Joint City County Planning Committee - Regular Meeting

Monday, July 20, 2026

Due to drought conditions, the Joint City County Planning Committee discussed water conservation efforts. General Services is using highly treated wastewater for irrigation, and Hill Nail golf course is reducing water consumption while prioritizing new turf.

About this meeting

Government Body
Joint City County Planning Committee
Meeting Type
Joint City County Planning Committee
Location
Durham, NC
Meeting Date
July 20, 2026

Transcript

3 sections

0:00 – 0:31Speaker 3

As you know, we are currently under water restrictions due to the drought here in Durham. At General Services, we have been adapting how we irrigate our landscaping based on what current stage water restrictions we are in at that time. Today we're filling up our watering trucks. We are using highly treated wastewater from water management to irrigate our landscapes and our newly planted trees across the city. This is non-potable, non-drinking water, so we are conserving Durham's fresh water sources during this drought.

0:31 – 0:55Speaker 2

It's important for us to water these plants because we have many new trees around the city at the moment. And in the future, these trees will provide shade and habitat for small creatures and birds. It's also important that we keep up with the perennials we have at the moment. Although many are drought tolerant, we're just giving them as much support possible with the reclaimed water.

0:55 – 1:49Speaker 1

We are in the middle of drought conditions, but rest assured Hill Nail is doing all we can to make sure that we're in compliance with the restrictions during this time. We are reducing our water consumption on our operational capacity and making sure that we at a minimum water the new turf in so we don't lose it and risk killing the public investment that we made in this project. Hill Hills is the only city-owned golf course in the area. And as such, we are staying in constant contact with city leadership on the restrictions that are in place currently. And as we hopefully come out of the situation, we're going to maintain what we have and just be the responsible partner that we encourage everybody else to be.

This transcript was automatically generated from the official public meeting video and is presented unedited. It reflects remarks made on the public record by elected officials, staff, and public commenters. Transcript accuracy may vary; view the original recording for reference.