Agenda - 11-05-2003-8h - Laserfiche WebLink

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5~ SCOPE OF WORK Cultural and Archaeological Survey Northern Human Services Center Park Orange County 1. Project Background Orange County owns 60.5 acres along NC Hwy. 86, approximately 10 miles. north of Hillsborough (Attachment A), intended for use as the Northern Human Services Center and an expanded park facility. The subject property consists of three tracts: a) the county's Northern Human Services Center (NHSC) on 9.28 acres; b) an undeveloped 39-acre parcel located adjacent to the NHSC, which includes a portion of a large pond; and c) a 12.22-acre parcel located on the east side of NC 86 and directly across from the NHSC. The eastern tract, which the County only recently acquired, is known as the "Vincent property." The 9-acre NHSC property is already developed, with cone-story brick building (a former elementary school, ca. 1950s), gravel parking lots, baseball field, and. playground. The adjacent 39-acre tract is mostly wooded with a mixture of hardwoods and pine. A section ofthe forest nearest the school (~12 acres) is mature hardwoods (50-60 ft. tall). The forest in the western part of the property is a mixture of pine and hardwoods adapted to the wetter soils nearer to the pond. Runoff from the property drains from east to west into the pond ("Compton's Pond"). Two small cleared areas are located in the far northeast and southwest corners of the property. The County plans to improve and expand the current parking lot and utilize the 39-acre tract site to locate new park facilities. The pond will likely also be incorporated into the park design. The current wastewater disposal area for the NHSC complex is located underground and directly east of the NHSC building (front yard between the building and highway). Expansion of the existing wastewater treatment system is required to maintain the long- term viability of the building. A traditional system has been designed for construction on the rear portion of the recently acquired Vincent property, directly across Hwy 86 from the NHSC building. The new system will be designed as compactly as possible,. however, is expected to consume at least seven of the 12 acres on the Vincent property, except for the western portion containing the house site and outbuildings. In the alternative, the County is seeking a grant from the State Energy Oft•ice to construct amini-eco system that would-naturally deal with wastewater treatment at the facility. If the grant is received and the "Living Machine" system is installed, the associated wetlands would be built in closer proximity to the building on the west side of Hwy 86. Should that be the case, the Vincenf property may be available for uses other than wastewater treatment. The Vincent house (ca. 1910) and a handful of associated outbuildings remain on the site, all in a deteriorated condition. The Vincent property was surveyed in the early 1990s as part of a countywide architectural history inventory, and at that time the house was still occupied as a residence (House OR 846). The surveyors recorded the outbuildings around the main house but did not mention the log tobacco barn in the rear 3