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7 <br /> The Board received historical information on the issue of the Alamance/Orange County <br /> Boundary Line and a status report on boundary issues and strategies and discussed the <br /> timeframe for a possible public hearing. <br /> Assistant County Manager Willie Best said that this issue started in 1996 where prior <br /> attempts were made to find the original line and were unsuccessful. The reason that Orange <br /> County is trying to locate the original line is to prevent development that is now occurring on <br /> the Orange County/Alamance County line and people do not know which county they live in. <br /> This has created a lot of issues with large developments. There have been a couple of <br /> meetings on this issue in Alamance County on September 3rd and 41h. One was at the <br /> Herndon Baptist Church and the other was at the Arts Center. Prior to the meetings, staff sent <br /> out 422 letters to potential homeowners that would be affected by the relocation of the original <br /> line. The concerns expressed at the meetings included taxes, schools, emergency services, <br /> etc. He said that Orange County is not trying to draw a new line, but only trying to find the <br /> original line from 1849. If the County decides to support the line done by the surveyor, the <br /> County may lose some property tax revenue. This line would provide a certified way to <br /> determine exactly where the line is. The money for the survey was provided by the State. <br /> He said that the staff has proposed that Orange County would use mutual aid <br /> agreements to do emergency services and fire protection. There is also discussion about <br /> grandfathering the children into the schools where they attend at this time. The issue with that <br /> is that the school board would have to agree to this. <br /> He made reference to Attachment 1 b, which was a table of the numbers of households <br /> that would go from Alamance to Orange and from Orange to Alamance. Orange County would <br /> receive the most number of students from the switch. He said that both counties would <br /> hopefully hold public hearings on this matter in December. <br /> Chair Jacobs reiterated that this is only a report and the County Commissioners are in <br /> the process of establishing the next steps and are not wedded to any particular idea. <br /> Commissioner Gordon asked clarifying questions about the maps and Willie Best <br /> answered. <br /> Willie Best pointed out that nothing can happen with the line unless both boards agree. <br /> PUBLIC COMMENT: <br /> Ann Robbins said that she has lived at 312 N. Ninth Street in Mebane for 43 years. <br /> She said that in 1978, she was allowed to start paying her taxes to Alamance County without <br /> the boundary line being moved. She spoke on behalf of the North Ninth Street Mebane Area <br /> Boundary Line Dispute. She realizes that all information is received from the GIS mapping <br /> department, Tax department, and other departments. She said that they are more than <br /> numbers or parcels, but they are residents that have lived in their homes and raised their <br /> children their whole lives. She said that the residents are at the County Commissioners' <br /> mercy. She said that the residents did not know anything about the boundary line coming up <br /> again. When she took the petition in May, no one knew anything about it. She said that no <br /> one knew that in 1978 the residents in this area were allowed to pay taxes in Alamance County <br /> without the boundary line being moved. She asked the County Commissioners to use the <br /> original for tax purposes only line, which would put their property in Alamance County once <br /> and for all. She quoted one of the Commissioners, "Economic times are not good and the <br /> timing is not right during a recession, even if it's not officially a recession." She asked that the <br /> County Commissioners have compassion for them. <br /> Everett Green is a Mebane City Councilman and said that he has had more comments <br /> and concerns from people that live along Ninth Street. He said that the demographics on <br />