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9 <br /> Chair Bedford said Commissioner Hamilton and Vice-Chair McKee are on a Schools <br /> Capital Needs Work Group and expressed the need for funding. She said the Board continues <br /> to hope there might be a state bond for school facilities for all counties. <br /> Commissioner Hamilton said another possibility would be to change the State's rules for <br /> giving money for school facilities because Orange County is not currently eligible. <br /> Senator Meyer said Speaker Moore made it a priority to introduce a bond package <br /> which passed the House, but he hasn't heard anything discussed since then. <br /> Chair Bedford said the Board has a meeting with the school boards on March 9, 2023. <br /> Board members and the legislative delegation discussed the public school funding <br /> debate, and the movement of support for charter and private schools. They also discussed <br /> developments regarding non-partisan maps for elections. <br /> Chair Bedford said Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools and Orange County Schools are <br /> the 1 st and 3 d in the state for funding, but systems across the state need more support. She <br /> acknowledged that Representative Buansi, Representative Price, and Senator Meyer are all <br /> there to do the best they can. <br /> Senator Meyer said he's been in very productive conversations with the Chancellor of <br /> Leadership at UNC Chapel Hill about shutting down the coal plant. He said not only will there be <br /> an environmental benefit, but the North Carolina Railroad Corporation would no longer need the <br /> rail line, which goes through the largest areas of undeveloped property in southern Orange <br /> County. He said converting it to a transportation pathway opens up possibilities for housing and <br /> economic development. He said the University is open to a long range plan for the area. <br /> Representative Price asked if this would require changing the rural buffer. <br /> Commissioner Greene said Carrboro has already changed land-use planning to <br /> accommodate future development in the area in question. <br /> Senator Meyer said development in the area would not impact the rural buffer. <br /> Chair Bedford said she advocated for rails to trails, but hadn't considered other options. <br /> Senator Meyer said it would be a very different way of handling this corridor than <br /> Durham handled the American Tobacco Campus, which is almost exclusively recreational. He <br /> said this would be similar to the Beltline in Atlanta with recreation and transportation pathways <br /> through the middle of multiuse development. He said the community will need to work with the <br /> university on an energy transition plan and then a long range plan for housing and economic <br /> development in the area. <br /> Commissioner Richards asked if the university is also talking about workforce housing <br /> as a possible use. <br /> Senator Meyer said yes, it is driving their interest in the project. <br /> Commissioner Greene said an opportunity exists to create a positive outcome. <br /> John Roberts briefly reviewed the departmental legislative priorities. <br /> Representative Price asked for John Roberts to send the list to the legislators. <br /> Chair Bedford thanked everyone for coming together. <br /> A motion was made by Commissioner Richards, seconded by Commissioner Hamilton, <br /> to adjourn the meeting at 10:04 a.m. <br /> Jamezetta Bedford, Chair <br /> Recorded by Tara May, Deputy Clerk to the Board <br /> Submitted for approval by Laura Jensen, Clerk to the Board. <br />