The Comprehensive Plan is now in the formal adoption process. Staff is working to archive this website to document the engagement and planning process. Some information on this page may be out of date or reference a project phase that is now complete. For the most up-to-date information on the Comprehensive Plan, see the Adoption Process page.  

Comprehensive Plan Resources

Comprehensive Plan Research: a sample of research into other plans across the country.

Comprehensive Plan Quick Facts: Read a quick summary of what a Comprehensive Plan is, why it is important and how community input will impact the creation of the plan.

Listening & Learning Engagement Summary: Read about what we heard during the first phase of engagement for the Listening and Learning workshops, online survey and Engagement Ambassador sessions.

2005 Durham Comprehensive Plan: Explore Durham’s previous Comprehensive Plan developed in 2005.

Equitable Community Engagement Blueprint: Learn about the Equitable Community Engagement Blueprint which is guiding the work of the Comprehensive Plan.

Meeting Resources

Outreach Team Meetings

This is a group of resident volunteers who are collaborating with staff in forming the engagement process and encouraging residents to participate . The Outreach Team, overseen by planning staff, has several working groups that are focused on helping staff make this process more accessible to Durham residents.

Meeting Notes & Agenda: May 17, 2022 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: January 11, 2022 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: September 7, 2021 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: July 20, 2021 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: June 2, 2021 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: April 14, 2021 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: February 10, 2021 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: January 12, 2021 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: December 1, 2020 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: November 10, 2020 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: September 29, 2020 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: May 12, 2020 (PDFs)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: March 5, 2020 (PDFs)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: February 4, 2020 (PDFs) 
Meeting Agenda: October 22, 2019 (PDF)
Meeting Agenda: September 17, 2019 (PDF)
Meeting Agenda: August 27, 2019 (PDF)
Meeting Agenda: July 25, 2019 (PDF)

Staff Technical Team Meetings

The Staff Technical Team is comprised of staff from various City and County departments. The goal of  this group is to understand how each City and County department operates and how the Comprehensive Plan can better serve their needs. Planning staff have also been meeting with individual departments to promote interdepartmental collaboration, learn about unique department operations, and collaborate on process improvements that can be worked on now or incorporated into the Comprehensive Plan.

Meeting Notes & Agenda : July 23, 2021 (PDF)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: January, 22, 2021 (PDFs)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: May 15, 2020 (PDFs)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: January 17, 2020 (PDFs)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: November 15, 2019 (PDFs)
Meeting Notes & Agenda: September 24, 2019 (PDFs)

Boards, Commissions and Committees Meetings

This group is comprised of representatives from Durham City and County boards, commissions and committees. Representatives are responsible for participating in quarterly meetings, sharing meeting information back with their group, engaging and encouraging group members to engage with the Comprehensive Plan efforts, gathering insight and expertise from respective board/commission/committee, and reporting insight gathered back with Comprehensive Planning staff. Members of this group have also joined the Outreach Team working groups focused on improving accessibility to residents in the process.

April 28, 2020: BCC Agenda & Notes (PDF)
January 30, 2020: BCC Agenda & Notes (PDF)

Policy Working Groups

Below you can find links to initial policy brainstorming by each policy working group that will be shared with residents throughout the community through engagement in Spring of 2022.

Policy Working Groups Page

Other Helpful Resources

Here you can find documents, reports, and other resources that were created by others, but that inform the comprehensive plan or provide context.

Durham Today Demographic Profile – Learn more about Durham’s demographic profile
Durham Race and Ethnicity – Explore which populations live where in Durham
Bull City 150: Uneven Ground Exhibit – visit this virtual exhibit to learn about Durham’s history along with future hopes and challenges of housing and land equity in Durham’s modern era.
Durham Racial Equity Task Force Recommendations report – At the request of Mayor Pro Tempore Jillian Johnson, the city of Durham formed its first racial equity task force in October 2018, and appointed 17 volunteer members from across the city of Durham. This work concluded with a detailed report, which was presented to the Durham City Council on July 22, 2020. This report seeks to address, develop, and implement policies and actions to ensure a more equitable Durham community
Community Health Assessment Reports – The 2019 Community Health Assessment door-to-door survey was the first step in the 2020 Community Health Assessment process. Volunteers, Durham County Department of Public Health and Duke University/Duke Health staff spoke with more than 600 Durham County residents on topics ranging from access to healthcare, food access, housing, discrimination and more. View results of the Countywide and Hispanic or Latino Neighborhood samples.