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12 <br /> Please also note the Upper Eno Watershed Map which was jointly approved by the State and <br /> Orange County in 1996 that designated this eastern zone as protected, State law and Orange <br /> County zoning allows up to 10% of the protected acreage to be 70% impervious cover to <br /> accommodate the economic development and residential transition zones. <br /> This higher density option does not allow development in critical watershed designated areas. It <br /> is worth noting that Orange County has designated an area six times larger than the state rules <br /> of 1996 for critical designation in this watershed. <br /> In summary, Orange County has invested in the corridor with public utility infrastructure and has <br /> a companion land use plan that intensifies growth in focused areas with supportive <br /> transportation systems. The jobs and tax base created in ED zones provide opportunities for <br /> residents to work in the county (and thereby limiting commuting and pollution) and bolstering <br /> tax base to help pay for other land uses that need services. <br /> See link for Efland Mebane Small Area Plan <br /> https://www.orangecountync.gov/DocumentCenter/View/4196/Efland-Mebane-Small-Area-Plan- <br /> PDF <br /> Efland Area Development/Economic Development <br /> The Buckhorn Economic Development District continues to show success in business recruiting <br /> and increased interest by investors to spur new light manufacturing, distribution and commercial <br /> operations. This trend is expected to continue in the future in response to several Article 46- <br /> funded water/sewer projects that have now been completed by the County, through active <br /> marketing to prospective businesses, and as a result of strong interest by industrial and <br /> commercial developers seeking to identify properties in Orange County. For example, in recent <br /> years the Buckhorn Economic Development District has attracted in excess of $365 million <br /> dollars in new taxable investment, more than 975 full-time new jobs to be created, and over 1.9 <br /> million square feet of new construction to be added. This activity is represented by the <br /> companies Morinaga, ABB, Medline Industries, Thermo-Fisher Scientific, and Piedmont <br /> Metalworks. All of these companies are creating full-time jobs with health care and related <br /> employment benefits, and at salaries that are well above the Orange County living wage. ABB <br /> is Orange County's single largest private employer and is currently seeking applicants to fill 400 <br /> new manufacturing positions that will average over $71,000 per year in salary. <br /> The attached map entitled "Hillsborough EDD & Buckhorn EDD — Large Sites" shows the <br /> location of four approved and/or in-process spec developer business parks located in the <br /> Hillsborough and Buckhorn Economic Development Districts (EDDs). Each of these four <br /> locations represent excellent potential for the County to attract new advanced manufacturing, <br /> distribution, research and related commercial development by tenants of the same caliber as <br /> companies such as Thermo-Fisher Scientific. To illustrate, the Research Triangle Logistics Park <br /> in the Hillsborough EDD has been approved for up to 2.4 million square feet of development on <br /> 160 acres at an Interstate 40/Old NC 86 exit. Second, the Ohio-based industrial developer Al. <br /> Neyer has now established two new business parks (Buckhorn Industrial Park and Mebane <br /> Business Centre) located along Buckhorn Road, and with total development potential of up to <br /> 1.6 million square feet on 167 acres. Both of these parks were annexed and rezoned into the <br /> Mebane city limits. Thermo Fisher Scientific is located here, with Medline Industries located <br /> adjacent. And in Efland, the Minnesota-based developer Oppidian is currently pursuing site <br />