Agenda - 02-19-2019 8-a - Minutes

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18 1 places for collaboration with Carrboro, and he would like to see talk turn into action. He said 2 they need to prioritize the most important thing that Carrboro and Orange County can work on 3 together. He said sometimes plans are brought to the Board too late, and discussions need to 4 occur earlier. 5 Commissioner Greene referred to Alderman Slade's comments, and said Orange 6 County has an agricultural economic development officer with lots of ideas to boost the local 7 food economies. She said these ideas should not get lost, and are valued by the BOCC. 8 Mayor Lavelle agreed that economic development for one can provide economic 9 development for all, but said Carrboro has a focus on local businesses and retaining local 10 businesses. She said this is highly valued. 11 Alderman Slade said there is a large question of where is the biggest bang for the buck. 12 He asked if the County has ever done a leakage analysis to identify the sectors of the economy 13 that would multiply financial investment. He said less than one percent of local food is 14 consumed locally, and it is all leaving the area. He said he would like to capture a higher 15 percentage of the millions of dollars represented by the food consumed. He said it is a bigger 16 issue than just taxes. He would like to see a study commissioned to ensure that the money that 17 is being spent is being spent effectively. He said growth in Hillsborough will rub off on 18 Carrboro, but he fears development that supports a Japanese candy factory does not return as 19 much money to the local economy as a local business would. He said the dollars are leaving 20 the community. 21 Town Commissioner Ferguson said she wants to support their local businesses, but 22 they also have people that want to work for big, global business and it is a question of how to 23 support both things, as it should not be an either/or. 24 Commissioner McKee said the small amount of funding that Carrboro received, from the 25 small business investment grants and business loans, stands out to him. He said he is curious 26 as to whether the Carrboro Economic Development (ED) Director is getting the word out to 27 businesses about these funding opportunities. He asked if there is any way for the County to 28 help alleviate this disconnect. 29 Mayor Lavelle said their ED Director has been in contact with the County over the years. 30 She said Carrboro has an internal fund that has been successful for many years, and this may 31 be where people are going instead of County funds. She said staff will continue to follow up on 32 this opportunity. 33 Commissioner McKee said he is open to any suggestions from the towns for these 34 funds, and let them be brought forth to the Board of County Commissioners to review and 35 discuss. 36 Steve Brantley said the Japanese candy company connected to the first water and 37 sewer extension paid for by article 46 funds, and this company employs 130 people on three 38 shifts, and are the single largest corporate tax payer in the entire Mebane industrial district of 39 Orange County, and they stand to double or triple in employment and investment. He said the 40 second sewer system that the County has built in the Efland region represents acreage that is 41 under option with a letter of intent by a single company that would move there and pay more 42 than $15/hour per job. He said it takes a long time to get water and sewer connected, but 43 progress is being made. He said there needs to be a balance in commitment to both large 44 industrial recruiting and small business growth in the Towns. 45 Chair Rich said the bottom line is to look at all options and continue conversations 46 across all entities. 47 48 4. Update from Climate Change Ad Hoc Committee 49 Commissioner Marcoplos said there is a handout at their places. He said so many of 50 them have been affected by climate change, and after the hurricanes, he reached out to an