Charlotte Mayor Lyles announces efforts to improve City Council after ‘tough week’
A pair of Charlotte leaders will team up to look at ways to improve City Council performance after a tumultuous week in local government.
Mayor Vi Lyles announced at Monday’s City Council meeting she’ll partner with Council member Renee Perkins Johnson on efforts to change and improve the council’s processes.
The announcement came after a week in which news broke of a closed session settlement with the city’s chief of police, and Lyles and multiple council members publicly criticized one of their colleagues for an email to supporters that alleged “unethical, immoral, and frankly, illegal activities” within city government.
Lyles did not directly reference any of the incidents but began her comments by saying they followed “a tough week.”
“This council has an opportunity to stop and think,” she said.
The mayor said much of the work will begin after the council members approve a new city budget in early June. Efforts will focus on ways for council members to improve their working relationships, “not necessarily agreeing all the time, but actually understanding each other better.”
Johnson, whose primary challenger in 2023 was endorsed by Lyles, said she and the mayor “have some healing to do” but that she’s eager to help the council find a way “to do things differently.”
“I think we’ve done enough talking, and I look forward to making some changes,” she said.
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Council members also heard from dozens of residents Monday during public hearings on the city’s budget proposal introduced by City Manager Marcus Jones last week and community area plans under consideration.
Jones’ proposed budget includes a minimum 3% pay raise for city employees, bringing the city’s minimum wage to $24 an hour. But some advocates called for an even bigger increase, to a minimum hourly wage of $25.
“We’re right there on the cusp, but in order to make it over the hump, we need something aggressive,” Kass Ottley said.
Some area nonprofits also made their case for getting financial support from the city.
“We are seeking a new partner,” Roof Above CEO Liz Clasen-Kelly said, noting her organization is seeing increased operating costs and demand for its services.
The City Council is scheduled to vote to adopt a full budget on June 9 after additional meetings.
Multiple speakers praised the city for introducing new community area plans — which focus on land use, design, mobility and open space for the needs of specific communities — but called for the incorporation of more public feedback on the ideas.
Council members agreed.
“We hear from the same folks over and over again, but really no changes are being made,” Council member Dimple Ajmera said.
City staff said they’d continue to provide updates on community input and how it will be worked into the proposed plans. The council could decide whether to implement the plans as soon as May 27 but indicated they’d ultimately take more time.
This story was originally published May 13, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
