City Council Meeting February 13, 2024

Highlights

• Work session focused on Downtown Economic Development; priorities and funding will be discussed at 2/27 meeting of Economic Development and Innovation Committee.
• Mayor Baldwin absent and excused from the evening meeting.
• Evening meeting was cancelled after less than an hour when pro-Palestinian supporters violated the rules of decorum that they agreed to abide by when they signed up to speak. This resulted in more than 100 speakers being deprived of their right to address Council.

A. 4:00 P.M. WORK SESSION CALLED TO ORDER BY THE MAYOR

1. DRA Economic Development Study Report – Fayetteville Street

https://go.boarddocs.com/nc/raleigh/Board.nsf/files/D2ESLX73229E/$file/20240213DowntownRaleighEconomicDevelopmentStrategyPresentationFayetteville%20Street.pdf

https://go.boarddocs.com/nc/raleigh/Board.nsf/files/D29JL74DA638/$file/20240213CMODowntownRaleighEconomicDevelopmentStrategyFayettevilleStreet.pdf

•  This represents part one of a four-part study and was paid for with ARPA funds. The rest will be presented at one time in the summer.
• Part One — A retail strategy for downtown with a focus on activating the Fayetteville Street corridor
• Part Two — Strategic positioning of the downtown office market
• Part Three — Opportunities for supporting a thriving minority- and women-owned business community
• Part Four — Catalytic projects to stimulate and grow Downtown Raleigh’s economy
• Ten Big Ideas under Part One for Fayetteville Street
  • Develop a streetscape design for Fayetteville Street that offers variations on a theme
  • Build a strong foundation to ensure downtown is clean, safe, and vibrant
  • Develop a family-friendly itinerary and route around Fayetteville Street attractions
  • Design and market the downtown core as North Carolina’s Main Street
  • Celebrate Raleigh’s Black Business District
  • Add more housing on and around Fayetteville Street
  • Use public space to support neighborhood livability
  • Reposition City Plaza as downtown’s front porch
  • Grow Raleigh’s arts and entertainment district
  • Create a bold connection south of downtown
• Councilor Forte mentions that businesses not on Fayetteville Street are feeling left out.
• Mayor Pro Tem Melton suggests regular reviews at Economic Development and Innovation Committee to look at priorities and funding. Next meeting will be at 1:30pm on February 27th.

A. 7:00 P.M. EVENING AGENDA

B. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER BY THE MAYOR

C. PUBLIC COMMENT

1. Rules of Decorum for Public Comment

2. Voice Mail Public Comment

D. ADJOURNMENT

1. Adjourn Meeting