Minutes 01-05-2021 Virtual Public Hearing (continued to 01-12-2021)

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