Agenda - 09-05-2023; 8-a - Minutes

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64 1 Board to consider adding athletic facilities for field sports, but the Board did not move forward with 2 that request. He asked without HYAA, what is the future for youth athletic sports. He said that 3 regarding schools, he didn't follow the idea that schools couldn't be located in rural residential 4 areas. He said SAPFO is a planning tool, but the need for schools totally controlled by 5 demographic changes. He said that he is not surprised that NCDOT is not amenable to sidewalks. 6 He said there is no public transportation route through the area now, but routes change to meet 7 demand. He said they are in the process of adding another circulator route to reduce wait times. 8 He said they can provide transportation. He said Orange County is not the county he grew up in. 9 He said it is no longer a rural county. 10 Commissioner Portie-Ascott thanked everyone for being engaged in the process. She 11 thanked everyone who wrote emails. She thanked the president of HYAA for meeting her at the 12 ball fields and that it was enlightening to see what they do. She said she was touched hearing 13 about the impact they have on the children they serve. She said it is obvious that they need a 14 permanent home. She said she understands how sports change the lives of children. She said 15 she was glad to hear that they could still potentially have ball fields if the project is not approved. 16 She said she was torn as a parent of a high school student. She said she believes parents should 17 have some say in where their children go to school. She said that SAPFO projections are a tool 18 to determine where schools are needed. She said SAPFO shows that another school is not 19 needed for another five years. She said the county hired a consultant to review school capital 20 needs, and that it would be premature at this point to add another school without that report. She 21 said that this project is in conflict with goal 3 of the comprehensive plan. She said that the Town 22 of Hillsborough didn't support the project, and the plan encourages the county to be good 23 neighbors with other municipalities. She said she would not support the request. 24 Chair Bedford thanked the staff for their work in reviewing the item and bringing the 25 agenda material to the Board. She said they can only consider land use, but not the type of school 26 or the type of recreation. She said many of the arguments made by the public were inaccurate, 27 some were accurate, both pro and against. She said she considered the eight guiding planning 28 principles in the comprehensive plan. She considered the first principle, "Efficient and Fiscally 29 Responsible Provision of Public Facilities and Services." She said SAPFO has been adopted for 30 about 20 years and updated annually and does not call for a new school or new capacity at any 31 grade level for the next 10 years. She said some of the 2016 bond was used to increase capacity 32 at Cedar Ridge High School, and that is one of the key reasons that no capacity is needed now. 33 She said some schools are overcrowded, but that the Orange County School Board of Education 34 would begin the redistricting process. She said that ball fields and tennis courts are a pro for the 35 first principle. She said they offered several positive conditions, that otherwise would have been 36 the responsibility of NCDOT. She considered the second principle, "Sustainable Growth and 37 Development" and read the definition: 38 "Growth and development within the county should occur in a pattern, location, and 39 density that is sustainable over the long-term." 40 She said she has concerns that in this location, rural residential is more appropriate. She said 41 guiding principle three"Encouragement of Energy Efficiency, Lower Energy Consumption and the 42 Use of Nonpolluting Renewable Energy Resources,"and"Promotion of Both Air Quality Protection 43 and the Development of an Effective Transportation System" does not apply, although the 44 applicant is meeting the county's requirements for stormwater runoff. She considered the fourth 45 guiding principle "Natural Area Resource Preservation," and said there was not any significant 46 endangered species or special hardwood forests at the site. She reviewed the fifth guiding 47 principle, "Preservation of Rural Land Use," which she said was really important. She said on 48 June 1 she visited the area to gain an understanding of what the area is like. She said there 49 aren't sidewalks in the area, and it is not a walkable area. She said she feels the project would 50 be out of character for the rural area. She said the residential growth for children is in the western 51 part of the county near Mebane. She said there was no conflict with the sixth guiding principle,