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2 <br /> Because almost all of the MST located east of Hillsborough will be within Eno River State Park <br /> and its master plan, the State and the Eno River Association have taken the lead to addressing <br /> the trail from Hillsborough Riverwalk east to the Durham County line. <br /> Orange County's responsibility is to connect the trail from Alamance County to Occoneechee <br /> Mountain State Natural Area, and it is this area that has been the area of focus since 2018. As <br /> shown in the current and prior Capital Investment Plans (CIP), the first area of emphasis was to <br /> extend the trail west from the Hillsborough Riverwalk through Occoneechee Mountain and to the <br /> Seven Mile Creek Natural Area. This would extend an existing section of the trail, and significant <br /> progress has been made by the County, Town of Hillsborough, Eno River Association and State <br /> Parks. This is addressed in the attached Project Summary of Recent Activities in the section <br /> "Riverwalk to Seven Mile Creek Natural Area." <br /> The second area of emphasis as per the adopted plan and the CIP was the subsection from NC <br /> 54 to Buckhorn Road, encompassing the Cane Creek Reservoir lands of OWASA. Working with <br /> several willing and interested landowners, staff has secured sections of trail corridor as well as a <br /> future trailhead on NC 54, and is finalizing trail easements with multiple property owners on lands <br /> that abut the OWASA Cane Creek lands where the trail would run. Updates on the progress in <br /> this area is provided in the attached summary document in the section titled "Cane Creek <br /> Reservoir Area." (Note: To protect landowner confidentiality, the summary document does not <br /> reference specific properties.) <br /> The third and final area of activity for the Orange County section of the MST would connect <br /> Buckhorn Road near Cane Creek to the Seven Mile Creek Natural Area. It is expected that this <br /> subsection of the trail may take many years to complete, as was noted in the adopted 2018 map, <br /> and the Friends of the Mountains to Sea Trail have been working on road route connectors to <br /> serve hikers until the trail corridor is completed at some date in the future. <br /> Staff continues to work with willing landowners, and is in regular contact with OWASA staff <br /> regarding the progress in that area, and the potential for construction of a segment of the trail in <br /> the Cane Creek area is being contemplated at this time. <br /> As a long-term, multi-year project, staff plans to provide status reports to the Board on a regular <br /> basis to update on the activity and progress toward the trail route. <br /> FINANCIAL IMPACT: Funding for both land acquisition/trail easements and trail construction <br /> (including appurtenances like road crossings, fences, bridges and other needs) is included in the <br /> adopted Capital Investment Plan from prior years, including $220,000 for trail easements and land <br /> acquisitions. MST funding is and has been staggered over several years, based on the three focus <br /> areas of the trail mentioned above. Funding for trail easements and land acquisition is also <br /> provided by NC State Parks, and other costs are offset by the work of the trail partners such as <br /> Eno River Association and FMST. <br /> SOCIAL JUSTICE IMPACT: The following Orange County Social Justice Goal is applicable to <br /> this item: <br /> • GOAL: ESTABLISH SUSTAINABLE AND EQUITABLE LAND-USE AND <br /> ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES <br /> The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of people of all races, cultures, incomes <br /> and educational levels with respect to the development and enforcement of environmental <br />