Orange County NC Website
15 <br />County Attorney Geoff Gledhill said that no County zoning regulations apply to bona fide <br />farming operations. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis noted that 17 years ago he and Commissioner Carey had t e <br />opportunity to protect Mr. Nichols'rdtaC rol na Mach eery Act tax collector went after them as <br />manufacturing units under the No <br />John Link said that the staff should respond to Commissioner Cordon's comment about full <br />disclosure and that they pursue due diligence about the impacts on citizens. Under Section 2, <br />where it says, "The stream buffer shall extend around the perimeter of all water bodies including <br />ponds and lakes." He said that theree ndthis will el'minate the poss bility. fThistcou d affect small <br />of land and they want to build a hous <br />landowners. <br />A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Carey o <br />receive the Planning Staff's Recommendation and to refer the proposed amendment and to <br />refer the proposed amendment to the Planning Board for a recommendation to be returned to <br />the BOCC no.later than May 20, 2003. <br />VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br />c. Amend Article 23 (Enforcement) to streamline the citation <br />procedure for zoning violations, to establish procedural <br />guidelines for violation notifications, to allow the Zoning Officer <br />to process civil penalties. An increase in the civil penalty from <br />$100.00 to $500.00 per violation is also a part of the amendment. <br />2. Orange County Subdivision Regulations Text Amendments <br />a. Amend Section VII (Legal Status Provision), Sub-section VII-E <br />(Penalties for Violation), to identify the citation procedure for <br />violations, and establish procedural guidelines for violation <br />notification, to allow the Planning Director to make assessments <br />for civil penalties, and increases the civil penalty from $50.00 to <br />$500.00 per violation. <br />Craig Benedict said that within this ordinance is how the County identifies with recurring <br />violations and how to provide notices. The County still plans to have personal delivery with <br />registered and certified mail. Civil penalties are suggested to increase from $100 to $500 per <br />day. Presently the demand for payment occurs from the County Commissioners. The <br />recommendation is that the demand for payment occurs with the staff and the courts. The <br />definition of a violation and a violator has been enhanced. The attorney's office has worked <br />closely with the zoning staff to examine the ways to bring violations to a faster conclusion that is <br />fair with full notification and disclosure. He showed a procedural chart of the process of civil <br />penalties. He said that presently there is a backlog of zoning compliance issues because they <br />do not proceed past a certain point and there is no expeditious manner to bring them to a <br />conclusion. <br />John Link assured the Board that before the matters are carried to court that the person <br />involved will know exactly what is involved. <br />Commissioner Jacobs made reference to 23.2.2 and said that the person can be given <br />notice in person or by certified mail. He would like to be assured that there is a personal <br />documented visit first. He made reference to 23.2.3 and read, "a notice of violation is not <br />required where a notice of the same violation has been issued to the same violator at the same <br />