Adam Klein: How Duke’s community partnerships benefit Durham

Why did Duke create this position?

This role is community-focused and supports our long-standing work in affordable housing and Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership. It’s also about ensuring that the social work we do is fully integrated into our everyday activities and the way we work together. This is reflected in my joint reporting to Stelfanie Williams, Vice President of Community, and Daniel Ennis, Executive Vice President.

All five elements of ours Strategic Community Impact Plan – housing affordability and infrastructure, nutrition and food security, early childhood education, college and career readiness, and support for nonprofits – community members said mattered most to them. The creation of this role is the latest step in integrating these priorities across the institution and incorporating them into everything we do.

What makes you fit for this role and why did it appeal to you?

Durham is home to me. I have lived here for 17 years and my children attend public schools in Durham. I care deeply about this community and have invested a lot of personal and professional time in it. I have supported entrepreneurs on the American Tobacco campus and the American Underground startup hub – which I am proud to have helped create more diversity, and I have also worked with the Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce.

For me, there are two key elements to this role: first, working with the community to understand what work they are doing and how we can support it. We are here to listen and we want to have more conversations like this. Second, involving our community in Duke’s aspirations, as do ours Climate Commitmentit can have a really positive impact on the city.

What have you learned so far?

What really struck me was how much significant support Duke has provided and continues to provide to Durham that many people in our community have no idea about.

For example, Duke University and Duke Health invested nearly $24 million in financial contributions to local governments and nonprofit entities in Durham in 2023, which includes more than $10 million to Durham-based organizations and nonprofits. This is all in addition to in-kind programs, volunteering and services provided in cooperation with our neighbors. Duke also provides its own fire and EMS services and earns $4 million in direct fire and EMS payments to the city each year.

“What really struck me was how much significant support Duke has provided and continues to provide to Durham that many people in our community have no idea about.”

Adam Klein

Even though Duke is a nonprofit, we still pay $9.7 million in property taxes each year. Duke pays taxes on our non-academic buildings, such as the Washington Duke Inn. Of the payments Duke makes each year to lease 2.8 million square feet of space from Durham property owners, $7.2 million goes to property taxes.

If Duke had adopted a different strategy and purchased office space for its needs, the property would have been tax-free. Instead, Duke made a conscious decision to lease space in Durham to increase its property tax base and shore up tax coffers each year. For example, more than two decades ago, Duke partnered with city governments to become an anchor tenant supporting the renovation of the American Tobacco campus as part of a strategy developed in close collaboration with local government partners. Duke’s commitment to take the space helped create new, taxpaying properties that increased the city’s tax revenues.

These investments were about more than just Duke; their goal was to support downtown revitalization with Durham residents and leaders; a transformation that delivered many multiples of raw investment in the form of new tax revenues that our public officials could use to improve life in Durham through business, arts, entertainment, sport and community support.

You mentioned affordable housing. What is Duke doing in this area?

We know there is a need for affordable housing in Durham. Duke is providing more than $22 million to local community development financial institutions to support the construction of more affordable homes. As one of the original partners, we contributed $1 million to the city for the Willard Street affordable housing project, placing over 70 we needed units next to a downtown transit station and were a development partner in the adjacent Ashton Place senior living community.

Last year, we provided a $1 million grant to the Durham Housing Authority to support the city’s efforts to successfully obtain a $40 million Neighborhood Choice Grant from the federal government. These efforts are already bearing fruit with the groundbreaking of the Commerce Street Apartments in August.

Duke also works with Durham Habitat for Humanity every year. Together, we have built nearly two dozen much-needed and affordable homes.

Why is it important for Duke to invest in our community?

Duke would not be what it is without the incredible community that is our hometown. Duke is the largest employer in Durham and 62 percent of our employees live here. That’s 29,000 people; Duke and Durham are inextricably linked. Our employees are our greatest asset and we care about them.

The Duke Home Buyers Club helps employees and their families become their first homeowner. Many of our employees are among Duke Health patients who receive $159 million in direct financial assistance each year; some are parents of children from Durham Public Schools participating in free tutoring and after-school programs offered by Duke students; or pathways from high school to high-demand health care careers.

Our employees are taxpayers who own and rent homes here and spend money in Durham. Duke also directly supports business development in Durham. Last year, of the $1.1 billion Duke spent on North Carolina suppliers, $232 million went to Durham-based companies. These investments create a ripple effect in our community because these businesses employ residents who then spend those dollars at their grocery stores, hair salons and favorite places to dine.

Duke also invested in the revitalization of downtown from a cultural standpoint. While Durham was modernizing its business district, Duke contributed $7.5 million to create the Durham Performing Arts Center, which attracts thousands of people from throughout the region each year.

So, through our direct investments, our employees and other community efforts, Duke has been an integral part of Durham for 100 years, and we intend to be a vital partner in Durham’s success in the next century and beyond. I welcome the opportunity to talk to anyone who wants to partner with us to shape that future.