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329 The Board of Commissioners for the County of Cabarrus met in special session at the County Gourthouse tnConcord, North Carolina, on Thursday, March 22, 1990, at 1:00 P.M. to discuss and reach a decision relative to the proposed North Carolina 136 (N.C. 136) Extension and to finalize the Wetlands Mitigation Plan for the Coddle Creek Reservoir Project. Present - Chairman: James W. Lentz Commissioners: R. Giles Moss William G. Hamby, Jr. Martha H. Melvin Billy J. Simmons, Jr. Chairman Lentz announced that the Board would hear from anyone present who wished to speak regarding the road project which would extend N.C. 136 or Branchvtew Drive from its current terminus at North Carolina 73 (N.C. 73) to the intersection of Highway 601. However, he pointed out that the Board of Commissioners has no direct control over the proposed road extension and that the North Carolina Department of Transportation would make the final decision regarding the project. Persons speaking against the proposed N.C. 136 extension were as follows: Mr. Martin Foil 556 Hermitage Drive, SE, Concord Mr. Toby Prewitt - 472 Winfield Boulevard, Concord and representing the South Creek Neighborhood Association Mr. Robert Van Gorden - 530 Hermitage Drive, SE, Concord Ms. Margaret Haggerty - Crestside Drive, Concord Mr. Jack Moore Center United Methodist Church Ms. Betty Williams - Resident of property adjacent to Branchview Drive Ms. Elizabeth Kivette - 198 Hillcrest Avenue, SE, Concord Mr. Gene Green - 29 Plott Drive, Concord Ms. Cheryl Kelling - 512 Winfield Boulevard, Concord Mr. Kenneth McWain - 264 Ikerd Drive, Concord Reverend Matthew Burton - Pastor of Center United Methodist Church Mr. Jack Ruckart - Fairbluff Road, Concord Mr. Charles Brandon - 224 Ingleside Drive, Concord Ms. Anne Knight Watson - South Union Street, Concord Mr. Toby Prewitt, representative of the South Creek Neighborhood Association, reported that 600 citizens had signed a petition in opposition to the extension of N.C. 136. He requested that the Board endorse the action of the Concord Board of Aldermen asking the State not to proceed with the proposed N.C. 136 Extension and to seek a possible alternate route along Little Cold Water Creek. Arguments presented by Mr. Prewitt and other speakers against the extension included the following: the potential for the extension to become a truck route from Interstate 85 to Highway 601; the harmful effect of a thoroughfare on seven neighborhoods; the creation of noise and air pollution; the decrease in residential property values; the creation of dangerous intersections, specifically at Old Airport Road and Union Street; the use of a 20-year-old plan for the proposed extension; the potential for Les Myers Park to become a resting and meeting place for undesirables; and the potential for environmental problems with the construction of the roadbed in a floodplain. Residents also complained of the traffic, truck noise, and 55 miles per hour speed limit on Branchview Drive. It was also emphasized that Mr. James Nance, member of the North Carolina Board of Transportation, had made a commitment that the funds designated for the proposed N.C. 136 Extension would remain in Cabarrus County. At the conclusion of the comments by the residents, Ms. Barbara Brown thanked the Board for listening to the concerns of the people. The motion made by Commissioner Simmons and seconded by Commissioner Hamby to endorse the action by the Concord Board of Aldermen in opposition to the proposed N.C. 136 Extension failed with Commissioners Simmons and Hamby voting for and Commissioners Moss and Melvin and Chairman Lentz voting against. UPON MOTION of Commissioner Melvin, seconded by Commissioner Moss with Commissioners Moss, Hamby, and Melvin and Chairman Lentz voting for and Commissioner Simmons voting against, the Board referred the proposed N.C. 136 Extension to the Kanlacon Transportation Advisory Committee, the Technical Coordinating Committee and the Planning Department for additional consideration, and with a recommendation to be returned for the Board's consideration.