2025-096-E-County Mgr-Solar Equity-Solar on St Joseph CME Church

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animals, migratory birds, soil amending, recycling, composting, planting and caring for plants, and best practices for living sustainably. Reviewer Comments: The CFE noted that the garden and bird station would attract more outdoor visitors to the Art Center. They recommended providing additional details on the budget and GHG reduction potential and highlighted that the project is small in scale but high in cost. They also suggested exploring alternative garden grant sources such as T‐Mobile, the NC Botanical Garden, the NC Native Plant Society, or the Carrboro Green Neighbor Grant. The HRC recognized the potential to serve disadvantaged communities but noted the lack of direct engagement with these groups. #24 Ranked Project – Botanist and Barrel – Electric Vehicle Charging Station Applicant (Collaborators): N/A Funding Requested: $12,000 Recommended Funding Level: $0 Total Score (Out of 26 pts): 9.8 Project Description: Botanist and Barrel proposes to use the funds to install a two‐port Level 2 electric vehicle charging station at a commercial business in Cedar Grove, NC. This project will provide EV charging to local residents who may not have the resources to install charging stations at their private residences as well as encourage EV drivers who live in urban areas to visit rural business and farms, promoting beneficial electrification and supporting climate change mitigation. The funds will cover the cost of equipment, installation, and associated expenses. Project Benefits: The project will provide a charging station for area residents as well as Cedar Grove visitors. It will also expand EV charging to rural communities in Orange County. Reviewer Comments: The CFE recognized this as a great initiative to serve rural areas, but noted that, beyond B&B employees/customers, access to the charger would be limited. The HRC pointed out the mixed impact—while rural charging is beneficial, it seems to primarily benefit the business rather than the broader community. #25 Ranked Project – Fiori Hill – Floating Wetlands Applicant (Collaborators): N/A Funding Requested: $7,000 Recommended Funding Level: $0 Total Score (Out of 26 pts): 9.0 Project Description: This project is for the establishment of floating wetlands in the concrete settling pond of the Stormwater Control Management (SCM) system of the Fiori Hill neighborhood. Plant life in this concrete pond will sequester carbon, ideally increase the life of the SCM, reduce algal growth, and eliminate or reduce the need for an aeration system. The operations funds are to run and maintain it appropriately. They will actively reach out to other local communities to share learnings and experience and anticipate that neighborhood children will share this in their classrooms. Project Benefits: Approximately 100 people in the neighborhood will benefit directly and they anticipate an additional 100 per year based on outreach efforts. Floating wetlands are a way to improve the quality of the water in the settling pond, decrease evaporation, reduce algal blooms, allow for carbon sequestration, reduce reliance on an electricity‐powered aerator system, and increase the health of the pond’s ecosystem. The hope is that the floating wetlands will increase the longevity of the dry bioretention pond, improve the quality of the surface water flowing from the neighborhoods into the Eno River, serve as an educational opportunity for the neighborhood and others, and improve the aesthetics of the community. Reviewer Comments: The CFE described this as a great community project and expressed hope that residents will continue to pursue it. However, they noted its limited impact on Orange County’s GHG reductions and that the 18Docusign Envelope ID: 257985C7-FC41-4937-8E64-B610C38DBA58