Housing & Healing

In Durham, the fight over housing has become a battleground—when home should be a place of rest.

• Too many families with children are being evicted, disrupting lives and rewriting the story of who gets to stay.

• Rents have skyrocketed. Property taxes keep rising. The very people who built this city—seniors, essential workers, and legacy residents—are being pushed out.

• Zoning changes and planning decisions feel unpredictable, often out of step with what communities actually want and need.

• The systems that are supposed to help—especially for survivors, returning residents, and families in crisis—are too broken to work when people need them most.

The cost of living keeps climbing. The value placed on people does not.

What kind of city are we becoming—if the very people who built it can no longer afford to stay?

• Durham deserves housing that anchors—not uproots. We deserve neighborhoods that feel safe, sacred, and whole—not at the mercy of absentee ownership or unchecked development.

• Healing must be part of our public infrastructure. That means investing in homes, health, and hope—not just new buildings.

• A better Durham is one where housing is not a hustle—but a human right. Where affordability is preserved, not rebranded—and where identity is honored, not erased.

• The spirit of our neighborhoods is not an obstacle. It is the soul of Durham’s future—and must be protected, not replaced.

We must ask ourselves: Are we building a Durham that lasts—or one that sells?
It is time to build like Durham matters—because every block tells a story.

As Mayor, I will work with my colleagues and our community to:

• Advance bold tenant protections and anti-displacement measures—that shield residents from unjust eviction, sudden rent hikes, and discriminatory practices—ensuring people can stay in place with dignity, choice, and power.

• Protect seniors and homeowners—new and longtime—from being taxed out of their neighborhoods—by expanding homestead protections, targeted relief tools, and age-in-place programs that honor legacy and dignity.

•  Prioritize public land for deeply affordable and mixed-income housing—shaped by local values, not market shortcuts. Public land should serve the public good.

• Partner with community-based, mission-aligned developers—those who build with people, not over them—and direct city resources toward projects that protect legacy, preserve affordability, prevent displacement, and build long-term community wealth.  

Two years is not forever—but it is enough time to address the harm, protect what matters, and prove that housing can lift people up, not push them out.

Forward—Together, we will:

• Engage residents directly in shaping housing policy—especially those most impacted by displacement, neglect, and incarceration.

• Strengthen public accountability—through transparent data, regular budget updates, and visible community oversight.

• Ensure local voices guide development decisions—setting standards for design, resilience, and long-term care.

• Track and publish clear data—on public spending, housing outcomes, and what still requires repair or reform.

This will take all of us—neighbors, leaders, renters, and builders. Together, we can make sure housing helps people, not hurts them.

If we want a better Durham, we must start where everything starts: at home.

• We will not keep calling housing “affordable” when the people who need it most cannot afford it.

• Durham’s neighborhoods should not be torn down, priced out, or made unrecognizable.

• You should not have to choose between rent and groceries—or beg to be treated with dignity.

• If Durham is to grow, it must first protect those who helped build it—and still call it home.

We are not building a city for someday—we are protecting a home for the people who are already here.