Orange County NC Website
l <br /> open space such as Duke4 Forest, and future County parks and open space . <br /> Linking future rural parks and open space to Town parks via a few unpaved trails <br /> could greatly expand low- impact recreational opportunities , The identification of <br /> strategic corridors that might tie together these recreation facilities is suggested <br /> as a practical long -term goal . * Using criteria and a classification scheme, the <br /> potential for a select few woodland trails as part of a Countywide ( and <br /> eventually) regional corridor scheme is noted . , Three examples of such trail links <br /> are offered (two within the Towns or Rural Buffer, one in the rural areas linking <br /> Cane Creek and Eno River State Park) are offered . <br /> 4 . Coordinated Land Acquisition for Parks <br /> The 1996 and 1997 reports point to the need for coordinated capital funding , <br /> and this is one of the goals of this project . In discussing parks needs and goals , <br /> the work Group placed a strong emphasis on the need to Abegin land acquisition <br /> for long -term park needs now . <br /> Orange County has taken steps in 1999 to create a mechanism that could be ' <br /> used in this fashion . . The new Department of Environment and Resource <br /> Conservation began operation on January 4, with a primary focus on <br /> acquisition/easements of critical land resources . A Land Acquisition Program for. <br /> Orange County is currently being developed for discussion in the fall of 1999 . <br /> This program will develop and/or use inventories, criteria and a management <br /> structure for the acquisition and stewardship of land resources deemed critical to <br /> the public interest, working with other existing land trusts and entities . The <br /> program will involve the preservation of natural areas and wildlife habitat, <br /> farmland , riparian buffers, and the acquisition of lands for long -term parks use . <br /> The County is hiring a Land Resources Conservation Manager, with expertise in <br /> site evaluation and land acquisition this summer . This position will coordinate <br /> land acquisition efforts, and would use the criteria developed in the Master <br /> Recreation and Parks effort to evaluate land purchases for parks ( please see the <br /> Recommendations section for additional details) . The outline of the Land <br /> Resource Acquisition Program may be found in the report on page 26 . <br /> Funding for long -term parkland acquisition would likely involve local bonds and <br /> allocations, and grants from programs such as the state Parks and Recreation <br /> Trust Fund , Information on this program is provided on pages 27-28 . <br /> so Payment= i n - Lieu Programs <br /> All of the jurisdictions in the County have provisions in their development <br /> ordinances addressing dedication or provision of recreation facilities . Carrboro <br /> and Orange County also have payment- in -.lieu of dedication programs, which <br /> allows for the payment of a fee based on the number of lots in lieu of providing <br /> recreation facilities . Orange County has special legislation that would allow for <br />