Orange County Planning Department issued Final Determination Letter denying Union Grove’s Request to Build in Maple View Rural Buffer Area

GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

HILLSBOROUGH – Orange County’s Planning Department has issued a Final Determination Letter on Union Grove Farm’s request for various Agritourism uses. The Amphitheater did not receive approval, nor did the 10 casitas and the 40-room hotel. The distillery, the Center for Regenerative Agriculture, and the garden and pavilion did receive the bona fide farm/Agritourism designation. All parties can appeal the decision within 30 days. You can view the full Determination Letter here: https://www.defendmapleviewcommunity.com/ (see link to letter)

According to Susan Walser of the Defend Maple View Community, on May 28, the Defend Maple View Community had a meeting at the Whitted Building in Hillsborough. The meeting had a large turnout, with a standing-room-only crowd of over 300, all in support of community efforts to stop the development. PowerPoint presentations from this meeting and a written recap of the meeting here: https://www.defendmapleviewcommunity.com/ (see link to presentations)
A group from the Maple View Community met with Orange County’s Sheriff Blackwood and Chief Deputy Sykes regarding noise and the county’s Noise Ordinance. The Sheriff assured the group that 911 should be called whenever neighbors are disturbed by loud music from events.

History of the area and summary of the proposed development

Several limited liability corporations coordinated by Union Grove Farm (uniongrovefarm.com) acquired Maple View Farm in 2022. The Nutter family managed Maple View Farm as a dairy for many decades. In 1995, the Nutters granted the Triangle Land Conservancy a conservation easement over much of the farm. Union Grove Farm acquired the property subject to this easement and grant of development rights. The purposes of the conservation easement are “to protect in perpetuity the open space character, agricultural productivity, watershed protection and scenic qualities of the property and to assure the availability of the property in perpetuity for agricultural use.” The conservation easement prohibits the construction of new access roads and buildings and structures in the designated farm operations area that are not used solely for agricultural purposes.

Union Grove Farm and the surrounding area are within the Orange County Rural Buffer Zoning District. The purpose of the Rural Buffer District is to provide locations for rural residential developments and agricultural, silvicultural or horticultural uses which serve to buffer or separate more intensely planned and/or developed portions of Orange County.” The zoning ordinance states no urban services, including water or sewer are provided to the area or are likely to be provided within 10-20 years. The Rural Buffer Zoning District prohibits most commercial and industrial activities, including outdoor theater use, which allows the congregation of people to observe or listen to a performance.

State law exempts farming and certain farm-related activities from county zoning regulations for agricultural purposes. Still, it does not limit zoning regulations concerning the use of farm property for non-farm purposes. Farm purposes include agritourism, but only if the activity takes place on a farm due to its farm or rural setting.

Union Grove Farm requested an Advisory Opinion from the Orange County Planning Director on whether specified proposed commercial uses of the farm, including a 2500-seat amphitheater, constitute agritourism exempt from county zoning. On March 19, 2024, the Orange County Planning Director issued an Advisory Opinion that the proposed 2500-seat amphitheater does not constitute agritourism, concluding: “Relationship to agricultural activities is incidental and not demonstrated. … There is no evidence that the amphitheater simply does not constitute a second primary use of the land independent from the farm and its operations.”

Although the location, size, and purpose of the proposed 2500 seat amphitheater did not change, the Orange County Planning Director issued a second Advisory Opinion on November 12, 2024 stating the described amphitheater is a form of agritourism not subject to Orange County local zoning (also noting that if it is subject to Orange County zoning, it would be prohibited in the Rural Buffer Zoning District).

Three named petitioners supported by many in the surrounding community have appealed to the Board of Adjustment the decision of the Orange County Planning Department that the proposed 2500-seat amphitheater use is agritourism and exempt from Orange County zoning. They seek and expect the Rural Buffer Zoning District requirements to be implemented and enforced as the law allows and requires. The first Advisory Opinion of the Planning Department correctly concludes that the relationship of the proposed amphitheater to agricultural activities is incidental and not demonstrated, is independent from the farm and its operations, and does not constitute agritourism exempt from county zoning.

Petitioners and their many supporters in the surrounding community also support the efforts by the Triangle Land Conservancy to address violations of its conservation easement and protect the conservation values of the farm for the public interest. A hearing before the Board of Adjustment on the appeals by the community members and Triangle Land Conservancy will be held on a date TBD (original date postponed), at 7 pm, The Whitted Building, 300 W. Tryon St., Hillsborough, NC.

Michelle Cassell is a seasoned reporter who has covered everything from crime to hurricanes and local politics to human interest over the course of 35 years. As Editor, she hopes to encourage writers of a wide range of backgrounds and interests in TLR’s coverage of Southern Orange County news. This reporter can be reached at: Information@TheLocal Reporter.press.