As is the case on the first Monday of each month, Charlotte City Council committees met during the course of the day. This was followed by an extensive discussion by the full Council on the proposed FY 2026 City Budget. Video links are provided here:
Charlotte City Council Committee Meetings
Charlotte City Council Budget Discussion
During the Transportation, Planning, and Development Committee meeting, staff provided presentations on the Community Area Plans as well as an update on the Tree Canopy Action Plan (spoiler alert as the tree canopy decline is slower than previously thought. And by the way, we’re the 14th largest city in the country and one of the fastest growing ones at that).
PDF files:
Community Area Planning | Charlotte 2040
My Take: During the presentation on community area plans, Planning Staff provided a higher level of detail than I have seen to date. I’d encourage you to take a look if you have not already done so. I’d still like to see plans that accommodate higher densities in locations that make the most sense, but things at least seem to be headed in the right direction. More than 80% of the city is still zoned for single family neighborhoods and that’s eventually going to have to change as we transition from building new subdivisions on greenfield sites to a community focused on redevelopment. Additional changes and updates will be made in a couple of weeks prior to further consideration by the Planning Commission. The final version will be up for a vote at the full Council level during their June 23rd meeting.
One last note. Chairman Driggs has done a masterful job of leading the Transportation, Planning, and Development Committee and has really made an effort to institute some level of discipline throughout the committee process. Unfortunately, some Members of Council continue to play by their own rules. Elections are coming up in a few short months. This affords all of us an opportunity to elevate common sense voices and move away from those who fear change and are embracing stagnation.
SPECTRUM NEWS | Development Bill Draws Debate Over Housing, Local Autonomy
To watch without a Spectrum log in, press the “ask later” button to allow the video to play for first time streamers.
Reprint of Spectrum News Article by Rachel Loyd Union County
PUBLISHED 5:37 PM ET May 30, 2025
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It may seem that everywhere you turn in North Carolina, there’s construction. But some say there’s not enough homes getting built.
That’s why Rob Nanfelt, executive director of Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition, or REBIC, supports a bill known as the Save the American Dream Act.
What You Need to Know
The Save the American Dream Act would give municipalities a deadline to approve or deny developer applications
Cities and counties across the state have passed resolutions to voice their opposition
Supporters of the bill say it’ll help with the statewide housing shortage
Opponents say it would help developers more than residents
“We have a huge supply issue here in North Carolina. It’s getting even more difficult to get people into homes,” he said.
He said it would make the application process more efficient.
“It would speed up the process, which is a positive thing,” he said. “It would give more clear direction to local governments about what they can and can’t do, and it also provides more certainty for the industry in terms of where they can invest.”
If passed, the bill would give developers a two-week application process and local governments a 90-day review period to approve or deny applications, which currently can take years in some cases.
Several cities and counties have passed resolutions to voice their opposition — like Indian Trail, whose mayor, David Cohn, says he is listening to what residents want.
“Our constituents are the ones that are screaming that, hey stop the building,” he said. “It’s been five years really since we’ve really approved anything, because we’re listening to the people that live in the town.”
Cohn says Indian Trail does not have an inventory issue. However, Nanfelt says Union County, where the town is located, does. He points to the county’s shortage of rental units and homes for sale.
According to data from the NC Realtors group, there’s a housing gap of more than15,000 units. Neighboring Mecklenburg County ranks fifth in the state for the housing gap, lacking nearly 112,000 units.
“We’ve got many examples of many municipalities in the Charlotte region as well who have slowed down the process so much,” Nanfelt said. “They’ve made housing so costly that we’re potentially — if we continue down this road — we’re never going to catch up.”
But Cohn doesn’t believe the legislation would help with housing.
“There’s nothing in this bill that says anything about this being affordable,” Cohn said. “This is just going to pad the pockets of the developers.”
The bill would strip some power from local governments, he added, highlighting the proposed density section of the bill that would require at least five dwelling units per acre for similar sized towns.
“We’re losing the power of the fact that if something is zoned for one per acre now, it has to be five per acre,” he said.
Nanfelt says municipalities won’t lose power.
“I don’t think 765 takes away authority from local governments,” he said, referring to the Save the American Dream Act, or House Bill 765. “It just suggests that they need to operate based on state law.”
Cohn believes this bill helps builders more than it would help his residents.
“The developers want it, and I’m not against all developers. Developers do a lot of good things. They’ve done a lot of good things here,” he said. “This is a developers’ bill to pad developers’ pockets.”
Indian Trail is joined by several municipalities across the state that either spoke out against the legislation or passed resolutions opposing it. That includes Wilmington, Greensboro, Durham, Harrisburg, Cornelius, Polk County and Currituck County.
The bill is scheduled to be considered by the House Finance Committee.
My Take: I think this interview is important to our industry’s ability to narrate with facts not fiction which seems to be a challenge these days. I would absolutely encourage you to share this story and video with your teams, peers, and any other people where your voice is a significant form of influence. Why? Our surrounding municipalities are a huge reason why we can’t close the housing gap. Furthermore, I will add that our partners at NCHBA and NCR wouldn’t have to float a bill like this if local leaders didn’t blatantly disregard property owner’s rights. In fact, Mayor Cohn’s comment that, “…it’s been 5 years since we have approved anything…” is EXACTLY the problem. So, the mantra commonly chanted by some local leaders about having their zoning authority restricted is really a red herring. It’s actually about them being able to prevent ANY development. That intention shuts out his own residents who would seek to buy a new home and diminishes the ability of property owners to sell their land for full market value.
Bonus #1 — This graphic is captured from the NAHB 2025 Legislative Priorities Brochure, entitled, “LET BUILDERS BUILD.” Available here for download.
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BONUS #2 — CODE ENFORCEMENT – Accela Trainings and Opportunities for Use Expanding as Code Enforcement Staff Prepare for Sunset of Legacy Portals
Earlier this year, Accela became the preferred customer portal for all project types.
Code Enforcement staff have made multiple customer tutorials available on meckpermit.com, which provide a step-by-step overview of the most common customer tasks in Accela.
We have also been offering in-person trainings on in-demand topics for residential customers. A few are scheduled for early June, as listed on meckpermit.com. Commercial customer trainings are in the works and will soon be scheduled.
Effective May 24th, Code Enforcement is not accepting any new submittals in our older Electronic Plan Management (EPM) portal. All new plan review projects should be submitted through Accela. Projects that are already in progress will remain in EPM at this juncture. POSSE Outrider, also known as the contractor dashboard or Web Permit, is no longer accepting most new project submissions.
All customers should be submitting new projects and applications using Accela.
We have been delighted to bring this enhanced service to our customers.
For questions about the sunset of our legacy portals or Accela, please contact Code Enforcement’s Customer Service Center at980-314-CODE(2633).
Bonus #3 — CLT DEVELOPMENT CENTER – Changes Effective June 2 | Individual Residential Lot(LDIRL) Application Process
From the Charlotte Development Center:
Effective from Monday, June 2nd, the Individual Residential Lot (LDIRL) application process will now require one address per application. Initially, the LDIRL included stormwater and urban forestry reviews, and the approval of multiple addresses for a single subdivision was permissible. However, with the inclusion of Residential Zoning in our team, this process has become complex for both staff and our customers.
To streamline the review process, reduce confusion related to multiple lots in a single application, and enhance efficiency and customer satisfaction, we are implementing a policy requiring one address per LDIRL application. If you attempt to associate multiple lots with a single LDIRL application, Accela will prevent this action and prompt you to create separate applications for each lot.
If you have any questions, please contact Nan Peterson at [email protected]
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