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

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3 1 effects, and quality of life. She said Buc-ee's will be a blight on the landscape and character of 2 the area, and this is a generational decision that may be the legacy of this BOCC. 3 Arthur Sprinczeles read from a news article that expressed the positive benefits in 4 communities that have Buc-ee's stores. He cited positive economic benefits to other 5 businesses in the area because of Buc-ee's. 6 Richard Ward said he is a resident and business owner on Ben Johnston Rd, and 7 expressed that gasoline powered vehicles are not the future of transportation. He said he is 8 frustrated over the review process of the plans by the Planning Department, and said the public 9 was banned from an open meeting, amongst other violations. He opposed this project and 10 urged the BOCC to listen to its constituents and vote no. 11 Rhonda Parker said she is the former director of Camp Chestnut Ridge, and this land 12 was properly zoned years ago, and specifically prohibits gas stations. She said this zoning 13 should be preserved. She said she looked at the area plan, and finds the Buc-ee's proposal to 14 be in direct conflict with it. She said the Efland community wants to stay unique and any 15 development should be in line with the character of the residents and the desire to preserve the 16 environment, as well as being sustainable for generations to come. She urged the BOCC to 17 wait for a better development opportunity. 18 Anne Shortliffe read the following comments: 19 20 Good Evening. My name is Anne Shortliffe. For the past 37 years, I have lived on Ben 21 Johnston Road, a little over a mile from the proposed Buc-ee's site. I expect change and 1 22 understand the need for development in Orange County. However, placing 120 gas handles on 23 a protected watershed is a needless development that harms the current residents and 24 businesses of our county. There are presently 20 different stations and 203 gas handles in the 25 15 miles of interstate highway between Hillsborough and Haw River. The supply is diverse and 26 stable, and the competition creates some of the lowest prices in the state. If there is no need for 27 further access to gasoline, why would we accept the increased air, water, noise and light 28 pollution created by the traffic chaos Buc-ee's would bring to our local community? Think of the 29 fumes from all the exhaust pipes as cars sit and wait for Buc-ee's traffic lights. Climate change, 30 brought on by fossil fuel consumption, has caused a substantial increase in the frequency and 31 intensity of hurricanes in our state. Ask yourself how Buc-ee's high tech storm water system 32 would handle a Hurricane Florence scale rain event. It won't. Be aware it only takes 1 gallon of 33 gasoline to poison 1 million gallons of water. 34 The market for transportation in this nation is rapidly moving to hybrid and electric 35 vehicles. Buc-ee's is part of a dying industry in a changing world. The Orange County Board of 36 Commissioners has committed to following the Paris Climate Accord and to switch to 100% 37 renewable energy by 2050. If these commitments are more than mere window dressing, you 38 simply cannot put the largest gas station in the world in our county. 39 The traffic problems created by Buc-ee's have been spelled out in many letters to the 40 Board, including one from our neighborhood that was signed by 19 residents and 11 41 businesses. If you haven't read this yet, please do. Buc-ee's 25,000 daily car trips will create 42 chaos at the merge of the 2 most dangerous highways in North Carolina. As someone who 43 uses exit 161 regularly, I can assure you it's already neither easy nor safe. Buc-ee's will make 44 this dangerous situation even worse. 45 Buc-ee's claims to pay up to $15 per hour for entry level jobs, but these are dead end 46 jobs. Buc-ee's clearly states that management positions will be filled by residents of Texas. We 47 need jobs that offer career development oriented to the future. Scrubbing toilets at Buc-ee's 48 prepares you to scrub toilets somewhere else. Forward-looking development, such as the light 49 industry, office, and retail activities that are permitted under current zoning regulations, also 50 create substantially less disruptive traffic patterns.