[Durham INC] DRAFT June minutes

[Pat Carstensen]

As usual, please let me know about any changes or additions.  Regards, pat
















June Delegate Meeting of the InterNeighborhood Council of
Durham

NIS Conference Room, Golden Belt

June 24, 2014

 

Attending the meeting were:

Neighborhoods

Cross Counties – Pat Carstensen

Downing Creek – Dick Ford

Duke Park – Bill Anderson

Eagles’ Pointe – Donna Rudolph

Fairfield – Melissa Rooney

Falconbridge – Jim Carroll

Golden Belt – DeDreana Freeman

Long Meadow – Pakis Bessias

Northgate Park – Debra Hawkins, Mike Shiflett

Old Farm – David Harris

Old North Durham – John Martin, Pete Katz

Stage Stop – Dolly Fehrenbacher

Trinity Park – Philip Azar

Tuscaloosa-Lakewood – Susan Sewell 

Watts Hospital Hillandale – Tom Miller

Woodcroft – Scott Carter, Jose Sandoval

Woodlake – Katrina Portwood

 

Visitors 

Lynwood D. Best – City of Durham, NIS

Will Wilson – DOST

John Killeen – City of Durham, NIS

Alex Johnson, City of Durham, General Services, Urban Forestry

Kaite Rose Levin, Natural Resources Manager, Duke University

David Rogers, Environment North Carolina

Jim Wise, N&O

Paul Cornsweet

 

 

President Scott Carter called the meeting to order; those present
introduced themselves.  We added items
from Bill Anderson and Dick Ford to the agenda.  Tom Miller moved, and Mike Shiflett
seconded, the adoption of the May minutes.  The treasurer reported that 2 more $25 checks have come in since
last month, resulting in 20 member neighborhoods.

 

David
Rogers, Environment North Carolina Field Director, gave a presentation on Grow Solar Durham.  Although there is a lot of solar
popping up across the state, there is room for much more.  A solar system has panels to collect
photons from the sun to make DC power and an inverter to make it into AC power;
then with net metering, power you don’t use can go into the grid.  The advantages are clean energy, a lower
bill from the power company, and more local jobs for design and
installation/maintenance. Answering questions from neighborhood associations: (1)
The side of the house does matter (panels have to be toward the sun) so
sometimes the front of the house is the only feasible side, (2) there isn’t
much NC research on how solar affects real estate values but in California, solar
homes sell for a premium of $5911 per kilowatt, and sell faster, with no impact
on values next door.  David is
willing to talk to any neighborhood that is interested.  David will send a draft resolution on
committing to 15% solar in Durham.

 

Alex
Johnson, Durham Urban Forest Manager, and Katie Rose Levin, Duke University
Natural Resource Manager, talked about the Durham
Cankerworm Initiative.  
The cankerworms aren’t obvious and active right now, but it is time to
start planning.  Cankerworms,
unlike gypsy moths, are native, but have become a problem because our willow
oaks are such a good hosts and maybe the worms are lacking in predators (perhaps
song birds are no longer looking for food when worms are most prevalent because
of changing climate).  You have
seen the worms in the spring. Adult females can’t fly; they climb up trees
(especially willow oaks) and lay eggs (fall ones in fall, spring ones in early
spring).  The eggs hatch in the
spring; worms eat emerging leaves and then use height of the tree to get far
away from the host tree to spread. 
If trees have leaves eaten every year and are otherwise older or
stressed, they will decline faster. You can spray with Bt (which kills other
things and probably leads to bugs less affected by Bt).  Banding is a more specific remedy.  Duke banded 70 trees and it was a lot
better.   A partnership of
Duke, Durham and Trees Across Durham have bought materials and are planning on
doing training.  Volunteers also
need to monitor banded trees to make sure the squirrels don’t take down bands
or otherwise have them sag, and then need to remove bands in April.  There will be workshops for in
September.  You will be able to
check out banding-bags at the library. 
Action-alerts / communications / updates to INC list-serve would be
helpful.  Northgate Park has
materials to share.

 

Committee
Reports                                                                                                

·     
Zoning and Development – Need to have a meeting.


·     
Membership and Outreach – Nothing new.

·      Nuisance Abatement –  Nothing new. 

·     
Speeding and Traffic – Members of the committee
met with Chief Lopez, Assistant Chief Pendergrass, Captain Sarvis, folks from
Duke and NCCU campus police, and a sergeant from the State Highway Patrol.  Police are still working on the safety
elements in the strategic plan, we expect many of our recommendations in plan.

·     
Transit, Sidewalks, and Bicycles – The Federal
Trust Fund is running out of money, so a lot of projects will not get done if
Congress doesn’t act.  The
consultant presented plans for bike / pedestrian improvements on 4 corridors,
they looked good, and some parts will move fairly quickly.

·     
Public Spaces and Environmental Issues – No
report, wrap-up soon.  Check out
the prizes and activities on Charge Ahead Durham.

 

9)   Old Business 

·     
Wireless Cell
Tower
update – Planning Department is still working on revised rules; we are afraid
they will not take our suggestions on safety.  Dolly brought a piece of monopine that had fallen into a
parking lot during a storm with less ice/wind than what is in the standards the
towers are supposed to be built to. 
It’s very complicated and committee needs to meet to decide what the
strategy will be.   

·     
Protest
Petition
legislative update – Protest petitions are a Republican idea and go back to
1923; they are meant to protect a citizen’s long-term real estate investment
and property rights.  So much got
added to the regulation rules bill that the House decided they needed to split
it; protest petition repeal is now in SB 734.  Repeal came up in committee today, and amendments to fix it
failed.  It is clear that the house
leadership is committed to repealing this essential right.  General Assembly members are hearing
from constituents across the state and we need to keep pushing.  Write to anyone you know in both House
and Senate.  Thanks to Tom for all
the work on this.            

·     
Mayor’s Task
Force on Poverty – A three-day work session got stopped in the middle
because neighborhood groups felt their views not being incorporated and they
were being treated as “those people” so facilitators will meet with them some
more.  Scott will extend an
invitation if the neighborhoods want to come talk to us. 

·     
Steve Medlin has raised a good point on the
difficulties in how he gets his direction, but his solution isn’t what we would
want.

 

New Business – Bill
Anderson will write up a resolution on how we deal with used motor oil.

 

Neighborhood Reports and Announcements                                                            

·     
Liberty Warehouse – Peter Katz reported that City
Council removed the historic designation at request of new owner.  To make their plans work, the new
owners brought two requests for a Special Use Permit to the Board of
Adjustment, one request for “alternative compliance on a required pedestrian
passageway” and another on “podium requirements.”  The passageway would go through Central Park rather than
through the building and was a concern to a business nearby.  They did get approved for walkway.  The neighborhood has also heard there
is discussion of taking down walls. 
It sounds like a classic case of “you don’t need to worry” until it’s
too late.

·     
For the 4th of July, folks should go to their
own celebrations, but if you don’t have one, come to Watts Hospital
Hillandale’s 65th annual parade. http://www.whhna.org/watts-happening/events/4th-of-july-parade/ 

·     
Deb Hawkins invited folks to the food truck
rodeo at Northgate Park, including sushi food truck, this Thursday.   Thanks to all who came out for
Beaver Queen Pageant, where they exceeded goals.  Thanks to everyone who came to Tour de Fat.

·     
The July Sierra Club meeting will be on Urban
Ecology.  See http://www.meetup.com/NC-Sierra-Club-Headwaters-Group/events/189752362/ 

 

The
meeting adjourned.

 

 

 

 

 

 		 	   		  
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