Durham City Council Meeting: November 3, 2025
Durham City Council Meeting: November 3, 2025
The City of Durham held its regular council meeting on November 3, 2025, beginning at 7:00 p.m. The session featured two significant proclamations honoring the HART (Heart) program's national recognition and the late civic leader David Gergen. Following public announcements regarding the upcoming election, homelessness services, and federal government impacts, the council deliberated on infrastructure contracts, specifically the paving of unpaved roads and the Fayette Place housing project, before moving to a vote on several consent agenda items.
Consent Calendar
- Unanimously approved the consent agenda (Items 1-22), excluding Items 12 and 15 which were pulled for further discussion.
- Authorized contracts for sidewalk, street, and bike path improvements funded by the November 2024 bond package.
- Approved construction awards for the Glen Road 1 lift station improvements and the Durham Utilities Pedigree Storage Site Project.
- Adopted a supplemental agreement for signal timing improvements and various contract amendments for engineering services and stormwater projects.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Orlando Watson (resident of Wallace Street, Lakewood) asked the council to reject the paving contract for his street and implement an opt-out process. He expressed concerns that paving gravel roads would increase stormwater runoff risks, reduce pedestrian safety, and eliminate the natural traffic calming provided by gravel, which is vital for families and children in an area lacking sidewalks. He emphasized that residents on Wallace Street value the current safety conditions over paved infrastructure.
- Anita Scott Neville (Hayti Reborn Community Advocacy Council) raised concerns regarding the Fayette Place project. She questioned why the Housing Authority's phase one financing did not mandate local workforce diversity or minority business employment (UBE) goals, citing the historical significance of the Hayti community. She raised fears that the project's profits and contracting opportunities would not benefit local Durham contractors, despite previous assurances of inclusion in the broader project scope.
Discussion Items
- Unpaved Roads Phase One Contract (Item 12): Council debated the execution of a contract to pave 337 unpaved roads. Orlando Watson advocated for an opt-out mechanism, arguing it respects resident preference in specific pockets like Lakewood. Mayor Leo Williams and Councilmember Caballero supported the concept of an opt-out only if 100% of residents on a specific street request it, prioritizing equitable service delivery while acknowledging unique neighborhood conditions. Councilmember Freeman argued against allowing any opt-out, stating that paving is a universal service delivery issue tied to historical equity, noting that 70% of residents approved the bond for this purpose. Councilmember Freeman also questioned the lack of traffic calming measures, suggesting the gravel currently acts as a safety mechanism. Councilmember Baker supported the overall bond progress but requested staff engage with the Vision Zero coordinator to review pedestrian safety concerns on specific streets like Wallace. Staff clarified that traffic counts were not gathered for these specific connector streets and that traffic calming is a separate, post-construction process if deemed necessary. The Mayor amended the motion to allow staff to review concerns with the Vision Zero coordinator but did not include a full opt-out mechanism in the final vote.
- Fayette Place Phase One (Item 15): Discussion focused on the financing mechanism for the Fayette Place redevelopment in the historic Hayti community. Staff clarified that the specific action before the council was a conduit bond from the Durham Housing Authority (DHA), meaning city funds were not directly involved; therefore, city UBE goals were not legally mandatory for this specific transaction, though the broader project would include diversity commitments. DHA Interim CEO Anthony Snell reiterated the Authority's commitment to its "Shared Prosperity" program, ensuring minority contractors and labor are utilized across all phases and funding sources, including Section 3 monitoring standards.
- Real-Time Crime Center (Peregrine/Clarity): The Mayor addressed public anxiety regarding the potential purchase of "Clarity" software, clarifying that it is not the controversial "Palantir" system and is intended for internal data integration, though community engagement meetings were requested by the Public Safety Department.
- Public Announcements: Councilmembers highlighted the upcoming election (early voting at 6.7%), the expansion of cold weather shelter beds (20 extra beds available Nov 15-Mar 15), and the federal government shutdown's impact on SNAP benefits, urging residents to utilize local mutual aid resources. Congratulatory remarks were made regarding the HART program's ICMA award and the life of David Gergen.
Key Outcomes
- Unpaved Roads Contract: Approved 6-1 (Councilmember Freeman voting no) to authorize the city manager to execute a contract with Sunrock Industries LLC for the Unpaved Roads Phase One bond (ST337) in the amount of $3,421,687.10, with a contingency fund of $171,084.36. An additional motion to authorize modifications up to a total cost of $3,592,771.46 passed unanimously. Council provided direction to staff to engage the Vision Zero coordinator regarding pedestrian safety concerns on specific streets before implementation.
- Fayette Place Project: A resolution was adopted to approve the multifamily housing facility known as Fayette Place, Phase One, and its financing (multifamily housing revenue note) not to exceed $44 million.
- Proclamations: Proclaimed November 3, 2025, as "Durham Heart Recognition Day" in honor of the HART program's national award. Proclaimed November 4, 2025, as "David Gergen Day" to honor the legacy of the late civic leader and Durham native.
- Community Engagement: Scheduled town halls for the Real-Time Crime Center on November 5, 6, 8, 12, 13, 14, and 15, and announced the kickoff of community budget conversations on November 5th.
Meeting Transcript
Hello, everyone. Welcome to City Hall. It's good to have you. Good evening, everybody. It's good to see everyone here and um here at our uh council meeting tonight. I'm gonna go ahead and call this meeting to order at 7 p.m. And um, Madam Clerk, will you please call the roll? Good evening, Mayor Williams. I'm here. Mayor Pertent Middleton. I'm here. Councilmember Baker. Here. Councilmember Caledero. Councilmember Cook here. Councilmember Freeman. Is on route. And Councilmember Risk. Here. Thank you. I'll now have a moment of silence. Thank you. I will now ask Mayor Pro Tim to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance. We invite those who are willing to stand to salute the flag for the pledge. All right. At this time, we will have uh we have two proclamations tonight. And uh the first one will be honoring one of Durham's most innovative and creative um groundbreaking uh changes of practice, and that is recognizing our heart team. So I will ask Director Smith to join me at the podium over here. Council members uh Mayor Pro Tim and Cabero, could you all join me real quick? I remember when uh I remember when Hart was being recognized. I was not on council when not being recognized when Hart was been established. I was on council, I was not on council, but the then manager uh page was talking about it when she came to uh brunch one time, and uh I thought that it was one of the most amazing things that the city could ever do, and I'd like to just have these council members stand with me because they were on the council at that time. So yeah, you can't see behind me. All right, um, so at this time I read this proclamation. Whereas the city created the Durham Community Safety Department, DS DCSD in 2021 as a new branch of public safety and charge the department with developing a new crisis response option to enhance and add to our capacity to send the right response based on the needs of our neighbors. And whereas after nearly a year of careful planning, DCSD created a holistic empathetic assistance response team program known as HART, which provides alternative responses to 911 calls that reduce harm, extend care, and increase stability for Durham neighbors in crisis. And whereas this innovative collaborative and community-centric program addresses the root causes of unmet needs, enhancing the overall health and well-being of Durham residents, and whereas since its launch in 2022, the HART program has responded to more than 32,000 nonviolent calls for service, demonstrating its vital role as a new branch of public safety. And whereas HART first responders report feeling safe over 99% of the time, increasing confidence nationally that sites that cities can safely dispatch social workers and other crisis responders to calls formally dispatched to police, saving Durham police officers thousands of hours in response time per year. And whereas the HART program's commitment to service and its exceptional outcomes have earned it national recognition as a leader, to which other cities turn to as an example in the field of public safety. And whereas the International City and County Management Association, ICMA, has honored the HART program with this prestigious National 2025 program award for excellence and community health and safety. This distinguished award is a testament to the dedication of Hart's first responders and signifies Durham's ongoing commitment to building a safer, more equitable and thriving community. I'm grateful for this, Eric Dr. Smith. Yep. So cities are calling for this to be talked about across the entire country. And I'm extremely excited about this. So with that being said, now therefore I, Leonardo Williams, mayor of the City of Durham, North Carolina, do hereby proclaim November 3rd, 2025 as Durham as a Heart Recognition Day in the City of Durham, and hereby urge all residents to celebrate the work of the Heart Program and its team. So witness my hand in the corporate SIL of the City of Durham, North Carolina, this third day of November 2025. I invited two of our outstanding leaders who have been at my side this whole time since the beginning to offer a few brief remarks. So I'll now invite up Assistant Director Needs Fance and Assistant Director Lee Mazer to briefly make a few remarks.
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