Durham City Council Meeting – June 2, 2025 – Budget Hearing, Rules of Procedure, and Resolutions
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Durham City Council Meeting – June 2, 2025
The City Council met on Monday, June 2, 2025, at 7:00 PM in the Council Chambers at 101 City Hall Plaza. The meeting included ceremonial items, announcements, a consent agenda, general business items, and a public hearing on the Fiscal Year 2025-26 Budget and Capital Improvement Plan. Key actions included adoption of revised council rules of procedure, acceptance of the first quarter crime report, and passage of a resolution supporting Amazon workers' right to organize. The public hearing drew numerous speakers on topics including fare-free transit, the HART program, street safety, affordable housing, and youth violence prevention.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Minutes (April 7, 10, 21, 24, 2025 meetings) – approved.
- Workforce Development Board Appointments – Stephen M. Bumgardner, Kevin D. Griffin, Pavani Peri, and Keisha Williams appointed (terms expire June 30, 2029).
- Durham City-County Environmental Affairs Board Appointments – Anna Byers and Tom Campbell appointed (at-large, terms expire June 30, 2028).
- Durham Cultural Advisory Board Reappointments – Barbara Lau, Jose G. Medrano, Aya Shabu, and Vanessa W. Smart reappointed (terms expire June 30, 2028).
- Durham Open Space & Trails Commission Mayoral Appointment – Joslyn (Joy) Hartfield appointed (at-large, term expires June 30, 2028).
- Mayor's Council for Women Appointments – Leslie R. Nydick (Public Safety Sector), Aleccia Sutton (Ward 2), and Kershemia L. Ramirez (Civil Rights/Justice Sector) reappointed (terms expire June 30, 2029).
- Citizens Advisory Committee Appointments – Robert M. Brown, Reshockie Furnace, and Callie Thomas appointed (terms expire June 30, 2028).
- Audit Services Oversight Committee Appointment – Lolita A. Wynn appointed (CPA representative, term expires June 30, 2029).
- Video Inspections, Construction Drawings, and Driveway Permits Revenue Performance Audit – received.
- FY2024-25 Budget and Capital Project Ordinance Amendments – adopted.
- Revised Code of Ethics for Durham City Council – adopted.
- Contract with Kontek Systems, Inc. for A/V Maintenance – authorized (not to exceed $76,240).
- 2025 City of Durham Disparity Study – contract with Miller3 Consulting, Inc. authorized (up to $400,000 with contingency).
- HVAC Preventative Maintenance Service Contract with Brady Trane Service, Inc. – authorized (not to exceed $925,000).
- Amending Rules and Regulations for Non-Discrimination Ordinance – adopted.
- 2025 First Quarter Crime Report – pulled from consent for separate discussion.
- Pre-Employment Psychological Testing Contract with FMRT Group, LLC – authorized ($225,000 for three years).
- Post-Hire Psychological Services Contract with Mindology – authorized ($104,500 for three years).
- Electronic Equipment Recycling Contract with PowerHouse Recycling Inc. – authorized (not to exceed $450,000).
- Telecommunications Audit Contract with SpyGlass Group, LLC – authorized (not to exceed $250,000).
- Second Amendment to Securance LLC Contract – authorized ($161,176.89 revised total $671,649.14).
- Eleventh Amendment for Tyler Technologies Munis Software – authorized ($582,541.36 revised total $5,986,612.22).
- Traffic Signal Construction at S. Roxboro Street/Ramblewood Avenue/Murray-Massenburg School – contract with Lumin8 Transportation Technologies, LLC authorized ($400,103 plus $80,020.60 contingency).
- Repower and Refurbishment of GoDurham Buses – contract with CoachCrafters, Inc. authorized (not to exceed $5,832,477).
- Caterpillar Methane Engine Blower Maintenance Contract – with Gregory Poole Equipment Company authorized (not to exceed $250,282).
- Amendment 1 with HDR Engineering for PFAS Consulting – authorized ($1,710,270, revised total $2,273,792). – All consent items approved unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
On the Revised Rules of Procedure (Item 19):
- Pam Andrews (online) opposed the proposed 15-minute block for zoning public hearing items, arguing that each speaker should have up to three minutes to fully express concerns. She noted that zoning items often require detailed community input.
- Donna Stein (online) agreed with Andrews, stating that residents need sufficient time to point out errors in documents and that the 15-minute limit is insufficient.
- Mimi Kessler (online) expressed concern that limiting time per speaker and not allowing time seeding undermines effective presentations. She advocated for community input earlier in the zoning process.
On the FY2025-26 Budget and CIP (Public Hearing):
- DeWarren Lingley (Charles Hamilton Houston Foundation) requested $25,000 for programs serving boys and young men of color. He noted the foundation is 100% volunteer-led and has achieved average starting salaries of $69,071 for graduates.
- Alison Coppler supported continued funding for the study of converting Mangum and Roxboro streets to two-way, citing over 100 crashes annually on those corridors.
- Jack Holtzman (Durham Human Relations Commission) supported expanded funding for affordable housing, including eviction diversion, property tax relief, down payment assistance, and use of the affordable housing bonus in developments.
- Dale McKeel (Recreation Advisory Commission and Open Space & Trails Commission) thanked the city for including the half-penny for trail and park maintenance in the proposed budget.
- Gregory Williams (petition presenter) thanked the council for preserving fare-free bus service and presented a petition with over 700 signatures supporting the policy.
- Mary Rose Fontana (Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission, Bike Durham) thanked the council for funding the Vision Zero implementation plan, continued fare-free transit, and design funding for Roxboro/Mangum and Duke/Gregson conversions. She also noted safety concerns on Cook Road.
- Chris Peristein (online) supported fare-free buses and the Roxboro/Mangum design funding but questioned the $2.1 million design cost, suggesting it could fund a traffic engineer for a decade to work on multiple projects.
- Jane Lee (online, Bus Route 9 rider) thanked the council for fare-free transit, design funding for Roxboro/Mangum, and funding for the Durham Rail Trail. She urged funding for the HART program beyond 50% and for Vision Zero.
- Shanice Hamilton (Have a Heart Coalition) requested full funding for the HART program to respond to more than 50% of calls and 24-hour expansion. She opposed linking HART with ShotSpotter. She also called for an interlocal agreement to embed HART teams in Durham Public Schools.
- Letitia Faithson (mom) supported full HART funding and embedding in DPS. She asked for $200,000 dedicated to gun violence prevention, similar to ShotSpotter funding, and for investments in community centers, parenting services, and substance abuse programs.
- Wilma Oliver (city government employee) thanked the council but urged support for city employees who cannot afford to live in Durham due to rising housing costs (71.6% increase in property values). She asked for help for boots-on-the-ground employees.
- Antoinette Halloween (online) supported HART funding and youth programs.
Discussion Items
Item 19 – Revised Rules of Procedure for Durham City Council Councilmember Caballero, as procedures chair, presented the revisions, noting they had been available since November 2024. Public speakers raised concerns about the 15-minute limit for zoning public hearing items. Mayor Williams clarified that the presiding officer has discretion to allow more time and that the 15-minute language was not new. Councilmember Baker proposed an amendment to add language from the non-zoning section to give the presiding officer discretion to shorten time or apportion time among speakers when numerous speakers appear. The amendment was adopted orally. The revised rules passed 6-1, with Councilmember Cook voting no. After the vote, Councilmember Caballero confirmed the amendment would be incorporated into the official version.
Item 24 – 2025 First Quarter Crime Report Chief Patrice Andrews (Police Department) presented the report. Mayor Williams asked about the correlation between high-crime areas (shown on a map) and past census tracts for Bull City United and ShotSpotter. Chief Andrews confirmed that the highest concentrations of shootings align with the ShotSpotter deployment area. Councilmember Cook noted that the data could support a neighborhood canvas after gun incidents, referencing a practice where health-type responders (HART) are sent to specific blocks. Mayor Pro Tem Middleton argued that the city has never deployed such responders after technology-driven identification of shots, but Mayor Williams and others countered that social workers and EMS have volunteered in the past. The report was accepted unanimously.
Item 38 – Resolution in Support of Durham Amazon Workers’ Right to Organize Councilmember Baker introduced the resolution, noting it was requested by the Durham Workers’ Rights Commission. The resolution expressed support for Amazon workers at RDU1 to unionize. Debate centered on the final “whereas” clause: “whereas Amazon has been accused of retaliation against unionization at RDU1 through unfree and unfair methods.” Mayor Pro Tem Middleton argued that the city should not parrot an unsubstantiated accusation in a resolution bearing the city seal. Councilmember Cook suggested amending to “whereas the City of Durham condemns any acts of retaliation against unionization through unfree and unfair methods.” After further discussion, the amendment was accepted, and the resolution was adopted unanimously (6-0 after Councilmember Baker initially voted no but then changed to yes, making the final vote unanimous).
Key Outcomes
- Revised Rules of Procedure adopted 6-1 (Cook dissenting) with an amendment adding presiding officer discretion to shorten/apportion time for public comment in zoning hearings.
- 2025 First Quarter Crime Report accepted unanimously.
- Resolution in Support of Durham Amazon Workers’ Right to Organize adopted unanimously after amendment to replace the accusation clause with a condemnation of retaliation.
- Appointments to various boards and commissions (Open Space & Trails, Planning Commission, Board of Adjustment, Sports Commission, Human Relations Commission, Racial Equity Commission) approved unanimously as recommended by the council clerk.
- Public Hearing on the FY2025-26 Budget and CIP was held; final adoption is scheduled for June 16, 2025.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everyone. Welcome to City Hall. We are going to uh get on with the people's work tonight. As soon as I open my computer. Recording in progress. Colleagues, give me one moment. Madam Clerk, will you please call the roll? Good evening, Mayor Williams. I'm here. Mayor Pretem Middleton. I'm here. Councilmember Baker. Here. Councilmember Caballero. Councilmember Cook. Councilmember Freeman present and Councilmember. All right. You will now please join me in a moment of silence. Thank you. At this time, I will now pass it over to Councilmember Freeman for the Pledge of Allegiance. Thank you. It's our practice to stand and salute the flag if you'd like to join us and say the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic. All right, we have one ceremonial item tonight that is um I was excited to approve this because it was community, uh what is one of our community driven proclamations where there's a formal process, there's also uh important, it's also important that we are um uh communicating this good work at the community level as well. So I appreciate the community members for uh launching and drafting this proclamation. I'm gonna pass it over to Councilmember Freeman to uh lead us in this fine, that's fine. Good evening, everyone. I'll be reading a proclamation for disaster preparedness week, and Mr. James Chavis with PAC One will be accepting. Thank you. Proclamation, whereas Durham acknowledges that disasters disproportionately affect the most uh most affect the vulnerable among us who typically bear the most significant impacts from housing and food insecurity, from housing is food insecurity to financial hardships. And whereas Durham acknowledges that across the country, historic heat waves, flooding, fire, and tragic tragically claiming lives and impacting many. Whereas Durham knows disasters elsewhere can become disasters at our our own doorsteps. And whereas Durham desires to promote, inform, and empower, and to promote perform and inform and empower residents about disasters and possible dangers from natural disasters, and whereas Durham believes that an informed community is a prepared community. Now therefore, I, Leonardo William, mayor of the City of Durham, North Carolina, do hereby proclaim June twenty-eighth to July fourth, twenty twenty four, as disaster preparedness week in the City of Durham and urge all citizens to take take note of this observance and take time to prepare. Witness my hand in the corporate seal of the City of Durham, North Carolina. This is the second day of June 2025. And I want to share that on Tuesday, tomorrow, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Holton Career Center, there will be a community meeting about disaster preparedness, hosted by Partners Against Crime PAC District One and District Five to give residents the opportunity to ask questions about and be prepared for natural disasters. Hosted by Partners Against Crime PAC District 1 and District 5 to give residents the opportunity to ask questions about and be prepared for natural disasters. All are welcome. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. And thank you, Mayor and Council Lady Freeman for joining in with the county to promote this proclamation. This proclamation is not just for Pat One and Pat Powell. It's for the city of Done to come and be prepared if any disaster come here and done. And start pointing fingers. Don't try to point the finger at the Durham County government. Don't try to point your finger at the term Durham City government. Don't try to point your finger at the Durham School Board.
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