Priorities

Community Engagement and Collaboration: Freeman prioritizes actively listening to residents' concerns, resolving to a yes, and shaping policies and initiatives that reflect their needs and aspirations.

• Resident Participation: Encouraging community engagement through public town halls, participatory advisory councils, and neighborhood feedback sessions that allow residents to lend their experiences, ideas, and voice in shaping local policies and initiatives.

• Stakeholder Partnerships: Collaborate with local associations, businesses, education, and nonprofit institutions to leverage expertise, knowledge, and resources in implementing sustainable initiatives.

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Inclusive and Sustainable Growth: Freeman advocates for policies and regulations that safeguard our environment for generations to come by balancing economic growth with equitably shared benefits and environmental conversation and protection. 

• Energy and Environment

  • Renewable Energy Promotion: Incentivize and facilitate the adoption of renewable energy sources, such as solar, through covering the non-energy components cost, streamlined permitting processes, and tax incentives.

  • Energy Efficiency Standards: Provide incentives for retrofitting existing buildings to significantly reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions and set energy-efficiency competitions.

  • Waste Management: Implement comprehensive waste management strategies, including recycling programs, composting partnerships, and waste reduction campaigns, to divert waste from landfills and promote a circular economy.

• Housing

  • Affordable Housing: Ensuring access to decent, safe, sustainably affordable housing is fundamental. It involves implementing policies that increase our affordable housing options, providing more subsidies for low-income individuals, and encouraging the development of sustainable and energy-efficient housing.

  • Green Building Practices: Continue encouraging the use of eco-friendly construction materials, energy-efficient designs, and renewable energy sources to significantly reduce the environmental impact of buildings. This includes initiatives for projects with passive house designs, integrating renewable energy systems, and incentivizing green building certifications.

• Land Use and Planning

  • Zoning Regulations: Zoning regulations that promote mixed-use and transit-oriented development, compact neighborhoods, and the integration of green spaces to help reduce urban sprawl, encourage walkability, reduce carbon emissions, and create vibrant and livable communities.

  • Smart Growth Initiatives: Implement smart growth principles, such as prioritizing infill development, transit-oriented development, and preserving open spaces, to help sustainably manage urban growth.

  • Brownfield Redevelopment: Encouraging the reuse and redevelopment of brownfield sites helps revitalize underutilized land while reducing pressure on undeveloped green spaces.

• Transportation

  • Sustainable Mobility: Prioritize sustainable transportation options by investing in public transit infrastructure, creating bike lanes, and promoting pedestrian-friendly streets. Encourage the use of electric vehicles and car-sharing programs to reduce emissions and congestion.

  • Active Transportation: Developing safe and accessible walking and cycling infrastructure promotes active transportation, improves public health, and reduces reliance on cars.

  • Transit-Oriented Development: Planning for mixed-use development around transit hubs encourages people to live closer to their workplaces and amenities, reducing the need for long commutes.

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Social Economic Justice: Freeman will continue to support policies that create jobs, support local and legacy businesses, and provide more resources and opportunities to overcome barriers and create economic mobility.

• Justice

  • Equitable Policies: Establishing fair and just policies that address systemic inequalities is crucial. This involves combating discriminatory practices in housing, employment, and public services, and promoting inclusivity and diversity in all sectors.

  • Access to Justice: Ensuring equal access to legal representation and a fair judicial system is essential for upholding justice. This involves providing legal aid services, promoting community-based dispute resolution mechanisms, and working towards reducing biases and disparities within the justice system.

  • Restorative Justice: Emphasizing restorative justice approaches, which focus on repairing harm caused by crimes and reintegrating offenders into society, to reduce recidivism rates and foster community healing.

• Opportunity

  • Education and Skills Development: Providing quality skill-building opportunities for all individuals, regardless of their socioeconomic background is essential. As businesses continue to move into Durham, partnerships across sectors, including higher education, will be essential to building employment pathways for youth and adults. This will require collaboration with the Durham County, Durham Public Schools (DPS), Durham Technical Community College, and community groups and organizations. We must also continue to increase youth apprenticeship opportunities.

  • Economic Empowerment: Promoting inclusive economic growth and reducing income disparities to create more opportunities for marginalized communities. This involves supporting small businesses, fostering entrepreneurship, and fair labor practices that ensure decent wages and safe working conditions.

  • Anti-Discrimination Measures: Enact and enforce policies that prohibit housing discrimination based on ethnicity, gender, race, source of income, or other protected characteristics like ADA-related ability.

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Building a sustainable future requires addressing crucial aspects such as housing, justice, and opportunity for all. These areas are interconnected and essential for creating a fair and thriving society.