Durham City Council Meeting Summary – September 20, 2023
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Durham City Council Meeting – September 20, 2023
The Durham City Council convened a regular meeting on September 20, 2023, at 7:00 PM, with Mayor Pro Tem Mark-Anthony Middleton presiding in Mayor Elaine O'Neal's excused absence. The agenda included proclamations, consent agenda approval, and three public hearing items.
Proclamations & Recognitions
- South Durham Little League State Champion All-Star Teams: Recognized the machine pitch team (11–0) and Little League division team (7–0). Coaches Dante Ferrell and Andrew Lakis spoke, praising community, parents, and players.
- Guatemalan Independence Day: Proclamation presented to Consul General Ori Aquila, celebrating the 202nd anniversary and the local Guatemalan community.
- World Alzheimer's Day: Declared September 21, 2023. Susan Sewell of Dementia Inclusive Inc. accepted and shared her mother's journey with Alzheimer's.
- Hispanic Latino Heritage Month: Proclaimed September 15 – October 15, 2023. Committee chair Mara Alice Mercado and Annabel Rosa highlighted community contributions.
- Community Partner Development Certification: Recognized 12 graduates of the inaugural cohort in partnership with NCCU and the Neighborhood Improvement Services office.
Consent Calendar
- Adopted 6–0. Eighteen routine items were approved, including appointments to city boards, contracts for security and insurance, utility agreements, and infrastructure project contracts. Councilmember noted Blue Cross Blue Shield NC's diversity and workforce statistics.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Lumley Road (Item 22): Karen Alexander expressed concern the development lacks grocery stores, causing Durham taxpayers' dollars to go to Wake County (Briar Creek).
- Shannon at Old Chapel Hill (Item 24): W. Holt Anderson and Richard Moon cited existing traffic backups, safety concerns, lack of sidewalks, and the density increase from 8 to 60 units as problematic. Anderson said he was not opposed to affordable housing.
Discussion Items
- Item 22 – Lumley Road Multifamily Annexation: Staff presented a request to annex 47.67 acres at 5751 Lumley Road and rezone it to Planned Development Residential 10.060 for up to 480 dwelling units. The applicant amended the affordability proffer to 5% of units at 60% AMI for 20 years (original 3% at 80% AMI), and committed to at least 200 apartments and 50 townhomes, a 10-foot shared path, a traffic signal, and enhanced stormwater controls. The annexation passed 6–0, zoning passed 6–0, and consistency statement passed 6–0.
- Item 23 – Sparger Road Rezoning: Approved rezoning 5.08 acres at 2309/2315 Sparger Road from office/institutional to commercial general with a textual development plan, prohibiting indoor firing ranges, nightclubs, and bars. At a council member's request, electronic gaming operations were added as a prohibited use. Both motions passed 6–0.
- Item 24 – Shannon at Old Chapel Hill: Approved rezoning 3.08 acres to residential compact and commercial general districts to allow 43 townhomes and 17 multifamily units with 3,500 square feet of commercial space. The applicant noted 97 attendees across three community meetings. The affordable housing proffer comprises four units (one townhome, three apartments) for 30 years at 60% AMI (rent) or 80% AMI (sale). The zoning motion passed 5–1 (Councilmember Holsey Hyman dissenting); the consistency statement passed 6–0.
Key Outcomes
- All consent agenda items and public hearing items were approved, with the noted vote splits.
- Item 21 (2610 South Miami Boulevard zoning map change) was referred back to the City-County Planning Department.
- The council announced a work session for September 21, 2023, to address worker-related issues, and SCAD task force meetings scheduled for October 3 and October 17, 2023, virtually.
- The meeting adjourned at approximately 8:52 PM.
Meeting Transcript
Two minutes to air. One minute until live stream. One minute air. We are now streaming. Good evening, friends and neighbors at seven PM. If the chamber will come to order, please. We'll take a moment for our our friend and neighbors to find seats. I think I think we got him. In a few minutes. Thank you. I'm now going to you to Councilmember Freeman and ask that she would lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Thank you. It's our practice to stand and salute the flag. Pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which stands under God with liberty and justice. Play ball. Thank you so much. Madam Clerk, good evening. Would you please call the roll? Thank you, Mr. Mayor Pro Tem. Mayor O'Neill has requested an excused absence and has received one. Mayor Protem. I'm here. Councilmember Caballero. Here. Councilmember Freeman. Present. Councilmember Holsey Hyman. Present. Councilmember Johnson. Here. Councilmember Williams. I'm here. Thank you. Thank you, Madam Clerk, and again. Good evening, colleagues. We have a pretty exciting evening tonight. We've got a lot of special guests. We always have special guests in the room, but particularly tonight it's special. A number of proclamations. We're going to kick off with a proclamation for the 2023 South Durham Little League State Champion All-Star Teams. You clap for that. All right. Proclamation number two will be led by Councilmember Williams, and that will be in recognition of Guatemalan Independence Day. Proclamation number three will be read by Councilmember Hyman in recognition of World All Timers Day. Proclamation number four will be read by Councilmember Caballero in recognition of Hispanic Latino Heritage Month. And finally, we will have uh repair uh prepared comments from Councilmember Freeman on community partner development certification. We had a wonderful reception just before City Hall, so Councilmember Freeman will give us some wonderful comments about that. But I'm going to kick things off. I'm going to ask for the champion, South Durham Little League, a champion all-star team to please come up for this proclamation.
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