Durham, N.C. - The Durham Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) met on Monday, December 9, 2024, in Regular Session. Meetings are held in person with a hybrid option, inside the BOCC Chambers, located at 200 E. Main Street on the second floor.

Closed Session: The Board met earlier at 6:00pm in Closed Session to consult with an attorney employed or retained by the public body in order to preserve the attorney-client privilege between the attorney and the public body, which privilege is hereby acknowledged to G.S. 143-318.11(a)(3). No action was taken.

Chair Nida Allam called the 7:00pm meeting to order.

All attendees were led by Commissioner Stephen Valentine to recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

Agenda Adjustments: The Board made no adjustments to the agenda.

Announcements: Monica Wallace, Clerk to the Board, read the announcements.

Most DCo Offices Closing for Winter Holidays - Most Durham County Government offices will be closed in observance of the Winter Holidays from Tuesday, December 24 through Thursday, December 26, 2024. Offices will reopen with normal business hours on Friday, December 27. Our offices will also close for New Year's Day on Wednesday, January 1, 2025, and reopen on Thursday, January 2. Read how it will impact services at www.DCONC.GOV.

Stanford L. Warren Branch Library Re-opening - The Durham County Library is excited to host the grand re-opening of the Stanford L. Warren Branch Library on Thursday, December 12, at 10 a.m. The branch, located at 1201 Fayetteville Stret, closed for extensive renovations, structural repairs, and updates for three years. The branch's history began with the founding of the Durham Colored Library in 1916 as only the second Black library in North Carolina. Learn more at https://nccdigital.durhamcountylibrary.org/exhibits/the-history-of-stanford-l.-warren-branch-library.

Info Session for the BULLS Academy Cohort 11 - Open enrollment for BULLS Academy is now open; however, you must first attend an info session. Session dates are December 11th at 12pm, January 15th at 12pm and February 5th at 12pm. Please visit www.madeindurham.org to receive additional information.

Little WORLD Charity Holiday Model Train Show - All aboard and welcome to the train show! This exhibit is brought to us by Little WORLD Charity.Watch as 10 model trains travel through the State Fair, Winter Town, Spooky Town, and more. The purpose of this 100% volunteer effort is to encourage literacy and bring joy to kids needing medical care. When: Dec. 13-16, 17, 19-21, 23, 27-28, 10 a.m-4 p.m., at Durham County Main Library, 300 N. Roxboro Street. Learn more at https://durhamocountylibrary.libcal.com/event/13537940.

NAIA Football Championship on Dec. 21 - Durham County Memorial Stadium (750 Stadium Drive) will host the 69th Annual NAIA Football Championship game at 12 p.m. on Saturday, December 21. The game will pit the top two teams that advance through the NAIA Football Championship Series, which runs from Nov. 23 to Dec. 14. Tickets are available at https://bit.ly/DCoNAIA24tix.

2024 Annual Property Tax Billing - The Durham County Tax Administration mailed 2024 tax bills to Durham County property owners in mid-August. Taxes are due September 1, 2024, but must be paid by January 6, 2025, to avoid interest and additional costs. For information, visit our website at www.dconc.gov/tax or contact Durham County Government Call Center at 919-560-0300.

2025 Reappraisal Notices - The Durham County Tax Administration wants to inform everyone that notices for the 2025 Reappraisal will be mailed to all real property owners during the first quarter of 2025. These will inform taxpayers of their 2025 assessed values. Property owners are encouraged to review the values, compare them with sales they have observed in their markets, and verify that their property listing is accurate. For questions, call 919-560-0300.

Durham Homicide and Victims of Violent Death Memorial Quilt Exhibit - The Durham County Department of Public Health and the DCo Firearm Injury Prevention Partnership invite all community members to come to the Human Services Building, 414 E. Main Street, during the month of December to view the Durham Homicide and Victim of Violent Death Memorial Quilt exhibit. Artist Sidney Brodie created the quilt in the mid-1990s. Event is free and open to the public during normal business hours. Learn more at https://www.sidneybrodie.net/introducing-the-quilt.

Watch Latest "In Touch with Durham County" - Be sure to check out the latest edition of "In Touch with Durham County" from the DCo Public Information Office. The latest episode features Durham County Tax Administrator Keyar Doyle. He will discuss the upcoming 2025 General Reappraisal and what taxpayers need to know. The episode will run all month on Durham Television network. Watch it on demand here: www.youtube.com/dcowebmaster.

Help Shape the Future of Biking and Walking - Have ideas on how to make biking, walking, and rolling in Durham better? Residents are now invited to provide their input to help update the 2025 Durham Bike+Walk Plan, a guide for improving sidewalks, bike lanes, greenways, and other infrastructure. Residents can participate by completing an online survey or attending an in-person community meeting or pop-up event. Those meetings are as follows:

Community Meetings

Saturday, December 8: 2 p.m. - 3:30 p.m - Free People's Bike Ride, CCB Plaza

Saturday, December 14: 10 a.m. - noon - W.G. Pearson Center, 600 E. Umstead St.

Thursday, January 16: 6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. - Avila Retreat Center, 711 Mason Rd.

Pop-Up Events

Saturday, December 7: 9 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. - LEAP 5K Jingle Walk/Run, 473 Morehead Ave.

Saturday, December 21: 10 a.m. - noon - PAC 1 Meeting, Holton Career and Resource Center, 401 N. Driver St.

For additional information, please visit https://engagedurham.com/221/Durham-BikeWalk-Plan-Update.

Citizen Comments: The Board of County Commissioners provided a 30-minute comment period for any citizen of Durham County wishing to speak.

Ceremonial Items:

Resolution - Emancipation Day 2025 - The Board adopted a resolution observing January 1, 2025, as Emancipation Day in Durham County. Dawn Paige of the Concerned Black American Citizens Organization received the resolution. Read the resolution here.

Minutes: Commissioners approved the November 25, 2024, Regular Session and December 2, 2024, Work Session meeting minutes.

Consent Agenda: Commissioners considered the following items. See full agenda for complete details:

Approval of Capital Project Amendment No.25CPA023 and Budget Ordinance Amendment No.25BCC046 Appropriating $368,119.48 from Debt Service Fund Fund Balance and Transferring the Funding to the PAYGO Fund for the Durham County Sheriff's Office Body-Worn and In-Car Camera Capital Project (43103600DC092); as well as Contract Approval with Motorola Solutions, Inc. in the amount of $1,392,671

Approval of Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 25BCC047 Recognizing $31,915 from the 2024 Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) through the North Carolina Department of Public Safety to the Durham County Sheriff's Office

Approval of Contract with NWN Corporation in the Amount of $113,547.83 to Purchase Network Equipment and Licenses for the Durham County Detention Facility

Approval of Contract with NWN Corporation in the Amount of $115,532.91 to Purchase Replacement Switches for the Durham County Sheriff's Office

Approval of Ambulance Purchase through the SAVVIK Cooperative for Five Ambulance for the Office of Emergency Services for a Total of $1,926,750.00

Approval of Contract with Stryker for the Purchase of Three (3) Power-LOAD Units in the amount of $89,999.99

Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 25BCC050 for the Department of Social Services to Recognize $627,500 from the City of Durham for the Low-Income Homeowners Tax Relief Program (LIHRP) and to approve the Interlocal Agreement (ILA) between Durham County Department of Social Services and the City of Durham for the Low-Income Homeowners Tax Relief

Budget Ordinance Amendment No.25BCC048 to Recognize $180,000 of a Grant Award to the Durham County Library and to Authorize the County Manager to Sign and Execute the Subaward Agreement between North Carolina Central University and Durham County Library

Approval of Capital Project Amendment No.25CPA026 Reducing the Detention Center Cell Window Replacement Capital Project (4190DC084) by $500,000 and Increasing the Ongoing Facilities Systems Upgrades Capital Project (4190DC087) by $500,000 to Cover Unanticipated Equipment Replacement Costs

Approval of Budget Ordinance Amendment No.25BCC056 Recognizing $1,137,481 of Durham County Transit Plan Funding from GoTriangle for the Bus Rapid Transit Vision Plan and Transit Plan Management, as well as Approval of One New Transportation FTE to be Funded by the Durham Transit Plan

Approval of Property Tax Releases and Refunds for November 2024

Approval of Durham Board of County Commissioners - Boards and Commissions Appointments. The appointments will take effect January 1, 2025.

Other Business: The Board approved ARPA Grant Ordinance Amendment No. 25ARPA001, moving funding between Functional Areas to align with final project authorizations.

The Board approved Capital Project Amendment No.25CPA027 and Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 25BCC059, reducing $3,135,308 of Sewer Utility Enterprise Fund Fund Balance allocated to the Slater Road Lift Station, Force Main and Outfall Capital Project, as well as transferring $3,135,308 of budgeted ARPA funding to the project.

The Board approved Capital Project Amendment No.25CPA028 and Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 25BCC060, realigning funding sources for the Justice Services Department Transition House by removing $307,428 of ARPA funding from the project and replacing it with Debt Service Fund Fund Balance transferred to the PayGo Fund.

Board and Commission Appointments: The Board made appointments to the following Boards and Commissions:

Board of Adjustment ---William Vatavuk

Dangerous Dog Appeal Board-- Thomas Verrault

Durham County Women's Commission- La-Tasha Best-Gaddy, Hope Venetta

Durham Open Space and Trails Commission- (i) Eric Faust (Carr/Oak Grove Township) , Courtney McGuire (Triangle Township) and Ramsay Ritchie (At-Large)

Congratulations to the appointees.

Items Pulled from the Consent Agenda:

Adjournment: The Board adjourned the meeting at 7:52pm.

Board meetings are cablecast live and rebroadcast on Durham Television Network (DTN) on Spectrum channel 8 and 1302, Frontier channel 70 and AT&T U-verse channel 99. Meetings can also be viewed on the County's YouTube channel. To view the agendas and recordings of the BOCC's Regular Session meetings, visit the BOCC's Website.

The next hybrid Regular Session is scheduled for Monday, January 13, 2025, inside the Commissioners' Chambers on the second floor at 200 E. Main Street.

For more information about BOCC meetings, contact the Clerk to the Board's Office at (919) 560-0025 or email clerk@dconc.gov.