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- 🌳 Flavor Hills Expands Into Downtown Durham
🌳 Flavor Hills Expands Into Downtown Durham
Plus: Downtown Durham Unveils 2035 Blueprint
Jordan Parker
November 27, 2025
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In this issue:
Flavor Hills Expands Into Downtown Durham
Downtown Durham Unveils 2035 Blueprint
Durham Police Seek New Real-Time Data Platform
DPS Faces $4.7M Gap as Enrollment Drops
Apple Gets Four-Year Extension on RTP Jobs
21st Annual American Tobacco Tower Lighting
Approx Read Time: 3 mins
Flavor Hills Expands Into Downtown Durham
Flavor Hills is preparing to open its first Durham location on Dec. 3, taking over the former COPA space at 107 W. Main Street. The restaurant describes itself as offering “modern Southern comfort,” with a menu built around brunch dishes, cocktails, and Southern-inspired plates. The move brings new activity to a prominent downtown storefront that has been vacant since COPA’s closure.
New tenant: Moving into the former COPA space on West Main, a high-visibility corner in the city center.
Concept: Positions itself as a modern Southern comfort brand with brunch, desserts, and craft cocktails.
Opening: Doors open December 3, marking the company’s first expansion into Durham.
Downtown Durham Unveils 2035 Blueprint
The 2035 Downtown Durham Blueprint lays out a long-range vision for the future of downtown, focusing on preserving the area’s unique character while responding to several challenges, including parking strains, safety concerns, and a noticeable decline in weekday foot traffic tied to hybrid work schedules. The plan was shaped through extensive community engagement, with more than 3,000 residents sharing feedback through surveys and pop-up events across the city.
Challenges identified: Daytime activity has dropped due to hybrid work; safety perceptions and parking availability also surfaced as major concerns.
Business environment: The plan outlines strategies to support small businesses and includes a commitment to strengthening access to capital for minority-owned businesses.
Timeline: The blueprint is expected to be presented for adoption at the December 15 City Council meeting.
Durham Police Seek New Real-Time Data Platform
The Durham Police Department is requesting approval for a $500,000 contract with Peregrine Technologies to build a real-time digital crime center. The system would unify several sources of data the department already uses — including 911 calls, warrant information, and evidentiary records — into one searchable interface. The department says the tool would function like an internal search engine to reduce the time it takes to pull information during investigations.
Platform function: Brings together multiple existing datasets into a single system designed to speed up case work.
Privacy concerns: Residents questioned how the consolidated data would be protected, raising issues about federal access and a founder’s past employment at Palantir; Peregrine stated it does not work with ICE and does not share customer data without explicit direction.
Council process: Council has discussed the proposal during a work session but has not scheduled a vote.
DPS Faces $4.7M Gap as Enrollment Drops
Durham Public Schools is facing a $4.7 million budget gap after approximately 1,000 fewer students enrolled than projected for the school year. Because funding is tied to enrollment, the district must now transfer more money to charter schools and prepare for reduced state support in the coming year. Of the enrollment shift, about 650 students moved to charter schools, pushing charter enrollment higher than the district anticipated.
Charter school impact: With charter enrollment rising to roughly 23 percent, DPS must increase its transfer from the expected $46 million to about $51 million.
State funding loss: The enrollment drop will result in the state providing funding for 33 fewer teacher positions in 2026–27, with DPS staffing currently exceeding state ratios in some grades.
Budget adjustments: The district is evaluating spending cuts, including contract reviews and a potential hiring freeze, before considering more significant measures.
Apple Gets Four-Year Extension on RTP Jobs
Apple has received a four-year extension on the timeline it must meet to qualify for state economic incentives tied to its planned Research Triangle Park campus. The company initially committed in 2021 to building an East Coast hub and creating about 3,000 jobs by 2034, with nearly 1,000 of those jobs expected by the end of 2025. The extension reflects Apple’s request to reset its timeline under a newly passed state law.
Revised timeline: Apple now has four additional years to meet hiring and construction benchmarks outlined in its incentives agreement.
Current staffing: The company has added about 600 employees in leased office space in Cary and has additional employees in Durham, with 1,600 employees statewide.
Incentive status: Apple has not received any incentive payments so far because it has not met the job-creation requirements tied to those benefits.
21st Annual American Tobacco Tower Lighting
American Tobacco Campus
December 3, 7:00–8:00 pm
Kick off the season as the American Tobacco Water Tower lights up for its 21st year, with pre-show entertainment at 6 pm and 2,000 fiber-optic wands for attendees.
Details >>
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