HomeMy Public PortalAbout03-12-2007 Regular Meeting
March 12, 2007 Regnlar Meeting
Approved: April 9, 2007
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MINUTES
HILLSBOROUGH TOWN BOARD
March 12, 2007
7:30 PM, Town Barn
PRESENT: Mayor Tom Stevens, Commissioners Evelyn Lloyd, Brian Lowen, L. Eric
Hallman, and Mike Gering.
ABSENT: Commissioner Frances Dancy, absence excused. Mayor Stevens commented that
Commissioner Dancy was not present due to a death in her family.
STAFF: Town Manager Eric Peterson, Assistant Town Manager/Public Works Director,
Town Clerk/Personnel Officer Donna Armbrister, Planning Director Margaret Hauth, Finance
Director Greg Siler, Police Chief Clarence Birkhead, Town EngineerlUtilities Director Kenny
Keel, and Town Attorney Bob Hornik.
7:34:15 PM Mayor Stevens called the meeting to order.
1. PUBLIC CHARGE
7:34:20 PM Mayor Stevens did not read the public charge but indicated it would be followed.
INTERVIEW:
Commission
Interview Volunteer Candidate to serve on the Historic District
7:34:33 PM Kenneth Trivette was unable to attend tonight's meeting.
ANNOUNCEMENT: The Alliance for Historic Hillsborough, Special Announcement
7:34:58 PM Cathleen Turner, Director of the Alliance for Historic Hillsborough, provided
some background information about the Alliance and its work. She announced that the National
Trust for Historic Preservation, the country's largest private non-profit preservation organization,
had named Hillsborough to its 2007 list of American's Dozen Distinctive Destinations, an annual
list of unique and lovingly preserved communities in the United States. Ms. Turner said criteria
for selection included well-maintained growth, a commitment to historic preservation with a
protected historic core and meaningful context, interesting and attractive architecture, cultural
diversity, activities for families with children, an economic base of locally owned businesses, and
walkability for residents and visitors.
7:39:25 PM Mayor Stevens noted that Ms. Turner had taken the lead in Hillsborough's
nomination and worked hard on behalf of the Alliance, and thanked her for that work.
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2. AUDIENCE COMMENTS REGARDING MATTERS NOT ON THE PRINTED
AGENDA
7:39:48 PM Mayor Stevens said there was one item regarding the Churton Courtyard, and then
a statement by Craig Perrin.
7:40:02 PM Craig Perrin said he had recently created a website named Save Historic
Hillsborough aimed at opposing the construction of condominiums in the historic district. He had
used a composite graphic taken from the Town's website for his home page, and worked on it as a
weekend project. Mr. Perrin said the existence of the site was leaked to the local media without
his knowledge or permission. He said he was then contacted via telephone on March 1 by
Planning Director Margaret Hauth who stated he had to remove the graphic image from his
web site.
Mr. Perrin said he had indicated to Ms. Hauth that it was his belief that the image was in the
public domain and that it had been created with taxpayer dollars. He said he was somewhat angry
and had been "short" with Ms. Hauth and apologized for being uncivil on the phone. Mr. Perrin
said he also wanted to apologize to the Town for using its website graphic without modification,
adding it was never his intention to violate copyright laws and conceded no such violation with
his statement. He said the web site had not been ready for public viewing when its existence was
revealed, and it had been his intention to modify the image in a way that was obviously protected
speech.
Mr. Perrin said after the call from Ms. Hauth, he had consulted an attorney and the result was a
protest web site called Hillsborough Burning. He said he had chosen that name because of the
second thing Ms. Hauth said to him during the March 1 phone call. Mr. Perrin said she had told
him to remove the Town Board members contact information from his web site, stating that it was
improper to post that contact information on the web, that it was improper to encourage
constituents to contact their elected officials about a matter that was being processed as a quasi-
judicial procedure, and that essentially he was interfering with that quasi-judicial process and was
potentially exposing the Town to legal risk. Mr. Perrin said he had to assume that Ms. Hauth was
referring to the injunction against Board members have exparte conversations regarding matters
of a quasi-judicial process.
Mr. Perrin said he had felt that this was a completely unjustifiable attempt to prevent citizens
from organizing an opposition to condos in the historic district. He said contact information for
Board members was public knowledge, noting it was listed on the County's webpage, and was
also on the Town's website. Mr. Perrin said he was stunned that a government official could
make such an assertion, that citizens could not exercise the fundamental right to petition its
elected officials regarding a legislative matter such as a rezoning. He said that was not supported
by any relevant case law that he could find.
Mr. Perrin said of more critical concern, as town staff had told them as elected officials, that they
must not have exparte conversations with your constituents about conditional zoning matters
before the Board. If so, he said, that would have a chilling effect on the process of rezoning, and
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it was a fundamental assault on the legislative process. Mr. Perrin said the truth of the matter was
that rezoning in general was a legislative process, and any time a government agency combined a
rezoning and a Special Conditional Use Permit request into one action, the entire action is
considered a legislative process. He said the authority for that came from the Supreme Court of
North Carolina, which allowed the 2002 decision of the North Carolina Court of Appeal,
Summers vs. the City of Charlotte, to stand as the law of the land. Mr. Perrin quoted from that
action to support his statement that these types of actions were legislative acts.
Mr. Perrin said the public, as part of a legislative process, had a fundamental right to participate in
a quasi-judicial process with testimony coming from competent witnesses. He said the quasi-
judicial process was for specialists only and the wants and desires of the general public meant
nothing, adding that people who did not possess competent, reasonable, and material evidence
could not give that type of testimony.
Mr. Perrin said the citizens of Hillsborough had a fundamental right to have their testimony at
public hearing count, and to lobby their elected officials on legislative matters. He said when
Hillsborough officials, perhaps acting on the advice of counsel, try to assert that citizens have no
right to petition and organize around legislative matters is a grave offense against civil liberties.
Mr. Perrin said he believed everyone would agree that an attack on fundamental rights required a
vigorous defense, even if that attack was made with the best of intentions and under advice of
counsel.
Mr. Perrin said he was on solid ground when he said that citizens and Town Board members
individually had a right to discuss legislative matters in private, and that it was a basic freedom
guaranteed by the Constitutions of the United States and the State of North Carolina. While
zoning laws were complex, he said, zoning was fundamentally a legislative process. Mr. Perrin
said in that regard, the rights of citizens to petition elected officials individually and collectively
may not be denied. He said the rights of citizens to testify at pubic hearings may not be denied,
and the right of elected officials to seek the pulse of the community and determine whether there
was a plausible basis to deny a rezoning request may not be denied.
Mr. Perrin said the Town Board may have on its agenda tonight matters that had been processed
as a combined conditional rezoning request, but could not say for sure because he had not been
able to get a straight answer either way about tonight's agenda. He suggested that before the
Town Board processed any more combined conditional rezoning requests, they take a moment to
ask the Town Attorney why he believed that the Town should not be held to the standard
enunciated in Summers vs. the City of Charlotte.
7:49: 14 PM Mr. Hornik said he would be happy to answer that.
7:49: 17 PM Mr. Perrin said whatever Mr. Hornik had to say might be illuminating, but rest
assured that if you have not given the public the opportunity to participate in the process in a
meaningful way you invite legal risk.
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7:49:33 PM Mayor Stevens thanked Mr. Perrin for his statement and for his apology to Ms.
Hauth.
7:49:36 PM Mr. Hornik stated that regarding Summers and Massey, the two Charlotte cases,
Charlotte had received special legislation from the NC General Assembly that allowed them to do
conditional zoning as a single one-step truly legislative act. He said in Hillsborough, they
continued to have the two-step process of a traditional legislative act and a quasi-judicial act. Mr.
Hornik said there was no question that the courts and the General Assembly had said that a one-
step conditional zoning process was legal, but that was not what they had in Hillsborough. He
said the Town still had two acts that the Board had to take when doing a conditional use zoning or
rezoning. Mr. Hornik said they had to take the legislative act, which was the rezoning, and then
the quasi-judicial act, which was the adoption of a Special Use Permit or the Master Plan.
Mr. Hornik said the model described by Mr. Perrin as used in Charlotte was not the model
approved for Hillsborough.
7:50:52 PM Mayor Stevens said clearly there was some disagreement over this issue, and
wanted to go on record that the Board welcomed diverse opinions and viewpoints. He said
perhaps the issue should be placed on a future agenda so that it could be clarified and the concerns
expressed tonight addressed.
3. AGENDA CHANGES & AGENDA APPROVAL
7:51:34 PM Mr. Hornik added the Carl Jenkins Nuisance Enforcement Matter to the Closed
Session in order to give the Board an update.
7: 51: 5 5 PM Mayor Stevens said if it were the pleasure of the Board, he would like to add just
prior to the Hot Topics agenda item a follow-up to the meeting with American Asset Corporation
regarding the Boone/Collins property.
7:52:54 PM Mr. Hornik requested that Items 10.C and 10.D be continued to the next Board
Meeting due to a request by Mr. Knight and in light of Commissioner Dancy's absence. Mr.
Hornik noted that these items could be added to the April workshop agenda.
7:54:31 PM Commissioner Gering stated he would prefer to keep the workshops as informal
workshops and not consider regular town business.
7:54:43 PM Mayor Stevens commented he had observed other board members nodding their
heads in agreement. He said that Items 10.C and 10.D should be added to the agenda of the
April regular Board meeting
7: 54: 54 PM Commissioner Gering thanked those members of the public who had attended
tonight to discuss those items just delayed until April. He said the importance of the issues made
it imperative that the full board be present when the issues were considered.
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7:55:23 PM Mayor Stevens asked to have Item 9.C removed from the Consent Agenda and
considered as the next item. There was no objection from the Board.
7:56:01 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Hallman, seconded by Commissioner Lowen,
the agenda was approved as amended by a vote of 4-0. The motion as declared passed.
9.C. Consideration of a Proclamation declaring April 2007 as Sexual Assault Awareness
Month
7:56:23 PM Mayor Stevens read the Proclamation proclaiming April 2007 as Sexual Assault
Awareness Month in Hillsborough. Margaret Barrett, Executive Director of the Orange County
Rape Crisis Center, distributed ribbon cards to the Town Board and members of the audience,
explaining that they were to be worn during the month of April. She thanked the Board for the
support provided to the Rape Crisis Center.
4. APPOINTMENTS
A. Appoint Volunteer Candidate to serve on the Historic District Commission with a Term
ending March 31, 2010
7:59:58 PM Mayor Stevens stated that the candidate was not present, so the appointment
would be rescheduled to next month.
B. Re-Appoint Tourism Board Volunteers: Mark O'Neal to second Term ending March
2009; and Matt Meek to a second Term ending September 2008
8:00:25 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Lowen, seconded by Commissioner Hallman,
the Board moved to reappoint Mark O'Neal to a second term on the Tourism Board ending
March 2009, and Matt Meek to a second term on the Tourism Board ending September 2008 by a
vote of 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
5. COMMITTEE REPORTS
8:00:55 PM Commissioner Hallman stated that the Economic Development Commission
would hold its annual Breakfast tomorrow morning, and encouraged all Board members to
attend. He said the Commission had presented to the County Commissioners their strategies for
the upcoming year, and had received a resounding endorsement to move forward. Commissioner
Hallman said he would obtain a list of those strategies and share it with the Board.
Regarding the Intergovernmental Parks Work Group, Commissioner Hallman said they had met
and received an update on the parks.
8:01:57 PM Mayor Stevens stated that the Climate Change Committee had been working on
public input for the plan, and part of that was being delayed due to consideration of which
method to use to count traffic.
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6. REPORT FROM THE TOWN MANAGER
8:02:38 PM Mr. Peterson said he had nothing to report.
7. REPORT FROM THE TOWN ENGINEER
8:02:48 PM Mr. Keel said regarding the wastewater treatment plant expansion and the
Durham option study, the engineer had all necessary information and was completing the draft
report. He said he expected to have that available for the April 9th Board meeting, and would
provide a short presentation. Mr. Keel said it appeared that the option to pump to Durham rather
than upgrade the plant was roughly two to two-and-one-half times more expensive than
upgrading the existing plant.
Mr. Keel said regarding TTHM compliance, the Town had received its test results back for the
first quarter, and the results were much better than last year's first quarter, with the average being
0.044 mg/l. He indicated the limit was 0.080. Mr. Keel said that had brought the annual four-
quarter average down to 0.062 mg/l.
Mr. Keel said the construction should begin on the Habitat Outfall by March 19, with an ultimate
completion date of June 17th. He said they had until April 9th to add on Phase 2 at the prices
originally bid.
Mr. Keel said regarding the Engineering Administration Projects, a Water Emergency Action
Plan was being developed for Boil Water Notices. He said a draft of the Boil Water Advisory
Response Plan was attached to the agenda materials, and asked that the Town Board review that
and forward any comments to him within the next few weeks.
Mr. Keel said the Low Water Pressure Policy recommendations by the Water Sewer Advisory
Committee were attached as well. He said the Advisory Committee had made five
recommendations for the Town Board to use when making a new policy for existing houses on
the system with pressure less than 30 psi at their meter. Mr. Keel said at minimum he planned to
have a final draft that could be considered for adoption at the April meeting if the Town Board
were ready to do so.
8:08:09 PM Commissioner Gering said regarding the Advisory Committee's
recommendations, he asked Mr. Keel if he had any reservations about any of them. Mr. Keel
responded no, adding that he had forwarded the five recommendations to Mr. Hornik to discover
if he had any legal reservations.
8:08:35 PM Mr. Hornik said the only recommendation he had a reservation about was
recommendation E, which stated that homes that qualify as having pressure less than 30 psi
should have a statement attached to their deed stating the problem existed. He said he would
have to research what the Town's authority might be in that regard.
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Commissioner Gering asked if that would be regardless of the acceptance of the Town's $1,000.
Mr. Keel said the intent would be regardless of that $1,000 because of the recommendation that
we had a 12- month deadline so that the timeline was not stretched out.
8:09:51 PM Mr. Hornik said there may be other ways to address that, such as the Town
recording some miscellaneous document at the Register of Deeds Office for those properties for
which there had been a verified report of psi below 30. He said he would have to look into how
that might be done. Mr. Hornik said he did not believe they could require the property owner to
record that independent of them taking the Town's money.
Mayor Stevens said the question was - is that something the Town Board would want to address
at the April meeting. Commissioner Gering said all five recommendations look good to him if
the details could be worked out.
8. REPORT FORM THE PLANNING DIRECTOR
8: 11 :05 PM Ms. Hauth said the Board members had asked for a status report on various
projects over the last few months. As part of the Board's budget deliberations, Ms. Hauth said
she would like to bring forward a more detailed work plan that included everything currently
pending in order of priority. She said then, the Board could adjust the timeframes based on
priorities of the Board.
Ms. Hauth said the second round of recruiting had begun for the Senior Planner, and had some
strong initial response.
8: 12:30 PM Commissioner Hallman asked if the Board could get an update at some point on
the DOT crosswalk requests for State roads. Ms. Hauth said she would provide that.
9. ITEMS FOR DECISION - CONSENT AGENDA
A. Consideration of Approval of the Minutes of the January 23, 2007 Public Hearing; the
February 12, 2007 Regular Meeting; and the February 12, 2007 Closed Session
B. Consideration of Approval of an Ordinance to amend Chapter 14 Utilities, Appendix F
Town Utilities Specifications, of the Town Code
C. Considcration of Approval of Proclamation proclaiming April 2007 as Scxual Assault
A'.varcncss Month
D. Consider Approval of Development Agreement with Orange County for expenditure of
$100,000 of HOME funds for Tulip Tree Sewer Project
E. Consideration of an Ordinance to amend section 3.4.1 and 4 of the Zoning Ordinance to
create "cemetery, non-profit" as a conditional use and establish permit requirements
F. Consideration of an Ordinance to amend Section 21.7 Prevention of Demolition by
Neglect, of the Zoning Ordinance to clarify and streamline the existing language
Item 9. C removed for separate consideration and heard earlier in the meeting.
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8: 12:54 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Hallman, seconded by Commissioner Lowen,
the Board moved to approve the Consent Agenda, with Item #9C removed, by a vote of 4-0. The
motion was declared passed.
10. ITEMS FOR DECISION - REGULAR AGENDA
A. Consideration of Authorizing an information kiosk as an Eagle Scout project at
Kings Highway Park
8: 13 : 19 PM Ms. Hauth said this was the third Eagle Scout proj ect in the park, noting that the
proposed kiosk was to help educate the public about what the King's Highway park. She said
the Parks and Recreation Commission had recommended approval of the request, and a citizen
has volunteered to provide the funding for this improvement, including a 10% contingency. Ms.
Hauth said funds would be provided to the Town for disbursement to the Eagle Scout.
8: 14: 59 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Lowen, seconded by Commissioner Gering, the
Board moved to authorize an information kiosk as described.
8:15:12 PM Commissioner Hallman said a number of people had worked on such projects,
and he would like to take back to the Parks and Recreation Board some type of recognition for
those people. Ms. Hauth said she had the names of the three Scouts and could easily work that
into the permanent display.
8: 15:43 PM Mayor Stevens said this would bring attention to this park, which was one of the
lesser known parks in the Town.
8:15:52 PM The vote was 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
B. Consideration of Approval of a Resolution Endorsing the U.S. Mayors Climate
Protection Agreement thereby designating the Town as a "Cool City"
8: 16: 04 PM Mayor Stevens said this issue had been brought to his attention by Holly Reid and
Rick Shaw, and invited them to come forward and address the Board.
8:16:28 PM Holly Reid said environment stewardship was of primary interest to Hillsborough.
She said tonight, they recommended that Hillsborough consider becoming a nationally
designated Cool City by endorsing a non-binding U.S. Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement to
adopt smart energy solutions. Ms. Reid said this would reduce Hillsborough's portion of carbon
dioxide pollution and energy waste that contributed to climate change.
Rick Shaw said receiving this designation would be a win/win for the Town. He said they would
be getting credit for the positive energy actions that had already been made by the Town, we
would lead and inspire other communities to pursue good energy solutions, and most important
the Town would be engaged in tangible efforts to reduce the world's energy footprint. Mr. Shaw
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said this was a serious pledge for the Town to be mindful of energy conservation III its
purchasing and development decisions.
8:20:41 PM Mayor Stevens said this agreement seemed entirely consistent with the direction
the Town was already taking, and encouraged the Board to endorse it.
8:21: 13 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Hallman, seconded by Commissioner Gering,
the Board moved to approve the resolution of endorsement.
8:21: 3 8 PM Commissioner Gering asked had the staff looked at this with an eye towards what
might need to be changed or actions that the Board may need to take. He said an example would
be the issue of inventorying and reducing emissions. Mr. Peterson said in working on the
balanced scorecard, one of the items was to calculate the total amount of C02 the Town emitted
through buildings and vehicles, and monitoring that on a yearly basis. He said regarding vehicle
purchases, the general philosophy was that vehicles would be kept on line a year or two longer
than originally planned, to allow the window of technology to catch up, whether that be a hybrid
vehicle or an alternative energy vehicle. Mr. Peterson said many times smaller vehicles were
adequate.
Mr. Peterson said they were also looking at building retrofits to increase energy efficiency, and
he would like to focus on that over the next couple of years.
8:23: 3 7 PM Commissioner Gering said he was glad to hear that plans were already in the
works, and that endorsing this agreement would not be an empty act. Mr. Peterson commented
that one other change was that when Police vehicles were switched out they moved form Crown
Victoria's to Impalas, and the primary reason was the better fuel mileage.
8:24:33 PM Commissioner Gering said the Town was fortunate to have a lot oflocal expertise
in this area to drawn upon.
8:24:42 PM Melissa McCullough remarked that the time was ripe for this type of action, in
that there was global attention to this issue. She said there were many tools available to assist
the Town in its efforts.
8:25:22 PM Mayor Stevens said this would be a commitment to sustainability, and he believed
it was the right thing to do.
8:25:37 PM The vote was 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
C. Consideration of an Ordinance to Rezone 2.16 acres on the west side of the 500
block of N. Churton Street from Residential-20 and Neighborhood Business to
Entranceway Special Use
Deferred to April by a consensus of the Board.
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D. Consideration of a Resolution authorizing the Special Use Permit for Courtyard
Condominiums: 20 residential condominium units beside the Sinclair Station
building
Deferred to April by a consensus of the Board.
E. Consideration of an Ordinance to Annex 3.48 acres owned by CCD Corp on the
west side of NC 57
8:26: 18 PM Ms. Hauth said this mater was heard at the January public hearing. She said they
did nave a water and sewer extension contract for the adjacent tract, adding this was a non-
contiguous annexation. She said the Town had 176 acres remaining for satellite annexation
requests.
8:26:54 PM Mayor Stevens asked about considering Items E and F together. Ms. Hauth said
because this was a satellite annexation, the Board would have to approve the annexation and
bring the property into the Town's jurisdiction before it could consider Item F. She said the
Board could briefly discuss the zoning if it would help in its deliberation with Item E.
8:27:33 PM Mr. Hornik said typically when these kinds of applications came forward, the
applicant would have petitioned for annexation under the assumption that the zoning or rezoning
would be granted if the annexation were granted. So, he said, they could be discussed together,
and if it looked like the Board would not approve rezoning the property, then it likely would not
annex it either.
8:28: 17 PM Mayor Stevens asked if there were any highlights from the Planning Board's
review. Ms. Hauth said the Planning Board did not discuss annexations, but did discuss rezoning
requests. She said the Planning Board had unanimously recommended approval for the rezoning
request.
8:28:55 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Lowen, seconded by Commissioner Hallman,
the Board moved to approve the annexation request for 3.48 acres on the west side ofNC 57 by a
vote of 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
F. Consideration of an Ordinance to Zone 3.48 acres owned by CCD Corp on the west
side of NC 57 as Light Industrial
8:29:29 PM Ms. Hauth said under the new Planning legislation, the two-step process was that
the Town Board adopt a Statement in compliance with GS 160A-383, which said that the Town
believed the application was or was not consistent with the Town's plans, and spelled out the
reasons why.
8:30:34 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Hallman, seconded by Commissioner Gering,
the Board moved to adopt a Statement in compliance by GS 160A-383 that the application was
consistent with the Town's plans by a vote of 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
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8:30:55 PM Ms. Hauth said the next action was to consider the ordinance amending the zoning
map to designate the property as Light Industrial.
8:31: 10 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Gering, seconded by Commissioner Lowen, the
Board moved to approve the ordinance to amend the zoning map to zone 3.48 acres on the west
side ofNC 57 as Light Industrial by a vote of 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
G. Consideration of a Resolution to amend the approved Master Plan for Waterstone
to Increase the allowable retail square footage in Parcel 13 to 90,000 square footage
and Increase the allowable retail square footage in Parcel 22 to 450,000
8: 32: 14 PM Ms. Hauth stated there were two resolutions included in the materials, one to
amend the approved Master Plan and one that would not. She said should the Board choose the
second resolution, language would need to be included that provided the Board's rationale for
not approving the change to the Master Plan. Ms. Hauth added that the Planning Board had
recommended approval of the amendment to the Master Plan.
8: 3 3: 11 PM Commissioner Lloyd said it would be beneficial if the Board knew what the
additional square footage was needed for. She asked if other Board members had the same
concern.
8:33:57 PM Commissioner Gering said some of his basic problems originally when
Waterstone was approved was the square footage, adding he was not in favor of "big box"
developments as an economic tool for the Town. He said the second problem was what
Hillsborough would gain in return. Commissioner Gering said all the benefits would accrue to
the developers. The third problem for him, he said, was that he was reluctant to give up the
decision about what would be placed there. Commissioner Gering said if the developers had
come to the Town with detailed plans, including what it would look like and what kind of retail
would be placed there, then he would have a more rationale basis for deciding to increase it.
8:36:25 PM Commissioner Lloyd said she shared the same concerns. Ms. Hauth said these
same types of concerns had been expressed over the past two years regarding other commercial
sites.
8:37:26 PM Commissioner Gering asked were they distracting from the opportunity in other
parts of Town where they would also like to encourage economic development, perhaps without
the "big box" footprint by allocating that type of intensity at Waterstone. He said the Town
could only support so much economic activity, and this would concentrate even more in one
place.
8:37:28 PM Commissioner Hallman said he had the same concern, and increasing the square
footage would increase the economics accruing to the developer. He said while the Board was
interested in making this project succeed for the benefit of the Town, there were areas in
Waterstone that the Town was now burdened with, such the park and bringing water and sewer
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to the park. Commissioner Hallman said he, too, would like some consideration for making
these decisions that accrue to the developer, although t hey could not ask for that.
8:38: 13 PM Commissioner Lowen said while he understood the concerns, he believed the
developers may have someone in mind to take over that space. He said he believed this was the
one project that was moving forward, and he would hate to do something when they were
actively looking at someone who may be interested in a lot more space. Commissioner Lowen
said that area was a true economic development district, and he did not want to see it fail. He
said he believed the Board knew that "big boxes" would be going into that space.
8:39: 11 PM Commissioner Lloyd said the additional square footage would make it larger than
other "big boxes" such as Wal-Mart. Commissioner Lowen said the location of Waterstone and
its availability to 1-40 was an excellent location for that type of use. He said it would add value
to the project.
8:39:48 PM Mayor Stevens agreed that everyone wanted to see the project succeed. He asked
the developers to respond to the issues raised.
8:40:15 PM David Denison, with the Stratford Company, said they wanted to increase the
allowable square footage to that maximum amount but wanted to stress that did not mean that
much would be built. He said they believed that the two tracts together, the 58.2 acres in Tract
22 and the 12 acres in Tract 13 were somewhat underutilized, adding there was more land there
than was needed for the square footage they currently had approved.
Mr. Denison said it was their experience that in the current market place 500,000 to 600,000
square feet in a shopping area was a good critical mass. He said many of the potential users they
had talked with had asked why there was not more square footage available given the amount of
land. Mr. Denison said their request for additional square footage was in response to that.
Mr. Denison said as far as what was in it for the Town, his question would be was large retail
users a plus or minus for the Town. He said it did not add children in the schools, it did not add
a large additional burden on Town resources the way that many acres of residences would. Mr.
Denison said it would add to the tax base and the sales tax structure. He added that they had
already responded to all the concerns noted by Orange County, and that was included with
tonight's materials.
Mr. Denison reiterated that they were simply asking that the allowable cap be increased, and
what would end up going out there would be what the market dictated.
8:44:42 PM Mayor Stevens said they were all interested in retail and revenue from sales tax,
but they were interested in sustainable retail. He said he appreciated the cooperative relationship
thus far, but the Board had to be careful that the kind of retail created would not result in
economically damaged areas in Town. Mayor Stevens said the Board wanted to be cautious
about that. Mr. Denison said when they designed and built a shopping center, they would likely
have 75 to 80% of that leased, with all anchor stores in place. He said they would not build more
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space than they could lease, adding if they discovered they could only lease 400,000 square foot,
then that would be what they would build. But, he said, the market indicated they could lease
more than that.
8:45:55 PM Jim Ciao, with the Stratford Company, said that a retail center required 10,000
square feet per acre, so theoretically with 58 acres you could get 58,000 square feet. But, he
said, when you have shopping center of that size including 380,000 square feet, you would be
anchored by a "box." Mr. Ciao said the actual square footage would depend on the tenant mix.
Mr. Ciao said they saw the shopping center developing with a big box, such as Target, then some
"junior boxes." He said there were smaller retail shops that tended to locate around a tenant such
as a Target, and then other retail shops such as restaurants would fill the remaining space along
with service tenants.
Mr. Ciao said they intended to provide more shop space for smaller tenants, such as franchises
like Cold Stone Creamery, a Subway, a nail salon, a video store or the like. He said that was
why they wanted to create a little more opportunity for local merchants or local entrepreneurs to
benefit from the traffic generated by the "boxes." Mr. Ciao said the larger boxes would big
traffic in from a larger area, bringing revenue into the community from outside resulting in a
positive gain for Hillsborough. Mr. Ciao said they believed with the mix of restaurants, shops,
and possibly a movie theater who were all intense parking users, then that would shrink the
square footage they would build because of the parking required for those businesses.
8: 51: 18 PM Mr. Denison commented that the shopping center would likely pull about 80 to
90% of its shoppers from outside of Hillsborough, and those shoppers would likely not burden
the Town streets because they would be coming off ofI-40 or south ofI-40 and using the streets
being built for Waterstone.
8:52: 17 PM Mr. Ciao added that they were in competition with these retailers with nearby
communities, and one national retailer in particular had already made initial overtures. He said
they were interested in this area because the area between Hillsborough and Mebane was ideal
based on store spacing. Mr. Ciao said he believed that the increased square footage would
translate into additional revenue and jobs and other services for the Town.
8:54:00 PM Commissioner Gering said those jobs and services would be low-paying retail
jobs and no services, noting that such areas used out-of-town banks, out-of-town insurers, and
the like. Mr. Ciao said the shops would likely use local services for heating and ventilating, air
conditioning, and other types of repair services, as well as maintenance services such as window
cleaning, parking lot sweeping, landscape maintenance, roof repair, sign maintenance, and
others. He said he understood that the jobs would be low-paying retail jobs, but those kinds of
jobs were desperately needed. Mr. Ciao said those types of repair services would command a
higher fee, so that would create a bigger picture than just the person behind a cash register
earning a low retail salary.
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8:58: 11 PM Mayor Stevens commented that he generally agreed that was a greater
attractiveness in making sure there was a mix of locally owned businesses or national franchise
that were locally owned, and you would want to make space available for that. He said certainly
that had some appeal, but asked how they might move forward. Mayor Stevens suggested
placing a condition on the approval, or perhaps tabling the request until a specific square footage
need was determined.
8:59:05 PM Mr. Ciao said that was significant interest in this area and the Town, because this
area was considered a dead zone by retailers. So, he said, it held a greater appeal for major
retailers who wanted to be near interstates to attract people from greater distances.
9:00: 13 PM Mayor Stevens said he wanted the area to remain attractive, and wanted to make
the best use of the space and that it remain attractive.
9:00:47 PM Mr. Denison said they had water and sewer about 85% completed, with drainage
about 80% completed. He said they were ready to begin paving the streets and planned to start
the first of June with completion by the end of July. Mr. Denison said they had about $6 million
on the ground now in improvements, and needed to know exactly what they had to market. He
said if the increased square footage was not approved, then they would market only what was
currently approved.
9:02:25 PM Commissioner Lloyd said if she were to vote in favor of the extra square footage,
she would expect the area to look much better than one such area the Town already had. She
suggested a moderately-priced dress shop. Mr. Denison said a "big box" anchor and other
smaller "boxes" would attract such shops, but they would use a lot of the available space and
leave little room for smaller franchises or locally-owned businesses.
9:04:50 PM Commissioner Lowen said that unlike other nearby projects, this project was
moving along. He said he did not want to miss out of some great opportunities such as those
mentioned, and did not believe that approving some additional square footage would be a
detriment to the project or to the Town. Commissioner Lowen said that because this project was
much further along those others such as in Mebane, then perhaps some of those tenants could be
convinced to locate in Hillsborough.
9:06: 17 PM Mr. Peterson asked Ms. Hauth if on the Mater Plan approved for Waterstone, was
there any language that would limit the actual number of "big boxes" to one on Lot 22, or had we
just reduced the square footage enough to make it impractical to have more than one. Ms. Hauth
said she did not recall a condition to that effect, although there had been some discussion.
9:07:03 PM Mr. Hornik said he did not believe a condition was included that limited to one a
"big box" on any pod. Ms. Hauth said one piece of flexibility the Town did have was that the
Board had the ability to review a Special Use Permit that did not conform with the Master Plan.
She said that would mean that at the time that there were tenants ready to be placed and the
square footage requirements was known, then a Special Use Permit could be introduced with the
additional square footage needed. Ms. Hauth said the process did allow that if the Board
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approved a Special Use Permit that was not in compliance with the Master Plan, the action of
approving the Special Use Permit amended the Master Plan.
9:07:58 PM Commissioner Gering said he was glad that option existed, noting he was thinking
that they needed to see a site plan. Ms. Hauth said they had submitted a conceptual site plan, and
she understood that the Board wanted to see more specificity. She said the developer did have
the opportunity to come back with a Special Use Permit application, but it was risky because the
Board could reject it. Ms. Hauth said as it stood now, the developer could only market the
square footage approved, not the potential for additional square footage, and that would impact
their ability to market the property.
9:08:50 PM Mayor Stevens asked was there some provision that would still give the flexibility
needed for marketing but the condition such as for a major box store or the inclusion of some
smaller units. He asked was there some language that could assist in addressing some of the
Board's concerns, or was it an either/or decision. Ms. Hauth responded if the Board wanted to
adopt a resolution that said they would be favorably disposed to a larger project at the Special
Use Permit stage, then that might be worth considering.
9:09:50 PM Commissioner Lowen said if the Board voted to increase the square footage, with
the Special Use Permit process they could still vote down a proposal if the Board felt it was
inconsistent with that the Town wanted or needed. Mr. Hornik said you would have to consider
the findings that needed to be made for approval.
9: 10: 16 PM Mayor Stevens said that had been faced with the project at Hampton Point.
9: 10:25 PM Commissioner Lowen said he understood the concerns, but wanted to capture
some of the things the Board had wanted to provide to citizens. He said he believed that if they
could make that area marketable, then some of the tenants considering the Mebane area would
reconsider Hillsborough. Mr. Hornik said it was a Catch 22, in that in order for them to market it
they needed to have more area to work with, and the Board was saying they would consider
giving them that additional area if there was a better idea of what the tenant mix would be, but
they could not tell the Board that unless they had the opportunity for that additional square
footage.
9: 11 :36 PM Mayor Stevens said he believed that the area could bring in many attractive
tenants, including a movie theater. He said the area could also pass hands and be turned into
something not as attractive.
9: 12: 12 PM Commissioner Gering said he believed they had worked hard on a very sound
Master Plan for Waterstone, and he had not seen sufficient reason to deviate from that. He said
he would have to see more details before he could be convinced, such as a site plan that showed
the kinds of details that made the argument for why it was better than some other alternative.
Commissioner Gering said he was not sure that high intensity retail was the most desirable use
for any part of Waterstone. He said if the developer were to come back with a more detailed
plan that put some other types of use there, he may be more in favor of it.
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9:13:59 PM Commissioner Lowen asked why other types of uses did he have in mind.
Commissioner Gering responded offices, or a medical facility. Commissioner Lowen said there
were huge parcels in Waterstone which they had worked years on. He said that piece of property
was specifically set out to be retail. Commissioner Lowen said in order for the various
residential components to work, then there had to be some retail. He said he believed that this
Board had always believed that there would be a "big box" retailer located there. Commissioner
Lowen asked if Commissioner Gering was saying he now did not like the retail component of
that project.
9: 15: 00 PM Commissioner Gering said he was saying he did not want it any larger than what
was approved unless he was given good cause for it. Commissioner Lowen said if we wee
talking about a movie theater and similar uses, which he had thought the Board was in agreement
about, then those were components of the project. Commissioner Gering said those were
fantasies right now. Commissioner Lowen said the whole project was a dream, noting there was
nothing built yet except for Durham Tech.
9:15:26 PM Mayor Stevens said they were certainly dealing with a lot of unknowns, and they
needed to respond to how to deal with those.
9:15:39 PM Commissioner Lowen said he believed this was a good project and a good
opportunity. He said a few extra thousand square feet would not change the project dramatically
or change the looks of the buildings, but would add a few more opportunities for smaller
businesses.
9: 16:28 PM Commissioner Hallman said he believed it was a leap of faith either way.
9: 16: 3 8 PM Commissioner Lloyd said she was expecting a lot more from the developer if she
voted in favor of the additional square footage. She said this project was her dream, and she had
worked on it for many years. Commissioner Lloyd said she trusted Mr. Denison, but the person
he sold it too may not do what the Board expected.
9: 17:28 PM Mr. Denison said he knew Waterstone had a long history, noting he had been
involved with in for two-and-one-half years. He said they were the only ones who had put any
money on the ground, and were doing their best to do what was expected of them. Mr. Denison
said they were committed for the long haul.
9: 18: 19 PM Mayor Stevens asked was there some broad condition that would help mitigate the
concerns. He said if the Board wanted to move forward, was there some condition that would
help protect the Town during the site review process. Ms. Hauth asked Mr. Hornik if a square
footage limit could be established now for the anchor store, and say that no single entity shall
exceed a particular square foot.
9: 19: 19 PM Mayor Stevens said it could even be two entities. Mr. Hornik said the Board
could do that, but we did not know the market of what those anchor stores would need in terms
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of square footage. He said they would need to know from the developer what that realistic
square footage might be.
9: 19: 54 PM Mr. Ciao said they had a similar restriction on an anchor store in a development in
Raleigh, and the Raleigh City Council had limited the "big box" size to 40,000 square feet with
the thought that it would be enough for a good anchor center. But, he said, the first retailer to
make an offer was not a food store and required 90,000 square feet. Mr. Ciao said it happened to
be a J. C. Penny's which no one had considered, and then the Home Depot had come forward to
place a Home Depot Expo store there which needed approximately 100,000 square feet. He said
these were just examples of how difficult it was to anticipate square footage.
Mr. Ciao said the beauty of a Super Target was a highly desirable department store with a good
food store, which could require as little as 142,000 square feet. He said once they locked an
anchor tenant in place, then co-tenants would be attracted around them.
9:23:59 PM Mr. Denison said a Super Target would likely require about 186,000 square feet,
and if you placed a Lowe's or Home Depot there that would require about 115,000 square. He
said that would result in 300,000 square feet. Mr. Denison said if the Board said that no two
tenants could exceed 300,000 square feet, would that be acceptable as far as a condition.
9:24:54 PM Ms. Hauth said if it helped for a frame of reference, the existing Wal-Mart was
183,000 square feet, and the Home Depot was 127,000 square feet including the garden center.
She said those two together were 310,000 square feet.
9:25:20 PM Mayor Stevens said 380,000 was allowed now, and that would mean that the
remaining 70,000 square feet would have to be broken up for other smaller businesses.
Commissioner Gering said he believed that should be dealt with during the Special Use Permit
stage.
9:25:55 PM Mr. Peterson said regarding the national retailer Mr. Ciao had alluded to earlier,
how much square footage they would require. Mr. Ciao said they were very large, and believed
they would require 200,000+ square feet. He said that retailer had already been to Orange
County to discover what type of economic development incentives might be provided if they
chose this area. Mr. Ciao said chances were that the retailer would locate in Orange County, but
if they did not go here they would go to 1-40. He said that retailer was so desirable that it would
draw people from two to three hours away.
Mr. Denison emphasized that their request for additional square footage was not an attempt to
accommodate that retailer. Mr. Ciao said that was correct, but was an example of how hard it
was to predict with any degree of certainty who their major tenants would be at Waterstone.
9:27:45 PM Commissioner Gering said he was comfortable with using the Special Use Permit
process to amend the Master Plan and place a limit of 300,000 square feet combined for two
tenants. He said they would still have the Special Use Permit process to make exceptions to that
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9:28:20 PM Mr. Hornik suggested language that read "No two uses shall exceed the combined
area of300,000 square feet." Ms. Hauth asked could that language be specific about whether or
not a garden center or similar conditioned area was included in the gross floor area. Mr. Hornik
said the language could read "No two uses shall exceed the combined heated gross floor area of
300,000 square feet." Mr. Hornik said he wanted to make sure the Board understood the
implications of that. He said if a tenant came in that needed 120,000 square feet, then another
that needed 100,000 square feet, that would allow for a third to come in at 80,000 square feet
resulting in three "boxes."
9:29:54 PM Mr. Ciao said they had no incentive to do that because they were money losers.
He said they had to get tenants that would pay the square footage rent that would be profitable
for them, which would be $22 to $30 per square foot rather than $4 per square foot. Mr. Ciao
said the more rent-paying tenants they could bring in the more successful the development would
be.
9:30:38 PM Mr. Denison suggested the condition say no two tenants could exceed 300,000
square feet and no three could exceed 350,000 or 375,000 square feet.
9:30:47 PM Commissioner Gering agreed that would be acceptable and would address the
Board's concerns.
9:31:29 PM Mr. Denison said for purposes of the Special Use Permit process, that figure cold
be 350,000 square feet, and then if they had a tenant that would exceed that by 10,000 square
feet, then they would request that during the Special Use Permit stage.
9:31:47 PM Mr. Hornik said the language would then read "No two uses shall exceed a
combined heated gross floor area of 300,000 square feet, and no three uses shall exceed a
combined heated gross floor area of350,000 square feet."
9:32: 10 PM Mayor Stevens said that would potentially allow for additional space for smaller
businesses. He said that appeared to be agreeable to all parties.
9:32:52 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Lowen, seconded by Commissioner Hallman,
the Board moved to approve the resolution with an Item NO.5 added that stated that no two uses
shall exceed a combined heated gross floor area of 300,000 square feet, and no three uses shall
exceed a combined heated gross floor area of 350,000 square feet by a vote of 4-0. The motion
was declared passed.
9:33:52 PM Commissioner Hallman commented that he recognized that tonight had been a
long process, and in the future there were ways that the developer could help the Town help
them, and in return help the Town.
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H. Consideration of Approval of Sewer Extension Contract for Millstone Sewer
Extension
9:35:09 PM Mr. Keel stated that about eight years ago when Old Mill Business Park was
approved, the Town through annexation was not obligated to serve it with sewer. He said at the
time, it would have been expensive for the developer to extend the sewer. Mr. Keel said with the
Cates Creek Outfall nearing completion, it would be much more affordable to extend it to the
area. He said some of the property owners along and adjacent to Millstone Drive had formed an
LLC to facilitate the construction of public sewer to their properties. Mr. Keel said while there
were still a few properties that would not be able to connect to the proposed sewer, it could be
extended in the future for the remaining lots.
Mr. Keel said since a few owners were not participating in the LLC, some specific language had
been added to the contract appendix to ensure that all who benefit from the construction would
pay a fair share of the cost. He added that the area already had Town water service. Mr. Keel
explained some of the details of the contract.
9:40:55 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Hallman, seconded by Commissioner Gering,
the Board moved to approve the Sewer Extension Contract by a vote of 4-0. The motion was
declared passed.
9:41: 04 PM Mr. Peterson recognized and complimented Scott Lanier, who had showed a lot of
foresight and put a lot of work into this. He said Mr. Lanier had done something that would be
good for the Town in general.
I. Discuss and Consider Approving Salary Grade 24 for a Budget and Management
Analyst Position
9:41:31 PM Mr. Peterson provided a brief overview of the proposed Budget and Management
Analyst position and the propose salary grade, explaining why the position was needed and what
it would provide to the Town. He noted that the position was recommended by The Archer
Company, and asked that the Board authorize the approval of the position so that advertising
could begin immediately.
9:43:57 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Lowen, seconded by Commissioner Hallman,
the Board moved to approve the Budget and Management Analyst position at Salary Grade 24 by
a vote of 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
J. Discuss the Concept of having the Mayor and Police Chief conduct a Crime
Prevention Summit with the Town's Community Watch Groups
9:44:27 PM Mr. Peterson called attention to the bulleted list provided in the agenda materials,
and asked for feedback from the Board.
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9:45: 12 PM Police Chief Clarence Birkhead said he believed the Summit was an excellent
idea, noting any time you could engage the community in dialogue it was a positive step.
9:45:21 PM Mayor Stevens agreed, noting he had been looking for an opportunity where
neighborhoods could be brought together to discuss common issues. Chief Birkhead noted that
currently there were seven established Community Watch groups.
9:46:55 PM Commissioner Gering said he believed the format suggestions were good. Mr.
Peterson said he, the Mayor, and Chief Birkhead would get together to do some logistical
planning.
Added Item J.l Regarding the Daniel Boone Meeting
9:47:55 PM Mayor Stevens this was to consider their response following the Boone/Collins
meeting, noting part of the concern was that they were still talking in very large generalities. He
said at some point something more specific needed to be put on paper. Mayor Stevens said that
raised the question of what the "must haves" were so that they could move forward. Mr. Hornik
said the Board could discuss this conceptually tonight even though there had been no public
hearing, in order to frame the presentation at the pubic hearing.
9:49:23 PM Mayor Stevens asked if application received was substantially what was shown at
the Boone/Collins meeting. Ms. Hauth said some additional detail had been added in terms of a
list of suggested conditions.
9:50:01 PM Commissioner Hallman said he wanted to make it clear to the developer that the
Board had a precious resource, whether water or services, that the Board would spend
somewhere. He said we should make it clear that they were competing against other locations
and opportunities for those resources, and they should not assume that this was something that
the Board would automatically approve. Commissioner Hallman said coming to the Town at the
eleventh hour with a list of things to give the Town was too late.
9: 51: 07 PM Mr. Peterson said as far as limited utility capacity, when the engineers come
forward next month to tell the Board the cost to do a wastewater treatment plant update, it would
add five or more exclamation points to that point of limited resources. He said the cost for
wastewater treatment, in order to achieve the upgrade and expansion, would be surprising.
9:52:23 PM Commissioner Gering said the cost of providing infrastructure was one thing to
the Board, but was also something else to the County. He said he had to wonder why they would
want any more residential development, and asked what the residential component at that
location would bring to the Town. Commissioner Gering said it certainly would not pay for
itself.
9:52:54 PM Mayor Stevens coming at the eleventh hour was too late, so what would make this
project more competitive. He said one thing was the balance of residential versus commercial
and perhaps office space.
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9:53:49 PM Commissioner Gering asked how many homes were proposed. Ms. Hauth
responded 1,300, which was the maximum allowed for the amount of acreage available. She
said the yield would be less than that in the final analysis. Mr. Peterson said he believed it would
be 850 including the apartments. Mayor Stevens said even 850 to 900 would be height.
9:54:45 PM Ms. Hauth said one thing the residences would bring would be markets that
supported all the commercial space. She said you needed a certain number of rooftops to support
the retail operations and other types of operations. Ms. Hauth said certain retailer would not
locate in Hillsborough until there was a certain density, and we did not have that yet.
9:55:48 PM Commissioner Gering asked if the build out for Waterstone meet that mark. Ms.
Hauth said she did not know the answer to that.
9:55:59 PM Mayor Stevens said that Waterstone would have commercial and residential,
which added a mix and was what the Town was looking for. He wondered if they needed more
office, medical, or lab space, something other than retail in that commercial space.
9:56:28 PM Commissioner Lloyd said there needed to be space that provided jobs other than
just retail jobs, such as computer-type jobs. Mayor Stevens said it would make sense to have
those types of companies here.
9:58:03 PM Commissioner Hallman said that Mark Crowell, the Vice Provost in charge of
technology development for Carolina North, had taken a real interest in Hillsborough, and had
indicated a interest in discussing what Hillsborough might need in terms of his help.
9:58:30 PM Mayor Stevens said regarding roads, some Planning Board members had
suggested that this development contribute to the traffic circle or to some other part of the
Churton Street plan. He said he had concerns about the railroad crossing, believing it would be
problematic.
9:59:00 PM Commissioner Gering suggested that this development contribute to the sidewalk
project either at Highway 70A or Churton Street. He asked Ms. Hauth for her opinion. Ms.
Hauth said for Highway 70A it was problematic at best, since that area was outside the Town
limits. She said only a portion of that area had requested annexation.
10:00:02 PM Mr. Peterson asked what about sidewalks along Churton Street. Commissioner
Lowen said one of the main entranceways would be from Orange Grove Road, and suggested the
developer be asked to contribute funds for a sidewalk going from Orange Grove Road up to
Gateway in the historic district.
10:01:00 PM Mr. Hornik said you run into danger when you start conditioning approval of a
development on sidewalks that were far away from the development.
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10: 0 1: 19 PM Mr. Peterson said one of the things he wanted to work on was what kind of
demand would be placed on Town services so that they would have legitimate justification to say
the Town needed "x" amount of land to accommodate a municipal facility or even two. He said
Town services such as Police and fire would have a great deal of demand place on them.
10:02:26 PM Mayor Stevens another thing he would like to see was affordable housing or a
contribution for affordable housing. Commissioner Hallman said he had twice suggested that the
developer speak to Robert Dowling of the Orange Community Housing and Land Trust but he
had not yet done so. He said Mr. Dowling had come to the conclusion that having more land that
they could not build on was not serving anyone, so taking payment-in-lieu was not a bad thing.
10:03:26 PM Mr. Peterson said the Board could ask for a level of commitment for energy
efficient buildings as well.
10:03:47 PM Mayor Stevens said the Planning Board had suggested that the developer focus on
a grid arrangement for streets, rather than cul-de-sacs. Commissioner Hallman said that being
confined by 1-85 and the railroad tracks might constraint that. Ms. Hauth said it could be done,
noting it was no different than Beckett's Ridge. She said that could be addressed at the Special
Use Permit stage.
10:04:37 PM Commissioner Hallman said what about design standards that would in effect get
a commitment up front as far as what types of houses were built. Mr. Hornik said enabling
legislation was not good as far as architectural standards, although many municipalities had
adopted architectural guidelines that they encouraged builders to adhere to, but when push came
to shove enforcement would be difficult because the legislature had not given municipalities that
specific authority.
10:05:28 PM Mayor Stevens said perhaps they should try to get agreements up front, such as
how to position front porches or streets. Mayor Stevens said another thing on his list was
recreation, particularly the ball fields. He said the developer had talked about setting aside land
where you could place a ball field, but that was different from getting a firm commitment for ball
fields.
10:05:53 PM Commissioner Lloyd said they had talked about ball fields on the opposite side of
1-85, and asked if the developer would build them or would HY AA. Commissioner Hallman
said the developer had shown that fall fields could possibly be built in that area.
10: 06: 14 PM Commissioner Lowen said he did not know how that land would work for ball
fields, noting it had a dramatic slope to it. He said it would take a great deal of grading to make
it level enough for ball fields. Ms. Hauth said the bigger concern was how you would get to it.
10:06:39 PM Commissioner Hallman said the railroad right-of-way was 100 feet, so he did not
see how you could connect along that right-of-way.
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10:06:58 PM Commissioner Lloyd asked if the ball fields could be placed on the other side ofI-
85, or would that be requesting too much land from the larger tract. Mayor Stevens said he was
sure that was a huge amount ofland, but the Board could encourage them to do it anyway.
10: 07: 17 PM Commissioner Lowen said he did not want to be offered a tract ofland that was
"crap" in comparison with the larger development. He said he believed the developer would
certainly do something within the development or along its fringes that was more desirable, more
level, and more meaningful for use as a ball field or neighborhood park. Commissioner Lowen
said the land offered next to the freeway was not desirable or acceptable.
10:07:55 PM Commissioner Gering said the Churton Street Corridor Plan had included a nice
concept for that type of thing, that is a plaza arrangement with mix use around a large square
with recreation.
10: 08: 16 PM Commissioner Hallman said it had been shown that the value of homes increased
when they were located next to green spaces, so that was an economic incentive.
10:08:42 PM Mayor Stevens reiterated the points already made:
. this is a precious resource
. they were competing against other locations
. don't come to the Board at the eleventh hour
. be prepared to contribute to the cost of the wastewater
. need to look at the level of residential, noting 850 was very different from
1,300
. perhaps use some of the space for flex space or some other kinds of mixed
use other than retail
. contribute towards sidewalks - Churton Street; traffic circle
. future land for municipal use - Fire, Police, office
. affordable housing - talk with Robert Dowling re payment-in-lieu
. recreational development
. commitment to sustainable buildings
. a grid arrangement for streets rather than cul-de-sacs
. some cooperation with design standards
1 0: 1 0: 11 PM Commissioner Lloyd said something should be provided that would be
entertaining for the public, such as a museum.
K. Discuss "Hot Topics" for March Workshop
10: 11 :44 PM Mr. Peterson said the current items planned for the March 26th workshop were
noted in the agenda materials. He said the dinner would be 6: 15 to 7:00 p.m., and at 7:00 to 7:30
p.m. there would be a demonstration of the Code Red Emergency Notification System. He said
from 7:30 p.m. to adjournment, they would discuss the Draft Balanced Scorecard as presented by
the departments.
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10:12:45 PM Mayor Stevens
11.
CLOSED SESSION
A. Closed Session as authorized by North Carolina General Statute Section 143-318.11 (3)
to meet with Town Attorney regarding current Litigation Robbins v. Town of
Hillsborough (Asphalt Plant)
B. Closed Session as authorized by North Carolina General Statute Section 143-318.11(a)
(5) to Discuss Personnel Matters
10:12:54 PM Upon a motion by Commissioner Lowen, seconded by Commissioner Lloyd, the
Board moved to enter into Closed Session by a vote of 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
12.
ADJOURN
10:52 PM Upon returning to Open Session, and upon a motion by Commissioner Lowen,
seconded by Commissioner Gering, the Board moved to adjourn the meeting by a vote of 4-0.
The motion was declared passed.
Respectfully submitted,
Donna F. Armbrister, MMC
Town Clerk
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March 12, 2007 Regnlar Meeting
Approved: April 9, 2007
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March 12, 2007 Regnlar Meeting
Approved: April 9, 2007
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March 12, 2007 Regnlar Meeting
Approved: April 9, 2007
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March 12, 2007 Regnlar Meeting
Approved: April 9, 2007
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March 12, 2007 Regnlar Meeting
Approved: April 9, 2007
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March 12, 2007 Regnlar Meeting
Approved: April 9, 2007
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