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12 <br /> Chet Mottershead said that the new Capital Area Workforce Board set policies for all <br /> counties in the zone. He said that those policies would apply to all counties equally. <br /> Commissioner Fowler asked if they could all be serving the new company or those job <br /> seekers. <br /> Chet Mottershead said yes. He said that right now it is a regional partnership and Moore <br /> and Montgomery counties are working with Orange County to determine what the priorities <br /> should be. He said they believe Orange County's customers will be better served working with <br /> Capital Area. <br /> Commissioner Greene asked when the realignment will take place. <br /> Bonnie Hammersley said tonight the Board will direct staff to draft a letter of intent for <br /> the NC Works Commission. She said that will then be brought back to the Board for a vote, <br /> hopefully by June 21st <br /> Chair Price said she was on the workforce development board and attended meetings in <br /> Alamance and Moore counties and it was so different than the work happening there. She said <br /> that the issues here are part of the Triangle. She said that some of the interests of Randolph <br /> and Moore are so different than the jobs that they are seeking here because Orange County is <br /> part of the Triangle. She said she is encouraged by this because it brings Orange County into <br /> the Capital Area and working regionally on these issues just makes sense to be aligned. She <br /> said that for 3-4 years she was on a steering committee called community, economic, and <br /> workforce development and they looked at all those issues at the same time so to see the <br /> property zones aligning with the workforce boards is common sense. <br /> A motion was made by Commissioner Bedford, seconded by Commissioner Richards, to <br /> authorize staff to coordinate the realignment process as prescribed by the Department of <br /> Commerce and to provide a recommendation to the Board of Commissioners. <br /> Commissioner Bedford said it is important that Orange County be aligned with Durham <br /> because of Durham Tech, so Orange County may need some flexibility, just as Durham has <br /> been given on the timeline. <br /> Chair Price said that Durham Tech is on board and in support of this realignment. She <br /> said that Durham County is taking a bit longer because of their structure. <br /> VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> b. Voluntary Agricultural District Designation — Multiple Farms <br /> The Board received a presentation from North Carolina Department of Commerce staff <br /> regarding the realignment of regional workforce development boards, options for Orange <br /> County for future alignment, and the approval process for proposed realignments. <br /> BACKGROUND: Orange County's Voluntary Farmland Preservation Program was started in <br /> 1992. To date there are 138 farms in both the Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) and the <br /> Enhanced Voluntary Agricultural District (EVAD) program —totaling 16,845 * acres. <br /> The County's Voluntary Farmland Protection Ordinance (VFPO) outlines a procedure for the <br /> Agricultural Preservation Board to review and approve applications for qualifying farmland, and <br /> to make recommendations to the Board of Commissioners concerning the establishment and <br /> modification of agricultural districts. Section VII of the VFPO contains the requirements for <br /> inclusion in a voluntary agricultural district. To be certified as qualifying farmland, a farm must: <br /> (1) Be located in the unincorporated area of Orange County; <br />