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2 <br /> relevant was her point that we must actively preserve existing undeveloped forests, as well as <br /> plant new trees, to aid in carbon sequestration. I ask you: what kind of environmental impact <br /> would clear cutting 250 acres have (around 70% of the approximate 360 acres included in the <br /> new boundary)? Without a plan, without guidelines, how can we be sure that development <br /> pressure won't lead to worst case scenarios? <br /> Today, you've also received a letter from the Southern Entryway Alliance with 66 signatures, <br /> people in and around the southern area who want to see more planning and more community <br /> engagement. Nearly every day over the past week, I've spoken with a neighbor who had little to <br /> no idea what WASMPBA was, let alone what its amendment would mean. <br /> So I close with this: the Board of County Commissioners has an opportunity. You, like I, may <br /> agree with Chapel Hill's goals in principle — increasing missing middle housing, increasing <br /> affordable housing, the Complete Communities Framework. But you can, for now, withhold your <br /> vote to amend WASMPBA, and make your "yes" contingent upon additional analysis and public <br /> information sessions. Let's find the win-win plan first — together — so that we actually achieve <br /> those goals without disastrous and costly unintended side effects." <br /> Terri Buckner read the following statement to the Board: <br /> "I've listened to the Chapel Hill and Carrboro Town Councils discuss the WASMPBA expansion, <br /> and it's clear this project is all about affordable housing. But those discussions have paid zero <br /> attention to how much affordable housing already exists down here and how it might be <br /> impacted. The two parcels identified for affordable housing so far clearly won't pay for the sewer <br /> expansion so how much more market rate housing will be needed to justify that expense? No one <br /> knows, especially since OWASA can't estimate the cost of the sewer line expansion until there is <br /> a zoning plan. <br /> In none of the discussions focused on affordable housing, have any of the elected officials asked <br /> who will be displaced. Neither town has recognized or acknowledged the people currently living <br /> in this area as part of their decision making. <br /> At your seat is a table with a high-level profile of Who Lives in the Expansion Area? <br /> Land records can't really tell us who they are, but they do provide clues. Two-thirds of the <br /> residences were built prior to Southern Village. Some of these properties have been owned for <br /> over 20 years, two for close to 50. The median size of the homes is 1,400 square feet and the <br /> median lot size is just over 1 acre. There are million-dollar homes in the area, but there are more <br /> affordable, low-income homes and there are several homes that the data leads me to believe are <br /> quite low-income residences. But that's just me sitting here with GIS data. It's not the kind of <br /> formal analysis I expect from my local governments before moving ahead with a major project. <br /> Many of the homeowners and renters in the area are unaware of what is coming at them. These <br /> residents.... these people.... deserve to be recognized and respected before their lives are turned <br /> upside down. They especially don't deserve to be run out of their affordable homes for some <br /> vague hope of building more affordable housing that is significantly more expensive than where <br /> they currently live. <br /> The town's stated vision includes no plan for bringing new businesses to the area and OWASA's <br /> capacity analysis specifically stated it was for residential only. I suppose that means it will still be <br /> closer to do our grocery shopping in Chatham County. And I'm sure the constant harassment by <br /> land speculators will get worse. <br /> Before you finalize your vote, please advocate for those residents. Make sure they understand <br /> what is going to happen, the costs of annexation, the loss of the surrounding tree cover, and the <br /> impact on their family finances. Listen to what they have to say before you turn their lives over to <br /> a haphazard development process." <br /> Valarie Schwartz said she has lived in the Southern ETJ for 25 years in the Dogwood <br /> Acres community. She said the BOCC is the only government body that represents residents of <br /> the ETJ. She said the elected officials in the Towns can say they voted to bring more affordable <br /> housing, but said the County is responsible for the infrastructure in the ETJ, not the Towns. She <br />