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.
Jack Beckett·Apr 15, 2026
Government— Page 3
Showing stories 75–98 of 145.
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.
Jack Beckett·Apr 14, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Apr 14, 2026
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…
Jack Beckett·Apr 14, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Apr 14, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Apr 8, 2026
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…
Jack Beckett·Apr 8, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Apr 8, 2026
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…
Jack Beckett·Apr 8, 2026
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…
Jack Beckett·Apr 7, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Apr 7, 2026
CMS Board Committee Spent Six Weeks Rewriting Family Engagement Policy. Then They Found the Real Problem.
The Family and Community Engagement Ad Hoc Committee is drafting the district's first standalone family engagement policy — and discovered there are no written rules for how board members use…
Jack Beckett·Mar 31, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Mar 28, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Mar 28, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Mar 28, 2026
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…
Jack Beckett·Mar 28, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Mar 28, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Mar 28, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Mar 27, 2026
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.
Jack Beckett·Mar 27, 2026
George Dunlap Is About to Lead 3,000 Counties. He's Been Preparing for 17 Years.
George Dunlap, who has represented District 3 on the Mecklenburg BOCC for 17 consecutive years, was elected NACo First Vice President in July 2025 and is ascending to the presidency.
Jack Beckett·Mar 27, 2026
Mecklenburg County Invested $390 Million in New Jobs, $334.6 Million in Housing, and Still Had to Feed 140,000 Residents When the Federal Government Shut Down
Commission Chair Mark Jerrell delivered his 2026 State of the County address, covering $390 million in new economic development projects, $334.6 million in housing investments since 2018, a record…
Jack Beckett·Mar 25, 2026
Mecklenburg Spent $64.5 Million on a Community Resource Center. Three Commissioners Want to Rethink the Whole Model.
Mecklenburg County's $64.5 million Ella B. Scarborough Community Resource Center drew fewer than 150 visitors per day in its first eight months.
Jack Beckett·Mar 25, 2026
Mecklenburg County Pauses Its Capital Plan and Shifts $30 Million to Plug a Budget Gap
Mecklenburg County's CFO recommended shifting one cent of the property tax rate — roughly $30 million per year — from the capital improvement plan to operating, triggering a full pause on the…
Jack Beckett·Mar 25, 2026