See how Charlotte and Mecklenburg budget funding could impact your life, pay and commute

At the end of May, the city of Charlotte approved its $3.2 billion budget, raising city employee pay, increasing starting salaries for police and fire, raising some fees and services but keeping tax rates the same.

Mecklenburg County’s $2.1 billion budget is not yet adopted, but has stirred controversy over what its allocation to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools can fund. CMS employees and parents fear the $557.9 million the county is giving toward CMS — $20 million less than CMS requested — is not enough to up teacher assistant pay and add a 10% teacher supplement increase.

The Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners will hold votes for changes to line items on June 15 and 16, and the budget is set to be adopted on June 22.

Budgets account for billions of taxpayer dollars, bonds, capital investments and more. They include financial jargon that’s confusing to those of us without an accounting degree or financial experience.

For the city of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County residents unable to sift through hundreds of pages of budget line items, we’ve broken down ways your local budgets could impact your day-to-day life.

Water, trash and storm water service fees increase

Under the city’s adopted budget:

• With a 3.54% rate increase, the average household will pay around $30 more per year for water.

• The storm water service fee is higher, with the average residential bill going up about 34 cents per month.

• Curbside pickup will cost the average household just under $1 more per month.

Road work ahead

• Rea Road widening: This project will extend a third southbound through lane from the I-485 off-ramp to Williams Pond Lane; extend the northbound lane between Ballantyne Commons Parkway and I-485; and add left and right turn lanes at key intersections.

• Bryant Farms Road extension: The extension to Ardrey Kell Road will provide an alternative east-west route.

• Hickory Grove area: The city will add 2.65 miles of landscaped medians, curb and gutter, a multi-use path, planting strips and some pedestrian refuge islands to Robinson Church Road between WT Harris Boulevard to Hood Road. A roundabout is planned for the intersection with Plott Road.

• Eastway and Shamrock drives: The intersection of Eastway and Shamrock sees a high number of wrecks involving significant injuries. This project would add a multi-use path along Eastway Drive, buffered bike lanes, sidewalks and a planting strip on Shamrock Drive. Left-turn lanes at the intersection will be removed, replaced by cross streets added to the north and south.

• Ashley Road, Tuckaseegee Road and Freedom Drive: This project extends turn lanes, adds pedestrian refuge islands, widens sidewalks and adds bicycle lanes in effort to improve safety and traffic flow.

Increased neighborhood spending

The city of Charlotte has allocated $34.5 million toward transportation projects, housing, neighborhood stabilization, community engagement, placemaking, job planning, business development and public art in its “corridors of opportunity.”

Those corridors have been identified in the fiscal year 2023 budget as:

• Beatties Ford and Rozzelles Ferry roads

• Central Avenue and Albemarle Road

• Freedom Drive and Wilkinson Boulevard

• Interstate 85 and West Sugar Creek Road

• North Tryon and Graham streets

• West Boulevard

Affordable housing

The city budget includes $50 million voters would need to approve in a bond referendum and $55.5 million in federal funds for affordable housing initiatives such as down payment assistance and subsidizing construction or renovation of income-restricted apartments and homes.

The proposed county budget includes $12.7 million for affordable housing that will fund a Billingsley Road mixed-use development, critical home repair, supportive housing contracts, rental subsidies and a half-million dollars to “continue our research and develop strategies to address the impacts of corporate-owned housing in Mecklenburg County.”

Greener city buses

The city of Charlotte is pledging in its fiscal year 2023 budget to add 55 electric vehicles to its fleet.

“With recent technology advancements, the city continues to integrate electric buses, trucks, and vans into the fleet, and also add new technologies such as an all-electric street sweeper for CDOT,” the budget states.

CATS will get 18 new electric buses in the next fiscal year, the budget shows. Charlotte Douglas International Airport is allocated five electric buses as the airport transitions to make its entire fleet electric.

City and county employee raises

The city’s budget and the county’s proposed spending plan raise the minimum wage for hourly workers to $20. Other increases for Charlotte government workers include: an 8% raise (rolled out over a year) for hourly employees; one-time bonuses for specialized workers like those in public safety and commercial driving jobs; and merit-based raises up to 4% for salaried workers. Through its homeownership assistance program, the city budget calls for setting aside $2 million for employees who can’t live in the city because they can’t afford a deposit or down payment on a home.

The county manager recommends spending $16.6 million to give all staff members a 5% raise.

Meck pre-K will keep its current capacity

The Mecklenburg County government’s proposed budget recommends $23 million go toward Meck pre-K, the county’s free preschool for 4-year-olds, to serve 1,890 income-eligible students across 105 classrooms.

Some money would be added to the program to increase the reimbursement rate for participating pre-K centers, aimed at helping them recruit, retain and pay teachers and assistants.

Increased street parking rates

The street parking rate for uptown and South End will jump from $1 an hour to $1.50, and motorists will begin paying on Saturdays. City Manager Marcus Jones said the city hasn’t changed rates since the late ‘90s and expects to generate an additional $700,000 a year from the increase.

Revenue from the fee increase will help deal with city street improvement project cuts, Jones said.

New fire stations

The city’s budget includes $48.8 million within a capital investment plan to construct three fire stations.

The new stations include:

• An infill station in the Hidden Valley neighborhood
• A replacement of Station 11, currently located at 620 W. 28th St., north of uptown
• A replacement of Station 30, currently located at 4707 Belle-Oaks Drive near West Boulevard, south of the airport.

Station 30 will be the city’s first all-electric firehouse, with electric fire trucks and charging technology.

Sidewalks and bike lanes

The city’s budget includes $50 million that voters would need to approve in a bond referendum toward filling sidewalk gaps and improving accessibility on sidewalks.

The budget also includes an $8 million bond to fund the Charlotte Bicycle Plan which funds bike lanes, bike signal detection at intersections and other bike-safety initiatives around Charlotte.

Street lights

The city is allocating $4.5 million to add streetlights to unlit thoroughfares.

The city expects to add lights to the following areas, ranked by priority:

• South Tryon Street from Carowinds Boulevard to city limits

• Brookshire Boulevard from Mount-Holly Huntersville Road to Long Creek

• WT Harris Boulevard from Old Concord Road to the Plaza

• North Tryon Street from Institute Circle to Wednesbury Boulevard
• University City Boulevard from North Tryon Street to WT Harris Boulevard
• University City Boulevard from Old Concord Road to city limits
• Brookshire Boulevard from Idaho Drive to Interstate 77
• Brookshire Boulevard from Rozzelles Ferry Road to city limits
• Brookshire Boulevard from Bellhaven Boulevard to Fred D Alexander Boulevard

Plan to see the works of Picasso in spring

The county’s proposed budget includes $250,000 toward an exhibit featuring 45 rare Picasso works.

“Picasso Landscapes: Out of Bounds” is expected to run from mid-February to late May in 2023, Mint Museum spokesperson Clayton Sealey said. The exhibit will include the works of Charlotte-born American artist Romare Bearden.

This story was originally published June 5, 2022 at 6:00 AM.