 2017, but it is 19 after the certificate was issued as well. The property was purchased in 2015 by Southeast Property GroupLLCand has 20 been owned by it throughout this process. 21 22 LeAnn Brown said that webelieve that in order for the Board of Adjustmentto make an intelligent and informed decision 23 on the appealing chief as to whetherOrange County has misinterpretedwhat it has received or has failed to make the 24 appropriate legal distinctions among the parties would be informed by the requested subpoenas. She and her clients25 believe that without the information, it would be difficult for her and herclients in the dark withoutunderlying information 26 to know whether what has been provided meets the statutory requirements. At a hearing on this matter, any evidence 27 that is obtained through the subpoenas can be objected to. The boardcan choose in a hearing to sustain the objections28 and LeAnn Brown can offer to make an offer of proof and have that information available so that a court can look at it 29 later.Or the other party can object and the board can sustain that and a court can look at it later. If LeAnn Brown is not 30 allowed to subpoenathe information, then it renders it very difficult under her due process rights toprepare an 31 argument before the Board of Adjustment. She appreciates Karen Barrows’s decision to not sign as she could have 32 done as vice chair. She summed up her argument by saying that it would be error indeed for the Board of Adjustmentto 33 refuse to issue the subpoenasbecause it would render her party unable to present a case to the board or to make an 34 offer of proof to this board. If the boardrefuses, a higher court would likely say let’s see what an offer of proof would 35 have been, she said.She asked that the board issue the subpoenas and that the subpoenas require that the 36 information be submitted before the next hearing andthat the persons listed are present to answer questions.37 38 Andy Petesch,of the Wake CountyBar, addressed the board and said he was here on behalf of Kara Brewerand the 39 actual property owner now, which is Wild Flora Farm LLC. He said therewas a merger between Wild Flora Farm LLC 40 and Southeast Property Group in February of this year. He passed out documents with that information. 41 42 Randy Herman asked if LeAnnBrown had been provided a copy.43 44 LeAnn Brown answered she was receiving that information just now. 45 46 Andy Peteschgave documentation tothe boardand offered itinto the record and clarified that now Wild Flora Farm 47 LLC owns the property.48 49 97