Faith leaders and residents urge Durham to find eviction-diversion funds and strengthen tenant protections as local supports run out

Faith leaders and residents asked the Durham City Council to act now to blunt an emerging wave of evictions and homelessness, saying local emergency funds and vouchers are exhausted and asking the city to fill the gap.

Grace Wegman, who said she represents Trinity Avenue Presbyterian Church and oversees the congregation's emergency assistance program, told the council her congregation distributed about $18,000 to 90 families last year and has distributed $45,000 to more than 200 families year to date. "Entry Point Durham is out of funds," Wegman said, asking the council to "mobilize more assistance funds for rent" and to consider tenant protections such as longer notice of rent increases.

Emily Wilkes, associate pastor for public witness at the same church, urged the council to find funding to cover Entry Point's eviction-diversion program through July 2025 and to pursue policy fixes. "Rent assistance may stop the bleeding, but ultimately it's a Band-Aid solution," Wilkes said, calling for longer notice periods for rent increases, stronger landlord engagement to encourage acceptance of vouchers and the creation of a tenants advisory board.

Speakers said the strain on local services is already apparent: Wegman described a tenant who received a July 19 reexamination letter showing a jump in monthly rent from $169 to $780 and said the tenant was given less than two weeks' notice to absorb the increase.

Council members and staff acknowledged the shortfall. Staff told the council that Entry Point Durham is out of funds until July 2025 and that many local rent-relief sources are similarly depleted. Council members pressed for outreach beyond online notices to ensure residents without reliable internet can access local assistance.

Also during public comment, Ozetta Frazier, representing PAC 5, urged action on persistent public-safety problems near East Main and Stoke Streets, describing open drug use, prostitution and loitering that residents say has led to property crime and sanitation issues. "Pac 5 needs this area cleaned up and made safe for ourselves and our families," Frazier said.

The council did not vote on new funding at the meeting; residents asked the council to consider immediately directing city funds to Entry Point's eviction-diversion work and to pursue the longer-term policy changes speakers outlined.

The council's next steps: staff said they will continue community conversations tied to the budget process and provide reports during budget retreats; no formal appropriation or policy change was made at this meeting.