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Good evening, everybody.

Happy Tuesday.

We would like to call the Durham City Council meeting to order for this the twentieth day of June twenty twenty-three here in City Council Chambers.

I'd like to welcome all of you all who are here with us this evening, standing in the hallways, seated all about welcome, welcome, welcome, and we also welcome those of you who are joining us on the internet as well.

Please join me in a moment of silent meditation.

Thank you all.

Thank you all.

Thank you if you are able to stand with us and salute the flag.

Mayor O'Neill.

I am present.

I'm here.

Councilmember Caballero.

Here.

Councilmember Freeman, present.

Councilmember Holsey Hyman.

Present.

Councilmember Johnson here.

And Councilmember Williams.

I'm present.

Thank you.

All right.

We have a we have three ceremonial items tonight before we get started on the people's business.

The first is going to be a proclamation.

I will read that, which is the mayor's monarch pledge day proclamation, and Miss Sienna Fan is going to be here, I think, to receive that.

And she is with the North Carolina Wildlife Federation.

Also, we will have a proclamation by I'm going to say that one is by Councilwoman Caballero, who will um read the cleft and craniofacial awareness month proclamation.

And I the one that I know will bring uh Mayor Pro Tim joyous praise tonight is a proclamation for the fiftieth anniversary of hip hop.

So we will get started.

And here we go.

I do this one also in order in memory of my nine-year-old niece Jillian uh Ray Williams, who we lost um several years ago just celebrated her life.

The butterfly we recognize as a family.

Whenever we see a butterfly, it was one of her favorite, it was her favorite creature, I guess, or insect.

And so Jillie, Aunt Lane is doing this for you.

Whereas the monarch butterfly is an iconic North American species whose multi-generational migration and metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly has captured the imagination of millions of Americans.

And whereas Durham recognizes that human health ultimately depends on well-functioning ecosystems and that biodiverse regions can better support food production, healthy soil and air quality, and can foster healthy connections between humans and wildlife.

And whereas cities, towns, and counties have a critical role to play to help save the monarch butterfly.

And Durham is striving to become a leader.

And whereas on March 31st, 2023, Eylaine and O'Neill signed the National Wildlife Federation's Mayor's Monarch Pledge and have officially committed to taking meaningful action to protect the monarch butterfly.

And whereas every resident of Durham can make a difference for the monarch by planting native milkweed and nectar plants to provide habitat for the monarch and pollinators in locations where people live, work, learn, play, and worship.

And whereas Durham has committed to continually recognizing the efforts and importance of the Durham Area Audubon Society, I hope I pronounced it in the right, engaging in conversation with community gardens on best practices for cultivating a space for pollinators, participation in milk wheat sea exchange, keeping greenways, greenways and community art an integral part of the city of Durham's culture.

Now, therefore, I, Elaine O'Neill, mayor of the City of Durham, North Carolina, do hereby placame June 20th, 23 as Mayor's Monarch Pledge Day in Durham, and hereby urge all residents to participate in community activities that support and celebrate Monarch Conservation.

Witness my hand and the corporate seal of the city of Durham, North Carolina this the 20th day of June, 2023.

All right.

Thank you, Mayor O'Neill, and uh good evening to the members of the Durham City Council and everyone here.

Uh, my name's Nadie Salam, and I serve on the board of directors for the nonprofit Keep Durham Beautiful, and I'm also a litter leader leading cleanups uh in the local community.

Uh, would like to thank uh Shauna Finn who couldn't uh be here, and the North Carolina Wildlife Federation, as well as um some of our other partners that we collaborate with, like Durham B City Committee to support beneficial habitat for monarchs and other pollinator species.

Um, keep Durham Beautiful builds environmentally just, resilient, and beautiful outdoor spaces in coordination uh in cooperation with Durham communities.

In the past year, we've held native tree pollinator um native tree plantings and pollinator seed giveaways, coordinated educational pollinator presentations, provided local community gardens and volunteer assistance, and organized events for National Pollinator Week this week from this year from June 17th to the 24th.

We'd like to invite everyone here and the Durham community to join us for the second annual B Day celebration at Durham Central Park this Saturday from 9 a.m.

to noon.

Gotta get in that shameless plug.

Um and participants can see um demonstration beehives, taste honey, take home free pollinator seeds, and um join the parade.

So those are just ways that you can be active and help us in our work as we keep Durham beautiful.

Thank you.

Good evening, everyone.

It's my honor to read the following proclamation.

Whereas orofia clefts are the most frequently occurring birth defects in the United States, affecting about one in 700 infants per year, and whereas infants born with clefts and other craniofacial conditions usually require surgery as well as specialized feeding support, dental and orthodontic care, speech therapy, hearing intervention, and social and emotional support as they grow and develop.