Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
37 <br /> IQ North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission 9 <br /> Ingram Cameron, Executive Director <br /> MEMORANDUM <br /> TO: Lyn Biles,Environmental Assistance and SEPA Coordinator <br /> NCDENR Division of Environmental Assistance and Customer Services <br /> FROM: Olivia Munzer,Western Piedmont Coordinator <br /> Habitat Conservation <br /> DATE: 07 June 2024 <br /> SUBJECT: Environmental Assessment for the Hart's Mill Ecovillage in Orange County,North <br /> Carolina. DEQ No. 24-0287. <br /> Biologists with the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission(NCWRC)have reviewed the subject <br /> document. Comments are provided in accordance with provisions of the Fish and Wildlife Coordination <br /> Act(48 Stat. 401, as amended; 16 U.S.C. 661-667e) and North Carolina General Statutes (G.S. 113-13 1 <br /> et seq.). <br /> Hart's Mill Ecovillage is applying to change the zoning of the property from Master Plan Development- <br /> Conditional Zoning to R-1 Conventional Base Zoning. This change in zoning will allow for a UDO's <br /> Flexible Development-Conservation Cluster framework. The site is located on approximately 112 acres at <br /> 1031 N. Frazier Road,Mebane, Orange County,North Carolina.According to the application,the plans <br /> for the village will be individually held lots,HOA governed,and approximately 40%of the 112 acres will <br /> be put into Open Space and land preservation. <br /> McGowan Creek in the Neuse River Basin flows through the site. McGowan Creek is classified as a <br /> Water Supply Watershed II,Nutrient Sensitive, and High Quality Water by the NC Division of Water <br /> Resources. We have records for the state threatened notched rainbow(Villosa constricta)downstream <br /> from the site. The lack of records from the site does not imply or confirm the absence of federal or state- <br /> listed species.An on-site survey is the only means to determine if the proposed project may impact <br /> federal or state rare,threatened, or endangered species. We have known records for the state endangered <br /> and federally proposed endangered tricolored bat(Perimyotis subflavus) in Orange County and potentially <br /> suitable habitat may occur on the site. We recommend contacting the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to <br /> ensure that any issues related to this species are addressed. <br /> We offer the following preliminary recommendations for planning of the community with the intent to <br /> minimize impacts to aquatic and terrestrial wildlife resources: <br /> 1. We recommend not clearing the entire site,but rather maintaining the maximum amount of native <br /> vegetation as possible. <br /> Mailing Address: Habitat Conservation • 1721 Mail Service Center • Raleigh,NC 27699-1721 <br /> Telephone: (919) 707-0220 • Fax: (919) 707-0028 <br />