ATTACHMENT 18

Cazco, Inc.
180 Providence Road 1-B
Chapel Hill NC 27514

August 6, 2008

Mr. Phil Mason, Principal Planner

Town of Chapel Hill Planning Department

405 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard

Chapel Hill, NC 27514

Re:    Aydan Court Townhome and Condominium Residential Development

         July 10, 2008 Meeting with: NC Wildlife Commission staff and

                                                      US Army Corps of Engineers staff

Dear Phil:

Thank you for arranging this meeting that allowed for a thorough discussion of the interests and responsibilities of all four parties: (1) The Town of Chapel Hill, (2) Aydan Court Applicant, (3) the North Carolina Wildlife Commission, and (4) The Army Corps of Engineers.

I believe we covered two basic issues:  (1) Water quality considerations and (2) Wildlife preservation and the NC Wildlife hunting policies.

(1)  Water Quality

      I believe we are all in agreement that water quality is of paramount concern regardless of the type or size of the residential development on the Aydan Court property.  The Town of Chapel Hill has perhaps the highest standards for quality of water leaving a developed site of any municipality in North Carolina.  Warren Mitchell, the project engineer, has designed the system to meet the Chapel Hill requirements and we are convinced that water leaving the Aydan Court site will meet all the appropriate standards for quality and rate of discharge.

(2)  Hunting on Upper Little Creek Waterfowl Impoundment Area

      Without question we are in agreement with the NC Wildlife Commission that we both seek to have both future homeowners and potential hunters aware of the relationship between the two properties and their shared property line.

      The discussion about hunting regulations and the types of weapons used for hunting different wildlife was very informative.  

Waterfowl Hunting – For this type of hunting, shotguns are used with small pellet shot.  We understand that the shot from these weapons dissipates pretty rapidly.  Research about shotguns and shot for 12 Gauge guns - the size of weapon that appears to be most common for waterfowl hunting – reveals that as the shot spreads, the ability of small pellets to cause damage decreases rapidly and the effective range for hunting ranges from 25 – 40 yards depending upon the weight and size of the shot.  We believe that all those attending the meeting agreed that the likelihood of injury or damage from hunters using shotguns was very small given the amount of vegetation along the shared property line and the change in elevation between the Aydan Court buildings and the ground within the Corps property.  We assume that our illustrations regarding the grade variations will henceforth be included when relevant with all Aydan Court information packages.

Deer Hunting – We understand that deer may be hunted only from elevated platforms for a variety of reasons.  One of those is that rifle shots may travel a longer distance that shot.  To provide for the safety of nearby property and people, hunters are required to shoot toward the ground from elevated positions on platforms.

      Because the Aydan Court property sits between 25 - 45 feet above the Corps property and is separated by a significant amount of vegetation on the Corps property, it is extremely unlikely that rifle fire would reach the Aydan Court property. 

(3)  Notice to all Parties

Disclosure of Hunting Potential to Potential Homeowners - Stipulation #69 of Resolution A prepared on May 6, 2008 requires full disclosure of the existing hunting opportunity on the Corps property in marketing, sales, and homeowner documents as well as on recorded plats.  As we stated at our meeting and at the Planning Board and CDC meetings in the spring, we are in full agreement with this full disclosure and notice requirement.

Disclosure of Residential Development to Potential Hunters -  To identify the Aydan Court property line to hunters and others that might visit the impoundment, Aydan Court will provide 18” x 24” signs  every 50 feet along the property line clearly delineating the property line, stating that no hunting is allowed on the Aydan Court site, and that guns may not be discharged within 150 yards (450 feet) of the Aydan Court residential buildings.  We will work with the Wildlife Commission and the Army Corps of Engineers to determine if signage at the entrance to this impoundment will help in notifying hunters and work with them to place appropriate signage and share costs for this signage.

We believe that measures that provide full notice to all, along with the actual physical characteristics of hunting requirements and elevation change between properties, will provide a very safe relationship along the shared property line.  If you will recall, the NC Wildlife and Army Corps staff at the meeting were asked if there had been any person or property shootings reported from Downing Creek residents.  They informed us that sometimes they had complaints about the noise from morning waterfowl hunters, but that they did not know of any individual damage or injury.

I trust that this recap of the meeting and issues discussed and the notice to hunters and residents that Aydan Creek can incorporate into its approval conditions addresses the questions raised by advisory board members and Council about hunting on the Army Corps of Engineers property.

Sincerely,

Carol Ann Zinn

Cazco, Inc.