Regular Session

Good afternoon. Good evening everyone. Good evening. All right. prior to well first of all welcome to our regular session for today Monday September 28th 20 26 which happens to be my dad's birthday so if he happens to be watching which I'm sure he's not happy birthday uh all right uh the board met in closed session uh prior to this meeting no action was taken but guidance was given to staff. All right, given that I will start our meeting. I'm going to read the public charge. Um, Commissioner Valentine, would you be open to doing the uh land acknowledgement? And then, um, Vice Chair alum, would you be open to doing the pledge?

Oh, wait. Do we do we do the pledge? Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We'll do the pledge.

Yeah.

You do both.

Okay. All right. That'll work. Okay. U the board of commissioners ask members and residents to conduct themselves in a respectful courteous ma manner both with the board and fellow residents. At any time should a me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me me member of the board or any resident fail to observe this public charge, the chair will ask the offending person to leave the meeting until that individual regains personal control. Should the quorum fail to be restored, the chair will recess the meeting until such time that a genuine commitment to the public charge is observed. Commissioner Von

land acknowledgement. So, as we convene for the Dorm County Commissioners meeting, it's crucial to recognize the painful truth of history, we stand on the stolen ancestral lands

of the Kataba, the Eno, Dokanichi, and the Tuscor's peoples, excuse me, whose deep connection to this land predates our arrival. We acknowledge with humility the unjust displacement of violence that occurred leading to the dispossession of indigenous peoples from their homelands. Their resilience in the face of such adversity is a testament to their strength and spirit. May we humbly honor the ancestors and their elders of these nations, both past and present, by committing ourselves to fostering understanding, healing, and justice for all who inhabit this land. Let us walk forward together with open hearts, acknowledging the past, embracing the future, guided by compassion, respect, and unity. The Pledge allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. All right, thank you very much. Um, the next item on our agenda is the agenda adjustments or agenda repro approval. Are there any adjustments to agend to the agenda as presented? Okay, hearing none, I accept a motion to accept the agenda as presented.

So moved.

Second.

It's been moved and properly seconded. We accept the agenda as presented. All in favor say I.

I. All oppose, please use the same sign. Passes unanimously. The next item on our

agenda are the announcements. Clerk Wallace, not here. Good evening everyone. I'll read the announcements published in tonight's agenda. The Durham County Sheriff's Office is seeking passionate, engaged community members who want to make a positive impact. Applica applications are now open through October 9th, 2026 for the Sheriff's Community Advisory Board. Established in 2019 by Sheriff Clarence F. Burkehead, the community advisory board provides Durham residents with a direct way to share community concerns and learn more about the operations and responsibilities of the sheriff's office. Applicants must reside in Durham, be at least 21 years of age, and can volunteer for one year to attend meetings every quarter. You can visit the sheriff's community advisory board page for additional information. www.dermsheriff.com. Durham's largest open street celebration returns on October 4th, featuring 1.2 2 miles of Blackwell, Cochran, and Foster streets closed to cars and open for people. Walk, bike, roll, dance, skip, or boot scoot your way through downtown. Enjoy activities for all ages, including arts, music, food, wellness, and fitness experiences all along the corridor. For maps in the full schedule, you can visit moveabull.org. Join the Durham Soil and Water Conservation District in Durham Cooperative Extension for the fall native plant sale on October 1st at the Cooperative Extension building located at 721 Foster Street in Durham. Browse a wide selection of native plants grown by

local Durham County growers. Extension Master Gardener volunteers will be on site to answer gardening questions. More information on this event is available at durham.ces.n. NSS, I'm sorry, ncsu.edu. Early voting for the 2026 statewide general election in Durham County begins on Thursday, October 15th, and runs through Sunday, October 31st. For details about early voting locations, hours, and additional election information, visit the Durham County Board of Elections website at dco votes.dcolc.gov. And lastly, new federal laws are bringing changes to some Durham County Medicaid rules. Updated requirements will take effect on October 1st, 2026 and and January 1st, 2027. Durham County Social Services is available to help answer your questions. You can call at 919-5608000 or visit in person at the Durham County Human Services Building, 414 East Main Street. The average wait time to be seen is about 10 minutes. That concludes the announcements published in tonight's agenda.

Thank you, Clerk Wallace. All right, the next item. Are there any other announcements? Uh, we'll go to Commissioner Burton.

Thank you, Chair Lee. Um, I just want to share on this past Saturday, I went to the digital empowerment day that was held at the Chesterfield building. It was sponsored by um, Digital Durham. Digital Durham is a nonprofit um that really is trying to close the gap with community members in the um with digital awareness um technology things like that and it was a really really good seminar um really learned a lot about AI and how it's going to affect us and just learning really what AI is as well as cyber security and

digital durm received um ARPA funding from the city of Durham. Um so I just want to really um put that out there that this is a really great organization that's doing great work in the community. And also I want to highlight um this past Thursday Durham Public Schools the school board did a resolution a uni a unanimous resolution in regard to the tax amendments that are going to be on the ballot November 3rd. Um many people know that these tax amendments, one has something to do with levying of um putting restrictions on counties with limiting property tax. Um also um limiting the amount of income tax that can be levied to I believe three and uh half cents. Um, and so, um, we really want to get the word out about this because we raise when we have, um, this is how we pay for things in Durham County, um, our schools, our EMS, um, our libraries, things like that. So, I'm really am glad that, um, the DPS school board did that resolution to make more awareness of what it could happen if those amendments pass. So, thank you so much. Um, Commissioner Jacobs.

Yes. Um, thank you, Commissioner Burton. And as a followup to what you said, I know at our next work session, we are going to be getting an economic update. And I would like to request um, some of the numbers that have been proposed are something like a 2% levy or a 3% levy. And I think it's important for our board to know, but also for the community to know that what kind of impact that would actually have on Durham County's budget um and what we would how that would impact impact our revenues and our ability to um fund the current services that we provide. So if

that could be um included um in that discussion, I think that would be very helpful. Okay, thank you. Um I just wanted to share also a few announcements. One is um unfortunately I personally will not be able to attend because I will be visiting my granddaughter in Arkansas. But on October 3rd, on Saturday is uh the Pride March and it is from at noon um at the East Campus wall from noon to 2 on Saturday and I was wondering we normally uh we w march together Durham County staff and I didn't know was there going to be an effort to try to have um Durham County governments whoever wants to walk together to do that.

Yes, ma'am. The invite will be sent out to staff. Um I should have responses by Thursday. I normally send out an email to those that uh volunteer to participate um on that Friday prior to just so that they'll have the information the day before instead of a few days and it get lost in emails. Okay.

But yes, ma'am, we will we are hoping to have um county staff.

Thank you. Um, and then also, um, I wanted to share that on October 7th, um, Commissioner Valentine and I along with Sheriff Burkehead have been invited to participate in a panel at 6:00 p.m. 6 pm at the Zafa Temple at 2312

South Austin Avenue. and I really look forward to the opportunity to have a conversation uh with the community. Uh it's being also hosted by the NAACP and it's going to be focused on conversations on homelessness, public safety, 911, and other county solutions. So, I wanted to let people know about that. And then I was always good things happening in our community. Saturday, I was at the 30-year celebration um the I'm sorry, the 50th anniversary celebration for the Durham Community Land Trust and they were also celebrating paying off their building uh after 30 years. Um, and so that um, but I Durham Congregations and Action was there and I learned about a program that's been restarted again called Homeshare Durham and they had applications there uh, for uh, both the uh, Home Seeker and the Home Provider. And basically this is a program that allows people um who would like to rent out a room in their home for extra income or for you know companionship and then for people who are looking for housing and this program helps to uh it the Durham congregations and action will vet people and help match people together. So, if you're interested in learning more about this um please contact Durham Congregations and Action and also um Duke um Community Affairs were was at the event and they were sharing an application for a program called um Homegrown Fellow and they are looking for organizations in the community that

are focused on economic mobility. uh they have an application that ends on October 13th, but they will place a fellow uh from Duke University in the organization to help provide support in many different ways um to the mission uh and the program that the organization is working on. So, just wanted to share those two opportunities. Thank you.

All right. Thank you, Commissioner Valentine. Uh yes, chair. I know this is actually directed to the manager. We had talked about previously uh bringing before one of our work sessions an update on the drug treatment court.

I I just want to make sure that we don't get uh lost in our conversations moving forward and make sure that gets on the agenda.

We can have that.

Family court, excuse me. Yeah, family court. Sorry.

Yes. Um funds were realigned to support that effort and um we we can bring an update to the board. Okay.

Thank you. Okay. Uh, Vice Chair Long.

Yes. I just wanted to add on to Commissioner Burton and Commissioner Jacob's comments about the property tax amendments. There is a really good resource out there that Carolina Forward has um put out. Uh, I think they published it just like two days ago. It's actually a calculator where you can see the impact uh to your community to diff like for example they have Wake County listed or you could choose whichever county you live in and how much the county would lose for every 1 cent in reduction of uh tax revenue as well as um who also benefits. uh and showing like when we lose uh that tax revenue on the local level and how a lot of corporations who are not getting taxed um through the state legislature what they're actually gaining in that same time period. So if you go to carolinaforward.org's website, you can use that calculator.

Okay. Are there any other announcements? All right. Very good. So next on our agenda are the ceremonial items. We have three proclamations and two Well, no, no, no. That's that's We have four. Uh to be recognized, we have a proclamation and two resolutions. Um uh oh, minutes. We got to do the minutes. That's right. Okay. Before we go to the ceremonial items, we have to approve the minutes dated Hold on one second. Um, August 24th, 2026, September 8th, 2026, and then September 14th, 2026.

I move for approval of all three sets of minutes.

Second.

It's been moved and prop has been properly moved and approve uh moved and seconded that we approve all three sets of minutes. Any further discussion? All in favor say I.

I.

All oppose, please use the same sign. passes unanimously. Okay. Now, on to the ceremonial items. A proclamation. I'll be reading a proclamation for the Duke Hospital one. Um, you have two of them, Commissioner Valentine. All right. So,

would you like someone else to read?

Chair. I'm I I'm actually going to read one and then just make a brief comments on the other.

Okay. Yeah.

Okay, that'll work.

All right. So, our first proclamation is Duke Regional Hospital's 50th anniversary recognition day. Okay. And I'll read that one. Okay. So, Dur uh Durham Board of Commissioners proclamation Duke Regional Hospital 50th anniversary recognition day 2026. Whereas Duke Regional Hospital has faithfully served the residents of Durham County and surrounding communities for 50 years, providing except exceptional health care services

in advancing the health of our region. And whereas since 1976, Duke Regional Hospital has been an essential health care resource for Durham County residents, delivering comprehensive medical care while promoting prevention, wellness, and improved health outcomes. And whereas the hospital's ded dedicated health care professionals and staff have touched countless lives through compassionate service, clinical excellence, and unwavering commitment to patients and families. And whereas Duke Regional Hospital contributes significantly to Durham County's economic strength through employment opportunities, workforce development, educational partnerships, and investment in local in the local community. And whereas the hospital's long-standing commitment to addressing community health needs has helped improve the quality of life for residents throughout Durham County. And whereas the 50th anniversary celebration on October 3rd, 2026 provides an opportunity to acknowledge the hospital's history of service and its continued dedication to meeting the evolving health care needs of our growing community. Now there uh now therefore, I Dr. Mike Lee, chair on behalf of the Durham Board of County Commissioners, hereby proclaim October 3rd as Duke Regional Hospital 50th anniversary recognition day in Durham County and extends is and extends its appreciation to the physicians, nurses, health care professionals, staff volunteers, and community partners who serve as whose uh whose service has contributed to the health and well-being of Durham County residents. for the past 50 years. This the 28th day of September, 2026. Dr. Mike Lee, Durham, Board of County Commissioners. Um, do we have anyone? Uh, Jason.

Jason. Yeah. Yeah. Come up. If you would mind coming up here. Yeah. And you can introduce yourself. But I would love for you to talk about the event that you all are going to have on October 3rd.

Of course.

No, thank you. Uh, chair Lee, commissioners, manager Hager, and members of our community. My name is Jason Carter. I serve as the president at Duke Regional Hospital. I'm very thankful for this acknowledgement um from the county. Uh, it's really an honor to be here to represent um our hospital uh and most specifically the excitement around our 50th anniversary. October 3rd, 1976, our hospital was opened. Um, and actually this Saturday, as uh, Chair Lee alluded to. Um, we are celebrating that through a community day at the county stadium. Um, we thought about how we wanted to acknowledge this day and more importantly this generations of care and these decades of care. And we thought no better way than an event that gives back to our community. So, from 12:00 to 4:00 at the county stadium, we're going to have a family friendly event, free to all, free health screening, games, activities, food trucks. We're going to be giving away 6,000 pounds of fresh produce to our community. Um, so really a day for uh everyone, bouncy houses for the kids. Again, our way and the best way that we thought to acknowledge the day was to continue to serve and give back to our community. So, again, it's an honor to be here. very thankful for the acknowledgement and the recognition. Um, and we look forward to continue to steward uh 50 more years ahead. So, thank you everyone.

Thank you. Thank you very much. Any comments? Go ahead, Commissioner Jacobs.

Um, yes, Jason. Thanks so much for being here. I'm sorry I won't be able to be there. Um, I appreciate the way you are celebrating this anniversary with the

whole community and um and just the important role that Duke Regional plays uh in in our community and also the partnership with Lincoln Community Health Center as well. So, thank you so much.

Uh, Vice Chair alone.

Yes. Uh, thank you, Jason. uh and to the entire Duke Regional Hospital uh team as well as the board. I'm really uh excited to be able to I know I'm going to be stopping by for the beginning portion because then we have to run to Pride as well, but I really appreciate the intentionality that the team put this event together with with including the community, but also part of our conversations. as we were talking about how to make sure that the community is able to access it um with public transit and for folks to know that there is you know um Durham's uh bus station at Duke Regional Hospital which is backs into the stadium as well as the microtransit system that go Durham has uh for folks to be able to get directly from the bus station to uh Duke to Durham Memorial Stadium. And I hope to see lots of folks out there. Uh, and bring your kids and family members. I will probably have my kids with me there.

Anyone? Commissioner Valentine?

Yes.

You're moving on to the next.

Yes. Cooper.

Oh, no. I have one comment about Okay. Go ahead.

So, I say this, people have probably heard me say this before, but Duke Regional holds a very, very special spot in my family's heart. All three of my kids were born there and that is the that is our first stop whenever anything goes wrong. It is um it's nothing against big Duke but um we deeply appreciate well back then it was Dur Durham Regional but um we appreciate we appreciate Big Duke but we

uh Durham Regional is our first choice in in all aspects of everything and um we just really appreciate that being there. to appreciate what it does for the community and um that's where we go for our needs. So, it holds a very special part for us. So, we will be stopping by there. Um I will be participating in Pride as well, but I'll be going there as well because I do want to stop by and show my appreciation. My my entire family will probably be with us with with me to do that. So, thank you all and congratulations on 50 years.

Yes. I also like would like to uh congratulate our partners on 50 years. And so Duke Regional is actually uh our hospital for our community where I live um or have lived for for many years. And so your partnership uh with Lincoln also is uh a relationship that is at the very essence of our community. And so I'm looking forward to another 50 years where Duke Regional partners with Lincoln uh to make our community the very best it can be. So, thank you.

I'll hand it over I'll hand it over to you.

Okay. So, the board is requested to honor the legacy and impact of White Rock Baptist Church as they celebrate60 years of faith, resilience, and community service. I understand that we have some members of White Rock Baptist Church here with us uh this evening. If they're with us, could I have them stand? a resolution White Rock Baptist Church

2026. So whereas in the year 1866, the courageous and visionary Margaret Ruffen Facet along with a dedicated group of likeminded individuals gathered in prayer and fellowship in their respective homes and beneath the enduring brush arbors of their community, unaware that their humble gatherings would give rise to a transformative institution, the White Rock Baptist Church. And whereas the White Rock Baptist Church became the first African-American church in Durham, North Carolina, serving as a beacon of hope, faith, and resilience for newly freed men and women, enabling them to build new lives grounded in the teachings of Jesus Christ and the word of God. And whereas the church was not merely a place of worship, but a powerful catalyst for social change and community development, inspiring its members to actively engage in uplifting the African-American community through education, health care, and social justice initiatives. And whereas White Rock Baptist Church became the home of 15 pastors who were sent by God to continue the ministry work he would have them do, including Reverend Dr. Augustus Shepard, Reverend Zuck Horton, Reverend Dr. Miles Mark Fiser, Reverend Lorenzo Lynch, and Reverend Dr. Reginald Van Stevens, each contributing to the spiritual and communal growth of the church. And whereas from its inception, White Rock Church has been instrumental in establishing essential institutions that address the needs of African-Americans, including schools, colleges, hospitals, insurance companies, and cultural organizations, thereby laying the foundation for a thriving black community in Durham. And whereas Reverend Zuck Horton, Reverend Samuel Daddy Hunt, Reverend Frederick Wilkins, Reverend WT Woodard, Reverend BK Butler, and Reverend Alan Eaton were

among the first to serve at White Rock Baptist Church. But despite their limited education, they demonstrated unwavering faith and commitment to fulfilling their God-given purpose, organizing conventions to train black preachers and provide religious instruction, thus nurturing spiritual growth and disciplehip among thousands. And whereas the legacy of White Rock Baptist Church extends beyond spiritual nourishment, it embodies the spirit of activism and social justice, advocating for the rights and welfare of African-Americans and serving as a model for future generations seeking to live out their divine purpose while uplifting others. And whereas the members of White Rock Baptist Church through their collective efforts have consistently exemplified the principles of service, community engagement, and mutual support, ensuring that the church remains a vital institution that continues to inspire and empower African-Americans in their pursuit of equality and justice. Now, therefore, I actually the I being Dr. Mike Lee, chair, and on behalf of the dorm board of county commissioners, hereby proclaim that we honor and celebrate the enduring legacy of White Rock Baptist Church as a cornerstone of African-American history in Dorm, North Carolina. We recognize this pivotal role in fostering faith, education, and community development. And we commit ourselves to hope uphold the values of service, social justice, and unity as exemplified by its founding members. this 28th day of September 2026. Signed, Dr. Mike Lee, chair, Nita Alam, vice chair, Michelle Burton, commissioner, Wendy Jacobs, commissioner, and Steven Valentine, county commissioner. So, at this time, I believe we have a deacon from the church who's here is going to speak on behalf of the church,

a good friend of mine, I dare say law school classmate. At least I was in the building. He was ahead of me. My good friend Derek Hunter.

Thank you, sir. Good evening, folks.

Chairman, Dr. Lee, Vice Chairman Alam, Commissioners Burton, Jacobs, Valentine, our esteemed county commissioner Hager, and our very esteemed county attorney, Lissa Williamson. Thank you all. We appreciate on behalf of our pastor, the 15th pastor of White Rock Baptist Church, the Reverend Dr. Regginal Van Stevens the opportunity to accept the proclamation. We are humbled by the board of county commissioners celebration of 160 years of the White Rock Baptist Church. The church actually predates Durham. You mentioned that we have several members here and we do. And I just realized we have deacons, trustees, we have ushers, choir members, we have an ordained minister. So if you all want to have church, we are prepared. But seriously, we we thank you all for the honor. As you all may or may not know, White Rock Baptist Church has been the foundation of several historical institutions in Durham. Look no further than the wall out front uh in your lobby um celebrating civil rights initiatives. The backdrop is the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King's appearance and speech at White Rock Baptist Church on February 16th of 1960. White Rock has been the foundation of the North Carolina Mutual Insurance Mutual Life Insurance Company,

the North Carolina Central University. So, White Rock's history in Durham extends far and wide. We thank you. We appreciate you. We invite you all, the citizens of Durham, to come celebrate with us throughout the month of October. We are having business expos, concerts, several events. If you go to our website, whiteroockbaptisturch.org, you can find any and all information there. And I would be remiss if I did not state that the goal of the White Rock Baptist Church is to exalt the name of Jesus Christ through our sacred worship, our strengthening of families and the development of disciples, our transforming our transforming of lives through Christian outreach and service. and the proclamation of his gospel. Thank you all. God bless you all.

Commissioner Jacobs.

Yes. I just wanted to thank all of the members of White Rock for being with us tonight and to say congratulations on this incredible milestone.60 60 years being in this community um virtually be being here along with the founding of the city of Durham and um you have been a part of Durham's history as was mentioned all the leaders in our community and institutions that are rooted in White Rock and I want to say also all of the um institutions that are continuing to serve serve and have been leading the way. What comes to mind for to me are things like the White Rock

Child Development Center, which has always been a, you know, high quality child development center, one of the first churches to do this in our community. Uh, also the fact that you have an emergency fund that people who are in need seek out. Um and and also if this came up last week at our Dementia Inclusive Inc. Forum that we had um at the convention center, the annual forum, the fact that you all have a uh African-American dementia support group in partnership with Duke. So all of these things are so important. Um, and I just uh want to congratulate you and hope that you all keep leading the way for our community. Thank you,

Commissioner Burton.

Thank you, Chair Lee. And congratulations, White Rock Baptist Church on 160 years, you know, of faith and worshiping God and serving God and serving the Durham community. One of the things I want to say is when I've come to White Rock, one of the things that I love about that church, not only the warmth of the people, but that beautiful organ. It is amazing. It's just amazing when you hear it play. And I remember this is many many years ago. Um my aunt um came to Durham and we came to Wright Rock because she's a musician um a pianist and to she wanted to hear the organ because it's so beautiful and she plays the organ and so I just want to say congratulations to you. Congratulation for congratulations for all the work that you do for the wider Durham community. I'm glad that Commissioner Jacobs spoke of the child development

center because it's it's five star. It's been five star for a long time and I know a lot of people who have sent their kids to your child development center. So, thank you for everything that you do for Durham and Durham County.

Okay. Uh, Commissioner Valentine.

Yes. Thank you, chair. And so, resolution honoring the life and contributions of Professor Charles Edson Smith. And so, the board has requested honor the life and contributions of Professor Charles Smith. And I wanted to just give you a brief introduction into who he is or who he was uh in our community. And so, Professor Smith was a professor of law at the North Carolina Central School of Law. And I had the distinct pleasure and honor to um walk in those hollowed halls at the time where he presided in the classroom. I might say held court for those who knew him. And uh I stand here today saying that uh I started off my semester uh having a conversation uh with uh Professor Smith and his last words to me were you know what your assignment is. You need to get in there and do it. And so he's always straight uh forward uh in his uh conversations with you, very direct, very very professional, and uh he left a lasting impression on those who knew him. And there are some people here with us this evening who knew him personally. We have with us tonight uh his daughter uh Miss Lindseay Smith Wells. She's here with her husband. If we can have her stand.

and also accompanying uh Miss Lindseay Smith Wells as well, one of uh Professor Charles Smith's colleagues, uh Professor Craig Taylor, former dean of North Carolina Central School of Law. She's also with us this evening. So, the Durham Board of County Commissioners resolution honoring the life and legacy of Professor Charles Edison Smith. And so whereas Durham County joins the family, friends, colleagues, former students, and admirers of Professor Charles Edison Smith in mourning his passing on September 15th, 2026 while celebrating a life defined by perseverance, achievement, and service. And whereas throughout her remarkable career spanning more than five decades, Professor Smith broke barriers in the legal profession, becoming one of the nation's first black patent attorneys, and opening doors for future generations of attorneys, inventors, and scholars. And whereas, Professor Smith dedicated his life to education, believing in the potential of every student, and working tirelessly to ensure that opportunity and excellence remained accessible to all. And whereas through his long tenure at North Carolina Central School of Law, he influenced countless aspiring attorneys who went on to serve their communities, advance justice, and strengthen the legal profession across North Carolina and the nation. And whereas Professor Smith's commitment to mentorship, extended beyond the classroom as he encouraged students, advised colleagues, and inspired others through his wisdom, generosity, and unwavering belief in the value of hard work and preparation. And whereas his leadership in expanding intellectual property education and promoting innovation helps connect legal knowledge with entrepreneurship, creating

opportunities for students and community members alike. And whereas Professor Smith exemplified a life of continuous learning and personal achievement, pursuing interests as diverse as aviation, marathon running, engineering, and the law, demonstrating that growth and discovery need not end with age or accomplishment. And whereas while his professional accolades were many, those who knew him will most remember his humility, his steady guidance, his dedication to family, and his enduring commitment to helping others succeed. And whereas the legacy of Professor Smith lives on through the students he mentored, the attorneys he inspired, the institution he strengthened, and the countless lives enriched by his example. Now therefore, be it resolved that the Durham County Board of Commissioners honors the life and contributions of Professor Charles Edison Smith expresses its appreciation for his lasting impact on legal education and public service and the Dorm community and recognizes him as a trailblazer whose influence will continue for generations. Be it further resolved that the Dorm County Board of Commissioners extends its heartfelt condolences to his wife, Dr. Queen Utley Smith, his children Cheryl Smith, Obery Smith, and Lindseay Smith Wills, his siblings, his grandchildren, extended family, and all who were blessed by his friendship, guidance, and love. Be it further resolved that this resolution be entered into the official records of Dorm County as a lasting expression of gratitude, and respect for the life and legacy of Professor Charles Edison Smith. This the 28th day of September 2026 signed Dr. Mike Lee chair Nita Alam vice chair Michelle Burton commissioner Wendy Jacobs commissioner and Steven J. Valentine commissioner Miss Lindsay

On behalf of the family, I'd like to say thank you. My father was a lot of things to a lot of people and I'm learning more and more about the things that he did humbly and quietly for others. And I appreciate that. To me, he was just my dad. We're still in shock about his death. Um his mother lived to 105 and he was 88. So, we thought he was going to keep moving. He was in the middle of a another degree at 88. So, um it's still a shock, but we are so very appreciative that people saw what he was doing and and that they appreciated the the bits of wisdom and encouragement that he was giving others. So, thank you for this Miss Lindsay, I believe that we're all better for having had your father come this way. So, thank you for sharing him with us.

Yeah. Oh, yes. Attorney Williams,

I had to say something. Professor Smith was one of my professors when I was at North Carolina Central and he poured life into each one of his students. Um, I adored your father and he was a gem not only to North Carolina Central School of Law but to the community as a whole. Um, I saw Professor Smith a couple of weeks before his passing at the um, annual conference of the North Carolina Association of Black Lawyers and um, we spoke briefly, but he talked about how proud he was of his students and and how happy he was to see me there. And so um, I send you my condolences. Your father was a gem. He was so adored and I pray for your continued strength. Any

other comments from commissioners? All right. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. The next item on our agenda, uh, we have proclamations to be acknowledged. A proclamation and resolution to be acknowledged. So, the first one is the proclamation for fire prevention week 2028. Good evening, Chair Lee, Commissioners, Manager Hagar, Madam Attorney, Durham County residents. Thank you for proclaiming October 4th through 10th, 2026 as Fire Prevention Week in Durham County. For more than a century, fire prevention week has been held on October 9th, and it serves as a lasting reminder of the great Chicago fire of 1871. It honors the continued efforts to protect lives and properties through fire safety education. This year's theme, charge into fire safety, safe charging is a superpower, highlights examples of everyday charging practices that can help reduce the risk of lithium ion battery fires. To learn more about fire safety and best practices for charging lithium-ion batteries, please follow the Durham County social media pages or visit fpw.org.

Thank you. Thank you. Um, Commissioner Jacobs,

um, thank you so much for this proclamation. I just have a follow-up question. I know you me it's mentioned in the resolution about um, charging devices. How how often are you seeing in Durham um fires related to chargers and um batteries and things like that?

I don't have an exact number for you. Um the the number has come down from when lithium ion batteries were first introduced, but um I I would say that a significant number of fires do occur from lithium ion batteries. uh whether it be charging, whether it be um tool batteries that are stored improperly or exposed to the elements. Uh but I could I could work on getting a more specific number if you'd like.

Thank you. I think it's important that we, as you're doing today, raise awareness about um some of the fires that we're seeing today from our te the technology that we're using in our homes. So, thank you Any other comments from commissioners on this um resolution? Okay. Thank you. Thank you very much. Oh, that was a proclamation. All right. The next item is a resolution that's recognizing Prince Hall Day. Uh thank you, chair. And so I won't read the the resolution. And I actually had an opportunity on Saturday, September 26th, to actually read the the resolution at the uh Prince Hall day celebrated here in in Durham County. But I would like to just say that the mostful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of North Carolina is jurisdictions incorporated under the leadership of Grandmaster James C. uh Russell in conjunction with the 20th district uh under the leadership of district deputy Terrence Hemley and the district deputy worthy matron Gwen Valentine celebrated the life of Prince Hall as an an abolitionist as an educator, a civic leader and a revolutionary war uh veteran as well as uh honoring the very Masonic organization uh that bears his name. So, congratulations to the Prince Hall family on the celebration of Prince Hall Day here in Dorm County. Thank you.

All right. Thank you. Thank you very much, Commissioner Valentine. Any

comments on that one? Okay. Hearing none, we'll move on to our consent agenda. Now, we're going to have to do this a little bit differently here. We do have a public comment on one of the uh items. However, um he asked if we could do it early because he thought public comment would happen early in the meeting. So, I'm going to go ahead and do it beforehand and we'll just do the consent agenda approval as one. Okay. Now, the item that the So, I'll have uh Jim Savara uh come up and and speak. He's speaking on item 49 which is the um DFI um item.

Good evening. Thank you. Uh I am Jim Svar, co-chair chairperson of the policy committee of the coalition for affordable housing and transit. I am speaking about a proposal included in the consent agenda item six authorizing the county manager to execute an amendment to the contract with the UNCC school of government's development finance initiative to include other board of education properties including the current site of the Durham School of the Arts uh in phase one of the pre-development proposal for the former Lowe's Grove school site. Uh as we propose to you in in January, the coalition urges you to plan for affordable housing in a small portion of the Durham School of the Arts site. Uh that is the 3 acre parcel north of Manurva Avenue that does not contain any buildings. It is a prime site located one block from the planned rail trail to be completed by the city of

Durham by June of 2028. The rail trail will provide a new transit option without using an automobile and connects bikers and hikers to downtown Durham, the central bus station and the train station and in the other direction to northeast Durham. It is critically important that the rail trail has many lowincome residents nearby, but such housing is not available now and there is no other site for a large affordable housing development. Uh those who could be served by this housing would include many public school teachers and staff with limited incomes, many of which live far away from Durham because they where they can find cheaper housing. Uh thus as the county manager amends the contract, she should make it clear uh that the development finance initiative should focus on the 14 acre southern portion of the DSA site as it assesses development opportunities. Uh the top portion could make a major contribution to accessible affordable housing in Durham developed by the county. We will be in touch with you all about the about this proposal as time moves on. So, thank you for this chance to this this occasion that this amendment of the of the of the contract is a good opportunity to bring back this project.

Thank you.

Thank you so much. And I think the options that DFI will uh provide will help us make those decisions uh there. So, thank you so much for your advocacy and thank you for coming to speak tonight. Okay. Um All right. So now we need now we have the consent agenda before us. Um is for approval. Um any comments about the public

comment. Go ahead. Uh we have we have some I'll go to Commissioner Jacobs and Commissioner Burton. So, there are some really big items on this consent agenda that we that we haven't seen before because normally um these things would be on our work session, but we you know they've come up afterwards. So, this is the first time that we're seeing them and I just want to make sure that we gave proper attention to them and maybe um could have staff speak a little bit about them to because I think they're so significant. one is um 26-0497 around our contract um with the development finance initiative and the other um I would I know we have staff here uh to talk about the um uh which item is it um item 26-0500 which are the comments that we our board is going to submit to the federal register regard regarding proposed rule changes to Head Start. I think our whole community needs to hear about this. And then uh lastly, um about the establishment of the Durham County Early Childhood Task Force, um which is a big initiative for our board. So if we could just have a few minutes to get let's appropriate staff to um talk about those that would be great. We can do that. Okay. So, the um Did you want us to go forth with that or after the approval of the others?

Let's consider those pulled. So, can you um can you

I don't want to make staff stay here longer, but

No, we're just we're just going to

Okay.

We're just going to approve the rest of the consent agenda and

we can approve them and then have the conversation after. That's fine.

Yeah, that that's what I was going to do

here.

Perfect. I know one is 05 0 one is 0497 and I didn't what was the first

0514

All right so I'll accept a motion to approve the consent agenda absent the three that we just named

I think Commissioner Jacobs were you were you saying we approve even those three and then just have discussion on them? Yeah, that's either way. Whatever works.

Okay. You guys good with that?

All right. So then I'll revise my motion.

Um I'll accept the motion to approve the consent agenda.

So moved. Second.

It's been moved and properly seconded. We approve the consent agenda. All in favor say I.

I. All oppose. Please use the same sign. The consent agenda is approved. And now we'll go into discussion, further discussion for these three items. So 0 497 would be first if we're looking at an order. Okay. This item and um Perry Mans will share additional information. Um we have a contract with um DFI development finance initiative with the UNCC school of government u who's facilitating a review of properties at Northern High School um also at the um school of the arts and it's an amendment to a contract for Lowe's. DFI has worked with the county since I believe 2016 um on looking at best and highest use of properties as we have repurposed as well as um redesigned some of our properties and sometimes with their assessment we've determined we needed to pause and

not move forward. So Perry will talk about the framework um in two minutes or less and uh we'll entertain other questions.

Sure. So good afternoon everyone. Uh Perry man's deputy director for county engineering. So as the manager and uh Dr. Savar had mentioned uh we are basically expanding the scope on the contract that we have with DFI for the Lowe's Grove uh potential redevelopment or predevelopment process. We're actually in phase one. Uh we are expanding it to include the Durham H uh excuse me, the uh Northern Durham site as well as the Durham School of the Arts site. And basically in this phase one analysis, basically it's a uh community scan, a market analysis, a factf finding uh process for DFI. Uh there will be significant community engagement. I said community engagement specifically. uh we will be looking at um organizations uh just citizens. We will craft that list of stakeholders using uh the DPS board and their staff as well as county commissioners as we typically do. Um they will do like I said a market analysis. they will do um data gathering or fact gathering on regulatory authorities that we can actually uh use to make determinations as to how we move forward with uh some type of redevelopment of those sites. And um it's very important to note that typically the process is we'll have some guiding principles established, adopted and accepted by in this case it'll be the school board as well as this board and uh then we can move on to phase two which you all may remember if you've been through this process. Phase two is the actual solicitation process where we get engage a developer to help us meet the objectives or the goals of the project. So, that's uh that's typically the project uh the process. We're just

getting started with this. Um I do know that um DFI is doing a quick update to the school board at their upcoming October meeting. Uh and so, uh we'll get a lot of presentation materials as to how that effort is going and then we'll quickly follow up with uh with this process as DFI is very anxious to to get going on this. So that's why we brought this forward without putting it on the work assessment agenda. So

any comments? Yeah, go ahead. Michelle, did you

Well, I'm really thrilled about this and I really appreciate the way our board is working together with the school board and Durham public schools staff working together with our county staff on this collaboration. Um, this is huge because all three of these properties are very important sites and very valuable as publicly controlled land. And it's really exciting to think about um the opportunities that may come from very thoughtfully and an informed way in a strategic way leveraging them to meet public priorities and public goals. And I feel really fortunate that we have DFI to work with as a partner um to help us. Um, it personally makes me feel really confident because we have the experience in Durham County. We wouldn't have been able to achieve what we've had with 300 and 500 East Main Street working in partnership with our staff to get to the point where we're almost done with those projects. Um, so I also really like the idea that there's even the opportunity

to think even higher level master planning with all three because you've got Northern High School in the northern part of the county, DSA in the center of our county downtown, and then of course Lowe's Grove in the southern part of the um county. And so even thinking strategically, if it turns out that one of the goals is around affordable housing for instance DPS staff, um having different campuses to serve different schools, it just opens up a lot of opportunities when we're thinking strategically about all three of them at the same time. Um, so, uh, I'm I'm really grateful that we are moving ahead with all three of them together. Thank you so much,

Commissioner Burton.

Yes, thank you, Chair Lee. Yeah, I'm just going to echo what um, Commissioner Jacobs said. I'm really excited that this is moving forward because I've met with community groups who have been asking questions as to what what were the plans for these properties, what we're going to do, things like that. So, I'm glad that we're moving forward with the feasibility studies. I wish Dr. Spar stayed so he could hear the what you just said, but you know, alas. Um, and I just had a question really. Do you know how long it will take DFI to finish the feasibility studies? How long it will take for them to complete it and we get a report back?

Uh, Commissioner, that's a great question. Again, with us just getting started authorization tonight hopefully and getting them under contract. I think we can estimate about eight months. Um, again, that um, and I do know, I have to be candid. I I know the Durham School of the Arts is going to have more community interest than say Northern just because

where it's cited and so we expect that process to be a little bit more arduous in terms of u the community engagement process and the participation around that. So, uh just be mindful of that as we go through the process. So,

and that's good to know because I know people are just really excited about the possibilities as to what could be done with the property, particularly Durham School of the Arts. So, you know, just giving a I guess a estimate of how long it'll take to finish it. So, thank you so much for your report and all that you do around this.

Yes, ma'am. Thank you.

Any other comments about this item, the 0 417 item? Okay. I'll just say I know with us coming up on this uh trip tomorrow um to Grand Rapids for the inner city visit, I'm also really excited for us to look at opportunities of I know there's tours or spaces that they have in Michigan and Grand Rapids where they've utilized public spaces um to provide public uh affordable housing, child care um and other things like uh what is it called like public first housing just like they also did in um southeast Raleigh with the YMCA partnership. And so I'm excited to see what type of ways we could possibly build these public private partnership uh relationships to develop these into community services and goods.

Okay. Thank you. Thank you. All right. The next item is 0500 which is um the just like the notice the submission of written comments to the federal register regarding proposed rule changes to Head Start performance standards.

Good evening. Um, I am early childhood

coordinator for Durham County, Ilana and I would like to welcome subject matter expert um, Kate Irish, who is the executive director of Durham's Partnership for Children, which administers, um, an early Head Start program in Durham County. I also want to thank Terry David who is executive director of Families and Communities Rising and the president of the North Carolina Head Start Association um who provided a lot of input into the the letter that you all have that is feedback to the Federal Register regarding proposed changes to the Head Start program. Um, in your references, there is also a breakdown of the proposed changes and how they would impact Durham County's public investment in preK, the Durham PreK program. Um, and I want to welcome Kate to um share her expertise. Hello, I'm Kate Irish. I'm the executive director with Durham's Partnership for Children. And the partnership is a current Early Head Start grantee. Um, and we partner closely with Families and Communities Rising. And so together between Durham's Partnership and Families and Communities Rising, we serve almost 500 children birth to five in Durham. And the Early Head Start and Head Start program, as you all know, are very focused on serving those kids and families that are from the lowest income households in Durham, children with disabilities, children experiencing homelessness, and children in foster care. So this program is really critical and we know that it's also significant in that there is a lack of access to child care for infants and toddlers in particular. We have um over the last year have had a wait list of more than a hundred families um waiting to to get early head start services. So we know it's really important to be able to serve those families. And we also know that the Head Start and Early Head Start model are more than child care. They're

a really comprehensive program and the hallmark is that whole child, whole family approach. So having referrals to health, mental health services, um housing, having the family engagement, family partnership pieces are so important to serving this family, these families um and this population. So we're really um very thankful that the county commissioners are showing their support of Early Head Start and Head Start. We have a variety of um early childhood advocates and partners here as well. And so we just um you know really commend you for being able to to stand with us um and support kind of the the Head Start and early Head Start model as it's intended. Um we are concerned about any proposed changes that would really harm the quality of the program and in particular access for families. anything that would make it more difficult for us to serve these families who are the ones that that most need the services. So, appreciate you submitting comments.

Okay. All right. So, Commissioner Jacobs.

Yes. I I want to thank all of you who are sitting here. We have um early years out here as well. And anyone else that I'm missing other than Early Years?

Durham Tech is out there, too. Thank you. And um you um Kate, thank you for your introduction to this. Could and Eliana, I just want to thank you and everyone because the letter is so detailed and also the backup um you know the second document that goes into detail. Um it is really overwhelming and concerning to see what all of the impacts could be of this legislation. It it is really like a dismantling of what Head Start has become over decades and

decades of trying to make the program stronger and stronger and better and better and just literally chopping the legs off of it and um going against so many of the purposes that it is meant to achieve. I'm wondering if you could just again so the community knows you list in the in the letter on our behalf that we're going to be submitting six main areas of concern and if I if you could just briefly go over those again six areas of concern because they impact they impact Durham public schools they impact our families it really impacts everyone

I'm happy to review those um one of the proposed changes and this is um congressional legislation authorizes Head Start. So this is really the executive agency's rule making. It's their interpretation of the legislation. Um so one proposed change is to cap administrative costs of the program at 5%. Currently they are at 15% and nationwide only 3.7% of Head Start programs are are below that 5%. So, it would be um a significant change for for Head Start programs. And um I'll just note that those administrative costs include some of the things that we really think about with the comprehensive Head Start model like the staff who do health screenings, like the staff who do kind of wraparound services for children and families. Um another proposed change is around eligibility, recruitment, selection, and attendance. So, for example, some families um right now are able to self attest, for example, if they are experiencing homelessness. Um selfattestation would no longer be permissible in in some of those categories. It would also um impact how programs recruit, for example, again, families experiencing homelessness, families with children with disabilities or suspected

disabilities. Um uh another proposed change is around health, nutrition and physical activity. So the original legislation authorizing Head Start does require some of those screenings, but because so often the devil is in the details, currently the regulations have specific time frames for things like doing dental screenings, connecting a child to a medical home, making sure that they're getting all their required immunizations. those details would no longer be requirements. Um, another change is just fewer requirements to support children with disabilities. So, right now the the floor is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Head Start has a number of enhancements to serve children with disabilities. On top of that, um, those would be eliminated. So, it would be down to the floor of IDA. Um, a proposed change is eliminating Head Start and Early Head Start staff to child ratios. So rather than Head Start and Early Head Start having enhanced ratios, it would go down to whatever the state requirement is. And here in Durham, all of you have made a major investment in child care and in high quality child care through the Durham PreK program. And Durham PreK already has stronger ratios for four-year-olds than the rest of the state does. Um the early Head Start program has significantly um higher more adults for the number of children compared to the rest of the state. Um and so this would get rid of that. Um, in theory, the programs could choose to have different childto- staff ratios, but the concern would be in a competitive grant process, if there's a program that's saying they will be reaching more kids for the same amount of money, the quality may not be the same, but that would be an argument that could potentially create competition in that in that phase. Um, another proposed change is

removing staff qualifications. So um for the people who are doing other work um administrative work and some of the people providing those wraparound services as of right now programs can hold them to very high standards again as Durham PreK does um they would no longer be able to do so. Um there would also be fewer requirements for hours of the program. Um and then just one that I think is is really important to focus on is Englishonly instruction. So, um, in Durham PreK, we've made a major investment in having bilingual teachers, having teachers who speak children's home languages, and, um, that would not only would that not be encouraged as it currently is in the Head Start regulations, but it would be banned. and um the Administration for Children and Families who proposed the new regulations note that classrooms may need to replace curriculum, instructional materials, um potentially retrain or even replace staff members. And I will just um give a shout out to Early Years for their fabulous Early Educator Academy. They are building a pipeline of bilingual teachers and they're doing some of their coursework in Spanish. And so this is really the opposite spirit of of those types of initiatives that we're doing in Durham. Thank you. And I wanted to ask that our staff to also send uh a copy of this letter uh that we're submitting to our representative Fushi and senators Bud and Tillis and also to send this information um to the uh superintendent for the board of education because we really need to be ringing the alarm about this. Thank you,

Commissioner Burton.

Yes. Thank you, Chair Lee. Thank you all for going into detail about what's happening with Head Start and the rule changes and things like that. And I

concur with um Commissioner Jacobs, how do we get this to a wider and bigger audience? Because a lot of times, you know, people are not really understanding how these services are funded. you know, they they they really just don't have any full understanding of it and how these rule changes will greatly impact how we can educate our young people, our little people. And thinking about the rules around SNAP and Medicaid, those are going to start start on October 1st and I try to put it on my social media to sound the alarm. So figuring out how we can really really get that message out there um with regards to Head Start. I imagine some of this information is going to the families and letting them know um what's happening. Am I correct?

So I know the the National Head Start Association has a sign on letter for Head Start and Early Head Start parents that they'd be welcome to do. And I don't know if you have anything to add.

Nope. Um, but we are I'm I'm happy to to pass along the information to anyone in Durham who's interested. We discussed it at the Durham Benefits Access Coalition Medicaid SNAP and WIC work group because to your point, many of the families who participate in Head Start are participating in those programs and a lot is changing at one time.

And I also think it's done on purpose to keep people like scrambling because it, you know, it's like what do you do next? like what how do I get this? How do I get that? So, I think it's done intentionally to keep people um to not take action if you understand what I'm trying to say. So, thank you so much.

Uh vice chair alone.

Yes. just want to echo uh all of the compliments and lifting up our amazing team that we have here in Durham County from Ilana to Kate uh to Linda and her team and Durham Tech and all the

partnerships we have. And I think it's also really important that we're having this conversation here in Durham, but in North Carolina, because one of the things that we constantly hear our legislators at this in Raleigh as well as at the federal level saying is North Carolina is the number one state uh for business. But we also saw just last month or a few weeks ago that we were also ranked the worst state for workers. And child care plays a key factor in that of access uh to child care and for workers and parents to be able to go into the workplace knowing that their kid is taken care of in a facility that's safe for them. a facility that will be open all day and where the workers, the childcare providers are also able to take care of their families. And so this is a really important conversation for us to be pushing that if North Carolina wants to be the best state for business, then we also have to be the best state for workers because there is no business without workers. And if parents aren't able to go to work because they don't have safe and adequate child care to be accessible for them, our economy is going to collapse. And so it's really important for us to tie that into the conversation because oftent times we see legislators really only look at the fiscal benefits that come to them without the human aspect uh for parents and workers. All right. Any other comments? Go ahead.

Yes, Sher.

And so, thank you. I actually had, uh, on my list to have you speak about this tonight as well, but thanks to my beloved commissioner, she she brought it to fold. And so, here we are. And so, uh, these proposed, uh, changes are draconian in nature. And so this is just a a larger sort of systemic uh attempt to break down our complete social safety

uh network. And so these changes and this this response is within a uh a notice and comment period. Correct.

Um yes, you can comment in the federal register up through October the 6th.

Okay. And so if uh if the agency takes a looks at all the the comments and and decides to move forward, what what would be the immediate impact on our on our community?

I would say the time frame is a little bit unclear um the way it's currently written and I think they as as part of the executive agency process, they would have to review all of those public comments first. Um, I would say the the changes that would happen the most quickly would be um Englishonly instruction and the changes to um no longer be able to have requirements for staff other than teachers. Those those changes would happen pretty quickly. Um, and I would say the administrative requirements for individual families who wanted to enroll their children in Head Start, particularly families um, we know families experiencing homelessness, families who are perhaps leaving a domestic violence situation or less likely to have the paperwork that they might be required. We also think about things like Hurricane Helen. We know sometimes there are other disruptions to having the necessary paperwork for a child. So, the current regulations are really um designed to provide some exceptions for um families who may not have all the paperwork immediately. Um but those those exceptions would go away. So, those would be the changes that would happen most quickly. I would say um the administration being a we only being able to spend 5% on administrative costs would also have a very very very quick probably um loss of some staff because that those funds are used to pay staff right now. Um and certainly the Durham prek model in which families and

communities rising is an integral piece um would would likely have fewer seats for preschoolers in Durham County. Yeah, this is uh very troubling um particularly in light of this board's commitment uh in this particular area with regards to to during preK. And hopefully I I think it's the the plan into the future to eventually see this uh evolve to, you know, universal prek. And so, uh this is could be potentially a setback in our efforts, uh to make that a reality here in Dorm County. And I have often said and still will continue to say that uh the money uh that we spend and make a commitment to our young people is uh a dollar well spent. And so every dollar we commit to our children particularly at uh the young impressionable stages of their life um bears fruit for our community long term. So this is very troubling but thank you so much.

All right. Thank you all. Thank you very much. All right. All right. The next item we had to to pull off here was uh 260514, which is the establishment of the Durham County Early Childhood Task Force.

Good evening, commissioners. Donna Rewald, County Extension Director. Um, interestingly, this item and the previous item we just discussed were not originally aligned in one meeting, but I think it's very appropriate that at subsets they are. Um, I just want to start out and then I'll let um fill in some additional details. I'm very pleased that this board continues its commitment um to young children and to families and particularly with establishing a Durham County Early Childhood Task Force to help us better understand and create new opportunities to address really a very challenging child care landscape for any family, whether you qualify for Head Start or whether you are a family just working. um even some families who have

two incomes um struggle to find appropriate high-quality child care for children who are young, particularly in that zero to three time frame before we get to preschool. And so is going to highlight just a couple of of items um that will kind of show up in the task force and then um hopefully we'll be able to do some reporting back to you throughout this period. Um, so I would first of all like to introduce our reintroduce our partners who are here tonight and who will be key members of the task force. Um, I want to thank Commissioner Alam for your brainchild and for um, bringing together a lot of diverse constituents from Durham with lots of different reasons for their investment in child care. he's not able to be here tonight, but I want to thank Ramsay Richie from Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce who is already really championing um the role that the business community can play in recognizing that having accessible, affordable child care for workers is is something that really supports the well-being of our businesses. And I also want to thank um folks who are training our ch child care workers, Kathy Collie Robinson from Durham Tech. I want to thank folks from early years who already play such an important role through Durham PreK, but also as a child care resource and referral agency. They also helped administer the BuildB Durham scholarships, which were ARPA funded and are unfortunately expiring. um that really helped reach families in that missing middle um families who whose income was too high to qualify for state child care subsidies but who um for whom childare was still not affordable. Um, and this this task force is really designed to um reach families of kids aged zero to three who um are too young to qualify for programs like Durham PreK and NC PreK. um and and really helping

to recognize where are the assets in our community and how can members of our community from many different backgrounds contribute to retaining and attracting workers to all of our Durham businesses and keeping them because they have access to predictable, accessible, affordable child care.

Okay, I'm guessing we have a few. Go ahead. Uh vice chair alum. Yes. Um, first I want to say thank you so much to Ilana for championing this and really taking this idea that I brought to her and I'm pretty sure like a rambly email and bringing us to this point where we're about to launch this task force. Um, none of this would have been possible to reach this point if I didn't take the lead in bringing together so many folks. So I want to give her her flowers for the amazing work she does and also elevate that you know some of the conversations we've been having already as like a mini task force of bringing together the task force is also how we collect data specifically to Durham because we are very different from you know other cities in North Carolina and with the fact that we have RTP which is huge employers for counties across this region, not just Durham County. And also making sure that this conversation doesn't leave out home care providers. It doesn't leave out the actual child care providers who are in the classrooms with our kids um and looking at models and ways that um the care providers, the owners of centers and home centers are able to make a living um while also providing care because it is not a money-making business. um that they go into. It is very expensive to take care of children and most of the money they get from the tuition from parents goes directly back

into their employee salaries or rent and looking at um we're also going to be looking at ways that for example we were talking about the um land that you know DPS owns and we've also had conversations about land that the county owns and the city owns of how we can review um these processes and also look at the land that the different companies in RTP own as well. Um because we know Biogen already has a childcare facility on um within their space, but also using that as a model to help encourage other companies and that's through partnerships with Ramsey as well as RTP Foundation is going to be on the task force to get that buy in. So, because we know it's not going to be able to be funded solely through county taxpayer dollars, especially when we are maybe losing our ability uh to generate revenue through property taxes um in the future. So, wanting to bring in partners that will buy into the value of investing in child care um for the economic benefits that it brings, for the well-being of the child that it brings, um the well-being of the actual care providers. And so it's a very holistic approach that we're hoping to take with this task force that I feel like, you know, we did something similar several years back that led us to the Durham PreK program that we have. Um but that zero to three gap um I often share with y'all that like you know I see my kids who have we've had the privilege of being able to put them into child care even though right now like well for both of them it was the same price as our mortgage and that's something that's very that's impossible for every family in Durham and to look at how much they learned when they were in their toddler one and toddler 2 classes that me as a working two full-time jobs and my husband working full-time as well, we wouldn't have had the time to sit with our kids

and teach them the things that they're learning in daycare that set them up for prek, that set them up for first grade. And so wanting to make sure that every child, no matter their economic level, what zip code they live in, that they aren't behind before they even get into school. Um because they missed out on the opportunity of child care. So I'm really looking forward to, you know, working with this amazing group of leaders in this space. And I would be remiss if I didn't also point out while we're talking about this um the amazing work that you know Kate has been doing around uh family forward and the certification programs for um businesses places of work to become family forward certified. And I hope, you know, we'll probably go through this in the task force process, but to just throw it out there that, you know, Durham County uh should look into going through the certification process to be labeled a uh family forward employment uh place of employment. Um and we get a star if we go through that. And I think that's the way that we start to set the example for other companies and small businesses and um the city of Durham, DPS, to also be family forward. And that's something we can do internally to model.

Okay. Um, any Go ahead, Commissioner Jacobs.

Yes. Thank you so much. I'm really excited to have this moving forward. I know this is something that our board has talked about for a long time over the past few years that we've needed to have this type of a task force and I know you all have been working on this uh for a while at cooperative extension. So really appreciate it. Um I want to put into the mix a number of things. one is, you know, there was an excellent Indie article recently that really delved into all of the issues around um

access to child care in Durham. So, I you know, we don't have to start over from scratch. There were a lot of important issues identified in in that article and I unfortunately the federal policy around DSS I mean I'm sorry around daycare subsidy is also under attack. I don't know if you've heard this recently. It was thrown around and I don't know where what's happened to it. Very frightening uh that the Trump administration announced that they were looking at changing the prioritization for the federal child care subsidy to prioritize actually two parent households. Unbelievable. And and not regardless of income. Whereas we know that the critical need in our community for the uh daycare subsidy which is administered by DSS is for single parents who without that daycare subsidy are unable to work and you know our poorest um children and families. So that is also very another frightening um policy change that has that we've all been hearing about. Um I also want to raise the issue that there is a state task force right and so hopefully we can partner with them um what they're doing and um and also go back to our original uh early childhood task force and state of the child report is another I think good um place uh something to include. And I also just want to say our own building. We while we're talking about this early childhood task force, we have a our own county daycare sitting empty. And so I I want to make sure we don't wait for the task force results to to keep moving

forward on that because we are paying uh a subsidy I believe of about $160,000 a year to pay for the rent of that space. Um and I would on at this point I'd rather see that go as a subsidy to a daycare provider and actually have a functioning daycare in that building. So, I think this should light a fire under us to um revisit that with a sense of urgency and see what we need to do to get that building filled with children. Um and just the other last thing I want to just bring up is about the appointment process for the task force because normally when we have a Durham County sta task force, there will be uh an appointment process that comes to this board. um and I'm sure you know designated seats um and you know recommendations things like that. So just wanted to hear from you about your the timeline related to just how that process will work for membership of the task force.

Yeah, I can take that one. Um but first for the previous one I know um DCM Jones had told me for the child care facility that we have I believe the RFP is being reposted. Um Perry and DCM Jones have been working on that. Uh it's definitely you know goes to the conversation about the cost of running a child care center and the barriers that exist. And to the other piece, um I do also want to ask clarification from attorney Williamson on this because uh we do have a list of folks that you know we compiled of like different sectors that we have been or folks as well as like backups in case they are not available like we wanted to have representative from Duke University, RTP Foundation, NCCU, uh a home care provider, a child care provider, a parent um as well as you

know our partners from Durham Tech under a partnership for children um and early years. I know when we had talked about it if we needed to have that formally voted on to have because our goal is to kickstart this October 26th 23rd

29th

29th yes October 29th that is uh should we bring that list that we've pulled together to the board attorney

Williamson Okay.

Yes. I would say that you need to bring that before the board so that they can vote on that.

Okay. Wonderful. Yeah. Because I think Yeah. When we had the conversation about if we're good to move forward on the 29th, I thought we were clear, but we will get you that list. Um I believe that you know myself, Ilana, um Ramsay and Kate were reaching out to uh each of the entities that we wanted to invite to see if who they would recommend and nominate. We also asked the city of Durham uh the county and well the county we have Iana as well as DPS to put forward staff members too. So we're waiting for those names from city and DPS. Okay. Any other questions you have? We're good. Burton. Okay. All right. Thank you so very much. All right. All right. That exhausts the list that we we had to pull out when we were speaking separately and we already approved the consent agenda. So the next item on our agenda, we're moving into other business and that is an update on nonprofit requests for proposals to support youth enrichment programming. Manager Hager.

Good evening, commissioners. I am delighted to give you an update on our

um upcoming community grant program with the youth services focus. Um although I am kicking it off, um Julia Heldman, our senior management analyst, has done the heavy lift along with John Kefir, our director of organizational effectiveness, who had another commitment and could not be here tonight, but they have been the champions on many of our grant processes um since we've had ARPA funding. And um we're a I think a welloiled machine when it comes to now um doing this work and will move seamlessly in uh our next RFP um activities. The board has for some time been committed to Durham youth. Uh we have numerous programs and activities throughout the county. You can look at our investments not only with Durham public schools but Durham Technical Community College. There's an overall theme of supporting youth whether it's educationally or directly or indirectly in other areas. Um we were fortunate as others throughout the country to receive over 62 million in American Rescue Fund Act dollars. There was an allocation of 7.3 million that was specifically allocated to support Durham public schools title one programs and we also had dollars that um supported community nonprofits with youth and other programs. So there were 19 nonprofits that um were receiving funds. Um this uh opportunity we had was fantastic. The challenge was, as we knew starting out, having funds to sustain it. And unfortunately, that was a challenge that we faced. In this current budget, we allocated $500,000 to support micro

grants to community nonprofits serving the Durham County youth. Um the the micro grants uh will um hopefully be an award between 10 and 12. um grantees. Um the range will be from $40 to $50,000 max and the eligibility requirement is that they must be a nonprofit and there are other details as well as far as their financial standing and um I'll turn it over to Julia to give some other quick highlights. Sounds great. Thank you, manager Hager. Um so we were thinking of dividing the RFP into three different categories that applicants can apply for. Um and this first category is related to creation or expansion of youth social, emotional and mental health services that are both culturally affirming, safe and traumainformed. And then the second category here is focused on enhancing and improvement proving focused programs on youth enrichment and recreational art or sport activities. And then that third category is focused on youth academic supports. So this could be for afterchool or summer programming as well as literacy support, tutoring or other similar interventions. And then we also just wanted to note we're not designating a minimum or maximum that needs to be allocated to one of these categories in the selection process. But this is sort of the breakdown for now. And then this is just a proposed timeline. So potentially subject to change, but how we're envisioning things for now is that the RFP would open on October 16th and then we would host anformational session virtually the week of November 2nd for folks to attend and then have a deadline for submission of November 20th and then convene a review panel to review those applications between November 23rd and December 10th and then send notices of intent to award to the organizations on December 11th before then board approval. by the 14th

and then have an actual performance period for grantees between February 2027 through January of 2028. And then in terms of the application structure, this will include six different sections that focus on organizational information, a description of the project itself, provide some background on the organization's prior experience and grant readiness, and then also include a performance evaluation plan, a proposed budget, and then information related to program sustainability. And then a fun last section on some required forms. And then on this next slide, we just have some of the process in terms of how the review will work. So, our department will convene a review panel of subject matter experts to actually evaluate and score proposals. And they'll utilize a standardized rubric that will be organized by six different selection criteria shown here. Um, and the scores will all be then weighted and calculated to a final score and applicants will be selected based on the highest scoring from that review panel. So OE itself will not have a role in determining applicant selections. And then just some other last information to note about the RFP. We acknowledge it's a lengthy document and definitely has a lot of upfront information, but really the goal here is to ensure that we're being as transparent as possible about the expectations with the grant and minimize issues during the implementation period and also just minimize any risk to the county. Um and then during the whole performance period, we intend to provide technical assistance to grantees and have a component of the application currently set up where folks can request specific topics or areas they feel they might need assistance on. So hopefully that can guide potential trainings we may able to do. And then lastly, just wanted to note that if organizations don't comply with any of these requirements, this could result in suspension or termination or repayment of grant funds.

And that wraps that up. So, thank you guys for listening. We're definitely still in drafting phase. So, really just here to kind of facilitate initial discussion and get any feedback that you all may have on the program or design or anything like that.

Uh, Commissioner Burton,

thank you so much um for that wonderful presentation. Um, I am so excited about this um because I know this is something that I was advocating for. I remember when I first got on the board and I was trying to figure out, okay, how can we get money to so many of these great afterchool programs to serve our youth and um it's now coming to fruition. So, um I'm looking forward to um there's so many really great community um after school programs out there in Durham who are really trying to serve young people, give them something to do, particularly after school because we know that when kids particularly in middle school and high school, they're looking for something to do. And so figuring out what they can do and if there are services out there for them and if we can give them the support. I think this is a really great thing that Durham County can do. So thank you so much. Um and I'm really excited to see which um programs get the micro grants. So hopefully we can continue this. We'll just see how it goes this first year. So thank you so much alone.

Yes. Well, first thank you so much, Julia, for all the work that you've put in to you as well as uh John, but um really for, you know, thinking through this to make sure that we provide this type of opportunity for uh programs that support our youth. As Commissioner Burton mentioned, this is one of the areas that you know is really vital and important because when we talk about like you know the upstream analogies

of really getting to the top of the stream of how do we provide programming and services so that our young people feel the love and care that we have for them at Durham County um from the very beginning to give them greater opportunities in life. Um I'm wondering um what type of work I know we've done this like similar with the ARPA grants and stuff like going through this process but I see this one as being potentially being different because there were so many federal regulations and rules around the ARPA money of do you think there's any opportunity for us to like look at how the city does the participatory budgeting process um and utilizing some of the resources that they have during the because I don't know when the next cycle is going to be for their process, but the staff capacity that they have for like the trainings and the um office hours that you're going to have cuz that would also be like a lot like if a lot of people have questions and if it's only u you who is there to support it like if we could see if the city council and city government would be willing to provide like support from their participatory budgeting team um to provide those uh that training on like answering people's questions about the grant application process.

And Julia, I'll take this question. Um, for context, um, Julia and John are just two of the staff. We have at least four um, individuals that support our grant efforts right now. There are also individuals in our compliance team that are under the CFO's area. So, it is a very robust group of folks. And although it's very similar in how we manage our grant processes, we would um if needed reach out, but I do feel like we've built a foundation that we still have right now for staff to support those applicants. Um and from

a process perspective, we definitely can look at for future um cycles some of the models they may have used with the participatory budgeting because of this tight timeline and is trying to move it along by January. just want to use the systems we've put in place because they have been quite effective and um and I will say that because you we've um it's been a while since we've done an RFP youth focus but when we did it because we were very transparent um there there was limited amount of concerns about process protocol etc but we we're always open for refinement but I do believe we do have the structure. And so during that week, it noted um I guess on the timeline we noted um that week of November 2nd. So I'm sure there will be a couple offormational sessions because we know that there are individuals that may work during the daytimes and they may not be able to to attend one. So we will have one at night as well. So we we try to be very helpful and we also try to ensure that we set up a structure for success so that nonprofits are partnered with fiscal agents if they don't have the experience. Um we we want to make sure that at the end of the day that entities are successful. So sometimes we may recommend um some partnerships um just because of capacity that may be at the organization and that's a model that this both the city and the county have followed as as we've managed our ARPA dollars as well.

All right. Uh Commissioner Valentine or you want to go to Yeah.

Yeah. So thank you. Uh Julie, you had said that uh there was a component and I guess it goes back to what the manager was just uh talking about with regards to being structured for success. I'm always a little concerned about the technical assistance piece and ensuring that you know our partners are um given the aid and assistance that they need to be successful. I mean that's very important to me uh particularly u around uh this monies and these grants around youth programming which is uh very much needed uh people in our community talk about it all the time. I mean I just anecdotally when I first came to dorm that was one of the the the blaring attractions. So, my children were very young then and uh there wasn't a moment where there wasn't something to do in this community whether it was provided through the county or provided through the city and uh I'd like for us to get back to that. And so my question is about the technical assistance piece. Can you tell me what that looks like? Yes, we're definitely still in early stages with the RFP part, but I think our vision is hopefully we can offer kind of catered training opportunities throughout the performance period based on expressed needs that the grantees themselves have. Um, so we don't have an exact structure yet, but would hopefully kind of similar to what manager Hey was alluding to, create times virtually, post and afterwork and things like that that folks can attend and really focus on capacity building for a lot of the organizations. And we know that this funding may not be available in the future. So really figuring out how do we set up these organizations for success beyond this funding period, whether it be like grant writing opportunities or bolstering evaluation metrics, website design, those kind of things are some of the topics we've thought about, but still very early stages of the RFP. So may continue to evolve and happy to get your guys's input too on how we might best structure those. I I will say um lessons learned from ARPA and we had a

lot of partners. um entities may have strengths in programming, but some of the um reporting requirements, they may not be as strong. And um sometimes the technical assistance may be a staff member actually going out to the site to help them walk through what's needed because they're very strong in that programming but may not have that capacity. And then we match them with someone else. Uh the challenge with this, it's a one-year grant and it's a small amount of dollars from compared to what we were able to allocate with ARPA. And so it it will be interesting to determine where there may be some gaps in how we um help develop those technical supports. Well, I already mentioned that and you mentioned that these grants are only for for a year, but you know, uh I think you would agree with this in the grant world and so if you're successful, uh the probabilities of you being successful in the future increase exponentially. And so, uh I don't want to be in a position where a lot of our partners are not exactly sure what they don't know and fail as a result of that. And so, any way that we can help assist in that regard, I think be helpful. Commissioner Jacobs.

Well, I'm very excited about this process. I really applaud all of you for developing a very quick t timeline and um I I appreciate that timeline. I know you're going to stick to it. And uh I read through the application. I thought it was a really good application getting at what we're really trying to achieve. Um, and you know, this was a conversation that came up around with the Durham public schools and when we had a joint meeting with the school board and the city of city council and Durham County

government around what are we doing to keep our youth engaged and active as crime prevention, right, around the whole issue of um, keeping kids busy. Um, diversion from getting into trouble and, uh, and also around the challenges that parents are having who are working and need something for their kids to do after school and during the summer. And so, I'm really proud that we are following up on it. Thanks to our staff and thank you, Commissioner Burton, for for championing this. Uh uh it's very obviously very needed. Um you know those of us who have had the opportunity to go and visit the youth home, it feels very very poignant. Um I did have a few follow-up questions. One is um I and I do I do I am glad that we're doing a big instead of you know uh I don't know a hundred $5,000 grants. the fact that we're doing 50,000 and just limiting it to, you know, like organizations, I I think that's much more helpful and and effective. I appreciate that approach. So, I noticed that in the application there was a limit of, you know, 15% limit for operations, which I support. What are what are you thinking about staffing? Because at the same time I know there were some some description there about you know no no new posi no increasing salaries with the money but what are you thinking about the role of the money with regards to salaries because that money could just go completely for salaries right and then how many youth are we actually serving?

So, what's what's going to be the balance with that um when we're looking at outcomes because obviously we want to serve as many kids as we can. So, what are what are your thoughts about that?

Yeah, that's a great question. I know manager here if you want to start and I can

I'll start and you can pick up especially from your observations with our ARPA grant. Depending upon what type of programming occurs, you will need some dollars allocated to people because oftentimes they're the ones delivering the service. If it's something more technical and they need um hardware software, that's different. But in most cases, we will find that a a considerable amount may be allocated for um the personnel line item. The question then becomes how much are they able to supplement their current activities to expand programming and that will be able to evidentially see what their projected data. We can look at historical trends and what their patterns have been and and do some estimation based on what they're projecting the funds to support. We wish it were higher levels of dollars at the amount that it's allocated right now. There would be um some limits in what they can achieve overall. But we also know this can be quite impactful um to sub supplement and expand some existing programs or to try something new and unique. And so we know it's a balancing act, but that is something that we will pay pay careful attention to. It's how many people, for instance, if they have tutors, that's personnel. They may have 10 new tutors to target a specific community. It may be all personnel related, but it impacts 200 students. I'm just throwing out some numbers. So,

there are lots of different ways that individuals can submit and and we know we're going to get some creative approaches on how we support our youth. Thank you. And do we have any specific goal in mind? For instance, with this half a million dollar investment, we're hoping to at a minimum impact how many youth. Has there been any discussion about about that? We haven't come to a threshold goal yet. That's certainly a conversation we can have. I think it's also kind of maintaining that balance of quality over quantity. Um, and so it can always be hard with a cap kind of setting. We really are focused on I think getting really high quality projects. And in some cases that may mean serving less youth in one project, but um we can definitely have further discussions if we feel like there's a certain scope that we want. But I think overall really trying to evaluate the programs that have a significant reach but also are really prioritizing individualized support and care for each participant. But manager feel free to add anything too.

You nailed it. I know no suggestions.

Yeah. And I think that you know in terms of you know Commissioner Valentine's comment about that you know this is just one year. I think if we're thinking more long term about our violence prevention plan for instance and you know we heard loud and clear from the community that they want a focus on youth violence prevention. I mean this may be what we one of the things that we want to prioritize going forward being a part of our violence prevention plan and what we want to make a commitment to. So I think I kind of feel like this will be a learning experience this year and then we can learn from from this going forward. So thank you so much.

Thank you all.

All right. And I I did have a well I

don't have a question. I just have a comment that I really appreciate the the care that you all are going towards letting people know that they will be reporting back on their progress upfront. So you apply you get your grant, there's no questions about you're going to be uh you know setting your goals, you're going to letting letting us know what you're going to do and then reporting back after your year, how did you perform against those and should this go forward, we can use that information to to filter out or to sort through what's being effective and what's not. I really appreciate that. And so I'm looking at the important grant information slide and it kind of has that right there. I know it's still in the early stages, but I deeply appreciate you all putting this up front

because that's how we have to operate as a

that was definitely a goal learning through ARPA. There are a lot of challenges with a lot of our nonprofits on the reporting front and so I think we really want to be as transparent as possible and make sure that our grantees are set up for success to meet those commitments. So,

right,

glad you noticed. Working with John, that is number one on his list.

Well, I deeply appreciate it.

Thank you so much.

All right. Okay. Thank you. Thank you very much. Okay. No, I think that's just an update, just information. All right. Now, the last item on our agenda, board and board and commission's appointments. So we have the Durham Racial Equity Commission has two vacant positions. Um these are two leader community organizer of communityrooted organizationbased positions. The board has selected Harry Davis Jr. and Joyce Spencer for those two

positions. For the Historic Preservation Commission, we have one vacant position and the board has appointed Nicholas Trapewi. Um, for that position, I apologize if I mispronounced his name. For the Juvenile Crime Prevention Council, we have two vacant positions. We have one United Way rep or other nonprofit organization position and one youth under age 21 or member of the public representing the interests of families of at risk juveniles. For the United Way rep or other nonprofit position, the board has selected Angela Nun. For the youth under 21 or member of the public representing the interest of families of atrisisk juveniles position, the board has selected Sarah Hayes. Congratulations to all that have been appointed.

All right. Thank you very much. That brings us to the end of our agenda tonight. Let's just double check that. Yep. So, I'll accept a motion to adjurnn.

So moved.

Second.

It's been moved and properly seconded that we adjourn. Any further discussion? All in favor say I.

I.

All oppose, please use the same sign. We are journ. And please travel safe, colleagues, to grab