Board of Commissioners - Regular Meeting

Good evening, everyone. Thank you for your patience. I know we're running a little bit behind, and I am going to call the meeting to order. We'll start with introductions, and we'll start with our clerks.

Good evening. I'm Commissioner Yvette Townsend Ingram, also known as Commissioner YTI. Good evening. I serve you at large.

Good evening. I am Mecklenburg County Commissioner Elaine Powell, representing North Mecklenburg, Huntersville, Davidson, Cornelius, and North Charlotte. And I see some of our farmers. Welcome.

Good evening. I'm George Dunlap, elected by the people of District 3.

Good evening. My name is Lee Altman. I have the privilege of serving you as Vice Chair, and I also serve at large. Welcome to all the people who came out tonight. Great to see you.

Good evening again. My name is Mark Jarrell. I have the honor of serving as chairman of the board. I've also been elected by the people of District 4. Welcome.

Good evening and welcome. My name's Arthur Griffin and I have the pleasure of serving as your county commissioner at large.

Good afternoon. My name is Vilma DeLeake and I represent the most powerful district in the county. Will all my seniors please stand? No seniors.

Thank you so much for being cooperative. That's the way District 2 works together. Thank you. Welcome.

Good evening. I'm Laura Meyer, and I represent District 5.

Good evening. My name is Susan Rodriguez-McDowell, and I'm honored to be elected by the people of District 6.

All right, that takes care of our introductions. How about all middle-agers please stand?

Thank you, Commissioner Leak. Tonight, we'll have our invocation and Pledge of Allegiance will be led by Commissioner Meyer. So when she finishes the invocation, we'll ask you all to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. Commissioner Meyer.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm going to be a little unconventional tonight. In honor of the proclamation tonight for equality, Women Equality Day, I've chosen the lyrics from the musical Suffs. And if you haven't seen it, it's about suffragists back in 1916. and the words and lyrics are by Shana Taub. It's a wonderful production if anybody gets the opportunity to see it. This takes place in 1916 and it's a song, so bear with me there, but it's kind of a back and forth. If we were married, I promised to cherish you just as a gentleman should. If we were married, I promised to forfeit my legal autono

Uh, thank you for that commissioner Meyer. Um, one of the things that we always do as a board, we'd like to level set and make sure everyone is aware of our mission, our vision, our board priorities. Um, these are the guardrails that guide our decisions and our actions. So we think it's important to lift up, uh, Mecklenburg county mission is to serve Mecklenburg county residents by helping improve their lives and community, our vision. is Mecklenburg County will be a community of pride and choice for people to live, learn, work and recreate. Our FY2627 board budget priorities are as follows ec

Queremos que ustedes estén conectados y entiendan nuestro trabajo y nuestro compromiso con usted. Gracias.

Un poquito. You want me to keep it short? Great job. No, this is really important to this board. I think most people that watch us or see us know how important equity is for us and to make sure that we're providing access and opportunity to all residents in this community. So this is a great day for us. At this point in our agenda, we move to awards and recognition. And at this time, I usually turn it over to the vice chair. And I will. But before we do that, I have the high honor and distinct pleasure to lift something up that is important to us as colleagues, important to us as a county. And

Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'll be brief. First of all, I could not have done this without the support of my colleagues here at Mecklenburg County. I would not have been able to do this without the support of our state association. And so I'm eternally grateful for all of the support that I received. For all of those staff people and other friends throughout the community who supported me, thank you so much. I look forward to serving not just Mecklenburg County, not just the state of North Carolina, but serving the entire United States. Because in my role as president, Mecklenburg County i

At this time, I'll turn the gavel over to the Vice Chair for awards and recognition portion of the agenda.

Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman. Tonight, we have three fantastic proclamations that we'll be taking up, beginning with Women's Equality Day 2026, and I call on Commissioner Townsend Ingram to kick us off.

Thank you, Madam Vice Chair. I am absolutely delighted to read this proclamation. It is a joint proclamation with the city, the city of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. And it reads as follows.

Oh, and Commissioner, I'm so sorry. Before you get going, why don't we call down the people who have come to receive it so they can be at the speaker's well. Looks like that is Ms. Denise, chairperson from the Women's Advisory Board, Ms. Hamilton Childress, and any other members who have come to receive these remarks. Thank you so much for being here.

City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County Joint Proclamation, whereas August 26, 2026, marks the 106th anniversary of the certification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution and is observed annually as Women's Equality Day, and whereas this milestone while historic, did not guarantee equal access to the ballot for all women, particularly black women, indigenous women, and women of color, many of whom continued to face discriminatory barriers until the passage and enforcement of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and beyond. And whereas the long struggle for suffrage and equality began with the W

All right, the motion having been made and properly seconded, we'd love to hear from our guests.

All right. All those in favor, please raise your right hand. That is unanimous. And if you would, please come down for a picture.

All right, for our next proclamation, it is my distinct pleasure to call upon our very own Chairman Mark Jarrell.

Thank you, Madam Vice Chair. This is a real honor for me to be able to read this proclamation for a lot of different reasons. One, I have a history with this. This is the proclamation for Child Support Awareness Month, and I was, for a while, child support enforcement agent here in Mecklenburg County and I'm really proud of that fact and I'm proud of the work that's done every day and the person that's leading child support enforcement is a personal friend and somebody that I've known for Since she was a little girl, I'll say. But we did serve as agents together, and it's just an honor. And I

The motion properly having been made and seconded, all those in favor say aye. Aye. And that is unanimous. Fonda Clifton, are you here? Oh, wonderful. Please come down. We would love to hear your remarks and then have you get the proclamation and take a picture.

And finally, last but definitely not least, we have very important proclamations celebrating Farmers Market Week. And I know we've got a lot of support in the chamber for that. I'd like to call to the podium Lisa Nee, Senior Health Program Manager with the Office of Chronic Disease Policy and Prevention, to receive the proclamation, provide remarks. Anyone else? who is to be joining at the podium, and I call now upon Commissioner Velma D. Leake.

Will the rest of you please stand? Excuse me. Will the rest of you please stand in this group?

Who are you going to say to? I was going to say that some of them seem to be puzzled as to whether or not they should be here or not. But I'm sure you want all of them in the picture. So when the picture's done, you can all come down.

There we go. Thank you for standing. Thank you, George. Don't sit down. Stand up. We are recognizing you at this point. And they asked me to read this proclamation. Where access to safe, nutritional, affordable, and culturally appropriate food is fundamental to the health, the well-being, and quality of life of all Mecklenburg County residents. And whereas in Mecklenburg County, nearly 12% of households are food insured, and for more than 18% of children live in the food in secure household, underscoring the critical importance of expanding access to fresh, nutritious foods for all residents.

Thank you, Commissioner Lee. The motion having been made improperly seconded. All those in favor say aye. That is unanimous, and we would love to hear from our wonderful guests. Thank you for being here.

Y'all like that rain we ordered for y'all specifically for the growers last night?

We would love for everyone to come down for a picture. Maybe anyone who would like to be in the picture. Just head this way. You have to stand right here.

Hello, neighbor. How are you? Thank you so much for being here.

It's lovely to see you. I've got to get out on Saturday.

I was trying to see you up there. Thank you. Look, man, you could have been like so many different farmers, you know, everything. Lovely to see you. How are you, sir? It's a pleasure. Thank you very much.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you so much.

Thank you for being here. It is such a pleasure. This is a good part of the job. But we might just have to make everyone turn and take a picture like this.

As people make it back to their chairs, I want to just again thank everybody for turning out. It was a great group.

And at this time, I will turn the gavel back to you, Mr. Chair.

Well, thank you, Madam Vice Chair. That was fantastic. And we'll move forward with the agenda. We do have to take up some items that we took up in closed session. So at this time, the chair will entertain a motion to authorize the county manager. to negotiate and execute all documents necessary for the acquisition of tax parcel 199-491-03 plus or minus five acres from Billy Alexander Pettigrew, Emily Fender Pettigrew for a purchase price of $1,200,000 for park and rec purposes. So moved.

Moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Ayes have it. Madam Clerk, Chair will entertain a motion to authorize the County Manager to negotiate and execute all documents necessary for the acquisition of tax parcel 067-113-42 plus or minus 2.852 acres from Charlotte Mecklenburg Board of Education for a purchase price of $869,000 for park and rec purposes. So moved. Second. Seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Any opposed? It's unanimous. Chair will entertain a motion to authorize County Manager to negotiate and execute all documents necessary for the acquisition of tax

Moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Chair, we'll entertain a motion to authorize the county manager to negotiate and execute all documents necessary for the acquisition of tax parcel 205-071-23 plus or minus 23.103 acres from Lakemont Property Investors LLC for a purchase price of $147,000 for the expansion of Sugar Creek Greenway. So moved. Second. Moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Chair will entertain a motion to authorize the county manager to negotiate and execute all documents necessary for the acquisition of tax parcel 173-071-40 plus

Moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Chair, I'll entertain a motion to authorize the county manager to negotiate and execute all documents necessary for the acquisition of a permanent greenway easement on a portion of tax parcel 103-163-01 plus or minus .9753 acres from Forest Hills Apartments Limited Partnership for a purchase price of $59,000. $861.24. So moved. For construction of a portion of the Campbell Creek Greenway. It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor say aye.

No opposed. No opposed. All right. Chair will entertain a motion to authorize the county manager to negotiate and execute all documents necessary for the acquisition of a permanent Greenway easement of plus or minus .0625 acres and a temporary easement of plus or minus 0.663 acres, both on a portion of tax parcel 127-102-27 from 2650 Sanctuary LLC for a purchase price of $49,350 for construction of a portion of the Briar Creek Greenway.

Moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? All right, chair will entertain a motion to authorize the county manager to negotiate and execute all documents necessary for the acquisition of tax parcel 069-041-38 plus or minus three acres from Charlotte Mecklenburg Board of Education for a purchase price of $5,686,700 for future county office building location contingent upon approval by CMS Board of Education. So moved. Moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye.

It's unanimous, Madam Clerk. All right, we will move forward to the next portion of our agenda. Give me a second. Which is public appearance. So I got to read a rather lengthy statement, so please bear with me. Public appearance is the period during the board's regular meeting that members of the public are provided the opportunity to speak on matters not appearing on the agenda. Members of the public who appear during the public appearance portion of a regular meeting may discuss any matter within the jurisdiction of the Board of Commissioners except for the following types of matters. A matt

Thank you. Next, we'll hear from Joseph Birch and Joseph Birch, Jr., I'm assuming. Did you want to come down together? Okay.

Thank you, Mr. Birch. Yes, sir. Appreciate both of you being here.

Your time is up. I apologize. Thank you. Thank you. We'll take a look at the documents that you sent. Thank you. All right, at this time, we're gonna move to the next part of our agenda, which are appointments. First appointments we need to deal with are Women's Advisory Board. Appointments are needed on the Women's Advisory Board to fill four unexpired terms. The chair has recommended Kenya Brown, Claire Covington, Phyllis Barnett, and Kaitlin Lee. We also have additional names. that have been nominated. So we will go through the roll call vote. Chair? Sure.

if there's time for advocacy, I hope that everybody received the same correspondence that I did from Karen, uh, Linyard from, from district two. Um, and she stated clearly a case why she should be appointed to this, um, board. And I would ask that you, uh, give some credence to her, uh, request.

Thank you. And there, and there is time for advocacy out there. I appreciate that commissioner. Anybody else want, would, uh, want to advocate?

I just want to advocate for her as well.

Okay. Anybody else? I'm sorry, go right ahead. Let me go with Commissioner Leak and then I'll come to you, Commissioner Griffin.

As her representative, I'm going to advocate and have been advocating for her. So nominate her.

Thank you. Well, we're going to go through the vote, the challenge sheet. Commissioner Griffin? You did echo. Okay. So then let's go ahead and go through. I'm going to start with all those supporting Daryl Anderson. Anybody supporting Mr. Anderson? How about Phyllis Barnett? Four, five, six. All right, so Phyllis is appointed. How about Ingrid Nunez? We have two. How about Kenya Brown? One, two, three, four, five, six. Claire Covington? One, two, three, four. Uh, Nicole Ingram to, uh, we've got Caitlin Lee, three Karen Linyard. She's district two. That's right.

Was unanimous for Karen Linyard. So, Madam Clerk, who I have appointed, we're going to need a second round to fill one seat, but I have Phyllis Barnett, Kenya Brown, and Karen Linyard. Is that what you have?

I didn't vote for the one that had four, so I'll make it five.

Claire Covington? Yeah. So, you're going to change your... You're just adding your head and your vote. Okay. So with commissioner Dunlap, uh, we'll vote for Claire Covington. That would give her five. Okay. All right. All right, so with that, the appointees will be Phyllis Barnett, District 5, Kenya Brown, District 1, Claire Covington, District 4, and Karen Linyard, District 2. And I would like to say to all of the other folks who offered themselves up for service, I want to say thank you. Please continue. Your time will certainly come, so we thank you for that, and congratulations to those wh

Women's Advisory, thank you. Anisha Hassell, Andrew Wallen, Melanie Mills, Melanie Mills-Johnson, excuse me, Arlicia Royal, and Brett Winter. So remember on this one, all nominees must be interviewed per our policy.

Mr. Chair, I will nominate all eight who remain for the interview.

All right. We've got a nomination to interview all eight and a second. Any questions? Hearing none, all those in favor say aye.

All right, we've got one opposed and eight in favor. So we'll interview all eight and I'll make sure we get a committee appointed to get that done. All right, next, appointments for the Industrial Facilities and Pollution Control Financing Authority. A motion is needed to remove one Board of County Commissioners appointee, Rob Kidwell, from the Industrial Facilities and Pollution Control Financing Authority. So moved. Second. Moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? It's unanimous, Madam Clerk. All right, appointments are needed on the Industrial Facilities and Pollut

Second. Moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? All right, one opposed, Madam Clerk. Next, we're gonna move to the Historic Landmarks Commission. Reappointment is needed on the Historic Landmarks Commission for one three-year term expiring July 31st, 2029. Andra Eves is eligible for reappointment. Is there a motion to reappoint? Moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye.

Any opposed? All right, a nomination is needed on the Historic Landmarks Commission to fill one three-year term expiring July 31st, 2029. HLC Chair recommends John Short, but we do have other nominees as well, or other applicants as well. Are there any nominations?

Mr. Chair, I would recommend we go with the recommended candidate.

I would like to nominate Bob Aycock, please.

Well, were you making a motion or were you just making a recommendation? I'm sorry, because I...

Well, what I did was I looked at the current list and I recognized that there was no candidate from district four. And so I recommended someone from district four.

And there wasn't any from district six either.

Hold on one second. Cause I just want to make sure that I want us to be clear. So that really yours is a motion.

I'm going to go with Elaine's recommendation. Nominate, move to nominate and appoint John.

It's just, it says two here. We've got, we've got two.

No, hold on one second. It, There's two nominations so far, but I'm trying to go back real quick, because there's one slot to fill. There's only one slot to fill, right? So let's make sure that we level set. Commissioner Dunlap was making, it wasn't a pseudo motion, but it was a recommendation. So I received it as a recommendation, and then after you did that, Commissioner Rodriguez-McDowell nominated Mr. Aycock. So that's where we were. Yes. So it's a motion. Okay. I thought you said recommendations. So let's vote on this right now.

Can I ask the attorney a question? Like it says that it says on my screen, that there are two openings. So if you refresh. Oh yeah, because it says one on one.

It's all good. So, all right, so there is a motion on the floor. Did we get a second? Second. All right. Motion on the floor is Mr. Short has been nominated and to appoint So all those in favor to, uh, nominate an appointment, Mr. Short, let's see by show of hands. One, two, three, four, five, all opposed. All right. So with that being said, Mr. Short is, uh, appointed. All right. Next, we're going to move to the building development commission. Reappointments are needed on the BDC for building development commission for two, three year terms expiring July 31st, 2029. Dana Galley, and Thomas H

Moved and seconded. Any unreadiness? Hearing none, all those in favor say aye. Aye. Any opposed? All right, next appointment is needed on the Build and Development Commission to fill one three-year term expiring July 31st, 2029, Home Builders Association of Charlotte slot. The HBA is recommending Eric Smith.

Moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Next, we're going to move to the Domestic Violence Advisory Board. An appointment is needed on the Domestic Violence Advisory Board to fill one unexpired term expiring April 30, 2027. The chair of this advisory board has recommended Sarah Ann Ryan and Brittany Hammonds, but we also have another applicant here as well.

I move and nominate the two people, District 2 Williams and Ryan, District 6. There's only one. There's only one. There's only one. There's only one, I'm sorry.

There's one, yep. So go ahead, Commissioner Leak. Did you want to just take one of those?

Yeah, I'm going to go with Ms. Williams.

Hold on, Commissioner. I'm sorry. What's the problem?

Oh, so now we're voting. I'm sorry. Yes, sir. Oh, I see. I apologize. Thank you. All right, so we're just going to go through them. We have three.

For Brittany Hammonds, given the fact that there is not a person from District 4 on that committee.

Thank you for that. Any other advocacy on this one?

Yeah, I just wanted to advocate for Sarah and Ryan for all that she is already doing with the Umbrella Center, and I just think she comes highly recommended, and I think that's really important in this case.

Okay. All right, with that, let's go through the vote. Dana Cathy Williams from District 2. Let me get one. Brittany, I'm sorry. Thank you.

What? Oh, you raised your hand for that.

Did you raise your hand? I'm sorry, I missed that. So that's two of them, thank you. All right, Brittany Hammonds. One, two, three, four. And then Sarah Ann Ryan. One, two, three, four, five. Okay, Sarah Ann Ryan, you are appointed.

There's one position, right? Mm-hmm. She raised, well, Commissioner Lee raised her hand for.

You can have, you can, you can. Okay, you can do, okay. Yeah, if the person didn't make it through, you can still vote for someone else. So that's fine. All right, that concludes that. Next up, I'll turn it over to the manager for the manager's report.

We'll take a picture. We'll do the conference.

Congratulations. Where did you teach in Georgia? Millageville. Well, my mom's from Tifton.

She's up the road from Macon, Georgia. Yep, yep, yep.

A lot of Georgia up here. That's right. All right. She's kind of centered.

So we definitely can't let this moment pass without some comments from board members, because I know everyone is burning. We're going to keep it to 60 seconds, though, so we can keep the meeting moving. Let's start with Commissioner Powell.

Well, I told Dr. Scott, thank you for sharing your story. It means so much to know the core of your passion. And I know I wanted to say something else, but... But keep sharing. Thank you. That's all.

Commissioner Dunlap. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I told Dr. Scott I woke up with her in my spirit this morning. We oftentimes have the opportunity to shout out staff people who do a good job. And then I saw her in the news and her interview. I was saying, what a great job she did. I did not know.

Thank you so much. I hope you feel this. Because I've been sitting with him for a long time. So for him to be this choked up, I hope you feel it.

Well, we're also moved by your heart and spirit and feel so blessed. for you to be leading something that touches our residents in such an important way. So I'm just so thrilled for all of us that we get to have you as our leader. So thank you.

You know, we kind of kid and joke about being cousins since my mom's from Macon, Georgia. But I felt your sincerity from the very first day I met you. I've recognized your professionalism by observing you over these years. And I couldn't be more happy for you and your family and for what you will do for the residents of Mecklenburg County and the state of North Carolina. God bless you.

I'm almost speechless to recognize the growth that a mother has produced. and father and family as encouraged, and your church family. Thank you for being in Mecklenburg County. God knows we need you because we are in serious trouble health-wise all across this country now. So whatever you have, give it to us. Afford us to know who you are and with whom you serve. Thank you for your time, your energy. And mother, thank you for being an excellent mother to your baby, I'm calling her your baby, and that's what she is for you. God bless you as a parent, it can happen, some people say it can't, bu

Dr. Scott, congratulations, there could not have been a better choice, you deserve this, I'm so excited for this county, we are in great hands, and to the manager, thank you for seeing her value.

I mean, well, how can I add to all those? Uh, I mean, we all feel it and, um, and we've gotten to know you and, uh, I just want to say I'm a big admirer and I know that you've got this. I feel so confident in your ability and in your heart. And I really do. Um, I don't know. I just really see that this is going to be, uh, an amazing opportunity for you and for us. So thank you for what you do and what you bring to this.

Well, thank you, colleagues. You know, Dr. Scott, obviously this board and the manager and this entire community has tremendous faith and confidence in you. We have since the first time we met you. It's continued and it's only grown. to see you where you are now. I know what it's like when you have big shoes to fill and you're coming behind that, but like I've told you before, continue to be you. And I will say to your mom and your sister, thank you so much for being here. You have just produced just a tremendous individual, a tremendous person. And we are just grateful and thankful. And the l

Commissioner Dunlap, when you think about his years of service from the military to the school board, county commission, what he's meant to this community, what he's meant to this board, his leadership, chair for six years, now chair emeritus, president of our national association, it's an amazing day, not only for him, but it's certainly a culmination of his service, his dedication to community, his dedication to people.

I want to say thank you to my Mecklenburg County colleagues. for your support and partnership, for trusting me to represent us on this stage.

from Mecklenburg County. He is going to be able to connect with people from all over the country, whether it's urban areas, rural areas, suburban areas. He'll be able to take best practices. He'll be able to push initiatives, he will be able to make sure that Mecklenburg County is in the forefront of pushing initiatives that will impact people across the country. And when you think about having that voice and the impact of that voice, he's carrying Mecklenburg County everywhere he goes with him.

I started this journey nearly 18 years ago and I've had lots of support throughout this journey. I'm happy to represent Mecklenburg County. I'm happy to represent the state of North Carolina. NACO is It is the vehicle for advocacy for anything county government. It's all about the counties. When there are no other voices speaking on behalf of the counties, NACO is there. And I am so humbled by the opportunity to serve and to represent all of them.

Thank you, Mr. Manager, and thank you to staff for that wonderful package highlighting Commissioner and President Dunlap. To the manager's point, we definitely wanna make sure that we are supporting the president's initiative. And to that end, I'm gonna say we're the first ones to adopt this resolution at his direction. This is the resolution of the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners adopting the principles of the Building Better Futures Spotlight. Whereas counties contribute to the well-being of young people through a range of services, programs, and partnerships that vary according to

Moved and seconded. Any comments? Commissioner Powell.

It's missing a word. It should say way more than 10,000 Mecklenburg County youth participate every year in Mecklenburg County Park and Rec programming because I think I saw 10,000 in camp. I mean, just so many. So it's well over 10,000. Yes. Yeah. Thank you. But it's awesome. Thank you.

I just think it's a phenomenal theme, Mr. President, building better futures. I think we kind of talked a little bit about that, about the Graham Street site. Put my plug in for Graham Street. But, no, clearly we have a lot of work to do, and I appreciate your leadership in this particular space. And you mentioned academic readiness. They got me, so I'm there with you, and I'll ride this boat wherever it takes me, as long as you're there, sir, leading the way. Appreciate you. Thank you. Commissioner Meyer.

Well, if we're doing plugs, I do want to highlight and thank you for this, particularly about behavioral health for our youth. So thank you for that.

Yes, sir. Well, I will say that much of what you heard was shaped by the conversations that we've had here at the diocese. So you would see your work embedded in the resolution.

Fantastic. Thank you, sir. All right. Commissioner Rodriguez-McDowell.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just wanted to say congratulations from the bottom of my heart, George. I'm so proud of you. And I've been here, I've been beside you for the last eight years and watched you and how you've taken this on. And I just want to say it's It's been great to see your example and, um, and to see how you've handled it. And so I just want to say you've made me proud and, uh, I think you've made our, our board proud. So thank you.

Yeah. I just want to say, um, as the newest, uh, County commissioner, Um, what a great time to be here because I get to learn from the best and you were selected as the best. So lead the way I'm so anxious to learn all that I can. Congratulations. And I, what, when I talk about, you know, what we do, and then I get to say that my colleague and a colleague that I have leads the nation. in what all counties are supposed to do, that makes me tremendously proud. So very appreciative and congratulations.

Do you have anything? Yes. I completely agree with you, Commissioner Townsend-Egram. It is fantastic. so special to, in the entire history of NACO's organization, to get to serve at a moment in time when our own dear, respected, beloved senior member, Chairman Emeritus, you know, gets to achieve this, not only to forward the vision that all of us have and that we've developed together, but for urban counties everywhere and for counties everywhere. And you are such... a great statesman in terms of talking to people who may have a different background but sort of diplomatically reaching that com

Well, we are all proud. And I had a chance to say remarks earlier, so I'll just ditto what everyone else has said. Just congratulations. Well deserved. Thank you. With that, Mr. Manager, I'll turn it back over to you. You vote. Oh. Yeah, why don't we vote on this thing? How about that? All those in favor, let's see you by raising your right hand. All right. That is unanimous. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

All right. Senator Adrian, thank you for the presentation. I'm going to open up to questions. I am going to ask colleagues that just keep in mind we do have another presentation, so I'm going to ask us to kind of limit it to the big rocks that you want to really solve to right now, and then you can always follow up with staff on your own or in groups to go deeper. With that, I'll start with Commissioner Townsend-Ingram.

Thank you both very much for your presentations. It was very comprehensive, especially considering all of the details in the 600 pages. I guess my question is because we are quite frankly we're at a disadvantage in this county because we are predominantly one political party and it's our state legislature is basically controlled by another. Is there an appetite, you believe, or is there already established a government entity that or a committee that is established to specifically address opposing or alternative policies that can be implemented and strategies for addressing what may come? And

Within the county or the state. Is there, I mean, because now we can leverage our president. I think that we should leverage our president of counties. And so I want to see a committee that and maybe that motion can be made if there isn't one, of a body that is addressing specifically alternative policies that can be triggered or that we will, you know, I don't like just kind of like being at the whim of whatever it is that they decide to pass or whatever triggers happen if if we achieve this error rate, then whatever. So I want something that kind of puts us ahead of the game, a strategy.

Let me first say thank you for your presentations. And this is most important to this country as well as this county and as well as this state, this budget. One thing we know that the legislators have made their decisions of what the budget is and will be. What can we advocate for that we know that we might get some change to? My concern is teachers have always been a teacher working in the school system. The cafeteria, those funds coming from the cafeteria by children who pay their lunch money, what happens to those funds? That's number one. Are they included in the increase as it relates to

So I have more, but these are the three most important things that I want covered as it relates to this budget and what can we change or not change.

Thank you, Commissioner. So I'm assuming you'll follow up.

Thank you. Commissioner Powell, then Commissioner Griffin.

Thank you. Are the towns aware before today of the potential impact?

Especially if the state hasn't gotten under 6% since 2019. Correct. I'm going to just say my whole question so I don't run out of time, but I really want to know what elements are beyond our control that we might have a future voice in. And maybe I need to meet offline with you, Adrian, because you said so many elements are out of our control.

So from Raleigh, I hear all the time, that this is how they want to reduce waste, fraud, and abuse. I don't think there's anyone here that wants to continue with any waste, fraud, and abuse. So, you know, like when we're hearing this presentation, it kind of feels like a funeral. Like it really feels like a funeral. And I think how can we meet with them to talk about, you know, how can we meet with the General Assembly in some way to talk about how we work on reducing fraud, waste, and abuse, because nobody wants that. How do we work together so that it's not such a funeral? How do we work so

You know, Rusty... Commissioner, you're going to have to wrap it up because we're going to keep it going.

I'm just looking at the county manager. But, you know, like, just troubleshooting. Like, how do we work together? Because I think this is not a great... path. Thank you.

And I'm going to ask you to answer that offline. Well, go ahead, Adrian.

Let me go to Commissioner Griffin, please. Just to There's clearly gonna be questions I'll be submitting to both of you, but it just reminds me of post-Reconstruction or Rhodesia, where we are responsible. As I understand it, most of these programs are state programs. SNAP is a state program administered by local counties. And because of how they fund, how they use technology to run these programs, We're going to penalize the counties for administering the state programs if there happens to be things beyond our control, even potentially. That is absolutely insane. So my question to you is, is

I'll follow up, but there's some more to that piece. Thank you. Did you have something?

You don't don't feel obligated. I'm speechless. This is so much garbage in here that I just can't even speak to it. I'm outraged.

Okay. I understand the error rate. I just want to make clear the error rate for people who don't understand, who are listening, that's human error. These are just human errors, correct? Okay. And how is this, Adrian, you're a math person, mathematically, how does this make sense for if we have to spend $42 million, I take it that goes to the federal government and they want to save money, but they're costing us money. So how is this saving money over the whole thing?

So I want people to understand, residents to understand, that when we have to pay this penalty to the federal government, it's going to affect them directly the services that we provide right here. Those are going to be cut. Would you say that's probably about true?

I just want that. I mean, I understand it and I want people to hear that.

Thank you for that. I'm glad. I hope people are hearing this. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm not really a conspiracy theorist. However, if you think about everything that's being discussed here, considering the fact that the legislatures are limiting the amount of taxes we can raise, at the same time they are reducing the corporate sales tax. And now they've instituted or planning to institute all of these different penalties, think about it. Counties like Mecklenburg are going to be used to pay that same money that they're reducing the tax from. We're going to be supporting state government, any way you look at it. We're doing it already.

To me, that's ludicrous. just some of the things that they're talking about instituting. Specifically, a 14-day window of time where you must notify people by first-class mail. Everybody knows that the mail system is not reliable. I mean, if you really think about some of the things that they're doing, it just doesn't make sense. I don't know what levels we have to push that will cause them to change their mind and to consider the fact that we have people who have been elected by the residents of this county supporting this kind of legislation really causes me concern. And I try to stay out of

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So on slide three, where it talks about the income tax rate plan to drop, I really want to speak to the Republicans who can hear me. If you have family members, if you have neighbors, if you, if, if you're hearing my voice, I believe that all North Carolinians value public schools. and police officers and libraries and roads and trash. and parks and greenways, because I've heard people say it on a bipartisan basis. We cannot fund services that just make for a decent society if taxes continue to shrink and shrink and shrink. And so that's the first thing that I want to jus

Thank you. Well said to all our colleagues. Adrian, I've got just a question about the trigger for SNAP and these penalties. When you're doing the math, it seems like it's disproportional what urban counties would cover. It's not even proportional if I'm looking at it correctly. Because if I heard you right, you're saying that everybody is going, regardless of where the state lands, everybody's going to have to pitch in. And, I mean, based on our sales tax, that distribution, it's not going to be – held back proportionally. Is that accurate or will it be proportional based on the error rate it

But theoretically, a county, we could have a lower error rate than counties, but in payback, a disproportional share, I guess, is where I'm going with that. The two main drivers. Proportional, right.

I just want to illustrate that point that it is, again, it's the larger counties that really have to carry the burden. for the entire state. You know, you've got five or six counties that are gonna have to carry the burden regardless. And this is no shot at, you know, suburban or rural counties. I don't mean it in that sense, but it's really trying to, again, if you think about what we're already making up for in unfunded mandates at $500 million and you couple this on, you know, this sort of another penalty on top of that, we know that the budget's gonna be hit possibly $30 million a year if

What I was speaking to was not advocacy. I know that we have advocacy.

I was talking about Commissioner Powell. I was saying, to Commissioner Powell's point, she's been a huge proponent of going to Raleigh. So I'm just saying we have all of these folks that are already advocating advocacy. And because of that, I mean, I encourage anybody, if you've got sources and resources and people that you can rely on to continue to advocate, but it's being done. Thank you for that. Appreciate it.

Thank you for the presentation. So I know there's going to be a lot of questions. Colleagues, I'm going to give us some leeway on this because the manager and staff need to get some feedback from us, initial thoughts around this. So let me start with Commissioner Meyer.

Thank you very much. Thank you. It's nice to meet you. I, for one, am very excited that We're seeing some movement on this, so that's exciting. And just to reiterate, our utmost importance to us is affordable housing. I just want to really make that extremely clear. Honestly, I've not heard of First and Early. Can you tell us some of your other projects in the county? Sure.

Thank you. And obviously this is in very, very early stages. And there are no plans yet. There are no, you have no partners yet. What's the, and I'm sorry if I missed it, but what do you think the timeline, oh, I said to October. Okay, that's all, thank you.

Those are the words I love, local control. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you for your presentation, Mr. Collins. You have a beautiful family.

Thank you for being here. So I've been involved with this since early 2016, and I went to every single community meeting to hear community feedback. We represent the people. And I wasn't elected yet, but I went to every single meeting. I have all the paperwork, all the notes, everything. And I think you're gonna hear it over and over, because I heard it over and over, that the community, their number one priority was legacy and affordable housing, truly affordable. Like, you know, 80% AMI isn't truly affordable to most folks. And so at the end, like in the very last community session, we had a

Thank you for that. Commissioner Griffin. Thank you for your presentation. For the manager and the presenters, one of your slides is why this place matters. You talk about the history and legacy of Brooklyn. You have Second Ward, Cherry, Midtown, the Pearl, Uptown, and I'm just writing down. Atrium's housing is going to be upscale. Midtown with Peter Pappas, I think he sold out to someone. That's upscale. That's in development. Cherry is upscale in development. Uptown is upscale. And so the success for me is to have true representation to the extent you can, and honoring the legacy of Brooklyn

Let me too say thank you for being here and seeing your baby up there trying to make it to the end of this meeting. And we are, too. Thank you for being here. I moved to Charlotte in 1964, and my husband pastored the church in Brooklyn called Little Rock, Amy's Iron Church. Everything you wanted to find was in Brooklyn for those that looked like me. But then they saw fit to change the look of the area. We're sitting in Brooklyn right now as we sit here. This is a part of Brooklyn. But my concern as I listened and was interested in the development and the changing of what was taking place in Ch

So your plan is to bring in persons to do the work, but you provide the funds based upon what the agreement is with the county. Yes, ma'am. Well, I'm not sure because I haven't seen anything. I don't know what you've done previously to make other businesses successful.

That's for Russ, so it's not for you, Andre.

in that she rang the bell for me to stop so I cannot continue the dialogue with you at this point. So maybe we can talk at some other time when we are in the setting again to make a decision on what we will do or can do and what success might be. But we cannot recoup Brooklyn. Brooklyn is no more. And the property that's there, I'm not sure it will take care of what we need in terms of Housing, we keep talking about affordable housing across this community, but salary has to meet that process so the people can pay the rent wherever they live.

I have to stop now. The young man said stop.

Okay, thank you. Let me just say, first off, you guys come from your reputation. Anybody knows Johnny Harris? Lincoln Harris, the Bissells, they're all connected. They're all family members. They all have history here. So that tells me you've at least been working with some reputable companies. And that's certainly appreciated. And then you've talked about how you've acquired land. So I understand what your role is. I think what's going to be interesting to us is that when we share with you our vision and you share with us your vision, then it's going to be your job to determine what partners

We don't know. Thank you. Commissioner Altman.

I think Commissioner Dunlap summarized it really well. The only thing that I would tack on to everything he said that I fully agree with is a desire to double down on green space in an area where we just have tons of demand. And, you know, I know that that doesn't generate revenue and that this has to pencil. And affordable housing is extremely important. So, you know, I look forward to hearing how we can best balance all of these priorities. And thank you.

Thank you. Commissioner Rodriguez-McDowell.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And since we're just, like, throwing in all of our dreams, part of the original vision, I do believe, is affordable housing. rents for businesses you know for retail so that it wouldn't just be all like chain um you know national chains and things like that but that local businesses could be able to get into those spaces as well so just wanted to make sure we don't forget that one piece thank you uh did you have anything um you're good i'm gonna deserve to write

So thank you for being here. This is a project that obviously is really important to the board. I am going to take the liberty because it falls in my district. We all care about it. But I am going to take the liberty to tee up just some things for you guys to noodle on. some of my colleagues hit that and if you look at the history of our board and the way that we sort of go into these deals it's from a you know from the very beginning i mean there are some things that really uh excite us housing as you've heard i would say that you know 10 is a start but you know, for this board is, is, is gon

Well, it's a pleasure having you all and family members. Thank you all for being here and supporting as well. thank you gentlemen look forward to future discussions with the tour mr chair that concludes my report thank you okay thank you mr manager and uh colleagues thank you for the uh the great conversation there uh at this point um where are we on here promotion that we approved all consent items second we're not there yet no we're at uh we've got uh

We're not there yet. We've got two more things.

We've got another item from a commissioner. That could be a really fast item. Now you see why I was trying to move us along, right? Okay. But, no, right now what we're going to do is we're going to turn to commissioner reports. I'm going to turn to Commissioner Rodriguez-McDowell. She brought something forward that I think is really important. We talked about it at our last meeting, but it's related to advisory board recommendations. So I'll turn to you right now, Commissioner, to tee this up.

Okay, sure. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Yes, I wanted to make a motion that we approve the creation of an ad hoc committee to discuss recommendations for advisory boards and commissions recognition. So what I'm talking about here is like a yearly event where we thank and recognize commissioners Those who have put in a full term on an advisory board and have like some sort of you know reception or you know the idea of the ad hoc committee is to talk about the different ways that we could show our appreciation to our advisory boards and And so we have a few ideas on here, but that's the main point

All right, so it's been moved and seconded. Is there any quick thoughts around that, Commissioner Leake?

I want to thank you for your recommendation and your motion and your thought. It's one of the things that we need, and I'm glad you brought it forth and put it out here before this body. because some people we honor and some people we overlook. I look at the custodians, used to look at the custodians whenever I went to a school, when I was on a school board and attended the meetings, or a given set of community people. So I like the idea, but it has to be developed well, where there will not be this group against that group, but working together, making the whole better. And that's what you're

Yeah, and it's an ad hoc group, and so you're going to develop a process and a procedure. That's what she said.

Hopefully it doesn't drag on for too long. My hope is that we could get this rolling for the fall.

Sounds good. Commissioner Powell had something.

Yeah, same thing. I just want to thank you for this because there has been a time in history of the county where we did recognize all the advisory boards when Harry Jones was here. And I think it's really important. And I love that the clerks went to see how the city was doing it. Um, I really appreciate that. Our clerks went to see how the city recognizes their advisory boards. And I like, it is very important. So when I was on the waste management advisory board, I came into the front hallway. you know, in the reception area and we had the big event and it was just really nice to be recogniz

But you're saying all of the volunteer work. With some substance to make sure that they can be involved.

I could, that's what, that's what I was going to say, but I think she, yeah, I was going to say, so commissioner Dunlap is right. Um, but I wanted to get the feedback from the board before to show the support, but, um, And we're going to carry the motion, but we, we don't, we didn't need a motion because I can, as chair appoint an ad hoc committee. That's right. But with that being said, I do think it was important for it to come to the board, to get that reaction, to make sure that we were all in favor and supportive of it. Um, so it, it aligns and I, and I did want the public to understand w

I just wanted it to be inclusive in the ad hoc committee. Well, we can talk about that at a later time. I know the hour is late, but I just wanted to, I wanted the ad hoc committee to be more than just determining who should be recognized and who should not just as a consideration of, you know, the impact and whether or not they're,

You're saying everybody's being recognized, right?

Everybody who completes a term on an advisory board. So it's not who, it's how. It's more about how.

Irrelevant. I retract. Because I think it's too much. Standards, as you said. It's too much. Never mind. No, I just wanted it to be, in addition to recognition, it dawns on me that are we getting what we need from all of these committees? Like we have, how many committees? 49. 49. What do they do? If we're recognizing all of them, do we make a determination as to whether or not they're actually needed? Because we don't get reports from all 49, do we? No.

Well, I'm going to let the clerk address that in just one second. Let me come to Commissioner Dunlap. And in the interim, if you're making a substitute motion, then we'll have to deal with that. or a friendly amendment, whatever you're trying to.

So maybe I got it wrong, but Susan, my understanding was the ad hoc committee was supposed to do just what we're discussing. We're not trying to make all of the decisions about what they'll do and who they'll recognize tonight, but to put a committee together to determine who and what and when.

Come back with recommendations to the board.

But what Commissioner Townsend Ingram, if I heard her correctly, what she's saying, she wanted to expand the scope of the ad hoc committee is what I thought I heard her saying. That's why I was... To do what? Well, what she just said would... Repeat what you said you were trying to... And again, I don't want to put words in your mouth. That's just the way that I heard it.

So expand the ad hoc committee. If we're going to be... The committee is there to determine what is appropriate to commend those who volunteer their services. That means that we would be recommending, we would be determining every single one of them. So we have 49 committees. Do we need all 49? So is that something else that the, the, that ad hoc committee would determine whether or not those committees, if they've been, that's not what she's proposed.

Yeah. And I just wanna speak to that real quickly that we did do a committee like that just a few years ago. So it was 20, 22, maybe, um, we had an ad hoc committee where we went through it once and then, so there's not a, what was that? And then we worked on our application process. We did a number of things in that committee. And there are some boards that are mandated, some boards that aren't. There's a lot of complexity to it. And that's why I think it's a good discussion to have as an ad hoc committee, as opposed to...

So let me put it to bed in this sense right here. What you're proposing, Commissioner, is outside of the scope of this particular ad hoc committee. This is only for, just for us to come up with a way of recognition, period. Regardless if it's 4930, right? What you're proposing would be a totally separate ad hoc committee.

And I understand that, but we said in the scope of this committee, we would be recognizing all So would it be prudent to say, well, you know what? This committee would say we're recognizing them, but we don't see a need.

I understand. And that's why I asked the question first.

And both are honorable. Both need to be responded to. But I think that what's in front of us is the recognition piece and a conversation about that. And then the second piece I think you're trying to get is the value proposition, whether it's 49 groups or 29 groups.

Right. And that's why I started asking the question. And if it's two separate, then that's fine. But I think that that should be something that is considered when we're considering the recognition.

So, Mr. Chair, we'll make this simple. The chair's responsibility is to appoint the ad hoc committee to determine who's going to be on it. and you give them the charge, what they're supposed to come back with.

Thank you. Well, what we're going to do is leave it in the scope of what Commissioner Rodriguez-McDowell has said. So I'm not going to expand it at this point, but I do take what you're saying, Commissioner Townsend-Ingraham, and we can talk about that offline. So with that being said, we've heard from everybody. All those in favor, let's see by show of hands. Is there anyone opposed? That's unanimous. All right. So, uh, I will get that, uh, committee appointed. I could tell you right now, commissioner Rodriguez McDowell, you will be chairing that.

Um, so next, um, speaking of, uh, committees, um, commissioner Rodriguez McDowell would like to us to address, uh, potential bonuses for the adult care home and nursing home advisory committee. So, At this time, I'll turn over to you, Commissioner.

Thank you. If it's appropriate, I'd like to make a motion that we approve one-time $1,000 bonuses to newly appointed members of the Adult Care Home and the Nursing Home Advisory Committees. Um, so what this is, is saying these, these particular two committees have an extensive training, uh, process that is mandated by the state at 36 hours of training. And this is a big roadblock for us, uh, filling these positions. Currently we have, uh, 29 vacancies on adult care home and 23 vacancies on nursing home. So these are a large number of positions that have been open for years and very very diffic

All right, so it's been moved and seconded. Let me go to Commissioner Dunlap, and I have something on this as well.

Oh, yeah, I didn't say where. Can I just add where the money would come from?

That's exactly where I was going, the $125,000 that's in reserve.

The contingency, the appropriation. It's number two on here. Yeah, this is our BOCC contingency fund that we have in the budget. If we filled every slot, it would be $52,000. And I believe that has $700,000.

Oh, that's what I was thinking. You said it was more than $125,000.

Is that between the people you're honored to speak?

The fund has $700,000 in it. We haven't used any of it.

Let the ad hoc committee determine. You want to do it, but we need to decide how much now or later.

No, this is not for the ad hoc committee. This is a separate motion. This is something that we would start right away. Okay.

It's been moved and seconded already. I'm coming to you. I mean, this has been a position for as long as I've been on the board has been really tough and these are tough jobs. I mean, going to the various nursing homes and visit in addition to the 36 hours, uh, that's required in terms of training. Um, And it addresses the chairman as it goes down the list of our priorities in terms of seniors.

But these are the least of our, these are people, these are babies and seniors. These are the folk who really need our support to the extent that we can. It's a pilot, so we're going to see if it works. So I certainly support it coming out of the chute. If it doesn't work, we'll come back and try something else. But we really have to figure out how to get those slots filled. That's right.

Let me go with, uh, Powell, Lee, Townsend, Ingram, then, uh, commissioner.

So I was watching the meeting when the, uh, ombudsman came and every year when we sit here and we hear their presentation, like there's outrage up here and we, we keep saying like, well, I mean, I've talked to everyone. I've talked to everyone at the state that everywhere I go, I've talked about how important it is to have more state oversight. And if we can't get that, I mean, I'm gonna keep pushing, but if we can't get that, we need this. And there is a huge hole here. Every year we talk about how bad it is. And so I love this idea. I think it pays for their time while they're in class. And

I sit here listening to our talking and when I got on this board and heard the reports from the various org boards that we have, nobody was coming up to support those who needed us the most. And that's those who cannot take care of themselves. Pat Cotham and I talked about it from this desk. We were the first two to do it. If you go to the back meetings and read the minutes, I'm sorry. So I'm in favor and when she sit back so I can see her. So when you can't talk with me about it, I was just anxious because this is what we've needed all the time. And we worked and I'm still working. I was out

See my people and it's a need in our community. So I'm supporting it 100%.

Thank you. Commissioner Townsend Ingram.

I support 100% everything that everybody has said.

Speak up just a little bit louder, honey.

I support 100% everything that everyone has said, but as I was talking with Commissioner Rodriguez-McDowell, my concern is that it's a Band-Aid, and I understand that it's a pilot, but I think that there are other things that we should do, not just... Yes, they absolutely need money. They needed it a long time ago. But parity, I'm concerned about that, about the other organizations. And I know the requirements and the statutory requirements of the state. But I think that in addition to, and I know you make these But I keep thinking of the things that, so yes, I wholeheartedly support this, but

Thank you. I really appreciate you coming forward with this. Um, you know, I, uh, I definitely will be raising my hand for it. I want to ask that. Mr. Manager, to the extent the process you think would be good that, you know, when we sign people up and they go through this process, that they sign some sort of commitment. It may not be enforceable, you know, if they break the commitment and they don't end up doing the work. There's probably not a lot we can do for the $1,000 we paid them. But let's create the expectation. Let's create the moral obligation that in exchange for this training, whi

Yeah, these are really often places of despair and neglect, and we have to do something, and I'm grateful.

Thank you. So, Madam Clerk, help me with something. Outside of this, if we do this bonus, what is the pay for this board?

Hold on, everybody. It's 150 a quarter. It's 150 a month. 150 a month paid out quarterly.

So I certainly support the bonus concept and a pilot. I just think that there should be rigor because we're not gonna give out just a bonus and then somebody walk away or something like that, right? So I just want there to be rigor around what that looks like to your point, Commissioner. I don't know how you work that Mr. Manager, but I do think the other thing is, With the load, if we're compensating people for gas, I think compensating people for time is important as well, not just the gas. The stipend still just does not feel right to me. And so at some point I don't have, I'm not prepared

What we'll wind up doing is if we approve the bonus, the manager's office is going to come back with a recommendation on how the pilot would look, right? And it would need to come to us so that we understand what the pilot looks like so that we're all on the same page, right? Is that fair, Mr. Manager? That's fair. I mean, is that getting to what you're saying or no?

Yeah, no, I think we don't have the exact time frame at this point. I mean, we would execute it, the manager, if you could just work. We'll move it, you and I, to figure out when we move it forward.

Give me a second, Commissioner. We want everybody to be heard, please. It's been moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye.

Thank you, everyone. Just a verbal. Thank you.

Just a verbal. Thank you, Commissioner, for doing that. At this time, let me get the motion to approve the consent item. All right, moved and seconded. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. And with that being said, let's go to Commissioner reports. Let me start with Commissioner Townsend-Ingram.

I'm going to pull this out because I thought I had to. I didn't think we were going to be able to. All right. So I'm going to document my commissioner report and send it via email just for the record because I like the two the two ad hoc committees that that Commissioner Rodriguez-McDowell, and I actually have some ideas on committees that I think are important that I want to consider. And it is specifically for the community. But it occurred to me after conversations this morning with a professional about some of our systems. Our systems they're built usually and they're not Visited revisited

That's it. Commissioner Rodriguez-McDowell.

Thank you. As I'm recovering from major surgery, I have had the need to drive on I-77 North almost every day, which gets me into thinking about the nightmare, like the nightmare of toll roads. And like, you know, you're in the normal lanes and it's gridlocked no matter what time it is. And it's like a open freeway on the toll roads. And So I just want to declare to the world that I have no intention of ever changing my vote, ever, on I-77 South, and I can't even believe we're there, like the whole situation. And then I want to share the good news. So Northern Regional Rec Center, now you know

but I just learned more and I love them more.

And please, you know, if you come up to my district, I will take you there because it is so awesome. It's just awesome on top of awesome. And that's all. Thank you. Thank you.

Mrs. Dunlap. No report. Commissioner Leak.

Yeah, I just want to say, um, because we're on a little bit of a reduced schedule in the summer that we went many of us, um, to a beautiful dedication for the rusty Roselle new building. Uh, chairman gave beautiful remarks. Commissioner Powell gave beautiful remarks. Um, it was this rusty's family gave beautiful remarks, the rededication of the, uh, Louisa building.

And, of course, the manager gave beautiful remarks and Dr. Johnson. So, anyway, it was amazing. I want to say I'm so happy to see my colleague, Commissioner Powell, looking so great after your surgery. Congratulations on making such great progress. It is a thrill and a joy. You make us so proud, Mr. Chairman Emeritus. And I was um, uh, pitching for commissioner Meyer, um, at, uh, Archdale park for a ribbon cutting, uh, where she is much beloved. Uh, and it was super cool to see, uh, the $4 million, uh, facelift that that park got because wow, community really turned out. And just generally, I

Thank you. Commissioner Griffin. At 10.05, I'll make this comment. My driver's license expired because my age is 70. I won't tell, but anyway, I got my license renewed and I have to tell you this story. The young lady was helping me at DMV up off of Belle Avon, Brookshire, wherever it's at, mentioned that she had to move from Mooresville to Mecklenburg County. And I said, well, why? She said, I couldn't afford the tolls to get to DMV on time. So she moved into Mecklenburg County because of tolls. So I just wanted to share that with you, the impact of tolls on the working class folk here in Mec

First time we've all been together. All nine of us have been together in a long time. It was great meeting. Thank you, colleagues. I'll entertain a motion to adjourn. So moved. All in favor, say aye. Aye. Thank you.