SUMMARY OF A MEETING OF THE COORDINATION AND CONSULTATION COMMITTEE, MONDAY, MAY 24, 1993 AT 3:30 P.M.

Committee members in attendance were Orange County Commission Chairperson Moses Carey, Chapel Hill Mayor Kenneth Broun, Chapel Hill Town Manager Cal Horton, University of North Carolina Chancellor Paul Hardin (arrived at 3:54 p.m.), University of North Carolina Vice Chancellor Wayne Jones, Carrboro Mayor Eleanor Kinnaird, (UNC _______?) John Sanders. Also in attendance were Chapel Hill Town Council Member Joe Capowski, UNC Special Projects Coordinator Jim Mergner, (UNC _______?) Gordon Rutherford, Chapel Hill Planning Director Roger Waldon, Chapel Hill Mayor pro tem Arthur Werner and Chapel Hill Town Clerk Peter Richardson.

Committee Chairperson Moses Carey called the meeting to order. He inquired whether there were any changes to the record of the previous meeting. Hearing none, the previous record was adopted as presented.

UNC Boiler Plant Update

UNC Special Projects Coordinator Jim Mergner presented an overview of the situation at the University's boiler plant. Mr. Mergner noted that there had been two violations of air quality standards by the plant during the fourth quarter of 1992. He also noted that the NPDES ( ) water quality permit for the plant would expire on July 31, 1993. Mr. Mergner also briefly reviewed the status of flow equalization tanks at the plant. Mr. Mergner also expressed his belief that the plant was going in the right direction to obtain renewal of its water quality permit.

Mr. Mergner reviewed the status of noise concerns at the plant. He noted that noise abatement efforts continued. Mr. Carey inquired whether it would be necessary to shut down the plant for noise-related modifications. Mr. Mergner said it was only necessary to shut down one boiler. He also stated that new lighting plans for the plant area would be consistent with existing neighborhood lighting. Mr. Sanders asked whether ground lighting had been a concern of neighbors in the past. Mr. Mergner said there was no lighting in the area and consequently there had been no problems.

Council Member Werner inquired about the status of the clinker situation at the boiler plant. Mr. Mergner said an update letter had been forwarded to plant neighbors on May 21st. Mr. Mergner said that Town Fire Chief Dan Jones and himself would update the Council on the matter this evening. He also stated that it was a natural phenomena for heating to occur in coal piles. Mr. Mergner noted that some unanticipated heating had occurred in silo number one, with coal forming together and blocking air flow in the silo.

Mr. Sanders inquired about the possibility of introducing water into the silo. Mr. Mergner said the silos were not designed to hold this amount of water. He added that the silos had been filled with carbon dioxide to displace oxygen and reduce the risk of explosion. Council Member Werner inquired about the viability of permanently adding some carbon dioxide to the silos. Mr. Mergner said staff would explore this option.

Council Member Werner inquired about the percentage of plant capacity currently being utilized. Mr. Mergner said that one plant was currently down, while the other boiler was at eighty percent of capacity. He noted that usage was higher when the demand for air conditioning increased. Mr. Mergner stated that one of the plant's objectives was to have level demand throughout the year.

Mr. Mergner expressed the University's appreciation to the Town and Orange County for their recent assistance at the boiler plant facility.

Mayor Broun inquired about the likelihood of the recurrence of a "hot spot" in a silo at the boiler plant. Mr. Mergner said it was not the University's intent to have this recur. He stated that monitors could be placed in the silo area to provide temperature and related information. Mr. Mergner noted that similar problems could occur in coal stored on the ground.

Mayor Broun inquired about possible problems if the plant were converted from coal to natural gas. Mr. Mergner said the plant was primarily a coal-fired facility, although natural gas or oil could be used as fuels, if necessary. He noted that it was necessary to use sand when oil or gas was employed as fuel at the plant. Mr. Sanders inquired whether sand was consumed during the process. Mr. Mergner said yes, noting that it eventually became fly ash. He added that the use of natural gas contributed to more rapid erosion of boiler tubes. Mr. Mergner also stated that there were times when adequate supplies of natural gas were not available. Mr. Sanders asked whether residential use took precedence at this time. Mr. Mergner said yes. He noted that the plant could only attain 70% of its capacity when oil was being used as a fuel.

Mayor Broun inquired whether it was correct that the substitution of natural gas would significantly eliminate environmental concerns about the plant. Mr. Mergner said he did not believe there would be a significant difference in environmental impacts if the type of fuel were changed. Mayor Broun inquired whether most concerns would be addressed by entirely eliminating coal as a fuel source.

Mr. Mergner said this would necessitate a new bond sale to construct an entirely different type of facility. Mr. Sanders inquired about retrofitting the plant. Mr. Mergner said this was not feasible. Mayor Kinnaird inquired why natural gas supplies were interrupted at certain times of the year. Mr. Mergner said there was limited transport capacity to bring natural gas into the area. Council Member Werner said the limited distribution of natural gas amounted to an artificially managed situation.

Chancellor Hardin inquired whether oil and gas have ever been used as alternate fuel sources. Mr. Mergner said this had only occurred for testing purposes. Council Member Werner said it might be worth installing permanent monitoring facilities around the plant. Mr. Mergner said the University was working with Parker-Reist to perform ambient monitoring on the site and at several locations around the plant. He added that the possibility of a continuous gas monitoring system was also being explored.

Chancellor Hardin inquired whether anything specific had been learned from the clinker episode. Mr. Mergner said the main lesson was the need for monitoring of operations. He noted that the University was consulting with a solids-flow expert to review the design of silos at the facility. Chancellor Hardin inquired about the possibility of spontaneous combustion in coal. Mr. Mergner said there were some seals of coal which were more prone to spontaneous combustion. He noted that the University purchased coal from three separate plants to satisfy State procurement procedures. He also noted that a meeting with the Power Plant Neighbors had been scheduled for June 2nd.

Horace Williams Airport Status Report

Mr. Horton said local governments were working with the University to draft a final document concerning the future usage of Horace Williams Airport. Chairperson Carey inquired whether there were any questions on the report. Hearing none, he suggested that the committee consider the next item.

Budget and Legislative Update

Mr. Horton said there was no well-accepted method for determining the estimated cost of fire protection services to the University. He stated that approximately 28% of all calls were from the University campus. Mr. Horton stated that another way to estimate fire protection costs was to estimate the number of employees and amount of equipment the University would need if it were to provide its own fire service. Council Member Werner asked whether state funding for fire protection of the university was a fixed amount. Mr. Horton said this was correct. He added that the funding allocation had not increased since 1986. Vice-Chancellor Jones inquired whether payments to other communities had remained unchanged during this period. Mr. Horton said this was correct.

Vice-Chancellor Jones suggested that communities might wish to get together to petition for additional funding. Mayor Broun inquired about the possibility of the Town and University working with the local legislative delegation concerning funding. Chancellor Hardin said the University was willing to work with the Town and the local legislative delegation on funding concerns. Mr. Sanders inquired whether this could divide constituencies. Mr. Horton said yes.

Mr. Sanders said a study had been performed approximately twenty years ago on how the state compensated individual communities for services. Chancellor Hardin said the University was willing to join in informal conversations about funding concerns.

Mayor Kinnaird noted that the University's sales tax exemption had a major impact in all of Orange County and especially in Carrboro. Chancellor Hardin noted that communities like the City of Durham had to forego sales taxes from church-supported universities. He noted that the state taxed its own agencies but not privately-supported and church-related ones. Chancellor Hardin inquired how the state sales tax was divided. Mr. Sanders said it was undistinguished from other funds, Chancellor Hardin said the state tax system worked to the advantage of the state and the disadvantage of the University and local governments. Mayor Kinnaird said the state funding situation had improved somewhat. Mr. Horton said the Town had not noted any improvements in the state situation. Mayor Kinnaird expressed hope that the state budget situation would continue to improve.

Mr. Horton noted that the federal government subsidy for bus operations had been significantly reduced. He stated that if there were no additional changes in anticipated funding or changes in services, the cost of bus services to Carrboro would increase by $68,000 per year and $234,000 to the University. Mr. Horton noted that the Town had changed classifications for funding of bus operations, now being included in the same area as the City of Durham. He expressed hope that the outcome of negotiations with the City of Durham for sharing federal transit operating funds would be positive. Mayor Kinnaird noted that the Town of Carrboro had signed an agreement with the Town of Chapel Hill for continuation of bus service for fiscal year 1993-1994. Mr. Horton said it would be helpful if the Town of Carrboro and the University could support efforts to increase state and federal funding for transit operations.

Chancellor Hardin inquired about the possibility of receiving additional federal transit support by proving a dramatic diminution in per capita mass transit funding. Mr. Horton said the Town had received a favorable response from Representative Price's office. He noted that the Town had formerly competed against communities which had no interest in transit funds. Noting that bus ridership was fairly stable, Council Member Werner said the Town's real concerns were long-term ones. Chancellor Hardin inquired about proposals to increase costs to bus riders. Mayor Kinnaird noted that many bus riders were students at the University. Mayor Broun noted that there was very limited potential for fare increases. Mr. Horton noted that staff had estimated a five percent ridership decrease if fares were increased from 60 to 75 cents. He added that estimated additional revenues from the fare increase would be $26,500 for the Town, $13,000 for Carrboro and $175,000 for the University. Mayor Broun noted that those persons who chose not ride the bus due to fare increases might choose to drive in single-occupant vehicles.

Commissioner Carey noted that there was a reimbursement mechanism in place for events impacting the community such as the recent Grateful Dead and Guns and Roses concerts. Mr. Horton said he thought the process worked well for the University, towns and Orange County. Chancellor Hardin noted that he had spoken to Smith Center Events Coordinator Jeff Elliott about the possibility of requiring use of park and ride services for future concerts at the Center. He inquired about feedback from local merchants following recent concerts. Mr. Horton said comments from downtown merchants had been generally positive. He added that the biggest complaints had been about traffic volumes. Chancellor Hardin noted that attendees at University basketball and football games had developed individual coping mechanisms to deal with crowds and inconveniences. Mayor Kinnaird noted that information concerning park and ride availability had been furnished to Grateful Dead concert goers. She noted that Grateful Dead fans tended to be strongly attached to their vans. Mr. Horton said the most negative impact of the events was increased drug usage and related activity.

Significant Construction Developments

Mayor Kinnaird noted that a proposal for development of Hogan Farm had recently been submitted.

Chapel Hill Planning Director Roger Waldon said a request for a sixteen acre subdivision to construct a water tower had recently been received. Mr. Sanders inquired about the status of the Top of the Hill project. Mr. Horton said work continued on building footings. He also noted that the North Carolina Department of Transportation was evaluating whether or not to allow bay windows in the project. Mr. Horton said completion of the project was targeted for spring, 1994. He also noted that action on the last phase of the Eastowne master land use plan had been deferred while a study of the U.S. 15-501 corridor continued. Council Member Werner noted that an interim report on the corridor study would be presented to the Durham-Chapel Hill Work Group on June 16th.

Mr. Waldon also noted that a public hearing on proposed watershed regulations was scheduled for June. Mr. Sanders inquired which parts of the Town would be most impacted by the proposed regulations. Mr. Waldon said the specific regulations were the subject of the proposed hearing.

Mr. Sanders inquired about the practical impact on the University's building potential. Council Member Werner noted that municipalities were required to adopt watershed regulations by June 30th. Council Member Werner said the specific impact on state-owned properties had not been determined. He noted that area-wide detention approaches might be acceptable.

Commissioner Carey reported that Orange County had no new significant developments other than the Hogan Farm proposal reported earlier by Mayor Kinnaird.

Chancellor Hardin stated that Orange County's presentation to the Chamber of Commerce concerning planning in northern Orange County had sounded quite positive. He inquired whether the general idea might have applications in southern Orange County. Commissioner Carey said the primary subject matter was the development of land prezoned for economic development purposes. He noted that informal consultations had occurred in possibly impacted areas. Chancellor Hardin said it was a very good idea to talk to potentially impacted individuals as early in the process as possible.

Chancellor Hardin reported that the Hospital's Ambulatory Care facility had recently opened. He also noted that construction on the new School of Social Work building continued. Mayor Broun inquired about the status of the house on Columbia Street. Chancellor Hardin said the University was trying to get a fair price for condemnation purposes. He noted that the house had become a troublesome eyesore. Mr. Sanders said the Fire Marshal might be able to provide assistance in this regard. Mr. Horton said the Fire Marshal might not have jurisdiction in this area.

Gordon Rutherford said the Brooks Hall and student recreation center projects were nearing completion. He added that university planning staff had recently undertaken an analysis of the possible impact of watershed protection regulations on building projects.

Mr. Jones said planning for the future of the Horace Williams tract continued. Chancellor Hardin said the planning process was at the brainstorming stage. Council Member Werner inquired about the proposed timeframe for the Horace Williams study. Mr. Rutherford said the study would take twelve to eighteen months to complete.

Chancellor Hardin said he was interested in having university planning staff talk to Orange County Economic Development Commission staff about it's planning processes.

The meeting concluded at 5:08 p.m.