Coalition Does Not Endorse Proposed Comprehensive Plan Proposal - Commissioners Expected to Vote in November

The Orange County Commissioners are expected to vote on the Planning Board's Comprehensive Plan proposal at their November 18, 2008 meeting. For more than one year, the Comprehensive Plan Coalition has tracked the planning process. We've concluded a serious effort to solicit public opinion and advice is needed. Without meaningful public participation at this critical juncture, adopting the plan will enshrine a document that was subject to decreasing public input as the planning proceeded. As a consequence the Coalition does not endorse the proposed Comprehensive Plan Update.

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To go to the Coalition website, click here

Out of your car and onto light rail transit

Monday Sept 22 is Car Free Day 2008. In our 5th year of celebrating Car Free Day, The Village Project is hosting a letter writing campaign to let our local leaders know that Orange County wants the proposed light rail transit to Durham. Over 500 people have already expressed support and so can you by going to www.gocarfree.com. Sign the letter to show your support for light rail in the Triangle!

Final Public Hearing on Comprehensive Plan

On August 25, the Orange County Commissioners will hold what may be the final Public Hearing on the proposed Comprehensive Plan Update. The hearing is at 7:30pm and will be held in the downstairs courtroom at the County Courthouse in Hillsborough. Submitting written comments in advance of the Public Hearing and/or presenting your comments in person tonight might be your final chance to provide input on this important subject. Written comments can be emailed to the County's Comprehensive Planning supervisor at CompPlanUpdate@co.orange.nc.us.

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Economic analysis of Buckhorn Village is flawed

The Orange County planning board determined (7-2) last week that the economic analysis of the proposed Buckhorn Village near Mebane and prepared by a consultant to the county commissioners is "seriously flawed." Take a look at the article printed in the Chapel Hill News regarding the issue.

James Carnahan, member and chair of the Village Project, commented on the project on May 28:
"With gas selling near $4 a gallon and increasing global demand presaging no relief whatsoever, their prescription that Orange County should rely on interstate automobile traffic for economic security is desperately naive. If gas cost $6 a gallon when Buckhorn opens its doors, would today’s revenue projections still apply?"

Walkable Hillsborough Day - June 7

Join other pedestrians and cyclists in "Taking Steps to Connect" Hillsborough on June 7 in the 7th Annual Walkable Hillsborough Day, an event to celebrate National Trails Day.

The event, from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the Old Courthouse in downtown Hillsborough, will include two bike rides this year along with three guided walks of varying lengths and exertion. At the courthouse at 10:30 a.m., there will be activities, prizes and refreshments. Information from various organizations - such as the Eno River Association, Audubon Society and Special Transit Advisory Commission - also will be on display.

See the Walkable Hillsborough website for more details.

Draft Comprehensive Plan for May 19th public hearing is now available

Draft 2 of the Comprehensive Plan that will serve as the key document at the public hearing meeting on May 19, 2008 is now available on the county's website. When making comments at the hearing, use this most recent draft.

http://www.co.orange.nc.us/planning/DRAFTCOMPPLAN050608.asp

Opportunities to Help Shape the New Orange County Comprehensive Plan

Do you live, work or own land in Orange County? Are you concerned about whether you and your children can find work here and afford a home? Do you want farmland and natural areas to be protected? Do you want to see our communities doing something to address climate change?

If so, you are invited to come and express your views at the upcoming Orange County meeting on May 19th:

Public Hearing - Monday, May 19 at 7:30 p.m. at the Gordon Battle Courtroom, 106 E. Margaret Lane, Hillsborough

This meeting is taking place because Orange County is in the process of updating its Comprehensive Plan. The Comprehensive Plan update will direct how Orange County will develop through the year 2030. It guides decisions for a wide range of local issues: housing, economic development, transportation, land use, environment, parks & recreation, and community services & utilities.

Making public comments is easy and can be done in several ways.
* You can submit written and/or verbal comments
* You can email comments to County staff at CompPlanUpdate@co.orange.nc.us.
* You can call county staff with your comments at (919) 245-2575, or you can mail written comments to the Orange County Department of Planning and Inspections, 306-F Revere Road, PO Box 8181, Hillsborough, NC 27278. Please submit comments before May 19th.

For more information on the planning process or to read the first draft of the plan, visit the Orange County Comprehensive Plan website: http://www.co.orange.nc.us/planning/compre_cpupdate.asp.

There will be a 2nd draft available on May 7th.

This message is brought to you by the Orange County Comprehensive Plan Coalition, with support from The Village Project (www.thevillageproject.com) and the Strowd Roses Foundation (www.strowdroses.org).

Countywide meetings in April to comment on the Comprehensive Plan drafts

The county will be holding meetings during April to allow the community to comment on the draft plan elements for the comprehensive plan update. The first meeting is on April 9, 2008 in Chapel Hill and the second meeting is on April 23, 2008 in Hillsborough. The public is encourage to attend these meetings. Additionally, the county is holding an Open House to provide citizens with more information on April 3, 2008.

The drafts of the plan elements should be available on the county website. See the county website for up to date information.

Buckhorn Village: 'Business as Usual' or sensible economic development?

Buckhorn Village is a proposed 'center like The Streets at Southpoint' (N&O, Jan 12) to be located in Orange County. Over a million square feet of retail, hotel & movie theater uses are proposed on 128 acres at the intersection of Buckhorn Road and I40/I85. They estimate the County would realize $7.2 million a year in sales & property tax revenues. But what might these revenues cost us?

James Carnahan asks this question on the Orange Politics blog. Take a look at what he has to say and weigh in yourself: go to the blog here

Take a look at The Village Project article about Buckhorn Village.

The Orange County Comprehensive Plan Coalition

Orange County has begun to update its Comprehensive Plan for the first time in 25 years. The update will be the key document that county government and the commissioners will use to make decisions about land use, transportation, housing, economic development, environmental protection and other critical issues.

Because Orange County is at a critical crossroads economically, socially, and environmentally, a diverse coalition of community stakeholders have come together to create and endorse a vision statement and a set of goals and objectives for Orange County's Comprehensive Plan Update that brings together these principles in a way that truly promotes a sustainable future for our county.

The Village Project would like to thank the Strowd Roses Foundation for its generous grant that is helping to make our work on the Orange County Comprehensive Plan possible. To read more about the coalition, see our new brochure and the Coalition website at http://www.thevillageproject.com/cpu.

The coalition believes sustainability is achieved when stakeholders representing diverse interests work together cooperatively to assure a healthy balance among interdependent social, environmental and economic priorities. Therefore we encourage county residents and other stakeholders to join the coalition and to participate in the update process. For a list of upcoming public participation opportunities, click here.

Celebrate Car Free Day by supporting a train stop in Hillsborough!

On September 22, 2007, somewhere around 10:10 A.M., Amtrak's Train number 80, the Carolinian, will run through Hillsborough. The train won't stop, but Orange County residents will be there encouraging local and state governments to add an Amtrak stop in Hillsborough in celebration of international Car Free Day.

Members of The Village Project and the Walkable Hillsborough Coalition will hold an event beginning around 9:50 A.M. on Saturday the 22nd to highlight the need for Amtrak service for Hillsborough and Orange County. The event will be held at the corner of Eno and South Nash Streets in Hillsborough, in view of the railroad tracks (opposite the former Flynt Mill).

Check out www.gocarfree.com for more details. See you there!

Local Coalition gives voice to sustainability

The Village Project has partnered with a diverse group of local groups to form a coalition that focuses on the three aspects of sustainability: environmental, economic and social equity. The Coalition will present our vision statement to the Orange County Commissioners tonight at the public hearing on the Comprehensive Plan at 7:30 PM in the Gordon Battle Courtroom, 106 E. Margaret Lane, Hillsborough.

See the Herald-Sun article for a news report (registration may be required).

The sustainability of the Carrboro Greenspace includes more than the environmental aspect

Members of The Village Project weigh in to the online discussion surrounding the Carrboro Greenspace, an undeveloped 10.5 acre plot of land near the heart of Carrboro. The imminent sale of the land has sparked a community debate on how the land should be used. The Village Project believes that the three aspects of sustainability - economic, social, and environmental - should be addressed with any new development of the land.

Carolina North Forum: A discussion between the town and the university

James Carnahan, board member of The Village Project, discussed the Carolina North project and how it could affect the surrounding towns in a Forum between town and university officials on April 18, 2007. Listen to the podcast.

Ensuring an ecologically sustainable future for Orange County

Orange County is in the process of updating the Comprehensive Plan, which helps to guide growth and development within in the county for the next 20 years. The Village Project has produced a perspective statement that articulates our organization's principles, goals and strategies for ensuring that when growth takes place, the outcome will be a built environment that is ecologically, socially & economically sustainable.

Mass Transit Myopia

Blair Pollock of the Village Project reflects on the state of mass transit in the Triangle and questions why the UNC plans for Carolina North are not taking advantage of the existing rail line, in his article published in the Chapel Hill News.

The Village Project will be at the Community Forum on Carolina North - Mon, June 4

Neighborhoods for Responsible Growth is hosting a community forum on Carolina North at the Chapel Hill Town Chamber at 7pm. Forum topics will include a review of the most recent developments concerning this satellite campus, and what these might mean for the towns of Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and the wider community. James Carnahan, of the Village Project, will be a panelist. Go here for more information.

Walkable Hillsborough Day is June 2, 2007

The Town of Hillsborough and the Walkable Hillsborough Coalition are sponsoring the 6th annual Walkable Hillsborough Day this Saturday, June 2, 2007. See this flyer for more information.

The Village Project to table at the Green Tour Kickoff 2007

The Village Project will be tabling at the Green Home Tour kickoff event at the Carrboro Century Center at 100 N. Greensboro Street on May 19, 2007 from 9am - noon. Come see our designs and talk to our board members!

At the Green Home Tour kickoff, you'll be able to hear speakers, view displays, and ask questions of green building experts. Stay for as much as you'd like. Check out the displays, pick up a tour book, then visit the homes. See www.hbadoc.com for more complete schedule information.

Local family takes the Carbon Challenge

The NPR and National Geographic series on Climate Connections featured a local Orange County family who are taking steps to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions. See http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9979875 for the story.

The series on climate change can be found at http://www.npr.org/climate