Fayetteville City Council Special Meeting - January 31, 2024: Murchison Choice Grant and International Farmers Market Partnership
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Fayetteville City Council Special Meeting - January 31, 2024
On January 31, 2024, the Fayetteville City Council held a special meeting at 5:00 PM in the Council Chamber to discuss two major items: the Murchison Choice Implementation Grant application and a potential International Farmers Market partnership with Cumberland County. The meeting included an invocation, pledge of allegiance, and approval of the agenda. Councilmember Thompson was absent due to a family bereavement; Councilmember McNair participated remotely. Both agenda items received unanimous approval.
Discussion Items
5.01 Murchison Choice Implementation Grant Application
City staff, led by Mr. Collie, presented a detailed overview of the Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant application. The grant seeks $27 million from HUD, with a total community investment of approximately $140 million when combined with city, county, and partner contributions. Key components include:
- Housing: 207 mixed-income rental units (60 replacement public housing, 105 affordable, 42 market rate) and 25 homeownership units at the Elliott Circle site, replacing the existing 110 units. The total housing development cost is $67 million.
- People: $4 million for supportive services (education, health, workforce development) delivered by Urban Strategies, with Cumberland County Schools as a partner.
- Neighborhood: $3 million for projects including a neighborhood grocery store (leveraged with $3 million from a CDFI), residential and commercial facade improvements, and a trail connecting Elliott Circle to Mary McDonald Park. The city has already committed $44 million in leverage, including $35 million from a parks bond and $8.5 million from housing bonds and HOME funds.
- Financing: The city will loan $1 million (fully repaid), invest $3 million from the housing opportunity bond for homeownership, and use $4.5 million in HOME funds. The grant application deadline is February 13, 2024, with an award expected in July 2024 and construction completion by July 2029.
- Relocation: All current residents have rights under the Uniform Relocation Act, including first right to return to the new development. The housing authority and Urban Strategies will provide relocation plans and case management.
Councilmembers asked about resident displacement, senior housing amenities, first right of return, and leveraging remaining bond money for other parts of Murchison Road. Councilmember Hare made a motion to authorize the mayor to sign the leverage letter and the city manager to execute the partnership agreement, and to proceed with the grant application.
5.02 International Farmers Market Partnership with Cumberland County
Mr. Gibson presented a concept for a makerspace and international farmers market on a city-owned site at Rowan Street, Murchison Road, and Bragg Boulevard. The city has invested about $4 million in stabilization and planning. Cumberland County has expressed interest in partnering, using ARPA funds and grants to develop an open-air market and incubation space. The city’s primary contribution would be the land. Councilmember Hare moved to approve the partnership and include the mayor and city manager in discussions with the county.
Key Outcomes
- Murchison Choice Grant: Motion approved unanimously by those voting (Councilmember McNair voting remotely). The city will apply for the $27 million HUD grant and execute required agreements.
- International Farmers Market Partnership: Motion approved unanimously. Council authorized the city manager to discuss a partnership with Cumberland County, with the mayor and city manager involved in negotiations, and to bring back a formal agreement for approval.
Meeting Transcript
On the on the line. Good evening. We would like to call our special meeting. January 31st special meeting in order. Welcome those who are joining us in the audience, those who are joining us remote. I know we have Councilmember McNair on the line. Councilmember McNair, can you hear us? Councilmember McNair. She's on mute, but she's nodding. Okay. All right. Can you see her, Dina? Yes, sir. Okay. All right. So with that, we'll uh we'll start with an invocation. Um volunteers for prayer. I am here, sir. Okay. How are you doing? Uh I'm fine. Good. Uh wouldn't all right. So if we could uh let's stand for prayer and then the pledge of allegiance to follow. Dear Lord Jesus, once again we we come to you asking you and thanking you for just a great great day. Lord, we here in city government and the city council as we come together tonight to go about doing uh the city's business, Father, help our minds to be open. We ask you, Father, to also let our minds be king and full. Um in how to go about doing things fairly and correctly on the city's business. Um retreat. What a great great set of people that we have. We also ask you, Father, to remember the Thompson home tonight. Yes. Approval the agenda. All right. Motion carries Madam Clerk, unanimous by those voting. All right. So thank you, Mayor Council, for having us tonight. We are kind of at the precipice of a pretty big uh goal that we've been working towards for for quite some time. Uh the merchants and choice implementation grant, which we're going to talk about is due in about a week and a half. Um I do not intend to be up on midnight the day that's due uploading everything. So we've got a couple more pieces to wrap up, and we'll be ready to apply for it. Um a couple of those pieces are what we're here to talk about tonight. So just to talk about choice neighborhoods for a moment. Um, you know, public housing had a model for a long time that was uh federal money invest in and pays for, buys and owns public housing. It is run on a shoestring budget, it degrades over time, it gets torn down, rebuilt. Um didn't they came up with this Hope Six idea, which Fayetteville greatly benefited from, where they said, let's bring in private partners and structure these things more like private investment happens. Um and that was great, and it did a lot for for that area of our city. Um, but they learned from that program, and that grew and that kind of became choice neighborhoods. And so choice neighborhoods is exactly that. It's about leveraging public and private dollars, but it's about more than just the housing, it's about the neighborhood and the people that live there.
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