TO: Mayor and Town Council
FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
SUBJECT: Proposed Donation of Property along Morgan Creek
DATE: September 23, 2002
The attached resolution would accept a donation of .77 acres of property adjacent to Morgan Creek from the Conservation Council of North Carolina Foundation. Please see the attached map.
In the early 1980s the Old Bridge subdivision off of Mt. Carmel Church Road was approved. The project’s required open space was deeded to the Conservation Council and since that time has been managed as open space.
DISCUSSION
The Conservation Council is an environmental defense organization that has been divesting itself of all property holdings in the past few years in order to concentrate on their core mission of dealing with larger political and legal issues. They have been transferring title of various open space tracts to agencies or governments committed to using the tracts for parks or open space purposes. This .77 acre tract is one of the last of their landholdings.
The property is located on the south side of Morgan Creek, opposite the Merritt Pasture. We believe that if the Council were to accept the donation the only viable use would be open space preservation.
We expect the closing costs to be less than $2,000.
Manager’s Recommendation: That the Council adopt the attached resolution, which would accept the offer and authorize the Manager to use Open Space bond funds to pay any closing costs.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Sketch showing the proposed donation (p. 3).
A RESOLUTION ACCEPTING A DONATION OF .77 ACRES OF PROPERTY IDENTIFIED AS CHAPEL HILL TAX MAP 7.126.D.11 FROM THE CONSERVATION COUNCIL OF NORTH CAROLINA FOUNATION (2002-09-23/R-4)
WHEREAS, the Conservation Council of North Carolina Foundation is the owner of .77 acres of open space property adjacent to Morgan Creek; and
WHEREAS, the Town has been acquiring open space properties along Morgan Creek;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Council accepts the donation of .77 acres of property, identified as Chapel Hill tax map 7.126.D.11 from the Conservation Council of North Carolina Foundation.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Manager is authorized to use Open Space bond funds to pay any necessary closing costs related to the transfer of land.
This the 23rd day of September, 2002.