drought
I am copying here my letter to the OWASA Board of Directors regarding the proposal that they host the Mountains to Sea Trail (MST) on OWASA property along the West side of the Cane Creek Reservoir. The short answer is that I think they should agree to host it and I expect them to arrive at this same conclusion. The real debate will revolve around what conditions they include with their agreement.
Note that OWASA's approval of hosting MST would not be an endorsement of any proposed trail route. Their agreeing to host the trail does not guarantee that a route along the Cane Creek Reservoir can be worked out. It simply would be an acceptance of the idea of the MST in general, and help set guidelines that other landowners nearby can follow if they would also like to host the trail (full disclosure - I have offered to host nearly a mile of MST on property in the area. While I am a proponent of the trail, I am also a proponent of folks being good neighbors and will not support any trail route that negatively impacts folks living nearby).
Last night marked the beginning of a new phase for proponents of the Mountain To Seat Trail (MST) in Orange County. After several years of silence, the Orange County Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation (DEAPR) held a meeting at the Cane Creek Community Center on Orange Grove road, inviting all landowners touched by the "planning corridor" from Occoneechee Mountain to the Haw River, mostly following Cane Creek from its headwaters to the Haw River confluence. Around 275 people were invited and around 75 were in attendance.
See the planning corridor map here: http://www.orangecountync.gov/document_center/DEAPR/MST_thru_Orange_Co.pdf
Early voting starts week! Don’t forget out there and let you voice be heard.
While both school boards and the Hillsborough Town Board, the County Commissioners will consider operational changes at the Community Home Trust and endorsing staff recommendations for new bus service in the central and rural parts of the county. The Carrboro Alderfolks will schedule a public hearing on the Lloyd Farm Conditional Use Permit and the Chapel Hill Town Council will review a number of development proposals.
Throughout the week, Chapel Hill Transit will hold public input meetings on the North-South Corridor.
Here’s the full summary:
CARRBORO BOARD OF ALDERPERSONS
It’s another busy week for Orange County’s elected boards. The Carrboro Alderfolks will consider joining the Bee City USA program and discuss locating agricutlural support uses in the Rural Buffer, while Chapel Hill devotes a day-long work session to the Obey Creek development. The County Commissioners will talk about upgrading 9-1-1 technology, while the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board will evaluate the superintendent. Both the Hillsborough and County School Boards are on break this week.
And, of course, don’t forget to join us for our quarterly happy hour Friday at TRU Deli +Wine.
Here’s the full summary:
CARRBORO BOARD OF ALDERPERSONS
CHAPEL HILL TOWN COUNCIL
Because of this week’s InterCity Visit to Athens, Ga., there aren’t many meetings of Orange County’s elected boards. You can follow #ICV2014 on Twitter for updates from the trip, but if you are town the Orange County School Board will meet to review student achievement. OWASA will also hold its annual meeting.
Here’s the full summary:
CARRBORO BOARD OF ALDERPERSONS
-
There are no scheduled meetings this week. The board’s next meeting will take place Tuesday, October 7.
CHAPEL HILL TOWN COUNCIL
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There are no scheduled meetings this week. The board’s next meeting will take place Monday, September 29.
CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO BOARD OF EDUCATION
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There are no scheduled meetings this week. The board’s next meeting will take place Tuesday, September 30.
HILLSBOROUGH TOWN BOARD
I apologize for the formatting, but this is how OWASA does it. See complete agenda at http://www.owasa.org/client_resources/about/agendas/2013/03-28-13%20agenda.pdf
Announcements
1. Announcements by the Chair
A. Any Board member who knows of a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest with respect to any item on the agenda tonight is asked to disclose the same at this time.
B. April 11, 2013 Board of Director's Meeting is Cancelled; the Board will hold a Strategic Planning Work Session on April 11, 2013 at 5:30 PM at the Mason Farm Wastewater Treatment Plant
C. Chapel Hill Town Council's OWASA Committee and the Chapel Hill Appointees to the OWASA Board will meet Thursday, April 18, 2013 at 8:00 AM in the OWASA Boardroom
2. Announcements by Board Members
A. Update on the March 28, 2013 Finance Committee Meeting (John Young)
B. Natural Resources and Technical Systems Committee will meet on Tuesday, April 16, 2013 at 5:00 PM in the OWASA Boardroom (Terri Buckner)
3. Announcements by Staff
Petitions and Requests
1. Public
2. Board
3. Staff
CONSENT AGENDA
Action
1. Approval of the Minutes of the February 28, 2013 Meeting of the Board of Directors (Andrea Orbich)
2. Approval of the Minutes of the February 28, 2013 Closed Session of the Board of Directors for the Purpose of Discussing a Personnel Matter (Gordon Merklein)
REGULAR AGENDA
Information and Reports
3. Update on Asset Management (Mary Darr)
Discussion
4. Discussion of Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Process (John Young/Stephen Winters) Summary of Board Meeting
Action Items
5. Executive Director will summarize the key action items from the Board meeting and note significant items for discussion and/or action expected at the next Board meeting.
CLOSED SESSION
6. The Board will Convene in a Closed Session for the Purpose of Discussing a Personnel Matter (Gordon Merklein)
Date:
Thursday, March 28, 2013 - 7:00pm
Location:
Council Chambers at Chapel Hill Town Hall, 405 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Chapel Hill
Agenda:
OWASA Board of Directors Strategic Planning Work Session Thursday, February 14, 2013, 5:30 PM OWASA Boardroom
Preliminary Agenda – Discussion Topics
Set ground rules- All contributions by team members
- Identification of the group’s most important agreements
Share expectations for strategic planning- Characteristics of a good plan
- Strategy development process
Step 1: Identify the strategic topics- All candidates
- Edited/organized/merged list of candidates
- The short list
(Time permitting) Commission targeted staff analysis
Plan next steps- Progress and process checks
- Calendar and other logistics
Date:
Thursday, February 14, 2013 - 5:30pm
See full agenda at http://owasa.org/client_resources/about/agendas/2013/01%2024%202013%20agenda%20for%20web.pdf
Announcements
1. Announcements by the Chair
Any Board member who knows of a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest with respect to any item on the agenda tonight is asked to disclose the same at this time.
2. Announcements by Board Members
Update on the January 24, 2013 Finance Committee Meeting (John Young)
3. Announcements by Staff
Petitions and Requests
1. Public
2. Board
3. Staff
CONSENT AGENDA
Action
1. Approval of the Minutes of the December 13, 2012 Meeting of the Board of Directors (Andrea Orbich)
REGULAR AGENDA
Discussion and Action
2. Discussion of a Potential Policy on Public Comments in Board Meetings (Alan Rimer)Discussion
3. Marketing Plan for Taste of Hope Customer Assistance Program (Greg Feller)
4. Discussion of the Rate Study and Recommendations (John Young/Stephen Winters)
5. Review of Drafts of the Budget Planning Documents; Summary of Strategic Issues, Planning Assumptions, and Background Information; Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Calendar (Stephen Winters)Information and Reports
6. Financial Report for the Six Month Period Ended December 31, 2012 (Stephen Winters)
7. OWASA's Approach to Projecting Water Demands (Ruth Rouse)Summary of Board Meeting Action Items
8. Executive Director will summarize the key action items from the Board meeting and note significant items for discussion and/or action expected at the next Board meeting.
Date:
Thursday, January 24, 2013 - 7:00pm
Location:
Chapel Hill Town Hall, 405 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Chapel Hill
I love newspapers and news blogs. I love reporters. I used to be a reporter. I come from 150 years of men – and one grandmother, Cyrene Bakke Dear – who published local community newspapers from Jersey City to Sedalia, Mo.
In the '60s my mom and dad got a lot of late-night, threatening calls from the Klan in my hometown of Elizabeth City, NC for what my dad did through the Daily Advance. David Dear informed the community with courage. He was also an equal opportunity employer before the phrase existed and he got threats for that, too.
I miss reporters. We need reporters here in Orange County. And everywhere. But you know that.
What you may not know is that something really big just happened here, something that may grow in significance for our community for the rest of the century.
And you probably have not heard a thing about it.
[At the March 1, 2011,
meeting of the Carrboro Board of Aldermen, in response to a request from
the OWASA Board of Directors to facilitate greater access to water from
Jordan Lake, Mayor Mark Chilton made the following remarks. The Editors of OP asked if we could publish his comments here as a blog post, and he agreed. -Ed.]
What the evidence that was just laid out before you clearly shows is that our community is capable of living with the water supply we have now, that the water supply now is very substantial, is scheduled to grow significantly in 2035, and that water conservation efforts have proved to be more effective than—I think they've really proved to be more effective than anybody would have guessed 10 years ago, than the most wild-eyed optimists would have believed 10 years ago. We've been more successful than that. We have not even exhausted the water conservation and water efficiency technologies and policies and procedures that even possibly could be implemented within our community.
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