Charlotte-area business leaders say Mecklenburg County took a big step forward Tuesday with the narrow approval of a 1-cent sales tax increase to improve local transportation systems.
The expected financial impact of last night’s vote is astounding, which is why business development officers and principals at many contractors, engineering firms, bus and train manufacturers and other service providers are likely celebrating today. With expected additional federal support, Mecklenburg is looking at raising and investing $25 billion over the next 30 years.
The referendum requires 40% of the money to be spent on roads, 40% on rail projects, and 20% on buses and other transportation options.
By comparison, Austin, Texas, and Nashville, Tennessee, have passed sales tax increases for transportation plans totaling $7 billion and $3 billion, respectively, in the past five years.
About 177,000 votes were cast by Mecklenburg voters, with a 52-48% margin of victory. Opposition was centered in the county’s more affluent Southeast and Matthews precincts, where no rail expansion is planned. Much of the vocal opposition came from people representing lower-income residents, including the Action NC nonprofit and the Rev. William Barber.
The “Yes for Meck” campaign was led by business leaders David Longo, Andrea Smith and Ned Curran, GOP political consultant Larry Shaheen and Charlotte Regional Business Alliance CEO Robert McCutcheon. They provided much of the direction over the past two years, building a coalition of state Republican lawmakers and Charlotte’s Democratic political leadership, enabling the plan to proceed against fairly big odds. Raleigh political advisers Morgan Jackson and Paul Shumaker were paid to direct the effort, aided by Charlotte consultants Doug Wilson, Wilheminia Rembert and the Moore & Van Allen law firm’s public affairs group.
Most of those leaders joined with a few dozen local politicians and supporters for a victory celebration Tuesday night at Longo’s office furniture distribution business in south Charlotte.
The pro-business “Yes for Meck” crowd spent at least $1.7 million, while opponents say they collected about $6,000 in getting 48% to oppose the plan, WFAE reported today. But a win is a win, veteran Charlotte politician, ex-N.C.DOT executive and business consultant David Howard said at the gathering. He views the tax as a major step forward for a region that won because so many residents are upset with Charlotte’s increased road congestion.
Getting Mecklenburg voters to approve a higher tax on themselves was an impressive move, given that they have been conditioned to support bond campaigns that don’t necessarily entail higher levies, noted Bryan Holladay, a Charlotte public policy consultant. Starting next year, Mecklenburg will charge a state-leading 8.25% sales tax, up nearly 14% from the current 7.25% rate.
Now the hard work starts, given that effectively spending hundreds of millions of dollars in new annual revenue from the tax is a challenging prospect for any local government. And the Charlotte Area Transit System has received repeated criticism from local leaders for years, and most recently for its lax security measures following the August killing of a Ukrainian immigrant on a light rail train.
Overseeing Mecklenburg’s transportation system will be a new authority led by a 27-member board that will include selections this month from local governments, the business community and state lawmakers.
Veteran Charlotte City Councilman Ed Driggs says that sounds unwieldy, but he’s confident it can work because strong leaders will be picked, while a smaller executive committee will set the direction.
He’s the sole remaining Republican serving on either the Charlotte City Council or Mecklenburg County Commission, after newcomer Kimberly Owens won a traditionally solid Republican south Charlotte council seat on Tuesday.
Far from showing bitterness over the GOP’s political ineptitude in the state’s second-largest county by population, Driggs says he’s confident that progress can occur on many issues in Mecklenburg because of the council’s focus on fixing problems. He points to his status as chair of the city’s Transportation Committee as evidence of his colleagues’ respect for his viewpoint.
While voters approved the tax, things can change in a hurry, former Gov. Pat McCrory noted on WFAE radio Wednesday. State lawmakers could force modifications, as could Charlotte elected officials, who might find the new authority takes away too much of their power, he noted. Challenges facing local leadership regarding transportation are more significant than when Charlotte voters approved the city’s first light-rail system when he was mayor, McCrory said. He also predicted that the Republican “brand” is essentially dead in Mecklenburg after a strong effort by GOP candidate Ed Peacock to win an at large council seat didn’t come close to toppling the four incumbent Democrat candidates.
But that skepticism was overwhelmed Tuesday night by the favorable outcome sought by local leaders.
“This is a true example of excellent public policymaking,” says Longo, who chairs the regional alliance board. “This is truly a momentous time for our region.”
McCutcheon said it was “not just a win at the ballot box. It was a declaration of hope in our community and a belief that every person in our region can thrive.”
David Mildenberg is editor of Business North Carolina. Reach him at dmildenberg@businessnc.com.