On Tuesday night, the Orange County Board of County Commissioners met to discuss Black History Month events in the community and amendments to a new development on Morrow Mill Road.
What’s new?
- Commissioner Sally Greene announced the unveiling of a historical marker for Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Daniel Morrow — three Black community members who were terrorized and lynched in Hillsborough in 1869. The ceremony will be held on Feb. 15 at the Orange County Historical Courthouse.
- “Black history is not only a celebration of victories won, but also a testament to the years and lives lost in the pursuit of equity, inclusion, social justice and liberation,” Orange County Chief Equity & Inclusion Officer Paul Slack said in the county’s Black History Month proclamation.
- Chair Jamezetta Bedford spoke about some Black History Month events in Orange County, including a film screening followed by a panel discussion about the justice system at the Chapel Hill Public Library and a community breakfast at Hargraves Community Center.
- Planning and Inspection Director Cy Stober introduced a zoning application for Fiddlehead Corner, a new residential community development located on Morrow Mill Road in southwestern Orange County.
- Planning and Zoning Manager Taylor Perschau said she wanted to focus on an amendment to change the zoning classification from agricultural residential, a rural area used for activities related to the land, to masterplan development conditional district, a designated area that has been pre-determined to be used for a specific project.
- However, Perschau said a rezoning of the development is not consistent with previous agreements regarding the process for new developments in the county.
- ‘‘The comprehensive plan needs to be amended to expand the activity node and to allow for the zoning district in this activity node,” Stober said. “Without those two amendments to the ordinance and the comprehensive plan, the zoning atlas amendment — which is the master plan development that is the main part of the packet tonight — cannot be approved.”
- Multiple community members expressed environmental concerns about the new development, including downstream impacts on watersheds and sewage waste.
- “We are greatly concerned with the proposed project due to its affecting us directly by increasing the traffic in our area,” Aditi Watson, a community member, said. “If you ever walk down or drive down Gold Mine Loop and experience the charm of the land and the peace and the quiet, you would understand why we’d want to protect this area.”
What decisions were made?
- The board moved to continue the public hearing for Fiddlehead Corner to March 6.
What’s next?
- The BOCC will hold a work session on Feb. 11 at 7 p.m.
