The Charlotte City Council got back to work this week, with a wide-ranging agenda of issues for 2015.
During Monday’s meeting of the Transportation and Planning Committee, planning staff provided a general overview of the draft University City Area Plan. The plan proposes land use guidance for the areas surrounding the 3 northernmost stations of the Blue Line Extension near UNC Charlotte’s main campus. It has been in development for well over a year and will likely receive final City Council action in March or April of this year.
The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the draft plan next Tuesday, January 20th at 5:00 pm at the Government Center, and all interested property owners and developers are encouraged to attend.
Staff also provided an update on Charlotte’s WALKS Initiative, aimed at improving walkability throughout the city. Preliminary recommendations included:
On Tuesday, Mayor Dan Clodfelter gave his State of the City Address where he summarized some of last year’s accomplishments and described some significant agenda items for 2015. The Mayor specifically noted the ongoing effort to improve the city/county plan review and inspection process as a priority issue on City Council’s agenda.. He also highlighted the need for additional funding as the City attempts to meet its transportation goals under the 2030 Transportation Plan.
You can watch the State of the City address in its entirety HERE.
On Wednesday, the Housing and Neighborhood Development Committee met and was provided updates on the Quality of Life Dashboard, a tool designed to help assess the health of neighborhoods in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.
Staff also provided an update on the gentrification issue. Council Members expressed concern about “affordable housing stock being forced out to the edges,” and acknowledged that hard choices may soon be required to preserve existing neighborhoods, which could impede private property rights.
Finally, the Environment Committee also met on Wednesday and were provided an update on the PCCO Stakeholder Process that came about following the extension of the Mitigation Fee Option last fall. A task force is mostly in place and will include 13 members:
The first meeting of the PCCO Mitigation Fee Task Force is scheduled for Thursday, January 29th at 4:30 p.m. at the Government Center, Room 267. All meetings will be open to the public.
REBIC will continue to monitor all these issues, and advocate for the interests of our members building, developing, and transacting real estate in the City of Charlotte.
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