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APRIL 29 - MAY 5, 2021
Funding of trails with grants, cost sharing by Summerfield, Oak Ridge and Guilford County needs to be worked out, according to Town Manager Scott Whitaker by CHRIS BURRITT
Hagan Barrett PLLC | 300 N Greene St, Suite 200, Greensboro, NC 27401 336.232.0650 | www.haganbarrett.com
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Summerfield council members question Bandera Farms costs
SUMMERFIELD – A majority of Summerfield Town Council members endorsed the master plan for developing Bandera Farms as a horseback-riding and hiking park, but not without asking questions about paying for the improvements. The Town Council voted 4-1 during its April 13 meeting to approve the master plan for the 115-acre Bandera Farms public trails preserve. The vote also authorized Summerfield to apply for a $500,000 matching grant from the North Carolina Parks and Recreation Trust Fund (PARTF) to help pay for improvements. The master plan estimated costs of $1.79 million for the project, leading Mayor BJ Barnes and some council members to ask whether other municipalities would help pay expenses not covered by grants. Barnes said he supports the development of Bandera Farms, but he wants to make sure “we’re not going to be left holding a bag fiscally for our town.” Summerfield Town Manager Scott Whitaker said he’s begun discussions with leaders in Oak Ridge and Guilford County in an effort to reach a memorandum of understanding (MOU) laying out how the three jurisdictions would share development costs and long-term operations and maintenance of the property. “There is a lot of uncertainty about the funding and about how the county and Oak Ridge and Summerfield will come together to support this,” Whitaker said. “That’s the hard part. We’ve still got to work through the details.”
The Northwest Observer • Totally local since 1996 Last year, Summerfield, Oak Ridge, the
county and the city of Greensboro negotiated a MOU that divided the $575,000 purchase price of the property among the four parties, along with a state grant. Greensboro isn’t going to be part of the second MOU, according to Palmer McIntyre, conservation planner for Piedmont Land Conservancy (PLC), which negotiated the property purchase in December and is spearheading efforts to develop Bandera Farms. PLC and the other three municipalities have incentives to remain involved in the project, according to McIntyre. Summerfield and Oak Ridge view the project as a recreational destination, she said. The county backs the establishment of the Piedmont Greenway, a 19-mile trail from Greensboro to Winston-Salem that will run along the Reedy Fork floodplain of the Bandera Farms tract. PLC will hold the conservation easement on the land, McIntyre said. “I don’t believe we’d be in this alone,” Councilman John O’Day said, explaining he believes Oak Ridge and the county will decide to remain involved in the project. Costs may be spread over several years, he noted. “I think it would be a great project for Summerfield to take on for generations to come,” O’Day said. “While we do need to be responsible while we proceed, I think we need to proceed,” Mayor Pro Tem Tim Sessoms said. The property, located on Bunch Road at Interstate 73, lies within Summerfield’s town limits. As a result, PLC will eventually transfer ownership of it to the town. Council members discussed the timing of the ownership transfer. Council member Lynne Williams DeVaney said she wants the division of future costs among the municipalities to be determined before Summerfield takes ownership of the property. PLC wouldn’t transfer ownership of the property to Summerfield until the
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