City Council · Regular Meeting · May 1, 2023

good evening good evening I like to call this evening's Durham city council meeting to order today is Monday May 1st 2023 at 7 pm and like to welcome those who have decided to join us here in City Hall Plaza and our council chambers and those who are joining us remotely as well if you will please join me in a moment of silent meditation as we get about the people's business thank you so much and now like to recognize colleague councilwoman Freeman who will lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance good evening everyone it's our practice to stand and salute the flag as we say the Pledge

of the United States thank you good evening Madam clerk if you will call the road mayor O'Neill I am president mayor Pro tem Middleton I'm here councilmember Caballero has an excused absence councilmember Freeman President councilmember Johnson here councilmember Williams president thank you thank you we now have four ceremonia items for this evening the first will be read by a proclamation to be read by councilwoman Freeman is the Excelsior hook and ladder company day Proclamation the second will be a Lupus Awareness Month Proclamation read I Believe by councilman Williams the black maternal Health Awareness

Month Proclamation will be read by councilwoman Jillian Johnson and I will meet the humility non-proclamation we'll do those in that order thank you madam mayor it's an honor to present this Proclamation and I do believe that I if you would like to join uh Mr chasmore if you would like to join me up here we go thank you whereas the history of Durham's first fire department began in December 1872 little is known about all the the black volunteer fighter fighters who began

their service in 1880 much of their dedication and service to the black community has gone unrecognized and Durham hook and ladder company has become an unfortunate lost history of our city whereas the first modern fire station opened in 1891 at the intersection of Mangum and Holloway Street the historic building later replaced with a newer building that can be seen today residents and visitors of the great city of Durham can then reflect on our City's firefighting history and whereas not only the city of Durham but the city of Greensboro Raleigh Rock and Rocky Mount 2 have been recognized for their history and all their black firefighter units these units of brave men who sought to serve their homes and their communities where all white firefighters would not would later become be known as or become to become to known as excelsior's hook

and ladder company headquarters was set up in Durham from the mid-1880s to 1908 1909 what is now known as Roxborough Street formerly 201 Pine Street and whereas bravely the firefighters rescued families who would have otherwise perished possibly gone unaccounted for given the divide in the community and the nation at the time of their service and whereas the stories of resilience and strength of these men would fall on deaf ears and forever be forgotten in the ash of the past the Excelsior hook and ladder company has but all but but only fragments of evidence in their existence as many of the black brown and people of color of the times were rarely recorded and whereas the Victor Company continues to continues the good work to urge all communities to recognize and reflect on the history and origin of black and persons of color fighter fighters

founded in 2017 the Victor Company focuses on service to each Community to each Community member and the communities that extend outside the triangle now therefore I Elaine M O'Neill mayor of the city of Durham North Carolina do hereby Proclaim May 1st 2023 as Excelsior hook and ladder company day in Durham and hereby urge all residents to I'm sorry to honor and celebrate the history of our Durham firefighters and all fighter fighters across our city and state witness my hand in the corporate seal of the city of Durham North Carolina this is the first day of May 2023. thank you I'm going to pass this over to you if you'd like to share a few comments yeah

so I have it in my phone so uh bear with me um and I'm probably gonna go off script anyway uh first I want to say uh Happy birthday to one of my friends in Durham Community engagement Alexis um so my name is Chaz Moore I've been a firefighter for 17 years this is Dr Pendergrass he is a descendant of two different members of The Excelsior so like he's a double Oddity super rare so his family has served this city um what 140 something years so um [Applause] um I live here in Durham I live over by Twin Lakes I'm the reef founder of Victor Company and non-profit organization for firefighters of color Venture company is named after a black fire department that was in southeast Raleigh

representation matters when I was a kid one time I was walking to the airport and I saw two black airline pilots and I was like Wow never seen that before seeing people in places that you've never seen like maybe seeing a African-American woman as mayor of Durham you didn't see that before those things Inspire and then when you look back in history [Applause] you look back in history and you see those people who are doing those things before like there was Tuskegee Airmen before I saw those pilots and in in the airport so representation matters um some of our members have been active here in Durham doing community service in Oxford managed since about like 2018 in 2020 we came to bragtown and we wanted to make sure that we got underrepresented communities counted in

the census uh we also gave out free food that was really good um later on this year we'll be doing a Juneteenth parade here in Durham on the Fayetteville quarter so please come out June 17th we'd like to see you all out there uh when we were doing this research there's no books about the Excelsior hook and ladder company I went to the Durham Museum they never heard of them um there's there's no Academia on this right so it's just this is a this is a lost history so when we're talking about trying to find this it's up to us to get this done and I'm so happy that city is making this Proclamation and moving forward with this so um really thank you thank you to all the city council members and thank you to the city of Durham to uh to to uh honoring these Heroes if you went back 140 years ago they would have known who

they were there was Banquets for them there was parades so um it's glad I'm glad to see that this is uh coming back to light and I just appreciate it so much thank y'all [Applause] foreign and representatives I have the pleasure of reading and Proclamation here in honor of Lupus month

all right so Proclamation whereas lupus is an unpredictable and misunderstood and autoimmune disease that can cause severe damage to the tissue and organs in the body and in some cases death and whereas over 50 000 North Carolinians suffer the devastating effects of this cruel and mysterious disease and each year over a hundred thousand young women men and children around the world are newly diagnosed with lupus the great majority of whom are women of childbearing age and whereas medical research efforts into lupus and the discovery of safer more effective treatments for Lupus patients are underfunded in comparison with diseases of comparable magnitude and severity and whereas many across the state of North Carolina are unaware of the symptoms and health effects of Lupus causing people with lupus to suffer for many years before they obtain a correct diagnosis and medical treatment

and whereas there is deep unmet need in North Carolina to educate and support individuals and families affected by lupus and whereas there is an urgent need to increase awareness in our community of the debilitating impact of Lupus now therefore I Elaine M O'Neill mayor of the city of Durham North Carolina do hereby proclaimed the month of May 2021 as Lupus Awareness Month in Durham and hereby urge all residents to take special notes of this observance witness my hand in the corporate sale of the city of Durham North Carolina the first day of May 2022. [Applause] you got it good evening mayor O'Neill city council

members City attorney city manager neighbors and Friends of Durham County my name is Lauren Lee Shull and I serve on the board of the Lupus Foundation of North Carolina or laugh knock tonight I am joined by the executive director of laugh neck Lakeisha McNair Aaron Holland the board chair as well as doctors of the lupus Clinic other Duke staff members lupus voyers and our support system almost six years ago I was actively working as an attorney in Brooklyn New York I was a newlywed I worked 10 hours a day I was a whirlwind of George devive I had just completed the New York City marathon and then a few months into my marriage my world literally stopped I got off the F train one day tried to move my legs up a flight of stairs and they wouldn't budge I dragged my feet

two city blocks into my office where I immediately called my doctor who instantaneously called me back and said Lauren Lee I think I know what you have the weeks of pain fatigue bruises aches headaches and test results ended up into one diagnosis lupus which dominoes as it does into many other diet and to many other disorders nights at the hospital just a few nights ago for me brushes with death a planter filled with doctor's appointments and the only luck that I had was being diagnosed within a few months whereas other Lupus patients wait six or more years for their diagnosis I know many of you you know the masked me

I stand before you wearing a mask of an invisible disability masking six years and every day of pain fatigue fear and disappointment masking days and weeks of being bedridden out of work and unable to parent as I had imagined all of this is to make others feel that I am okay It's a cruel disease with no cure and medications that work for one patient don't always work the same for another lupus looks different for everyone for me it's complicated and debilitating for others they are out there running marathons working seven hours a day seven days a week and they are having minimal flare-ups but tonight I represent fifty thousand people in North Carolina who are living with lupus but that's mostly people of color and that's mostly people who have inadequate Access to Health Care

and so I am calling on you as a board member and as a patient who sees a disparity in our health system I am asking for you to Advocate and to act as ambassadors for Health Equity patient Navigators quality communication with our doctors and compassionate care for all patients there should be transparency and collaborate collaboration among patients their support systems doctors and among Health Systems and Leadership so thank you for celebrating and acknowledging Lupus Awareness Month we expect to raise more awareness of Lupus so that people can know symptoms and health consequences and can be educated as they speak with their doctors we are the only organization in the state to lend support for patients their support systems and those figuring out the diagnosis

it's because of you that I am left inspired ready to Advocate and to fight on as a lupus Warrior when lupus Whispers you can't withstand the storm I whisper back I am the storm thank you [Applause] foreign I'm going to be presenting the proclamation for national black maternal Health week and Gloria de los Santos the chair of our mayor's Council for women is here to

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S maternal mortality crisis in which maternal death rates increased by 40 percent in 2021 compared to a year prior and whereas a fair and wide distribution of resources and birth options especially regarding reproductive health care services and maternal Health programming is critical to closing the racial racial Gap in maternal Health outcomes now therefore I Elaine M O'Neill mayor of the city of Durham North Carolina do hereby proclaim the month of May as black maternal Health Awareness Month in Durham and hereby urge all residents across our city to spread awareness of black maternal health and the importance of reducing maternal mortality and morbidity among black women and birthing persons [Applause]

thank you and my apologies Gloria somehow did not get informed that this was tonight and so I literally texted her 10 minutes ago and she rushed straight here and does not have a speech prepared but she's going to do great regardless I broke all kind of city laws getting here I'm very sorry and um I believe I ran at least two or three cops but y'all didn't hear that um on behalf of the mayor's women's Council I want to thank you very much and there are several different organizations that we would like to think is one is equity before for birth women in C actually didn't see rage and a few other organizations that definitely would appreciate because I got to make a lot of copies for this so we want to thank you guys for recognizing this particular issue is very dear to our heart and we'll continue to strive for black women black and brown women across Durham in the state of North Carolina thank you very much [Applause]

thank you good evening everyone humility our virtue for this month whereas our daily lives are filled with news regarding crime violence inequity and disaster often causing feelings of helplessness and whereas the many daily acts of patience and kindness that occur in our community are largely inconspicuous and unobtrusive and where is by recognizing the need for extending Grace being patient and showing acts of kindness all members of our community will be made aware of the importance

and whereas the purpose of humility month is to remember that everyone is essential every life has value in our different paths gives us various advantages and obstacles when we show humility we consider those differences and whereas when we extend Grace we consider those differences and we are prioritizing understanding breaking barriers and empowering one another and whereas by showing humility we're striving for a sense of belonging and creating a community that is welcoming inclusive kind and a safe place to live work and play and whereas the city of Durham honors those who positively influence our community now therefore I Elaine M O'Neill mayor of the city of Durham

North Carolina do hereby proclaim the month of May 2023 as humility month in Durham and hereby I urge all residents to work on mindfulness self-control and remain optimistic while always spreading kindness and respect generosity and consideration of others witness my hand and the corporate seal of the Durham of the city of Durham this today first day of May 2023 and I'd like to present this Proclamation to councilwoman Monique José Hymon without her having to say a word other than to come and get it [Applause]

[Applause] all right we're now ready for announcements and I turn to my left to see if there are any announcements councilwoman José Hymon good evening mayor good evening to my council members um it is May and it is the beginning of graduation month and um for those that don't know in my other life I am a professor at North Carolina Central University and I have about 90 students graduating with the msws on Saturday so I wanted to say congratulations to them and also my baby who I'm very proud of will be graduating from Chapel Hill next Sunday so congratulations to all the graduates 2023 [Applause] right look into my right oh I'm sorry councilman councilman

Williams go right sorry I wasn't paying attention um I wanted to take a take a moment to shout out um mayor Pro Tim Middleton as I stated before about all of the impact that Durham is having Statewide from council member Freeman being on the state and National I keep messing up women's and municipal government leadership board to council member José Hymon being the regional region five I just screwed that up region 18. uh Regional uh representative for the national league of municipalities that's the national level which uh we are also affiliated with uh but I serve on the board of the North Carolina League of municipalities which is a hodgepodge of municipalities towns and Villages and cities across the state Republican Democrat independent crazy uncrazy all in one bunch and that

organization has a lot of influence and when they walk into the general assembly uh folks listen well I have the great pleasure of witnessing mayor protein middle team being installed as the Statewide first vice chair of this organization which gives us just that much more impact and influence in the general assembly the legislature of North Carolina that's a really big deal so kudos to you mayor Pro tem and as we continue to work together having four folks represented and that those organizations is a really big deal uh so I just wanted to shout that out and um thank you thank you councilman Williams are there any announcements on my all right councilwoman Friedman thank you I also would love to take it take a moment and just congratulate all our graduates um it's an amazing feat to get through undergrad grad any level of college and

also to our high schools as well congratulations I also want to just take a moment to also say that you know I know how impactful my mom has been in my life and we have Mother's Day coming up and for all birthing persons and moms across the world I want to say Happy Mother's Day and it's in that spirit that I want to take a moment and just um share a statement noting that it's one thing to defend myself and others and to be angry but it's another thing to use profanity and to do that I just want to take a moment and apologize I know to all my supporters out there in the community and just everywhere I feel the love I feel appreciated and I know that my anger goes along with my passion and so just as you see me drop tears I get I can get very angry I do want to say that

it was not a good day and the profanity was unnecessary but I do think what I said needed to be said and so I do want to share that I um also want to know in my faith tradition the grace of Mercy is always available and I just want to ask that of each and every one of you that you offer that same grace and mercy to myself and to others just in that Spirit of humility as the mayor mentioned and that's all I I did want to also take up the challenge that Miss Laura schul shared and noting that lupus has been a very huge impact in my own life and it is hard to to imagine you know dealing with that type of pain and suffering and silence and I know some people who do and I have lost some folks who have and I do encourage you to just be mindful that there are people with disabilities that

you cannot see and they can be mental they can be physical and often spiritual so just be kind thank you good evening good evening um your honor and to our friends and Neighbors in the chamber and all watching and to my colleagues on the Deus I want to also say congratulations out to all the graduates and I think councilmember Freeman for Shouting Out Mother's Day I thank councilmember Williams for also uh recognizing the Durham not just mine but Durham's incredible stand at the North Carolina League of municipalities I want to thank councilmember Freeman also again for our apology um I will say that what was said did not need to be said that implies that it was justified and that it was based on something and I I reject that anyone deserve that but I do want to honor her for apologizing thank you madam mayor thank you all for your announcements

happy graduation day for everybody and happy Mama's Day to all the mamas and we will now turn to our first sort of business and that would be to recognize our city manager for any priority items she may have good evening Madam mayor Mr Mayor Pro tem members of the Durham city council I do have two priority items for you this evening uh agenda item number seven the Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association dedicated Nature Preserve proposal alternative attachment number three was added and includes responses to City council's questions and agenda item number 15 resolution and adoption policy for the naming rights of publicly owned properties and Facilities the policy and memo were modified to include a name revocation process those are the only two items I have for you this evening and thank you thank you city manager page for your

items this evening I now recognize our City attorney Ray bergfainer prior to item she may have good evening mayor O'Neill member to Middleton members of the city council it's good to see you all the city attorney's office has no priority items this evening thank you attorney rayberg I now turn to city clerk Diana Schreiber to see if she has any priority items thank you madam mayor mayor Pro tem and council members good evening the city clerk's office does have one priority item we have revised attachment 3 and item one and that is the end of my priority item thank you thank you thank you manager I'm sorry madam Clerk we will now turn to our next order of business which is a consent agenda the consent agenda consists of items that the council has previously considered in a work session all items on the consent agenda may be approved by a single vote of the council items may be removed from

the consent agenda by a council member or a member of the public and those items will be considered separately at the end of the meeting tonight I'm going to read through the consent agenda and the entire agenda at this time starting with item number one which is the approval of city council minutes item two the Durham bicycle and pedestrian advisory commission appointment item three March 2023 bid report number four the street and infrastructure acceptances item five transfer process performance audit March 2023 item six the Second Amendment to amend it and restated construction to permanent loan agreement with Casa Casa for 2702 North Duke Street Bryan Place Apartments item eight amendment number two to the

contract with Waste Industries LLC for Transfer Station construction operation transport and Disposal Services item nine is the municipal construction agreement with ncdot for Cornwallis Road and ncrr grade separation tip number P that's 5717 item 10 the resolution to re-adopt water storage response plan item 14 is a resolution in support of the day of remembrance item 15 resolution and adoption policy for the naming rights of publicly owned properties and Facilities 16. McCormick's mckissick I'm sorry mckissick Square development loan commitment American Rescue plan act arpa a r p a affordable housing funds

item 17 is the benefits Consulting and broker Services selection and contract that will conclude our consent agenda under the general business agenda we have item seven is the Elderberry Creek Watershed Association dedicated Nature Preserve proposal Alternatives presentation was made at the April 20th 2023 city council work session and under our general business agenda public hearings item 11 FY 2023 2024 draft annual action plan needs public hearing annual action plan adoption and Grant project ordinances at this point I'm prepared to entertain a motion to approve the consent agenda been moved by a councilwoman I believe councilman Williams secondary by councilwoman Hymon or councilman

José Hymon all right ma'am clerk if he will open the vote if you were closed the road and Report out please the motion passes six to zero thank you we now turn to the item that we have on our general business agenda which is item seven the elaborate Creek Watershed Association dedicated Nature Preserve proposal alternatives and we are prepared to receive our staff report thank you much good evening I'm David Fleischer from the general Services Department uh we're here this evening with regard to this item that was presented as you mentioned to city council at the April 20th work session

that presentation provided a recommendation that city council consider alternative methods to serve as a pathway to provide a similar outcome that being protection of the Rookery the pathway recommended was for the city to enter into enter the property into the state's registered Heritage area program and for City staff to then be direct excuse me for City staff to then be directed to craft language to amend the city code of ordinances for protection of the property through a self-directed action of the city subsequent to that presentation a document was added to the agenda item which provided staff's response to two questions that were received from Council council person Caballero one of which was with regard to whether the dedicated Nature Preserve could be crafted with the northern Durham Parkway in mind the response was that state the state's proposal had been revised so that there would be an 800-foot carve out between the northernmost section and

the southern area of The Preserve to allow for potential construction of the Parkway in the future that response was supplied along with the caveat that there are potential unknowns with regard to the Future construction related to the Parkways alignment related to Future rules and regulations and standards but that based on the information that is in hand today that 800-foot area has been deemed adequate for reservation for the future Parkway the second response to council councilperson caballero's questions was with regard to areas that were shown on a particular slide in the presentation and were denoted as primary areas the specific question was whether the primary areas could be placed in the state's dnp or dedicated Nature Preserve program and the remainder of the property be reserved as a state registered Heritage area staff's response was that in consultation with representatives from the state and from the Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association or equa it was

represented that any combinations of protection types could be dedicated or registered staff is here to answer any questions you may have as well as representatives from both the state's natural heritage program and from equa thank you very much thank you so much as you all know I was not here on Thursday when that presentation was made and I did ask our attorney this afternoon about some points of clarification that I had and I understand that there was a supplemental memo that you mentioned about this we do have it's under General business agenda so we're going to regard this as having been pulled so that people who are here in the audience can speak to that I am going to go ahead and let those persons speak the ones who have signed up and then we will come back with members with the council to be able to open that up for questions at that time if you all unless someone else has any objections to that being done just in if you have specific questions for the staff did you want to go ahead

and ask those now that's fine okay we will do that we will and we'll ask our audience to be patient as we allow those questions to come forward I think um I think councilwoman Hymon was shaking her head yesterday she wanted to ask I'm fine with either one no matter whichever you like okay well I think we'll let everybody speak first and then we'll come back for questions how is that okay all right so we'll start with um Mr Chris drips and we'll have three minutes that'll be followed by Miss Misty Buchanan we also have this Shakira Campbell Mr Dave Connelly and Mr Ricky White each of you will have three minutes of Peace thank you for being here you just state your name okay my name is Chris streps I'm at 716 Carroll Street thank you madam mayor mayor Pro Tem council members and city manager Paige thank you very much for this opportunity

to share with you all tonight I just want to say first we have greatly appreciated working with General services staff during this process for more than a year on the proposed dedicated Nature Preserve proposal that first came before you all in January 2022 is an informational item although we disagree on the ultimate definition of what permanent conservation means we really respect and appreciate David Fleischer and before him the work that was done by Matthew filter Gina Probst and Stacy Poston for the communication and attention they have given this issue so thank you for that when you read the press it makes it sound like we have this big disagreement and fight going on when I really think that um we all believe this area should be protected and our differences which are not insignificant by the way but our differences on are on what that means what permanent protection means

this is a confusing issue I'm just going to say that right off the bat you know staff recommend registration and a local ordinance and we support the dedicated Nature Preserve originally proposed by the state natural heritage program while we think the staff recommendation is a good step um it is a voluntary and reversible step and by comparison a dedicated Nature Preserve guarantees permanent protection so we're here tonight to continue supporting permanent protection of the property through a dedicated Nature Preserve several folks are going to speak about that tonight and we have coordinated with some of the other groups Durham open space and trails commission environmental Affairs board and community members um to try to keep it short and simple rather than inundate you with maybe as many emails as you got so thank you so much and I would like to

thank natural heritage program we asked for them to speak next thank you we just had a little internet blip so just to let those folks who are listening on the internet know we know that you're there and we we can see you but we did have a little dip in our service so we're we're conscious of that and trying to make sure that we keep our line open as much as we can control that so thank you for your patience if you state your name you have three minutes thank you I'm Misty Buchanan I'm the director for North Carolina's natural heritage program and I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you this evening the natural heritage program is a small non-regulatory program within North Carolina's Department of Natural and cultural resources and our mission is to maintain an inventory of the plant and animal species of North Carolina and all of their natural habitats and use the information to establish a network of nature preserves that will protect

our natural heritage for future Generations and the Ellerbe Creek Water bird colony is within the larger Falls Lake and Shoreline and tributaries natural heritage area which has long been recognized as an important natural area for North Carolina the lrb Creek Watershed Association brought the Heron water bird Rookery to our attention and nominated it for dedication as a nature preserve but we recognize that this site is important and specifically the city-owned parcel is important for protecting the Heron water bird Rookery as a site that is especially important for great egret nesting and one of the few sites within the North Carolina Piedmont where they nest along with other birds including the great blue herons which are represented here tonight but this we recognize that protecting this site is an opportunity for the city of Durham to join other local governments such as Mecklenburg County and Alamance County recently and

providing leadership and serving as a model for how city government can work with conservation and also accommodate potential City infrastructure Transportation Planning and conservation altogether at the same site do want to address a couple things which actually David Fleischer has already mentioned the the proposal has been evolving over time through our conversations with City staff as we learn what some of the limitations on the site are and so we have taken out an area where the potential future roadway would go so we do not believe that this is a conflict that should stop this proposal also there are opportunities for providing funding to help offset some of the costs especially if a permanent protection option is decided upon which would be the dedication is the highest form of permanent protection but tonight we would support dedicating as a permanent protection for the site or a registered Heritage area which

would leave some more flexibility in the future or potentially a combination of both potentially dedicating the most important area registering other area to leave more flexibility but the Heritage program is really here to serve the city city council and City staff as you all decide what is the best use for this land so I'll be happy to answer any questions that may come up and I also just want to thank the city staff for working with us it really has been a great engagement over this last year we really appreciate the transparency that we've had to work with them they've really met all of our questions given us a lot of information along the way so it's been a great working relationship thank you thank you Miss Campbell [Applause] good evening everyone I am Shakira Campbell I am the vice chair of the Durham open space intros Commission and I'm here um just to express our continued support for the preservation

of the Heron rookery I live in South Durham this project is a necessary step towards meeting the 30 percent permanently protected goal of the comprehension plan this will be considered low hanging fruit since the city already owns the land permanent preservation is the strongest plan as it ensures longevity the creation of such a Preserve of course with the city's efforts to furnish a healthy environmentally sustainable and enriching space for Citizens a space that protects biodiversity and provides opportunities for the citizens to fully appreciate and explore national areas and it reflects positively on the humanity of its citizens and government Doss urges the city council to follow the North Carolina National natural heritage program's recommendation to

create a dedicated Nature Preserve on the property in question the Durham Ellerbe Creek Waterbury Colony dedicated National Nature Preserve as soon as the terms concerning the management of The Preserve can be agreed on we have previously issued a letter of support for this project and we have recently resubmitted that letter in support of a permanent preservation if the city cannot protect the flood lands that it already owns how are we going to expect private land owners to get on board thank you so much for your time thank you Mr Connolly [Applause] state your name you have three minutes sir and I think we had another blip but we're back online again so just please

be patient those who are on with us virtually thank you sir I'm Dave Conley with three Bland spring place and I also am on Dost the Durham open space and trails Commission although my remarks tonight are my own I speak in favor of the Ellerbe Waterberg Colony as a dedicated Nature Preserve why because there is protection and there is permanent protection staff's recommendation is reasonable and should be good enough for today but might not necessarily protect the lb Heron and Egret Sanctuary for the future today all of us in this room know and appreciate and want to preserve this precious environmental gem but a generation from now we will be represented by a new staff a new Council a new citizen commission members we may not share the current

institutional memory a new developer may approach with a reasonable sounding proposal and that is why today's water bird Colony needs and deserves a permanent protection for the future in 1995 the rail division of ncdot purchased an abandoned rail corridor real banking it to protect and preserve that property we know it as the American Tobacco Trail but in 2020 a pipeline company offered three million dollars to ncdot to lay a new pipeline beside the ATT over those 25 years everyone from the rail division had retired no one remained there to say that thousands of people enjoy a cool shaded walk along the trail not a hot sunny walk three million sounded good to a

cash-strapped ncdot a citizen petition drive with 5 000 signatures helped dissuade the pipeline operator from clear-cutting the trail and that is the difference between protection and permanent protection we ask you to please opt for the permanent dedicated Nature Preserve I thank you and our future birds thank you good evening thank you Mr White state your name sir I'm Ricky White I'm the executive director of lb Creek Watershed Association and I really appreciate the council the mayor City staff and everyone who has heard us and given some thought to this I know it's again reitering what Chris said this is a complicated issue in terms of the terminology uh and so I just want to wrap up there may be some folks on the I don't know if there are folks on the phone that are going to talk but I'll

wrap up them person by saying that and there's a couple of things that I think are and talking with a few council members and talking with staff that are big sticking points one is that permanent label on the protection I understand the reticence I understand that the city staff are really interested in looking out for the best interests of future councils and the city but I do believe that it's really important to look at dedication rather than registration because that dedication does give us that permanence it allows us to plan for the future it allows us to potentially apply for a lot of funding that's not available if we register it so there's ultimately you know hundreds of thousands to a million dollars available on grants out there if we would like to and I know that um Senator Mike Woodard saw the article on news and observer I know he said he had he had called the city manager about this they are you know there are potentially Appropriations that could be had in the in the state budget we don't really know if that's the case but that

was an interesting development today um and so I think that's important to note that we would really we really feel like the permanent protection serves the best interests of the city and the residents of the city stand up if you're here supporting the hearing Rookery um I think y'all got a lot of emails I think just having a lot of folks come to the city council is a really important show of this we just sent out a few emails we did get some press but we didn't make a lot of effort to get these folks here and they really care about this the second thing that's a little more that's come up more recently that a few of you have have mentioned to me and I'll just go ahead and address that head-on is um I'm not a fan of the state of politics in the state of North Carolina I distrust what's going on in the state of North Carolina however the registration Pro or the dedication process the already messed that up the dedication process is akin to a conservation easement it's very specific language that dictates what can and can't be done on that

property and it's signed by both the Council of state and the City of Durham it is not carte blanche it doesn't mean that the state can then do random things to the property it just means that they can monitor the activities of the property and if it's not being conserved then they can act legally to uh to enforce that very similar to the mechnams is that we use with the land trust community in terms of a legally binding conservation easement Durham County does this with almost all of their properties they hold for the lake Mickey Watershed Orange County does a lot of municipalities do so that's um just want to go ahead and address that and happy to answer questions later if anyone has them thank you all for hearing us thank you Mr White I believe those are all the persons in person that have signed up but we do have a number of people who have joined us remotely who would like an opportunity to speak we'll start with Mr Johnny Behrens

b-e-h-r-e-n-s Mr Behrens can you hear me sir oh Mr Behrens yep okay thank you Mr Behrens for being here miss Vanessa Evans Miss Evans can you hear me ma'am yes I can hear you all right you have three minutes Miss Evans good evening Mary O'Neill and to the council I would like to say that this is a beautiful space and I hope that y'all will get to go out to see it if you have not seen it yet I'm in hopes that her and Ricky is a space that um can stay in place for me the Rookery the faith in which I grew up near my grandparents were farmers that were the land that is near this space it is a space of peace and quiet a beautiful open space of natural and a great place uh open space where

you can reflect and relax we need to make sure that we bring development to Durham we must have um safe spaces as well while I like to live and I know both of these they're both may seem like it's a conflict but I know that we can have both if possible with more development more Wildlife I'm moving into uh the city limits for me I'm seeing more Wildlife like deer foxes rabbits Hawks and owls within my community please keep um Wildlife safe within the places they live with permanent protection if you have again a chance to go out to see this wonderful beautiful space I pray that you'll be able to go out and see it it is a space of just as I heard earlier a gym it's a Hidden Gem that as a child we used to play on that land and I would hope that these birds and other species get to stay in the spaces that

they live thank you thank you Miss Evans you're welcome return to Miss Bonita green Miss Green you have the floor for three minutes thank you good evening I'm mayor O'Neil mayor Pro tem Middleton and to all other city council members and um thank you so much for allowing me this opportunity to speak about here in Rookery so um I did have the occasion to go out for um I was told was going to be a walk but it was more of a hike and to see the hair and mercury and it's such a sensitive piece of land that it deserves to be preserved as a state Preserve and you know our ecosystem is vital we are doing a lot of disturbance to our ecosystem with development

whether it's now or future we need all of these plants we need all of the wildlife we need all biodiversity for us as humans continue to continue to live so my ask is that you will um number one you know take the time to go out and visit this space at some point but also please consider the importance of preserving this um very sensitive piece of land in Durham and it needs to be dedicated as a state Nature Preserve so that we can preserve this Wildlife for the animals as much as for humans for our physical and mental health and well-being thank you thank you Miss Green you now turn our attention to Chai or Chi vo vo

you have the floor at this time for three minutes hello everybody I'm here as a member of the Durham environmental Affairs board as a follow-up to our resolution in support of the Durham Ellery Creek Water bird Colony dedicated nature preserve the Waterford colony is located at the intersection of two critical Wetland areas that provide flood abatement water quality benefits and protection from Urban stormwater runoff a benefit that we as a city should preserve permanently this action should be among the easiest conservation opportunities the city will have being that all of this land is City owned and more than 80 percent of it is a flood plain to ensure the lasting protection of this natural heritage site and the benefits that it offers we urge Durham city council to approve the articles of dedication and we really look forward to us being leaders in the Environmental Conservation state in the state of North Carolina so thank you for your consideration council members and

friends and thank you to the staff for all of your hard work and collaboration we appreciate you all all thank you Mr Mark Miner so you have three minutes thank you um I'm here representing a resident that lives near the water bird colony and also the ugly um area of recreational area known as Glenstone preserve I'm also a business owner in Durham I operate a a company focused on um bringing software to home builders I'm not unfamiliar with development I Came Upon the Harry McCree as part of a guided walk maybe a year and a half ago and was just amazed at something so pure and um Wonder wondrous was right in our backyard um since then I've brought countless people

S on the same water and all of them come away being not only impressed with on The Rookery but impressed with Durham as a city um because of how accessible something like this is um alongside the incredible urban areas that we have and I just wanted to speak in on behalf of permanent protection not only because of the natural environment that it is but also because of what it could represent over time um for business owners like ourselves who are trying to recruit people from out of town and for local residents who like many before me have already shared have had their lives really changed on a day-to-day basis by being able to to enjoy it and so hopefully you guys will um vote to for permanent protection and um and it will be able to continue to enjoy that even beyond our Our Lives

thanks very much thank you Mr minor those are all the names and cards that I have for speakers who have wanted to speak to this item tonight I'll check with Madam clerk to see if there's anybody else that I miss anybody no ma'am all right this matters now back before the council and I will open it up for Council questions at this time look into my right first this time councilwoman Friedman thank you madam mayor I I did want to um just delve in a little bit to I think it was Mr drops Chris straps question or a comment about uh the land conservation connection to uh as far as the protection and I I wanted to hear your your um feedback I guess and and connection to how this impacts the 30 uh what was it the 30 protection level

and and I'm assuming that's of the city's plan but um I just wanted to hear what your thoughts were around how this could impact our push to fight climate change essentially thank you councilmember Freeman so the the draft Durham comprehensive plan that our very same staff and Community have been working on for several years now has a goal of 30 percent protected open space and policy 76 in the plan specifically says that protected Open Spaces should be permanently protected now this gets to the question of what is permanence and this is a conversation on the Durham open space and trails commission I mean it's not a simple question what permanence means and what protection means we in the land trust Community

um we strive for protection at the level that affects the Deeds of properties or the ability to develop you know the conservation easement is simply the extinguishment of the right to develop a property while while maintaining all the other rights on that property you know properties like a bundle of sticks were given up the stick the development stick um that's a that's a standard for a land trust that's just a minimum that's what protection is if we don't get that we don't get funding we don't we don't get recognized as having protected Acres so that's that's where we stand on the dedicated that's why we love the dedicated Nature Preserve so much and in terms of your question about um resilience and climate these if you look at the maps of these areas and you know we've all looked at them together this is a this is the lower Ellerbe Creek Valley if you've spent any time on

Ellery Creek it's flat it's not the Eno River where you can walk in these beautiful valleys and you're 50 feet 80 feet above the creek you are 100 feet from the creek and you're this high above it that means big wide wetlands and floodplains that's why we have beavers more than anybody else that's why we have all that environment down there in that ecosystem that's so amazing that's why we have the herons and floodplain unfortunately flood Plains are not protection they can be developed they can be filled and they're done one-off we don't have a policy in place that says no flood Prime no flood plain protection we have processes in place for developing in floodplains which are very can be difficult but they're done um we need to maintain those flood Plains because the floods are only going to get bigger they're going to get bigger as our as our city grows they're going to get bigger as we have more intense

storms which I've seen during my lifetime and that's where the place where it's going to happen so there's a lot going on down there besides just the herons which are important for protection so I'll stop there I know I get kind of long-winded so did that help thank you and I think to to the point you made about the the floodplains I'm I'm wondering um I'm not seeing her and I'm sorry it was the director of the state preserve oh misty Buchanan Buchanan and I know that you mentioned that there were funds that could be made available or Grant funds that could be made available to offset the cost that was mentioned in work session as a as a prohibitive point yes and you speak a little bit to how I guess how much of that could be

offset yes ma'am we do work with some Grant programs that do provide funding for permanent conservation it kind of it will depend a little bit on you know the nature of the agreement that we arrive at but as an example the North Carolina land and water fund has a donated mini grant program that can provide up to twenty thousand dollars to offset the transaction costs for an organization that would want to donate land for conservation which would be the exact kind of case that we have here so that's just one example of a state program that could provide some funding and working with lrb Creek Watershed Association Chris and Ricky have both pledged to help raise funds and find additional grants that may be available for this type of situation and I know you mentioned Mecklenburg County I did hear from a commissioner Elaine Powell about the work that she's been doing in Mecklenburg around trying to do preservation could you at least share I guess how many acres or how much there

yes Mecklenburg County was one of the first counties that stepped forward and identified they nominated themselves for dedication of natural heritage areas and I believe there are eight nature preserves in Mecklenburg County that have been permanently set aside for dedication I think it's several hundred acres I do not have the exact figure with me but there are several sites all around Charlotte Latta Plantation McDowell Nature Preserve are some of the larger ones that people are familiar with thank you that's helpful and then just for staff I would just I'm not sure how many we have currently but if you could speak to just how much land we have preserved as a city uh this I don't have an exact number the city owns a lot of vacant property a lot of it protects our water sources our reservoirs at Lake Mickey I know there's at least 1400 Acres there and at the Little River Reservoir also and then other properties that are vacant like this area in

question and are any of them permanently preserved they are not on the other hand the areas for the reservoirs at Lake Mickey and Little River are preserved by the city code of ordinances thank you thank you I will reserve the questions for them yes sir thank you madam mayor and I thank councilmember Freeman for excellent line of questioning I too was not here during our work session but I want to just commend my colleagues for the excellent questions and engagement uh that went on uh during that work session really provided on-ramp and lay the groundwork I think for the rest of this discussion the area is in Urban Oasis it absolutely needs to be preserved full stop um I imagine there would be many American cities that would that would look at us within me to have a place like that as part of their cityscape so it is a beautiful area and it needs to be preserved the issue turns on what is the best method to do that I will say I

am you know dedicated Nature Preserve is is anything short of a constitutional amendment I I don't really share much optimism about the state um and and and Its Behavior Once Upon a Time election certified elections were sacrosanct uh based upon math and we have seen even those type of lines violated I am much more trusting of the electorate of Durham putting people in these seats who are mindful of conservation and if 100 years from now Durham elects people that don't that aren't mindful aren't sensitive to that then I fear that there's a whole list of other things that would have changed about our city uh as well so I'm I'm much more trusting of Durham residents and and locals uh than I am of of of State apparatus even honoring things that that are sacrosanct with that said I I think that um as it

cuts today for me I'm I'm intrigued by the notion of a hybrid approach of of both maintaining some local control and dedicating the most sensitive part of the area you know it's it's interesting what you read on Long flights I was reading uh last week on a very long flight about how I don't know why but it seems fortuitous that how climate impact has even climate change has impacted migratory patterns and and mating patterns of animals uh and nature lakes that once existed don't exist anymore we may not leave the birds but the birds may leave us one day um and and to have that piece of real estate solely in the hands of the State uh if our beautiful neighbors should decide they want to for whatever reason go somewhere else maybe 50 years maybe 100 years maybe never but but what we are seeing how climate change is affecting uh the natural order I wonder

about that uh you know if if that real estate should one day be the birds decide they don't want to be there and it's in the hands of the State uh then what happens perhaps far-fetched perhaps not we've seen examples in nature of flipping so with that said I I did the question is not whether or not we should protect it but how and I will just say to my colleagues based upon the very good work and discussion that you had at our last work session I am I find intriguing the the ability to maintain some local control because I trusted Durham electorate uh in perpetuity more than I do of the state apparatus um perhaps a hybrid of of the most sensitive part being dedicated but also also us also maintaining some agility um and and Mobility for future contingencies as well and I want to thank all of you have come out for the emails and and for the level of Engagement this is how it's done uh I appreciate the work and I appreciate the beauty of that area

um it will be protected the birds won't know the difference whether or not it's dedicated preserve or or a registered area and I know there are concerns about it being protected in perpetuity if I had to bet I would think that the electorate of Durham would be a better bet than what we might get from a Statewide election and a group of people uh caucusing in Raleigh thank you madamir thank you colleagues and to my left now if you have any comments on this end councilman Williams thank you madam mayor I have been wrestling with this I needed a break so I left the city for a while and the only thing that went with me were your emails so I could not run from them on social media and everywhere else so we heard you um and I I think you know a lot of this is you know what just based on not really reading too deep into it enough and uh just basically going on a

headline um because I got a lot of emails also that were like how dare you how would you not protect this how could you not be sure it's like what are you talking about uh so um I I'm gonna ask a few questions uh to staff and to some community members um some I know the answer to some I think I need to ask for clarification uh just for general knowledge um could you just briefly Define again registration dedication permanent just we're we're speaking a lot of language here and we're assuming that everyone knows and if we don't formally educate folks then it's going to be whatever a headline is and that's what folks going to go on thank you very much for the question the dedicated Nature Preserve program of the states is something that can't be undone it is truly permanent and Perpetual the only instance in which it could be undone is an act of the governor and the Council of State something that doesn't

occur willy-nilly or very often the registration can be removed at any time uh it's a it's a A self-directed or self-applied uh registration of the property council could remove it at any time however in the approach that we were suggesting was to take a second action concurrence with the registration of the property to change the city's code of ordinances so that Council votes on a new section of the city ordinances that says distinctly that this area is preserved by this city council it will not involve State action it would be something self-directed and controlled in Durham thank you would that be our closest thing to a deed restriction on our own land a deed restriction is generally

something that comes from the people that owned the property before us they would give us property along with a deed restriction it would be more akin to a conservation easement that we would be uh preserving the property by having set our own rules for our property got you I'm going to ask a hypothetical considering um we have no idea what could happen with our Governor position or Council of State there's a Planned Highway that's going over there to North Durham Parkway hypothetically could the state determine that they wanted to add branches to that Highway and go across this land on where they're already planning to go across I may have to defer to our colleagues from the city's Transportation Department for an answer from that I know that the northern

Durham Parkway that you're referring to is on the comprehensive Transportation plan for the future the 2050 plan beyond that I see my colleague standing up from Transportation so I'll let him take over excuse me thank you yes uh Bill judge Transportation um as David indicated it is on the comprehensive adopt a comprehensive Transportation plan uh the revised proposal does leave an 800 foot wide Corridor that we believe should be adequate to accommodate any future roadway need going through there if it were to vary more than that there would be significant environmental impacts all throughout basically the entire alignment of Northern Durham Parkway so um without that 800 foot wide Corridor being preserved it definitely would be a issue if it were pushed and put into a permanent conservation easement the estate would not be able to build the road but with the 800 foot Corridor

preserved really doesn't matter which option Council chooses should they should still have adequate room for the road okay thank you um so I guess what we're considering here is preserving permanently the most critical area versus preserving the entire area permanently that is correct sir okay all right I'll reserve the rest of my questions for a later moment it's a woman Johnson thank you madam mayor um a couple questions so the I received some information about um State legislation for dedicated nature preserves that allow certain kinds of access to The Preserve but my understanding is that the staff doesn't think that those Provisions are

sufficient to provide the access that you all think might be needed can you give me a little bit more context as to um why the like why the existing carve outs in the dedicated Nature Preserve legislation don't satisfy y'all's concerns on that point the car about specifically for the transportation Corridor does in fact address our concerns uh in completely Our concern remains of unknowns potentialities that the city may have some sort of use for the property that is not uh deleterious or harmful to the birds and the nature of the of the area yet we don't know what those are in the future and we're concerned about Council not having control of being able to allow those uses could you give me some examples of what those might be uh things that we can't imagine in the

future you know my my the media thing that comes to mind is all the Telecommunications equipment of cell towers and things like that but I'm thinking of things much smaller than that if there was something that even was you know the size of a manhole or something that could be put on the ground to transmit Communications or something in the future or some sort of uh water line passing through the area that wasn't again a detriment to the nature of the area and it wouldn't be allowed by the state's program gotcha thank you um several of the emails that we received expressed concern that without the nature preserved that if it was just a registered Heritage area that development would be allowed is that true is development allowed in a registered Heritage area uh two-fold development is not allowed in a registered Heritage area and secondly uh almost all of the property that we're talking about is not developable uh it is in a flood plain there's a small about 30 acre section

off to the east side of this property that may be potentially developable in developable in that it is not in the flood plain but it is still something where there is no City infrastructure there's no water line uh sewer lines there's no streets it would be a major step for that to be developed in the future however uh that is the only area that has that distinction but it would still it would still not be allowed to be developed if we decided to put a registered Heritage area on the site that is correct unless the future Council revoked that that is correct um so one thing that I found confusing is that both the city and the folks at Echo have been referring to the dedicated Nature Preserve as permanent protection but my understanding is that it can be eliminated by the state some in a similar way that our registered Heritage area can be eliminated by the city so why do you consider that permanent and not the city's version of it it's a great question we have not had an example of the

state's program having been rescinded by the state as I mentioned the statute says very distinctly that it would take an action of the governor and Council of state and I could defer to our friends at the from the state natural heritage program but uh in conversation we have not had any that have been revoked Gadget has the city ever revoked a registered Heritage area the city doesn't have any registered Heritage area but uh that would take action of counsel and uh I can't think of an example of why Council would want to do that in total as opposed to perhaps a specific small use the prison that we got last week there were several listed as far as duke Forest as registered Heritage areas are those not through are those not registered through the program that you're proposing for this is like a different thing those are registered Heritage areas through the state's Heritage registered Heritage

area program they are okay so we do have some we do not dedicated nature preserves but rather registered Heritage areas right right so so my I I guess my argument is that it's unlikely that the state is going to rescind a dedicated Nature Preserve and they never have it also seems unlikely that the city is going to rescind a registered Heritage area and never has is that accurate that that is correct and the distinction of of where we uh parted ways for a moment there was that none of those properties are city-owned properties pennies Bend and Bennett Place and okay gotcha um City ownership presumably would would allow more protection however than rather than less because that is correct what happens to it um okay thank you I feel so I also read council member caballero's note about a hybrid version where the areas I guess on the map that you gave us the areas that were hashed in like darker gray which are considered the most critical would be dedicated and the rest of them

would be registered that that is correct in that does that solution satisfy the concerns that y'all have about access to the site for potential future needs that would be yes that would okay great thank you thank you councilman Jose yes hi thank you good discussion I was here for the presentation and have read all of the documentation and have all the emails and I you know feel that with all of our building um because people are coming here and we always hear that um I just really feel that some of our environmental structures need to be saved and so I would love to see uh the dedicated property of protection under the state dedicated Nature Preserve permanency I would like I would like to see that that was really what what my vote would be and I don't know the language because that language is not here in terms of motions but I just wanted to go on Rec and say and that's what I would like to

see thank you councilman Williams I may have asked this before thank you mayor mayor I'm I'm here can we can permanently designate it at the city level yes we can that's through the code of ordinances all right so let's say uh and okay it will have to be rescinded by the governor in the Council of State no sir excuse me for interrupting that's if the state yes permanently registers but if we do it at the council level it would be based on a council if a council wanted to overturn it yes a future Council all right and I council member Jose your comments around development um sort of sparked my question on this I so historically you know it's it's been people it's been people of color that's gotten pushed out

into the wetlands to build on uh and I think that's why it's a practice in Durham that we don't allow that um I guess what I was trying to really decipher here because the emails from coming in as if we were not considering preserving this space and I think where I'm going with this after listening to everyone's comments are we are we trusting permit are we trusting permanent preservation at the state level over the city level and that that's what I'm trying to clarify what it's been asked so maybe uh someone from maybe Misty uh you can you can help me understand what the communal perspective of this is because I'm I mean full disclosure if a certain individual becomes the next governor and turn things around at the council or state I don't think they're going to have the best interest in Durham we see we probably thought Disney was off limits too for your question and I do just want to

clarify that the nature preserves Act was established in 1986 to create nature preserves for the state and we have about 400 000 Acres of Nature Preserve Statewide those are held by state agencies local governments and private organizations like The Nature Conservancy but some of the the most recognized jewels of our natural heritage are dedicated nature preserves places like Grandfather Mountain jockeys Ridge you know if you just think about our some of our state parks that are most celebrated much of Eno River State Park those are dedicated nature preserves and they have they really are seen as being permanent conservation I've never seen the kind of actions that I've heard discussed tonight taken up because we really we partner with the landowning organization when they're become a dedicated Nature Preserve and then we it's really a partnership between the state and the landowner to continue to protect those areas and so then at that point we would support you in the in developing the management plan and reviewing potential projects in that

area so it really is more of a partnership than an adversarial relationship thank you thank you thank you um that that helps I really appreciate it thank you staff any other questions all right oh I'm sorry mayor so are we trying to determine whether we are going to go with state or city or are we trying to determine the best outcome for this land regard meaning are we looking at the best way to preserve it uh for win-win or are we just making a binary Choice here that's that's what I'm seeking Clarity on as well and I guess that's a a matter of discussion for us as a council I'm not sure we're there yet thank you sir um councilwoman Friedman thank you madam Aaron and again colleagues thank you for

some really excellent conversation and clarifying questions I you know the the description of the ideal of what it looks like in partnership with the state um is indeed the case and and again I go back to a lot of the work we do with the North Carolina League of municipalities is about um having municipalities bipartisan by the way maintain as much local control as possible I mean once upon a time there was an ideal relationship between boards of Elections around our state uh and and the state government and it's it's really difficult to to overstate how how how precarious the political landscape in our in our state is uh of late and and what might be coming down the pike again with that said um his history has suggested that you know these things don't get undone um at the state level but it you know to councilmember Johnson's point I think there's some pretty

um convincing history um at the municipal level as well as us not undoing these things or being uh Pro these things I guess the question comes down to who do you trust more um and and each individual will have to answer that question I do however as as a you know Municipal leader who will bequeath this to other leaders one day and and there were things that happened since I've been in office that I could not have imagined happening uh before I was sworn in and I couldn't even imagine what Future Leaders would would deal with you know when they're sitting in this chair 50 Years or or 100 years from now so if there's a way where we can meet the desired in with as much Municipal uh much of our uh most of it being our Municipal impromata on it as possible I I just trust the people of Durham more than I do um the state now I mean that in a pejorative sense but everybody from all over the state sits in Raleigh it's duramites that sit on this Council uh and sit in this chamber

um so yeah that's where I am let's protect it and um um I you know if we can do the hybrid thing and and not only maintain some flexibility for ourselves but the queef some of it to Future councils as well for whatever contingencies as the staff says may come up while still protecting those beautiful uh Birds um I think for me that would be win-win thank you madam mayor councilwoman Freeman thank you madam mayor um I think very uh plainly I'm where Dr Hyman is or councilman Baker the house and Hyman is and just acknowledging that the reason for the permanency um outweighs the kind of conjuring of conspiracy with the state for me and just noting I don't I think our state parks are representative our state you know historical monikers are representative it's not um likely that we'll have this issue

with the state coming in and I mean that's just I don't I mean it's just nonsense but um I do think that we have an issue around protecting floodplains and an issue around our wetlands and I want to be really clear and stating that this area particularly near the landfill is hugely minority-owned land so the people who own their homes in this area are largely people of color and there are not often state parks near them there's often not any State Historical reference near them and that's by Design and so there's an opportunity here not just to preserve the land but it's also an opportunity to create some type of equity and who owns near a state Park um I do know that it's undevelopable but I'm very clear that any developer will try to develop wherever they can and so

as a city I know folks are really you know hankering for affordable housing there's actually some on Duke Street that is going into a wetland by Casa which I know I voted against but it's still moving forward and so this Council has been responsible for building in a wetland numerous times and so I'm very clear that the permanency of having State protected um State Protections in place feels like we're working towards you know climate resiliency and not against it by pretending with a registering that can be changed with the flick of a pen and four votes so that's where I stand and I do think that the conservation easement is the best way to show our developers in our community that if we can do it they can do it too thank you um to um council member Hyman's point we

don't have language on how to move either the hybrid or the complete I mean whichever one we're going to move forward I think that's important to figure out and if the city manager could help with that that would be helpful yes pretty manager Pace yes so um thank you madam mayor just wanted to uh as as the council continues to deliberate you know we certainly have these motions here because they would actually direct next steps um you know obviously it was a presentation you do not have documents in front of you or other things to review or sign so we would be looking for either the recommendations that we have here that are reflected in this motion or modified uh you know motion language that would give us the direction to go back and work with our partners to take next steps around this property

councilwoman Freeman and councilman um Williams and I'm going to try them weigh in at some point I would defer Madame mayor I just was going to ask about framing emotion oh okay councilman Williams yeah I I all my questions are fair I don't think any of it is nonsense um I I just noted there was a lot of confusion around this and um I I think that Equity should be a culture councilmember Freeman um I don't look at it as a Kill Shot or anything so that's why I'm asking these questions um staff what can you give me the pros and cons of um back to my question about whether you know we permanently preserve this do you foresee you well let me frame it this way

what harm is it going to do if we permanently preserve this at the state level uh because you're stating that there are unknowns it's hard to plan for unknowns and it's hard not to plan for unknowns do you see any alternatives if we preserve this open space I think what what I can how I can best answer your question is to say in one hand we're looking at local control and on the other hand we're looking at State control and Destiny of our property and uh it's the pleasure of counsel to go in either case either direction or uh uh advise us to use some sort of hybrid approach or another approach thank you um I'm a huge fan of having our own assets and I think this piece has an economic asset it's a economic component as well I'm from Scotland Neck North Carolina we have the Sylvan bird sanctuary folks

travel all the way in the middle of nowhere to come see it so I do take that value in it uh at the same time conspiracy or not I don't I don't have a lot of faith in our state government I love having the control tonight of local control folks are showing up and they're flooding the emails to let us know what they think and that has that has its influence um so is it do we have to go up or down on what motions we have here um manager I think you were getting to this or can we draft a way forward that has everyone's best interest in um at hand um thank you so the the Motions that you have before you are simply motions that would provide the steps that we would take if the the staff's recommendation is accepted if the staff recommendation is not accepted and and it is uh is

altered then we would we would get that direction this evening so we would not have to wait longer to begin um our next steps in the preservation of the land so I think the City attorney would help us determine what that language need to be along with staff would it be appropriate to have a timeline in that or is that to a timeline to determine if it does if you if we do not take staff recommendations tonight um can we invoke some timeline to have a response thrown away forward or would that not be appropriate so we've actually worked uh with you know with staff and partners for over a year and so the direction is just you know we would we would need some direction to take next steps or we would be we would actually be stalled um and so that's why we were we're seeking that this evening thank you so much

just to get an idea of where folk are in the audience I like to ask those folk who are here on this issue are you asking and if you would by your standing for a dedicated Nature Preserve who are the folks in here who are asking for a dedicated Nature Preserve if you will be seated thank you and those who are asking for the hybrid approach no surprise to me no surprise to me and no surprise to you that I am also in favor of a dedicated Nature Preserve and I would like to entertain motions regarding that we cannot see into the

future but we can take some examples from the past we don't have a grandfather's mountain in Durham North Carolina we don't have the Florida Everglades we don't have the grand cane we don't have any of those but somebody in their Infinite Wisdom thought to preserve them forever and I thank them for that we have that unique opportunity today and the people who thought enough to come out tonight that is what they're asking I choose you all and that's what I'm asking and what your votes are so process I may ask a question uh are you are you saying for the entire acreage or the uh the 274 Acres if we can build ten thousand houses two to three years that takes an enormous amount of land to do so and we have the distinct opportunity to

preserve a mere 274 Acres in our city that we own not a mayor if I might I would like to make a motion to direct staff to enter into negotiations with the state of North Carolina Department of nature of natural and cultural resources to draft the voluntary agreement to register the subject property as a registered Heritage area second point of order is a registered Heritage area the same thing as the dedicated Nature Preserve it is not sir the registered so what we need to do is we clarify as a dedicated Nature Preserve there's a point of origin's emotion on the floor um I think she can mentor motion yeah she'd like to amend a motion and I'd like to amend the motion to reflect the

dedicated Nature Preserve as the mayor stated and I'm going to second all right make sure that we are all right on process all right her motion has been amended there's been a second just point of clarification this is with the 800 foot um the revised proposal from the state and from equa was for 215 Acres which includes the 800 to foot carve out for the future Northern Durham Parkway so are we voting on that or what you pull the room for my understanding when I talked to the folk this afternoon is that there and maybe it's over 200 Acres it may not be 270 some but it's over it's 215 acres is that what you're referring to correct okay yes so my mistake on the numbers 215.

acres is what I believe with the carve out yes sir the 215 Acres includes an excluded carve out of 800 feet for the northern Durham Parkway 215 acres in my career 200 sorry to delay question okay um to the management monitoring accessibility if it's at the state then who the state does that or because to my understanding if the state is in control of it then the city doesn't have access to monitoring that area in in any case uh there will be an action brought back before Council uh subsequent to work that staff will perform with aqua and the representatives from the state toward

determining which areas are exactly to be designated as primary areas and which to be designated as buffer areas and what would be allowable in each of those distinctions okay it's another point of clarification so the if we vote this you're saying that this the state will then come back again with clarifications of of of of boundary I just want to make sure we understand go ahead there will need to be finality uh after the work is done or subsequently the work that is done between the state and equa and City staff and I see our partner from the state Misty Buchanan has stood up I wonder if she's looking to answer the question with a little more depth thank you I just wanted to just offer myself to help clarify um we we would in a case like this the

city would remain the primary custodian of The Preserve they would you know determine whether there is Public Access they would take the lead on management decisions it would really still be the city's land we would just be working together to to find to craft the final language for where the boundaries are so there would be one final step of signature and approval good all right councilman Johnson and councilwoman Jose Hamman thank you madam mayor so I'm this is a little bit more confusing the Second Step piece at the point that we are negotiating this agreement with the state at that like right now we are saying our next step is to put this property into a net into a dedicated Nature Preserve at the point that we're negotiating boundaries with the state would we then be able to say only the primary acreage is in a dedicated Nature Preserve and the rest

is not or are we are are we with this vote committing to putting the entire acreage into a dedicated Nature Preserve I believe it is the latter I think this is well you can tell us what you want us to do I think at this stage okay I mean my concern again is that our staff has told us that they would support putting the primary acreage into a dedicated Nature Preserve and leaving the additional acreage out of The Preserve making that just a registered Heritage area in order to in order to allow for future city needs in that area but what I'm not clear on which I think is a question for you actually and maybe our city manager is that does this vote preclude that negotiation moving forward this vote would not preclude that negotiation excuse me Mrs manager yes so the direction that that you're providing to us this evening if you provide the direction to us to go and negotiate a dedicated Nature Preserve for 215 Acres

that is what we're going to do if it is 83 Acres that is what we're going to do okay so so we need to be clear in this motion that it is for the entire 215 overall acreage of Equus proposal that what is that your motion council member Freeman so it might be helpful if the if staff could share that map that was given in the presentation because it's the second the new like lines I don't know how to share show this but certainly it is it is this section here where it's critical open for the roadway and then another critical area that is preserved and I believe that the total is actually 227 acres and the well 227 is where we started and 83 is where we ended that's the primary acreage are you proposed is your motion that we put the 215 overall acreage into

a dedicated Nature Preserve or is your motion that we put the 83 primary acres into a dedicated nature it is that we put the 215 overall acreage with the 83 primary acreage inside of it all of it in a dedicated Nature Preserve so it would necessarily it would essentially be 83 Acres those no that's different those gray areas no no I need I need I really need Clarity on whether you're saying 215 acres into a nature dedicated Nature Preserve or just the 83 primary acreage into a dedicated Nature Preserve the two so I want to make sure with staff the 215 has that carve out it does and the 215 excludes the landfill it does and then that is the 215 Acres that would be included in the entire preserve yes okay so that is your motion just in 15 which includes the 83 in that 215.

and I I second it there's a motion on the floor is Miss seconded did you have did you want to say something Mr Creek yes good evening mayor Pro tem members of council Don Greeley the Department of Water Management I did want to point out that within the 215 Acres that's being identified and discussed is several thousand feet of um what would be need to be preserved for an easement to maintain the the sewer lines that are within that easement so I I would recommend that any um motion include you know withholding that area for us to be able to to do what we have to do to maintain those that infrastructure that's in that area thank you I think it was stated that the easements would be negotiated into the area already I might have missed if it wasn't but I think it was stated that already

yes I just wanted to point that out okay for clarification yes sir I I would like I would like to make sure that's clearly stated in the in the motion once we vote on this tonight it is what it is so it it out of I think it's understood but it's not stated that those easements and those easements will be uh preserved for us to be able to have access to and I think that that is we can get into the theatrical language but I think that is the the point that we're at odds about right now just to restate it's a negotiation between the city manager and the state and so that would be included in that negotiation thank you Madam mayor if I might if it negotiate we won't be it needs to be clear we will not be negotiating as equals we will be negotiating after already dedicating um all of the land to a dedicated Nature Preserve um you know to be honest College I think we're all committed to preserving

um this land there's no controversy there but I can't support this motion tonight I think there are too many unanswered questions I think the staff makes um incredibly valid um points I mean we we can achieve protecting this land and the birds and and do what we need to do with easements and and do what we need to do with other things um without you know moving with lightning speed tonight I mean that it was actually brought forth as a recommendation tonight it doesn't require us to actually vote on anything tonight we could give the staff direction to do some more work I think some some relevant questions have been raised even attached to this motion as it stated they're still questions so as stated tonight I can't support this Motion in its form I think there are too many unanswered questions too many issues of Staff has raised but the beautiful thing is we're still going to protect this land that that's not at issue here but as this motion states I can't support this motion tonight thank you colleagues are we ready to vote

man clerk have you open the vote if you will close the voter report out the motion passes four to two with council member well mayor with mayor Pro tem Middleton and council member Johnson voting no and Madam mayor by my I think it would be helpful to make sure that staff is acknowledging that on slide nine is a list of exactly how this easement and it says specifically use primary only for valuable areas simplify boundaries no existing or planned Water Management infrastructure in or about within 100 like it's already stated within the presentation and I just want to make sure that that's clear for staff thank you

thank you I think what we just did with Gail was the step one and the staff the city manager staff will take us a look at what we have decided tonight and come back to us with further for us with further Direction that's what I understand this is just step one so it is that one Madam mayor but it is Direction um right the motion that just passed was for us to engage the state and equa in a dedication of the um of the property of the 250 Acres that's identified in the presentation and that is what we will do thank you so much all right at this time we're so close to the nine o'clock hour we're going to go ahead and take our 10 minute break and we'll come back with our public hearing presentation for item number 11. we stand in recess for 10 minutes [Applause]

uh-huh yes sir on a permanent dedication of 215 Acres dedication is this is this right here it's all the refined proposal yes

recording stopped so let's get to the fun stuff what do kids say 5 to 12 get to do at a DPR summer camp so we have all kinds of all kinds of great opportunities we have we try and do as many field trips as possible we have at least a weekly trip to a swimming pool so the kids have the opportunity opportunity to learn how to swim play and engage with kids some kids from their neighborhood kids that live nearby and a lot of times kids they've never met before so it really creates some social connectivity for kids it decreases the amount of screen time that they have and it and it shows them different activities that they can do

with each other and and led by our staff I know you have a team a teen summer connect Camp what is that all about so one of the things that we are going to do with teams they have an opportunity to explore different volunteer opportunities and community service opportunities in the community they'll be doing some like I said earlier some ice skating they'll be going to wet and wild um they're going to be they're going to be doing some awesome stuff foreign [Music] during the day the kids need to pack their own lunch or can they see them you feed them feed them kids can pack their own lunch they have you know dietary restrictions or there's you know whether it's dietary restrictions or just dietary preferences um kids are welcome to pack their own lunches um I'd have to let you know I'd have to look into whether there's limitations on Peanut Butter and things like that there

are you know the the high the office you know the things with a lot of yeah um I'd come to work just for that yeah a lot yeah we feed breakfast and lunch so okay yeah we should have mentioned that you'll want to mark your calendars now for the 53rd annual bimbe Cultural Arts Festival you can celebrate 50 years of hip-hop at the free family-friendly event on June 3rd from 1 to 7 pm at Rock Quarry Park if a recognition of the importance of African and African-American history culture arts and traditions participants will enjoy a day full of live music arts and crafts Community Resources tasty traditional food a family fun zone and performances by local and national talent this year's host for the event will be k97's Brian Dawson CD will not be provided so be sure and bring a lawn chair or blanket if you're looking for a way to have fun and give back to the community

org 281 and by following them on social media thank you [Music] foreign [Music] [Music]

com

all right we are now back in session for and we're taking up our one General business agenda public hearing which is item 11. it's FY 2023-2024 draft annual action plan needs public hearing annual action plan adoption and Grant project ordinances and we will now receive our staff report all right thanks all right good evening mayor O'Neill members of the city council city manager page and all in attendance for this hearing I'm Colin Davis manager of the homeless system team in the Community Development Department the purpose of this public hearing is to

S Department of Housing and Urban Development HUD notice of this meeting was properly advertised in the herald sun and que pasa newspapers distributed via the Department's General list serve as well as posted on the Community Development Department's webpage and the City of Durham website as a recipient of cdbg Home ESG and hopwa funds the city is required to hold

at least two public hearings prior to the submission of its annual action plan the first meeting was held early in the developmental stage of the plan on March 20th 2023. in addition the city is required to publish a copy of its draft annual action plan for citizen comments for at least 30 days prior to its submission the city's annual action plan must be submitted to HUD no later than May 15 2023 or as applicable on February 27 2023 HUD announced its FY 23 Community Planning and Development formula program allocations the city expects to receive 2 million thirty eight thousand eight hundred seventy one dollars in cdbg funding 1 million three hundred seventeen thousand and thirty five dollars in home

funds 182 563 dollars in ESG funds and one million sixty six thousand three hundred twenty eight dollars in hopa funds a summary of comments from this public hearing and written comments received from citizens during the development of the annual action plan and this public hearing will be incorporated into the draft 23-24 annual action plan that will be submitted to HUD by May 15 2023. thank you thank you Mr Smith you have heard the report from staff I will now declare this public hearing to be open and will first entertain questions and comments from the council look at my left looking to my right there appear to be no questions of from

my colleagues I don't believe that we have anybody on the internet that is signed up to speak to this item but I will check with our clerk to make sure Adam mayor there's nobody in the queue with their hand raised and no one has signed up and no one has signed up to speak in a person please allow the record to reflect that no one else has requested to speak on this item either virtually or in person I'll now declare the public hearing to be closed and the matter is back before the council at this time we have and I guess we would need to take each one individually uh several motions so we'll go one by one the first motion to consider is to

conduct a needs public hearing for the F for the draft FY 2023-2024 annual action item annual action plan to receive comments related to Community Development needs in Durham second that wasn't here we need to do YouTube more right I'm sorry we just did it didn't we do that that's what we just did right okay so we need to go to the next one yep okay so we will table that one because we've already had that hearing and we will go to the second item which is to adopt the draft FY 2023 2024 at annual action plan upon closure of the public hearing move second it's been moved by councilman Williams seconded by councilwoman

S Department of Housing and Urban Development HUD hood Community Development block grant programs cdbg FY 2023-2024 Grant project ordinance in the amount of 2 million one hundred thirty eight thousand eight hundred and seventy one dollars and authorization to execute Grant agreement thank you been moved by councilman Williams seconded by councilwoman José Hymon Madam clerk if we will open the vote if he will close the vote and Report out

S Department of Housing and Urban Development Hood emergency Solutions grant program ESG FY 2023-2024 Grant project ordinance in the

S Department of Housing and Urban Development hood housing opportunities for persons with AIDS program FY 2023-2024 Grant project ordinance in the amount of 1 million 66 328 dollars in authorization to execute Grant agreement it's been moved by councilwoman Jose Harmon seconded by councilman Williams

Madam clerk if he will open the vote if you were close to vote and Report out please the motion passes 6-0 thank you that will conclude our agenda other than other matters for tonight are there any other issues to come before the council this evening Madam mayor if I might yes ma'am uh earlier today when we read the proclamation we didn't have the plaque handy and I just wanted to make sure that I gave Mr Chaz Chase Moore the chance to present you with the plaque if you don't mind it's third thank you

thank you so um we wanted to donate this plaque to the city of Durham that just honors Durham's firefighting history The Excelsior hook and ladder company um I'm going to read if you don't mind my apologies the firefighters of Black Wall Street Excelsior hook and ladder company Durham North Carolina before the creation of the career fire department the city of Durham was protected by Volunteer Fire companies one of the most prominent was the all-black Excelsior hook and ladder company this specialized Fire Company distinguished itself on many occasions earning the praise and respect of other fire companies throughout the state they were honored by the mayor and City officials at a ceremony in 1894. members of the fire company included prominent

entrepreneurs Community leaders veterans and voters they were located at 2 214 Pine Street and protected by protected Durham for nearly 30 years um so we just wanted to donate this to the city of Durham um and hopefully you guys will will put it where where our children and their children and forever and ever can see that when we're talking about preserving things let's preserve Durham's history um thank you thank you so much on behalf of the city of Durham and all of the families and friends from the Past who have made it possible for us to stand here today we give honor and we give thanks to them and we especially give thanks to you who sought this out and made it a possibility and to your family who served us so well I'm honored to be a member of this community and I know we all at city council are very proud that we are here to accept this and we will

find as a council together a place for all of our citizens and especially our children to be able to see this and remember what was we have not been forgotten thank you thank you yes can I get the rest of the council to come down though for this picture is this week you just drop it you know okay laughs

account all right that's beautiful are there any other issues matters to come before the council this evening seeing uh what a beautiful way to end the evening we stand adjourned on May 1st 2023 and 9 20 bullet City strong thank you

thank you