Title
Land Purchase for Tree Canopy Preservation Program
Action
Action:
A. Approve the purchase of 45.79 acres located west of Bellhaven Boulevard, near Lakehill Road (parcel identification numbers 035-103-08, 035-102-20, 035-101-14, 035-101-16, and 035-101-17) for $643,390 from multiple property owners, and
B. Authorize the City Manager to sign a Conservation Easement with and make a one-time stewardship payment of $13,700 to the Catawba Lands Conservancy.
Body
Staff Resource(s):
Tim Porter, Engineering & Property Management
Tim O'Brien, Engineering & Property Management
Explanation
* Effective January 1, 2011, the City Council approved revisions to the City's Tree Ordinance. The revised ordinance changed tree save and tree planting requirements for commercial development and offered mitigation options at certain development locations.
* One mitigation option allows developers to pay into the Tree Ordinance Mitigation Fund (Fund), administered by the City, in lieu of saving trees on site.
* The City uses the Fund for property acquisition and expenditures associated with ongoing tree preservation and maintenance.
* The first property purchased with these funds was approved by the City Council on November 25, 2013.
* Since that acquisition, City staff has established a Tree Canopy Preservation Program to set criteria for future acquisitions, including location, acreage, tree quality, rate of development in the area, connectivity to other open space or greenways, and opportunities for stewardship partner involvement.
* Staff researched many properties located primarily within Charlotte's city limits or within the City's extraterritorial jurisdiction and identified five contiguous properties meeting the program criteria.
* The five properties appraised for a total of $803,275 based on a market value determination of highest and best use. However, much of the property is of limited use for commercial development due to access c...
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