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Community Benefits are left “On the Table” in 2021. Why?
Livable Raleigh Chair Susan Maruyama delivered the following remarks at the January 4, 2022 Raleigh City Council meeting:Madam Mayor and City Council, Please don’t leave a whole lot of good on the table in 2022 like you did in 2021. In 2021, you approved 96% of the...
District A Resident Presents a Redistricting Alternative
Midtown Raleigh resident Larry Helfant recently sent the following email to City Staff and the members of the Study Group on Council Terms and Compensation who now have been tasked with advising on redrawing of districts required after the recent census. Preliminary...
JANUARY 4, 2022 CITY COUNCIL HIGHLIGHTS
HIGHLIGHTS Council retreat will be March 4 & 5COVID numbers remain high, yet Councilor Buffkin wants to resume in-person meetings immediately. Council agreed to review at January 18 meeting.Dr. Aretina Hamilton hired as Director of Equity and Inclusion.178...
Raleigh City Council and Pay to Play Cronyism
Tim Niles, a resident of Raleigh, delivered the following comments to the City Council on Tuesday, October 20, 2020. Mayor Baldwin and members of City Council. Good afternoon, One of the first actions taken by this council was to abolish recognition for CACs and...
Humanizing the Affordable Housing Crisis
Longtime Raleigh resident Terry Snyder recently spoke at a Raleigh City Council meeting Over the past 49 years that I have lived in West Raleigh, I have witnessed significant changes in development. One of the most alarming negative consequences is the vanishing...
Decisions made by the city should be informed by the residents who live there; what a concept!
Christina Jones, Chair of the RCAC (Raleigh Citizens Advisory Council), recently spoke at a Raleigh City Council meeting: I recently participated in the Midtown CAC ZOOM meeting, in which we discussed Z-45-21. This is a project that will displace current...
Livable Raleigh’s Statement on City Council Terms, Compensation and Districts
Livable Raleigh welcomes the chance to comment on proposed changes to the compensation and terms of City Council members and on adding seats to the Council. We hope there is no repeat of the secrecy that surrounded the extension of current Council terms and the...
The Nuances of Inclusionary Zoning; where there’s a will, there’s a way. Or not!
Lisa Hughet has lived in Raleigh over 30 years and has become a fierce advocate for affordable housing. Hughet became a volunteer construction lead with Wake Habitat for Humanity so she could make a visible difference and also teach others some valuable...
December 7, 2021 Council Meeting
HIGHLIGHTS Text change to reduce the distance between fuel sales and neighborhoods passed 6 to 2 with Councilors Cox and Forte dissenting. Self-proclaimed environmentalist Councilors Stewart and Knight voted to promote more fossil fuel sales. Rezoning Z-68-20 -...
Adding Density without Infrastructure Planning Makes No Sense; So Why Are We Doing It?
Midtown Raleigh resident Larry Helfant shares his insights and concerns about deficiencies in Raleigh’s planning for growth. The recently announced phase of the North Hills expansion (Z-67-21) will result in a further degradation of neighborhood quality to the people...
Stop Signs, Stop Lights, and the Environment
Janis Ramquist submitted this blog to Livable Raleigh. She has been a Wake County resident since 1981. Janis says “I want my grandchildren to enjoy a clean environment, especially with simple choices that are safe and less costly.” Have you noticed the explosion of...
How can you help protect Raleigh’s trees?
Raleigh residents regularly contact Livable Raleigh to express their concerns about loss of tree canopy and clear-cutting during development. They want to know more about tree protection, tree planting, and tree preservation. We all know that, beyond their aesthetic...
Buffkin says Raleigh’s rezoning process is broken
On Nov 2, 2021, in a 5-3 vote, Raleigh's City Council approved a contentious zoning case, Z-53-20, located on Lead Mine Road. In a statement, remarkable for its total lack of self awareness, Councilor Partick Buffkin, District A, who represents the affected area, told...
City Council Meeting – November 16, 2021
HIGHLIGHTS Proposed changes to relax Food Trucks regulations referred to Economic Development & Innovation Committee on a unanimous vote. Rezoning Z-40-21 scheduled for December 7 public hearing. Approved $12M from General Capital Reserves toward Dix Park Phase 1...
Charlotte puts the LIE to Mayor Baldwin’s nonsense about census data making a March election impossible
What Democracy NC founder Bob Hall said about Raleigh’s attack on democracy: “Charlotte isn’t delaying their election. They’re having a March election. Greensboro too. It was just a con job to say that they had to postpone the election in the manner they did.” Read...
Highlights from City Council Work Session – November 9, 2021
Proposed Parks Bond Presentation $180M for Scenario 1 $212.5M for Scenarios 1 & 2 $266.5M for Scenarios 1, 2, & 3 $86M for Scenarios 2 & 3 Councilor Cox shared statistics illustrating how District B is being shortchanged on park expenditures, but gets no...
Support One Wake’s Property Tax Assistance Proposal – Do the Right Thing NOW!
Livable Raleigh Chair Susan Maruyama delivered the following remarks at the November 2, 2021 Raleigh City Council meeting. Mayor and City Council: 12 days ago, One Wake gathered 600 people online and in-person to make an excellent, well-considered proposal to provide...
November 2 City Council Meeting Highlights
November 2 City Council Meeting Afternoon Session Recognition of Special Awards Consent Agenda Process Appearance Commission - Membership Categories - Rules of Procedure - ReappointmentsAnnexation Petition-AX-19-21-Deferral- Contiguous Inside ETJ - 5420 Ebenezer...
Notice to Renters: Make Way for Expensive Homes.
While Raleigh is booming, more and more folks are finding it harder to afford living in our City. Rents and real estate prices keep going up and up, while naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH) is disappearing. The affordable apartments in these photos will be...
City Council Highlights – October 19, 2021
Work Session Missing Middle 2.0 https://go.boarddocs.com/nc/raleigh/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=C7GTG6717AA2&fbclid=IwAR2oy0vkXCYaWGhDRJ3fYB1DjORSNq79x3nvyQ_6NHE4tlIzaSBiqraNhZs Lots of changes discussed, including allowing multiple ADUs on a lot, weakening...