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RES-2025-029 Attachment 1 3 <br />ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />RESOLUTION <br />Approval of Conservation Easement <br />between <br />Orange County <br />and <br />Jane Saiers and Darin Knapp <br />WHEREAS, Orange County has adopted goals that promote the preservation of natural areas, <br />wildlife habitat, prime farmland, and open space in the county; and <br />WHEREAS, Orange County established the Lands Legacy Program for the purpose of <br />protecting the most significant natural and cultural resources through partnerships with <br />landowners and other conservation entities; and <br />WHEREAS, one component of the Lands Legacy Program is the acquisition of conservation <br />easements on prime farmland within water supply watersheds; and <br />WHEREAS, the RambleRill Farms property includes approximately 28 acres in the Jordan <br />Lake watershed, consisting of a majority of prime agricultural soils, and includes 1,700 linear <br />feet of tributaries that drain to the New Hope River — a drinking water supply reservoir for the <br />City of Durham and City of Raleigh; and <br />WHEREAS, Jane Saiers and Darin Knapp, the owners and managers of the RambleRill Farms <br />property, wish to grant permanent conservation easement to Orange County, which will protect <br />the prime open space and riparian corridors that exist on the property; and <br />WHEREAS, conservation easement on this approximately 28 acres would ensure the <br />preservation of this open space and stream buffers for future generations and help compensate <br />the owner for this long-term commitment; <br />NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Orange County Board of Commissioners <br />does hereby 1) accept on behalf of Orange County the conservation easement for land owned <br />by Jane Saiers and Darin Knapp as shown in the attached easement document; 2) approve <br />the execution of this conservation easement agreement with Jane Saiers and Darin Knapp in <br />accordance with the terms of the proposed easement agreement, subject to final review by <br />staff and the County Attorney; 3) authorize the Chair and the Clerk to sign the easement <br />agreements on behalf of the Board, with a closing to occur on or about August 30, 2025; and <br />4) authorize County staff to sign any and all closing documents upon consultation with the <br />County Attorney. <br />This the 3rd day of June 2025. <br />Jamezetta Bedford, Chair <br />Orange County Board of Commissioners <br />Laura Jensen, Clerk to the Board <br />Docusign Envelope ID: F68C289B-897D-4E9C-8B77-C5477012992E