Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
50 <br /> 1 A motion was made by Commissioner Fowler, seconded by Commissioner McKee, to <br /> 2 open the public hearing. <br /> 3 <br /> 4 Roll call ensued <br /> 5 <br /> 6 VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> 7 <br /> 8 PUBLIC COMMENTS: <br /> 9 None. <br /> 10 <br /> 11 A motion was made by Commissioner Dorosin, seconded by Commissioner Hamilton, to <br /> 12 close the public hearing. <br /> 13 <br /> 14 Roll call ensued <br /> 15 <br /> 16 VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> 17 <br /> 18 A motion was made by Commissioner Fowler, seconded by Commissioner McKee, to <br /> 19 authorize the acceptance of written comments by 9 a.m. on May 6, 2021. <br /> 20 <br /> 21 Roll call ensued <br /> 22 <br /> 23 VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> 24 <br /> 25 6. Regular Agenda <br /> 26 <br /> 27 a. Authorization to Proceed with New Orange County Arts Commission Office and <br /> 28 Arts Space and Associated Lease Agreement with Hedgehog Holdings <br /> 29 <br /> 30 The Board received information on the proposed Eno Arts Mill Project and approve the <br /> 31 Orange County Arts Commission (OCAC) and staff to move forward by authorizing the Manager <br /> 32 to sign a lease agreement with Hedgehog Holdings for Suite 17 at the Eno River Mill in <br /> 33 Hillsborough. <br /> 34 <br /> 35 <br /> 36 BACKGROUND: <br /> 37 To address the identified needs of the arts community, the OCAC received BOCC approval in <br /> 38 October 2019 to enter into a lease agreement with Hedgehog Holdings, a family-run, historic <br /> 39 preservation development firm based in Raleigh and owner of the Eno River Mill in Hillsborough. <br /> 40 The partnership allowed the OCAC to offer eleven studio workspaces for local artists. The <br /> 41 spaces opened in February 2020, and proved successful and profitable in the first year, <br /> 42 exceeding projections even despite the pandemic. <br /> 43 <br /> 44 In July 2020, the OCAC entered into "Phase 2" of the original plan and began renting Suite 29, a <br /> 45 large, open space for classes, exhibits, and events. Suite 29 is connected to the current OCAC <br /> 46 office. Due to the inability to host gatherings, the space was instead rented by three large- <br /> 47 format artists. In early 2021, two front-facing office suites (17 A&B) very close to the artist <br /> 48 studios became available. At the same time, owners of the Eno Mill were approached by a <br /> 49 tenant interested in renting Suite 29 and the OCAC office. <br /> 50 <br />