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1 <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br /> Meeting Date: May 7, 2024 <br /> Action Agenda <br /> Item No. 8-d <br /> SUBJECT: Memorandum of Agreement for Co-Gen Rail Transformation Project <br /> DEPARTMENT: County Manager's Office <br /> ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: <br /> 1. Memorandum of Agreement Amy Eckberg, Sustainability Programs <br /> Manager, 919-245-2626 <br /> David Stancil, DEAPR Director, 919- <br /> 245-2510 <br /> PURPOSE: To approve the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for the Co-Gen Rail <br /> Transformation Project. <br /> BACKGROUND: The attached proposed MOA formalizes Orange County being a part of an <br /> agreement between the Towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro, the University of North Carolina- <br /> Chapel Hill, and the Southern Environmental Law Center ("the Parties") to collaboratively <br /> envision, plan, and jointly seek grant funding opportunities for the Co-Generation (Co-Gen) <br /> Rail Transformation Project. <br /> The co-gen rail line runs from downtown Carrboro north through Eubanks Road, continuing <br /> into the Rural Buffer and ending at the main Norfolk Southern railroad between Durham and <br /> Hillsborough. The rail line services UNC's cogeneration facility, which provides the University <br /> with the majority of its energy. The cogeneration facility's number one source of energy is <br /> natural gas, followed closely by coal which is delivered via the rail line. <br /> The Co-Gen Rail Transformation project seeks to envision the long-term transformation of <br /> the co-gen (UNC) rail line into a multi-modal greenway (a "rails to trails" project) in anticipation <br /> of UNC's eventual transition away from coal. Such a project has the potential to bring many <br /> beneficial opportunities and allow the Parties to advance collective goals to promote housing, <br /> economic development, and connectivity across each jurisdiction and between residential, <br /> institutional, commercial, and rural areas of the County. <br /> By identifying the potential benefits of the project today, the Parties can support a thoughtful <br /> and timely transition away from coal at the cogeneration plant, ensure alignment between <br /> local and countywide plans for development and connectivity, and to achieve environmental <br /> and climate goals that accompany the expansion of the county's network of greenways. <br /> The responsibilities of the Parties are outlined in the attached MOA (Attachment 1). <br /> FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact associated with this item. <br />