Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. N. Ah, oh, oh. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Hey, hey hey. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Are you heat? Hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Hey, Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey hey hey. Heat. Heat. Nat. ooh. Heat. Heat. N. Heat. All right, we will bring the meeting to order. First item of business is the pledge of allegiance. And um councelor Fort, can you help lead us in that? 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. Next, we have the consent agenda, and we had one item pulled, which was C1A. Do we have approval of the remainder? >> So move. >> So moved. >> Second. >> All in favor of that motion? I >> I. >> All oppose? Nay. All right. So that's unanimous. And then we will call up Don Meyers from the police department to discuss C1A >> or Chief Boyce. >> They're saying the volume is not >> I don't know. He's working on it. >> Talking to overly, right? >> All right. Good afternoon, madame mayor, council, madam city manager, chief Rico Boyce, Raleigh Police Department. Uh, happy new year. First time before you guys this year. Uh I'm here to explain my request of uh equipment that I requested the foundation Raleigh Police Department foundation purchase for the Raleigh Police Department and why it's needed currently in the department. Just a little historical anymore. Yeah, the um on top of maybe our mics not working as well as they should, our uh visual is blinking in and out, but it does come back. >> Okay, >> so we all right there we go. Thank you. >> So, a little historical how we got here today with this particular piece of equipment. When I started here at the Raleigh Police Department, vehicle pursuits and ending vehicle pursuits in a safe manner was a priority of city leadership, RPD leadership. At the time, the only resource or the tool we had to bring a vehicle pursuit to a safe end uh were stopsticks. Stop sticks were used quite uh frequently throughout the country as well as here in RPD for many years. What we saw was that officers were getting killed throughout the country by deploying these stop sticks as well as vehicles would continue to move forward and cause additional damage after being the tires being stopped by the stop sticks. So it wasn't a very useful tool. So RPD leadership many many years ago we stopped using stopsticks and since then early 2000s we have not had anything in our inventory to address bringing vehic vehicle pursuits to an end. With that mindset and that history of stop six here in the RPD, when I was selected as chief, I tasked my senior leadership team with identifying equipment that we could use here in the capital city to bring vehicle pursuits to a safe end and make sure that we are keeping our community safe as well as the officers that put their life on the line each and every day. The recommendation to start looking at Starchase was presented to me in April of 2025. I started asking questions about this product, started talking to other chiefs throughout the country of what is Star Chase and is Star Chase a very useful tool for the department. So that leads me here to my PowerPoint here. What is Star Chase? It is a GPS-based tracking system. It is almost just look think of it as an air tag that law enforcement deploys on a vehicle that is fleeing a lawful traffic stop. Or if we have probable cause to believe that a vehicle has committed a crime and the occupants within that need to be taken into custody, we can deploy star chase before a vehicle pursuit happens. This is only a GPS tracker that is used in live real time. It allows us as law enforcement to safely track a fleeing vehicle without engaging in a highspeed pursuit. This is very timely. If you think back just last week, we had a total of five vehicle pursuits that occurred in and around the city of Raleigh. Now, thank goodness none of them was were initiated by RPD, but this is a thing that we must address here at RPD. What will we do if we initiate a vehicle pursuit? And how can we ensure that we keep our community safe when we initiate a vehicle pursuit when officers deploy one of these tags? And I have one here to show you what it looks like. When they deploy that tag onto an offender's vehicle, it triggers and activate a GPS tracker. From there, members of our real time crime center back in our detective division can safely monitor that vehicle in a very short period of time. Thank you. Can monitor that vehicle in a very short period of time to bring that chase to a very safe end. And that is the goal here is to hold offender offenders accountable and to bring a chase to a safe end while keeping our community safe. Here is what a tracker looks like and I'm going to pass it to Madam City attorney and you can pass it around. That tracker is deployed from a launcher on the front of a patrol vehicle and I'll get into that more here in a second. You're asking what is the public safety benefits? That is the number one goal with any equipment that we have here in the Raleigh Police Department is safety. Safety for our community, safety for our officers that use this equipment. I will tell you, Star Chase reduces the need for high-speed pursuits. Once that tracker is attached to an offender's vehicle, we can safely back off that vehicle and not continue to follow it. and encourage that violator to continue to drive in a very erratic manner from what we've seen. We all can go on YouTube and see the destruction and the harm that a vehicle pursuit can cause in a city. I don't want that as the chief. My officers don't want that. We as city leaderships don't want that here in the capital city. It also decreases the risk to pedestrian, motorists, and officers by using star chase because we can allow technology to do what it is intended to do and allow us to track that vehicle from a safe distance and not put the general public in any type of harm. It also allows officers to disengage while maintaining situational awareness. And what I mean by that is currently I have no resources to address bringing a vehicle pursuit to a safe end if it meets the threshold of our vehicle pursuit policy. There's nothing else there. They either got to let the vehicle go or they going to initiate the vehicle pursuit and there's a risk that that pursuit might end in some type of damage and I don't want that. With Star Chase, the officer can make the decision like, "I've deployed Starchase and now I can quickly bag off this vehicle and hopefully bring this situation to a safe end." That is the number one goal, safety. This also supports pursuit reform and safety focused policing. And what I mean by that is we can then take our own data from a vehicle pursuit. We can analyze it. We can train our officers in knowing how to engage in a vehicle pursuit and how to bring it to a safe conclusion by using real data that we initiated that we have inside of RPD. and we'll get that data from the Starase tracker. Operational benefits, real- time GPS tracking mapping. And what I mean by that is when this uh tracker is deployed and it attaches to a violator's vehicle, we can then get updates every two to three seconds of where that vehicle is moving. From there, we can put our officers in a position of advantage to apprehend that offender and not bring any harm to the community while we're trying to apprehend this suspect. It currently integrates with our existing patrol operations. Obviously, I've shown this community that I'm very transparent on what we do. This equipment will be on our patrol vehicles, so it's no secrets of who has this equipment on the vehicle. It mounts to the front of the patrol vehicle. It looks like almost like a little license plate that's on the front of that vehicle. Patrol officers make majority of our traffic stops. So, that is nothing different than what they do each and every day and doing a lawful traffic stop while maintaining community safety where they stop that vehicle. So, it aligns with that priority. It works obviously day, night, urban, highway setting. With the city of Raleigh growing such as as a rapid pace, uh more vehicles on the highway, uh this equipment can be deployed uh you know on Capitol Boulevard, it can be deployed on the on the belt line, but it will work here in the capital city. And then it streamline officer training. And where I'm going with that is this equipment will be assigned to an officer who is assigned that vehicle and that vehicle only. What I want to avoid or what I'm gonna avoid is putting this equipment on a fleet vehicle and one officer is trained on it and then one officer who also drives that vehicle is not. This equipment is going to be assigned to officers who only drive that vehicle. So they know how this equipment works. They know when they go to training, this is their vehicle and they are very familiar with how it works on the vehicle that they are assigned. After safety, the next priority is course cost and being fiscally responsible with the funds and the budget that I have within RPD. Overall, this will be a long-term cost compared to crash related claims. We all know what that could be, a payout of of a vehicle chase where there's injuries and or death u that results from a vehicle chase. I want to minimize that risk for the Raleigh Police Department in the city. And by using this Star Chase GPS tracking system, it will help with that. There is data that suggests that over all their deployments, they've had no fatalities from using this equipment. Also, this funded this was funded by the Raleigh Police Department Foundation. I made this request a month ago to purchase Starchase and the foundation graciously agreed to pay for this and not using any taxpayer funds. So there's no city cost with purchasing this product. Lastly, the risk reduction and liability. What I want to leave everyone here with is I make decisions based on making sure that we doing everything we can to keep this city safe as well as the officers. This is a piece of equipment that will help keep the city safe, hold the offenders accountable, and keep our officers safe as well. And it's going to reduce vehicle crashes in the event that we have a vehicle pursuit. It also is going to reduce the city liability that's associated with a vehicle pursuit by using star chase and backing away from chasing a vehicle. That is what I want for our city. That's what I want for our police department. And that's why I'm asking for this equipment to be purchased. In conclusion, Starchase has been proven to work in other jurisdictions. I've spoken to many chiefs of agencies that have this equipment already. They vouch for this equipment and keeping their city safe as well as the officers that deploy this equipment. They also said this is a alternative to vehicle pursuits and that is what I'm trying to accomplish here today is have some resources in my inventory to deploy when we find ourselves in this situation. I'll put up here some other agencies that are using this product. There are many agencies that are using Star Chase. I've had many conversations with the chiefs of these departments and I feel very confident this is the equipment we need in our inventory here at the Raleigh Police Department. At this time, I take any questions and I will say I do have a representative here from Star Chase that can answer any questions that you all may have about the company itself. >> All right. Thank you, Chief. Um, question from councelor Jones. >> Thank you so much for this. I think less about the specifics. What I do appreciate, I'll start with that. I appreciate that no wanting to use Raleigh Police Foundation because they're paying for it and it's not on taxpayers. Great. That's awesome. Um I love that we have other police departments that we can talk to get data that shows this does reduce car chases and all that. That's that's amazing. Check. The concern that I have and why I'm pulling it now is that when it goes through consent, we don't get this unless I pull it, we don't get this explanation. And so when reading it in a consent agenda and knowing that the public is able to read it in a consent agenda without that validation that this came through the police chief, it lends questions to why is an outside foundation purchasing equipment that the police department is using. And it's not to say that that's right or wrong. I'm just looking for the transparency as we're both working towards. You know, I have to be transparent with with residents and as you are doing a wonderful job of being transparent. I want to highlight those those opportunities where we can grow. This was amazing. So, I'm really appreciative of you giving us this detail. Um, I think I still need time to digest it. Uh, we didn't receive this uh until just while we were in the work session, and so it's very hard for me to make a vote on something that I still don't know the answers to to answer to uh uh residents. Um, you you've you've gone over why you went through why why the police foundation is good for for the u for all that. When I the further question I have, I guess, is for our city attorney. What vetting process do you do you go through? Have you reviewed this um for any potential risks associated with uh people who are in pursuit? Are there are there any risks to the city for something like this? >> Our office has been involved in working with the chief as he evaluates the problem, evaluates the potential solution to the problem. Um, we certainly agree with the chief's assessment in terms of it potentially reducing liability as we've seen these chases uh not only pose a risk to our officers but to the community at large who may find themselves on the road at the time that a pursuit is taking place. And so as we proceed, if it is the um the will of the council to allow us to accept this gift, then we also will be involved in reviewing the uh a final agreement before it's signed to ensure that we also minimize any issues, legal issues related to execution of the agreement. >> Okay. Okay, that's great. I think when I'm reading that and I don't I and I don't see all of that background that you guys have clearly done. It's hard for me to go through and not have all of these questions raised. So, that's why I wanted to pull it. Um vetting process. There's also because it's not just this and it wasn't just this item that was pulled. We pulled the entirety of C1A and that was because there was also something for gym equipment. Can you help me further understand the gym equipment that's two almost $200,000 worth for two stations? >> Yes. Employee wellness is a priority of mine as well as the entire Raleigh Police Department. Our officers are working 12 15 hours a shift. Uh physical activity is very important allowing them to do their job in a safe manner. I went to the foundation and asked for not only two gyms to be upfitted, but all five of our district gyms. I only selected two because I can't shut down all the gyms while they're getting upfitted. And then when I say upfitted, all it is is buying new equipment. That's all it is. There's no physical changes to the actual gyms that are in our districts. This is just buying more efficient, newer equipment for each of the gyms. The foundation uh supported my my priority of employee wellness and making sure that officers have the top-notch equipment to work out. So, it started I wanted a north side district. So, I started with the northeast district because it's so close to our detective campus. I can get the biggest bang for our buck by upfitting that gym first. And then I wanted a gym on the south side of the city. So I selected the southwest district. Once those two gyms are completed with the upfit, I will move to the northwest district and to the southeast district and complete those gyms. And then the last district will be the the downtown district. And we'll do that once we complete the move to uh their new location. So all five will get upfitted. It's just the the north uh northeast and the southwest were just the first two. >> Okay. And that's wonderful to know. I think for me over the last three years and in our budgeting process, I haven't seen you know a report from uh police. We don't we don't normally do sessions like work budget work sessions with police. So I don't always understand the needs of the department. And so these are these conversations are really helpful. It's helpful for me, but it's also helpful helpful to help your uh goal of making it transparent to the community because I think this is a wonderful uh avenue to use, especially when we have partners like uh Raleigh Police Foundation. So, I do appreciate you using being creative and and still getting the the police what they need. Um I'm just wanting to make sure that is clear to the public. So, I appreciate you coming and helping me understand. >> Yeah. And once again, no calls to the public with that request. Um, I'll go down here to um, uh, councelor Fort and then I'll shift back over. I >> I just want to be in the queue, but I should be last because I'm going probably make a motion to approve. I know council member Patton and council member Harrison probably have other comments and so you can just save me for last. >> Let me go to Mayor Prom. >> Yeah, thanks Chief Boyce for this information. I think the technology sounds really useful to your team and I appreciate the foundation's uh, donation. It's incredible. Um, yeah, I think what is being brought up here is mostly more of a process question for us, making sure that we have some of our answers as soon as we can on topics like this. Um, one thing that has come up with um, conversations with my residents is about um, federal agents access to our technology. So, could you speak to that because that has come up a lot in my recent uh, community conversations. >> Right, Mayor Promp, great question. Uh, this is RPD data. This is RPD uh information. We do not share data with federal law enforcement agencies. Uh this is Star Chase providing information on when we deploy this device and that information stays here with RPD um in our real-time crime center. So there is no opportunity for us to share this with the federal agencies. Legally, we are we are bound by what I say sieges is the acronym, but criminal justice information system. We must adhere to those requirements about data security and not sharing that data with anyone subject of a court order obviously if a judge says otherwise. But we do not share this data. We will not share this data. It is the Raleigh Police Department as well as the city as well. It uh we're going to make sure that this data stays in house. It doesn't go anywhere. This is only for us. >> Thank you. >> Yes, Council Patton. >> Yeah, thanks Chief. Um like the others, I definitely want to reduce the safety risk costs for both officers and residents in vehicle pursuit. So in line with the mission of the request, but s share some similar concerns around just like data privacy and security. So when the targets deployed, it sticks on a car. It's it's run through a GPS system. Who Star Chase is the facilitator of the GPS system? >> No, it's all RPD. Star Chase is just a vendor. Once they give us the product, they're they're they're out of this equation. is when we have probable calls to stop a vehicle and we want to prevent a vehicle pursuit from occurring. We can pre-eploy that star chase tracker in the instance that that car flees. That is all RPD initiated. That is all the ve the officer that has this equipment on their vehicle. That is their decision alone to deploy that. It's not star chase. But so I guess once it's deployed and the in the real-time crime center, someone is going to be looking at a GPS map. >> Correct. >> What who like what app is supporting the map that they're looking at? come up later, but it's Fus, our our plat our Fus platform that I'll be speaking about later that will be uh monitoring as well as providing those updates from the GPS tracker back to our real-time crime center and detectives and crime analysts in our real-time crime center will be looking at that data, but it's fusions that we'll be running that program through, not Star Chase. Okay. >> Yeah. I don't know if there's support from the council, but I might like to wait and vote on this when we have the presentation on the other item. If if if it's integrating to Fus and we're going to hear about Fus later. To me, it makes sense to maybe hold them together. But open to the will of the body. Thanks, Chief. >> I'm ready to go. >> I would agree um with councelor Patton. I feel I again I only got this while we were in the work session. So, while I totally uh am behind and want to want to support, I also want to also do my research and and read on to it and make sure that I understand cuz from the first consent, I didn't understand all the things that you told us just now. So, I think I personally will need just some time to to do the research, but I am supportive of making sure that things are safer and I really hope that I I have a further questions after that, but at this time, I wouldn't be able to support approving it right now. Chief Boyce, how long have you been a RPD officer and you know been with the department? >> 26 years. And and thank you if I may take a moment here to say as as a 26-year employee of the Raleigh Police Department, I'm not and now being the chief, I'm very intentional about the equipment and the practices uh that we do in RPD. I have vetted this information, this equipment since I was selected as chief in March of 2025. We had a practical exercise with Star Chase in May of 2025 where I personally as a chief of police, I deployed a tracker on a vehicle on our test track out at our training center. I saw the effectiveness of this product firsthand. I trust this product is going to help keep our community safe and help our officers do their job in a safe manner and holding criminals accountable for their actions here in the capital city. I'm very passionate about doing all I can to protect this community. This product, we have nothing in our inventory right now. We just saw firsthand five vehicle chases last week. I don't want to be in a situation where I have no resources. My officers have no resources. This gives us a resource to put in our inventory. We're not randomly deploying this. This is only when we have probable calls, the legal justification to use it. Just wanted to share that with you, Council Member Story Ford. >> Yeah, >> he wants to say something before I make my motion. So, let him say what he got. >> I was just going to add that Chief Boyce fully supportive of this and you your work. The other item you mentioned is under the manager report. It's G2. It's the um the other contract. You're the presenter for that item, too. Do you just want to give us that presentation so we can vote all of this through right now? Can Can we take that? >> Can we do that? >> We would prefer not. Um just to keep it >> just to keep it clean because it is two separate items. They're two contracts, but two separate lines of business. And while there is some intermingling, it is two distinct actions that we need to take here. >> Understood. I meant we can vote on them separately. I just meant if you're standing there, do you want to give us the second presentation and we can each vote them one at a time. If that's going to mess you up, I'm ready to go. >> I'd say let's just follow the agenda. >> Okay, we'll follow the agenda. So, Chief Voice, what I want to say is I know we talk a lot about our commitment to public safety. The city is growing. We have a lot of folks coming who live here that are residents, but also a lot of folks who come into the city to visit. Uh, I appreciate the work that you and your staff do. I also appreciate the work of the foundation. This is not money coming out of the taxpayers budget. This is money that private individuals have, excuse me, answered your call about things that you need for the department and that's what the foundation does. And so it would be my motion to approve uh C1A on the consent agenda. >> Second. >> Okay. >> And sir, >> yeah, I'll clarify again. This has nothing to do with my respect or trust in your judgment. it has to do more with the process of understanding and making it more transparent for the community. So when I'm seeing a consent item that I don't have the background information, I don't have um reports that we do on a regular basis. I don't have backup from from this in this moment. It's not that I want to deny your request. It's that I'm asking for two weeks to say, "Hey, can I have some time to just read it so that I can help and amplify the work that you're doing?" So I just want to make that clear before I vote. So thank you. >> Yep. And I guess my final point, I'm I'm going to side with voting today. I think just the fact that we had the five car chases last week that this is there is some sense of urgency that this could improve public safety uh immediately. So just given that um I will I will go ahead and call the question. All in favor of the motion I. >> All oppose, nay. All right. And um that motion passes. Thank you. >> Thank you. Okay, next we have public comment and we have I think 10 people signed up, three minutes each and we will get further instruction. >> Thank you very much. Good afternoon, Mayor, Council, uh Ran North from the communications department. I did want to address an elephant in the room, which is our screens. Uh as you've seen, they are going out periodically. There's one cable that is running everything to all of our systems. So, we thank you for your patience uh either here in the room or where you're watching on TV or online as well. It will come back and so just give it the patience to do so. Thank you very much. And uh I think Chief Chief Boyce did an excellent job of uh presenting how to use the microphone here in chamber. So, if anybody's new, when you step up, uh, make sure that you, uh, adjust the microphone so it's just in front of your mouth and you speak over top of it. But if you turn left or right, we will not be able to hear you here in the room, uh, nor watching at home, too. So, thank you very much. >> Thank you. Um, uh, Lawrence Yelli. >> Good afternoon. Uh for three years I proposed one or more goodfaith work sessions to share business experience, discuss best practice, expense management and budget opportunities not in city use. Uh and repeatedly with no city interest. Similar results two months ago with Christina's new lead budget initiative. My emails were sent to lead HR contact Charnell then Ryan and finally city manager all without even the courtesy of a reply. An update to staffing vacancy presented March your first chart was requested and stats of hiring gains and retention losses from and to other public and private sectors. At least some of that data should be available but none provided even after my foyer request. The second chart you have is the basis for the recent 9 to 11% salary increases. 40 plus million dollars that you approved significantly overstated based on an exaggerated 955 waiting of seagulls public and private sector data presented without explanation and certainly not consistent with actual data. Perhaps it's 50/50 or a different split but not the 955 driving a much higher and exaggerated salary adjustment. What's done is done, but the council needs to question even now and expect answers showing the data supporting that calculation or what actual should have been used as prep for FY27. Remember this when the city manager requests another merit, not TIG or WGI salary increase. Emphasis on merit despite all performance objectives and results being removed from department websites and inflation is forecasted only 2 to 3%. The RPD staffing study done in 2020 was not implemented by 2025. 997 headcount recommended to reflect city growth. 920 currently approved. Why? When the need is obvious, and the study update due last year is now delayed into this year. The need is RPD field ops, not more overhead. But there is a need to significantly increase the mayor salary absurdly low for the broad and full-time scope. Your retreat should review all budget assumptions, calendar all functions, not just the few chosen by city manager. The prior 25% property tax increase should carry the city at least another year without increase. You, city council, are the only taxpayer advocate and fiscally responsible as a check and balance. City manager is very smart and more than willing to do her job and yours if you continue to concede it. By the way, a different foyer request for consolidated city utility costs is also unanswered to include what is being done with energy conservation and cost management of those millions. Unless I'm convinced differently and very quickly, I'm filing a complaint with the state to investigate the ignored foyas. Thank you for your attention and expected action. >> Thank you, Mamai Sanders. Good afternoon. It's another amazing day in paradise. Um, thank you all for your service. I have to admit that I'm feeling some kind of way today because I'm I'm conflicted because while it really is another amazing day in paradise, I've been feeling some level of despair about the direction I feel Raleigh is heading in. Last week my comments led to the idea that developing density doesn't create community. And the reality is while there are many profiting from the growth and de and development that is happening here, we are actually growing further and further away from where we should be. I'm wondering if the culture that made Raleigh shine is being totally obliterated by catering to those who are moving here instead of honoring those who made it that way. I see more and more homes with rooftop gathering spaces instead of large southern front porches to welcome neighbors streetside. But that's really not the that's really the least of my concerns because on a deeper level, I feel that Raleigh's new culture is destroying entire natural ecosystems without thought of how that's affecting other areas of the world. I feel like Raleigh's new culture is ignoring the fact that Raleigh is in line to be hit by a Helen or Chantel. And I certainly don't want to dismiss how I feel like Raleigh's new culture is affecting the quality of life of the people who have called Raleigh home and will miss their connections to nature and dare I say the sun, by the decisions being made by our leaders. But as with all government decisions, we potentially won't know the impact of them for generations if Raleigh lasts that long. Athena tries to warn us and has been working tirelessly to get us to understand how important it is to address local environmental issues before they become big problems. I'm so grateful that she pushes past all her discomfort to speak on behalf of nature who we're blatantly ignoring. Since she's here, I'm going to finalize my comments by taking my scope out a little further. Climate change is real, y'all. My heart is with the polar bears in the Arctic who are losing their homes through no fault of their own. Now, I know some people are rolling their eyes at that one. But what about the citizens of islands or rainforest around the world who actually live in harmony with nature whose lives our greedy culture is destroying? Be it their ability to fish, their suscept susceptibility to stronger storms that they didn't help to create or actually losing their lives over their lands that are being stolen to meet our unnecessary needs. Raleigh, we've got to do better. The actions here aren't done in isolation and we need to recognize and respect that we can't control nature and it will always win. Thank you Helen Carvin. Good afternoon. At your November 18 session, you voted to move forward with the Big Branch Greenway Connector. Your discussion v focused on segment 1B, the streamside west route, which takes private property from nine Anderson Forest homeowners. Your vote breaches the city's own long-standing contract with these homeowners by condemning a conservation easement the city accepted and agreed to uphold. And you voted to violate environmental regulations and the city's own policies. For 18 months, parks and wreck has repeatedly presented false or misleading claims to steer the public and this council toward a predetermined outcome. In three minutes, I can only list a few. First, Parks and Wreck falsely claimed that it held a greenway construction easement in its first public engagement phase. It took 11 months for them to finally admit that no such greenway easement exists. Second, Parks and Wreck claims this project has been a 50-year priority and was featured in the 1976 and 89 Greenway master plans. That's false. Those plans contain no reference to a big branch greenway trail. And if this trail had been a priority, the city would never have accepted a 1986 scenic easement that explicitly prohibits greenway construction. Third, parks and wreck claims public support for this route based on its second survey. That survey was extremely biased. Your parks board recognized the bias, which is in part why they voted 9 to5 against the streamside route. Please listen to the October 16 parks board discussion. Fourth, environmental impacts were downplayed. This segment runs parallel to Big Branch with the inner repair within the inner reparium buffer where greenways are prohibited unless no practical alternative exists. Finally, Mr. Bentley's cost estimates conflict with estimates homeowners obtained just two months earlier. His slide implied the streamside route is the lowest cost option and combined the plantation and Bellevin uh Hines routes as one when they're two distinct routes. The estimates we received show the plantation Belvin route cost 2 million less than the streamside route. We have requested an explanation for these discrepancies and have received none. When Parks and Wreck returns to you at the 60% design phase, please demand the facts and reject this plan that breaks your contract, requires costly contamination, and violates environmental protections. Thank you. >> Thank you, Kevin Kong. Hello everyone. Today we'll talk about um in Northill every time if you take the bus number A or number 24 L when the bus run into the target shopping center the bus driver may have difficulty turning at a corner from the bus stop to the target. I think definitely if you want to develop north hill increase density you probably want to make the transit better right and then and then so in the future when you consider the sounding thing please take that into account improving the public transit in north hills and the second thing is that on in northill transit now you have a lot of route going for going from crab But none of them go direct to North Hill. I think many of people you want to go shopping like that is a common sense like oh like you like go to from crab tree to north hill you don't have a direct route like what about extending 24 L extending 24 L from northill to crab tree and then make people connect 23 L and 24 all together that's a transit thing. The third thing about transit before pandemic 105 run all co coexist and Raleigh since pandemic have lost a direct bus route from Raleigh downtown to alu airport and six years after pandemic they still with the half cents sales tax still have not restored I don't understand why but maybe no one is using the bus to go to airport. But from my experience, there are several people taking a bus and if you definitely extend the bus to the airport again, maybe give it a try, persuade go triangle as I have said in the W County Commission and you will find some writership in there. Thank you very much, Mr. Benji Caps. Good afternoon everybody. Thank you'all for having me here today. I appreciate it. Uh my name is Benji Caps. I'm the executive director of the Miracle League of the Triangle. Uh we're a lifelong I'm a lifelong resident. First time I've been here. I got to say that. So I'm here to speak about a partnership uh opportunity that I would expand inclusive recreation uh and to share uh park access meaningful here in Raleigh. It's what we need to have. It's sustainable. The Miracle League is a local organization that provides specially adapted baseball programs for children and adults with special needs, offering a safe team-based sports environment. For many of our players, it's the first time they've had that. The organization operates multiple fields in the triangle. The one we're talking about today specifically is at 311 Queensland Road in North Raleigh. Between our three locations, we serve about 44 teams, about 650 players in a large volunteer tri around 2,000 to 4,000 a season. We've served in our 20 years of existence over 400 residents per season. Uh and that doesn't include our volunteers out of North Raleigh Field with the help of thousands of volunteers that make our programs possible. That level of participation has already made us a site that's trusted and wellused community asset. While the baseball field is accessible, accessible play options are limited outside the diamond. For some families visiting the parks, they still aren't able to fully immerse themselves in a playground experience. And that's what we want to talk about today, that gap. I would like to briefly outline a vision of partnering with the city of Raleigh to acquire and formally convert the existing field at 311 Queensland Road into a public, fully accessible recreation campus. This would include the current Miracle League field alongside a city-led, universally designed playground and play plaza that could be served families year round, not just during the baseball season. This concept aligns with Raleigh's parks plans, inclusion goals, and recent park investments while also leveraging an existing site with parking, ADA access, zero curbs, volunteer support, and ongoing programming. Rather than starting from scratch, this approach builds on what is already working and an asset that can scale. My goal in speaking is to introduce this opportunity, encourage continued collaboration with Raleigh Parks and Recre, and begin a broader conversation about how a public partnership uh like this could really create one of Raleigh's most meaningful, inclusive recreation destinations that we can sell to all those outside of our city. Thank you. >> Thank you. I will just make an announcement um that the South New Hope Road resoning was pulled. So I did have one person for the later public hearing signed up, Elizabeth Reid. I just want to let anybody know that if you were here for that item, it has been pulled for later in the agenda. >> Withdrawn. Yeah. >> Yeah. The case was withdrawn. U Okay. Misa Satari. Not seeing her. Uh Jane Hubbend. It's Miss Hubband here. Okay. Octavia Rainey not. Oh, okay. >> Oh, are you Jane Hubbend? Okay, we'll we'll call you down next. Uh, Miss Randy, go ahead. >> Good evening. I just wanted to share with you about about the view of Oakwood. I have had the opportunity to knock on 20 doors. Personally, I'm not finished. I have nine more to go. I want to share a conversation with you about the view of Oakwood from this one gentleman's decision. He told me, "Octavia, Ottawa is not a black neighborhood. Why are you knocking on on doors? It's not black." Hear me well. It's not black. I didn't say anything because you know what? I was at his house and when you are walking and knocking on doors, you go with your courtesy. I was asking him for information. He wasn't asking me. But he told me a handful. He said, "Octavia, I was not black. I don't know why you're on this on this thing of knocking on people doors and asking them about the developers naming the project Oakwood. They have a right to name it what they want to name it." And he said when I have the press conference, he said, "I'mma be there to let them know that I support it. I'm a white man living in Oakwood, not a black neighborhood." So you see to the city of Raleigh, when you look at how the these inner city neighborhood have changed, the philosophy has also changed with it. These neighborhoods are under threat. I know mine is. and he reminded me very well, it's not a black neighborhood anymore. He said, "That's why I moved here." I didn't say anything. I listened. Then he pointed out to me very clearly. He said, "I know you, but you don't know me. I know y'all are working on the Tarbor Road Center. I don't believe in what you want for the black neighborhood because it's not black. Do you understand me? It's not black. So to the developer who said the view of Oakwood, I'm trying to grab it. What is the message that you're really trying to send now? What is it? I'm hearing two things. Two things. So, it's mixed. But I'm telling you, I'm fighting what I believed in. I don't care how much it changed. It's still a black neighborhood. It's still a black neighborhood regardless of how much it turns white. But I was so professional. I was so courteous. I didn't cuss him out. I didn't cuss him out because I was knocking on his door. He didn't knock on mine. But if he had knocked on mine with that nonsense, he would have got cussed out. But I didn't do that. I kept my cool. >> All right, Miss Hubb. My name is Jane Huban. My house borders on Big Branch stream. You've voted for a greenway to be constructed in the backyards of nine homes along this stream. Mine included. We know you've heard our objections many times before and maybe too many you think. But it doesn't make it any less valid or important why we have our objections. This was confirmed by confirmed by your own parks and recck board who voted 9 to5 not to recommend this alternative to you. I'm asking you to reconsider and listen to their concerns if not ours. There are other less expensive options that deserve to be seriously considered that are millions less expensive. Only four plus million were approved for the entire project in the bond referendum vote. In order to be able to implement the project, funds were allocated from storm water, which are very much needed there, and moved to support the chosen expensive route. Some members of council and boards have said a couple of million dollars is not really significant. How is that possible when Raleigh has so many needs that are crucial to everyday lives of this community? Consider the bus drivers who months ago begged you for more security on their buses for them. Consider the crucial needs for affordable housing. The voters who are overburdened by taxes which keep increases. the congested streets that are so inadequate and frustrating for getting anywhere. Consider that the multimmoal bridge over the belt line that will be a connector may be abandoned as too costly as the sixword road expansion was and possibly be abandoned as it was. Then it will be a greenway to nowhere. Consider that city staff had many other less expensive alternatives that they did not present you or downplayed because they were already committed to this alternative. I ask you to consider the following. The long process for condemnation of our backyards and conservation easements. The safety of our young children playing within feet of strangers walking by. the safety of the greenway when users can unknowingly walk down a steep incline into deep turbulent waters from a flash flood. The violation of a longheld conservation easement designed to protect this fragile river. The privacy and security fence the city proposes which will be not private obscure. Thank you. Dorothia Barrow. >> Good afternoon and happy new year, council members. The last two times I stood in front of you late last year, I wore my green hair and green glasses to bring awareness to the atrocities and disparities that plague the vulnerable and underserved, severely mentally ill and intellectually disabled community. Now, I am adding autism spectrum disorder to this cause. I represented my grassroots mental health advocacy and awareness organization, Madonna's voice, founded in 2022 based on the principles of Proverbs 31:89. Today in this new year, I stand in front of you as a mother and a healthcare power of attorney without green hair and green glasses. Today that is I have two grown children, a beautiful daughter that's that has a master's degree in social work and is a lic clinical social worker. I have a wonderful 28-year-old son with special needs of ADHD, severe emotional disability, borderline intellectual disorder, pervasive developmental disorder, which now falls under the umbrella of autism spectrum disorder. My son also suffers from core mid mental illnesses, one being schizophrenia. I have gotten my son the mental health help he needed since he was a child through outpatient mental health agencies with ACT assertive community treatment teams. My son had an IEP in school and had SSI and Medicaid. When my son turned 18, I obtained healthcare power of attorney over him. My son has been in and out of mental hospital wards and units since he was a kid. So his mental health track record is very well documented. Even with all the health services my son received through throughout his young life, near tragedy still struck and he still fell through the cracks of a broken mental health system at the hands of NCG care outreach act team in Raleigh, North Carolina across the street from Holly Hill Hospital. This ACT team of a psychiatrist, nurse therapist, and other qual quality professionals such as a psychosocial rehab specialist claim to visit my son twice a week. They were the dangerous ones who cause harm and danger to my son and have yet to be held accountable. a female member of the ACT team who knew my son for three and a half years failed to follow protocol and procedure when it came to mental health crisis of psychosis and nearly caused his demise. My son who lived alone in supportive housing in Raleigh funded by Alliance TCL transition community program was neglected by the ACT team who failed to intervene when my son son was in a mental crisis of psychosis. The team told me to my face that my son was decompensating. The team failed by not IVCing my son for his safety and to prevent harm and danger. the emergency rooms, hospital, psych wards failed to prevent proper treatment and care to prevent harm and danger. And even my son asked for asylum. It was not my son who was dangerous. It was these entities within a broken mental health system who were dangerous. My son never had a criminal record before, never did drugs or alcohol. And he is not for the streets. He is quiet and keeps to himself. So end the stigma. You cannot reform the mental health system if there is poor oversight of these mental health agencies and hospitals and no accountability. So, we need to do something with the mental health crisis and getting our loved ones the help they need in a timely fashion to avoid harm and danger. I am Adonna's voice, the green-haired lady, aka Dorothia Dixs 2.0, justice for free MMB4K. Thank you. >> Thank you. Final speaker is Athena Wallen. Hello and happy new year. My name is Athena Wallen. Uh I want to say happy early squirrel appreciation day. The day is tomorrow. But I do want to remind us all that the silliness that those critters give us are emotional boosters. So if you ever need an emotional booster, go find a squirrel and laugh at it, please. Um, I am also here to remind everyone that the city of Raleigh is innovative, sustainable, and darn creative. There are a lot of smart people working for the city. We are also a bofilic city, and we are also striving to be a sponge city. So, you know, I'm going to talk to you about creeks. It's just where I'm at. I've implored a lot about uh having city leadership acknowledge the necessity of maintaining diverse tree canopy and established root systems along our storm water creeks in order for them to function properly as the shared connected public utility that it is. Our storm water creeks and natural habitats are experiencing unpredictable complicated erosion and we are losing the physical land to replenish these systems. Quite literally, our creeks are expected to mitigate more with less land to do so. I continue to strive to inspire these city leadership to keep challenging the existing policies that we have and to keep acknowledging the need for evolution. So, this is a this is one for the nerds out there. Creeks, the final frontier. These are the waterways of the city of Raleigh. Our collaborative ongoing mission to explore strange new policies to seek out new easements and new partnerships to boldly go where fewer tax dollars have gone before. We need to invest in these sorts of long-term strategies because these policies are outdated and the continuing challenges that our storm water creeks are being demanded of, they're getting more complicated. So, we know that there's a gap between where policy catches up to the existence and where we're at in time. I keep asking and challenging us all during all those reasonzoning processes, look at all the details. The creeks are here long before we were. I mean, we have shaped them into into where they have existed for the time being, but they are natural resources that will continue to keep flowing regardless of what we do around it. So, if we can keep reinvesting and re-imagining and repurposing the land around our stormwater creeks, we are going to keep that land intact for ongoing restoration. And again, squirrel appreciation day, it's really, really satisfying to watch a squirrel try to cram two nuts in its mouth. And >> thank you, All right. Next, we have the report and recommendation of the planning commission and Nicole Bennett. Binham Walter. Good afternoon, Madame Mayor, members of council. My name is Binham Walter. I work in the planning and development department. I'm joined by Nicole Bennett, the chairperson of the planning commission. Have one item to talk with you about today. a lot of holidays uh on the calendar through February. Um we don't have anything currently scheduled for public hearing at your next couple of meetings. Um those are the February meetings. There's one item coming out of planning commission today. This is a request for a 45day extension for action. So this is a request for just under three acres. It's going from residential 4 with a special residential parking overlay district to a residential 10 district with some conditions keeping that special residential parking overlay district. The request is consistent with the comprehensive plan in the future lane use map. The um planning commission has is asking you for a deadline. The applicant indicated uh late last year that they would like to revise the request and were not able to meet the deadline for revisions for the planning commission's first meeting of the year which also um their their deadline uh you know the planning commission only has so much time by regulation that they are um scheduled to review each item. So they but you can offer relief if you would like. Uh so you could uh grant that 45day extension or if you prefer you could uh choose to schedule a public hearing today. I will note there are a couple of other uh reasonzoning requests pending on Trailwood right now. The um area this is one of them. This uh area here and then there's another one not shown on this map that's much farther down uh to the south. So the item um depending on what you do today, the uh Z29 could be back at planning commission uh probably in fe early February. The request to the north I expect to be in front of planning commission late in February. And then the item uh further down at the south end of Trailwood is currently in staff review and I would not expect to be in front of uh uh is moving I'm sorry moving ahead with a second neighborhood meeting and I would expect would be in front of planning commission late February early March. Thought that context might be helpful. >> Thank you. Questions? Yes. >> I was just going to make a motion to approve the 45day extension for action with planning commission. My understanding is that is also the will of the applicant. >> Okay, we have a motion and a second. All in favor? I. >> I. >> All oppose, nay. And that is unanimous. Thank y'all. Uh, next we have special items uh of report on boards and commissions bylaws. Sue Ellen Cologne. Good afternoon members of the council. Sue Ellen Cologne with the department of community engagement. Today I will be presenting to you with the first batch of new bylaws submission following the dissolution of the city council special committee on boards and commission last summer. City Council approved several recommendations to strengthen consistency and governance across advisory boards. Amongst these actions was the adoption of standardized bylaws template developed by the community engagement department for use by all advisory boards. In August 2025, board and commission liaison were presented with a new bylaws template and all pre-existing bylaws were considered repealed. meaning that all new all boards and commissions must now craft new bylaws based on the template and submit for council for concurrence and approval to improve efficiency and streamline the uh the re for the review process. City staff has established a new approval method under which revised bylaws are reviewed and approved in group batches submitted by the community engagement department rather than through individual board by presentations. That's why I'm here today. And just as a reminder, some examples of the topics that were approved on this new bylaws templates are the work plan activities, residency, resignation of members, removal of members, establishing quorum, notice of meetings, and conduct of meetings. The new approval process, excuse me, consists of the following steps. First, the board creates the new bylaws using the new template. The board must then unanimously approve the new bylaws. The new bylaws is then shared with the department's head for review. And if there are no changes, it is then forwarded to the city attorney's office for legal review. If there are no changes at this step, at this step the board leaison then shares the bylaws with the community engagement department who works with the city clerk's office to add as a special agenda item to present to council once there are more than two bylaws to be presented at the same time and which is the reason that I am here today. We present to you the first batch of the new reformatted and updated bylaws for council review and approval. the Storm Water Management Advisory Commission, the Environmental Advisory Board, and the Raleigh Historic Developmental Commission. We have all the staff liaison of each board present in case there are any questions, and you have the bylaws in your packet for approval. At this time, if there are any questions, I am happy to answer them. >> Great. Thank you, Miss Cologne. Uh, any questions? Yes, councelor Patton. >> Hi. Um, I noticed when I was preparing for the meeting that um some of these specified their meeting times, I would say the second Thursdays or or whatever. And then some of them did not. And I since the objective is standardization and I noticed that discrepancy, I was wondering if there was a a reason for that. >> Uh, no. So we do let them kind of have their own say so on the time. Some are pretty set on the days. Um some leave it open in case there are any changes. Um but we do leave that to the discretion of that particular board. Any other questions? I appreciate the work on the bylaws and I'm willing to motion to approve uh all three. >> Second. >> Any other conversation? All in favor of the motion, I. >> All oppose, nay. And thanks to all the chairs of these committees and all the work that y'all are doing. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Next, uh, reszoning Z3325 Gresham Lake Road. Matthew Clim. >> Hi, good afternoon, Mayor and Council. Uh, Matthew Clim, Planning and Development. Uh, this case is coming back from your last meeting. If you remember uh a request to reszone about 7.8 acres from heavy industrial to industrial mixed use uh planning commission recommends approval. The applicants had uh requested a new public hearing to make the case less restrictive. So last you heard the case they had limited themselves to 42 play courts or pickle ball courts for a future development. They have increased that number to 50. we have the signed conditions in hand and you can schedule a public hearing. >> I will get it right this time. Uh I would I move that we authorize Z3325 for a public hearing on February 3rd and I'm assuming it's the evening session. >> Second. >> Okay, we have a motion and a second. Any further discussion? All in favor of the motion I. I. >> All oppose? Nay. That passes. Thank you. Report of the city manager. >> Good afternoon, mayor and council. I have two items today under my report. The first of which is an update on the memorandum of agreement with the Dixs Park Conservancy. So, we have Steven Bentley here from Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Resources. And I think I see a dear friend Ruffen Hall in the back as a phone friend to present this item. >> That's correct. Thank you, Madam Manager and uh mayor and city council. I'm Steven Bentley, director Raleigh Parks. with me. I have uh my colleague Ruffen Hall who will have some concluding remarks at the end of the presentation. Um I sat in on your big ideas and one of the themes I heard was we really need partners to do big ideas and thankfully we have a great partner for more than a decade with Dixs Park and the Dixs Park Conservancy. Uh today's presentation is about 10 minutes. Uh we'll talk a little bit about the history of the partnership, why we are updating our memorandum, some of the proposed changes, and then seek your endorsement to move forward. Uh it's been uh a decade. So our first uh uh memorandum of uh agreement was for the master plan, and generously the Dixs Park Conservancy paid for that master plan and that agreement brought the structure we have today. So um created a leadership committee and a community committee. Uh, fast forward to 2020 after the master plan was adopted in 2019, things came to a little bit of a screeching halt with a worldwide pandemic, but the conservancy said, "We don't want to stop." And they, uh, generously funded the design of the Gibson Play Plaza. Since then, uh, the conservancy has leased and, uh, renovated multiple structures on campus. You see the list here today. And thankfully they are our uh concessionaire um partner in the house of many porches and the future uh flowers cottage which is under renovation right now. Uh so why uh update our agreement? Uh it's an evolving park and in an evolving relationship. We have growing demands in the park. Uh and we want to be efficient in what we do and reduce some of the redundancies. Um we need to further clarify some roles and responsibilities. Um, as the relationship was evolving, we saw some redundancies. We want to uh reduce those and with the complexity of the park and everything that we have in front of us, we need to improve our governance for the park and ultimately keep our momentum. Uh, so last year was a huge year for the park with the opening of the PL Gibson playa, the transition of DHHS off-campus. I will have a little asterisk there. They are occupying two small structures um to help with their transition of their IT off the campus and to support some of their printing operations um as they get up and running on Blue Ridge Road. Um the conservancy, as you'll hear from Mr. Hall, they had a $75 million fundraising campaign that um exceeded expectations. We've had multiple uh public art projects. I'm sure um you have seen that we have the land of trolls now over at the park. Um and the buildings are right in front of us as a top priority and the infrastructure uh is um in front of us as a top priority. And our attendance uh grew by 83% in one year. Um our executive director at the park, Kate Pierce, told me that in one weekend in December around the holidays, we had 23,000 people. Um and that was more than the opening weekend of the Gibson Play Plaza. So with all that, we're growing together. Uh we're evolving. um both as a city and as a conservancy and what that relationship looks like so we can support the park for everyone. This is what we uh currently align ourselves in roles and responsibilities. Clearly the city of Raleigh is in charge of maintenance and operations. Um we do programs, events, communication and community engagement. If you look on the right hand side of the screen, you can see some redundancies. The conservancy was also doing some programming, also doing some uh engagement. We talked uh at length about um how we can best support one another but reduce those redundancies to be more efficient in our partnership. So overall um there is five bullets on here that I'll I'll highlight some of the uh major proposed changes. Uh the Dixs leadership committee was established in that 2016 agreement. Um we're suggesting uh transitioning that into a more formal commission that will have more roles and responsibilities. Uh the city is going to agree to be a little bit more flexible um in our deployment of public art on the park. This will be public art that is funded by uh private donations, not uh the percent for public art program, which uh is guided by an ordinance that uh the city council approved. Like poof, like that it's gone. >> I don't know if I touched anything, but >> happening all day. >> Okay, >> all right, bring it back. Um, we're also looking at a more streamlined process for naming rights to give uh more support to the conservancy to bring in private donors. Uh, and as I mentioned in my previous slides that the buildings are in front of us, they are critical path to to the success of the park and we feel like the conservancy would be a great partner as we move forward those. Um, you'll hear Mr. Paul um talk about their focus areas, but they've outlined advocacy, fundraising, the buildings, and public art, and less on programs and events and outreach and overall communications, moving that information, those uh roles to the city. This is the current uh leadership committee. It's chaired by the mayor and the mayor has an appointee. The conservancy has four appointees including the vice chair role. The parks, recreation, and greenway advisory board has a member. The community committee, which was also established in 2016, um has a seat. And then there are four seats that are non voting. Uh North Carolina State University, the Department of Agriculture, the city manager, and myself. The co uh proposed recommendation um is to have a mayor's appointment, multiple uh council member uh council appointments, three uh appointments from the conservancy, one from the Wake County Board of Commissioners, one from NC State University Chancellor or their appointee, Department of Agriculture, the parks board, and you heard me mention the community committee. Um the conservancy also manages a group um called the legacy committee. Each group has 30 to 40 individuals. What we're looking at is con consolidation and creating a newly formed committee. We've engaged the chairs of each of the committees and they're working um on how that might work. So we would have 11 members all voting with no elected officials moving forward and it would be treated like your other boards and commissions here in the city of Raleigh. Finally, the the Dixs Park Commission, their focus areas would be around recommending projects to the council, um priorities, studies, um review the park policies, um and approve the non uh percent for public art projects. Uh so that would be donor raised public art in the park. uh recommend naming rights from the commission directly to the council and update the current naming resolution, approve minor uh plan amendments to the uh park master plan. So I use the example that the current master plan calls for courts. The commission would have the autonomy to say what type of courts, but if uh a pool was recommended, which is not in the master plan, that's a significant deviation from the master plan. The city council would have to approve that major amendment. This group would also lead the consolidation of the community and legacy committee and advise the city council on the redevelopment strategy for the buildings that exist uh there today. So this is a revised chart. Um, you can see on the left that the city maintains, operations, maintenance and events, parkwide marketing and communications, community engagement, which uh we would as a city lead the and staff the combining of the community committee and legacy committee. And I've struck out those ones where we felt like uh were redundant. A reduction in the conservancy doing programs and events. The uh conservancy would focus on membership versus community engagement projects and would rely on the city to do that. But ultimately they would become our building partner as we look at how we address the vacant buildings on campus. Um and an overall reduction in park communications and focus more on communications related to the conservancy. So this is the next steps. Uh today we have briefed you and we have a recommendation on the next slide. We will engage the leadership committee next Wednesday. This spring, we will be bring back an updated uh naming resolution for the council to consider. And over the course of the summer, we have sever several milestone um updates for you, including um we are currently working with a uh consultant team called the city collective that is looking at buildings um and the strategy moving forward and we would update the city council this summer on some of those recommendations. So this is the recommendation for you today is to authorize the city manager to execute a new agreement and the necessary documentation and bring back uh a updated naming resolution at a further time. And I'll invite Mr. Hall to come up and say a few words. >> Thank you, Stephen. I will be brief. Uh, I just wanted to take a moment on behalf of the executive committee of the Dixs Park Consery to say thank you for working through the details of this particular agreement. We are really excited about continuing the partnership at Dicks Park. There's a lot of exciting things that have been going on and a lot of things still left to do. Um, special thanks to Stephen Bentley and Nikki Jones for helping work through the particulars of the agreement. uh we feel very comfortable with this next step and and look very much ready to engage. I also want to just take a moment to say thank you to the mayor and council for your active involvement in Dicks Park. If you think about, you know, this is January, what we were talking about last January and what's happened since then, it's just a tremendous amount of activity and a lot of that is communitywide. There's a lot more community participation in Dicks Park over this past year as evidenced by our visitation and not only in for the city of Raleigh but in Wake County and the state of North Carolina. So, we're really excited. I just want to say thank you so much for the partnership and working together. And I also stand ready to answer any questions. >> Okay, questions from uh Mr. Bentley and Mr. Hall. I'll start with Mayor Perto. >> No questions. I just really like the clarity here between the city and the conservancy and when uh ready I'm prepared to make a motion to move forward with the MOA. >> Councelor Silver, >> I'll be supporting the motion as well and I'll be voting myself off the leadership committee which I'm fine with. But having said that, uh this is critically an important part park not only to the city, the region, and the state. Uh a lot will be happening. I know you said there's updates to council in se in spring and summer. After that, uh because there are so many important decisions with the master plan, the Spring Hill district, the greenway improvements and demolition of buildings, uh do you how do you anticipate keeping the council up to date now that at least I know the mayor and I serve on that um uh leadership committee just so we know what is happening because this is such an important central park for this city and state. Excellent question. We uh Ruffin and uh Mr. Jones, assistant city manager Jones, we talked about after every commission meeting, we would send in the manager's update a link to what was presented, the presentation materials. Of course, you'll have staff contact. So, that is written. Um but we'll also uh try to find a cadence. Is it a quarterly in-person update here at a council meeting or a work session under the manager's direction? So, um, a more intentional cad cadence, uh, in person and then you will get a summary of every commission meeting in a city manager's update. >> Thank you. >> And I will say thank you for this work. It makes a lot of sense to me. I did have one question. just occurred to me about the uh intertribal pow-wow which has been a program that the conservancy did and I will give a lot of shout out to Trey Roberts and I just think it really was an important um piece for the Native American community uh not just locally but you know even statewide becoming one of the larger pow-wows. So just what is happening with that particular program that was more conservy-led under this new arrangement? >> Yes, we're we're still in that discussion right now. We're supportive of that particular event. Um, this is one of those items that we'll be talking with the city about in terms of how that gets pulled off, but we're still very much interested in the in the financial commitment and figuring out how to make that happen. Now, who does what, we need to work that out, but we want that to happen. >> I was going to say it's national because I met people this year who travel from other states to come to the POW. So, it's not just a state event. It's an actual national event. >> Councelor Patton. >> Yeah. Hi. Um I think pulling on the thread of updates a little bit more. We know that the spark will continue like all always be there will be like an arm wrestle between the spark and and the whole system and then add like folded within that as we need to decide what to do with the buildings and stuff. There will be these sort of philosophical tensions between how much development should be within the park or how should the park be funded? what type of funding sources should be established for ongoing and so how in this new structure which I am glad to see because I feel like we talked about talking about the governance for a long time so I'm glad to get this stabilized but on those big sort of philosophical discussions that need to be happening >> what's the what's the flow >> right >> the the council has endorsed several projects like the creek the demolition and for us to initiate a dialogue about what to do with the buildings the the specific dig in the details will be through your the commission and your appointees. Um when a set of recommendations come out of the commission, they would come here to the city council. Um ultimately the city council is still going to have uh full decision-making authority leasing um any type of real estate um any type of city dollars. So you're um you're not pushing that off to the commission because they don't have the authority to do so. So, uh, we would see that, uh, work plan items like priority projects coming from the commission to the city council for your endorsement or, uh, maybe sending it back to the commission to say, "Go back and look at this. We want more x, y, and z." >> Helpful. And then this is more of a comment and less of a question. I understand the public art that will be approved here is funded with don donor art and not taxpayer funded art. If we could just make sure the commission members get a similar or version of the training and support that our public art and design commissioners get just so they're they're armed with a similar set of skills to uh approve the projects that will come before them. >> Absolutely. >> Okay. Would you like to make a motion? >> Yeah. Motion to approve the MOA. >> Second. >> All right. Uh all in favor of the motion I >> I. All opposed. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> The next item, we would call Chief Rico Boyce back down to do a presentation on some additional police technology to help as a force multiplier with RPD's activities. >> Good afternoon, Mayor Council. Rico Boyce back again. I'm coming up on a year of uh being chief and during this time I've been updated uh from my staff about technology needs, equipment and where we need to move forward uh here in the Raleigh Police Department with equipment. We have identified three technology programs that are in need of an update. We're running out of uh our contract and a couple of uh of these equipment requests and I just wanted to bring it before council and educate you on where we are and how we can move forward. I will go ahead and say on the front end that I do have a team here from Axon that uh is here to help me answer some of the questions that you guys might have. Those three key pieces of uh technology that needs to be updated involves our keystone, our record management system, Taser 7 and our Fus Connect Raleigh platform. I begin by starting with our record management system. We bought our current system in 1999 and at the time there was no talk or mention about digital evidence, uploading videos, uh, photos, audios, none of that. It was more of just MySpace is the only thing sort of existed back then. Well, we have evolved from MySpace >> and it's time to >> Yes. But uh >> this current record management system is is is very limited in what we can do with our current uh software. Axon has a product that allows us to integrate more of those features that I just referred to. Up up uploading videos and audio files to our case file that we are obligated to share with the district attorney's office uh for cases that we make charges on. A new system with Axon would help with a better integration with Fus and with our Taser platform that I'll talk about here shortly. It just makes our record management system very easy to use, very userfriendly, and it saves time for our officers and our detective and our professional personnel when they are putting a case file together. Next is our taser program. Uh we're at we're at a point now where we're we have been through three different tasers uh platform since I've been here as as a as an employee. We started off with the Taser X26. We graduated to the X26P and then we moved to our current taser which is Taser 7. Well, Taser 7 is coming to the end of its life cycle and the finan I mean the the support as well as the warranty is running out with our current tasers come October of 2026 of this year. The Taser 10 also has a benefit of no drive stun. Uh that is not a feature, not an option on a new on the new Taser 10, which I am very supportive of not having that option on the new taser. The new taser also allows for an increased effective range. And to be more specific about that, this new taser has a distance about 45 ft that will allow the officer to deescalate a situation with an offender if the officer finds himself in a situation where a taser needs to be utilized. I'm in favor of that additional distance and time for the officer to talk them way talk their way through a use of force situation instead of using the taser. So, if we can increase that distance, it's only going to benefit the officer, keeping them safe, as well as safely deescalating a very volatile situation and getting that offender in custody without using the taser. The new Taser 10 also has more just bells and whistles, more lights, more audible sounds that will help uh deescalate the situation. When you see all the features on the taser, it's like, "Okay, I will comply, officer. What you want me to do?" Because there's a lot going on with that particular taser. It's just lights to give the warning that it will be activated if you don't comply with the officer's demands. And increased metrics and tracking. I want to highlight that in 2025, we've had over 320,000 contacts with individuals here in the capital city. 320,000. And we only had 22 taser deployments last year. That is evidence that the taser and using the taser allows the officers to deescalate situations instead of in going all in and using it. uh in an in a use of force situation. So, I was very proud to see those numbers. It really shows that our training, our deescalation training is working and officers are truly using that opportunity to deescalate before they use force. The next piece of equipment that needs an upgrade or updated is our Fus Connect Raleigh platform. This is the nerve center of our Raleigh uh real-time crime center. This is where we integrate our body one cameras uh our cameras throughout the city all into one place which allows our detectives and our professional staff uh that's assigned in the real time crime center to see exactly what is going on. I will tell you we've had many success stories in using connect Raleigh to solve crimes. I give two examples. Uh we had the incident on I talked about earlier on Mother's Day where we were able to identify that suspect and bring them into custody quickly and safely. That was all from our real-time crime center using the Fus Connect Raleigh platform to aid in that investigation. We've seen it on Glenwood South when we had incidents there and we had to quickly identify who the suspects were in some of our incidents down there. We use this connect Raleigh camera platform to identify those suspects. This is really happening and helping excuse this is really helping us here in the capital city with having this platform here in our real-time crime center. It's also an opportunity to have those public private partnerships. You guys know I'm real big on community engagement, being transparent about what we're doing. Well, asking the community to register their cameras with Connect Raleigh is really establishing that communication between us and the community that we serve. Currently, we have just over 1,400 registered cameras that community members have trusted the Raleigh Police Department say yes, I will register my cameras and if something happens, you can call me and I will look at my own cameras and tell you if there's anything there. I appreciate that. I think that shows a a sense of trust between RPD and the community and I want to build on that. On the other half of Connect Raleigh is the integrated cameras. These are the cameras that the business owners here in the capital city said, "Yes, I want help from the Raleigh Police Department to look at my exterior cameras and see if there's something going on on my property. I want you to see it in real time." So we have just over 145 1500 cameras on that side of connect Raleigh as well. This program has been in been in place just over two years and it is very successful but connect Raleigh runs on the fuchsia platform. So I need to continue that so we can continue having the success of solving crimes in a more efficient manner here in the uh capital city. Now, I will tell you just like I said earlier, next to safety, cost must be a priority when I'm asking for equipment. I'm going go ahead and tell you the foundation didn't pay for this. They're not paying for this one here. Um, but if you look here on the slide, our current systems that we use, Keystone, Fus, and Taser 7, we're spending just over 850,000 per year for these systems. And I just want to remind you, Keystone, we purchased it in 1999. Um, it's really at the end of its life cycle for us here at Raleigh PD. On the right side of this chart here, you'll see what the expected costs would be with these new upgrades of Axon uh with the taser with Fus and and the new Axon record management system. It will be all total 1.6 million and thinking about the budget and being uh mindful of minimizing the effect of uh new technology on the community here. Locking in the price for 10 years, in my opinion, and my my staff's opinion is the best way to go for the Raleigh Police Department. 10 years will allow us to budget to forecast out what our budget will be. It will be the same thing. It's not changing. It will lock us in for 10 years. At the five-year mark of this 10-year contract, Axon will provide what they call a refresh where we will get an updated taser. We will get updated uh software with the record management system. Axon will get updated as well. All that will come at year five. And the important thing and what I like is no increase in price. It comes in that 10-year 1.6 million per year price tag. I know that was quick, but I wanted the Axon representatives that are here to be able to answer any questions you guys may have. I will tell you once again that I am very intentional about making sure that we have products that's going to continue to keep this community safe and give the officers the uh tools they need to do their job efficiently and safely. At this time, I take any questions that you all may have. >> Thank you, Chief Boyce. Do we have questions? Councelor Patton. >> Sure. >> Hi G. Hi. >> Hello. >> More data security from Maim. >> Yes ma'am. >> Um so the fus network like I it's so you know for the commercial consumers who are willing to allow you to to have access to their cameras. That's can be viewed from the real-time crime center. the Fus operator like the company can also access that remotely or I don't know if Axon or Fus I don't know which one I should be targeting. >> Axon. >> Yeah. >> Yes. And I I'm going to call in a friend here that can talk about that because yes they can in very extreme situations and Travis if you can answer that for me. >> Hi there. Happy to answer any questions. Travis Matthews with Axon. So in regards to access, uh the only way that we could access the platform would be if RPD requested us to do so in emergency situation. So RPD owns all digital assets and management of that system. Uh there are only three individuals that actually have the security clearance in an emergency situation to step in in that situation to support. >> Okay. Have you had worked with other agencies that have reached that level of emergency? >> I never have. No, ma'am. And I've been with the company for six years. Okay, got it. And that would apply to video footage, the GPS technology that was just enabled earlier. >> Yes, ma'am. So again, anything related to digital assets is completely owned by the city and RPD and they solely decide who and and to what extent anyone outside of the agency would have access to that system. >> Okay. And is it cloud stored with you all? >> It's on the AWS gov cloud. >> Okay. Okay. So, a secure sieges compliant network um internationally used is kind of the industry standard for security purposes. >> And then there was an AWS outage a couple months ago would uh and that that took down like a third of the internet that were all impacted by that or kind of >> No, ma'am. And we do have backups as an on-priv storage option as well. Also, in the circumstance that the system was to go down, we do have a backup to ensure that no assets were ever lost. >> Thank you, Travis. >> Yes, sir. >> Um, councelor Jones. >> Hello again. Um, first I want to say thank you for uh giving the statistics on how many uh things we had last year, the 22 out of the thousands of the taser incidents. Uh, I want to bring up just some question. I'm sorry. Can I be clear that wasn't 300,000 taser? >> No, I know in I just meant that they were you had all these incidents. >> My bad. Thank god. No, no, that we had 22 of all the interactions that we've had. 22 of them were this taser. So, um thank you for that clarity. Uh I do want to just ask some questions just daylighting for the public since we don't see it as often, but a few years ago we did have a death um do involving a taser back in 23. Um, where on the use of force continuum does the application of tasers h apply? Like how far down on that list? >> It's it's right before daily force is less lethal force. >> And can you review the other things that the police do before we get to that? So that we know that that's why we only use we've only had 22 within the last year. >> Yes. First level use of force continuum is just officer presence. A lot of times we just use more officers than suspects to bring a situation to a close. So officer presence start first. verbal commands asking individuals to do what we ask them to do. Uh is second then is soft hands actually putting our hands on individuals to place them in custody. After soft hands then we move to pepper spray uh which we all officers carry even I carry pepper spray. After preparatory, the next force striking techniques. Uh that's where we're getting now into the baton that we still carry as well as the next level of force. After baton and striking techniques, then we get into the less lethal with the taser. Then after taser, then we at the highest level where uh deadly force options. >> Thank you so much. Uh I appreciate to know all the things that you guys do beforehand before even using the less lethal force of tasers. So I appreciate that clarity. Um and then my last question after uh an incident one any one of those 22 uh tasers that we did use last year. What is the process? What happens after that? Is there a report done? How in you don't have to if you can't go into specifics. I understand that. But how does what happens after that is >> Yes. Well, what happens just after a use of force? Officers are required to do a use of force report. That report must be done uh at the end of their shift. uh in a few situations obviously those deadly force situation that report gets a little bit more time but for 99% of the other incidents they are required to do a use of force at that moment shortly after that incident occurred in the big scheme of things we also have an early warning system within the Raleigh Police Department that is our checks and balances of when we start to see an officer that is using a certain amount of force in a short period of time it allows city, I mean, excuse me, RPD leadership to start to intervene like what is going on and why this officer using so much force or using this force in such a short period of time. That's an early warning report that comes out just about every quarter. We're looking at those reports and tracking the activity and the use of force uh incidents throughout the entire police department. And then in a yearly report, the the major over professional standards is required to pres to provide a report to me of all the use of force forces that we've had here in the Raleigh Police Department for the entire calendar year. Now, being a new chief and we're just finished 2025, uh just around probably March, we will have our yearly reports that are that's a report that I obligated to present to the manager for her to look at as well. Um, so that is one big report that capture all our for use of force for the entire Raleigh Police Department. >> Awesome. Thank you so much for clarifying that process so the community can understand why it's so important to protect the community but also to protect our officers um and and use this this technology to do so. So, thank you for so much. >> Yes, ma'am. Thank you. >> Other questions? Yes. >> Not really a question. and just thank you for that information going around down that list of items before you get to and pray you never have to use the the final um item tool I would say um if there are no questions I would just move for approval for the city manager to execute the contract with Etsion in the amount um listed >> second >> okay any further conversation if not all in favor of the motion I >> I oppose nay Okay, that is unanimous. Thank you for your work. >> Thank you. >> That concludes my report today. >> All right. Thank you, madame city manager. Uh, now we have the public hearing and the first two items. We have Allison Allison Bradshshire from finance start. >> Yeah. So, um, good afternoon, mayor and council. Allison Brader with finance. Um, let's see. All right. So, today we have two public hearings relating to debt financing. Uh, H1 is to open a city uh, new bond anticipation note program, which is a shortterm borrowing instrument that we commonly use. And H2 is to close an existing bond anticipation note program. And if market conditions hold, there may be a possible economic refunding. So, uh, so the details of the new draw program, this allows the city to continue to move forward with approved capital projects, namely the city hall phase 2 and fire station 3. The program will be in the amount of $120 million. The fixed debt is to close an existing draw program that was opened in May of 24. Uh and that was for phase one of city hall fire station 1 and three. The dollar amount is also 120 million there. And again the city may have an opportunity for an economic refunding which is really like an individual refinancing a home loan. Uh and both of these programs support budgeted capital projects. So the staff recommendation following uh the closing of the public hearing would be to adopt the resolutions. Uh with council approval, the next stop in the process is to seek approval from the local government commission at their meeting in February. And actually we were notified today that the meeting has now been scheduled for the 4th, not the 3. So uh that's a change to the slide. And then the pricing date for these would be uh on the calendar for February 26th. and I'm open for any questions prior to opening of the public hearing. Thank you. Do you have questions? Councelor Patton. >> Hi. >> Thanks for this. Um I think sometimes when we work in such big numbers it or use phrases like terms that are not familiar to the public, it can be a little bit confusing. Is there like a can you give like a human scale metaphor for what this debt is? >> Sure. So, um, think of fixed debt exactly like you would think of like your mortgage, right? Um, the draw program is what you might think about when you have a home repairer project. Um, where you're just taking out a short-term bank loan and as we spend money, essentially we're borrowing that from the bank and we do that in advance of the bigger mortgage like you would on your home. >> Any other questions? All right, I will open the uh public hearing for the limited obligation bond anticipation note series 2026. And I have no one in support or opposition for that. Um I'll go ahead and open the second refunding bond series uh 2026. I do have one uh individual signed up in support, Kevin Jennings. Okay. No, no opposition and that is closed. So, we have uh both items. I'm assuming we should uh vote on them separately. Okay. Do we have a motion on the first item? Move to approve the item. >> Second. >> All right. All in favor of the motion? I >> I. >> All oppose? Nay. All right. So, yes, you're an I. Okay, that was unanimous. Okay, then we have the second limited obligation refunding bond series 2026. >> Second. >> All in favor of the motion? I. >> All oppose? Nay. All right. Thank you very much. Next, we have uh demolition of unfit building on 617 South Blunt and we have Bryce Abernathy to report. Good afternoon, mayor and city council. Uh Bryce Abernathy, Housing and Community Development Code Enforcement. Um I'm bringing you 617 South Blunt Street today. Um just a quick recap, this property uh was had a fire at the property. U the owner failed to really do anything with it. Uh kind of the intent to intent to repair that property was not there. Um, I brought it to city council in March of 25 where um, council adopted the demolition ordinance. Uh, which brings us to today where I'll be asking council to adopt the uh, lean confirmation for this property for the work that was for the cost incurred by the city to to demolish the structure. >> Okay. Thank you. Uh, questions? If not, I will open the hearing for 617 South Blunt and close the hearing as we have no one signed up in support or opposition. >> Have a motion. >> Move for approval. >> All in favor of the motion. I >> I. >> All oppose. Nay. All right. Passes unanimously. Next, we have the public nuisance abainment property leans. >> We have about nine of these today. Um this first one, 317 Camden Street, was paid this morning. So if please note that. Um 619 Cland Street is a property that we've done several abatements over the years. Um this is actually the 29th abatement. Um dating back well before 2016. It's roughly $47,000 after after this link confirmation. Um just extreme high grass. Um got 309 Dickens Street. Um there was a got complaint from neighbors um storing of a bunch of old rotted furniture kind of all around the house and some garbage around the house. 506 Maywood Avenue again high grass. 615 Newurn Avenue was high grass. 701 Semart was just a lot of dumping in a commercial parking lot space. uh 5661 Tilber Brook Drive with some uh bu building materials that had been kind of dumped on the lot um and some trash and household items. 3700 Triion Road and 3704 Tryon Road were kind of the same stuff. A lot of building materials, um you know, things from the house pulled out and dumped in the yard, that kind of thing. And highrass. And uh 1831 Vintage Road is just common area um that's managed by an HOA that just did not mother grass or pick up appliances that were in the in the yard. >> Okay. Thank you for that. I will open the hearing and I will close the hearing as we have no one signed up in support or opposition. Do we have I just have a question first. >> Yes. >> Hi. >> Hi. Um, I know one of our repeat appearances is also in the process of a foreclosure procedure. Is that this one? >> No, that is not this one. It's >> a different one. >> Yes. >> Okay. >> And th those leans for the other property have been paid. >> Oh, they've been paid >> by by a new owner. >> Got it. Okay, great. Okay. Well, I'll move to adopt these leans. >> Second. All right. All in favor of the motion? I >> I. >> All oppose? Nay. And that passes. Thank you. >> Next, we have petition annexation AX 3825,7130 Blue Run Lane in District B. Christopher Golden. >> Good afternoon everyone. Christopher Golden from Planning and Development. Uh this is the first of three annexations that you have before you today. Uh this one in the 7100 block of Blue Run Lane. It's contiguous and inside the ETJ and inside that priority annexation area. So areas that are committed to service delivery. Uh it's about 33 acres. The uh property owner intends to put uh 80 single family homes on this lot. Zoned residential. Uh so residential 4. Uh it also has some conservation management zoning on that which you'll see in just a moment. Um it's the future land use map has this at rural residential and public parks and overspace uh open space, hence that CM zoning. And there's water and sewer directly uh to the site. And there is a subdivision in review on this property. Um you can see the site location here which is uh between the news river and right on the side of the 540 freeway. And then you can see the zoom out here where you can see that this is uh on the eastern edge of Raleigh towards Nightdale. You can see where this sits in relation to that annexation eligibility. So it's well within the boundaries there. That green area is area that uh is not in the city currently and brown is in the city. You can see the utility and we've lost visual snag. Uh let's see. It'll pull up in just a second. But if you remember um and you were able to catch a quick view. There we go. Uh green lines sewer and blue lines is uh water. So that goes directly through the site. Um you can see the current zoning there. Uh yellow is your residential 4. Your green is your conservation management which runs through some streams that go through that property. Uh you can see the future land use map that coincides with that zoning map. And then you can see the site topography and flood plane here showing that green and blue showing that flood area just to the north. Hence uh the alignment the conservation management and tree coverage that would go there. Um you can see the site location there. So there's been uh if we use our memory, we will see that there has been some site disturbance there uh uh related to the project. Uh if it is annexed today and brought into city limits, it'll be brought into the boundaries of council district B. And if you have any questions, I'm more than happy to answer them on this. >> All right. Thank you. Questions? Okay. Should I go ahead and open? We do have uh I will open the public hearing for AX 3825. We do have one person signed up in support. Patrick uh Busussy. >> Good afternoon. I'm Patrick Busy. I'm speaking on behalf of Caruso Homes as applicant. Um I don't know what else there is to say other than I'll give you a little bit of background on this. Um we purchased this property in 2024. It was the CDs were already approved. The um all of the uh permits were issued. Since then, we've installed the infrastructure. Um it's been inspected. It's been approved and we are moving forward with the plat now and ready to move to go ahead and go into vertical and start building some single family houses. Um so I guess my ask is that this would be approved today for the annexation. >> Okay. Thank you. And I will close the hearing as there is no one signed up in opposition. Do we have questions for or a motion >> move to adopt the annexation? >> Do you need to have an effective date? >> Do I usually not >> justffect immediately? >> Yeah. Okay, >> there we go. Thanks. >> Okay. >> All right. All in favor of the motion I >> I. All oppose. Nay. And that is unanimous. And then we have petition annexation AX 3225 Old Wake Forest Road assemblage. >> All right. Thank you. So, this is a 13.63 acre parcel. It's an assemblage. So, it's Old Wake Forest and some other addresses on uh on Mlean Drive. It's contiguous. It's inside the continuous to city limits. It's inside the ETJ. Um, so it's inside that priority annexation area, which you'll see in just a moment. It's zoned uh RX4 conditional use. Um, the owner is looking to develop multif family in that 250 units of apartments. Uh, there are some site plans in review on that and a subdivision that was previously approved. It was reszoned back in 2022, if that looks familiar. Uh, the conditional use prohibits some uses on that property. Essentially, it uh caps the units at 250, which is the maximum the property owner is looking to develop here. It's in an unincorporated county pocket. Um there is water along Old Wake Forest Road, which you'll see in just a moment, and sewer is approximately 500 ft to the southwest. Um you can see the zoom out here, um outlined in red, right off of Old Wake Forest Road. There's some surrounding residential and commercial areas, uh adjacent to the site. You can see the zoom out a little more. you get a better idea of some of the uh uses in that area. Um you see some rooftops there, some mixed industrial, some retail, some commercial. Um and you can see here where that sits in relation to the larger area firmly within Raleigh uh uh Raleigh city limits in that unincorporated county pocket. You can see that lighter area that that yellow outline is located in. Um the annexation eligibility map shows that very nearly in the center of the area that's eligible for annexation. It's a very tiny remaining pocket in this area of the city. Uh current zoning on that you can see that orange which indicates RX4 conditional use and uh the future land use has that listed as mediumcale residential. Um you can see here on a utility location uh that there is water and sewer nearby water going directly through Wake Forest Road and you can see that green line to the south and that's your those are your closest sewer lines that intersect with Wake Forest Road. site uh site topography site topography and flood plane which is a complete tongue twister for me uh shows that there is no flood plane present. There are some there is some topography there sloping uh downward to the southeast. Um you can see the street view here showing some undeveloped land, some trees, uh some cleared areas uh and then some gravel roads going into there that served uh some of the single family houses that were there previously. And then you can see the site plan here which will have considerable land that's dedicated to uh looks like flood control um and in in that area. So if it is annexed today, it will be brought into the boundaries of uh council district A. And if you have any questions uh more than happy to answer those for you. >> Great questions. Okay, I will open the public hearing and we do have uh one individual Ashley Terzus who has signed up to speak in support. >> There are questions. >> Okay. Any questions? Okay. No. >> I move that we approve the annexation with the effective date of January 20, 2026. >> All in favor of the motion? I >> I. >> All oppose? Nay. That is unanimous. And uh we have one more annexation, Christopher Golden again. And this is 3509 3511 Garner Road. >> Thank you. Last but not least, um you will find this on Garner Road as a name suggest that's in the south area of our of our city, very close to the boundary of uh the town of Garner, 16.12 acres. Uh two parcels currently the owner plans to develop 96 uh town home units on there. Uh the uh flume which is a future land use map shows as lowcale residential. It is zoned R10 conditional use. Uh there is water and sewer directly available to the site and uh we've got the site location there showing those two lots very very uh narrow horizontal lot along Triion Road. Um you can see on the site location zoom out that gray area uh darker gray is city of uh city of Raleigh city limits currently. Um, so this is a tiny pocket just above Garner, which you'll notice in the red. So, um, you can see the annexation eligibility map showing it is within that area, within those lines, right on the edge, uh, just, uh, right up against Garner. So, this is that little last little bit of land filling in. uh the utility location. Uh there's sewer running through the site as you can see here, that green line that bisects the center of this and there's stubs of water all around on the single family subdivisions around this site. You can see the zoning there, R10CU indicated by the mustard dark yellow color. Uh you can see the future land use map shows that as residential as well, low scale. Uh the site topography topography and flood plane got through it this time. uh shows that there is a little bit of topography and a stream uh present, but there there are no flood areas on site. You can see that area has some uh looks like some trails running through it, but uh not actually uh not not any paved roads at this point. You can see the site there uh undeveloped with some trees and a road stub going into it. Um, if it is annexed today, it'll be brought into the boundaries of council district C and I can answer any questions if you have them on this. >> Thank you. Questions? Okay, I will open uh the public hearing and we do have a number of individuals here uh and signed up to in to speak in support. Molly Stewart, John Frasier, Greg Davidson, and Lauren Matas. >> Good afternoon. Molly Stewart, Morning Star Law Group here on behalf of the applicant Eastwood Homes. Uh we do have all of those people um almost all those people here with us today. Really just here for questions. Um looking to extend these dub streets through this uh narrow site. Thank you. >> Okay, close the hearing. Uh questions or conversation. >> Move for approval of hexation with effective date of January 20th, 2026. Okay, we have a motion and a second. All in favor of the motion, I >> I. >> All oppose, nay. And that passes. Thank you. >> All right. Next, as I mentioned earlier, reszoning Z125 was withdrawn. So, next we have Z3425, which is the North Hills case. Yes, ma'am. Good afternoon again, Madame Mayor, members of council. Bam Walter Planning and Development. The public hearing for this request was opened at your previous meeting. You continued the public hearing to today. You can see outlined on this slide the four areas uh that are part of the request. Um the request has been revised since you saw this last and I just want to step through uh again just a reminder of where those where the four areas in question are today. So, uh, the first four conditions in this request have not changed since you discussed this two weeks ago. Um, nor have the next, uh, 5 through8 conditions. Condition number 11 has been revised. Uh previously the applicant had offered a contribution of $400,000 to Raleigh Fire and they have increased that to $500,000 uh as part of updating for today's request. And then they have offered uh two additional conditions. So, the first is an affordable housing contribution that requires uh contribution to the city's affordable housing fund in the amount of $40,000 per residential dwelling unit for 1% of units construct constructed and that contribution must be made prior to site permit review, the approval of site permit. And then they have offered a se an additional condition number 13 that restricts access to Rowan Street. So requiring that passenger vehicle uh site driveway access on Rowan uh be uh into and out of a structured parking facility. So those are the revisions to the quest. You the initially allocated time for both comment in favor and against was exhausted at your previous meeting. Um, what questions can I answer for you? >> Questions? Yes. >> Yeah, thanks Bum for this. Um, I know there's been a lot of discussion about the Midtown area plan and recommended heights and what heights are being asked for here. And there's also been some discussion among council members about the open space conditions and what it uh means. Um, do you have the chart that has that spelled out for the four different parcels? I'm pretty sure I do. >> Great. I just want to put this out here because I think it is useful to see what um is being intended here. Um yeah, so we've got a couple parcels um that are going up to the 12 and 20 stories. The Midtown guidance is up to 12 on both of those. And then the final two parcels, they're asking for 37 stories with the Midtown area guidance is for 20. Um, and then it's the prior slide, I believe, has the information about the open space conditions. Am I wrong? >> No, not that one. >> I can talk to you about those. So, >> okay. Because my understanding is what is offered for open space is 40,000 square ft total, but what is required by the UDO is 48,000. Um, and so there is a a difference in what we get versus what the conditions say. And when I look at all the numbers, I think at the end it looks like we get about an additional 12,000 square ft of open space. Um, again, this is, you know, privately owned open space. So, I don't know if you can speak to that or if you have that chart, too. >> So, I will say uh two things. One, um, the conditions as written specify uh, the inclusion of at least four public amenities in each of the two spaces that they're offering and those are uh, spelled out in a a menu of choices um, as we recall like dogway stations and things like that are included. The other thing that the conditions do is uh offer you some certainty about the timing of delivery of the open space because it's their time to go with the uh first burst of dro burst of development. Um so it's not acrewing um incrementally over time across the in the event that these sites are not developed all at once, right? in the event that uh either of these sites is phased in its development. Um and then I just we'll look we'll see if we have the table you were asking me about in terms of square footage comparison. >> Oh okay. >> Yeah. Just hide it real quick. Uh >> I don't think we have that power from here. I don't I don't have that uh slide to show you specifically, but uh yeah, sure. Go ahead. >> Um thank you. I'll just pull up the table for you. >> This is my colleague Matt Clim who has the table on his laptop. >> Thank you. >> Right. I think your recounting of what the conditions do is correct. There is an additional 12,000 square ft of open space that are dedicated via the zoning condition. Some of the open space um it's distributed differently in the different sites on the across the four districts of North Hills. Um but yes, like in the full accounting of it, there's 12,000 additional square feet of open space. >> Yeah, I just wanted to clarify that. Thank you. >> Yeah. >> Other questions for Miss Walters? Uh Councelor Patton. >> Hi B. >> Um when we had the public hearing open, there was some discussion around like Campo's 2050 analysis and the intersection ratings. And I'm wondering if there's anything in the deck that that like illuminates or elaborates on what that data tells us. >> I know transportation staff is here to answer questions you have and I do believe that that content got added into slides as well. So um and I'll I'll invite transportation staff to come up and speak to you about this. >> Good afternoon, Margaret Tartella. Uh let me get towards the end of the Oh, here we go. Um so this is showing you what the campo, which is our regional transportation planning organization has projected um and through the triangle regional model for the year 2015. So this analysis was done last year as part of the metropolitan transportation plan update which is our regional transportation plan um which is updated every couple of years. So um that those jars in the upper left corner are just sort of to provide a visual about what the colors on the map mean. So this is showing us the volume over capacity ratio for each segment of roadway. So green good, yellow near capacity. So you're looking at like 75% um to 95% capacity and then the red is showing at capacity. So, if you go and look in the at the online version of this, um you'll see that this red red part where the interchanges at Six Forks is showing about 1.06, so about 6% over capacity in 2055. Um >> right now, so they also have a base year version which is for 2020. Um, and not to uh discount people's perception of the traffic, but that would show that everything is green except the interchange is already showing yellow in that. >> Okay. So, so this reflects that in 2055 that the on-ramp to the highway is going to be at capacity. The other roads will be nearing capacity. Yes. and then speak to the microphone. We can't hear you. >> Thank you. >> Um and that these side roads even in 2055 will have some more available capacity. That >> am I understanding that right? Yes, that's what's been forecasted. Of course, I think we've shown over time that we tend to project more trips than end up happening and it's very hard. So part of what the model does is looks at where trips are coming from and where they're going to and then it assigns them to a particular route. And so we tend to be pretty good about knowing how much growth is going to happen, but where it's going to happen and what routes are going to be affected is a lot more difficult on this time horizon 30 years in the future. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Yep. Councelor Lambert Melton. I think this may be for Binham or anybody who has access to the mouse. Can you put that chart up that shows the amount of stuff they can build now versus what they could build if the case is approved? >> Okay. Can you can you explain? >> So the obviously the height's different. >> That's right. But other than that the numbers are matching on both sides. Can you explain how the proposed zoning was calculated and how the existing zoning was calculated and what that actually means? >> Yes. So the existing zoning uh the mix of commercial mixeduse uh five and 12 story some has parking limited frontage some has urban limited frontage some has the special highway overlay district 2 uh the um combination of height uh and the area of the parcels staff uses to project what we believe could be uh constructed under current entitlement. Generally, we know that that is a uh typically runs higher than what actually gets built. Uh but we are genuinely trying to offer uh sort of the high end of what might happen under the current zoning. Uh the applicant has offered in this instance while increasing the allowed height, they have offered zoning conditions that limit the maximum number of units. the uh gross building square footage as well as office and retail square footage. Uh and so the com the development that is allowed there is a combination of any of those three as the max. So if it's just residential, it can be no more than the 2521 units. >> Was that that was our our calculation? >> That's our calculation and steady from the previous request. So they started at the request um the previous iteration of request uh with the existing zoning analysis from last goround. >> So if this case is denied, what do they have to do to build the stuff under the existing column? They have to do anything? >> No, they just have to keep it under the five or 12 story height limit, >> but the amount is going to be the same. >> Okay, that's right. >> Thank you. other questions and then I can close. Go ahead. >> I have two more if you'll allow me. Um, hi. If the residential is built out as described there, uh, do you know off hand the amount of the affordable housing contribution? >> The maximum contribution is right just a little bit over a million dollars. >> Thank you. And then this one might be for the applicant maybe. um is just a question around like occupancy like are these home are these apartments filling up? Are these offices filling up? Are these uh retail spaces filling up? >> I believe that is a question for the applicant. >> Good afternoon. Jamie Traler with Parker Poe. Um Council Member Patton, we did look at some of that. I know some of that was a concern in the neighborhood. And we looked at the leasing and I'll break it down from the site that we're actually seeking resoning and then compare it to what's on the other side of Six Works Road because I think that's a more modern comparison. And what we found in both the residential within the existing main district and the Lacier, which is over in the Lacader district, is that occupancy has been steady, which is defined as 95% occupancy. It's leased up in the 18 months that's typical for residential development. And so both in that older product in the main district and some of the newer product in the expansion is showing that kind of steady rate of absorption. So people are still moving to the area that has the newer restaurants as well as the office um that's in the main district. The main district office leases a little differently. Those leases are a little bit longer term and they take longer to take up those big chunks of space. Um but those are performing consistently well um throughout the main district. There's little there's no office in in the Lacader and all the retail in both of those districts, the main districts in Lacader is also stabilized at 95%. Now retailers may come and go but um they're kind of cons seeing that consistent turnover because it's a place that retailers want to be where people are and their patrons are. Many people can walk to those um those areas and are are continuing to patronize them. Um, across the street on Six Forks, luckily I don't need the screen. Uh, across the street on Six Forks, we have a little more of a a a more robust residential that's newer and kind of um just coming on the scene. We have the Eastern um that is stabilized at 95% occupancy. So that's 36tory tower that was approved um back in 2006. And then again, as that district evolved in 2015, um we're seeing that steady lease up and some of the newer um apartments on St. Albins's are also enjoying that stabilized rent. What that does is tell us people are still moving to this area. Those apartments aren't sitting empty. Um in fact that that stabilization and some of the lease up in the NHID district um was the best in Raleigh in the fourth quarter. So it's really showing how strong um strongly people want to live here. They want to work here and it's why we believe that investing at this time and allowing that buildout at the same density uh will benefit the city both now and in the coming years. >> Okay. further questions. I um will close the hearing and councelor Silver, do you have a >> I first uh want to thank the public who attended public meetings and sent emails and messages regarding this case. I know we all received well over 300 emails that were evenly split between those who support and those who oppose this resoning case. Uh, I want to thank staff for their staff report and uh, I rely heavily on staff evaluation when making a decision. I support the zoning application for the following reasons. The request is consistent with the comprehensive plan and future land use map that will allow mixeduse development and one of the city's designated growth centers. The plan commission recommended approval 7 to one. The applicant is keeping the entitlement the same as the existing conditions. The proposed conditions provide several public benefits, including green stormwater infrastructure, open space areas, contributions to affordable housing, and the Raleigh Fire Department. Regarding transitions, the Unified Development Ordinance Article 3.5 mandates how transitions must be followed. Section 3.5.2 to includes standards for transition zones, not policy guidance, but law, and these rules must be followed. As this resoning evolves to site plan stage, the applicant must meet transition zone rules. For these reasons, I move to adopt the consistency statement dated January 20, 2026 contained the agenda materials and to approve the resoning amendment with the adoption and effective dates described in the agenda item under recommended action. >> Okay. Is there a second? >> I'll second it. >> Comments? >> Yeah. >> Y I know there's plenty more comments. Okay. >> Awesome. Thank you. as a representative for a district E portion of this. I just wanted to state uh publicly how the work that's been done. You know, I wish there was enough time to speak personally with everyone who reached out to council about this case. We saw a version of this proposal during the last term and the goal this time was to make it better. When Six Forks Road was value engineered and ultimately canceled, I knew this case would be challenging for me to support. The strength of a community is not always found in a denial, but often in the conditions we add to help mitigate the impacts of new development. The comprehensive plan and the Midtown area plan are strong documents that clearly reflect what the community wants to see as a development occurs around them. There they serve as important metrics for the community to measure whether council is adhering to or choosing to change those plans. Without those plans, there is clear guidance. Oh, within I'm sorry, within those plans, there is clear guidance that if an applicant seeks to go above uh beyond the plan, significant community benefits should be provided to justify that departure. In this case, the applicant is not requesting additional density beyond what is already permitted under current zoning. However, the Midtown plan still calls for enhanced storm water mitigation above requirements uh as well as affordable housing to achieve meaningful community benefits. It is ultimately up to this council to determine whether that what is being offered meets that standard. The community's input has made this case stronger on both sides of the aisle. I believe my role is to bring more people to the table and ensure that they are included in the decision-making process and that includes the developer. I met multiple times with the applicant and residents, but I asked the developer to do more to engage with the community. In addition to the two required neighborhood meetings that brought more than 150 people together to review plans and share feedback, I also walked the site and took time to speak with residents, some literally in the elevator, about their experiences living there, as well as with ne nearby business owners who expressed how much they value the area. I encourage them to share their perspectives with council and so many have. There are residents who support this case, residents who oppose it. We have professional staff who is evaluated and all of those assessments and opinions matter. So while I cannot get to a yes because I struggle to justify adding density to an area that already feels stretched thin and congested, I recognize that others on council and in the public see it differently. I'm encouraged by the level of engagement around this case and I'm hopeful that this engagement will continue long after tonight's decision is made. Thank you, Mayor. Yeah. Um, also want to thank everyone who's been involved. Um, we have received hundreds of messages for months on end and um, I do hope that the dialogue, you know, does get us further. This case is going to shape North Hills. Depending on how it goes, it could shape how we grow across Raleigh as well. Um, just a few things I want to note. Um, as we've heard, the resoning is not intended to increase entitlement. Thus, the same number of residential units or commercial or retail space can be built whether this is passed or not. The tax revenue estimated by the city does not change also whether this case is approved or not. Now, the Midtown area plan suggests heights of 4, 7, 12, and 20 stories, whereas this resoning requests heights of 12, 20, and 37, deviating significantly from that plan, which was adopted in 2020 and then integrated into our comprehensive plan. Now, the resoning case does offer some open space. That's one of the reasons perhaps to increase heights, taller buildings next to green space versus a short squatter building. But I still have some concerns about the calculations. The conditions say 40,000 square ft, but really it's only 12,000 square ft when you look at our UDO requirements. Now, I do want to thank the applicant for offering several worthwhile conditions here. They were added since our last meeting, and one of those was for affordable housing. that is a contribution to our city's fund. For all folks who wanted us to approve the case on that very first public hearing, there was no affordable housing then. So, I just want to say I think that has been a major improvement in this last two weeks. Now, for me at this time, um I'm still thinking about traffic. I know it's a major worry. We are supposed to have a transportation committee meeting about this topic, but that would be after today after any potential vote takes place. Also, we are embarking on updating our comprehensive plan, spending hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of dollars to do so, thousands of resident hours of input. And so what concerns me maybe more about this case is again deviating from recent plans and then asking folks to come out to continue to support the development of new plans. We are all up here with different calculations about whether the public benefits offered are sufficient to outweigh plan discrepancies. For me, they do not. Councelor Pod, >> thank thank you all for coming out. I appreciate your engagement on this case. Um, and I appreciate you sitting through all the other um sometimes very boring stuff we need to wade through to run this city. Um, you know, I was talking through this case with my daughter and I was using this metaphor of Legos that every piece of property in the city is assigned an amount of Legos that they can use or not use. Well, you know, I have I'm assigned two pieces of Lego, but I use one. I have one single family home on my property. This case, these parcels are assigned an amount of Legos. And typically in a resoning, people are coming to say, "Hey, can I have some more Legos?" In this case, they're saying I they they want the same amount of Legos, but permission to build them taller. And so some of the tools that I use to evaluate whether a case is ready or sufficient and in the public interest are they they are not applicable, right? The traffic they they could build those with those same Lego pieces up to the edges of the property and generate the same amount of traffic. So, we can't use that. We have to look elsewhere. taxes. We can't deter whether they build spread out to the edges of the parcels or they build taller. We're same tax revenue, so we can't look there. And then uh trees, right? There's no there's no trees on this parcel that so we can't really use that either. >> So then I looked at the Midtown plan and I lots has been made of sticking to the plan. The Midtown plan is a 185page document and it calls for doing a lot of things. It it does it's not a 185page compact on building heights alone. It calls for crossing 440. And how do we do that? We get federal funding. And how do we get federal funding? We show that we're doubling down on this area. It calls for serious transit. How do we get more transit in this area? by showing there's lots of people who live here, work here, or go to things here. The Midtown plan calls for um a waterfront district. How do we pay for new parks and new waterfront districts through tax revenue? And so for all of the things that the Midtown plan asks us to do and the significant affordable housing contribution that's coming earlier in the process than most of the cases and the the contribution to the fire fund, I find that those public benefits are significant enough to override the height discrepancies so that we can do the other things that are called for. So that's right. >> All right. Thank you. council. >> Yep. Um this is a very challenging case. Um as of course you see with all the folks who are here today on both sides. Um one of the things I want to say is that you know if we say no and they zone by right we don't get the additional funds for the fire department. we don't get the additional funds for affordable housing. But I will say we understand one of the biggest challenges is transportation in the area and you know we got a lot of work to do and so it's not like we're not going to continue trying to figure out solutions for traffic and things as it relates to 64th road. So uh I don't want folks to walk away and feel like we did not hear you, we did not listen to you because you were heard. So >> all right, any other commentary? Okay. Uh, we've had a motion and a second. All in favor of the motion, I I. All oppose, nay. >> All right. So, that is a 62 vote. Thank you. will villain. You know, >> you said no. A little bit too much. Maybe I'll just do a mustache. The mustache mustache. Just a matter of time. >> All right, we can continue on. Uh next we have the report and recommendations of committees and there are no items pending with the exception of transportation and transit. So just if there's any updates there. >> Yes. So uh transportation and transit will meet next Thursday 3:00 to 5:00 in council chambers. That's January 29th. We have two items pending. So the item we'll hear on the 29th will be the citizen initiated street closures. At our last meeting um we sent the topic of the of six forks road added uh and transit and staff has advised me that the and transit part will not be ready. So we will hear that part of the item um or we will hear the whole item of Six Forks Road in our next committee meeting in February. >> Right. So, just for the record to be clear, we're gonna talk about traffic on Six Forks Road at our February meeting because I know some I know half the room just left. Yes. So, >> the whole the whole topic of Six Forks Road and transit will be heard in our February meeting. >> Okay. So, no meeting on the 29th. >> We will have a meeting on the 29th here. Our other pending item which is citizen initiated street closures. >> All right. Thank you. >> Okay. And how will we get the word out that we are not talking about Six Forks this month? Is there specific communication? Just knowing how many people heard that last week that that's where we were going to discuss it. >> We can make sure that we use all of our media outlets and all of our website and touch points with the public to to notify that it will not not guaranteeing we'll touch everybody, but we will do our best. >> Thank you. >> Okay. uh report of mayor and city council and I'll start down with you um councelor for >> no report >> no report >> um in keeping with tradition and reporting out good things that happened through the consent agenda I really wanted to shout out the um use of our council contingency funds this week um various council members donated to the LGBT center of Raleigh which has their new home back in downtown Raleigh and we're glad to see them permanently placed there. >> Uh, I will have a district um a meeting at the An Gordon Center for Active Adults on Thursday, January 29th from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. No other report. >> And this is something I've brought up briefly with the city manager and um, assistant city manager, City uh, Nikki Jones. But um we this year there's a lot happening at the national, international and local level and we've had a number of people wanting to express their thoughts about uh those current events um in the city of Raleigh. We are the capital so we know we attract a lot. I was talking to a Garner town council member and I asked him do you guys have protests and he's like nope they go to Raleigh. So, um I think we all want to write under uh protect first amendment rights for um people in Raleigh and beyond. And I just wanted to ask if we could review all the policies because recently we've had people requesting um like a a a street march and they did not do that in the time which is I think a four-month lead time. So I just because many of us probably didn't set these rules things are is this an intense year coming up that could we just look at what the existing rules are why were those set that way and is there anything we need to do to amend those given the level of activity and um public kind of debate and um demonstration going on right now. So, I don't have a time certain for that, but just obviously anything in the next couple of months would be great. And that's that's all I have. And I just have two updates. Our next community district e community meeting will be held on February 11th, Wednesday, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Lacina Italian Restaurant. So, come out and join us. And then our dem decoding democracy book club will meet on Valentine's Day, February 14th, but we'll be in the morning uh from 9:30 to 7 to to 11:30. So we'll be meeting at New World Cafe and we will be taking a breath. We did finish our work on um the Raleigh charter. Got a lot of questions uh that came up and it was great. We finished that and we be the next one we will be moving on to the UDO. what we're going to start looking at that. So, first we're going to have a conversation next month about what does that mean, what does that look like, and how do we begin to have that conversation. So, please join us on Valentine's Day from 9:30 to 11:30 to have that discussion. Thank you. >> Just want to take a point of personal privilege to celebrate my parents. My mom's a former city of Raleigh employee, retired in 1998, but they will celebrate 61 years of marriage on the 31st of January. That's all I have. Yeah, thanks for sharing that joy. Um, unfortunately, I do feel the need to share a sorrow. I'm just thinking about the passing of Kim Nimmer. She was an employee at the city of Raleigh. She served as my first policy analyst and um she passed in a traffic collision and on Friday. Um, she leaves behind two daughters and a husband and a mom and countless friends and family. Um, she was very warm-hearted, generous, competent, kind, and is going to be missed by many. So, if we could take a moment, I'd appreciate it. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Next, we have appointments. >> Good afternoon, Mayor and Council. Your first item under appointments is uh confirmation of the employee elected candidate to the civil service commission. Um the results uh uh of the election uh Minu Lee was elected by acclamation and we just need council to confirm uh the employee elected candidate to the civil service commission. >> Okay. So you need a formal vote. >> Move to confirm the appointment. >> Second. >> All in favor of Minu Lee. Um I >> I >> all opposed. And that is unanimous. >> Next you have the bicycle and pedestrian advisory commission. You have one regular vacancy and council member Jones and Mayor Prom Harrison nominated Brandon Tucker. Design Review Commission has one alternate vacancy and Mayor Prom Harrison nominated John Tzotus. Uh the Fair Housing Advisory Board, one regular vacancy. Damian Goo received seven votes and so is appointed. Uh the police advisory board uh run regular vacancy for the LGBT community member slot and council members Patton Jones and Harrison nominated Chase Franklin for the police advisory board for the mental health provider slot. Council member Jones nominated Jessica Hayen and the alternate vacancy council member Jones nominated Alex Lefond. And finally, under appointments for the transit authority, one alternate vacancy and CC Grant received seven votes and so is appointed. >> Nominations, >> can we just um can I co-nominate Tucker for the BPAC? I committed to him on email that I would. So, >> okay. Uh under nominations, uh one regular vacancy for the bicycle and pedestrian advisory commission. Uh, excuse me. A resignation has been received from James Thrasher. There are two regular vacancies uh under the parks, recreation, and greenway advisory board. The terms of Christopher Pereira and Cara Strang are expiring. Both would like to be considered for reappoint. >> Move to reappoint both. >> Second. >> Second. >> Um, all in favor of that motion? I >> I. >> All opposed. Right. And for the board of directors for Raleigh sister cities, there's one regular vacancy. The term of Melissa Latson is expiring and she would like to be considered for reappointment. >> Move to reappoint. >> Second. >> All in favor of that motion? I >> I. >> All oppose? Nay. >> Uh, next up is the Storm Water Management Advisory Commission. There are six regular vacancies. Um, the terms of the six individuals expiring as outlined in the agenda materials. All but one are seeking reappoint. As a reminder, council previously adopted an ordinance to establish desired qualifications of commission members. That ordinance and a matrix outlining the current membership and experiences uh is included with the agenda materials. So, the following uh desire uh do desire to be reappointed to the storm water management advisory commission. the Nola Hill, Barrett Jenkins, Ian McMillan, Lanne Phillips, and Graham Smith. >> Move to reapprove or reappoint. Second. All right. All in favor of that motion? I >> I. >> All opposed. >> And that concludes my report. >> Great. Thank you. Uh, next we have the report and recommendation of the city attorney. >> Good afternoon, mayor and members of council. Before I uh give my report, I'd like to take a moment just to introduce our extern uh that is with us for this semester, Alexis Develin. I'm embarrassing her a little bit, but she is a 2L with Campbell Law School and will be externing with us uh this semester. Moving on to um the proposed changes to the smoking ordinance. The third time is a charm. Uh you have before you in your packet the uh proposed amendment uh consistent with the direction that you all uh provided at your last meeting. Uh if adopted today, we would propose a 90day effective date, which would be April 20th to give us time to do the necessary education, make signage changes where necessary etc. >> Yep. Great. Okay. move to adopt the ordinance effective April 30th. >> Second. Appreciate the work on that. Um we've heard a lot from the public so as and I particularly the high school students from last week. That was great to have them uh involved on this issue. So motion and a second. All in favor? I >> I. >> All oppose? Nay. >> Thank you. >> Third time is a charm. Uh the clerk >> and >> oh and uh councelor branch before I forget it had one other thing. >> Yeah I just have one other thing. I'm sorry I was thinking about my parents and forgot this part. Um so I've recently reached out to our Marriott downtown on behalf of organization which I'm a part of. And when I called I did not tell them who I am. I just said Corey Branch call on behalf of the organization. All I need is information so that we could reserve the space at the Marriott. I never received a call back. I never received any communication back. I reached out to our census city manager and some of our staff and there seems to be an ongoing issue with communications from our Marriott downtown which may be impacting our convention center cuz some may not know but all of the open space that is at the Marriott is actually cityowned and we lease it back for the Marriott to run and manage and operate. I would like to ask our city attorney and our city manager to look into and our staff to look into the services of the Marriott and if there are any other complaints or issues, bring those back to the council so we can discuss, you know, the impact that it could be having on behalf of our city. >> Thank you. Okay, now we will go to the city clerk. >> Yes. Good afternoon again, mayor and council. Uh in your agenda materials received uh draft not draft minutes from the January 6th and January 13th sessions >> approval. >> Second. All in favor? I >> I. >> All oppose? Nay. That has it. >> All right. Uh motion to go into close session. >> Mayor, if I may, I'm sorry. We just received confirmation that obviously um in anticipation of some kind of yucky weather this weekend, we had planned our annual um city council planning retreat and it was going to be out of town. And so as a result of that um weather, we are bringing the retreat back to Raleigh in town. We don't have a location as of yet. We are working with facilities trying to see if they can accommodate us. So, it will be in town and we'll notify the public and everything on our media outlets once we have definitive details. We just found out about an hour ago. >> Thank you for being flexible given weather. So, >> can I can I recommend Method? I I enjoyed being at Method when we went for the retreat the last time and they they love having the exposure from the city council. So, just plug in plug in. It's easy for you. So, plug in >> has a big fireplace. Perfect place to be. >> Yeah. Wait, a fireplace? >> Yeah. Lodge. >> Okay. >> We'll send you an email where it is. >> Well, we're happy that now um Mayor Prom Harrison can join us. That's awesome. Okay. Motion is in order to uh to enter into close session pursuant to general statute 14318.11a6 to consider the qualifications, competence performance character fitness, conditions of appointment or conditions of initial employment of an individual public officers or employees or prospective public officers or employees. So moved. >> Second. >> All in favor? I >> I. >> All opposed. All right. We are in close session. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey, Hey hey hey. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Ah, oh. Heat. Hey, heat. Hey, heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. 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We have nothing to report out and our meeting is adjourned.