Raleigh City Council Public Comment Session - March 11, 2025
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Raleigh City Council Public Comment Session - March 11, 2025
The Raleigh City Council held a regular meeting on March 11, 2025, consisting entirely of a public comment session. Residents spoke on a wide range of topics, including environmental health, animal welfare, police and firefighter funding, zoning, transportation, and community spaces. No council actions or votes were taken during this session.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Mary Johnson (founder of RTN) – A breast cancer patient exposed to PCBs at NC State’s Poe Hall, she asked the council to create a forever chemicals committee (including PCBs and PFAS) under the existing environmental board, with support from Councilmember Harrison. She offered to help frame the committee’s goals.
- Liz High (Wake County Animal Center volunteer) – Urged a ban on retail dog sales in pet stores, citing an animal crisis: 8,522 animals accepted in 2024, over 4,000 adoptions, yet North Carolina has the second highest euthanasia rate. She noted 8 states and over 400 cities have already banned the practice.
- Laura Harris (Raleigh People’s Budget Assembly) – Presented four demands: no reduction in public speaking time, fund a community response team separate from police, establish a meet-and-confer policy for city workers, and create a participatory budget process. She also described an incident at Oak City CARES where a pregnant black woman was allegedly kneed by police during a fistfight, and called for investigation and discipline.
- Donna Bailey (District D resident) – Opposed a 30-story height request under the Z50 zoning change, arguing it violates the downtown transition area guidelines that limit height to 12 stories adjacent to residential areas. She criticized Councilmember Silver for a moral conflict of interest due to his work at McAdams with the developer, and warned that approval would set a harmful precedent.
- Robert Quartz (supporter of firefighters) – Urged approval of the firefighter separation allowance, citing 44 current vacancies, 60 by fall, recruitment struggles, and higher mortality rates. He argued retention is critical as Raleigh grows, and the allowance would help retain experienced firefighters.
- Multiple speakers (skateboarders and advocates) – Over a dozen speakers (Miguel Magalenis, Paul Thompson, Riley Murphy, Clinton Perry, Aaron Collins, Nathan Wellish, Nikki Knapp, Michael Haran, John Meyer, Sumit Mondal, and others) advocated for a city-sanctioned DIY skate park, noting the recent demolition of Graveside DIY. They proposed the underutilized area at JC Park, emphasized community-building, skill development, and parallels to community gardens. They cited examples from Charlotte, Asheville, and Statesville, and noted that the 2021 Aspen Institute found 8.8 million skateboarders in the U.S., up 35% from 2019.
- John Sequera (Citizens for a Safe and Secure Raleigh) – Called for increased police salaries to be the highest in the region and a headcount increase of 400 officers over 4–5 years. He stated Raleigh’s starting police salary is $55,000 vs. over $60,000 in Cary and Apex, and that Charlotte’s average is $20,000 more. He cited a 2020 staffing study and a public opinion poll showing 75% support for a substantial police pay increase.
- David Ulmer (North Raleigh resident) – Criticized the city’s budget engagement process as insufficient, arguing it does not educate the public about revenue sources. He used the example of stormwater funding for a dam in Midtown, noting that low-density single-family homes in North Raleigh do not generate enough tax revenue to cover long-term infrastructure costs, forcing subsidies from higher-density areas like Glenwood South.
- Cole McMullen – Supported the firefighter separation allowance and also backed rent control, urging the council to lobby the General Assembly for it. He also called for expanding public housing up to the maximum allowed by the Faircloth Amendment (approx. 70,000 units in Raleigh).
- Alex Brissett and Athena Wallen (Brookside Drive residents) – Pleaded for the long-delayed installation of bike lanes on Brookside Drive, already approved by council. They cited safety concerns for children biking to Conn Elementary, noted 6,700 vehicles per day, and highlighted the lack of infrastructure for renters and pedestrians.
- Nikki Knapp (Skate Forward founder) – Supported the DIY skate park, noting her organization brings inclusion for women and LGBTQ+ skaters, and that Graveside was a safe space. She also called for the demands of the People’s Budget Assembly.
- Kei Zamastiel – Supported the community response team, participatory budgeting, and increased public speaking time. Referenced previous concerns about police integrity.
Key Outcomes
- No council votes, resolutions, or formal actions were taken during the public comment session. The meeting adjourned after the last speaker.
Meeting Transcript
Twenty second. Mary Johnson was the founder of of created RTN. Yes. Dr. Harrison, I wanted to publicly thank you for um our meeting last week. The meeting was very productive. Um, from Mayor Cowell and Council members, I want to summarize just a few key points for you and ask for your support, please. I've spoken at several of the council's public comment section sessions, asking for the council's attention to PCBs inside District D. I'm a current breast cancer patient who is exposed to very high levels of PCBs at NC State's Po Hall. And for the last sixteen months, my mission has been to build awareness of PCBs and the effect that they have on humans, and to ensure that my fellow citizens are not put at risk. I reviewed the bylaws of that environmental board and saw that in Article 6, the board can create special ad hoc committees with agreement of this city council. Under Article 6, I asked Dr. Harrison to enact a PCB task force or committee to protect Raleigh citizens. Dr. Harrison suggested broadening the scope from only PCBs to focus on forever chemicals, which would also include PCBs but also PFAS. I agree fully with her idea of broadening the focus, and I fully support it. Research studies have said that environmental advisory boards have not been utilized enough for issues outside of climate change. So the implementation of a forever chemical committee could have very positive outcomes, including facilitating communication between citizens and local government leaders such as yourselves, building community awareness of the chemicals and the effects they have on air, water, soil, and human beings. Creating community involvement. We could rally citizens around the initiatives or the projects that would come out of such a committee, task force, and building intergovernmental cooperation, which has been a large problem with this PCB issue at Po Hall. So going forward, I hope you'll hear more about this from Dr. Harrison. I hope you'll support the implementation of Forever Chemical Committee under this existing board. Don't have to invent anything new. I also want to say that if I can be a resource in framing the focus and the goals of such a committee, I would love the opportunity to do so. And Dr. Harrison, I would just want to thank you for your willingness not only to meet and to collaborate, but the joy of that meeting was your creative thinking. And that's the best part that came out of that meeting. So if implemented, this would be a big step forward for our city. It would also be a big step forward for protection of our citizens from a lot of toxic chemicals. So thank you very much. Thank you. Thanks, Ms. Alford. And my apologies to Liz High, who I inadvertently skipped, so yes. All right. Good evening. My name is Liz High. I've been a Wake County resident for 10 years and a volunteer at the Wake County Animal Center for the last three and a half. I am here to reiterate the growing concern in the Raleigh community around the retail sale of dogs in pet boutique stores. If you have not visited Wake County Animal Center off of Newburn Avenue, I personally invite you to take a stroll through their through their adoption floor. You will see 80 to 100 dogs available for adoption, 15 to 50 cats, and an eclectic mix of small critters, sometimes even farm animals. WCAC is the only open intake animal shelter in this county, meaning they are required to accept every single animal brought to them. If a person is arrested or hospitalized, WCAC cares for their animals. If a person dies, WCAC cares for their animals. Animals from hoarding cases, abuse cases, feral animals, animals that have bitten humans, and owner surrenders are all cared for by WCAC. In 2024 alone, the Wake County Animal Center accepted 8,522 animals. Even with over 4,000 adoptions, Raleigh is still clearly experiencing an animal crisis. Does it sound like we need any additional animals bred and sold in our city? Backyard and puppy mill breeders are so prevalent in the Raleigh area that entire rescues exist to care for the discarded puppies from irresponsible breeders.
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