Budget Priorities in Durham’s State of the City Address

It’s Friday, April 12.

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Good morning, readers. 

On Tuesday, Mayor Leonardo Williams gave his first State of the City address since taking office in December. During the hour-long speech, Williams touted a laundry list of initiatives across a number of sectors that the city plans to implement over the next two years: public safety, workforce development, and transportation, among others. At the end of his speech, Williams made a call to action.

“I charge you all to be bold in your vision for this community and seek out opportunities to be involved in the work to make the American Dream Durham’s reality.”

But without the weight of a line item in the city’s budget, the mayor’s proposals would likely remain just dreams. So what actions have the mayor and the city council taken to date, and what might the recent budget discussions suggest about how these initiatives will be prioritized?

Economic growth was a key feature of the mayor’s proposals. Durham has received millions of dollars in outside funding to improve access to workforce development through partnerships with Duke University and Durham Tech, as well as the state and federal government. Building a new convention center and a possible sports complex are still top of mind for Mayor Williams, too; he says they could be large drivers of tourism and job creation for Durham residents.

In March, the city held its first of two budget hearings. Residents advocated for more resources to address Durham’s public safety challenges through an Office for Survivor Care as an alternative to reinstating the ShotSpotter program. They also pushed for equitable improvements to the city’s transportation system by continuing to offer fare-free bus service and adding more pedestrian and bike infrastructure to Durham’s busiest thoroughfares.

City Manager Wanda Page and her staff are tasked with bringing all these programs and proposals together into a comprehensive 2024-2025 fiscal year budget. The public will get its first look at the proposed budget on May 20 when Page presents at the regular city council meeting. Here, residents will hear which items from the mayor’s State of the City speech were prioritized. The second budget public hearing will take place June 3 where residents can reiterate their appeals for budget spending. City council has until June 30 to legally pass its budget for next year.

Have a good weekend.

—Justin

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