They keep scheduling meetings at locations where they can’t provide online access and they make no effort to record the events for later viewing. They continue to refuse to provide the same level of access they demanded from the CACs. These are CHOICES they are making. And they are CHOOSING to provide the minimal amount of public access required by open meeting laws.
This survey is in essence a “Report Card” for the previous City Council that served from Dec 2019 thru Nov 2022. As far as the results for the previous City Council go, Raleigh’s scores declined in 71 of the 98 categories that were surveyed.
A message from Robert Steele. Councilman Jonathan Melton has submitted his mid-year campaign finance reports, and as expected, it’s more of the same. 50% is developer and real estate money. In almost every email the Councilman sends out, he toots his own horn on affordable housing, but can we trust him to have the interests of housing strapped residents at heart when HALF of his campaign is funded by for-profit, and not for-people, developers? I don’t think we can. That’s why I won’t be accepting developer money in my campaign. I want you, the residents of Raleigh, to be absolutely SURE that I am not bought and paid for. We can’t say the same for Councilman Melton.
A more sensible approach would’ve been incremental, introducing MM reforms in neighborhoods where actual frequent transit service is available within short walking distances. As frequent transit routes are added, MM’s application could be expanded.
Reining in the worst aspects of this MM giveaway to the development industry is a big test for the new Council. Hope they’re up to it.
The irony of this council putting forth this apology at this time was not lost on the public. Speaker Jeremy Gilchrest asked, now that you have apologized for the city’s racist past, including urban renewal, who is going to apologize for the current racism that we see systemically gutting out the black community?
Highlights from July 5 Council Meetings. Council on hiatus until August 15.
Apparently, it’s only Raleigh that must stay silent out of fear that the politicians on Jones Street might do something to hurt the straight, cis, white residents of Raleigh and we can’t risk that. As long as they are only attacking the LGBTQ+ community, Raleigh’s City Council is good.
Years of Jim Crow segregation and neglect have given way to a new era of gentrification. Unimpeded, it will soon sweep away any sense that freed African-Americans were here, emerged from slavery here, lifted themselves up by their bootstraps here, created communities here, and mattered greatly to the Raleigh we became and the Raleigh we hope to be. Unimpeded, it’s entirely possible that Shaw will be swept away too, or moved to a distant place not central to the city to make room for “higher value” development.
If you watched the two City Council meetings on May 16, 2023, the Work Session discussing election reform at 11:30 followed by the City Council Afternoon Session at 1:00, we wonder if you noticed what we noticed. We were disappointed but not surprised at the way city survey data was perceived differently by some councilors at these two separate meetings.
City Council will meet on Tuesday, May 16 for a second work session on election reform. Here are our recommendations
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