Appendix 2

Background for Discussion of Carolina North Review Process

Summary of Horace Williams Citizens Committee Report Principles and Leadership Advisory Committee Report

September 23, 2008

Introduction

On June 25, 2008, the Chapel Hill Town Council adopted a resolution expressing the intent to meet with members of the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees in September 2008 to begin discussions regarding the proposed Carolina North development.  That same resolution authorized the Mayor to appoint a subcommittee of Council members to plan the meeting.  Further, that action anticipated that joint staff work (representatives from the Town of Chapel Hill and the University) then under way would continue and would prepare background materials.  Status reports to the Council regarding that work had outlined a structure consisting of a zone, development agreement, and development plan for Carolina North.

In the context of the 2004 plan for Carolina North, the Horace Williams Citizens Committee (HWCC) had prepared material for consideration by the Town Council.  Those materials included, but were not limited to, principles proposed for the planning of development at Carolina North and a process for reviewing proposals regarding Carolina North.  In early 2006 then Chancellor Moeser appointed the Leadership Advisory Committee (LAC), with representation from many different constituencies from the local communities and the State of North Carolina and charged it to develop consensus principles to guide the planning for Carolina North.  Each constituency was invited to submit principles for consideration by the LAC and the responses were assembled into a matrix of proposed principles that served as input for the work of the Committee.  The Town’s representation on the LAC included people who had worked on the HWCC and the HWCC report was one of the inputs incorporated into the “principles matrix”.  The LAC completed its work in January 2007 and submitted its report to Chancellor Moeser.  That report documented a broad range of topics on which consensus had been reached within the LAC.  The report also identified a set of topics on which consensus had not been reached.  This document provides a summary of that work. 

While the HWCC and LAC reports have broadly similar structures, the material that follows uses the main headings of the HWCC report.

I. General Principles

HWCC Report	LAC Report	Status
Principle 1: Carolina North shall adhere to the following basic sustainability principles as defined by the Sustainable Development Task Force in its October 1998 Report to the Chapel Hill Town Council: Create healthy living environments; protect, restore and maintain ecological integrity; conserve energy and natural resources, and use them efficiently; balance social, economic and environmental concerns in decision-making; promote equity, human dignity and social justice	Section I (General Principles) contains material on the topic of sustainability and includes a paragraph tracking the exact language of the last sentence of principle 1from the HWCC report.	Consensus was reached.
Principle 2: Development on the Horace Williams property shall benefit the University, the towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro, Orange County, and the surrounding areas, as well as the state of North Carolina.  The planning and execution of Carolina North shall be a model of cooperation for the mutual benefit of all stakeholders.	Section I (General Principles) contains paragraph tracking the exact language of this principle from the HWCC report.	Consensus was reached.
Principle 3: Both the Town and the University need to recognize that there could very well be a point when the cumulative impacts of University and Town growth on our natural resources and our public facilities are such that no amount of mitigation would be possible and still retain the charm of the Town and the quality of life which both the citizens of the Town and the State of North Carolina expect from Chapel Hill.	Section I (General Principles) presents this language and indicates that the University representatives emphatically rejected this principle as an appropriate planning principle for Carolina North.	Agreement was not reached.

II. Development Management Principles

HWCC Report	LAC Report	Status
Principle 1: Manage development of Carolina North to minimize impacts on neighborhoods and the environment.	Section V (Open Space, Natural Areas, Parks, and Recreation) contains a paragraph indicating that building heights should be minimized in areas where heights of buildings may have an adverse impact on existing neighborhoods.  Other elements of the LAC report address the spirit of this principle.	Consensus was reached.

III. Neighborhood/Community Interface Principles

HWCC Report	LAC Report	Status
Principle 1: Planning for Carolina North shall address community needs for housing, schools, and other facilities.	The University agreed to provide a site for First School and another school site.  Subsequent to the LAC report, the local School Board decided not to proceed with First School as a separate project located at Carolina North, so that provision has become moot.  The University has confirmed its willingness to provide another school site.  Some community members (of the LAC) sought additional commitments from the University regarding schools to which the University did not agree. The LAC discussion of housing was complex with both Carrboro and the University proposing different principles.  The University agreed to provide housing in each phase of development of Carolina North, including some housing that would be affordable for employees in the University’s lowest pay grades. The Orange County delegation, supported by other LAC members, proposed items related to support services for children and seniors and for living wage employment with the implication that the University should ensure these things.   The University did not agree.	Partial agreement was reached regarding the provision of school sites.  The University has agreed to provide one school site. Partial agreement exists regarding plans for housing, but a number of issues remain unresolved.
Principle 2: Create a campus facility that is open, welcoming and part of the community fabric while at the same time respecting the privacy and integrity of adjoining neighborhoods.	While the LAC report does not contain language that explicitly tracks this principle, the tone and intent of the LAC report are consistent with this principle.  The University has taken actions to preserve and manage a system of trails that facilitate access while not intruding into neighborhoods.	Consensus was reached.

IV. Fiscal Equity Principle

HWCC Report	LAC Report	Status
Principle 1: The University or State or Carolina North tenants shall bear the cost of Town services required by Carolina North so that Town residents do not subsidize those uses through their local taxes. The Carolina North development shall be either revenue positive or revenue neutral for the Town.	The fiscal equity section of the LAC report is consistent with this principle. The University has funded a Fiscal Impact Analysis that is being monitored by an Oversight Committee that includes the managers of the Town of Carrboro, the Town of Chapel Hill, and Orange County	The report of the Fiscal Impact Analysis will provide a foundation for discussions of fiscal equity.

V. Water and Sewer/Stormwater Management/Air Quality Principles

HWCC Report	LAC Report	Status
Principle 1: Assume a leadership position in sustainable water management and wastewater treatment and reuse.	Section IV (Environmental Principles) contains language that tracks this principle.	Consensus was reached.
Principle 2: Ensure that development of Carolina North results in no net increase in stormwater discharge. Establish the stormwater requirements that were adopted for the main campus by the Town Council on July 2, 2001 as the minimum standards for the development of Carolina North.	The report indicates that the stormwater requirements for the main campus adopted by the Town Council on July 2, 2001, will be adopted as the minimum standards for the development of Carolina North.	Consensus was reached.
Principle 3: Ensure that Carolina North has no negative impact on the air quality of Chapel Hill.	The LAC report indicates that the University did not agree to this principle, simply on the premise that no new development could meet a requirement stated in this way.  The report indicates that the University is committed to energy and resource conservation (including appropriate mechanisms to minimize adverse air quality).	Agreement with this principle, as stated, was not reached.  However, the University will make appropriate efforts to minimize adverse impact on air quality.

VI. Natural Areas/Parks and Recreation Facilities Principles

HWCC Report	LAC Report	Status
Principle 1: Preserve in perpetuity the maximum amount of open space possible with a goal of preserving 75% of the Horace Williams property as stated by the University.	Section V (Open Space, Natural Areas, Parks and Recreation) addresses this issue.  The University committed to limit development over the next 50 years to no more that 25% (approximately 250 acres) of the site and to make good faith efforts to meet its needs beyond 50 years within that limitation.  The University indicated that required regulatory buffers protecting streams would be implemented. Trustee representatives on the LAC indicated that the University would not agree to preserve areas not covered by these two topics (250 acre development area plus required regulatory buffers) in perpetuity.	Agreement was not reached.
Principle 2: Develop and maintain a network of trails and greenways at Carolina North.	During the LAC work the University announced implemented steps (in the fall of 2006) that are consistent with this principle.  Subsequent planning also incorporates this principle.	Consensus was reached.
Principle 3: Conduct and maintain an inventory of natural resources and use it as a guide for planning and development.	The University commissioned a comprehensive Ecological Assessment of the entire Carolina North property that has been completed and that has served as the basis for selection of the 50-year development footprint.  That footprint is almost entirely on previously disturbed/developed land, preserving a maximum amount of contiguous, previously undeveloped (at least, for the last 70 years) land.	Completion of the Ecological Assessment and the decision to develop almost exclusively on previously developed/disturbed land, preserving the remainder for at least 50 years reflects compliance with this principle.
Principle 4:  Follow sustainable site design principles and goals.	Chancellor Moeser’s charge stated that Carolina North should be a “model of sustainability”. Infrastructure workshops were focused on this objective.	Consensus was reached.

VII.     Transportation and Land Use Principles

HWCC Report	LAC Report	Status
Principle 1: Carolina North will create minimal impact on traffic and will promote commuter safety. The Transportation Plan will be developed around a transit system including use of Chapel Hill Transit rather than single occupancy motor vehicles.	Section VII (Transportation) of the LAC report addresses this topic.  The University is a participant in and sponsor of the Long Range Transit Study (along with the Towns of Carrboro and Chapel Hill).  The expressed intent in planning Carolina North is to achieve a pedestrian and bike accessible and friendly campus.  In addition the intent is to promote transit use and to preserve spaces for future transit needs.  That said, needs will still exist for private vehicle access and parking.	Areas of agreement exist with a number of issues remaining to be resolved.
Principle 2: Carolina North will comply with the Town’s Comprehensive Plan.	Section I (General Principles) includes this principle.	Consensus was reached.
Principle 3: Retain existing zoning of OI-2 and rezone balance of property OI-2.  Engage University officials in dialogue about the regulatory approach to the Horace Williams tract at the early stages of planning for Carolina North.	The LAC discussions themselves are consistent with the principle.  In addition, the Trustee-Council discussions that began in January 2008 and that are expected to continue in September 2008 implement this principle.  As indicated in the resolution adopted by the Town Council, a zone for Carolina North will be a part of this work.	Work consistent with this principle is under way.

VII. Working Assumptions

HWCC Report	LAC Report	Status
Assumption 1.  The University shall have a remediation plan and a funding mechanism in place so that remediation of all the waste sites, including the Chemical Waste Landfill, Sanitary Landfill, and Estes Drive Extension Landfill, will be addressed promptly and adequately.	During the LAC work the University announced the plans for remediation of the Chemical Waste Site. That work is scheduled to be completed by the end of October 2008. Remediation of the former Chapel Hill Landfill (that occupies a portion of the proposed 50-year development footprint) was not discussed in the LAC work and is not addressed in the LAC report.  The University’s intention is to develop a plan for remediation of that area that will be consistent with the proposed development plan.
Assumption 2:  The Horace Williams Airport will be closed by January 1, 2005	The HWCC report was prepared in the context of the 2004 plan for Carolina North that assumed the closing of Horace Williams Airport.  During the LAC work the University announced that the 2004 plan was “off the table” and no longer relevant.  It now being later than January 1, 2005, with Horace Williams Airport still in operation, this assumption is clearly moot.  However, the University has described a three-stage process for supporting AHEC and for eventual closing of Horace Williams Airport.