Agenda - 02-16-2021; 8-a - Minutes

Browse Search

12 1 due to Buc-ee's, and he is concerned the federal highway commission may deny necessary 2 requests to accommodate Buc-ee's. He said previous speakers have referenced the poor 3 working conditions at Buc-ee's. He said one issue that has not been pointed out is the vulgarity 4 of the Buc-ee's mascot, a Beaver, which is a vulgar and misogynistic euphemism for a vagina. 5 He said he does not want to have to explain this to his grandchildren. He urged the BOCC to 6 vote no. 7 Matt Cartmill said he owns a small horse farm near Efland, and wants to discuss phase 8 two promises, on which Buc-ee's supporters dwell. He said there are claims of hotels, medical 9 offices, etc. He said the word gasoline is not mentioned for some time on the Efland Station 10 website, but 2/3 of Buc-ee's money is made by selling gas. He said Buc-ee's is about selling 11 gas, and phase 2 is an aspirational dream. He said he surveyed existing Buc-ee's sites using 12 Google aerial maps, and 48% of Buc-ee's have no neighbors. He said those that do have 13 neighbors, have fast food drive-thrus. He said decent development in the area does not 14 happen, because people do not want to locate next to a giant gas station. He said restaurants 15 etc., are already allowed on this land under the current zoning, but gas stations are not. He 16 urged the BOCC to vote no to rezoning. 17 Jared Cates said he is very concerned about the roughly 37 thousand gallons of fresh 18 water Buc-ee's will use daily. He said this estimate is not based on actual use, but rather typical 19 uses, and he thinks actual use will be much higher. He said 12,000 people per day will use an 20 estimated 21.6 thousand gallons of water just for flushing toilets and hand washing. He said the 21 LIDO limits Industrial water use to less than 10,000 gallons a day, which Buc-ee's will obviously 22 exceed. He said the BOCC should look closely at this issue, and wonders if there is an attempt 23 to hide the water usage. He urged the BOCC to vote no. 24 Kathy Kaufman said she serves on the Orange County climate council, and is a retired 25 Air Quality specialist with the EPA. She thanked the BOCC for asking the CFE to evaluate the 26 proposal. She asked if Buc-ee's represents what Orange County wants its future to look like. 27 She said this area serves as a public water supply for Hillsborough residents, and the usage by 28 Buc-ee's will have critical impacts. She said there are high risks of leaks and spills, runoff into 29 ground water, and high carbon emissions. She said this project will make a mockery of Orange 30 County. She said Buc-ee's jobs only pay $15 an hour, with poor working conditions, and the 31 BOCC should look at Buc-ee's record in Texas. She said there is no commitment to build 32 anything but a travel center, and asked if Buc-ee's is the best Orange County can do. 33 Jon Lorusso said he lives in Hillsborough, and wants to voice his opposition to the Buc- 34 ee's proposal. He said he spoke two months ago about his opposition to RTLP, and he has 35 similar concerns with this project. He said he understand the County needs tax dollar revenue, 36 and the impacts of the pandemic are not fully known. He said Buc-ee's is a Texas company 37 that is interested in taking money back to Texas. He said Orange County needs to think about 38 itself and invest in local business owners. He said Buc-ee's will not care about the pollution it 39 will cause in NC, but a local business owner will care about the environment, the impact to their 40 neighbors, and a sustainable economy. He urged the BOCC to vote no. 41 Kim Piracci said she serves on the Planning Board, and the Planning staff and 42 Developer did a really good job selling this project to the Planning Board, and she voted in favor 43 of the application. She said since that time, she has heard an outpouring of concerns. She said 44 at the November Planning Board meeting, the Developer stated this project was not in the upper 45 Eno critical protected watershed, which is true, but the Developer did not say this property has 46 two tributaries that empty into the 7 mile creek, which serves as a water supply for Hillsborough 47 and ultimately Raleigh. She said research shows that small spills, less than 40 gallons, do not 48 need to be reported to local agencies or the State. She said when she connects these dots, 49 multiple small spills could add up to a lot of gasoline spilling into Hillsborough drinking water. 50 She said Buc-ee's has never had a reportable fuel spill, which she now knows is not the same