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Council questions $ increase for minority‑business outreach contract under Forever Home Durham bond
Summary
Councilors pressed Community Development staff about a proposed amendment increasing a contract with United Minority Contractors of NC to support MWBE participation under the Forever Home Durham bond. Staff said the work is largely compliance and outreach tied to federal Davis‑Bacon and Section 3 requirements and that the amendment extends time and
Durham City Council members questioned a contract amendment that would increase funding and extend the term for the United Minority Contractors of North Carolina (UMC NC) to provide outreach, workforce planning and Davis‑Bacon / Section 3 compliance assistance tied to the Forever Home Durham bond and other affordable‑housing work.
Council member Cook and others asked why the city is paying an external firm for tasks the city has historically handled and why the amendment includes a sizable budget increase with limited detail in the agenda packet. Reginald J. Johnson, director of Community Development, said the city established MWBE and WBE participation goals (11% minority, 7% women) and that the scale and federal complexity of the Forever Home Durham work requires more intensive outreach and contractor capacity building than previous programs.
Renee Jones, project lead for United Minority Contractors Association, described core services: outreach to MWBE firms, technical assistance to help small contractors prepare competitive bids, workforce plan development for general contractors (Section 3 compliance), and Davis‑Bacon wage monitoring. Staff said the contract covers outreach, bid‑preparation assistance, and compliance monitoring that smaller city teams lack the capacity to provide at the scale required by the bond program.
Council members asked for the original contract and a clearer breakdown of results to date; staff said the amendment is a time and money extension rather than a change of scope and that early results show the program has exceeded the city's participation goals (staff cited approximately 13% minority and 12% women‑owned firm participation in Durham County to date). Council members requested those data and the original contract language be added to the public packet before the amendment is finalized.
Ending: Staff agreed to provide the original contract and supporting performance data to council, and council members said they will review those materials before taking a final vote on the amendment.
