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Council certifies results of $200M infrastructure bond; residents urge housing investments and anti-displacement safeguards
Summary
Durham City Council adopted a resolution certifying the special bond referendum results and listeners at the public hearing urged the council to pair East Durham infrastructure investment with measures to prevent displacement and fund supportive housing.
The Durham City Council adopted a resolution certifying and declaring the results of the special bond referendum held Nov. 5, 2024, on the citys bond orders authorizing general obligation bonds. The motion to adopt the certification passed unanimously (7-0).
During the public comment period prior to the vote, several residents urged the council to prioritize supportive housing and anti-displacement measures alongside capital investments in East Durham. Virginia Workman told the council her friends makeshift home and personal belongings had been discarded during area encampment clearings and urged the council to "address Durham's housing crisis and escalating gentrification before more of our own residents are forced to sleep without shelter."
Other speakers, including Ripley Thornton, Samuel Scarborough and Thomas Corralbritain, described personal observations of recent encampment clearings and rising counts of chronically unhoused residents. Scarborough, identifying himself as a descendant of the historic Hayti community, warned that public infrastructure investment without community-driven protections could accelerate displacement, and he called for the city to use resources from reserves or other sources for immediate housing needs.
Councilmember Mary Cook (Councilmember Cook) acknowledged the historical and racial inequities underlying present disparities and supported both the bonds investments and a stronger set of protections and mitigation steps to keep long-time residents in place. She said that if displacement occurs quickly during the build-out of improvements, the city will have missed the opportunity to protect residents.
The council recorded the bond certification as an official action. Councilmembers also referenced ongoing and planned housing investments, federal grants, and locally funded programs aimed at reducing unsheltered homelessness and increasing permanent supportive housing capacity; they asked residents to stay engaged in follow-up planning.
