Why I'm Voting (Again) for Durham County Commissioner Wendy Jacobs
I first met Wendy Jacobs by email, when I became my South-Durham neighborhood’s representative on Durham’s Interneighborhood Council (INC). The oldest email I received from her is dated November 17, 2005, and has the following subject heading: GREAT NEWS! CWMTF HAS GRANTED $1.12 MILLION FOR PURCHASE OF DUKE/PENNY LAND! The message goes on to say that “the campaign to protect New Hope Creek and create New Hope Creek Park now includes our state government, four local governments, our local conservancy- Triangle Land Conservancy, citizens all across Durham and Orange Counties and beyond, neighborhood associations, community conservation groups, the New Hope Creek Advisory Committee, the Erwin Area Neighborhood Group, Duke University and local landowners, Carolyn and Wade Penny.” The message is signed, “Wendy Jacobs- For Erwin Area Neighborhood Group."
Almost one year later, in October 2006, Wendy informed the INC of a kid-friendly hike through the open space to be incorporated into the New Hope Creek project, which was now called Hollow Rock Park and New Hope Preserve and incorporated a Duke University tract that had been slated for development. Wendy then chaired the Hollow Rock Master Plan Committee, which lead to six years on the Durham Planning Commission. In 2016 - that's ten *years* later - the Hollow Rock Nature Park, a 75-acre portion of the larger New Hope Preserve, opened on Erwin Road. Beyond preserving over 100 acres of public open space, this large tract of natural, vegetated topography plays an increasingly crucial role in keeping surrounding waterways (and drinking water) clean, particularly as more development covers Durham County with impervious surfaces.
What has impressed me most about Wendy's involvement in the New Hope Preserve project are 1) her ability to establish the *extensive* collaborations (among often-competing organizations within Durham and beyond) required for the project to become a reality, and 2) her consistent and unyielding dedication and front-line involvement in the project from its inception to its fruition over ten years later.
When she was on the planning commission (and even after she was not), I emailed Wendy about every rezoning and development issue that concerned my young, optimistic, and often overenthusiastic heart. These included Scott Mill, a mass-graded subdivision of suburban homes in South Durham; the Fayettevlle Road Assemblage and Jordan at Southpoint, mass-graded 0.17-acre lots in South Durham; and the infamous 751 South rezoning to install 1,300 apartments, condos and houses, and 600,000 square feet of retail space (with up to 70% impervious surface!) on vulnerable land near Jordan Lake (see also https://www.newsobserver.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/article219079255.html).
Wendy never failed to return an email or phone call; and when we disagreed, which wasn't often, I understood her reasons. During this time, Wendy accepted an invitation to meet with concerned citizens, including myself, to discuss South Durham development issues. This meeting resulted in the county’s strengthening of ‘conservation subdivision’ requirements and in the county’s adoption of Environmental Enhancements to the Unified Development Ordinance (EEUDO, see section 3.1.4 in this link), as recommended by a city-county appointed committee.
Not only is Wendy accessible. It has become clear to me that when Wendy becomes involved in something, action generally follows. If she doesn't think it makes sense, she’ll tell you so and move on to the next item in her calendar; but if it makes sense, she's going to follow through if you do.
At 49 years old, I’m still working on reducing my combativeness and impatience in responding to situations that just don’t make sense in the long run. As a result, for the sake of my sanity and blood pressure, I’ve substantially reduced my activism as I've gotten older, particularly when it comes to development issues. It’s hard to keep fighting when your best outcome is merely to limit the spoils of your opposition.
Unlike me and since I first encountered her, Wendy has responded to situations that don’t make sense to her with calm, objectivity, and pragmatism: “How can we make this better for all of us in the long run, even if it takes time and a lot of work, and even if it's not perfect?” She also has stick-with-ed-ness. She doesn't wear down easily. Keeping worst-case-scenarios at bay is good enough reason for her to keep doing what she's doing, and what she's doing is hard work. As state and federal governments increasingly tie the hands of localities in safeguarding their residents’ natural resources and human rights- something that threatens to debilitate me with depression almost daily - Wendy hasn’t succumbed to helpless apathy; she has stepped up her game. She inspires me, and this, alone, is worth voting for.
If you'd like to support Wendy's re-election by putting one of these signs in your yard, please contact me at melissarooneywriting@gmail.com and provide your address (so I can deliver one to your house). Thanks for getting the vote out!
