Residents urge action on hidden homelessness and request better local transit options

At the public comment portion of the meeting, resident Stephanie Reid said homelessness in Morrisville is often hidden — not visible on sidewalks but present in parking lots and vehicles — and urged the council to reconsider zoning and regulatory barriers she said keep smaller, affordable homes effectively illegal.

Reid told the council: "Just because someone isn't sleeping on the sidewalk doesn't mean they have a home… The real barrier is the red tape we spent a century perfecting." She cited examples of other cities that changed zoning rules to allow more housing types and pointed to results in Auckland, New Zealand, where changes led to increased housing production and smaller rent increases.

Another resident, Alexandra Baniewski, described mobility challenges related to autism and anxiety that make driving difficult and asked the council to consider a door‑to‑door transit service for the Kicks Creek area similar to a program she used in Cary. Baniewski said paratransit and existing shuttle options are often fully booked and that a dependable door‑to‑door service would increase independence for residents who cannot drive.

Councilmembers thanked the speakers and said staff would take their remarks into account as work proceeds on housing and transit issues. No council action was taken at this meeting; the exchanges were taken as input for future policy and service discussions.