City and county approve 2025 joint meeting calendar; Feb. 11 and Aug. 12 to include Durham Public Schools, meetings to start at 9:30 a.m.

The Joint City–County Committee voted unanimously to approve minutes for June 11 and Aug. 13, 2024, and to adopt the 2025 meeting calendar with two changes: the Feb. 11 and Aug. 12 meetings will include the Durham Public Schools, and meetings will start at 9:30 a.m. going forward.

Committee members debated whether all joint meetings should include the school board or whether a small number of full three-body sessions would suffice. Several members said they favored keeping most city–county meetings focused on just the two governments and scheduling two full joint sessions with the school board each year for issues of shared interest such as transportation, infrastructure and the budget.

Speakers noted practical reasons for the 9:30 a.m. start time: high schools in Durham County start classes at 9:15 a.m., and several members asked the committee to set a time that would allow parents who are elected officials to take their children to school. The clerk noted the county already had a joint county–board of education meeting scheduled in August, so adding the school board to the Aug. 12 city–county meeting would not create a calendar conflict.

The motion as stated — to approve the 2025 calendar, add Durham Public Schools to the Feb. 11 and Aug. 12 meetings, and set meeting start times at 9:30 a.m. — was moved, seconded and passed unanimously.

The committee also agreed to return to the question later if staff bring a formal proposal to change additional meetings to three-body sessions.

The committee set its next meeting for Feb. 11, 2025; that session will include the county, city and the Durham Public Schools.