Town Council

Town Hall TOWN OF CHAPEL HILL 405 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard Town Council Chapel Hill, NC 27514 Meeting Minutes - Final Mayor Pam Hemminger Council Member Michael Parker Mayor pro tem Jessica Anderson Council Member Rachel Schaevitz Council Member Donna Bell Council Member Karen Stegman Council Member Allen Buansi Council Member-Elect Tai Huynh Council Member Hongbin Gu Council Member-Elect Amy Ryan Council Member Nancy Oates Wednesday, December 4, 2019 7:00 PM RM 110 | Council Chamber Organizational Meeting Roll Call Present: 11 - Mayor Pam Hemminger, Council Member Michael Parker, Mayor pro tem Jessica Anderson, Council Member Donna Bell, Council Member Allen Buansi, Council Member Hongbin Gu, Council Member Tai Huynh, Council Member Nancy Oates, Council Member Amy Ryan, Council Member Rachel Schaevitz, and Council Member Karen Stegman Other Attendees Town Manager Maurice Jones, Deputy Town Manager Florentine Miller, Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos, Police Officer Rick Fahrer, Captain David Sasser, Communications Specialist Mark Losey, Mayoral Aide Jeanne Brown, and Communications and Public Affairs Director and Town Clerk Sabrina Oliver. AGENDA ITEMS 1. Welcome: Mayor Pam Hemminger Mayor Hemminger opened the meeting at 7:01 p.m. and explained that the focus would be on new and retiring Council Members and on those who were renewing their oaths of office. She expressed pride in the Council's ongoing work and pleasure over having a dedicated team that worked hard and accomplished a lot. Mayor Hemminger mentioned several environmental projects that the Council had initiated, and she described how the Town had taken steps toward diversifying its tax base and bringing jobs to Town. She noted that Chapel Hill had adopted an Affordable Housing (AH) master plan. She described how progress had been made toward building and preserving AH in Town. Page 1 of 5 Town Council Meeting Minutes - Final December 4, 2019 Mayor Hemminger discussed several recent Town initiatives and programs and expressed gratitude to outgoing Council Members Bell for providing historical context and to Council Member Oates for giving a voice to those who were impacted by Council decisions. Through their leadership, Council Members Bell and Oates had made Chapel Hill a better place, she said. 2. Comments by Members of the 2017-2019 Council. Donna Bell thanked all who had supported her over the decade that she had served on the Town Council. She expressed pride in what the Council had accomplished during that time and gave much of the credit for that to the excellent Town staff. Ms. Bell encouraged Chapel Hill citizens to be committed to "growing up, not out" and to increasing AH. Nancy Oates said that it had been an honor and a privilege to serve on the Town Council. She had tried to understand what those who live and/or work in Town wanted safeguarded and changed, and had tried to find a balance among the diversity of visions, she said. Ms. Oates thanked all who had supported her, and she wished the new Council success. 3. Oath of Office for 2019-2021 Mayor-Elect. a. Mayor-Elect Pam Hemminger [19-1009] Mayor Hemminger acknowledged the many elected officials who were in attendance and commented that "it takes a village to run a village". Chief District Court Judge Joe Buckner administered the oath of office to Pam Hemminger, who expressed appreciation to her supporters and said she felt blessed and grateful for the Town team that she gets to work with. Trying to make the community a good place for everyone takes an incredible amount of effort, determination, focus, and talent from all, she pointed out. RECESS. (10 minutes) Mayor Hemminger recessed the meeting for 10 minutes so the Council could reset. 4. Oaths of Office for 2019-2023 Council Members-Elect a. Council Member-Elect Jessica Anderson [19-1010] Mayor Hemminger reconvened the meeting at 7:39 p.m. and administered the oath to Jessica Anderson, who was accompanied by her husband, son and daughter. Council Member Anderson thanked her family and other supporters and said she felt honored to have the trust of Chapel Hill citizens for another four years. b. Council Member-Elect Tai Huynh [19-1011] Former Carrboro Mayor Mark Chilton administered the oath of office to Tai Page 2 of 5 Town Council Meeting Minutes - Final December 4, 2019 Huynh, who was accompanied by his parents. Council Member Huynh thanked all who had supported him (especially his campaign team and his parents) and expressed gratitude to his parents for having instilled a sense of service in him. c. Council Member-Elect Michael Parker [19-1012] NC Senator Valerie Foushee administered the oath of office to Michael Parker, who was accompanied by his wife. Council Member Parker thanked his wife, members of his campaign, his supporters, and the voters for bestowing the honor upon him once again. d. Council Member-Elect Amy Ryan [19-1013] Mayor Hemminger administered the oath of office to Amy Ryan, who was accompanied by her husband and daughter. Council Member Ryan thanked her husband, campaign team, and everyone who had donated to and/or volunteered in her campaign. She promised to work hard to live up to the opportunity to serve the Town. 5. Election of Mayor pro tempore. A motion was made by Council Member Stegman, seconded by Council Member Buansi, that Michael Parker serve as Mayor pro tem. The motion carried by a unanimous vote. 6. Resolutions of Appreciation a. Former Council Member Donna Bell [19-1014] Mayor pro tem Parker read a Resolution of Appreciation for Donna Bell, who had served on the Council since January 2010. The resolution noted Ms. Bell's special interests in increasing and preserving affordable housing (AH), broadening public engagement opportunities, supporting the Town's historic African American communities, expanding local and regional transit services, garnering community benefits through the development approval process, and more. The resolution thanked Ms. Bell for her outstanding service and said that Chapel Hill was a better place because of her. Ms. Bell congratulated new Council Members and thanked Town citizens for having given her the opportunity to serve for 10 years. Her comments at meetings had come from a place of love, truth and fire, and she hoped to continue bringing that to community conversations in the future, she said. A motion was made by Mayor pro tem Parker, seconded by Council Member Schaevitz, that he resolution be adopted. The motion carried by a unanimous vote. b. Former Council Member Nancy Oates [19-1015] Page 3 of 5 Town Council Meeting Minutes - Final December 4, 2019 Mayor Hemminger read a Resolution of Appreciation for Nancy Oates, who had served on the Council since December 2015. Ms. Oates had been a strong advocate for increasing public participation in the decision-making process and a tireless advocate for AH, she read. The resolution stated that Ms. Oates had strengthened Council decisions by challenging conventional viewpoints and noted the many projects and policy-decisions in which she had been involved. The resolution thanked Ms. Oates for her outstanding service and said that Chapel Hill was a better place because of her. Ms. Oates said that Chapel Hill meant the world to her and that she hoped to spend the rest of her life in Town. She thanked audience members for attending the ceremony and said that she would see them at future meetings. A motion was made by Council Member Buansi, seconded by Council Member Huynh, that the resolution be adopted. The motion carried by a unanimous vote. 7. Appointments for Various Council Liaisons and Representatives a. Various Council Liaisons and Representatives List [19-1047] Mayor Hemminger said that she had appointed more than 60 Council liaisons and representatives to Town boards and had made an effort to find balance and spread those experiences out. The list was evolving and that those positions might shift around, she said. A motion was made by Council Member Anderson, seconded by Council Member Schaevitz, that the list of Appointments for Various Council Liaisons be adopted. The motion carried by consensus. 8. Closing Comments Mayor Hemminger welcomed new Council Members Huynh and Ryan and commented on how fortunate the Town was to have so many citizens willing to serve. She thanked the many family members, friends, and constituents who provide ongoing support and said that the wonderful and dedicated Town staff made everything possible. Mayor Hemminger said that the Council tried to be strategic and develop pathways forward that are actionable not just theoretical. She pointed out that the Town's climate action and affordable housing plans would require the entire community to work together. The Town's economic development strategy would help balance the tax base and provide local jobs, Mayor Hemminger said. She mentioned several other Town initiatives and said she looked forward to working with the Council to get it all done. Page 4 of 5 Town Council Meeting Minutes - Final December 4, 2019 REQUEST FOR CLOSED SESSION TO DISCUSS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, PROPERTY ACQUISITION, PERSONNEL, AND/OR LITIGATION MATTERS A motion was made by Mayor pro tem Parker, seconded by Council Member Schaevitz, to enter Into closed session as authorized by General Statute Section 143-318.11(a)(4) to consider and economic development matter. The motion carried by consensus. 9. Photograph of 2019-2021 Council. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was recessed at 8:11 p.m., following the reception the Council went into closed session and the meeting adjourned at the end of the closed session at 11:10 p.m. Page 5 of 5