Durham, NC – Tuesday, September 6, 2016, the Durham City Council will conduct a public hearing on the Golden Belt Local Historic District proposal.

If this designation is approved, it will add to the skyrocketing housing cost of the neighborhood.  In 2006, the process to create this local historic district started, and the Durham Rescue Mission has seen the prices of houses rise sharply.

Here are a couple of examples:

• In 2006, a house on Morning Glory Ave sold for $62,000, and, in March of this year, that same house sold for $330,000. (http://property.spatialest.com/nc/durham/property/111803/sales)
• In July 2014, a house on Worth St was purchased for $38,000 by speculators who renovated the house and just 4 months later sold it for $176,000. This house sold again in May 2016 for $295,000 (http://property.spatialest.com/nc/durham/property/111811/sales)

Golden Belt was created for the low-income mill workers, but it is ironic that the same demographic this neighborhood was created for will be pushed out if Golden Belt becomes a local historic district.

The Durham Rescue Mission implores the City Council members to change the boundary of this proposed local historic district to exclude the 20 properties the Mission owns on the east side of Hwy 55 so it will be feasible for the Mission to build affordable housing for those living in poverty and at no cost to the city—in honor of the Golden Belt neighborhood’s history.