7_10_24 Planning Board Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Approved 8.7.24 potential issues of environmental justice. Now, on a parcel just up the road, the applicant 503 has touted the benefits of the same diabase dike rock formation as a positive sign that the 504 wells will run massive water draws of 36,000-plus gallons per day. Unfortunately, altered 505 or fractured diabase dikes can allow contaminants to pass unfiltered down into ground 506 water. According to Dr. Paul Fullagar, a former chair and emeritus faculty of UNC's 507 Geology Department and a resident of Morrow Farm Lane and my neighbor, the dikes are 508 unlike sandstone and limestone which filter out contaminants. The applicant's own report 509 acknowledges water capacity is unpredictable, but it fails to disclose that the combination 510 of diabase dikes and sewage disposal on 22 acres of the property as a significant risk of 511 contaminated wells. Fullagar notes that anyone who thinks they know they can get a high 512 volume of water from a diabase dike is fooling themselves. He says that that location is 513 particularly risky for every well in the area as well as for the developers themselves 514 because disposal of 36,000-plus gallons a day of liquid sewage with a drip septic system 515 may allow contaminants to go directly down into ground water. The project risks depleting 516 ground water for surrounding neighbors and farms. For residences alone, the proposed 517 development would use 36,000 gallons a day, but that doesn't count water for other 518 facilities, fire suppression, sprinklers, landscaping and irrigation with no requirement prior 519 to rezoning to prove there's water available. Thirty-six thousand gallons of water a day 520 draws would far exceed the ability of the ground water to recharge itself, according to the 521 developer's own report citing a nearby location on Orange Grove Road at Cane Creek 522 where the recharge rate is less than 400 gallons per day per acre. Massive water draws 523 would strain our very limited water supply. An informal survey of neighbors surrounding 524 the property finds wells ranging from 1 to 5 to 8 gallons per day. Many nearby properties 525 also have diabase dikes. I ask you to make your decision based on protecting the water 526 supply for all of Orange County. This project is inconsistent with guidance in the land use 527 element directing development away from rural areas in order to prevent pricing out 528 farmers from their own land. The comprehensive plan cites the potential for complaints 529 and legal actions against farmers if more urban residents were to assert that farm 530 operations are incompatible with subdivision residents. The developer's proposal is 531 incompatible with existing and future farms, and it also threatens the watershed. The 532 applicant proposes locating wastewater fields along streams that lead into Collins Creek, 533 which flows into the Haw River and drinking water supply in Jordan Lake. There would be 534 zero harm in not recommending the proposed changes to the future land use map and 535 comprehensive plan in Agenda Item 7. While the request claims to meet the future needs 536 of a so-called tsunami of aging people in Chapel Hill who need affordable housing 537 options, this claim is unfounded. The proposal would not address the local need for 538 housing because, according to the applicant's statements at the neighborhood information 539 meeting and their orientation meetings, they've recruited a network of out-of-state people 540 who are waiting to purchase units. Not recommending these proposed changes would 541 not harm seniors because the developers are not restricting sales by age. Not 542 recommending this project would not harm people seeking affordable housing because 543 the proposal offers no plan for income-based affordability or for recruiting or subsidizing 544 lower-income residents and because banks do not give mortgages for cooperative 545 housing, meaning that any potential buyers would need to pay cash. Not recommending 546 this project will not harm diverse communities because the proposal offers no plan for 547 recruiting diverse residents. At the last meeting, the developer said that someone driving 548 by would not see this site in a flash of a second when they drove by the entrance. 549 However, the developer has been contacting Orange County asking for guidelines about 550 purchasing a sign and installing a sign similar to the one at the American Legion that's 551 electronic and illuminated. Given the presence of large signs, a widened roadway, turn 552