Agenda 06-04-2019 6-a - Major Subdivision Preliminary Plat Application

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88 Pat Mallett reminded the Board the property was located within the Lower Eno Protected Watershed Protection Overlay district. Project disturbing more than 20,000 square feet of land area are required to submit and receive approval of an erosion control plan. Projects disturbing more than 21,780 square feet of land area are required to submit and receive approval of a stormwater plan. Fairway Hills will require both erosion control and stormwater permit review and approval. The Concept Plan denotes the location of anticipated stormwater facilities. Mr. Mallet reminded the Board erosion control and stormwater plans would be submitted prior to the commencement of land disturbing activity assuming the project was, ultimately, approved. Tim Smith indicated the project involved centrally located stormwater facilities. These stormwater control measures would address the overall development of the project. Development on individual parcels may also require the property owner to develop appropriate stormwater control measures as well. There was general discussion. Lydia Wegman asked if there were any comments or questions from the public. Linda Nathansen expressed concerns on multiple issues regarding the development and request that there be testing of the wells done for the neighbors that could potentially be negatively impacted so that if in the future there is a problem the property owners have proof that it was not a problem before the development. She requested that no use of round-up or similar pesticides be allowed to be used and expressed concerns about run off and stormwater issues. She requested that the use of Low Impact Design (LID)stormwater management be considered and handed out a paper that compared the system to traditional systems. She related that there was an underground tank on the property and that there was the potential of contamination from it to the adjacent properties. Michael Harvey reminded the Board that the County has some of the most restrictive stormwater regulation in the area. Developers were required to address both water quantity, specifically how much water was leaving the site, and water quality, specifically the removal of nutrients from the project. This project would also have to abide what is known as pre and post stormwater runoff conditions. What this means is that under current conditions if there was approximately 1 inch of water running off the property in its pre-development state,there can be no more than 1 inch of runoff generated by the property in its developed state. Mr. Harvey further reminded the Board they could not compel or require the applicant to adhere to a specific stormwater design standard. That would be addressed during the stormwater permitting stage based on applicable County and State regulations. While he appreciated Ms. Nathansen's suggestion that the project use low impact design principles,there was no guarantee the project would qualify for same. Michael Harvey reminded the Board that is surrounding wells were already experiencing issues, it would be prudent for those property owners to contact Orange County Environmental Health to ascertain if the wells need to be re- drilled. Testing of wells to try and establish a baseline of existing issues, in the hopes of holding property owners within Fairway Hills accountable for potential impacts,was not practical. The assumption that future problems will be the direct impact of this project represented a false premise as development/redevelopment of surrounding lots could also lead to the problems Ms. Nathansen was concerned about. Craig Carter expressed concern on the well water table and contamination. He related that several properties had contaminated wells and had to have then drilled deeper and that there had been 3 gas stations there in the past. Mark O'Neal of Pickett-Sprouse addressed the concern and advised that the tank had been for heating oil and had been removed,the soil around it was also removed and the remaining soil has been tested and cleared by an expert. There was additional, general, discussion on contamination issues.