Revitalizing the Inner City

It has been said and I believe that "the strength and character of a city can be measured by the vibrancy of its inner city." My decision to hold my re-election announcement here in Eastway Village was to showcase the strength of one of our inner city neighborhoods where we have worked very hard and invested resources, with the goal of not only providing excellent affordable housing but to create a great neighborhood, quality of life and home ownership for our citizens. For some of you who may not know-- this street used to be a street of approximately forty or more houses most of which were drug infested, crime ridden and very few actual homeowners residing here and many absentee landowners. This successful revitalization is another example of "Durham Rising and setting a higher standard for community economic development. Homeownership is at the heart of this successful redevelopment as witnessed by one of those homeowners who were living on Barnes Avenue Mr. and Mrs. Biddle. They are now homeowners in Eastway Village living right here on Eastway Avenue and we are glad to see that they decided to return again as a homeowner. Ms. Carla Williams is another example of a person who has made an investment in this community to improve the quality of life for her and her family.

As mayor I am very proud of what we have been able to accomplish with the support of our citizens and by engaging in a public private partnership in the redevelopment of downtown Durham. As many of you know a few weeks ago we celebrated the redevelopment and renaissance of downtown Durham with a very successful Durham Rising Event. It was estimated that nearly 10,000 people came to downtown Durham to enjoy the events and amenities—and that represents a minor picture of what is yet to come.

During my term as Mayor, we have led the way and devoted a large amount of time and resources in working with the private sector and county to revitalize downtown Durham. We believe that the city's investment has served as a catalyst for quality development and all of the good things happening and will be happening in downtown Durham.

I asked the Council members to join me in asking the City Manager to begin to preliminarily identify neighborhoods that may be candidates for revitalization. The administration has been working with some of the potential neighborhoods and the private sector and I expect a specific recommendation will be coming to the council during the 3rd quarter of this year. I'll repeat what I have said earlier this year that the revitalization of our blighted neighborhoods, if done correctly, will not happen overnight. It will require fortitude, determination and patience as well as resources from all stakeholders to make it a reality. We hope to use our experience working with the private sector to revitalize additional areas of our inner city neighborhoods.

William V. Bell Campaign Committee
P.O. Box 12535
Durham, NC 27709
(919) 768-2398