Wilmington City Council approves a new residency requirement.
Council Member Shané Darby’s ordinance establishing a 5 year employee residency requirement for city employees passed Thursday night.
New hires will have a year to move into the city, up from the 6 months that were allowed in the previous measure.
Ordinance 23-040 also creates a fund to provide moving assistance to help in that year-long window, and creates a task force to address city hiring issues.
After a month of heated discussion, the new measure received 8 yes votes, 1 no, 3 voting present, and 1 absent.
Council Member Latisha Bracy previously sought to extend the radius of the residency requirement to encompass all of New Castle County. That failed in committee, and Bracy backed Darby’s ordinance Thursday.
In a last minute decision, Council Member Yolanda McCoy also flipped her vote.
“It’s been a lot of back and forth. I’m very glad it’s over. It was very contentious,” said McCoy. “Hopefully we’ll start seeing things move forward. As I stated earlier, I reached out to HR yesterday and I found out that since the press conference 86 residents of the City of Wilmington have applied to 20 different positions so hopefully we’ll start seeing some positions filled.”
Along with Darby, Bracy, and McCoy, Council Members Vincent White, Zanthia Oliver, Michelle Harlee, Chris Johnson, and Council President Trippi Congo voted in favor of the new residency requirement.
Congo says public turnout played a substantial role in shaping the ordinance that was ultimately approved.
“To see the public come out and to know that we listened to them as a council, despite all the adversity, despite the administration pushing back… it’s a great feeling,” said Congo. “And I’m sure that the residents feel even better than I do because they came out in droves. And they came out consistently. And they stayed for hours. We had to be there but they didn’t have to be there. So I’m very grateful to them.”
41 residents spoke at the October 20th meeting where Council discussed Ordinance 22-035, which sought to codify Mayor Mike Purzycki’s decision to stop enforcing the residency requirement.
Purzycki announced last month his administration believed the requirement no longer existed and was not enforcing it- the move that ignited this debate.
He cited a lack of applicants for critical city positions as the reason for his decision.
Ordinance 22-035 never came to a vote that evening, as its sponsor, Council Member Al Mills, decided to hold it. It was never reintroduced.
Pushback against a residency requirement remained in the following weeks despite the public showing overwhelming support for keeping the requirement as-is.
48 residents spoke during public comment Thursday night, with 19 specifically sticking around for the over 4 hour meeting to share their final opinion on the residency requirement. 18 spoke in favor of it.
27 shared their thoughts at the Joint Intergovernmental and Finance & Economic Development Committee meeting earlier this month.
Comments from that meeting led to more support from council for Darby’s ordinance, and the introduction of the task force that would be charged with finding ways to fill vacant jobs in the city and remove financial burdens associated with moving to the city. It also led to the creation of the residency assistance fund.
Darby says her legislation reflects the community’s wishes.
“I’m just excited to be part of this history and know that the community is being centered. They feel that they have the power and they do have the power,” said Darby.
The ordinance now awaits approval from Mayor Mike Purzycki before becoming effective.
