AGENDA #4g

MEMORANDUM

TO:                  Mayor and Town Council

FROM:            W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager

SUBJECT:       Response to Petition from Sunrise Coalition Regarding Potential Habitat Development and I-40 Noise

DATE:             January 26, 2004

This memorandum responds to a petition from the Sunrise Coalition, brought to the Council by Ms. Sandra Cummings on behalf of the Coalition on September 8, 2003.  A copy of the petition is attached (Attachment 1, dated September 8, 2003).  The petition requests that the Town take a more active role with noise issues along the Interstate-40 corridor.  Adoption of the attached resolution would endorse new noise studies to be performed by the State along the Interstate-40 corridor in Chapel Hill.

BACKGROUND

On July 25, 2002, Habitat for Humanity entered into an Offer to Purchase and Contract to purchase a 16-acre parcel on Sunrise Road in Chapel Hill.  Habitat requested funding from the Chapel Hill Town Council ($50,000) to be matched with funds provided by Orange County ($250,000), to assist in the purchase of the property.  On November 25, 2002, the Town Council voted to approve a loan of $50,000 to assist Habitat in the purchase, for development of affordable housing.

Subsequent to the November 25 action, Mayor Foy appointed a Mayor’s Committee on the Proposed Habitat Development on Sunrise Road.  The purpose of the Committee was to engage Habitat and neighboring residents in discussion about potential development of this property. The Committee was asked to discuss issues that had been raised in November, and recommend a set of goals and principles for development of this property that could be considered by the full Council.  The committee was made up of Council Members Flicka Bateman, Mark Kleinschmidt, Jim Ward, and Edith Wiggins.  

On May 12, 2003, the Town Council received a report from a Mayor’s Committee. The Committee met with Habitat representatives and neighbors and walked the proposed development site, and submitted a report to the Council with a set of 17 Goals/Principles for the Council’s consideration (Attachment 2).  On May 12, the Council adopted the set of principles for use and consideration by Habitat for Humanity as plans for development of its Sunrise Road property are pursued.  An excerpt of minutes from May 12 is attached, indicating discussion that evening (Attachment 3).  A representative of the Sunrise Coalition spoke at the meeting and stated that the Coalition supported the 17 principles and asked the Council to adopt them with no change.  The Council adopted the principles without change.

On September 8, 2003, the Council received a response to a petition from the Sunrise Coalition.  A copy of the September 8 memorandum is attached (Attachment 2).  That same evening, Ms. Cummings presented the petition that we are responding to tonight.

No development applications have yet been submitted for this property.  The first step in seeking development approval would be the submittal of a Concept Plan for development of the property, followed by either a Subdivision or Special Use Permit application. 

PETITION

The attached petition was presented to the Council on September 8, offering the following comments:

• The petition indicates that the minutes from the May 12, 2003 Council meeting did not include the following request from Ms. Cummings:  “We request that if Habitat cannot do acoustical studies, that the town take responsibility for doing so, so that we can more accurately assess the situation and make the appropriate provisions.”
• The Coalition believes “it is time for the Town Council to develop a proactive policy statement that addresses requirements for noise analysis, and noise abatement for all future development in the area.”
• The Coalition asks that the Town leaders “take a more active role in lobbying the NCDOT for state funded noise abatement measures where levels are already exceeding the federal and NCDOT guidelines.”

DISCUSSION

No application for development of the proposed site has yet been filed.  Based on discussions during the work of the Mayor’s Committee, we would expect a Concept Plan to be submitted at some point as a first step, likely followed by preparation and submittal of a Special Use Permit application. 

The Council discussed the idea, on May 12, of suggesting to Habitat that Habitat arrange for an acoustical study of I-40 noise.  The Council decided not to include that suggestion in the set of principles that it adopted and forwarded to Habitat.  The Council could choose to re-open that discussion and consider again whether or not to suggest that Habitat conduct acoustical studies.

Whether or not that suggestion is made, and whether or not Habitat decides to conduct acoustical studies, we expect that the issue of I-40 noise will be raised at any Public Hearing for any development abutting I-40.  The Council could decide in the course of such Public Hearing that information on noise impacts is necessary, or could decide that I-40 noise is not a factor in consideration of a particular application.  An application for development would be considered in the Council’s normal quasi-judicial process, with a decision based on evidence and sworn testimony.

Future widening of Interstate 40, between US 15-501 and Interstate 85 in Orange County, has not been approved by either the State or the Metropolitan Planning Organization for funding, and is an unscheduled project on the State’s Transportation Improvement Program.  The regional Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) has stated its expectation that new noise studies would need to be performed along the I-40 corridor in Orange County prior to the MPO agreeing to a schedule and funding plan for the project.  We expect that the concerns raised regarding noise impacts of I-40 widening would be addressed in a new noise study.

RECOMMENDATION

We recommend that the Council adopt the attached resolution which would endorse a new State study of noise impacts associated with future Interstate-40 widening prior to approval of any funding for such widening.

We also recommend that the Town Council consider the noise analysis and abatement issues raised by the Sunrise Coalition petition at the Public Hearing on a development application for the Sunrise Road site, if an application is submitted.

ATTACHMENTS

1. Petition from Sunrise Coalition, dated September 8, 2003 (p. 5).

2. Council Memorandum from September 8, 2003 responding to May 21, 2003 petition from Sunrise Coalition  and its related attachments (begin new page 1 – page 117).

A RESOLUTION ENDORSING A NEW NOISE STUDY TO BE PERFORMED BY THE STATE ALONG THE INTERSTATE-40 CORRIDOR IN CHAPEL HILL (2004-01-26/R-7)

WHEREAS, the Town Council has received a petition from the Sunrise Coalition regarding noise issues along the Interstate-40; and

WHEREAS, the Town Council believes that it would be beneficial for additional studies of noise impacts associated with future widening of Interstate-40 to be conducted prior to approval of funding for such widening; 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Town hereby encourages the Durham-Chapel Hill Metropolitan Planning Organization to work with the North Carolina Department of Transportation to assure that new noise studies are performed by the State along the Interstate-40 corridor in Chapel Hill, prior to any approvals for funding a widening of the road.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council requests Mayor Foy to bring this issue to the attention of the Metropolitan Planning Organization.

This the 26^th day of January, 2004.