PAC2 meeting minutes – October 11, 2004
Community Concerns & Announcements
Pool Safety
New Community Liaison
Amendment One
Animal Control Update
Solid Waste Update
Impact Team update
PAC2 letter to landlord
Housing update
ABC permits
COP update
Community concerns & announcements:
Rick Hester of Housing announced that 501 East Trinity was torn down today. Also, the log cabin on Woodrow St. is gone and it is now a vacant lot.
An Old Farm resident reported receiving a letter from the ABC commission informing them that plans to locate an ABC store in the neighborhood were being called off in response to opposition from residents.
The Citizen Observer Patrol (COP) garnered more publicity today in a News & Observer article, featuring a photo of the lovely and dedicated Mina Hampton.
Richard informed us about the Clean City Team, which consists of city staff and volunteer members of the appearance commission. They work by bringing together existing resources. First, Keep Durham Beautiful, the local chapter of Keep America Beautiful. Secondly, there’s an educational component; they examine whether we have the legislation we need to deal with appearance issues, such as weedy lots. The third aspect is operational, regarding how departments coordinate to get things done. For example, Mitch Archer has brought up the issue of debris in yards; there’s a fine line between stuff that’s in someone’s yard and stuff that’s in the city right-of-way, and it’s treated differently. For more information on the Clean City Team, or to offer information for them, people can call the Durham One Call center.
Mike Shiflett mentioned the recent Neighborhood Heroes ceremony, at which several people from District 2 neighborhoods were honored. Richard pointed out that this is a chance to recognize people who don’t normally get any recognition–the “unsung heroes” of our neighborhoods, who contribute in so many ways. Mike clarified that although the Neighborhood Heroes program is sponsored by the InterNeighborhood Council, the INC does not pick the honorees; the neighborhoods themselves do.
There was a complaint about gang graffiti in the picnic shelters in Northgate Park, and, on the other hand, a commendation on the disappearance of graffiti from a downtown tobacco warehouse. The ever-vigilant Mitch Archer was among those present, so we can be confident that his Impact Team will get after the graffiti in the park very soon.
We were very pleased to have with us for the first time tonight Margaret Wolfe, who is a Spanish interpreter and will be available henceforth to interpret PAC2 meetings. We also have the equipment to provide simultaneous translation. Margaret has a Spanish-language flyer on PAC2 which can be posted or distributed to let Spanish speakers know about what PAC2 is and does, announce that we are now bilingual, and invite them to come. If anyone has any good places to post such flyers, you can get some from Margaret; she will have a supply at next month’s meeting.
Pool safety:
Brian Chmura had been on the agenda for this, but he was sick and could not make the meeting. Newman Aguiar reported his concerns. The Chmuras live in South Durham, and they have a 2-year-old child. They were concerned for their child’s safety, since their next-door neighbors have a pool which could be a drowning hazard for a small child. The Chmuras tried to get their neighbor to fence in the pool; when they were unsuccessful, they turned to trying to get the city to do something about it. As they discovered, Durham does have an ordinance on this, but it only requires pools built since 1993 to be fenced. Pools older than that are exempt from the ordinance. City Council member Diane Catotti and County Commissioner Ellen Reckhow have supported the idea of requiring all pools to be fenced, and such a requirement is slated to be part of the new Unified Development Ordinance (UDO).
Some questions were raised about this. Will the new rule include other bodies of water, such as fishponds, or only those intended for human swimming? And how long will pool owners have to bring their property into compliance? Newman could not answer these questions because the answers have not yet been determined. The details will be worked out by the planning department in the course of finalizing the UDO, and there will probably be a public comment session where people can have input on what those details should be.
New Community Liaison: We have a new Community Liaison; Toya Merritt has replaced Lynwood Best in this position. Merritt has previously been a housing inspector in District 3, but this is her first post as a Community Liaison. She explained to us that part of her job description is to do a newsletter for us if we want her to; she distributed an example of what it could be like, and she is open to our input on whether this would be useful and what it would be useful for it to contain. She also announced some upcoming events of interest:
On Wednesday, November 3rd, Hayti will have a job fair. It will be at W.D. Hill Recreation Center (1308 Fayetteville St., parking available) from 10 am to 7 pm. Those attending should ‘dress for success’ and bring copies of their resume. For more information, people can contact Harold Chestnut (956-5902) or Humberto Mercado (560-4020).
On Saturday, October 16th, the City of Durham is holding a Homeownership Expo. It will be at Hillside High School from 10 am to 4 pm. The expo will offer useful information for anyone interested in becoming a homeowner, including free credit reports and housing counseling sessions. There will be refreshments and door prizes. Free child care will be available, and there will also be a basketball clinic for kids 8-13. For more information, people can contact the Dept. of Housing & Community Development’s Homeownership Hotline at 560-4000.
Finally, Merritt invited us all to contact her with any concerns we may have; she will be glad to help you if she can, or else try to help you find out where to get help with whatever the issue may be. She can be reached at 560-4570, ext. 223.
Amendment One:
This is a proposed amendment to the North Carolina state constitution, which we will be voting for or against on November 2nd. The amendment, if passed, will allow the use of TIFs (Tax Increment Financing). Mike told us that a citywide information forum on this is being organized for October 28th; it will be at the Civic Center at 1 pm. This is supposed to be a financing tool, which should not raise taxes. Mike brought up the example of the Durham Bulls ballpark, which was financed, via certificates of participation, from the general fund; the city council approved this despite public opposition. With TIFs, there would be an opportunity for public comment before a decision was made; then bonds would be issued and taxes would be increased on that area to pay them back.
Someone else commented on the dangers of TIFs; in some places, developers have made deals with city council’s behind the public’s back. There is some question as to whether the city could end up holding the bag if a something goes wrong, or would the developer be more on the hook.
Glennis said that District 1 needs this and supports Amendment One. He said that how it works in other cities is that if a project, such as a ballpark, does not pay off as expected, the city can’t raise taxes citywide to cover it, just in that area. The concern against this is that the city can raise taxes in the “area” of the project, however that area is defined.
The Durham Committee is holding informational forums on Amendment One and other issues on Tuesday, October 26th and Wednesday, October 27th. The forums will be from 6 to 8 pm both nights, in the Perry, Perry & Perry building, next to the downtown post office.
Newman pointed out that North Carolina currently requires that bond issues come before the people for a vote. If Amendment One passes, the council will be able to make these financial decisions without citizen control. It will be like the ABC permit process, where decisions are made by the ABC commission and we have no say over it. Newman said that there are both positives and negatives to the use of TIFs. If a project can’t pay for itself, it does fall back on the taxpayers; a failed project in a poor neighborhood can put the burden back on those with the least ability to pay for it. This has been rejected in North Carolina on two previous occasions; however, TIFs are allowed in 48 other states.
Mike mentioned studies elsewhere showing a 2% failure rate for projects financed by TIFs. He said that in some places, the cost of a failed project does indeed fall back on the taxpayers; however, in this bill, the city can foreclose on a project, like the ballpark, if it fails to pay. He pointed out that TIFs require more public input than do certificates of participation.
The only consensus on Amendment One is that this is an important issue and we’ll be voting on it very soon. We all need to get more information on it in order to make an informed decision. Attend one of the public forums if you can, and watch the PAC2 listserv for more information.
Animal Control update:
Animal Control is part of the CET inspection team, and they’ve been having a very productive time lately. Animal Control head Cindy Bailey reported that they found 24 illegal dogs this week, only one of which had had a rabies shot. Eight beagles were found hidden at the end of Carden’s Lane near Peabody; some of them were living in tiny pens. Other dogs were chained up in nearby lots and starving. Seven were found on Ash St. at Clay; Bailey said she was surprised that there hadn’t been barking complaints on any of these dogs. Animal Control has now gone out on a total of four of these trips, involving almost 50 dogs. There was also one location where they found so many cats Bailey said they were “beyond counting.”
Solid Waste update:
Al Davis, Solid Waste head, informed us that he had met with PAC2 facilitators last month to discuss our concerns, and will do so again. He raised what has been a popular issue here: trash carts being left at the curb. Solid Waste has a new program for compliance on this; they are using an eye-catching bright metallic tag to tag offending trash carts. The warning tag will be followed by a series of notification/warning letters. The first letter will give general information, and the second will specifically warn people about fines for allowing your cart to reside at the curb. Then Davis said it might be necessary to send a certified letter to make sure the resident had received it. Asked whether, if these steps proved fruitless, Solid Waste would then proceed to actually fine offenders, Davis expressed confidence that these steps would result in compliance in the majority of cases, and said that if necessary they could then move to fines. He pointed out that the notice will be in English and Spanish, and said that the council wants him to do everything possible to be sure people know the rule before handing out any fines.
Davis thanked us for our patience in waiting for the arrival of the new trash carts. They got here September 1st, and they have already given out about a thousand of them. They have around three hundred left and are still working on filling orders. He’s trying to get more funding from the council so that this does not happen again. In past years, the city has run out of money around April and not been able to order any more carts for the rest of the fiscal year. Solid Waste gets about 40-50 requests for trash carts per day.
Next Davis turned to the ever-fascinating topic of yard waste. The new yard waste program has been instituted, and so far they have received close to ten thousand renewals. The new payment plan option has definitely found favor with the public; about 40% of those renewing chose to pay in installments on their water bill instead of making a one-time payment for the full amount. Davis showed us a sample of the new larger sticker for the yard waste program; the big sticker has a place for month and year expiration stickers, sort of like a car license plate. Another change in the yard waste program is the new system of rolling renewals. The old way was to process all yard waste renewals in June only, which put a greater burden on the Solid Waste administrative staff and caused customers to have to pay full price for only part of the year if they joined in midyear. But now you will be able to join at any time of year, and the next year you will get a reminder letter the month before your yard waste membership is due to expire. Right now, because of this transition, Solid Waste has not charged anyone for yard waste service since July, so existing customers have gotten a couple months free.
Davis also informed us of some new changes to the new yard waste program; pursuant to input from the public, including PAC2, there have been a few modifications to the new plan. The maximum number of yard waste carts per household has been changed to three, rather than the previously proposed two. The limit on bags of yard waste per household has also been relaxed during the peak fall leaf season and the spring cleanup season. From September 1 to November 30, and from April 1 to May 31, each household can put out 25 bags per week at no extra charge. The rest of the year, the limit will be 5 bags per week. The new rules are not going into effect until January 1; letters will go out to yard waste customers fully explaining the new plan.
As previously discussed, the green trash carts will no longer be allowed to be used for yard waste. One of the reasons for this is problems with trash contamination of yard waste. The city has a terrific composting operation, where yard waste is turned into useful mulch; however, when people use trash carts for yard waste, trash frequently gets into the yard waste and ruins its composting potential. Future plans being considered for the mulch operation include offering delivery of mulch and giving away mulch to yard waste customers; the city might open the composting center on certain Saturdays for yard waste customers to come pick up free mulch. (The city currently sells the mulch.) Another new program will be a home composting demonstration site, which will show the different composting equipment available and how to use it.
Back on the trash-carts-at-the-curb issue, Davis was asked how often the warning process will start over. For instance, if you get the first warning letter, and you bring your cart in from the curb, but then some time later you leave it out there again, will Solid Waste move to the second step, or will they send you the first letter again? Davis told us that there was no definite plan on this yet; they’re waiting to see what initial impact the new warning scheme has. Davis also pointed out to us that Solid Waste does not have even one enforcement officer. Durham has a number of ordinances on the books with no provision for enforcement; for instance, we have a recycling ordinance requiring mandatory recycling of certain categories of recyclables, but there’s no mechanism and no personnel to enforce that ordinance.
Davis opined that Durham’s new yard waste program offers good value for money; many municipalities, he pointed out, don’t provide yard waste service at all. Ours stacks up well in terms of how much yard waste the city will pick up, among other features. Currently, 16 thousand of Durham’s 62 thousand households are enrolled in the yard waste program. Davis was asked how nonparticipating households will be penalized for their yard waste, which presumably they must still be doing something with. He agreed that this will be a problem as long as not everyone participates.
Someone else asked about enforcement, saying that the job description of recycling coordinator says that that person enforces the recycling ordinance. Davis said that Solid Waste has only two recycling coordinators; one works with commercial developers, and the other does everything else, including educational programs in schools and special events. It makes no sense for enforcement to be included in their official job description because the fact is that they don’t have time to do it. What he needs is more people to handle enforcement.
Davis said that in the last ice storm, when the city picked up all the debris for free, many people took unfair advantage of it; some folks brought out stuff that had been in their back yards for years.
Asked about the fee for yard waste carts (not to join the yard waste program, but to buy the actual cart), Davis told us that Solid Waste charges $36 per cart, which does not quite cover their actual cost.
Someone else asked where the revenue goes from the city’s sale of mulch from its composting operation. Davis said that so far the operation hasn’t generated much revenue; a private contractor maintains the compost heap, and the money goes to fund that contract. He was asked specifically whether the program pays for itself, whether it has generated any revenue or is running a shortfall. Questioned further on this, Davis said that the program is currently breaking even; the tipping fees, etc. are just enough to pay the contractor. The contractor actually had wanted to back out of the contract this year because it was not proving very profitable; the city had to insist on holding them to the contract. If the situation doesn’t improve in future years, the city may have to take over the management of the composting operation. Davis did not answer the question of where the excess revenue from the mulch sales would go if there were any.
Davis was then asked about broken yard waste carts. He replied that Solid Waste will replace a broken cart only if they accidentally break it themselves. Otherwise, the customer owns the cart and is responsible for whatever befalls it.
Mitch Archer of the Impact Team reminded us not to put yard waste in plastic bags, because it won’t ever get picked up whether you’re a yard waste customer or not. Bags must be biodegradable. And if you’re not a yard waste customer, don’t blow your leaves into the street, because it clogs the storm drains, and you will face Archer’s wrath (and a citation) if he catches you at it.
Impact Team update:
Mitch Archer reported on the Impact Team’s September victories in the ongoing struggle to make Durham clean and beautiful. They responded to 162 requests for assistance and 8 internal referrals. Thirty trips to the transfer station to take away illegal sit-outs totaled 21.17 tons of trash and debris. Eighteen illegal dump sites were investigated, resulting in 18 trips to the transfer station with 12.9 tons of trash and debris. As always, the main locations for illegal dumping were the recycling sites at Wal-Mart and Northgate, which the Impact Team visits three times a week to haul away the diverse collection of unrecyclables that people insist upon leaving there. Other illegal dumping locations were the Dollar General on Broad St., the 200 block of Stadium Dr., the 1200 block of Clarendon St., Walltown Park, the intersection of W. Knox & Broad Streets, West Pettigrew St., the intersection of Virgie & Green Streets where there was stuff dumped in the right-of-way, the 2100 block of Green St., the 700 block of Martin St., the 700 block of Wiggin St., the 500 block of Arlene St., 2221 Edwin Rd., 1020 Cornell St., 304 Delafield Ave., the 100 block of Delafield Ave., and 620 Berwyn. Archer added that he will be meeting with Housing staff soon to coordinate about right-of-way issues.
On the grocery cart front, a total of 44 carts last month were collected by the Impact Team and returned to their rightful owners: Food Lion (the leader with 11 of the carts), Winn Dixie, Wal-Mart, Harris Teeter, Dollar General, Dollar Tree, K-Mart, and Family Dollar Store. Archer said that letters will go out this week to members of the committee that has been working on the grocery cart ordinance. There are two new major players on the grocery cart scene–Sam’s Club and Target–that need to be brought to the table on this. The ordinance is ready and they’re trying to move it forward. Fred Foster added that the finished ordinance will be offered for our review and comment one last time before it goes to the city council.
There were no neighborhood cleanups scheduled last month. However, the Impact Team made two trips to the transfer station with trash from the city’s Big Sweep trash pickup. Cleanups were also done by the Old West Durham neighborhood association, the Friends of South Ellerbee Creek, and volunteers from Duke. Archer explained that many volunteer groups do small private cleanups, and then they call him afterwards to say ‘We picked up some trash; come get it.’ Volunteer cleanups are great, but they draw on Archer’s budget to get the trash taken away, so it’s important to coordinate with him. If you are planning any kind of local cleanup, call Mitch Archer at 560-4974 at least two weeks in advance so that he can plan to finish the job by hauling away whatever you have picked up. Next month, Archer will bring in the neighborhood cleanup request form for PAC2; henceforth, all neighborhood cleanups will be arranged through the PACs.
PAC2 letter to landlord: At our last meeting, a neighbor reported on problems at 2214 Charlotte St., and PAC2 agreed to write a letter to the property owner supporting her complaints. The letter to Dick Patton Realty was circulated for people to sign.
Housing update: Rick Hester reports that he’s now in North Central Durham with the Code Enforcement Team two Thursdays per month. The grass at the Big Bluff property had not been cut as of last Friday. Asked about results in Walltown, he said Walltown had been temporarily put on the back burner when he was moved to North Central, but he will get back to their concerns.
Someone asked whether there is any environmental regulation preventing the city from cutting the brush in front of a house. Rumors to that effect have been circulating in the neighborhood. The residence in question, 914 Onslow St., has overgrown shrubbery on the sidewalk in front of the house. Hester advised that if the shrubbery is growing onto the right-of-way, Urban Forestry can cut it; contact Chris Boyer.
ABC permits:
Officer Scott Baker presented two permit applications for our consideration. The first was a renewal for Intimate Affairs catering & event planning, at 1408 Christian Ave. The permit is for off-premises beer & wine. The co-applicants are a married couple; they have a clean background with no history except a couple of minor traffic violations. PAC2 voted unanimously to approve.
The second application was from Pop’s Pizzeria, at 3438 Hillsborough (in the shopping center next to Blockbuster Video). The application is for on-premises beer & wine. Baker reported a lengthy call history at that address (which is the shopping center), but no calls actually to the restaurant itself. He also said the call history did not show any loitering, nuisance, or other alcohol-related complaints. The applicant has three traffic violations but no criminal history. PAC2 voted unanimously to approve this application also.
COP update:
David Harris of the Citizen Observer Patrol reported that the COP program celebrated its first anniversary on September 29, 2004. Over the past year, COP volunteers have performed over 500 house checks, made about a thousand community contacts, logged over 6,500 miles, clocked some 800 volunteer hours, and made about 45 business contacts. They have also identified countless abandoned vehicles, about half of which the city has consequently dealt with. COP volunteers also visit (by request) elderly or infirm residents, just to check on them and make sure they’re OK. Starting next month, PAC2 will get a regular monthly report on COP activities. Harris encouraged anyone interested in this worthy program to join up; they can still use more volunteers. Officer Eric Hester reminded us that PAC2 gave COP a grant to cover the cost of enrolling 15 more volunteers in the program; so far he has nine new volunteers who have been accepted, and the deadline on the grant is Thursday. Someone asked about what the commitment required is; Harris explained that volunteers initially put in 20 hours of classroom training and 3 hours of street training, and then are expected to sign up for at least two patrol shifts (which equals about 7 hours) per month.
The next PAC2 meeting will be November 8th at 6 pm, in the lunchroom at E.K. Powe Elementary.
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