Charlotte business group predicts fate of $2.5 billion CMS proposal in November
The business community is lining up in support of $2.5 billion in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools bonds, and one top Charlotte Regional Business Alliance official is confident voters will say “yes” at the ballot box this fall.
The business alliance will campaign for the bonds, which could build up to 30 new schools, according to Chief Advocacy Officer Joe Bost. The group, a combination of the Chamber of Commerce and the Charlotte Regional Partnership, successfully campaigned for $226 million in city housing and transportation bonds in November. Atrium Health, American Airlines, Novant Health and Bank of America are among businesses that participate in the business group.
“I think it’s going to be absolutely critical. We’ve got to have facilities that meet the needs of the 21st and 22nd century for kids.” Bost told The Charlotte Observer Wednesday. “We fully anticipate it to be successful.”
The campaign’s political action committee, called the Coalition for a Better 2050, spent tens of thousands of dollars and raised more than a half-million dollars on campaign consulting, public relations and mailing to get the 2022 bonds passed. Volunteers waved signs at busy intersections, encouraging passersby to support the bonds, too.
In recent history, their efforts have worked: Mecklenburg voters tend to support school bonds. The last referendum, for a historic $947 million in 2017, won with 73% of the vote. The last time bonds failed was in 2005, with 57% saying no.
But this time, local leaders will be asking voters to pass the biggest bond referendum of its kind in N.C. No public school district in the state has seen voters pass a $2.5 billion referendum. The last large bond referendum was in 2022 in Guilford County when voters passed $1.7 billion. Prior to that, the third-largest was CMS’ in 2017.
‘It’s really a no-brainer’
Mecklenburg County Chairman George Dunlap encouraged airport executives, hoteliers, hospital leaders and restaurateurs to support the bonds at a Wednesday morning speaking engagement with the business alliance.
“For me, it’s really a no-brainer. We need to get behind this effort,” Dunlap said during a panel with Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles. “There’s going to always be people to say you’re spending too much. When we have students in classrooms that have no natural light, no windows, it does not present itself as the most conducive learning environment.”
If voters approve the bonds in November, Mecklenburg County taxpayers will help pay off the debt for the school construction projects.
Starting July 1, Mecklenburg’s property tax rate will jump 1.6 cents over the revenue neutral rate, resulting in 91% of Mecklenburg homeowners paying higher taxes on their home or property. Of the more than 300,000 people affected, 243,000 will see increases larger than $15 on their bills, according to a county projection.
If voters say “yes,” Mecklenburg CFO David Boyd projects a need for a 1-cent increase in fiscal year 2025 and additional increases in future years to pay off the debt.
“This community, it’s growing rapidly. We’ve got to invest now,” Bost said.
CMS board chair Elyse Dashew told the Observer the investment will be worth it for the students.
“This is an incredibly important investment in our community impacting areas from Davidson to south Charlotte, from Berryhill to Garinger, and everywhere in between.” Dashew said. “These purpose-built facilities will have a real impact on learning conditions, health, and safety for our students. The need is real, and the early feedback I am hearing is that the community recognizes this.”
Board Vice Chair Stephanie Sneed says the district is committed to maximizing student performance — and newer schools are a part of that.
“It is imperative that the community support this much need capital funding so that our students are in facilities that give them every opportunity to learn, grow and succeed,” Sneed said in a statement to the Observer. “A successful bond, combined with our focused efforts on student outcomes, will be the catalyst of a new golden era of education for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.”
Potential for ‘no’ votes
When the school board voted in early June to approve a new south county boundary and reassignment plan to relieve overcrowding in south Charlotte high and middle schools, parents who were unhappy about their reassignment were left figuring out what to do.
Multiple parents told the Observer prior to the June 6 vote they would not support the bond if the district didn’t make changes to Superintendent Crystal Hill’s proposal. Those changes didn’t happen.
But CMS initially had even more school projects proposed, costing nearly $3 billion in an earlier bond proposal. State Treasurer Dale Folwell warned the county about handling that amount of debt. County staff also said that amount would be tough to handle. And last month, Diorio recommended the $2.5 billion amount voters will decide on this November.
The general election is scheduled for Nov. 7.
