WEB EXCLUSIVE Raleigh’s newest park is open to the public! Located in Northeast Raleigh, River Bend Park features a kayak/canoe launch on the Neuse River, access to the Neuse River Greenway trail and a playground with a rubberized safety surface, swings, slides and a climbing bouldermore. The park makes for a great—and safe—place to take your kiddos during the weekend or to hop on the Greenway trail for an afternoon run, walk or bike ride. Once it gets warm again, take your canoe or kayak out for a ride, too.
River Bend Park’s 25 acres were purchased by the City of Raleigh in 2012 as a potential neighborhood park site. In 2014, Raleighites approved the 2014 bond referendum for parks, allocating $2 million for phase one construction of River Bend Park. However, construction didn’t officially begin until fall of 2019, after many citizen planning committee meetings, city council meetings, workshops and design proposals.
The now-opened park is easily accessible to students at River Bend Middle and Elementary Schools and Wake Tech University, as well as several surrounding Northeast Raleigh neighborhoods. Raleigh’s mild winter weather will surely provide several opportunities for exploring and enjoying the park this season.
River Bend Park is located at 5610 Wallace Martin Way and is open from dawn to dusk every day. For more information, visit raleighnc.gov/places/river-bend-park.
WEB EXCLUSIVE Following the police brutality—including the use of tear gas—that ensued after peaceful protests in downtown Raleigh in May after the death of George Floyd, the Raleigh Police Department underwent an independent review of their practices, policies and procedures on the use of force and their response to protests and mass gatherings by 21CP Solutions, a group that “helps law enforcement agencies and communities effectively tackle the challenges of policing in the 21st century.” Last week, 21CP Solutions released their report, which also included several after-action recommendations for the RPD.
21CP says they used information and data provided by RPD, RPD personnel in focus groups and community members to conduct the final report, which they also note was not an independent after-action report, nor were they charged with conducting an independent investigation on what did and did not occur during the protests. 21CP then formulated recommendations for future issues based on RPD’s existing policies and national practices.
The report outlines a total of 38 recommendations across eight categories. Below, we summarize key points in each of these eight categories. (According to 21CP Solutions, recommendations are not ranked in any specific order.)
Operational Planning
RPD training records obtained by 21CP showed that RPD provides crowd management and incident command training to officers within the National Incident Management System (“NIMS”) framework RPD uses to manage large and complex events. However, 21CP recommends that the police department train additional commanders that are more capable of handling large police actions during critical incidents, and have all officers undergo Mobile Field Force (MFF) and Crowd Management training. 21CP also recommends that whenever RPD gets word of an organized protest, they develop an Incident Action Plan, which would help them effectively manage any civil disorder and subsequent action like arrests. Additionally, this category sheds light on the City of Raleigh’s picket or protest permitting ordinance that requires an application to be approved by the Chief of Police, which 21CP recommends both the city and RPD start enforcing.
Use of Force and De-escalation During Protests
RPD’s policy on the use of force and weapons as of March 26, 2020 stated that “force should be used only when all other means of resolving a situation have been exhausted or are clearly inapplicable” and should only be used when “reasonably necessary to control a situation.” Through interviews with Raleigh community voices, RPD’s After Action Report and video footage, 21CP found that RPD deployed several munitions, including tear gas, foam batons and rubber bullets, on the nights of May 30 and 31.
In their report, 21CP recommends that RPD develop a more clear and specific guidelines on when the use of force is okay in crowd contexts and re-train commanders on when and how to deploy special munitions, including in what circumstances RPD should deploy tear gas. 21CP suggests that RPD find a way to document the use of tear gas, foam batons and/or projectiles for accountability purposes.
Equipment and Resources
Through interviews with RPD, 21CP found that many of the police department’s gas canisters were expired. 21CP recommends that the police department keep an inventory of their equipment to ensure their effectiveness and, should they continue to use chemical munitions, their supply be “vetted for quality and usability.” Additionally, 21CP suggests RPD look into using “soft” protective equipment for Mobile Field Force personnel, which offers similar protection provided by the gear currently worn by RPD’s MFF squads without the intimidating “militarized” look. It may also be helpful, according to 21CP, for RPD to look into CCTV cameras, aerial support and intelligence, small utility vehicles like Gators and sound amplification devices in department-issued gas masks.
Communications
21CP Solutions noted that communicating with staff is extremely important when planning for a large-scale event or a critical incident response. They recommended that RPD develop a strategy to communicate clearly and effectively what they expect from MFF during a protest that could potentially turn violent. 21CP said that, through interviews with RPD stakeholders, they discerned that there was no communication strategy in place before the protests on May 30 and 31. 21CP also suggested that there be a debriefing after protest, crowd management and critical incident management shifts.
Mutual Aid
During the nights of May 30 and May 31, RPD obtained mutual aid from ten different jurisdictions. 21CP recommends RPD review their existing Mutual Aid Agreements and reach out to local and county law enforcement agencies that may be able to offer further protection or resources to them; all agreements should be reviewed annually.
Body Worn Cameras
Nationally, the use of body worn cameras by police officers has increased greatly in recent years. According to an RPD camera policy provided to 21CP, “the use of body worn cameras is prohibited during many protest situations.” 21CP recommends that RPD review this policy to ensure that its requirements are clear within the contexts of protests and crowd management. 21CP also suggests that RPD establish a committee that would convene to manage training, implementation and maintenance of body cameras.
After Action Reports
21CP defines an After Action Report (AAR) as a “process in which ‘following a project or event,’ an organization and its ‘members gather to share insights and identify mistakes and successes.” They recommend that both stakeholders inside and outside of the Raleigh Police Department are involved in the After Action Review process and that all After Action Reports filed detail actions, responsibilities and timeframes, as well as recommendations for future events. The police chief should ensure these actions are being implemented within a regular report.
Community Engagement
21CP recommends that after large protests and other incidents, the community should be able to debrief with the department to express any personal experiences or concerns. A third party can further help with communication between police and the community in order to deter violence or conflict. Additionally, RPD should utilize their social media accounts for communicating with protesters and other community members during critical events.
View 21CP Solutions full report of the Raleigh Police Department following the protests in May here.
WEB EXCLUSIVE In an effort to slow North Carolina’s recent alarming increase in positive coronavirus cases, Governor Roy Cooper announced a modified stay at home order and government-mandated 10 p.m. curfew—with alcohol sales prohibited after 9 p.m.—on Friday, December 11. Despite the order, on Wednesday, December 16 we saw 5,273 new COVID-19 cases, up from 5,236 the day before, and 2,811 coronavirus-related hospitalizations—the highest single-day count reported in North Carolina since the pandemic hit in March.
Upcoming holiday gatherings pose a threat for even more positive cases; Both Cooper and NCDHHS secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen urge North Carolinians to stay home for the holidays and keep gatherings small—if gathering at all.
Although the numbers are alarming, vaccines—one of which has already made its way to North Carolina—provide a glimmer of hope. Read on for more COVID-19 updates as of Thursday, December 17, and remember to always wear your mask and stay socially distanced from others in order to help stop the spread.
Retired nurse Faye Williams, who volunteered at Duke University Hospital at the start of the pandemic, was the first person in the Triangle to receive the Pfizer vaccine on Tuesday, December 15. The vaccine has already made it to several other hospitals and nursing homes through the state. North Carolina’s four-phase plan states that heath care workers will recieve the vaccine first, then high risk adults with two or more pre-existing conditions, followed by essential workers and, finally, the general public.
The New York Timesdeveloped a tool with the Surgo Foundation and Ariadne Labs that allows you to input your information (including age, employment and any COVID-related health risks) to see when you might be able to receive the vaccine. Many health officials are predicting that “everyday citizens” will be able to get vaccinated freely by spring or summer 2021.
Wake County schools return to remote learning
On Tuesday, the Wake County school board voted to move all students back to online classes from January 4 through 15, with students returning to classrooms on January 20. The pause in in-person teaching is due to a staffing shortage in schools because of teachers getting exposed to coronavirus and/or quarantining, and will give schools a chance to prepare for students returning to classes after an expected increase in positive case numbers after the holidays.
Local law enforcement
During a press conference on Tuesday, December 15, Gov Cooper called on local law enforcement to help enforce his recent modified stay at home order. The North Carolina Department of Justice insists that local governments may “unquestionably enforce local ordinances that establish civil penalties for violations” of Cooper’s executive orders, which Cooper believes will be more effective than criminal charges.
“Our aim is not to get people in trouble, it is to get people to do the right things to slow the spread of this virus and keep it from overwhelming our hospital systems,” Cooper tweeted on Tuesday. “I’m grateful to the many local governments already taking action to keep their communities safe.”
WEB EXCLUSIVE They say that the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear, and Bold Music, a Charlotte and Raleigh-based in-home music lesson provider, takes the sentiment to heart. On Monday, December 14, the service released a special holiday music video—think of it like a virtual holiday card—featuring some of their Raleigh students and teachers performing the jolly song ”Winter Wonderland” as a way to introduce themselves to the Raleigh market, which they officially joined in August.
Bold Music partnered with The Pour House Music Hall to shoot the music video; they also included footage of different iconic parts of Raleigh. “We wanted to introduce ourselves to Raleigh but due to COVID we couldn’t do our normal events, so we had to get creative,” says Bold Music co-founder George Ramsay. “This is our way of saying ‘Hey Raleigh, we’re here’ while plugging into the culture and the people. Our whole mission as a company is to bring people quality music education, but we also want to have a positive impact on the culture in every city that we’re in.”
Scenes from the shooting of Bold Music’s holiday music video at The Pour House
Ramsay and Dean Williams, a friend he went to Davidson College with, started Bold Music in 2013 in Charlotte. Ramsay has been a musician his entire life, starting with piano and working his way up to guitar and string instruments. Both him and Williams were both teaching at a nearby studio at the time they attended Davidson—Ramsay eventually earned a music degree—and thought that there was a better way to provide music lessons to students.
“We knew we could provide a much better service if we went to families rather than having them drive,” Ramsay explains. “As musicians ourselves, we also thought there was a much better, less stressful and more consistent ways to work as teachers.”
Kids and adults of all ages can sign up for music lessons from Bold Music. They receive lessons once a week from a local teacher, most of whom are musicians themselves. Back in February, Bold Music started implementing virtual makeup lessons in order to save teachers from the hassle of driving around the city around their busy schedules. The pivot came just in time for COVID to hit in March, when they were forced to make all lessons virtual due to the shutdown.
Ramsay says that their teachers were already trained on virtual lessons and families knew that it was coming—with the infrastructure already in place it was easy for them to make a smooth transition to virtual music lessons. “That was just lucky,” Ramsay says. Bold Music recently started going back to in-home lessons, but lately, due to the recent increase in positive coronavirus case rates, they’ve started doing more virtual lessons again.
Ramsay is excited to be in the Raleigh market and hopes that Bold Music’s holiday music video will reach children and adults interested in learning how to play a musical instrument. Watch the full music video on YouTube, and learn more about Bold Music’s private in-home and virtual lessons at boldmusiclessons.com.
WEB EXCLUSIVE Shop from black-owned businesses every single day at the new Black Friday Market opening this month in downtown Raleigh. The retail store, which will feature products solely from Black-owned businesses, is the brainchild of Kayla Walker, Janeyce Flager and Jasmine Bullock, all of whom have been working with the Black Flea Market and BlackDollarNC—a Black-owned business directory with a rolodex of over 200 businesses in North Carolina—since January 2020, hosting events and putting a spotlight on Black business owners throughout the coronavirus pandemic. “The store just kind of happened organically as time went on,” Walker says.
Collaboratively, the Black Friday Market team, Black Flea Market and BlackDollarNC hosted events such as Project: Live!, an outlet for business owners to engage with, promote and sell their products to an online audience; the bi-weekly Black Flea Market; a Martin Luther King Jr. brunch; and a fundraiser during COVID-19 for barbers, hair salons and massage therapists that were shut down.
Walker says that the most important aspect of Black Friday Market is giving Black-owned business owners whose brick and mortars were forced to shut down during the pandemic a space to sell their work. “They just need income,” adds Walker. “With the limitations that COVID keeps presenting, this is pretty much the best option for them right now. We’re in the heart of downtown so there’s already foot traffic.” Owners are able to sit back and relax and let Walker and her team do the selling for them via their downtown storefront and online.
When thinking about Black Friday Market, Walker says to think of it like “a modern, new age Walmart.” They will sell everything from clothes, to jewelry, to beverages—including coffee and tea, to preservatives, furniture, art, sculptures, health and wellness products, and more. “We’re not over exaggerating—we’ll have literally everything you can think of,” Walker says. The Black Friday Market team will also continue to do work in the community, including hosting workshops, seminars and fundraisers for business owners.
Black Friday Market will officially open on December 18 at 23 West Hargett Street. Their socially distanced, COVID-friendly grand opening celebration will feature food, music and shopping. Cross off the remaining people on your Christmas list while supporting local, Black-owned businesses!
