Agenda - 08-19-2008 - 4a - Laserfiche WebLink

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13 1 I am also going to emphasize a couple of other objectives that our Coalition 2 recommends to be added to the Comprehensive Plan. We recommend a new Objective T-4.4 3 to implement the Special Transit Advisory Commission's recommendations for regional transit 4 (including light rail, passenger /commuter rail, expanded bus and transit- oriented development at 5 a future Orange County train station in Hillsborough). Being very involved in Safe Routes to 6 School Initiatives I am also very interested in our Coalition's recommendation to add Objective 7 T -1.8 to coordinate with Orange County Schools to provide safe walking and biking routes within 8 1.5 miles of all schools for children during school hours and residents after hours. Connectivity 9 for our communities between key public institutions, commercial areas and neighborhoods will 10 bring the vitality and foot traffic back to our community lives that we have lost over years of 11 exclusively accommodating King Car. 12 Our County's Comprehensive Plan is our way to receive gratitude instead of disdain 13 from the next generations for our foresight. Let's make a difference now. Thank you." 14 15 Adam Klein read a prepared statement: 16 "My name is Adam Klein, I am the Director Government Relations and Economic 17 Development at the Chapel Hill - Carrboro Chamber of Commerce and member of the Orange 18 County Comprehensive Plan Coalition. I am here to offer a few brief remarks on the second 19 draft of the Comprehensive Plan, specifically the economic development section. 20 In my professional opinion and the opinion of our Coalition members, the economic 21 development section is missing a major strategy _ namely working with UNC- Chapel Hill to 22 retain many of the businesses created at the University. UNC in many ways is our business 23 incubator. In the words of Chancellor -elect Holden Thorp, UNC's challenges in the coming 24 years will be to "Cure diseases.... find and invent clean energy ... feed seven billion people" to 25 name a few. As UNC strives to tackle these issues, researchers are generating cutting edge 26 products and devices that are spinning off into new businesses. These businesses are based 27 on innovation, pay good wages, and have little environmental impact — in a nutshell businesses 28 we want in Orange County. Yet, out of 29 UNC businesses spawned since the year 2000, only 29 3 are located here. The majority go to RTP because they can find readily available office and 30 lab space and a welcoming business environment. . 31 We can do much better than this and it can start with our Comprehensive Plan. I ask 32 that you consider including a new objective of "working closely with UNC's Office of Technology 33 Development to identify commercial space needs of businesses created by UNC research, 34 promote development of such space within the County, and actively encourage UNC 35 businesses to stay in Orange County after leaving the University." This should be one of our 36 primary strategies for economic development. 37 Lastly, in order for the County's commercial tax base to expand and for more businesses 38 to locate in Orange County, it is paramount that water and sewer be extended to all of the 39 Economic Development Districts. In the current Comprehensive Plan draft, extending water and 40 sewer to these districts is listed as a long -term goal. The Coalition strongly urges that this 41 objective be reprioritized as a short-term goal as so much of the other objectives within the 42 Economic Development element hinges on having the necessary infrastructure in place to allow 43 commercial and light industrial development. 44 Please consider these changes as you review and edit the Comprehensive Plan. I thank 45 you for your time and for the opportunity to give comment on this important document." 46 47 Rev. Robert Campbell said that the members of the Rogers- Eubanks Neighborhood 48 Association and the Coalition to End Environmental Racism would like to bring attention to a 49 paper written by Allen Bernard of the Cedar Grove Institution of Sustainable Communities on 50 racial segregation in residential neighborhoods. Racial residential segregation remains a fact of 51 life in the south as well as in the Rogers- Eubanks neighborhood. Political exclusion, which it is