Minutes-06-06-2023-Business Meeting Con'd

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