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DURHAM CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS

City Council Regular Meetings and Work Sessions are listed below. You can choose to attend in person in City Council Chambers (101 City Hall Plaza) or via the City’s YouTube channel, Twitter account, Facebook page, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV (via the free Boxcast app), Spectrum channel 8, Google Fiber channel 8, Frontier channel 70, or AT&T U-verse channel 99 in Durham.

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  • Monday, April 7, 7–10pm—Regular Meeting

  • Thursday, April 10, 1–5pm—Work Session​

  • Monday, April 21, 7–10pm—Regular Meeting

  • Thursday, April 24, 1–5pm—Work Session​.

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Click here to find out how to participate/speak at City Council Regular Meetings and Work Sessions.

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If you missed the latest regular meetings/work sessions, watch the replays here:

4/7 Regular Meeting

3/30 Work Session

3/17 Regular Meeting

CityLife: Understanding 2025 Tax Reappraisal

DURHAM BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MEETINGS

The Durham Board of County Commissioners’ hybrid Meetings and Work Sessions are held in person in the Commissioners’ Chambers (Administration Building, 200 E Main St, 2nd floor) and online via Zoom, the County’s website, YouTube channel, or Spectrum channel 8.

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  • Monday, April 7, 9am—Work Session

  • Monday, April 14, 7pm—Regular Session

  • Monday, April 28, 7pm—Regular Session

  • Monday, May 5, 9am—Work Session.

CITY OF DURHAM

Click on the calendar to see all of the City of Durham committee, subcommittee, commission, board, and other meetings for the month of April.

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DURHAM COUNTY

Click on the calendar to see all of the Durham County committee, commission, advisory council, and other meetings for the month of April.

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HOUSING HELPLINE
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Legal Aid NC, in partnership with the NC HOPE program, has set up a new statewide Housing Helpline. Call 877-201-6426 to get help with:

 

  • evictions

  • landlord refusing rental assistance (like NC HOPE, etc)

  • repairs and maintenance

  • mobile home evictions

  • other landlord-tenant issues

  • public and subsidized-housing lease terminations

  • housing vouchers (including Section 8).

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This service is available Mondays through Thursdays, 8:30am–4pm.

STRAIGHT TALK SUPPORT GROUP

The Straight Talk Support Group is for families of someone who has been recently sentenced, incarcerated, or on parole or probation. Talk about challenges and triumphs with those who share similar journeys and experiences with no judgment. Anyone with an interest in criminal justice, including college students, is also welcome. Click here to visit the website and view all of the programs (and volunteer opportunities); click here to attend via Zoom; call 984-219-1001 for more info or if you have any questions:

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  • Tuesday, April 8, 7pm

  • Tuesday, April 22, 7pm.

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By the way, Straight Talk runs a Transitional House (1101 N Mangum St) for men reentering society after being released from prison. They offer not only a place to stay, but they also provide learning opportunities, classes, workshops, and connections to treatment for mental health and substance abuse.

DURHAM PAC MEETINGS

602 E Main St, emergency 911, nonemergency 919-560-4600, Crimestoppers 919-560-1300, website:

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The PAC (Partners Against Crime) meetings, where you can share information on what’s happening in your community, learn about City and County programs, services, and events, have continued online during the pandemic with virtual meetings on Zoom. (Click here and type in your address if you’re not sure which police district you live in.)


Here’s the PAC meeting schedule:
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  • PAC 1—in person only; 3rd Saturday (April 17), 10am; Holton Career & Resource Center (401 N Driver St, in the 2nd-floor auditorium)

  • PAC 2—in person and online; 2nd Monday (April 12), 6pm; Edison Johnson Recreation Center (500 Murray Ave); click here to attend via Zoom 

  • PAC 3—in person and online; 2nd Saturday (April 10), 10am; Lyon Park Recreation Center (1309 Halley St); click here to attend via Zoom

  • PAC 4—in person and online; 2nd Saturday (April 10), 10am; IR Holmes Sr/Campus Hills Recreation Center (2000 S Alston Ave); click here to attend via Zoom

  • PAC 5—in person and online; 2nd Saturday (April 10), 10am; IR Holmes Sr/Campus Hills Recreation Center (2000 S Alston Ave); click here to attend via Zoom.

 

You can send a request via email to subscribe to your local PAC’s listserv; write for more info and to have your questions answered:

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‘SAFE TO CALL’ CAMPAIGN

North Carolina has Good Samaritan laws that protect people who call 911 to save a life even if they themselves are in possession of unlawful substances. Just about seven people in North Carolina die from drug overdoses/alcohol poisoning every day, and the State wants to reduce those numbers. Through the “Safe to Call” campaign, the State wants people to know that they shouldn’t hesitate to call 911 if they’re with someone who’s in danger of ODing. Often they don’t call because they don’t want to be arrested. Anyone (even minors) shouldn’t worry about being taken into custody as long as they’re acting in good faith to save a life and cooperate with law enforcement by giving their names. Click here for more info.

MORE FROM LEGAL AID NC

Breaking news: NC Medicaid has expanded (as of last month), offering healthcare coverage to people ages 19 to 64 years with higher incomes. If you didn’t qualify before, you should try again. Click here for more info.

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Legal Aid NC announces the NC Homeowner Assistance Fund for those who have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. If you’re having trouble paying your mortgage payments and other expenses (such as homeowner Insurance, flood-insurance premiums, homeowners association (HOA) fees, unpaid property taxes, and/or utility payments), can apply for help by calling the Helpline at 866-219-5262 or by visiting the website at nchaf.gov.

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Legal Aid NC offers free help to low-income residents in all 100 counties in North Carolina. Here are some of their programs:

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  • Legal Aid Helpline—help with civil (noncriminal) legal problems; call 866-219-5262 weekdays 8:30am–4:30pm and 5:30–8:30pm on Mondays and Thursdays; or apply online.

  • Senior Legal Helpline—help for those age 60+; call 877-579-7562 weekdays 9am–4pm; or apply online.

  • NC Navigator Helpline—get help enrolling in affordable health insurance on the Health Insurance Marketplace (HealthCare.gov); call 855-733-3711 weekdays 9am–5pm; or apply online.

  • Fair Housing Helpline—get help dealing with housing discrimination; call 855-797-3247 weekdays 9am–5pm; or apply online.

  • Battered Immigrant Helpline—immigrants who are victims of domestic violence can get help; call 866-204-7612 on Tuesdays 3:30–7:30pm and Thursdays 9am–1pm; or apply online.

MOBILE JUSTICE SMARTPHONE APP

There’s a new smartphone app called Mobile Justice NC that you can use to monitor and record police actions. We have the right to film the police, but always have your safety in mind when doing so. If an officer says that you’re in the way and tells you to get back, that might not the time to stand your ground and to say that you’re acting within your rights. Learn how to use the zoom-in feature so you can step out of the way and continue filming.

If you’re an activist or member of the media, download this free app and get familiar with Mobile Justice NC’s four features now (as opposed to during the heat of a protest or police action): 

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  1. Record—Once you start recording, the audio/video files are automatically emailed to ACLU North Carolina—this makes it impossible to delete what you have filmed from your phone.

  2. Witness—You have the option of alerting nearby Mobile Justice NC app users so that situations can be captured from more than one point of view.

  3. Report—You can add details like descriptions, badge numbers, etc, and this data will be transmitted directly to ACLU North Carolina.

  4. Know Your Rights—Get an overview of your rights as a resident of North Carolina when stopped by law enforcement officers.​


​Click here to watch a short but in-depth explainer on how the app works (o clique aquí para más information sobre el app Justícia Móvil en español).

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POLICE REPORT

Click on the badge to read the Durham Police Department’s 2024 Second Quarter Report covering the period from January 1 through June 30.

DURHAM POLICE DEPARTMENT FORMS

You can also single out an officer who went out of his or her way to be helpful/come to your aid. Click on the badge below for instructions and to fill out the Durham Police Department Commendation Form.

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You can make a formal complaint online by filling out the blanks of this form and sending it in. Click on the badge below for instructions and to fill out the Durham Police Department Citizen’s Complaint Form.

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NC SAVAN

Crime victims and survivors often feel like they’re sitting on pins and needles while waiting to hear about upcoming trials and to get news on the status of perpetrators. NC SAVAN (North Carolina Statewide Automated Victim Assistance and Notification) is set up to keep them informed. A 24-hour, toll-free telephone number, 877-627-2826, is available for learning about an offender’s status and about victim-assistance resources. You can also call that number to register for the automated victim notification service. Once you’re registered, you can choose whether to get updates via automated telephone messages or emails; you can also download an app for your smart phone. Notifications can be delivered in English or Spanish, or you can have them translated into one of more than 100 available languages.

Click here to register for NC SAVAN or to search for offender information.

IMPORTANT PHONE NUMBERS

The Durham Skywriter is Durham, North Carolina’s online community paper; in publication since 2002.

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See the header above for information about my deejay service (as DJ Piddipat).

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Coming soon! Information about Piddipat Crafts—hopefully, I’ll be making toys/games/walking sticks again real soon!

© 2025 patricia A murray. All rights reserved. durhamskywriter@yahoo.com. 919-270-8431.

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