How Charlotte’s city manager plans to keep the city from dying
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Photo: Andy Weber
Cities are either growing or dying, Marcus Jones told a group of business leaders at a luncheon Tuesday.
Why it matters: As city manager, Jones' job is to ensure Charlotte is doing the first one.
Case in point: Charlotte doesn't want to be St. Louis, Jones says. St. Louis had a population of 857,000 in 1950. Now it has 281,754 residents, and that number continues to decline yearly.
- Charlotte is among America's fastest-growing cities with more than 911,300 residents as of 2023.
The big picture: Jones says Charlotte is at an "inflection point" — a term he's used before to justify the city's first property tax increase in six years. Charlotte needs to keep up with infrastructure and transportation, he says, for the city to remain a place people want to live.
- "If we just continue to do what we're doing, we won't be able to grow smartly," Jones says.
Here are some other memorable quotes from the event.
"Thank goodness we were 50 of 50."
Context: Jones is referring to the 2014 study that ranked Charlotte dead last among major metros for economic mobility. The ranking was a wake-up call for Charlotte. Politicians and corporate and philanthropic leaders launched into action to address the issue by proposing an expansion of pre-K education and investing in affordable housing.
- The city manager questions if Charlotte would've put in the same work had it been like Atlanta and ended up 49th on the list.
- The economist behind the study, Raj Chetty, has indicated that updated research will be encouraging for Charlotte.
"It's awesome to have an NFL team...You don't want to be that city that loses those franchises."
Context: Charlotte recently committed $650 million in tourism tax revenue to modernize Bank of America Stadium. The deal locks the Carolina Panthers and Charlotte FC into Charlotte for at least another 20 years.
- Although city council only recently approved the spending, staffers were negotiating with Tepper Sports & Entertainment behind the scenes for at least a year.
- Jones says the stadium renovations will create jobs and, thus, help with the aforementioned economic mobility problem.
"You are the largest city in the country that doesn't have a medical school. So, what does Charlotte do? We freaking go get a medical school."
Context: The Pearl is a transformational development in Midtown that will be home to Wake Forest University School of Medicine Charlotte and a 10-story research facility.
- It's expected to act as a magnet, bringing global medical experts to Charlotte.
Transportation is a "thorn in my side."
Context: For years, Charlotte has struggled to advance its transportation goals. But Jones says he's more optimistic now than a year ago when state lawmakers slammed the city's rail-centric vision.
- The City of Charlotte is starting to execute a mobility strategy that includes 2,000 projects, from sidewalks to intersection improvements. The latest city budget plans for $300 million in transportation and neighborhood bonds to accomplish some goals.
- Jones believes the mobility strategy is one of the best in the country.
- In early 2023, North Carolina's House speaker told reporters that Charlotte was too focused on rail. Since then, city staff has set its sights on more road projects.
Progress on addressing affordable housing is "going in the right direction."
Context: Charlotte's newly approved budget calls for a $100 million affordable housing bond, which voters will be asked to OK in the 2024 election. That is up from $15 million from the affordable housing bonds passed years ago.
