Winston-Salem City Council Committee of the Whole Meeting - June 9, 2025

The Winston-Salem City Council met as a Committee of the Whole on Monday, June 9, 2025, at 2:00 PM to discuss items from the Public Safety, General Government, Public Works, and Finance committees. The meeting covered a wide range of topics including sustainability updates, firefighter leave accrual rates, traffic calming projects, pavement conditions, a proposed economic development incentive, the Citizens Budget Advisory Council report, and the Fiscal Year 2025-26 budget. All votes were conducted by voice vote due to system issues. The meeting concluded with a motion to enter closed session to discuss business location or expansion.

Consent Calendar

• Public Safety Committee: Approved the summary of minutes from May 12, 2025.
• General Government Committee: Approved consent items C-1 through C-9 (including demolition orders for properties at 1405, 1508, 1515 E. 22nd Street and 1526 E. 25th Street; rescinding prior demolition orders for 1509 E. 22nd Street, 1900 Longview Drive, 3919 Old Vineyard Road, and 5207 Old Rural Hall Road; and approval of General Government Committee minutes). Item C-3 was pulled to correct an address typo (1515 E. 21st Street instead of 22nd Street). Item C-7 was pulled for clarification; the rescission was noted as correct because the property owner had demolished the structure or paid the lien. Both were approved as amended.
• Public Works Committee: Approved consent items C-2 (easement abandonment on Fairway Drive), C-3 (public hearing date for right-of-way closure north of Carnation Drive), and C-4 (approval of Public Works Committee minutes). Item C-1 (2025 Traffic Calming Projects) was pulled for discussion and later approved.
• Finance Committee: Approved consent items C-1 through C-8 (including surplus equipment, blanket purchase orders for sole source vendors, purchase of two hoist loader trucks, HRIS contract with UKG Inc., property insurance, demolition assessment roll, and budget amendments). Item C-2 (sole source vendors) was pulled for discussion; after explanation, it was approved.

Discussion Items

• Sustainability Office Annual Update (General Government G-1): Dr. Shayley Miller presented the annual update. Key points: The office participated in 87 community events, launched a quarterly newsletter for food resilience partners, and implemented a new recycling program in city offices. Citywide contamination dropped 4% in the past year. A $16,000 grant will install a solar charging table in Marshall Plaza in July. The department added electric vehicles (3 Ford Lightnings, 6 more through EECBG grant) and installed 15 charging plugs. The first Recycling Regatta was held on May 3, 2025. Councilmember Hall asked about the solar table timeline; Councilmember Andree-Bowen asked about cost savings; Dr. Miller noted payback for solar is long-term (about 15 years) and EV savings depend on mileage. Councilmember Scipio praised the work and noted that sustainability is a long-term process.
• Information on Accrual Rates for City Employees (General Government G-2): Assistant City Manager Sharon Voida presented an update on proposed changes to sick and vacation accrual rates for fire department employees (56-hour work schedule). Currently, fire employees accrue 24 hours of sick leave per day (more than double the rate of 40-hour employees). The proposal reduces the accrual rate to 12 hours per day, effective January 1, 2026, with no changes to existing balances. This brings the rate in line with the 2015 level and better aligns with peer city fire departments. The estimated annual liability under the current rate is $8.2 million; the proposal would reduce it by just over $4 million. If other city employees were raised to match fire’s rate proportionally, the additional annual liability would be $22 million. Salary comparisons showed Winston-Salem firefighter pay is competitive for entry-level and lower ranks but lags for captains and battalion chiefs. Staff committed to including fire in the first year of the next compensation study cycle (FY2025-26). Councilmember Joiner asked about preserving existing balances (confirmed), Councilmember Andree-Bowen asked about degree percentages among ranks, and Councilmember Hall asked about the high percentage of fire employees (46%) taking more than 2.3 months off in 2024 compared to 9% of other employees. Voida explained that accumulations of vacation and holiday time contribute to the difference.
• 2025 Traffic Calming Projects (Public Works C-1): Reed Hutchins, Transportation Operations Manager, presented plans for calming measures in Southeast and East Wards, including speed humps, stop signs, and lane markings on Devonshire, Pitts Street, Aaron Place, and Pleasant Street. On Pleasant Street, the treatment includes stop signs and a 25 mph neighborhood designation, with 212 residents voting yes (exceeding 70% threshold). The project was approved by voice vote.
• Pavement Condition and Street Resurfacing Update (Public Works G-1): Keith Huff presented results of a citywide pavement condition study using AI-based radar and video technology. The Pavement Condition Index (PCI) showed: 14.4% of roads rated good, 33.3% satisfactory, 31% fair, 11.2% poor, 6.2% very poor, 3.1% serious, and 0.6% failed (6.2 miles). Staff will use a “worst-first” approach with an 80-20 split (80% worst roads, 20% collectors/arterials). A draft list is being vetted for utility conflicts. A GIS tool will allow real-time PCI lookup. Councilmember Clark asked for directions to the online tool; Councilmember Scipio asked about the budget-based list. This was an information item only.
• Project Flower Economic Development Assistance (Finance G-1): Scott Millett presented a request for performance-based incentives for Project Flower, a company manufacturing hemp-derived wellness products. The company would create 41 new jobs at an average salary of $79,000, with a capital investment of $2.95 million. Staff recommended incentives up to $43,784 (50% of net new property taxes over five years). A public hearing is set for June 16, 2025. The resolution was approved by voice vote.
• Citizens Budget Advisory Council (CBAC) Report (Finance G-2): Tony Piacenza, CBAC Chair, presented the committee’s recommendations: (1) conduct regular reviews of city user fees using benchmarking data; (2) review additional user fee opportunities where appropriate; (3) create a public expenditure dashboard; (4) develop expenditure growth policies; (5) eliminate the internal leasing program and move to cash financing; (6) evaluate cost-effectiveness of vehicle leasing; (7) eliminate general obligation bonds for short-term capital projects and allocate a 1.3-cent property tax increase for infrastructure maintenance; (8) conduct a facilities needs assessment; and (9) provide taxpayer resources to understand property tax changes. The report was informational.
• Fiscal Year 2025-26 Budget and Recommended Tax Rate (Finance G-3): Budget Director Scott Tesh presented the proposed budget. The original recommended tax rate was 4.8 cents above revenue neutral. Following Chairman Clark’s request, staff proposed $3.2 million in reductions (0.8 cents) to bring the rate to 4.0 cents above revenue neutral. Reductions include: $1.8 million from lower COLA/merit adjustments (2% in July, 2% in January, plus pay scale adjustments), $100,000 from reduced convention center subsidy, and $1.3 million from transit service reductions (primarily ending weekday evening service around 9:30 PM, to be negotiated). For a median home valued at $232,800, the proposed tax increase is $7.75 per month (7.6% above revenue neutral). Councilmember Hall noted that 45% of the tax increase was due to transit; she appreciated that cuts targeted late evening service rather than eliminating routes. Councilmember Andree-Bowen asked for ridership data after 9:30 PM, which staff will provide. Chairman Clark noted that swimming pool fee increases were moved to January 1, 2026. The budget will be formally considered at the June 16, 2025 meeting.

Key Outcomes

• Public Safety Committee: Minutes approved.
• General Government Committee: All consent items approved as amended. Sustainability update and accrual rate information received as information.
• Public Works Committee: Traffic calming projects approved. Pavement condition update received as information.
• Finance Committee: All consent items approved. Project Flower incentive resolution approved. CBAC report received as information. Budget discussion concluded; the proposed budget with a 4-cent tax rate increase above revenue neutral will be brought to the June 16, 2025 City Council meeting for formal action.
• Closed Session: A motion was made and approved to enter closed session under N.C.G.S. 143-318.11(a)(4) to discuss business location or expansion.
• Next Steps: The City Council will meet again on June 16, 2025, to hold a public hearing on Project Flower, adopt the FY2025-26 budget ordinances, and consider other items previewed during the meeting.