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

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17 Tehila Rosenblatt implored the BOCC to vote no. She said she lives in rural Hillsborough, and does not want this eyesore where she lives and works. She said she does not want the area to be reduced to a pit stop. She said she does not want to worry about her well water, and sitting in congested traffic. She said she wants to continue loving to living here. She urged the BOCC to think of the future, and to use the land for the betterment of the County and State. Brooke Bauman said she is a resident of Chapel Hill, and urged the Board to deny rezoning request. She said she grew up in the Triangle and visited biodynamic farms in Cedar Grove as a child. She said Buc-ee's will create an eternal traffic jam and damage the environment. She said North Carolina has a very different climate and land than Texas. She said unlike the travel centers in Texas, Buc-ee's Efland Station will be surrounded by residents who do not want to live next to large travel center. She said $15 an hour is not a reasonable living wage. She said if Buc-ee's built on a protected watershed, and pays poor wages, Orange County cannot be proud. Carol Staton said she lives 4 miles from the proposed Buc-ee's site, and is opposed to the rezoning being approved by the BOCC. She said exit 160 is not a problem, and does not need to be improved. She said exit 161 is a more dangerous ramp and is likely to cause greater problems if Buc-ee's is allowed to proceed. She said trucks will fill up the short exit ramp. She said Buc-ee's has gone too far to pull the wool over the County's eyes. She said it has contested the property value. She highlighted all previous environmental concerns, and said she supports developing the land, but urged the BOCC to wait for a better offer. She said the land has been available for 30 years, but the infrastructure necessary to attract business is fairly new, and she is certain a better development project can be found. Lindsley Bowen said she is against the proposed Buc-ee's project. She said she is a business owner in downtown Hillsborough, and believes Buc-ee's will route people out of downtown Hillsborough. Victoria Casey thanked the BOCC for its service. She showed the BOCC the fresh, clean water from her well. She said she lives within 1 mile of the proposed Buc-ee's site, and fears her water will be contaminated. She improved the Board to look closely and to do the right thing. She said she lives on Ben Johnston Rd, and it is a little piece of heaven. She said she is a nurse working with seniors in their homes, and sometimes has to get to their homes quickly. She is concerned potential traffic changes will impact her work. She said democracy will only work if elected officials have integrity. She said Buc-ee's is like the coronavirus, and the BOCC is elected to protect the community from it. Emily Sutton read the following comments: I am the Haw Riverkeeper with Haw River Assembly. I don't live in Efland. I don't work in the Eno River watershed. But I care about my friends and neighbors that live here. However, this project would likely have far reaching impacts to the region, including the Haw River watershed. There are reasons that Orange County has strict zoning, and it has had significant benefits including watershed protection, land conservation, and open spaces. People want to live here. By allowing an exception of this scale, with such a blatant disregard for zoning, this Board is inviting other similar projects to request more variances and zoning exceptions. This project poses to store 6 underground storage tanks, holding 240,000 gallons in fractured shale and bedrock. This is being proposed on the heels of one of the largest underground storage tank spills in a decade in Huntersville, NC. Colonial pipeline was required to excavate contaminated soil after 354,060 gallons of gasoline leaked from an underground fuel line. Firefighting foam, a forever chemical known to cause cancers and long term health risks when it contaminates drinking water supplies, was used to limit flammable vapors. Since the Underground Storage Tank program began in 1988, there has been nearly 33,000 reports.