Durham City Council Work Session - November 22, 2023
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Durham City Council Work Session - November 22, 2023
The Durham City Council held a work session on November 22, 2023, at 1:00 p.m. (local time). The meeting included public comments, a third quarter crime report, a presentation on the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, a first quarter financial report, and a discussion on city council procedures. The consent agenda was settled with item 6 (discussion on city council procedures) pulled for discussion. No formal votes were taken on substantive items.
Consent Calendar
- Items 1 through 5 and items 7 through 21 were approved via consent agenda, including participatory budgeting steering committee appointment (re-advertised due to tie), municipal election results, bid report, sidewalk audit, contract with ETR Services, utility bonds, condemnation easements, construction contract for former wheel skating center, HUD grant awards, community policing grant, third quarter crime report (presented separately), and various public hearings (items 24-26).
Public Comments & Testimony
- Jeremy Berger expressed gratitude to Mayor O'Neill for her support, noting his personal struggles with disabilities and gun violence, and thanked the mayor for being a “political social worker” to vulnerable communities.
- Russell Pierce thanked the council for $3 million in support to preserve Carver Creek Apartments (48 units of affordable housing), emphasizing the importance of preventing displacement and creating a supportive housing campus.
- Gideon Bueno thanked council members for their service and expressed concern about the final design of the former wheel skating center, which would reduce the skating area, potentially limiting access for roller derby and other leagues.
- Chris Benjamin presented a farewell card to Mayor O'Neill from the Solid Waste Department, expressing gratitude for her leadership.
- Jacqueline Wagstaff (via Zoom) thanked Mayor O'Neill and criticized the council's vote on a development project, warning that crime would increase due to housing insecurity.
- Dennis Garrett (spoke during crime report discussion) urged collaboration to address rising crime, particularly among youth, and offered to work with the council on violence intervention.
Discussion Items
Third Quarter Crime Report (2023)
Chief of Police presented the 2023 third quarter crime report. Key statistics:
- Violent crime: Overall down 5.5% year-to-date. Homicides up 9.4% (45 as of Nov 20), rape up 21.6% (118 offenses, 34% from prior years), robbery down 21.3%, aggravated assault slightly down.
- Shooting incidents: Up 17.2% (676 incidents, 77 from ShotSpotter alerts with no 911 call). 837 guns seized in 624 incidents.
- Property crime: Burglaries up 15.6% (1,066 offenses, 61% residential), larcenies up, motor vehicle theft up 156% (86% recovery rate, 21% left running unattended).
- Clearance rates: Homicide 80%, rape 53.6%, violent crime 30.9% (below national average for city size), motor vehicle theft well below national average.
- Response times: Average 6 minutes 42 seconds (target 5:48), 49.5% of priority one calls answered in under 5 minutes (target 57%).
- Staffing: 77% filled, 24.7% vacancy rate. Academy 58 started with 15 recruits, 13 remaining.
- ShotSpotter: 1,125 published incidents, 4,245 shots detected, 3.9 alerts/day, 26.3% had corresponding 911 call. Four notable successes including arrests and faster medical intervention.
Council members expressed support for the department, noted challenges with juvenile crime, and emphasized the need for community collaboration. Mayor Pro Tem Middleton commended the chief for handling of a highway protest incident.
Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative Presentation
Mayor O'Neill introduced the Innovation Track core team, which studied barriers for justice-involved individuals (JII). The team conducted stakeholder interviews with JII, landlords, and service providers. Key findings:
- JII need skill sets to maintain housing, not just placement.
- Landlords often refuse vouchers due to strong market, and eviction process is lengthy.
- Service providers work in silos; there is no coordinated entry system for JII.
- Proposed solutions: one-stop shop model, peer support specialists, landlord engagement, and a tiered housing system.
The team was awarded 20 additional coaching hours from Bloomberg to continue the work. Council members thanked the team and committed to building on the work.
First Quarter Financial Report (FY2024)
Christina Reardon from Budget and Management Services presented the first quarter report. Key points:
- General Fund: Property tax collection down 89% due to later mailing of bills (expected to normalize by Q2). Sales tax down slightly (13M vs 14M last year). Occupancy tax up 40%. Projected expenditures $2.2M under budget due to personnel savings.
- Enterprise Funds: Water/sewer fund projected positive variance of $1.4M. Transit fund under budget by $3.8M due to delayed service enhancements. Solid waste fund positive variance of nearly $1M. Parking fund negative variance of $334,000. Inspection fund positive variance.
- Council members noted the need to monitor capital improvement costs and requested more detailed reporting.
Discussion on City Council Procedures
Mayor O'Neill initiated a discussion on gaps in council procedures, particularly regarding censure, fraternization, and handling of citizen complaints. She noted that a 23-page white paper was prepared by a law student at her request. She highlighted the case of Councilmember Holsey-Hyman, who was exonerated after a censure resolution was proposed. She argued that the council lacks a clear process for addressing conduct outside the dais, leaving issues unresolved. Mayor Pro Tem Middleton countered that the existing procedures are adequate, that citizens can initiate censure by getting a council member to sponsor a resolution, and that the council is not obligated to act on every citizen request. He also noted that the procedures committee had not met and that the next council should address any changes. Councilmembers Freeman and Holsey-Hyman expressed frustration over the treatment of Holsey-Hyman, with Freeman accusing Middleton of bullying. Middleton denied the allegations and offered to release all communications. The discussion ended without formal action.
Key Outcomes
- Consent agenda settled with items 1-5, 7-21, and public hearings 24-26 approved. Item 6 (discussion on city council procedures) was pulled and discussed separately.
- Participatory budgeting steering committee appointment deadlocked 3-3; the item was re-advertised.
- No formal votes were taken on the crime report, Bloomberg presentation, financial report, or procedures discussion. These were informational items.
- Next steps: The Bloomberg team will continue with 20 additional coaching hours. The next council will consider updates to council procedures. The next quarterly financial report is due in February 2024.
Note: The meeting date provided in the transcript is November 21, 2023, but the instruction specified using November 22, 2023. This summary uses the instructed date.
Meeting Transcript
We are now streaming. We are now streaming one minute till broadcast. Well stop. Good afternoon. I keep saying good morning because it feels like it was such a long oops. Good afternoon, good afternoon, everyone. I think it is the one o'clock hour, so I would like to call the Durham City Council work session to order for this the 21st day of November 2023 at 1 p.m. We certainly want to welcome all of you here in attendance and those joining us remotely as well. Madam Clerk, if you will please call the road. Good afternoon, Mayor O'Neill. I am here. Mayor Pro Tem Middleton. I'm here. Councilmember Caballero. Here. Councilmember Freeman. Present. Councilmember Holsey Hyman. Present. Councilmember Johnson has an excused absence for today. And Councilmember Williams. I'm present. All right. Councilman. The councilwoman uh Caballero. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Just very quickly, I want to uh wish everyone a restful and wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. I hope folks are able to enjoy themselves. Um that is all. Thank you. Anyone else on this air? I would just echo um Councilmember Caballero and just say that it's gonna be a wonderful wishing everyone a happy um indigenous people's month, heritage month, um, next month as well, because I think we'll start a little later. Anyone else? Mayor Pro Tim. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Good afternoon, ma'am. Good afternoon, my honorable colleagues, everyone in the chamber. Um, Madam Mayor, last night I was a bit late to the meeting because I was celebrating with our colleagues and friends at the county who are about to launch the county's iteration uh of guaranteed income. This is a movement that is gaining much steam uh around of the country. Um and indeed we're very proud here in Durham to be receiving national attention for our participation. Wonderful film called It's Basic uh was screened by the county as part of their celebration. So I just want to send congratulations out to our colleagues uh at the county uh and really excited about the residents who will be participating. Um talking about this time of year when so many of us will be uh engaged in feasting, um, having guaranteed income for our neighbors and our friends, uh suggesting that there's a line by virtue of your citizenship and humanity that we will not allow you to fall beneath as a nation. I think it's an appropriate time of year to be celebrating a guaranteed income. So congratulations to our friends at the county and thank my colleagues for allowing me to participate uh on behalf of the city to talk about our experiences with um guaranteed income. And finally, just a blessed and joyous and restful holiday season to you, colleagues, and to all of the residents and citizens of our city. Thank you, ma'am. Councilman Williams. Briefly, uh, thank you, madam mayor and colleagues. Last night I talked about a $300,000 appropriation for the Heron Rookery.
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