Government— Page 3
Showing stories 75–98 of 199.
Charlotte Water Moves to Voluntary Restrictions as the Catawba-Wateree Basin Hits Stage 1
Charlotte Water shifted to voluntary water restrictions on Monday, April 20, the first time since 2023, after the Catawba-Wateree River Basin moved to Stage 1 of its regional Low Inflow Protocol. A separate citywide burn ban with a $100 fine and $183 in court costs was imposed alongside it. Here is what the city is asking and what would push the basin further.
Carla Cunningham Leaves the Democratic Party.
After losing her March primary to Rev. Dr. Rodney Sadler by nearly 48 points, the seven-term Charlotte representative re-registered Unaffiliated on Friday. She has not said whether she will caucus with Republicans. Speaker Destin Hall's veto-override math doesn't need her to.
Mayfield votes no on a Faith in Housing petition she built — tells the chamber the label is not "an automatic check"
Council Member LaWana Mayfield built Charlotte's Faith in Housing initiative. Monday night she voted against one of its petitions, and told the chamber from the dais why the label alone doesn't get a project to yes.
Charlotte Council Approves Both Faith in Housing Rezonings.
Council Member LaWana Mayfield, the architect of Charlotte's Faith in Housing initiative, voted against a Faith in Housing petition Monday night. Both rezonings passed. The second carried on the bare minimum: six yes votes, no mayor in the chair.
CMPD Reports 21 Percent Drop in Violent Crime, Warns 270 Vacancies Threaten to Undo It
Chief Estella Patterson reported violent crime down 21 percent and overall crime down 9 percent across Charlotte-Mecklenburg in 2025, but warned that roughly 270 CMPD vacancies and an unfunded ETJ mandate covering 86 square miles threaten to undo the gains. The BOCC also heard its third update on converting the former Bates 4th Row Library at 2324 LaSalle Street into a community center.
International Migration to Mecklenburg County Dropped 41 Percent in One Year
International migration to Mecklenburg County dropped 41 percent in a single year, from 22,545 new residents to approximately 13,000. The decline, presented to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Commission by Liz Morrell of the Charlotte Urban Institute, exposes a dependency: international migration ran at nearly nine times the domestic rate the year before the drop.
Three Governing Bodies, One Room, and a Restaurant That Started It All
CMS Board Chair Stephanie Sneed convened the BOCC, City Council, and CMS Board with the General Assembly delegation for the first joint legislative breakfast in at least 20 years.
Raleigh's Property Tax Squeeze Could Cap Charlotte's Future
The House Property Tax Study Commission meets April 15 with four draft bills, including a levy limit that would cap Mecklenburg County tax increases at roughly 1.5 cents. At a Joint Legislative Breakfast, officials from the BOCC, City Council, and CMS Board presented unified opposition.
Charlotte Housing Trust Fund Staff Picks Are In. The Questions Are Already Louder Than the Numbers.
Charlotte City Council reviews $20.85 million in Housing Trust Fund staff recommendations, four rental projects, nine homeownership proposals, as council members push back on rezoning timing, geographic concentration, and deferred projects ahead of the April 27 vote.
Charlotte City Council Passes First Post-Sales-Tax Transit Budget, Sends Street Vending Back to Committee
The first CATS budget built on the new 1% sales tax totals $571.7 million. Council rejected criminalizing street vendors. Staff recommended thirteen of eighteen housing trust fund proposals. The Stellar Awards are coming, but the city's check is not.
Mecklenburg County Spent $12 Million on Real Estate Monday Night. The Biggest Purchase Is for Housing.
Mecklenburg County voted unanimously to spend $4.5 million on the former Smith School at 1600 Tyvola Road, a site CMS vacated five years ago over a cancer cluster investigation, for future housing. A second vote authorized $7.5 million for 39 acres to replace Berryhill K-8. The biggest debate of the night was over parking.
Mecklenburg County Chair Tells Staff to Explore Litigation Against State Over Property Tax Legislation
Mecklenburg County Commission Chair Mark Jerrell directed staff to explore litigation options against the state of North Carolina after a briefing on four property tax bills advancing through the General Assembly. The board's sharpest target: a proposed constitutional amendment that would cap annual property tax increases, threatening the county's ability to fund $484 million in state-mandated costs.
Affordable Housing Tops Mecklenburg's Budget Survey for the Second Year. Willingness to Pay for It Is Dropping.
Mecklenburg County residents ranked affordable housing as their top budget priority for the second consecutive year. But willingness to accept a tax increase to fund it dropped to 48.8 percent, and lower-income residents were the least likely to say yes.
The Wilson Center Closed in December. People on Public Assistance Are Still Showing Up.
A Mecklenburg County employee told the board that more than 45 people a day are still coming to the closed Catherine M. Wilson Center on Billingsley Road. He asked why the county cannot spend $40,000 on postcards when it is projecting a $60 million surplus.
Charlotte Safety Committee Revisits Red Light Cameras After Fatality on The Plaza
Lance Sotelo was 25 years old when a driver ran a red light on The Plaza in January and hit him. Charlotte's Public Safety Committee has revisited the city's red light camera program, off the street since 2006, after city staff presented a legal path under Session Law 2016-64 to bring the cameras back. No vote was taken. The committee agreed to keep talking.
Charlotte Has Until April 27 to Pick. Eighteen Groups Applied for $45 Million. The City Has About $29 Million.
Charlotte received 18 proposals requesting more than $45 million for its Housing Trust Fund, but only has $28.7 million to give out. The council votes April 27.
Charlotte's Silver Line, Explained: The $3.3 Billion Light Rail That Already Shrank Before Construction Started
The original plan was 29 miles of light rail from Belmont to Indian Trail, through the airport, through Uptown, and into Union County. Charlotte got federal money. What followed was a lesson in what $19.4 billion buys when ambition meets infrastructure reality.
Charlotte's Red Line, Explained: The Commuter Rail That Took 25 Years to Start Building
Charlotte owns the railroad tracks, has a design contract, and a state law mandating the Red Line gets built before anything else. What it doesn't have yet is a train, and this commuter corridor has been 25 years in the making.
What Happened to CATS? How Charlotte's Transit System Went From City Department to Regional Authority
By July 1, 2026, CATS as a City of Charlotte department will cease to exist, absorbed into the new Metropolitan Public Transportation Authority. Here's how Charlotte's transit system went from city department to regional authority, and what it means.
How Charlotte's Transit Tax Works: What You're Paying, Where It Goes, and Who Controls It
Mecklenburg County voters approved a one-cent sales tax increase in November 2025. The PAVE Act splits the revenue 40/40/20 between roads, rail, and bus service, generating roughly $490 million annually. Here is how the money works and who controls it.
Gateway Station Charlotte: Why the City's Transit Hub Has Been 25 Years in the Making
Charlotte Gateway Station has $80 million in completed rail infrastructure and no station building. Phase 1 is done. Phase 2 has no start date. Here is why the project stalled, and how the MPTA may finally break the pattern.
What Is the MPTA? Charlotte's New Transit Authority, Explained
The Metropolitan Public Transportation Authority (MPTA) is Charlotte's new regional transit authority, created after voters approved a half-cent sales tax in November 2025. It assumes control of CATS on July 1, 2026, overseeing a $19.4 billion, 30-year transit investment plan.
McFadden's Closest Rival Just Became His Chief Deputy. Two Others Tried the Job and Quit Publicly.
Ricky Robbins, the CMPD sergeant who came within 2,717 votes of unseating Garry McFadden in the March primary, starts as Mecklenburg County's chief deputy on April 1. The last two people who held the position resigned with public letters accusing McFadden of running the office like a "third-world dictatorship" and creating a "toxic" work environment.
Elaine Powell Will Not Seek a Fifth Term. Her District 1 Seat Opens in November.
Elaine Powell, District 1 commissioner on the Mecklenburg BOCC, will not seek a fifth term after more than 30 years of public service. She chairs the Environmental Stewardship Committee. Her seat opens in November 2026.