City Council · Regular Meeting · November 20, 2025

Good afternoon everyone. I'm going to go ahead and call us to order right at 1 pm. Um, madam clerk, could you please call the role? >> Thank you, presiding chair.

Um, Mayor Williams has an excused absence. Mayor Prom Middleton has an excused absence and so does council member Freeman. Council member Baker >> here, >> council member Cababayro >> here, >> council member Cook >> here, >> and council member Rrist >> here. Thank you.

>> Thank you. Um before I call on my colleagues for announcements, I'm just going to go ahead and um kick us off because I know that there there's a lot of moving parts happening right now in uh our our wonderful city. Um I first just want to say that um I've been on council since 2018 and this week is probably one of the hardest weeks uh on this on this job. Um, we know that there has been immigration enforcement not just in the city of Durham, but across North Carolina. We know that there were uh both border patrol, which quite frankly has no

jurisdiction uh in the state of North Carolina uh unless you're on the coast. Um we know that there was enforcement activities in Durham. Uh Carrie, I heard of things happening in Swansboro, Lenor, Hickory, Blowing Rock, Boone, uh and uh creating terror across our great state. Um kidnapping and abducting residents across North Carolina.

Obviously, we we know it began in Charlotte. Um, many of us have been out doing patrols with our neighbors, going to schools, um, making sure that our school kids are safe, participating in press conferences, delivering food, and so I want to say thank you to every single neighbor in Durham who stepped up. Uh, there is a fund you would donate at Durham Public Schools Foundation. I understand,000

uh to centralized food distribution and other necessities. So many folks are not wanting to leave their homes. Thank you. Not wanting to leave their homes.

Uh not going to medical appointments, not sending kids to school, and not going to their jobs. Uh again, there is a centralized food and other necessity fund through Durham Public Schools Foundation. And I encourage alder Durham residents to donate. Uh the reason it's centralized is so that we don't have small um distribution and and that burden isn't being held by one or two nonprofits.

It's a coordinated effort with about 10 different organizations. Uh if you are going to be over if you're going to be home around the holidays this next week, I encourage you to sign up. I encourage you to help uh distribution and um donate if you are able. Uh it has been quiet yesterday and today. Uh I'm going to knock on wood that it continues to be quiet. Um and I

just really want to say thank you to all Durham residents. We really really stepped up this week. I'm so deeply deeply grateful and proud um of how we took care of one another and that's what we will continue to do. Uh I always say I bet on Durham and there's a reason for that.

We will always step up and take care of one another. We take care of each other. So thank you so much. I also want to say thank you to uh Downtown Durham, Inc.

The tree lighting that was supposed to happen uh on Friday of uh the 21st of November, my understanding has been moved to Saturday, December 6th. Um because we know that there's going to be continued community action and we wanted to ensure that that that quite frankly rage and despair still has that place. Uh and it didn't seem prudent to be in that celebratory mood. um while we know what's happening.

So, I just really want to say thank you uh for making that adjustment. Um and I think that is all I have. Um I'm going to pass

it to whichever colleague would like to go next. I'm not doing down the line. Raise your hand if you'd like to speak. >> Yeah, I'll just I'll be brief.

Thank you all for for being here today. Thank you to um to city staff for for being here. uh like to associate myself with all of uh Council Member Cabayer's comments. Um it's definitely been a stressful um and terrible uh couple of days here and several days over a week across the state of North Carolina.

Um it's affected so many children in schools, people being out from school, businesses being closed. It's brought so many parts of our city to a standstill and um so we we see the direct impacts, we see the videos of people being abducted as as council member Cavayo mentioned. Um but what we don't see is the impacts that this is having on every on so many households across across our city and

and across our state. Um and yet there's there's some light uh just incredible incredible organizing from the community who've really stepped up in solidarity with one another. Um something to be extremely proud of. It's just the people the people of this city um stepping up to to support one another and provide for one another.

Um, and so that's something that that we should look to and and the resistance and and the number of people who have taken to the streets to say this is not okay. And uh and I know that that will that organizing and that resistance will will continue. So something something to be proud of as we continue to deal with this terrible terrible situation. So thank you.

>> Thank you. >> Thanks uh Council Mavier, our presiding chair. I like that. Sounds good.

Thanks for for cheering us this morning. Um, and greetings colleagues, uh, staff, residents, and those online. Um, yeah,

it's it's a super emotional time in the Bull City. Um, and I like I first want to thank Council Member Cabier for your incredible leadership on all issues related to immigration and refugees. It's having that leadership at this critical time has been so important. So, thanks for that.

Um, thanks for colleagues who came out to the press conference. I know Council Cook was there as well. Um, everybody's doing their part to to chip in and it's been a it was a rough election season in Durham, let's be honest. But it's amazing to see folks pull together now like we only can do in Durham in a time of real stress um and sadness and this is this is part of about being in the community and relationships.

It's the highs and lows, you know, it's a really rough rough time and a lot of us are feeling that um and carrying that burden, but it's also been amazing to see people step up as only people can do in Durham. I'm so proud of that. And I'll just say like as one little microcosm of this thing, you know, in my neighborhood at George W Elementary, um I want to thank Megan Frothingham who's the I think she's considered the the school captain. I mean, people out there, there's residents, parents, um

ministers, people in costumes, you know, tables out there with information, like like whistles printed with a 3D printer. I mean, like everything going on. That's just one school in Durham, and I'm sure every community has similar stories. So I just want to thank everyone for that for that support for the outpouring of love for all of our neighbors.

It makes a huge difference and for those up here on the dis who are tasked with being leaders in this community it feels so good to see everyone stepping up and doing what they can do. So thank you all so much from my the bottom of my heart. Um thanks also to DDI. I know we're going to have a conversation about DDI's downtown master plan.

Can't wait for that. But thanks for for being willing to push that tree lighting. I understand that people, as Council Member Cabier said, people want to express their their feelings and rage and so I think having the the space for that is really important. Um, two other things that also not related but important stuff I just want to mention. First, Council Member Cabier and I were at the um the Triangle West TPO regional safety summit today over in Chapel Hill, second annual safety summit to talk about how we can make our roads safer for pedestrians,

for bikers, and even not even for folks who drive cars. Just want to note that we've had this year so far 28 people have died in Durham on our roads. Um that's 20 people riding in cars and that's eight pedestrians. So people continue to get killed on our roads.

We're a vision zero city for a reason and that's to make sure that we can get to a point where no one is dying on our roads whether you drive a car or walk or bike. And so it's still an important objective in the city. And we're going to work our tails off with folks like I don't know if Sean's here, the transportation department and others to make sure we build the infrastructure so that people can move around our city however they move in ways that are safe and are not and are not dangerous to their health. Um the last thing is we like once again affordable housing we talk about all the time.

Just a note that tomorrow there's a ribbon cutting for the renegade the latest project that we've delivered in Durham. Um this is led by Durham County. This is 110 units uh mixeduse housing. 22% of those units for folks up to 30% AMI, the lowest of income families, 68 units for folks up

to 60% AMI, and 20 units for folks up to 80% AMI. So again, like we hear the call for more affordable housing. Your public bodies are doing that. We can't do it fast enough, but we continue to chip away at the challenge and this 110 more units of housing again with some of those units for the folks of the lowest income.

So we're working hard. We're I know we we last Monday we also worked on some bonds. with the low bond money that's going to fund uh the villages of Hatai. That's a new project that you all are helping out with the with the choice neighborhoods initiative.

I know Heather's here. So, that's another project that's in the works. We're going to keep building affordable housing because we know it's a challenge. Again, we can't do it fast enough, but we are working on that project.

Thanks, Mr. Snell, for being here. Um, this is one of our key objectives and I want to keep hammering that like we are delivering affordable units for folks who think there's no affordable housing. We are delivering them and we'll keep doing that.

>> Thank you, ma'am. Madam presiding chair. Thank you, Council Member Cook. >> Thank you. Um, I just want to echo a lot of what folks have said here today, which is, uh, that I want to recognize that the fear and trauma of the past

couple of days are very real and they're being experienced in a ripple effect. um starting kind of in the outskirts by those of us who are seeing these things on videos and then all the way into folks who are directly impacted by these abductions and um and folks who haven't been able to attend school and also to attend work. We know that in North Carolina um about half of our or sorry in Durham about half of our renters are um costbururdened and what that means is that you can't afford to miss a day of work. uh folks will uh see that economic impact immediately.

Um we'll be seeing that immediately in eviction court and so many other places. And so I just want to recognize how traumatic and how scary this time is. And just want to say the echo the thanks to the community members who have stood outside, who have done patrols. m.

in the parking lots as soon as businesses opened. Y'all saw me. It's

not my best hour, but we were out there. Um, folks coming by to offer us water and snacks and folks doing patrols to keep our students safe. I also want to shout out to the businesses that closed down to keep their employees safe. So, if y'all hear of businesses that did that, please do patronize those.

Uh, we really, it's hard for local businesses to shut down even for a day or two. And so I really want to make sure that we are supporting our folks who are really keeping our community safe. Um I do think and I think that other folks have been talking about this that it is the presence of all of this uh just passionate and organized people that had the impact be minimum. And I don't want to I don't want to minimalize it of course because like I said it's extremely traumatic and and we did have people that were abducted in Durham and uh that's really serious. But uh we have seen it worse in other places and I'm hopeful that other cities who are now

seeing these influx of agents can take some information from how Durham went and we can continue to share information and also watch other cities and their reactions and um and hopefully create a unified front across the country to make sure that our neighbors are cared for. This is the time, if you haven't done it already, to get to know the people that live in your neighborhood. Walk down the street, talk to your folks, so that when we have another uh because I do believe that it's going to come again when we have another crisis that folks know who you are and you know who people are in your neighborhood and you can quickly identify folks and ensure that everybody around you is safe. So, thank you so much to everybody for stepping up. I would not have expected anything different of Durham, but I was just so impressed to see the thousands of people who were immediately ready and uh to step up to the plate. So, thank you so much and um and just remember that this

is a time that we need rest and care. So, please take care of yourselves as we're moving forward. We have probably a long haul and I want to make sure everyone is rested for the future. So, take care of yourselves, check on your neighbors, and thank you so much from the bottom of our hearts for your work.

>> Thank you, Council Member Cook. Uh, next up, um, City Manager Ferguson, do you have any priority items? >> Thank you, Madam Chair. Members of council, the city manager's office has no priority items.

>> Thank you. Um, Madame Attorney, >> good afternoon, Madam Chair. The city attorney's office has no priority items. >> Thank you, Madame Clerk.

>> Thank you, Madam Chair. I do have the board and committee report for the position of youth on the Durham City County Environmental Affairs Board. The nomination is Lena G. Tonkan on the Citizens Advisory Committee

appointment for a general member. Um, one of two nominations is Michael A. Jones. And then the second nomination does not have four members consensus.

And um the next runner up is Bonita D. Green who has three votes and David McCull has two. So if somebody would like to change their vote, >> Madame Clerk, have the members who haven't been who aren't here today, they've not voted. Correct.

>> Um Council Member Freeman has voted, but Williams and Middleton have not. Let's just leave it on GBA and then that way we can have it for for um December 1st. >> Got it. Okay.

Thank you. >> Thank you. I think next up we have our um resident or citizen matters or public comment. Um >> Oh, thank you.

Okay. >> Thank you. So, first up under administrative consent items under the city clerk's office, uh, Durham City

County Environmental Affairs Board. Uh, number two, citizen advisories committee appointments. Number three, approval of city council minutes under departmental items under city council designation of 500 West Main Street. >> Cabio and that don't want to pull that one.

Just want to say great news, exciting. So, yeah, >> if I could actually ask for the staff to pull that just to get some direction. Yeah. Yeah.

Thank you. >> Number four is pulled under community safety department. Uh item number five, second amendment to contract number 20626 with Open Table Ministry, Inc. to provide temporary weather related emergency shelter and supportive services.

>> I'm going to pull that one. Thank you. Uh under our environmental and street services department number item number six Lakewood and Avenue stream stabilization and enhancement SP205 sorry 202502 under housing and neighborhood services

department number seven subreient agreement with the housing authority of the city of Durham DHA for the Culvert place or Calvert Place and Main Street town homes rehabilitation. I pull that one as well. under technology solutions department. Item number eight, contract with ESRI Inc.

to adopt a new >> ARGIS. >> ArcGIS. Thank you. Licensing model underwater management department item number nine, amendment number one to the professional services contract with CDM Smith, Inc.

for the miscellaneous waterline replacement phase one project. Item number 10, amendment two to professional services contract number 17641 with Hazen and Sawyer PC for the Williams water treatment plan basin improvements project. And then under presentations we have um under planning and development department uh downtown Durham, Inc. uh downtown Durham blueprint.

Uh and then uh for our public hearings on December 1st under planning and development department, we have item number 12, zoning map change, east gear towns. I think I have a speaker for that today. I will say uh and I think I do I am allowed to do this as presiding chair since that it is a public hearing. Uh I'm not going to be accepting comments.

I will leave them to December 1st >> and then citizens >> and now we'll move on to public comment under citizens matters. The first uh I actually um I'm going to go to the person online. Uh I have a Jeremy Bergen. Uh, Mr.

Bergen, I hope, or Bergen, excuse me if I said that incorrectly. I'm going to go ahead and go to you. You have three minutes. Welcome.

Good afternoon. >> Hey, thank you. Can you hear me? All right.

>> Yes, we can. >> Uh, my name is Jeremy Burger. I live uh at 112 East Pont Avenue in the Southside community. Um, I signed up to speak today real briefly, mostly um to express

my gratitude. Even though council member Freeman isn't there, some people expressed it last night just our gratitude for her service on the council. Um I know this election was really tight and she lost by about 1,800 votes. Um, but there's a lot of people in this city that she really supported that don't really come out to meetings and I really appreciate your commitment not only to the people of Durham, but also to the land, to the environment, to the water and and just people in general.

Um, it's hard to watch these meetings sometimes, especially when they get contentious. And she's been uh hit from all sides, it seems, um, even before Mayor O'Neal. um went through her tenure. So, I want to say I truly appreciate Council Member Freeman. Um I'm not necessarily glad she's coming off the DAS, but I'm glad she'll be with the people and I hope that her service continues. Um the other thing I want to say briefly is I run a

project called Post-Traumatic Fresh and we had a meeting this week and ICE came up in that meeting too. It's a space where we sometimes we have a chosen topic and and we didn't have a chosen topic. But I do want to express that when we say words like this is traumatizing the the seriousness of it the the word trauma from a Greek origin uh would translate into a piercing wound. And from the Lakota perspective the translation would be your spirit leaves you.

And so there's a lot of children and families and adults and even neighbors that are experiencing a serious piercing wound. And um I too uh echo the council members that express that even in our divide in a local politic that we can come together for these things and try to support justice. So I appreciate y'all and I appreciate the city. I appreciate Council Member Freeman and um all the work that you do

for the city. Thank you. >> Thank you so much. Thank you for being with us.

>> Is that mic working now or do I need to stay on this mic? >> Thank you. >> Thank you. Next up, I have um Chris Pearlstein.

Justice. >> Good afternoon, city council members. Um, I want to talk today actually about the uh encampment that was cleared out recently at uh on the 400 block of Roxboro Street. Um, I guess I want to start with there was a it was pretty heavy lift.

Um, it was quite the large encampment and I think it had come a bit out of control and there was a lot of work for city um u workers to do to clean that up and I want to thank them for their work. it looked like it was it was pretty tough job and it took uh multiple days. Um and so I really

appreciate that they got out there and did that. It's it's probably not a fun job to do. Um I also want to kind of just talk generally about um these kinds of things, right? It's a tough situation um when you have something like that that going on.

And one of the things that I I think I do take some comfort in is that I regularly saw heart out there um trying to get folks assistance and mitigate some of the um problems that were cropping up. and I'm really happy that that's something that's a priority for our city. Um so I really also appreciate the work that they did. Um I'd also like the the city to consider when we have land like that that's actually city land.

Um you know what we're doing with that kind of long-term um you know you've got folks living in tents. There's obviously a demand for for housing here and we we do a lot of effort towards um building housing. We we you know there's been some talk about that in terms of the new developments on Main Street. Um, but I also think on some of these smaller plots, there's opportunities to do something more productive with it, whether it's a park or even housing for for some of these folks who need um something a little different, a little bit more assistance.

I'd rather see some homes there that are are subsidized and provide these folks an option um in lie of having to be in a tent. Uh there's a lot of value too in keeping some of these folks nearby in an area that's denser um in terms of accessing services and amenities. Um and also in challenging times like we're seeing right now where you've got um ICE coming in u you know I I imagine there's there's probably folks who are living in tents who are undocumented, right? And being able to more easily support these neighbors with more formalized housing um is probably a benefit.

org and that block was completely covered in single family homes in the past, right? So, when we think about our development moving forward, uh, you know, Durham didn't always look the way it did. Uh, a lot of the open space that's parking or or undeveloped space around me actually used to be housing um back before urban

renewal and a lot of the decline that we had gone through previously. And so, I hope we'll think about that moving forward. uh whether there's something more we can do there. That that lot has now been or I think it's several lots but have been cleared out um pretty substantially now and so I think there's an opportunity there to to maybe explore um something that's a little bit more beneficial for all of us.

Thank you. >> Thank you so much. Uh next up I have Michael Harris here for public comment. >> Good afternoon.

>> Good afternoon. >> Thank you for being with us. The microphone is on. >> Thank you so much.

You have three minutes. >> Okay. I have three um subjects that I would like to kind of get through quickly. First is my neighborhood which is Oakrove Parkway which the city which we've been complaining for almost 20 years and a year ago they finishedly put put in street humps except they did not finish the job. So, I have some uh items here that you maybe can look

over to give to the uh city street people why they did not complete the street humps out from uh Sterling Road to uh Oak Road Parkway up to Highway 98. The other is my complaint is the development that is happening here on the eastern side of Durham. We're now in a phase whereby uh residents who have a hard time getting out each day because of the traffic buildup and all this development that you guys have approved over the last several years, especially these referendums that you have been putting on the minds of taxpayers to vote on. I personally think you guys need to put a stop to this because as a senior like myself, we're in a fixed income area and that it is happening through the fact with all this uh genification that's happening. People like myself who are seniors cannot afford all of this tax that you guys are putting burden on us

because we're the ones who are paying for all of this uh lowinccome housing street repairs. The other method is that you have money something like $93 million that you have not really used for sidewalks. Uh when it comes to sidewalks, Holloway Street needs sidewalks from all the way up from Mino Spring Roads all the way down to Highway 70. Therefore, if none of that has been attempted, so where's the money going? Why have not you be begin to use our money that you're getting from us to complete these projects? And the other is that uh as a citizen here, we have and others like myself, we have put many years of paying for all the services But unfortunately, I think that you guys are being sellouts because you are using the developers are putting in profiteering for themselves to look at Durham as something that they

can bring in other people or you guys can bring in other people who have money who can come here to live but on but they're coming here to live on the backbone of the PE persons or persons that have been here for the last 30 40 50 years or let's say a couple of decades. that has maintained the quality of life here in Durham. So somehow you guys got to decide, stop putting on these referendums, especially every two to four years to have some kind of proposal that we need parts and we need all of these runways for people to move around in. And yet there's only the visitors, the new ones to the company are using it, but most of us are not.

So thank you. >> Thank you so much for being here with us today. Um, next up I have Haley Cunningham. >> Good afternoon.

Thank you. You have three minutes. >> Okay. Thank you so much.

Um, my name is Dr. Haley Cunningham. Many of you all

know me. Um, I am the co-chair of the Coalition to End the HIV epidemic in Durham and also an HIV care provider at Radical Healing. Um, I just wanted to thank um, Bo Ferguson for responding to Chelsea Cook's request for some information about why the request for proposals was withdrawn um, earlier this spring to be able to use unused HOPA funds. Um essentially the the response said that it was deemed that Healing with Care and Partners in Caring um lacked capacity to administer the funding.

Um without explaining why or what sort of capacity would have been necessary um we I had a few concerns about the response. one being that the city itself and the city administrators have seemed to not have capacity to administer the funds for a few years at least. Um and so it it didn't feel right to say that

community organizations lack capacity um when it hasn't been used previously. Additionally, my understanding is that the funds could be used to build capacity. So for example, healing with care um has been operated by Miss Carolyn Hinton and a few others for years. It has been very challenging after COVID to have funding.

So Miss Carolyn is housing four plus folks at any given time without any reimbursement since December. Um and that is not sustainable. Um and with HOPA funding, that is how you hire folks to do the work. Um, I'm here.

Other folks on the coalition are advocating for use of HOPA funds for a change in the system without being paid to do so. And of course, I don't have the capacity to run anything, but if we could utilize that money to pay folks who have the expertise, have the drive, we would have capacity. Um, and it's also interesting that now there

is an agreement or a contract with DSS to administer most HOPA funds when they have not been able to do so in the past just because of structural barriers. They've got a lot of other things on their plate and also there should be there should not be one entry point to access HOPA funds and it should not be through DSS because a lot of folks have burned bridges there. A lot of folks need special care, special attention, and help with health conditions um that DSS cannot handle. And so I'm calling upon you to sit down and meet with our coalition members.

Um it would be lovely to to meet with Bo Ferguson, Chelsea Cook, Carl Rus, others who are interested as well as city council or city staff to really work together on a plan. Um because so far we've been I've been talking at y'all and re we've been receiving information but it the collaboration's not there and I think we could accomplish a lot together. Thank you. >> Thank you. Um Manager Ferguson, I don't

know if you wanted to I I just want to appreciate the comments, Miss Cunningham and others who have who have advocated around the the matter the issue of HOPA funding. Um I I think I speak for staff when I say I I agree. I think there is room for discussion around capacity building and I think um the staff who are administering the program and as you know we have new leadership coming into the housing and neighborhood services department. I think it's a priority for us to to lean into those conversations.

I think uh some of the discussions over the last couple of months have been what what to do right now and what can we do right now with the funding we have. And I think the the intention to commit those funds to DSS is an understanding that there's capacity there that that is able to expend those funds. But I want to acknowledge and lean into the fact that we're very interested in continuing dialogue with community partners who want to do capacity building and help us spend these funds. So those are conversations we will have. I know staff advised me we've got uh a meeting set up tomorrow. So I think u I would just like to commit that we'll continue those conversations.

>> Okay. What kind of meeting is it? An open meeting? >> Uh, no.

It's an uh a staff meeting with one of our community partners. And I think I'll leave it at that. So, thank you. >> Thank you.

Thank you so much for being here with us. Thanks. >> Thank you. Um, the next person I have is Thomas Hennessy.

>> Hello. Thank you. Nice afternoon. Thank you.

You have three minutes. Thank you. >> Thank you so much. Nice to meet uh you all finally in person.

Uh first off, Mr. Manager, Mr. Assistant Manager. I can't tell you first, thank you.

Thank you so much for listening to our concerns. Thank you for acting so quickly. Uh Keith, I know we had some tense discussions and and respectfully, it's just the residents there on Queen Street and the issues that Chris brought up. You know, it's concerning when kids can't play in their backyard. So again, some of the city projects, it's been

frustrating to watch. Carl, you've alluded to it in some meetings and how they drag on and drag on and drag on and you hear it many times that, you know, the city just, you know, for some reason can't get things done and and it was absolutely tremendous. Mr. Manager, thank you for acting so quickly.

Clearly, like Chris said, there's there's a need for more shelters, more affordable housing. We have a great relationship with the Durham VA. I try to provide housing for homeless veterans. We try to do our part.

There needs to be a public private relationship and we need to do this together. But there is an article recently, I'm sure you may have seen it with the struggles through Durham Habitat and the CEO and the drama, but there are a few statements there which you know Durham Habitat apparently they're starting to sell homes at market rate. That's extremely concerning. They raise really good issues. taxes, insurance, building costs. You know, Carl, it's tremendous progress that the city is helping and doing interest free loans for 100 units, but in a city of 300,000,

that's a drop in the bucket. We need hundreds and hundreds more. " And it's a concern. And I've watched every single council meeting um for the last couple years, every single work session, JCCPC, you know, Nate, I know, you know, there's been some pressed pressure to say like how how do we do this?

And like nobody for the last two years has been talking about opportunity zones. Durham has opportunity zones. There are favorable incentives that can promote development within those zones, both on the investment side, on the sales side. there's ways to create hybrid models for for sa for for rent product for sale product and I it's it's frustrating that no one's seeing that I don't know the right form to get more involved but I see I'm running out of time I really want to mention one thing you know more than happy to do meetings or talk and

share and collaborate on ideas but the rail trail is a concern you hear about all the struggles happening but yet the city you know with its parks closed down fenced off lead contamination yet the city somehow finds $45 million for a rail trail. 5 million for every tenth of an acre. How? What's going on?

We We question certain things, but I've never seen anyone question a bill, an invoice, paying consultants millions and millions and millions of dollars when people are struggling. I I so I I really hope >> Thank. >> Thank you. >> Thank you so much.

>> Uh that is all I have for public comment this afternoon. So, we'll move on to our um pulled agenda items. Um Mr. Manager, the what I have is number four, five, and seven.

>> Okay. And I think number four was uh by staff. >> So, I just uh I only pulled this uh for procedural purposes. This was placed on the agenda by Mayor Prom Mark Anthony Militin. Following council procedures,

the first step in that is for a council member to request it be placed uh and for council to consent. uh that happened at the last work session. Normally what would happen at the next work session is that council member would lead a conversation amongst council members about their intent. The intent of this item is uh as I understand it from the mayor prom and from the materials you had in your packet that uh that the council uh if so interested could designate uh the property that is currently the home of the Durham History Museum to remain uh the and and be designated permanently as the home of the Durm History Museum.

Um, I pulled this procedurally to advise uh council members that the next step if you wanted to proceed with this would be to go ahead and ask staff to bring this forward as a formal item. I would have refer this to the real estate division. They would come back with what I suspect is a resolution that would simply uh confer that that resolution is not in the packet for you today. So the the matter for your consideration today is simply to provide this as direction to

staff if that is your uh choice to do so. We are prepared to receive that uh and wanted to offer that since the mayor prom is absent today. >> Thank you so much colleagues. Council member Burrist.

>> Yeah. Oh um if the request is just you want to request for us to bring back a formal item. I would support that 100%. I know council member Kavier was also has been on the board of the history museum as well.

>> No I was just part of the working group. >> The working group. Yeah. Yeah.

So yeah I think it's exciting. I think it's you know we've been having conversations. I know director Mucklo's here been talking about permanent home for the museum. I think it's a great great idea.

It's been an amazing part of our downtown landscape. So, yeah, let's do it. >> Thank you. Uh, council members Cooker, Baker, any comments?

Are you all comfortable with moving it? Okay, thank you. So, um, I am as well. I think you have what you need from us.

>> Sure. As soon as the item is ready, we'll place it on the next available work session. We'll certainly inform the museum when that's scheduled. >> Perfect.

Thank you. And thank you to Mayor Prom. I know he's not here today for making sure we move this forward. Thank you. Uh, Council Member Cook, I

think you are up. >> Yes. >> Hi. Um, this is actually more of a anformational thing because I know there's been a couple of amendments and I just wanted you to speak to um I'm sorry, not yes, the two the one both back in August and the one that we're talking about today, how that has furthered this program and then also was hoping that um we could just have a better understanding and how like >> moving the money from shelter expenses to admin activities is helpful.

And then I think today we're doing a a reduction in documentation requirements just like what that looks like in real practice and why it is helpful for us. >> Sure. Yes. I'll answer some of these questions.

Ryan Smith, director of community safety. I'll ask um Colin Davis to come up and answer some of your questions. Council member Cook. Um you had a number of items there.

I wonder if you could you actually restate them one more time for me? >> Yes, I could. Um, so I'm just curious about the amendments to start off and um

and how moving money from shelter expenses to admin activities, that was the amendment we did in August, right? >> How that helped further. >> Yeah. Can I take one at a time?

I'll answer. >> So in the previous amendment, there was a change to move. We had roughly 79,000 that was left over from last White Flag for Open Table Ministries that was not used in order to stand up the new shelter because they had to move locations this year to Aspbury United Methodist. They had spent their admin dollars and part of what they used their admin dollars for was to do the necessary inspection of that property in order to get it uh approved by the fire marshal and others so that we could use that space.

So, we did the amendment that was basically just moving money from the shelter side to a little bit more of the admin side for that express purpose of being able to make sure that this new site could be inspected. They could pay for the inspection fees by an architect so that we could move that process forward so that the shelter could open on time, which it did. Good news. It opened this past weekend to offer uh 20 beds every night during the

winter of expanded capacity. And that's great. So, that's why we did that. >> Cool.

And then this one is the reduction in documentation requirements. Can you just talk a little bit about that? >> Sure. I think you know as contracts have come over to our department, one of the things we have been looking at is um what documentation are we requiring of providers?

What is the reason for that documentation? Does it support the overall outcomes that we need? Um, in some cases we were requiring of providers a level of documentation required by HUD and federal grantees that is necessary for those but not necessary for the the things that we really care about in the numbers that we look at. And so we were looking for ways uh where it was just coming out of the designated housing fund to really ask ourselves the fundamental question that we should ask in contracts which is what is the reporting that we need? uh what are the things that we care about and what things are there opportunities here to streamline this so that we're not creating added unnecessary administrative burden for our providers and that we're getting the information that we need to be good stewards of public dollars and so we did take the

advantage in this as we're looking at other contracts to think about opportunities to streamline reporting so that it makes sense and it doesn't create unnecessary burden >> yeah thank you and I really appreciate that as just a general idea that I do I do think that we sort of in the city get trapped sometimes into this like overdocumentation which of course transparency is very important, but when it's when we're talking about efficiency and getting work done, um I like to hear that we're taking a second look at those. So, I was excited to see this item and you touched on it already, but I was wondering if you could say again what we're offering. Um and I don't know if Open Table's on the call and they want to do it or if you want to do it, but just give us a >> an in-depth summary because I've been I know people have been sharing the information, but I want to make sure that everyone >> Yeah, this is a good chance to talk about that. So I'll talk about it specific to this and I'll say a few highle remarks about white flag in general.

So uh Open Table has been the one of the city's primary partners in providing additional safe warm places for people to sleep during the coldest nights of the year. We refer to those locally. We often talk about white flag.

White flag is triggered when the weather report forecast that it's going to be 35 degrees with precipitation or 32 degrees and below. um on those nights because we do not have sufficient shelter capacity. I think you know the more recent numbers have been about 150 single adults on a wait list and anywhere from 50 to 60 families on weight list for shelter. On the coldest nights the the city is working to expand shelter capacity to provide more safe warm spaces.

Open table for whom this contract is for has been a critical partner in that. Um, historically they have provided 20 beds on on white flag nights. This contract is a little different this year. It's the same amount, but it's going to be 20 beds every night uh for three con for four consecutive months.

Um, and that's really important. We will still have >> not just white flag nights, >> not just so for this contract, it is not just white flag. It started this past weekend and it will run through uh mid-March. Uh but it is 20 extra uh bed wipe 20

extra shelter beds during the coldest time of the year. Um it doesn't cost us more to do it. We're doing it at that same and it's actually more efficient for uh the partner o open table because it is harder for them to staff overnight on only when you know when white flag is triggered. So it's easier for them to recruit and staff and then it provides us a consistent extra 20 beds in the coldest time of the year.

And so I think that's a great um a great addition that we're able to make to White Flag this season and appreciate Drew and his team and Open Table um for finding a way to do that. Um so that's that's one piece. We've historically added 20. We're continuing to add 20, but it's just available more nights.

And when you think about it, it's it's critically important that that we find ways on the coldest nights when it drips below freezing. But if you've ever been outside and it's 38 degrees and you've tried to sleep in that, >> you know that that's also like a really important way that we can provide safety and dignity to folks. And so I'm glad that in this way we're able to do a little bit more of that. Um we're just a couple other things about White Flag in general. Uh I'm very proud of the work

uh that folks on the hope team, which is our homeless services team, um has done to try to expand additional capacity. So we have done a few things I'll highlight. We have increased um partnerships. We have new folks who are coming to the table to support this work.

We've been working with Durham Canan and DCIA to really ask faith communities and other community organizations to find ways that they can step up to help us provide more safe, warm spaces for people to sleep. Um, in that work, we've created a campaign called 100 Days of Warmth that's inviting uh offering folks uh ways that they can both contribute funds to organizations that are doing this work. They can volunteer for those organizations and they can help us identify spaces that might serve as extra shelter. One of the good things coming out of this, and I'm not going to name this specific location until we have all the details finalized, but we do have and we'll have in December, uh, a new family shelter that will be opening up, and we'll provide details as soon as we get all that finalized, we'll provide, you know, up to 50 more spaces for families on the coldest nights of the year, which is great. um historically families moving forward has

been our core partner and they have in addition to what they do every year have added four additional rooms and they'll continue to do that but this is going to be a major expansion um of safe warm places for people for families to sleep and as I've shared with you we have had on average roughly about 50 families on weight list for shelter so that's a great new thing that we're providing this year and again added partnerships are making that possible through the faith community and others who are stepping up um urban ministries expands capacity on white flag night as does I mentioned families moving forward. So, urban ministries adds extra beds. Um they have been a great partner in this space. We have DCRC um which is this year um becoming a white flag partner and adding additional space.

Um so all that has been I think really positive and and adding more safe warm spaces for people in Durham. And then I'll say the other two things is that we're really increasing coordination. So we bring all of the providers in this space weekly together to talk about and be not we've been doing a lot of prep work but

they're doing that throughout white flag to talk about what was our utilization rate did we have beds that were unused how can we think about any challenges that are emerging are we seeing issues for example with folks being discharged out of the hospital and we don't have places for them around mo medically vulnerable so it's a great place of bringing all of our providers together to do that work in partnership and then we've added on a layer in response to what we heard from our providers of providing overnight coordination because we we also got Volunteers for America that runs coordinated entry to increase their hours. m. which is really critical because they're a designed to be a front door. So, they've expanded their hours.

So, appreciative of that. And then we've layered on top of that, we go on call. We have a team on our who goes on calls so that if if a first responder or someone encounters someone overnight who needs shelter, they have a single number they can call as opposed to trying to guess which which of our various spaces may have beds available. we coordinate so we can make sure we utilize those beds because one of the challenges we also faced uh last white flag is um say one of our shelters um

may have beds that get reserved but someone doesn't show up and we didn't have a capacity to make sure that then we could then know that there was an empty bed that we could fill that night and now we do and we've already seen increased utilization as a result. I think the team on a bunch of different fronts is trying to make sure we utilize what we have, add capacity where we can, increase collaboration and partnership, and I think these are all positive steps forward this season, and that's more than you asked. >> That's exactly what I wanted. Thank you so much.

Um because I had already read it, but I it's great to hear it again. Um >> just out of curiosity, >> yes, >> sorry to raise this up because I know that this is a thing that gets talked about a lot. Um, but you mentioned before that people are in danger at temperatures that are above 32 degrees. Um, with this being our city dollars, is there um any opportunity to change that? Because I know that 32 degrees is a I think it's a federal guideline. Is that true or is that a is that a city set number?

>> That's a good question. And I actually don't know the history behind. Do you know Colin? Can you speak to that?

Please come up. >> Good afternoon. Colin Davis, uh, contract manager and community safety department. So, historically, we've used 32 because that's the freezing temperature.

It's not a federal mandate. It's just what we've used as the cutoff. And then we've expanded it to 35 with precipitation. It could be any number that we choose.

It's also looking at where are people most at danger and nationwide most most communities use 32 as their cold weather cutoff if they don't do it on a nightly basis. There are communities like we're doing and we've done in the past the every night from you know November 1st, December 1st, whatever date communities pick for the cold weather season. >> Thank you. Yeah. Um that is interesting. I thought it was a a nationwide thing

and so that's interesting to hear that we've sort of come up with that number. I'm um you it's relatively consistent across communities is what I'm hearing. Um just a just a push back on that and and something to be thinking about because we now have these consistent 20 extra beds, but these are not family beds. These are single single beds that we have now for the entirety of November 15th through March 15th.

Um, and we are still seeing all of our extra family rooms and spaces that only open are triggered by temperature. So, just as as a thought that maybe we consider raising that because what we're looking at is folks who are have children and we know that they're going to be more vulnerable. Um, so just just something to think about. Would love to see it.

I know there's like always debates on like which weather app to use and all these different things. Um, but we did have somebody that died last year. uh in in this area had a degree that was not a white flag um triggering temperature and so I just want to just want to keep

raising that because it's something that concerns me all winter long. >> Thank you. >> I appreciate that. Thank you.

It concerns us too and I appreciate that and we'll look into it. Thank you. >> Thank you so much. Uh Council Member Cook, next item.

Great. Okay. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon.

Matt Walker, uh, housing and neighborhood services. Um, here to answer any questions you may have. >> Thank you, Matt. Okay.

Um, just a few questions about this. Um, so I understand that this is a city match requirement. um curious to know how that amount was reached and then what the um and then like how the projects are vetted for that city match. >> Okay. So in the choice neighborhood application um that was a joint application with the city and the

5 million in CDBG to the overall effort. So that's a number that's set by the application to get the maximum >> correct >> amount points. And then how do we uh vet the projects that we spend our city match money on? >> Well, it the the projects because it's a joint application between the city and the hous and the housing authority um that was vetted on the departmental level with um DHA and there's also um I guess advisory committees.

So this was proposed by the housing authority in consultation with our department director. >> Okay. So, but it originated from DHA. I'm just interested to know like how because it's money that we're spending. Obviously, I know we're spending it in partnership. I'm just curious to know how we are >> vetting the projects and if there's conversation around how much we're spending or uh this type of thing because we're going to have kind of a funny small amount left over after this

project in our city match amount. 5 was committed and there's two projects. one project is under the manager's threshold, so it's not um on the agenda. Um we're also have $250,000 that's going toward the Hatai facade improvement project.

>> Okay. So, we've already that was part of my question. So, we've already allocated our other one. >> That's correct.

>> Um yeah. And then I guess for me when I'm looking at this and it's just helpful for me to understand and we've expressed this about other things too, but when I'm thinking about the monetary expenditure here and I'm like looking at this, it's helpful for me to kind of know like what y'all are balancing when you're making the decision to spend this money here because um although I think that y'all probably have done the calculations to ensure that this is like the way to spend it to make the most impact in the city, it's helpful for us to be able to see that analysis so that we can sort of explain why this is the project that we've chosen to do. >> Um, and part of it I think is that when

I see rehabilitation of a DHA property that triggers in my mind that that's a DHA responsibility and so it's just interesting to then have our city match money. And of course I know it's part of like an application that was done as a whole and we partner with them. Um, but that would be helpful information for for us to know is just like >> how we kind of came to this decision, how we know that this is like the greatest impact for our dollars if that makes sense. >> We did we uh we did go through some other alternatives if it's um Okay, I can get back to you with that information.

>> Yeah, that would be great. >> Great. >> Thank you. >> Go ahead.

Come up, Council Member Risto. >> Thank you, Mr. Walker. Yeah.

And it's crazy how time flies. I remember the old few gardens. It's like 20 years ago that we that we re that we renovate or actually re rehab the whole few gardens now and built the Calbert Place and the Main Street Town Home. So, I just appreciate that you all are working with DHA to get that $40 million choice neighborhoods initiative grant to do a lot of good in this city, including renovating these apartments that are again are critical. It's 118 units of

affordable housing. So, thanks for being on top of that and making sure those units are still ones we can use and and safely and affordably house families. So, thank you. >> Thank you.

I did have one more question which is um if the rehabilitation costs less or more than the money that's allocated is that does does DHA bridge that gap or does the city or how does it work? >> Well, we happen to have uh representatives from DHA here. >> Hello. >> Mr.

Snell's getting tired of me pulling him up here. >> I always say that, you know, say my name and then say interim CEO. I almost feel like I'm part of the city staff over there. last month or so.

So, I I'm appreciate your questions, but uh there's a there's an important fact here when we look at these these u these two developments. Uh this was part of an overall strategy to preserve 226 units of affordable housing. This was

part of DHA's strategy to acquire the ownership of these properties once they had uh pro had gone through their litec period. So we have the options under these transactions. We exercise our options to become the 100% owner of them. We buy out the tax credit investors.

They exit and we take care of you know other costs that are related to this. So although we are focused on these two properties which are in the CNI footprint in which these dollars could only be used for these particular properties in the CNI footprint. It's part of a larger strategy and it was part of the preservation of these units so that they would be long-term affordable units. So, I think that's important to know as we take a look at them. >> And the rehabilitation is part of this.

This is part of the long-term preservations. There are dollars that are generated from the operation of this of these properties that will be applied to this work as well. >> That is so helpful. Thank you so much.

>> Okay. Thank you. >> Thank you. Council member Baker, did you have any questions?

No. I just wanted to say thank you. I remember when we won this award. Uh it was a a huge honor.

Quite frankly, this was a ton of money that came to Durham. Uh so I just want to thank our our partners at DHA. Um I remember when it was awarded and and a lot of folks from HUD came down and it was competitive. There were a lot of folks vying for this money.

So it's a good thing that Durham got it. Thank you. Thank you. Um, that is all I have for pulled items. So, I think our last uh item is our presentation for the downtown Durham blueprint.

Um, Binsky with the plan development department. I'm just standing here to introduce Nicole Thompson uh with DDI um to present the uh the blueprint uh plan. And that's really all I've got. Obviously, I'll be around for any questions that you'all have.

>> Thank you. >> What was it? The other role Mr. Dinsky will play as a reminder is uh if at the conclusion of the presentation uh would would love to get some thoughts and direction from council about next steps.

We we sort of purposely left this open-ended. Council has some uh decisions to make uh and the planning department, planning development department may have a a role if council chooses to consider uh more formally adopting the plan. So we've got Mr. Dinsky here for that as well. Thank you. >> Good afternoon, uh, city manager, uh, madame council member and all council members.

Um, here to talk to you about the downtown Durham blueprint. Uh, this is something that we have been mentioning and discussing for a couple of years. Um, and we're very excited that we have a final document to bring to you. Uh and um we're very hopeful that you will consider this um and adopt this as an official city plan.

Um we have taken this to the planning commission um back in October in October um presented to the planning commission and now we're coming to you to to present. So with that, here we go. Here's the agenda that we'll what we'll go through. We'll spend a little bit of time talking about public engagement.

Um and how we have um tried to include um plans, previous, current, future plans into our plan. Um what we are seeing happening in the downtown area today. Um and then dive a little bit into the vision, the goals, the strategies, and then finally share a little bit about implementation. I figure that I have a good solid three hours um to go through this because I

know you all like to be here. >> Yeah. Five. So, I'm I'm I'm going to try to take my time and talk really slowly because I know you all want to do that.

Um before I get started, uh we did work with a group out of Philadelphia. Um Interface Studio was the lead consultant on this uh chosen through a competitive RFP process. Um they had with them three other firms, four other firms that they worked with. The local firm was uh blackspace uh but they also worked with and access around the retail small business piece.

Um nine uh partners which worked on the economic development uh business piece, larger business recruitment piece um and um all together which helped with the engagement. So actually three not four. Um so that is who we worked with. Uh they were great to work with um really helped us a lot with the engagement. um and really have put together what we believe to be a solid plan. We also had a part of this process um a steering committee which was created uh of about

13 members that we can share with you, but it was covering all sorts of um representatives um throughout the uh Durham community. Uh and we have been engaging with them up until about six months ago. So our public engagement, we believe that we have touched close to 3,000 people through our process. We spent a probably a good solid year working to get the engagement um right.

Um making sure that we were popping up at the right places um and in fact going out sometimes beyond the downtown border and trying to uh interact with and engage individuals who might visit. Um but here's a list of all the ways that we touched, talked to, participated, interacted with people. Um of course what's the plan without a survey? So, we started off with a survey where we hit about 2,300 people, 2,200 people, um, working with our partners who pushed it out through all of their different social channels. Um, but then we did a number of popups. Um, we did a kickoff at our state of downtown Durham event.

Um, we did a follow-up kick um um um touch at our our last state of downtown Durham event. um in order to ensure that we were reaching into communities, we actually did a very special Black Voices of the Future panel working with um MotoCo um where we had a panel of individuals talking about the future of downtown Durham. Uh and then also kind of exploring ways that they would um what they saw the future being. Uh we had an open house in January.

We were very excited that we had 200 participants because that was a snow day. Uh and uh we were excited to work with Pickleback in order to ha host that that popup event, but happy that we were able to get 200 people who came um some with children. So we actually got quite a bit of uh feedback from youth. Um our survey was done um working with partners.

It was pushed out in um Spanish so that we could ensure that we were getting uh Spanish um input as well. Uh we are considering the possibility of how we can ensure that some of this material is translated into Spanish. um perhaps it could be our

quick guide but we are looking at once this becomes an official document how we can make sure that we continue to engage with that that community. Uh we did any number of interviews uh we we all talked quite a bit with our local businesses and as I mentioned our steering committee this these are just some examples of the pop-ups that we um participated in. I I will call out that we attended the NCCU Eagle Mania last year, uh the back back to school block party, something that we initiated and working with DHA. Um quite a bit of input from that.

We worked with our Latino credit union u many times at the farmers market. Um and all this is the great work of all together. Um this is these are some pictures from the Black Voices of the Future panel that we held in collaboration with um Black Space and Motorco. Uh and then um our Durham Future Fest.

This was the event that we had in January. This is when we first started unveiling some of our goals and visioning. Um just to make sure that we were on the right track. Um again, what's a plan if you don't have a chance for folks to put colored dots and

post-it notes. Um so we, as you can see, we had that. Um but asking them to really respond to the things that really spoke to them and did not speak to them. We also have a page on our website.

Um and people can request to be added to that and they get notified of um information uh and as we are doing updates they continue to get notified of those things. Um so what we heard I'll run through these more communication more enhanced wayfinding uh meaningful engagement that leads to action. Um I think we have heard that in all of our plans um that that that have come come before you. Uh we've very much heard um in our our uh engagement, how do we honor Durham's history?

How do we keep up and make sure that we are uplifting the rich cultural heritage? Uh how do we support our small minority womenowned businesses? Um how do we make sure that downtown feels like a neighborhood with diverse housing options? I will stress that affordable but also middle income, middle missing income. uh how do we invest in

infrastructure safe streets safe safe treat safe streets and more accessible for downtown. So this is looking at mobility bikes scooters um but then just other issues around mobility uh and then how we can transform our public spaces. We have quite a few people tend to overlook them but we have quite a few quirky wonderful open spaces. How do we make them inviting?

How do we make them safe? How do we utilize them? So that's what we have heard. I won't read these.

These are just some of the things that we have pulled out that people said they liked or that they would like to see. Um it's it's pretty impactful when you when you read some of the things that that we did receive, but this is just kind of a um a shout out of of some of those things that we heard. Um but from all of that, we we came to that there were three key priorities that were really going to be the foundation of our blueprint. And that was that we would get we would keep downtown safe and welcoming. That we would keep Durham Durham. that is getting to the culture and the um strategy um at the culture and the history that makes downtown so so unique and that we would remain a vibrant and growthoriented uh downtown.

So with that oh no that that is correct. Sorry I'm out thinking myself. Um, prior to getting to our goals, we recognized that there were any number of plans that were being done in, around, and adjacent to downtown, and it didn't make sense for us to continue to do our plan without really touching and bringing those groups together. So, uh, we had a meeting where we had representatives from all of these plans attend at the Carolina Theater.

uh they they hosted us there uh and we had a chance for everyone to kind of come together and really talk about their plans um and how those plans fed into our plan um how we could support those plans, how those plans could support our plans. Um so we have done one of those meetings. It is our intent that we will do more meetings probably not bringing everybody in the space but around the different strategies bringing these individuals these plans back together and checking in to ensure that that we are collaborating as we can. Nobody

wants to get on the opposite side of a plan. Um I will say because I I know everyone is quite aware of the um destination master plan. That is a plan that we are very much working very closely with uh Susan and Tara um as they roll that plan out. Uh that has some direct correlations to things that we want to do and there's quite a bit of support between both of them.

Um but there are other plans especially within the transportation department that we continue to work with um with individuals on. Um so what are we seeing? what's happening today. Uh, and this is important because if you think back to five years ago, downtown looked and felt much different than it does today.

I just going to state the obvious. Um, but we know that new construction is rapidly changing the fill and the cost of living. Um, hybrid work policies are decreasing work um workday foot traffic which is impacting our small businesses. Um, we we no longer have the 9 to5 or the 8 to six work workforce in the downtown area. We are still tracking that and and if you're downtown, you know, Mondays and

Fridays are a little slow. Things pick up a little bit on Tuesday. Wednesday might be a good day. Thursday could be a good day.

But our businesses continue to try to figure out how to operate a business when a significant part of their business model is no longer coming to where they are. Um downtown open spaces, all of them need a makeover. Um and how can we offer more for people to do in those spaces? Um, we have a number of one-way roads um and disjointed streets.

How do we work with the city to improve those and make them more accessible by car, bus, but also pedestrian um bike and and um scooter? Uh parking is an issue. You know, could I really get up here and talk to you if I didn't say something about parking? Parking is an issue in downtown both for customers and for employees.

So, how can we work through those issues? Downtown's anchors and food food and beverage establishments. We need more variety. We have a lot of restaurants.

We've got a lot of places to find a great drink. We need more variety in the downtown. How can we work to identify what that variety looks like and bring that into

the downtown area? Uh safety concerns continue to be something that is brought up. Perceptions of safety. Um and that there also these perceptions that downtown isn't for everyone.

The cost of of being downtown, not having um affordable spaces in downtown, not having having open spaces in downtown. So, how can we work to to change that perception? And finally, despite these challenges, downtown must remain unique, cool, quirky, and funky. So, here are our seven goals.

I'm going to go through each one of them. Not in excus not in a lot of detail, but enough so that you know what they are. Um, but we're very pleased with these. I think they get to quite a bit of the things that that we need to address in order to move downtown forward.

Uh, first one is rooted and ready. Um, and this is how do we celebrate the heritage that is so important to Durham? How do we celebrate the culture that is so important to Durham um in the downtown area? How do we make it a welcoming space for everybody? Um, these are the um strategies, objectives

for those. Um, first and foremost, we do a lot of talking about creating destinations in downtown and it was brought, you know, we all know this, but you kind of overlook it. Our consultants said, "We already have it. You have it with Paris Street.

You have it with with a a street that is um ripe for for um good sound development, uplifting the history that exists there. You have great parks that exist on on the end of that. How can you bring all of that together? How can you tie it to CCB Plaza?

Also looking at how we can work with our partners, create a hub for the growing Latino community in the downtown area. Um we know that we have a very strong presence. um and how can we support that so that it's not a one-off, but it is as constant and as um readily known as the um Black Wall Street c culture that exists. How do we create more destinations for families?

Um high quality uh what is what does that look like? Um is it parks? Is it is it museums? How do we bring more families into the downtown area? Um how do we encourage public um um art within the public realm? And then finally, how do

we streamline the permitting process to make all of these things easier, especially for events? Our second goal is open for business. Um, this is supporting our small businesses and making sure that they feel heard, that they feel safe, and that they have customers continuing to come to them. Um, here we have seven um objectives.

Um, these are looking at developing a uh centralized program for public safety. you know, how do we help to ensure that they have ways to report issues that are impacting their business? How do we preserve affordable ground space for small businesses, making that affordable? How do we provide TA um to support the downtown retailers and restaurants?

Uh developing strategic parking and loading management for businesses and customer use. Um if you are in the downtown area, there are times when you're coming up and there's a there's a delivery truck parked in the road and there are cars trying to get by. How do we how do we ensure that that our curb management is allowing for all of these uses in a very small downtown footprint um without causing undue issues or challenges? Um appoint a

dedicated coordinator to guide businesses and um budsmen through the um permitting um process. Um expanding business hours and programming to capitalize on downtown events. that is working with our small businesses and they are well aware of when we're doing an event or there's a big event how we can encourage them to um stay open open later so that they can capture that that additional foot traffic um and then address gaps and needs for increased variety of businesses through strategic tenant recruitment. Um so what is important there is developing a plan and then going out and recruiting.

Um and that plan is looking at how we can ensure that downtown is offering things that make downtown attractive. um that is getting a little bit to how can we and entice folks with with um creative ways to address parking um ways to help with upfit, things of that nature. Our third um um strategy is welcome home. Our goal is welcome home.

Sorry, it's right there. I missed it. Our third goal is welcome home. And that is how do we build a true neighborhood where we have

the diverse housing options that that people want in a downtown area and that we have the amenities to support them. Um through that we are looking at how we can work with the city to identify and reserve publicly owned sites for future mixed income and mixeduse development. Um while it is important to continue to have housing, we also need to understand that we we need some additional mixeduse development occurring in the downtown area. How do we co coordinate u with supportive housing providers and advocates advocates to address the needs of the unhoused?

Um and I I'll talk a little bit about how some of these things we're already addressing. um developing a micro grant program for community-led implementation. These are small small grants. Someone has an idea to come and put a planner in front of their their store for $500 just to make the store look nicer or very small little pop-up ways to just make downtown look nice. Um led by the community. uh continuing to engage downtown residents to promote a sense of community and then select uh

set clear expectations for how key development sites should be designated. Again, working very closely with our city um as we look at those development opportunities and how we can ensure that they're catalytic and driving good sound development for downtown. Our fourth goal is walk and roll. This is all around mobility.

How do how do people get around downtown? How do they get around downtown um in in a safe manner? Um regardless of how they want to move through the downtown area, uh what's the master plan? If we don't talk about the loop, so of course we have a redesign of the loop.

Um we feel that is very important uh that it has to be red redesigned. That redesign is our our preference would be to look at working with the city and the state recognizing that that is a stateowned road. How do we two-way that loop? Um, and then if we cannot, if there are just things that that will not allow it, then how do we make sure that that one-way loop um is is conducive and is not a barrier from folks walking from the core of downtown over the railroad tracks to ATC or up north towards uh Durham Central Park and

the great things that Durham Central Park now wants to do through its vision and also the um old ball field and the rail trail. Um how do we strengthen automo connections along key streets and between anchor destinations? Um an example of this is along the Blackwell, Corker and Foster Street um but also um Gregsson Duke um Roxboro and Mangum. Um so how do we how do we work with the city to ensure those things happen?

Um and there we go. Strengthening connections along Foster, Corker, and Blackwell as a major pathway. Fifth goal, common grounds. Uh downtown will be filled with inviting, connected, and wellutilized public spaces.

This gets back to we have so many of these spaces. How do we ensure that we're using them in a way that they're inviting um and encouraging people to linger in our downtown, come grab lunch, sit outside, enjoy the experience, um kids jumping around, playing, those those kinds of things. Um improving the connections between our open spaces. So, we have a quite a few open spaces that are that that are already under underway. How do we make sure that

people can connect to them easily? Um upgrading CCB Plaza. Um it is a wonderful place and as we know it is a place where folks gather to to show displeasure to show solidarity. Um how do we ensure that we keep that space for that purpose but how do we also make sure that it is used on on the hottest day in July where there is no shade and and while we have umbrellas out there right now it does it does a little for what it could be.

How do we redesign the convention center plaza um so that it is less um um brick and um concrete and more appealing and then people can move throughout the area um that is conducive to folks with mobility challenges. How do we leverage the uniqueness of downtown's alleys? We have quite a few alleys. What could we do to encourage people to use them? Many of them can connect um an alternative from walking down Corkrin Foster. uh you could you could use the alley system and how do we draw people to the alleys and thereby also um have them um experience the businesses that are adjacent to those

alleys. Um how do we leverage the unique I just said that one. Um position the YMC as a downtown anchor giving its relocation. Um how do we continue to to work to ensure that it remains a central uh anchor in our downtown area?

It is one of the places in our downtown really that all incomes and all people do do continue to visit. And then how do we provide more shade downtown? Um our sixth goal only two more downtown works. How do we in how do we recruit businesses?

How do we ensure that um our downtown is home to companies of all sizes? We need jobs. We are an employment center. So how do we make sure that we are bringing jobs to the downtown area?

Uh jobs that make sense for Durham, that speak our language, that speak and uphold our values. Um and then also support our our businesses that are in the downtown area, our local businesses. Um objectives, preserve the old funkier downtown buildings for affordable office space. We have quite a few that still exists. We're one of the few communities where where we have those. Are is it possible to work with the um private

property owners and ensuring that those spaces remain um these funky one-story buildings that can be conducive and open to small businesses? How do we reten existing office space um in whatever manner that that might look like as we move forward? Um how do we explore conversion of existing commercial buildings into lab space? And I will say other other ideas recognizing that maybe it's not lab space, but there are other things that would make sense for the downtown area.

And then finally, how do we keep event driven economic activity in the downtown area? Again, our small businesses need people. We have a very walkable city. How do we make sure that those event um event leading um opportunities stay in the downtown area so that people can mingle and walk through the cool place that we have? And then finally, the more you know is getting to how we can we DDI and working with our partners um ensure that people know what's happening that we communicate with um our residents, we communicate with our visitors, we communicate with our businesses um let them know what's happening in the downtown area. Um that's improving the

perception of safety in downtown through marketing and messaging. Um that is changing the narrative that downtown isn't for everyone. Trying to uplift lift the inviting spaces that we have, the menu options that that our restaurants offer that are affordable. Um the festivals that are free and and are open to people um of of all backgrounds.

Um how do how do we highlight the affordable opportunities within downtown? And then how do we unify downtown by promoting destinations rather than districts? This is not saying that we would move away from our districts, but really letting people know you're in the the district where the Carolina Theater is. Go to the Carolina Theater and these are the things around the Carolina Theater.

Uh go to the Durham Durham um food hall um in Durham Central Park and these are the things that are in that area. So that's a little bit. This is the overall vision. This is just a really pretty picture um that we really like.

So we're sharing it. Um it's kind of showing you how all of these things are fitting together in our downtown area. Um how we we can move and work these things together. Um so now the

implementation as a part of our um RFP and requirement is we wanted to work with a group that would go beyond just the visioning. That's always fun. Everybody likes to do the visioning and do the renderings and it's like oh wow yay. And then we all feel great and we present it to you and you all go oh wow yay.

And then a year later no one has remembered it. This is how we're going to keep ourselves accountable. We have a very detailed implementation schedule um matrix. Um we are working um removing this from a spreadsheet that it's currently in how we would uplift this into Asana so that we really can make sure that we are keeping track of the of the um objectives and the goals and the strategies.

So this is just a picture. It's really really small. That's to let you all know that there's a lot in there. Um, so we have probably 70 pages of of just um implementation um information um broken down by by goals. So this is just a snapshot of the first one. I'm going to go into a little bit bit of detail so you can see you can

see what what is in the implementation. But first something that we are going to try to do throughout the implementation is where it's possible we will create these groups called tags um tactical action groups. Tag your it. uh we know that people are very passionate about downtown.

They want to be a part of it. They want to have have a say. They want to be sitting at the table and offering their ideas. So, how can we create small um opportunities for small groups to do that that they can help us?

They can start implementing some of these things. Um they can come together and they can work with with us and others to to make these things happen. Um different tags for different um um objectives. So it's not a requirement that if you're on one you have to be on a hundred.

This is really understanding that people have a passion for a very particular thing. They may love Paris Street, but the really the thing that they really care about is ensuring that there's public art along Paris Street. They don't really care that the the road is a shared road and that sidewalks work. That's just not their thing.

That'd be great. That's not what they want to do. So this is how we're going

to try to bring people in throughout the process. Um so if we just take a deep dive into um Paris Street um celebrate Paris Street as a unique destination, we understand that there are three pre primary elements of this um goal and that is they they include physical improvements, small business opportunities and events and placemaking. Um and it says here led by the um um the t the tag it actually will be led by us. We will be we will be leading this and bringing the individuals together and it also has the number of partners that we will be working with on on this overall goal.

To dive in this gives you a little bit of detail format tag to guide the overall vision for Paris Street as a must-sea cultural destination. And under that we have two main things that we would be looking at. Let me back up and say this is not one of the first ones that we're stepping out with. This is just an example so that you can see the level of detail. Um but it really is looking at bringing that stakeholder together. We are aware that there was a

paris street forum that existed a few years ago. Starting with that group and perhaps bringing others in to start the conversation about how can we ensure that we are listening to and being mindful of what needs to happen along Paris Street. Um and then creating a multi-year action plan. Um this is where the importance of ensuring that we're bringing our partners that are doing other plans.

um because someone may be doing something very similar and this and and we just have a small thing that we would add on to another plan that's happening or there's a way to merge what we're talking about with something bigger that's happening or it could be a brand new idea that that is brought to you um in order as as a as a a future project. Um go a step further. How do we redesign Black Wall Street Gardens to honor the area's history while welcoming a greater range of visitors and foot traffic? So very much taking a look at the Black Wall Street Gardens and Black Wall Street Plaza um and how we convene people together to really talk about what's going to go there. Um perform public outreach to gather input on what that the future should look like. Um

identify potential funding sources. So also embedded in here is that our our anticipation is not that you all fund everything unless you want to. Certainly, we would not say no, but identifying um nonprofits and philanthropic individual philanthropic individuals and national um organizations that also share a a um similar um understanding of the importance of this. Um and then develop a call for artists um in order to start working with the public art.

Um explore redevelopment opportunities for the Chapel Hill Street surface parking lot. Um that is something that you know what if this is a big what if um if we could do that and kind of expand the ability to do events with within the downtown area and really uplifting the um experience along Black Wall Street garden um when someone wants to come do something that is related to Black Wall Street doing it along Paris Street and doing a block party and shutting the street down and bringing that fill back. These are the some of the ideas that we have that that would allow for us to

look at the redevelopment of Chapel Hill. Many of these things would very much be working in tandem with the city and the county staff and coming to you. So, understanding that this is again a a joint partnership with the city. Um, this is just how we're going to try to hold ourselves accountable.

Um, another example is improving access to capital for entrepreneurs, especially black small businesses. Um so again working with our partners, our CDFI um partners and nonprofits, banks on how we may be able to not only identify where or how, you know, is are they little popup stalls that we could install along Orange Street um and then rent them out and then provide a little bit of funding through a CDFI or another lender where they could just do a popup and and start getting getting a feel for what it's like to do business in the downtown area. In addition to that, how do we provide technical assistance so that they can remain strong and successful in what they're trying to do and perhaps grow? Um provide storytelling opportunities through programming and temporary and

permanent installations. Again, using some of the spaces along Black Wall Street um in order to do this, working with our partners to do this, working with the public spaces to do this, uplifting um what is what is available, what the story is, what the history is of of Black Wall Street. And again, this is just one example. We could dive in really deep, but I'm actually going to let you leave before five o'clock, so we won't do that.

Um, so what are we already doing? I mean, we've come with this plan. Are we doing anything to even start moving the plan? And in fact, we are.

So, I've done this. I've colorcoded it based on the goals rooted and ready. We are we already know that there is some public art happening in downtown. Uh there's a public art um being installed on the um firehouse in the downtown area.

So, we are appreciative of the city moving forward with this. Um, so we know that some things are already happening along that opening for business. Uh, we will be rolling out safety ambassadors this month. Um, that will be trained. Um, it's a small small group of of three individuals, but we heard that loud and clear. Um, so they

are going through their training now. Um, working with our partners, um, our vendor block by block. So, we will be introducing three safety ambassadors, working closely with the heart team as well as the police when necessary. um safety resource for downtown businesses and residents.

We have created a magnet which has a a list of who to call based on what the issue is. You have a trash issue, you call this person. On house issue, you call you call this number. Um yes, that's it right there.

Um so, uh Carl Carl has one. I did not plant that. Thanks, buddy. Um >> on brand on brand.

Um a retail market analysis and strategy. Uh we know that we need more retail. We've got wonderful places to eat. We have a number of of places for you to eat, great places for you to enjoy a wonderful beverage, but we are we have been struggling with retail.

Prior to COVID, we had funding where we were going to do a retail analysis. Um that didn't really work in 2020. So, we kind of pivoted that money and did streeteries. Uh but we're coming

back around to how can we be intentional about the retail that we bring into the downtown area and how can we support that? And again, this would be looking at are there certain policies that we should have in place working with the city and the county to really make retail businesses interested in the downtown area and wanting to move forward with that. Um and then so we are starting that process. Um you were so gracious in allowing um um in including our budget.

So, we are having a conversation with um one of our consultants at a um and access on how to put together an RFP to move forward with creating the analysis and then and then the strategy to bring retail in the downtown area. We are just starting that starting to have the conversations retail incubator. We are moving forward with a brand new concept. So, two years ago, maybe a little bit longer, we started this concept of a incubator. I'm not a popup. I'm not a fan of popups because I don't think 30 days give you enough idea of what it's like to run a business in downtown or really any place but certainly not downtown when you have

to deal with parking, you have to deal with walk by traffic. Um you have to figure out how does what's my window display need to look like? How do I draw people in? Um so in front of our office space at 307 West Main, we have a small popup.

We have had three, four, four, we have had four different entrepreneurs in that space. Um, trying to get them used to the downtown area and and what it would take. One of those businesses actually did so well, we let the the business stay there for a year, did so well that they were able to move into a larger space. That is what we would like to see.

But also, we had a business that realized brick and mortar is not what I need to do. I cannot do the intense um um product that I have in a manner that someone can just walk in and get it. It's much better if I do it through through the mail through through through eBay. That's an old word, but um online.

There we go. Online. Um so we we probably save that individual quite a bit of money that they did not go out

and and spend a lot of money on on rent and and furnishings. So that was a success as well. We are now taking that that concept and working with our partners at Self-Help. We are moving to Market Street, the old empowered dance studio and we are converting that into a business incubator, a retail incubator, all retail.

We will have three small um entrepreneurs um in that space. Uh we are also working with the Durham Arts Guild. They will have art from a local artist up on the wall. Um so we are very excited about that opportunity.

Um more information will be coming. We're pushing information out about about the three um entrepreneurs. Uh we also have the wraparound service. So we are working with infinity infinity bridges who will be working with those three cohorts giving them the necessary assistance that they need in order to grow their business or identify.

Yep. Maybe maybe downtown isn't for you. So we those are some of the things we're working on under open for business. Welcome home. Um unhoused strategic plan. that's all you and the county and we are very

supportive of that. I serve on the advisory committee on that. Um we're very excited about what they're bringing in um what the ideas that they're sharing. Um so a thank you to you for having the foresight to do that.

Um and we're very happy to be a part of that. Um we're also aware that the county had an RFP for a day center. Again, that's that's the city and the county. So so you are doing some of the stuff that's in our blueprint.

Um revamp our it's your neighborhood residential council. So that is something that we do internally. We have an email for anyone that lives in the 01 district. Um, you can sign up for it.

We have some businesses that provide consent because you're a resident, but then we also do a um an email weekly letting them know, hey, this is the big event that's happening downtown. Oh, you should do this thing. Did you know trying to build that community? This is your home.

Some of these people may move. They may move out into another part of Durham, but we want their first experience, if it's downtown, to be one that they fall in love with and they keep coming back and they bring their friends. We also have a resident council. So, kind of maybe a little bit of a tag, but not really because they they they were kind of helping us ma maintain contact with our

property managers. We have a lot a lot of market um a lot of multif family and property managers change. So, they're kind of helping us by by remaining in touch with them and keeping us informed of who they are. Walk and roll, numerous transportation plans, many transportation plans, and we are working with Sean and his team on all of those.

bus rapid transit through the through downtown from Duke to the villages. Um we're a part of that conversation. The two-way of um Roxboro and uh Mangum, we're a part of those conversations. The bike facility uh plan that is along Corkran Blackwell Corkran Foster, we're a part of that conversation.

Um parking challenges, we as you know are a part of those conversations. So we are having those conversations. were a part of those uh the implementation of those things and working to ensure that the voices of the downtown businesses are there at the beginning of the conversation and not in the middle or the end. Common ground. Um this is again the the open spaces that we have the

alleys things like that. We are working with the city's innovation team. Um in fact the um students from NC State will be in town next week to present their ideas around a paper street. um what can we do with some of our paper streets to make them inviting um places that people want to stay and linger.

Um so very excited that the um IT team brought us in on that conversation. Uh the historic Durham athletic park feasibility study, you all are doing that, looking at how we can make that an event driven but also perhaps a a a space for people to be in. Um and then of course the Durham Central Park vision plan. Um so as you probably can see in some of these things, we know that we can't nor should we be doing everything.

We have partners that are doing a lot of the things and how can we use this blueprint to uplift the work that they are doing as well. Downtown works commercial land trust study. We have um $10,000 that we will start looking at what would it mean to to build a land trust of available commercial property in the downtown area. How would we go about identifying that? What things would we need to have

in place similar to the um is it the Durham Land Trust? >> Yes. uh similar to that but with a with a bent on um commercial. Um we're just beginning that so I have nothing to share with you.

If you ask the answer is I have nothing to share. We're just exploring getting ready to put together a scope of work for that. Um DDI available property database. Um we we have that we continue to ensure that that is um maintained so that people don't have to go through us but um they can go to our website and find out what's available.

Um and then exploring event- driven opportunities. Again, that is working with uh the city on what to do with the historic athletic park um with Dur Durham Next and Discover Durham on the possibility of a convention center, entertainment center in the downtown area. And then finally, the more you know that is continuing to do to do and if I do say so myself, the great work we do at marketing, what's happening in downtown through our amazing marketing team and our partners who take our message and uplift that. Continuing to do that and finding better

ways to do that. Man, that's all I have for you. I'm sorry it ended so quickly. I am happy to take any questions that you have.

Um but um very excited um truly what we are. This has been two years. So this is this is great um to be at this point to to present to you. >> Thank you so much.

Uh any questions? Council member Baker and then council member Rrist. Yeah, I think um first I just want to say that I will be um supporting that that we move forward with adopting this um at the council level. Uh I think this plan nails it.

I think that entire group, the consulting group, everyone that got involved um everyone that's been involved with this project has done a phenomenal job. I really couldn't have imagined a a plan with better recommendations. Um, and I would be thrilled and I hope that my colleagues agree that that we should move forward with adopting this

at the city level and making it our our second small area plan um, in quite a while that that we'll be adopting. Um, you know, downtown is our most walkable uh part of our city and yet it is still incredibly autocentric um in in design and um just walking around downtown, you really feel like it's it's still mostly for for cars even though it's much more for for pedestrians and transit riders um than than any other part of our city. Um, and this really creates the the vision uh for how we get to a stronger downtown. I mean, it's an amazing vision, the vision and and the strategy for how we get there.

Um, >> thank you. >> So, um, I'm I'm just want to lift up a few things that you've talked about and a few things that are in the plan that I am particularly excited about. This isn't everything, but just a few of these things. one. Um, I really like the idea of making sure that that uh some or

or all of this is translated into Spanish. Um, you mentioned the quick guide. I think that would be a really good idea to make this uh very accessible and for us to be consistent in providing those translations. Um, there are so many incredible recommendations.

I wish we could all do them now. Um, but they'll they'll have to be implemented obviously over over years and over decades. quite frankly, >> if you wanted to give us money, we could start >> a lot of great catalyst projects. Um, some things that that frankly I've been thinking about for a long time as well, the redevelopment of the surface parking right across the street.

Um, this incredible space that we have that is parking right now. I mean, it's just space for vehicles right across from from our primary civic building in our city. That's a that's a huge opportunity. Um, and the one one that's been identified here.

uh redevelopment of of the loop. I mean, this is something that has been around since the since the loop got created. Um, everyone nobody wants to take credit for creating

the loop and everyone wants to to to be the one to to redevelop the loop. But I I think what this plan does is it it is very strategic in saying, you know, there's certain portions of the loop where we it would be a huge opportunity to to develop. Um, you know, the the parking lot right back here is obviously a a huge catalyst opportunity site. Um, the the portion of the loop between here and and the library and bringing the library so that it is this incredible new uh building that that's been redeveloped.

um such a popular space in our city and reconnecting it to to our downtown to our our primary activity center would just be an enormous catalyst uh project I think um with the the awkward virtually on and off ramps that we have there. So much um poorly used space right there would be a huge opportunity. um CCB Plaza. I think one day we'll

we'll look back at pictures, you know, future generations will look back at pictures of of CCB Plaza today and just wonder, you know, how do we get to a place where we had a a road running through the middle of our primary civic space. Um you know, I I hope that that we can move forward one day with um and one day soon with upgrading, you know, CCB Plaza, renaming CCB Plaza. Um though I remember when that was that was a parking lot. um affordable office space.

Something that is way less sexy than everything else in in the plan, but but something that is so important is is yeah, preserving some of these kind of aging office spaces where we've had uh really important tenants providing great services for for many years and making sure that they can continue to occupy space in downtown. I think the retail study that you're moving forward with is is incredibly important as well. Um, when you look at retail in downtown, there's no secret about why retail is struggling because it's so dispersed.

And, um, and Durham quite frankly lacks anywhere in our city a great a great retail street. Um, there are different kinds of retail that are doing well and poorly across the country. um delivery uh and massive warehousing is obviously flourishing, but place-based retail is obviously uh doing very well in many places and and we see that in places uh like the the the the cities in North Carolina that have great retail streets like Asheville and Wilmington and and Greensboro. Um I also really love the commercial land uh land trust idea.

I think that's I know that that's at the very beginning stage, but I love that idea and I love the tactical action groups. Um I think those are so important for actually making sure that the many many pages of implementation ideas that there are in this plan uh end up moving forward. Um I also just want to say that you know I think that we see ourselves continue to see ourselves as as a very monocentric

city. Um, you know, we've sort of referred to downtown as this unique one-of-a-kind space because it is mixed use and dense and has the characteristics of a city. It has small connected blocks. It has alleys.

It has really important civic spaces. Um, just all the all the elements that that make a city feel like a city. Um, in addition, I think that, you know, we could start thinking our of ourselves more as a polyentric city. We could start fostering more places around that don't take away from our downtown, but but have those characteristics of a walkable, transitoriented city in other parts of of of Durham.

Um, and I think that that's something that we should talk about and strive for. Um, so, uh, once again, I just want to say, uh, thank you. this plan nails it. You did a great job. Um the folks that you had

working on it did a great job. Um I know how hard these are. I'm a consultant on the Brownsville downtown uh master plan right now and it's it's hard work. It's fun work.

Um so I just have see two little questions here for you. Um, one is I'm just curious what what are the touch points for, you know, the city has a a long range function, long-range planning function. I'm just curious what role the Durham planning department played, if it played any role in in this specific process. Um, that's that's my first question.

And then second question is um grocery store. >> Um um so the first question we worked really closely with the with the planning department. Um we had a conversation with the planning department about the the the best way to get this plan adopted. Um our previous master plans we typically just came to

the city council and said will you adopt it? And they were like yeah. Um but in talking with uh Sarah and Bo, they they suggested that it'd be best to have it as a staff recommendation. So that shows the support of the of the um of the plan.

Um we are working with the planning department on how we can get in front of the the the directors um perhaps piggybacking on conversations around the comp plan. Um we are tracking where the UDO is and how that fits into our plan and and where we have input um in that. I shouldn't say where, but how we have input um as that plan is is coming to to a conclusion. Uh so I would say we we've been very close with um all the departments, but certainly with the planning department because this is a plan.

Um and it was very it was intentional. It was set out to be what are the things the unsexy things that we keep overlooking and say we should do but don't really put the attention. How do we really go about making sure that we address those? And we could not have done it without without the support and and input of the planning department. grocery store. Almost forgot, but you

weren't going to let me forget. Um, yeah, everybody would want one. Um, and I think that could be identified in that retail plan, that retail market plan. Um, there just a lot of challenges with with it.

Some of them true, some of them not, some of them are perceptions, but I I think the retail uh plan, the analysis, and then the uh study could could get us to what what would make sense in the downtown area. Um, I do always like to call out though that we do have the Durham Co-op. That is not that far away. People think it's a far far long long way.

It really is not. Um, understanding that walking that may not be the most pleasant thing, but it is not that far. And we do have a small amga in the middle of downtown as well. >> Thank you.

So I I uh I hope that uh we all uh will support uh moving forward with uh city with city adoption of this uh plan. I think it's really exciting. Um this great work very clearly spent some money on this um uh the team that was put

together obviously did did a lot of work. They did a great job. We aren't going to spend um this we're not going to put this amount of resources into every single small area plan. But I do think that this is a really good model for the the uh level of work that it takes to to do a great small area planning.

Um and really I think other parts of our city deserve deserve this quality um or something close to it. Uh and so I do hope that you know as we continue with small area planning in other parts of our city that um again like this is this is next level. we do see ourselves as a monocentric city, but that we do put in a lot of work and effort into getting these kinds of great details right, which uh which this plan does. So, thank you again for for all of your work and um look forward to to next steps on this.

>> Thank you. And I should say that we could not have done it without um the city support. I should have probably led with this. The city support, the county support um as well as u a few private

sector and I'm going to get in trouble because I'm going to try to do it off my head. um NCCU, um M Mechanics and Farmers, Perkins and Will, uh Lin Solomon, >> Duke University. >> Yeah, we we will I'll have that list when um we present. >> Yeah, it's in it's on the >> page.

It is in it is in the plan. Yes, it is definitely within the plan. Um but but we it does show that there was public and private support of this plan. Um, and then the money that we were able to raise allowed us to do quite a bit of public engagement.

So, so a good bit of that went to the the intense public engagement that we did. >> Thank you, Council Member Rest. >> Wow. Lot to lot to say.

Thank you, Council Member Baker, for your comments. I'll I'll just add on to some of those. Um, you know, I guess the first thing I'll say is, um, um, I I am so proud to be on the DDI board. And I know that I

say this a lot in meetings because the mayor has appointed me to a lot of different boards of commissions, and I get in trouble sometimes when I sort of pick out one as my favorite. It's like a parent, you know, picking one of your your children, but like this is one of my favorite boards, and I really want to thank you for that, and your staff who are here for all the work they do, the great work. Um, yeah. Also, I also want to give a little bit of love to Nicole for your leadership.

Nicole and I have known each other longer than either one of us wants to admit. >> Only five years. >> Yeah. And I'm glad we still you away from my hometown of Leville, Colorado.

Just to say. Um so we're so glad you're here and all the work you're doing. This is a this is an amazing plan. It's been fun to work with you and the staff and the and the consultants in developing this.

Um yeah, I think it's amazing. In fact, I think it's like it's Yeah, it's a small area plan, but it's way more than a small area plan. It's a blueprint for downtown, right? I think um it's worth noting. I think you had this in your comments maybe the staff in their initial memo that you know the initial vision was 2020 right at that point it was like and a lot of us who've been in downtown since entered in Durham since then know that downtown was a different place then and that was kind of like a vision we wanted to see like this

downtown start thriving again because it wasn't thriving and we are like 25 years later in a different place completely and so but I think the challenge for you is actually increased so now it's not just creating a vision and trying to get it going but now it's starting to how do you I mean as you said in that in that one slide about downtown today how do you take now the new reality of downtown and keep it thriving. And it's it's much more complicated now, right? Before it was just can we get it going and now it's like a complicated challenge. So, thanks for weighing into that challenge.

There's so many things I love here. I love the um I love the um I love the coordination with other plans. We often talk about we got all these plans, but they're not talking to one another. So, you've clearly articulated in your slides and in your comments clear connection to all the other plans.

Durham Next is here or Discover Durham. So, that's one one key piece and so or the the transportation plan. So, thanks for coordinating what you're doing with all the other plans that we're investing in and putting a lot of effort into. Um, I love the um Yeah, I love the uh the both the sort of big vision sort of high big picture kind of stuff and sort of like dealing with things like office space downtown, some of the big issues,

transportation downtown, but then also the fine grain stuff like the alleys downtown, thinking about how do we activate those alleys. So, it's kind of both big picture and and small grain stuff that's really impressive. Um I appreciate your yeah your also your presence being here as a constant spokes you and your staff constant presence and spokesperson for downtown which it needs and so that makes a big difference. Um just a couple questions because there's some neat stuff that we talked about in great detail on the board.

I want to give you a chance to kind of talk about one of them is the downtown loop because I know we've I know there's been different versions of what that might look like whether that's two-waying the whole loop or I think as council member Baker talked about sort of just focusing on some of those key key sort of like key intersections downtown. So tell me like the latest thinking in terms of what's the sort of what's your big vision for how to address because I know that when you think about the loop sometimes it gets so big and it's just gets kind of complicated. So tell me what your latest vision for how we can do that and whether we can do that with some of these kind of smaller intersections and really make it happen. >> Um so our our hope would be that we do

take a deep dive working with um the city, the county, NC do um and NCRR because it touches all of those uh and and find a way to two-way it. Um it would slow the traffic down. It would make the crossing a lot easier. uh we could do some pretty creative things, beautiful things I should say, along the sidewalks and be a bit more intentional, encourage the development that may occur in some areas to face the the loop rather than turn their back on the loop.

Um Councilman Baker called out something that is really a challenge and that is the library. The library sits kind of off by itself. Yeah, I I actually walked it yesterday and it's three, four lanes and then two lanes that kind of go the entrance onto the loop. Uh, and then you hit a parking lot um that could become quite a nice green area if we if it were to become two-way and you could start taking over some of the land and now you've got a park that kind of runs and captures Rotary Park and then there's just a nice

green area that could support an amenity in the parking lot beside the what I think the county has the VA um affairs office in. Um, but if you're at the library, you've got to get through all of that before you get to the end of Paris Street to then actually start hitting things that you would interact with. So, looking at how we can bring a lot of the amenities and assets that the city owns and bring them a part of this growing downtown and make them feel a part of what's happening in the downtown. Um, similar, but to a lesser degree, the crossing from um um Corkran to Foster over over the loop and on that other side, the the amenities that exist there.

We've got a rail line that's coming in. We've got a um Carolina theater celebrating a 100red years and how we could do something with that park. How we could support support a a potential uh entertainment convention center that that may be in the area. How do we ensure that people can move back and forth and they don't get to a barrier and go now I'm not going to do

that because I don't see a reason to keep going. Um, so I I think it's very key to try to to really work and identify how we make those that that loop a two-way. I'm tying into some of the things that we're already working on the two-way of Mangum and and Roxboro, the bus rapid um transit. Um, if if if there's a way that as we do that, just going ahead and taking sections.

Um, we're just starting to really get into it and then there are a lot of people that are providing a lot of advice, but but I I I've been told that it doesn't have to be done all at once, that you could phase it in. Um, so that takes a little bit of the oh my god out of it because you can kind of phase it in if if done and and the thinking is done now. So I it is the the beauty of this plan is that there's a there's a lot in there but it gives us the ability to pivot based on on the priority that that we need to address. I think there's some things that that we will start and it'll take a while to build build out. Um there are quite a few quick things, but then there are these bigger visions that that we need to work on and really bring the community together to to uplift and

and figure out how do we do it and do it right. >> Yeah, love that. Yeah, look forward to working together with you on that piece. The last one is I want to um I want to give you a chance to say a little bit more about those the publicly owned space or sites that you talked about reserving for multi-use or for mixed income development.

Those are some really interesting parts of the plan. I know that you gave that was a quick bullet point there, but if you'd say a little bit more about those like which spaces those are and what you envision because I think that's really interesting stuff to think again about not just what's happening now and all the details we got to deal with now, but also like that vision for the future which is really exciting. >> Well, I it's getting at um being intentional about how we grow downtown and how do we if we if we create a vision for a for property sticking with that vision and ensuring that that the vision is inspiring. Um there are a number of sites that that are not I would >> you know and and for folks who haven't maybe read the plan just give pick one of those sites and just sort of describe a little bit like what that might look like. I think it's interesting stuff.

>> We could take 505 Chapel Hill Street. Um >> I'll be back. I'll be back next I'll be back at your next work session. um but how we could um hear all the things that want to be in that space but then also recognizing the the anchor of how where it sits.

Yeah. And a lot of people get caught up that oh it's right off of 147 but if you stand back it is a it is a key connection to the potential development at American Tobacco campus phase phase three. It is a key development on the ongoing development of the Durham ID. it is sitting very adjacent to the Durham belt line.

Um so how to and it also as we were talking about the co-op, it is a way to continue to to draw people and get people to keep moving. Um it is a a key entry point into the downtown area. Um what makes sense and how can we be intentional um and and come up with a vision that speaks to today's downtown environment and and um holding tight to to what that

looks like. there are a lot of ideas and a lot of people wanting to do things specifically um with that site, but there there are other sites that that are currently being used, but but there could be be better uses of that. Um, and I I think it's a it's a moment now that that we can sit down and really talk about what could we do, how could we build some of the interesting things that we we saw on the inner city visit, you know, how could we start in incorporating some of those things in the downtown area that are bringing people in, um, introducing people in, keeping people here. >> Love it.

Yeah. Thank you. Well, I will enthusiastically support as well the us adopting this as an official city plan. So, um, yeah, look forward to comments from my colleagues.

Thank you, Nicole. Again, thank you so much. >> Thank you, Council Member Cook. I'll be brief.

Um, I just want to echo the thanks to you and this all of the folks that worked on this. Um, I think I don't think it's anyone's first time seeing it up here today. Um, but just want to say

that it's super comprehensive. Um, I had many of the same thoughts as my colleagues. I also walked to the library yesterday right there. I don't know what time we were there, but um I I do walk that a lot because I rent when I get books from the library, I tend to walk from our parking garage here.

>> Um and it is a horrendous walk. And also um when I do my monthly HCA meetings, I walk to the DSS building downtown and that also makes me have to cross the loop there and it is just awful. Um so lots lots of on my mind things there. The Corker and Blackwell activation area I think is really important.

Um there's like kind of a couple strips up in the northern part of the loop where uh there's so much good on both sides, but there's like not not much in between. So I'm like really glad to see that conversation happening around getting folks moving from space to space and and activating that movement. Um I want to just like put highlight that I love the

retail incubator. I feel like this is something that um as soon as I learned about it, I tell people this all the time, folks are always really excited to learn that y'all are doing that. So, I just want to shout out um that that is going down and uh we've had seems like a lot of success from that so far watching retail move out of that incubation space and then be able to be in a brickandmortar space. Uh which has been really really cool.

Um, I was curious about conversations with property owners, but I mean specifically like these larger commercial landlords downtown because I know that we do have quite a lot of space sitting vacant. How much conversation that you had with them in this plan? Do we have buyin from folks? Um, and I and of course I know that some of the people are not local.

We've got some some corporate owners that are out of state, but I was just wondering if you could talk about that at all. Um, we are having some conversations. Um, and and in fact, we um started having great conversations with um owners of some of the newer

developments on Rickby. Um, and they found out about us because of the blueprint and the event that we had at Pickle Back. Oh, cool. >> Um, not sure how they did, but we we were excited that they did.

And, um, I've I've been a part of two conversations with them and other property owners in that area. Um there's certainly an interest in a support. Uh we have not gone into depth life, but this is what you could do. Um but but I I think there's some interest.

Um certainly not not everybody, but I I think many people who are in downtown, they may come thinking one thing and but then they sit in in the space and they realize this is a different space. Um and and they approach us with how can we um how can we do better? How can we do more? recognizing that we we have some spaces that that we continue to work on to fill that are in the middle of our downtown that need to be filled. Um, and we're we're trying to have those conversations with with their brokers, trying to encourage them to create warm space, warm shell space rather than that what what is currently um recognizing

that a small business can't come in and outfit a a concrete or a gravel slab. So, pushing pushing on that regard. Um but I I will say that we have spoken to most probably not all but most of the um um property owners in the downtown area. Certainly our longtime property owners have been involved from the from the very beginning very excited about that.

" So, um I I I think varying levels of of interest, but as this becomes an adoptable plan and being able to pull out parts and go and say, you know, this is the part that that really speaks to you and how can we work with you? Um and then, you know, working with our partners with the planning department um just to to ensure that that we are pushing the same message forward um and and encouraing encouraging folks to have have the bigger vision like we do. um yet that yes, you've got one building, but your building is a part of something much grander and how can you be a part of that visioning? >> Yeah, thanks for that. I think that it's

just a frustrating thing to see um businesses not be able to afford those spaces or upf it like you were just saying and and so much sitting vacant, particularly on street level where I feel like we could have so much activation and um >> and it's it's like we could have the most beautiful plan, but if we don't have buyin from the stakeholders, then like it's >> um unfortunately won't work. But I'm glad to hear those conversations are happening. I know y'all are working really hard on that and um and I also want to just say that I support the plan as a whole. So I'm excited to um adopt it and have our next small area plan.

>> Thank you. >> Thanks u madam presenting chair just one just to build on that. Um and Nicole, you may want to add this if you'd like. So we actually did have a long conversation at one of our DDI meetings about this exact issue with our consultant.

Um, and it's one of those, it's a, it's one of those, you know, it's like there's a million public policy challenges in a city like Durham. And one of them is that these bigger residential buildings, many of them are owned by these larger real estate investment trust, right? And so their

market is really housing, right? And so for them, having downtown retail or first of all, retail space is kind of like they do it there because they know cities want it, but it's almost like a a carrying cost in their books. They don't really they don't I don't say they don't care, but it's sort of like it's a carrying cost. And so they don't they don't understand local markets as well, right, local retailers.

And so often the space, as we talked about, it's probably too big for a local retailer, not well situated. And so it's sort of like it's kind of a mismatch. And so part of the conversation we had is like how do we how do we recognize that real challenge there with who owns the property and how they're sort of structured and how do we work with them to think about ways to help them understand like a local retailer because they may understand like the big guy like the Starbucks and Panera, but they may not understand local retailers. So, so again, we had a good conversation. Appreciate your understanding of like nuance there and how do we sort of like solve that because it's not easy, but it's something we can solve. >> And it also gets to the um retail marketing analysis that that is where we would dive in identifying what do we

have and does it really fit what what we think we can bring in the downtown area. Um so that that that deeper dive um of identifying what we have >> even to the point of you know like we are we are so our downtown retail is dominated it's fully like all local retailers right but then there's this question like you know if there were a proposal to bring like a Starbucks or a couple chains would would that be okay you know and maybe maybe if that's the price we're occupying some of these spaces maybe that's okay but I know it's a sensitive topic because we really value our local retailers so again thanks for that sort of very like honest conversation about what's possible and what we can build. >> Yeah, because I I think we we do have to consider what that might look like. But I think also there's some can be some intentionality, you know, is is it urban outfitters?

Maybe not, but but is there something else that that we aren't aware of that that would make sense? Um, and how do we actively go and recruit? So there is a little bit in in the plan that would be recruitment of rather than just waiting waiting for but identifying and going out and and and introducing

them to the downtown and bringing them in and letting them feel the vibe and and figure out how they might want to um participate. >> Thank thank you. I I just want to say unless anyone else Does anyone else have any questions? >> Well, just the last thing too like thanks for mentioning the grocery stores because like the co-op is like let's hear for the co-op.

It's an amazing grocery store. It's It's in in our downtown. It's in >> It's adjacent. >> Jason.

Yeah. But a great retailer. Yeah. So, but we and I did also notice that Raleigh's got a They've got a grocery store downtown.

I just noticed I'm jealous. >> They do. They do. >> Thank you.

I don't have anything to add. I agree with my colleagues. I think it's a great plan. I do want to say on the on the grocery like everywhere it's a chain.

I think folks just need to realize if we want a grocery store, it's not going to be the co-op. Um I love the co-op. I'm a member. I shop there regularly. You can't get a cheap toothbrush, you know, like and sometimes you just need a cheap toothbrush. Uh especially if we're thinking about like Durham Next and things like that, you know, many of many of us travel uh and

and it's real nice to have a Walgreens or a CVS that you just run around the corner for because you forgot your de deodorant, right? And so I think that we need to to we all love downtown vibe and we want that. But I've seen some real thoughtful downtowns that it's predominantly locally owned, but they have a couple of those anchor anchor chains. And so I I appreciate that y'all are thinking really thoughtfully about that.

I will say I think it's a Publix in downtown Raleigh. I am envious of that. Um, and you know, to that point around a whole downtown, that that's what it's going going to take um to really get downtown to be um kind of what we really think of when we think of a downtown. >> Uh, I also just want to say I really appre appreciate the intentionality of thinking through the Latino community. I'll say I see lots of different folks downtown, but often when I see people that are Latino downtown is because they're cooking my food >> or uh you know uh in the restaurant seen as workers uh and that's vital, but I want folks to feel like that that they're here to just also be uh

residents and and and be um just regular people >> as well. Um so I just wanted to say thank you for that. And um I don't think I' have anything else to add. Uh just cur because I couldn't remember in Austin.

I think that was one of the criticisms of Austin's downtown was that it was great it had so many local things downtown, but they're also struggling with that balance of chains versus locally owned. So it's it is an issue across many downtowns. Um and so in that way, Durham is not unique. But >> I had a lot of conversations with my colleagues in Austin last week.

>> I remember that was a thing that popped up. Um, so thank you colleagues. I think that's all. Thank you so much.

I think I I think staff got their guidance as far as moving forward and adopting this as one of our formal plans. I also want to thank planning staff and other city departments who worked really really closely. This is exciting. Um, >> thank you.

Thank you so much very much. Appreciate your time. And we are happy to talk with any of you individually about this. And I do recognize um that we're missing three. happy to talk to

those um and as well as uh new council members that will be in place when this comes before you for an official vote. >> Thank you for that. >> Thanks. Um Mr.

Manager, I think we are ready to settle and I think everything I think it's just one item on GBA item number uh two >> recording stopped >> and then public hearing uh item number 12. >> That's correct. So what I have madam chair is consent items 1 3 and 5 through 10. GBA is item two.

GBA public hearing is item 12. Item four is one that's been referred back to staff that we'll bring forward on a later basis. >> Thank you. Could I please get a motion to settle the agenda?

>> So moved. Second. >> All in favor? >> I.

>> Any opposed? Okay. Thank you so much for that. And I think unless there are any other items, council member >> curious, are we going to put the um blueprint on for

uh as an action item? >> Yes. Uh uh Mr. Mr.

Dinsky let me know that he thinks we're targeting the second work session in December to bring that forward. >> Uh yes, bringing it forward the the second uh meeting in December for adoption. >> Thank you. I think December 16th.

Is that correct that work session? >> Thank you. Anything else? >> Can I ask also is there some I thought I talked with Shay about is there some question about the 16th whether we're going to meet on Tuesday or that?

>> It's already been moved. We are moving. We are just Thank you for that council member Rrist. We are meeting Monday and Tuesday of that week.

Okay. >> So, council meeting on Monday, work session on Tuesday. >> That's correct. >> Yeah.

Council meeting is on Monday, December 15th. Uh the work session is on Tuesday, December 16th. >> Anything else, colleagues? Yeah.

>> Thank you, Madam Chair. >> Thank you. We are adjourned at 309.