Agenda - 12-01-2008 - 4a - Laserfiche WebLink

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20 ~~ 1 Chair Jacobs said that he thought about this a lot and he drove the interstate. He said 2 that the parcel on the north side of the interstate has been raked. He said that the developers 3 are at least trying to be responsive to the Orange County aesthetic if not the total ethic of trying 4 to maintain as continuous a vegetative buffer along the interstate as they can, understanding 5 that they have a different view of what will succeed. He had a hard time with this. 6 Commissioner Gordon said that she thought that the Planning Board had made a lot of 7 good points. At this time, however, she said that she is willing to go along with granting the 8 permit with the hopes that, because these are local developers, that they have the best interest 9 of the county at heart. She feels that the developers have tried to comply with the ordinance. 10 She is prepared to approve the permit if the language can be perfected. 11 12 VOTE: UNANIMOUS 13 14 A motion was made by Commissioner Foushee, seconded by Commissioner 15 Carey to approve the Special Use Permit, subject to final County Attorney review prior to 16 recordation, in principle. 17 18 Chair Jacobs said that the Board did listen to a lot of people and this has taken almost 19 two years. He thinks that the developers, the Planning Board, and the County Commissioners 20 have done a good job trying to address issues about buffers, environmental protection, and 21 traffic that were raised by citizens. He thinks that citizens who live in the area should be 22 assured that the County will stick by its land use plan and that Mebane has no interest in 23 extending water and sewer south of the economic development district, so there is no threat to 24 the rural character of the neighborhoods. He thinks that some good issues were raised related 25 to the type of jobs that are wanted in Orange County, but given the current economic situation, 26 retail jobs are going to be an important part of people's lives. He thinks that the County 27 Commissioners have learned some things about carbon footprints and the economic impact 28 analysis and that they could do better in the future. He also thinks that ultimately, the work has 29 been done to provide water and sewer for the economic development district, and there can 30 now be some economic development in a meaningful way that will send a message that 31 Orange County is interested and willing to work with reasonable, high-quality people who want 32 to do good development in Orange County. 33 34 VOTE: UNANIMOUS 35 36 b. 2009 Benefits Recommendation 37 The Board considered approving the County Manager's 2009 employee dental 38 insurance plan, flexible compensation program, employee assistance program, and health 39 insurance plan recommendations. 40 Commissioner Gordon made reference to page 15, Total Monthly Premium Costs Per 41 Employee, and asked about the figures on this. She did not think this table was right. Diane 42 Shepherd said that the staff reviewed some figures from the September 22"d presentation, and 43 the figures were updated. The figures on Attachment 5-a are the most recent and correct. 44 Commissioner Gordon suggested that the Board approve this in principle and have the staff 45 make sure the numbers are correct. 46 Commissioner Foushee agreed that there was conflicting information. 47 Michael McGinnis said that open enrollment is about a month long and it will go into 48 November. The numbers are going to be within the budgeted 8% increase for health care. The 49 staff will come back with exact numbers on this.