Governing Body Hearing
This is the third and final step in rezoning. Once a rezoning application has been studied by the City Planning Department (Step 1) and has received a recommendation at the Planning Commission Hearing (Step 2), it must be approved by either the City Council or the Board of County Commissioners.
There is no guarantee that the Governing Body will follow the recommendation of the Planning Commission. All too frequently, "deny" recommendations from the Planning Commission are passed by City Council... especially if no neighbors are present at the City Council hearing to speak in opposition.
About the Governing Bodies
Let's not demonize our elected officials. They are not bad people. They are good people, doing the best they can for Durham, based on their perspectives and viewpoints.
Our elected officials do their best to balance development interests with those of citizens, and to encourage growth which, in turn, brings tax income. But they don't often ask for citizen input... sometimes they don't seem to want it... and they don't make it easy for citizens to speak out.
Visit our Political Action pages about Durham's City Council and Board of County Commissioners to find out more about individual elected officials and their views.
What tools do citizens have?
- The Protest Petition — shifts the odds in the neighbors' direction by requiring a "supermajority" to approve a rezoning: 6 of 7 City Council members, or 4 of 5 County Commissioners.
- Letters and eMails — allow neighbors to voice their concerns before the hearing. Some approaches work better than others.
- Zoning Glossary — helps neighbors learn the "alphabet soup" language of rezoning
- Knowing Who's Who — arguments can be framed more persuasively when neighbors know decision-makers' viewpoints
- Presence at Hearings — a crowd WILL sway the vote. Especially impressive if members are visibly unified with stickers, buttons, same color shirts
- Solid Information — knowledgeable citizens are difficult to bulldoze.
About the Hearings
City Council and County Commissioners' meetings are formal affairs, with strict rules of order. They're also televised, and watching these broadcasts is a great way to get a feel for what happens (especially if you can fast-forward through the tedious bits).
Rezoning cases are usually buried deep in the agenda, frequently 2+ hours into the City Council meeting. It's a big time investment for neighbors who are there to oppose rezoning cases.
Read more about the hearings at the Governing Bodies' websites: City Council's homepage and Board of County Commissioners homepage
Be sure to read and follow rules of decorum for participating in public hearings:
Citizens may speak at Work Sessions or at Regular Sessions. For City Council, time allotted is 5 minutes. For the County Commissioners, it's only 3 minutes.
Speakers must sign up in advance. For a City Council work session, that's 10 days in advance. For Regular Sessions of City Council, it's before the hearing starts. Advance signup isn't required for Public Hearings, but it might be a good idea.
Written copies of remarks (and supplemental material) may be handed to the County Clerk for the public record.
Calendars, Agendas, and Minutes Online
Reading the minutes is also a good way to get a feel for what's accomplished and how. Note that in the City Council minutes, the Planning Commission is called the Zoning Committee. To find rezoning cases in minutes, Ctrl-F to search for "zoning" and then click on the underlined words in the search window.
On TV too!
City Council and County Commissioners' meetings are televised on public access channels, and watching these broadcasts is a great way to get a feel for what happens (especially if you can fast-forward through the tedious bits).