Durham Council Struggles to Define Living Wage and Incentive Priorities Durham City Council at a virtual January meeting. Things were going pretty well during a city council meeting this month for Ian Bracken, who requested a $102,000 economic incentive grant to help open a modest sandwich shop and grocery with a rooftop garden in east Durham. Bracken, who purchased the late 1940s red-brick building for $130,000 last May, envisions a place where the facade remains unchanged. He wants to replace the awning at the entrance to protect his patrons from the elements. In an area that's pretty much a food desert, he wants to teach neighborhood youngsters how to grow and cook their own food.