Minutes 04-15-2025-Business Meeting

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10 Chair Bedford said the Seymour Center works with Chapel Hill Transit on Senior issues. She encouraged them to connect with the Department on Aging for that support as well. Vice-Chair Hamilton said she noticed that Alliance Health is not on the list of partners. She said they fund mental health services for residents on Medicaid and uninsured in Orange County and other counties. Jimmy Price said they were not listed, but Alliance does the training for GoTriangle staff. The Board moved to public comments. 2. Public Comments (Limited to One Hour) a. Matters not on the Printed Agenda Vivian Herndon Latta said she and Gwendolyn Benjamin are here tonight to speak about their food bank at the Mt. Zion AM Church in Hillsborough. She said they have been warned that the food supply may not be as steady as it has been previously. She said many seniors rely on their food bank and is asking the Board to consider providing funding to help fill this gap. She said food insecurity is a real problem in Orange County, and they would like to be able to continue helping community members. Pastor Gwendolyn Benjamin said the food bank is staffed by volunteers from the church and the broader community. She said she would like information on how to apply for funding for the food bank and looks forward to continuing the relationship with the commissioners. Ashley Parker said she lives in Northern Orange County and appreciated last week's presentation from the Agricultural Presentation Board. She said there were thoughtful questions asked from the Board, and she would like to answer those questions from her perspective. She said farmers need one acre per person to be able to feed the population. She said that Commissioner Hamilton had asked what that looks like in Orange County. She said that currently there is only enough productive farmland in Orange County to feed 30% of the population. She said they do not produce enough food and that removes people from agriculture. She said that everything that is consumed is created by a farmer somewhere. She said agriculture should be supported because it affects everyone. She said that it was implied that the county's hands are tied but they can set a realistic budget that they can afford and that will not tie the hands of their children and grandchildren. b. Matters on the Printed Agenda Maxecine Mitchell said she is from the Chestnut Oaks community and that residents in her neighborhood are shocked by their property reappraisals. She said they have investors who call trying to buy their homes a lot. She said properties around there are selling for a lot, but their properties are limited due to the rules of the watershed. She said the homes are being resold for a lot more and are not remaining affordable. She asked how the number could go from $169,000 to $299,000. Sandra Clinton said she lives in a townhome community in Hillsborough built by Habitat. She said she is a senior citizen on a fixed income. She said that her affordability is based on a fixed income and her taxes are going to go up and make it unaffordable. She also expressed concerns about the tax revaluation. Joann Mitchell said she lives in the Efland area and is a habitat owner and a mortgage free homeowner. She said that she is the president of Homeowners United of Orange County and that is a countywide organization representing all Habitat for Humanity neighborhoods. She said there are income requirements that must be met to qualify for a Habitat for Humanity program. She expressed concerns with the process for revaluating Habitat homes in the county. Kate Whetten said she works at Duke University and lives in Orange County. She said that they have laid off three people so far and looking at further. She said that this is only the tip of the iceberg of the economic impacts of federal decisions in this area. She said this is a time