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Durham Council swears in new members and unanimously elects Joseph Friedman chair, Darrell Ford pro tem
Summary
At its March 23 meeting the Durham Town Council swore in four new councilors, elected Joseph Friedman chair and Darrell Ford chair pro tem by unanimous vote, approved the meeting schedule and annual committee appointments, and approved a downtown block party permit.
The Durham Town Council on March 23, 2026 swore in newly elected members Jim Lawson, Mike Lehrman, Carden Welsh and re-elected Councilor Emily Friedrichs, then reorganized its leadership and committee assignments.
Deputy Town Clerk-Tax Collector Audrey MacKenzie administered the oath of office to the four councilors before the Council moved to elect leadership for the new term. Councilor Carden Welsh nominated Joseph Friedman for chair; Councilor Heather Grant seconded the nomination. "I hope to serve everyone well," Chair Joseph Friedman said after the Council elected him by a unanimous roll call vote of 9-0. Chair Friedman then nominated Councilor Darrell Ford for chair pro tem; Ford was elected in a unanimous roll call vote of 9-0.
The Council approved the meeting agenda by unanimous show-of-hands and later amended the calendar to move the Sept. 21 meeting to Sept. 28 to avoid a conflict with Yom Kippur. A special event permit for a downtown block party on April 25, 2026 was approved on a roll call vote of 9-0 after Chair Pro Tem Ford pulled the meeting-dates item for discussion and Councilor Robin Vogt moved to approve the block party permit.
The Council also approved its slate of annual appointments to town boards and committees, including Planning Board representation (Councilor Heather Grant, with Councilor Mike Lehrman as alternate) and commission assignments. The appointments passed on a unanimous roll call vote of 9-0.
The meeting included a standing Land Acknowledgement read by Mx. Emily Friedrichs and a public-comment period during which residents and officials raised several items for future Council attention, including TIF-district review, downtown lighting improvements and dam-removal logistics.
The Council adjourned at 10:08 p.m.
