Charlotte City Council Business Meeting - September 9, 2024

The Charlotte City Council held a business meeting on September 9, 2024, at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center. The meeting included a consent agenda, public forum, action review, public hearing, policy decisions, and votes on numerous business items. Key actions included approval of the Affordable Housing Funding Policy with a $100 million Housing Trust Fund, the Eastland Redevelopment Sports and Entertainment Development Agreement, and several transportation and infrastructure contracts. The meeting also featured a proclamation for National Suicide Prevention Month and public comments on animal shelter conditions and community development needs.

Consent Calendar

• Approved consent items 19 through 35, with items 28 and 33 pulled for separate discussion and vote.
• Item 28 (CATS Micro-Transit Services) approved after questions from Councilmembers Johnson and Mayfield; contract with MV Transportation Inc. and Spare Labs Inc. for on-demand transit service; 38.14% MBE participation noted.
• Item 33 (Municipal Records Retention and Disposition Schedule Update) approved after discussion about transparency and backlog of public records requests; staff committed to provide a report on pending requests.
• Other approved consent items included: Housing Counseling contracts (DreamKey Partners, Community Link), HOPWA contract (Carolinas CARE Partnership, $3.64M), heavy truck collision repair (Rush Truck Center), sign fabrication (Carolina Signs and Wonders, RLM Group, JKS Motorsports), waterproofing services (Strickland Waterproofing), engineering for Ashe Plantation WWTP upgrade ($489,500 amendment), storm drainage improvements at three locations ($2.375M), High Ridge Road drainage project ($1.458M), South End Station engineering amendment ($988,723), vanpool operations (Enterprise Leasing), airport electric vehicle charger parts (sole source, Averest), airport fire protection maintenance amendment ($99,425), tree canopy preservation land acquisition ($850,000 for 7.609 acres), records retention schedule update, minutes approval (six meetings from 2022), and property transactions for Bryant Farms Road and Saint John Lane.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Joy Mayo (Transforming Nations Forward) and Silgan Sow (Our Bridge) urged the city to sell a city-owned parcel at Arrowwood Road to Mecklenburg County for $1 to create youth amenities (basketball courts, soccer fields, playground, pavilion). They cited over 1,000 signatures and stark inequities: in the Southwest area, life expectancy drops to 60 years (48 in some apartments), 60% of neighbors are Hispanic/Latino, and only 36% of homes have internet access. They requested meetings with each council member.
• Kristen Coughlin and Anna Grace Blunt (animal foster volunteers) advocated for a new, adequately staffed animal shelter and independent city department (currently under CMPD). They described staff burnout, outdated facilities, and procedural obstacles causing animal suffering (e.g., kennel cough, pneumonia). They urged council to prioritize shelter reform.
• No speakers for the Hudspeth Area Voluntary Annexation public hearing.

Discussion Items

• Community Area Planning Update: Staff (Monica Holmes, Kathy Cornett) presented Phase 3 engagement for the 14 area plans, with workshops through fall 2024. The revised policy map (6% change from community input) and a policy map manual were released. Councilmember Driggs requested district-level review before draft plan adoption in early 2025. Councilmember Bokhari stressed the need for infrastructure needs assessment (roads, water, sewer) tied to UDO density increases. Staff committed to providing district-specific briefing books and further council engagement.
• Arts and Culture Governance: Staff (Julia Martin) proposed a new Arts, Science, and Cultural Council (ASCC) governance structure with a 17-member board (5 city, 5 county, 3 Foundation for the Carolinas, 2 Mecklenburg towns, 2 from grants advisory board). The city’s $11 million FY25 arts allocation includes $9M hardwired to traditional organizations (distributed via Foundation) and $2M for Charlotte is Creative. Debate centered on accountability, equity of funding, and appointment processes. Councilmember Bokhari and others expressed concerns about board composition and transparency. The council deferred a decision, with the City Manager committing to bring back additional details on governance at the first business meeting in October.
• Financial Partner Policy: Deferred as it was still in committee.

Key Outcomes

• Affordable Housing Funding Policy (Item 10): Approved unanimously. Establishes a $100 million Housing Trust Fund for FY2025 with investment categories: Rental Housing Production ($35M), Homeownership ($25M), Rental Housing Preservation/Anti-Displacement ($14M), Supportive Housing/Shelter ($9M), Rehabilitation/Emergency Repair ($5M), Innovation Pilot Fund ($5M), Site Acquisition for Transit Areas ($5M), Administration/Evaluation ($2M). Prioritizes homebuyers, lower-wage workers, at-risk households, and location incentives. Board directed staff to finalize community survey (under 400 responses so far) to inform implementation.
• Hudspeth Area Voluntary Annexation (Item 8): Public hearing closed; ordinance adopted effective September 9, 2024. Annexes 37.04 acres (two parcels) east of I-485 on North Tryon Street, owned by Meck29 APT, LLC, to allow 379 multi-family dwelling units. Assigned to Council District 4. Staff noted minimal impacts on city services and projected revenue exceeding costs.
• Public Transportation Grant (Item 11): Approved $417,600 from NCDOT for regional transit coordination (ConCPT program) with $104,400 local match.
• Morris Field Drive Bridge Replacement (Item 12): Approved supplemental agreements accepting $1,745,000 (STBG-DA) and $857,000 (STBG for design cost overage), plus budget ordinance for $2,602,000. Project total: $12.688M; construction starts FY2026.
• Rea Road Widening Project (Item 13): Approved $300,000 supplemental from NCDOT for additional resurfacing. Project total $20.27M; construction starts early 2026.
• Opioid Settlement Funding (Item 14): Approved resolution directing expenditure of $14.47 million in settlement proceeds (annual avg. $964,499) for recovery housing and employment services via Mecklenburg County interlocal agreement.
• Eastland Redevelopment Sports and Entertainment Development Agreement (Item 15): Approved after public comment from Greg Asciutto (Charlotte East). Authorizes City Manager to negotiate master development agreement with the merged sports complex team (QC East @ Eastland Yards and Eastland Yards Indoor Sports Complex). Total city commitment: up to $18.994M for public infrastructure (additional $8.994M) and up to $22.334M for amateur sports facilities (additional $2.344M), funded by General Capital Investment Plan and Convention Center Tax Fund. Project will create 500 jobs, 9,000+ hours of free community access, youth sports, and retail/entertainment. Councilmembers highlighted 20-year community effort.
• Byrne Discretionary Grant – CARES Program (Item 16): Approved acceptance of $963,000 from DOJ to expand the Civilian Assistance: Respond, Engage, Support (CARES) team. Grant funds 4 clinicians, 1 program coordinator, 1 navigator, 1 supervisor to respond to mental health/homelessness calls. Partnership with Mecklenburg County to expand hours/geographic reach.
• Police Department Land Acquisition (Item 17): Approved purchase of 11.79 acres on Woodridge Center Drive for $7.1 million to relocate CMPD Aviation Division and expand Special Operations. Includes existing 27,341 sq. ft. office building; closing by October 15, 2024.
• Appointment to Charlotte Mecklenburg Public Access Corporation (Item 18): Appointed Sasha Tomaszycki to partial term ending June 30, 2026.
• Proclamation: Recognized September 2024 as National Suicide Prevention Month. Fonda Bryant highlighted that suicide is the second leading cause of death for ages 10-34 and for police officers not in line of duty; CMPD lost fourth officer to suicide in 2.5 years.