Minutes before midnight, the City Council unanimously struck down an annexation request for a proposed development on Monday, breaking its recent trend of development-friendly votes.
The council chambers were packed to capacity, with latecomers forced to stand. The Moriah Ridge proposal, saved for last on the agenda, kept the room restless. For nearly five hours, 37 speakers waited into the night for their turn at the podium.
Just before 11:00 p.m. — on a school night — the McGregor family of six finally got their turn to speak. Kelly McGregor stepped up first, holding her sleeping baby in her arms. Her husband, teenage daughter and two younger sons stood watching.
“We are not against development but we are against poor practice, lack of sensitivity to community, plans pushed through on legislative technicalities and developments that are contrary to Durham’s well-researched and comprehensive growth plan,” McGregor said.
Thirteen-year-old Anna Kate McGregor was the final family member to address the council, trading a night of homework for hours spent at the meeting.
“My parents have always told my brothers and I that we need to do the right thing even if we are the only ones,” she said. “Please do the right thing.”
M/I Homes, a national homebuilding company, had requested the annexation of 168 acres across 15 parcels of land between Erwin and Mount Moriah roads. The developers envisioned 1,000 housing units — an array of apartments, townhouses and single-family homes.
The desired acreage straddles the line between Orange and Durham counties. Had the measure passed, it would have allowed a portion of Orange County to be annexed into the City of Durham, expanding the city limits.
That fact made some council members view the proposal differently from others.
“This is not kind of an apples-to-apples discussion because a regular urban growth discussion does not result in Durham getting bigger. This is different,” Mayor Pro Tempore Mark-Anthony Middleton said.
Council members expressed concern about the precedent the annexation could set for future development. The project would have encompassed land outside the Urban Growth Boundary, a section of the Durham Comprehensive Plan that defines where the city can develop and extend utilities.
Resident Daniel Kosciusko attended Monday’s meeting after hand-delivering 500 mailers to help spread the word about the project.
“The precedent is a big one. Durham City would not be beholden to any agreed-upon zoning in that area and that really opens up the door to further annexation and further creep into the rural buffer,” Kosciusko said.
Several council members — including some who typically vote in favor of development — agreed that the proposed annexation clashed with Durham’s Comprehensive Plan.
Council Member Nate Baker was the first to side with the residents. Carl Rist and Javiera Caballero followed.
“The community fought long and hard to create our Comprehensive Plan,” Rist said. “I’m not comfortable going outside the urban growth boundary at this point in this case.”
“It just gives me heartburn,” Council Member Caballero said. “I know I upset residents a lot because I usually do vote for development because I think housing is important. It has to be in a way that does actually move the goals forward in the Comp. [Comprehensive] Plan and this project, as it stands today, does not do that — so I will be voting ‘no.’”
As Caballero finished speaking, Kosciusko, sitting in the audience, reacted with a single word.
“Unexpected,” he said, eyes wide as he sat up straight, focused on the remaining council members.
Middleton and Mayor Leonardo Williams then announced their intentions to vote “no” as well.
Rist, Caballero, Middleton and Williams have frequently voted together in favor of development proposals, often resulting in a 4-3 split within the council. The unanimous “no” marked a surprising departure from this trend.
But even as the excitement grew amongst the residents, Middleton offered a caution.
“Just because we say ‘no’ doesn’t mean something’s not coming. So, you need to understand that even if this council says ‘no,’ there are forces bigger than this council that are at work and scenarios that have played out in the past,” Middleton said.
“Don’t think that this is over and make the victory lap muted.”
At 11:54 p.m., a 5-0 vote to reject the request was recorded. Despite Middleton’s warning, those still in council chambers erupted in applause.
Above: A roomful of opponents turned out to argue against the proposed Moriah Ridge development and annexation. Photo by All Kibria — The 9th Street Journal
Lucy Glynn
