[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6677228,"mediaKeyId","2255956-41888176bfb37bf599283b6de3e0910e","parentId",2255956,"title","Charlotte, Mecklenburg outline public-health approach to violence; council asks staff for 45 days of data analysis","audioSeconds",549,"startMs",2785000,"endMs",3334000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2255956-41888176bfb37bf599283b6de3e0910e&start=2785&end=3334","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2255956-41888176bfb37bf599283b6de3e0910e/thumbnail_2785000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6677228/Charlotte/Mecklenburg-County/North-Carolina/Charlotte-Mecklenburg-outline-public-health-approach-to-violence-council-asks-staff-for-45-days-of-data-analysis","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6677228-ce2e1207a5425f277f827d935deda4a0/orig.mp4?Expires=1772755148&Signature=iyrw6Fq9y1U4yi1NGPB7YzfihIOfgLhR6xiqx8o9gXqIFqmn4YCmjqs7MDZq72ZhHCCFr8yp40~FtiizygnO6DKro0gxS5qb1HRsnQ80Iu41fsJxmMnKZ4AgMtp--k9q27PWDsMPgdG6bXQMbg91GDL3WGYA4SYz3xEexVmrYzyP7o5t6htrbHJsKqpUKaXsfKnPP4R9bLEEWOdKiBU9XV10Rm-sDznLyOL7rb1WY804X1cf2AjnJV0IoOnX5Xt3PfZdWFWdUcp9yiFsH2mvNSi7mHQ7CikddVPogcRT425-lnubrAqJTc6T0iBXiL4j3wHrNCBqb0dOCM7nsODvZQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Charlotte","date","2025-02-11T02:07:07.5Z","article","City and county public-health and community partners presented the city council on Feb. 10 about efforts to treat violence as a public-health crisis, including the county’s Office of Violence Prevention, Atrium Health’s hospital-based Project BOOST and community-based Alternatives to Violence (ATV) sites. After discussion, council asked the city manager’s office, CMPD and the IT department to produce a focused data analysis and actionable insights within 45 days.

Raynard Washington, Mecklenburg County public-health director, described the county’s Office of Violence Prevention, which was started after community input and seeks to reduce violence through primary, secondary and tertiary prevention. Washington said the Way Forward plan sets a five-year target to reduce gun-related violence by 10 percent and organizes activity across five “building blocks” including community collaboration, hospital-based intervention and evidence-based interruption programs.

Atrium Health representatives updated council on Project BOOST (Building Optimal Outcomes for Survivors of Trauma). Program manager Britney Brown said Project BOOST began as a 2021 pilot funded with $250,000 from the city that was matched by Atrium Health, creating $500,000 in startup funds. Brown said the program subsequently secured federal funding of about $963,000 to support expansion through 2028 and has extended services into 2025 as it hires additional staff. “Project BOOST” works bedside with patients injured by violence to assess social needs, connect survivors to resources (housing, employment, mental-health services) and reduce the likelihood of re-injury.

Morgan Maxwell, Project BOOST’s evaluation scientist, reported program outcomes for Jan. 2022–Dec. 2024: staff encountered roughly 270 patients and enrolled 131; enrolled participants were mostly male (about 95 percent), 85 percent Black/African American, 91 percent injured by firearms, and skewed toward ages 16–18. Maxwell said Project BOOST’s preliminary evaluation shows less than 12 percent of enrolled participants returned with the same injury (recidivism) and 83 percent of participants had no subsequent justice-system interaction in the measured follow-up windows. Maxwell added that the program screens and addresses social drivers of health—housing, transportation and safety—and that more than 90 percent of those with identified SDOH needs had been connected to services at 90-day follow up.

Rakeshla Stewart, deputy director of the city’s Housing and Neighborhood Services, summarized the city-funded Alternatives to Violence (ATV) program, which follows Cure Violence (CVG) methods and hires credible messengers with lived experience to interrupt conflicts, support high-risk individuals and change harmful local norms. ATV began in 2021 with one site in the Beatties Ford area and expanded in 2023 to West Boulevard and Nation’s Ford/Arrowood, operated by Youth Advocate Program (YAP) and the Urban League of Central Carolinas. Stewart said ATV sites reported roughly 76 community activities and outreach to about 3,500 residents so far, and gave examples including midnight basketball and midday canvassing in schools and apartment complexes to de-escalate conflicts.

Council members from across the chamber praised the collaborations but said they also felt urgency in light of continuing high-profile shootings. Councilmember Malcolm Graham pointed to a recent daylight shooting in Uptown and urged faster results. Several council members asked for more granular data linking repeat offenders to overall arrest and victimization counts; Councilmember Bakari Sellers said the city needs data to test whether a relatively small cohort of repeat offenders is responsible for an outsized share of crimes.

City staff recommended a short, targeted next step: spend 45 days producing data analysis and operational insights—using CMPD data, IT tools and the city-manager’s office—to show where policies or reallocated resources would likely have the most impact. Sean Heath, who organized the multi-month series for the manager’s office, framed the 45-day workplan as a staff-level analysis and recommended workload prioritization rather than a pause in existing programs. Council broadly supported the request for focused analysis and asked city and county staff to return with findings and policy options.

Speakers described community investments beyond interruption and hospital-based care, including youth mental-health access, gun-lock distribution, the Peacekeepers Academy to train community groups, and a youth advisory council that feeds recommendations into planning. Presenters urged that law-enforcement tactics, court resources, behavioral health, housing and economic-opportunity work remain integrated parts of any durable strategy.

Council members asked staff to return with specific, actionable recommendations—policy and budget options where applicable—after the 45-day analysis period.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City Council Business Meeting - February 10, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","City and county public-health and hospital partners on Feb. 10 told Charlotte City Council about a multi-part strategy treating violence as a public-health crisis and asked staff for a 45-day data analysis to identify where policy or resource changes would most likely reduce violent crime.","taxTitle","Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina","taxId",4848,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6677233,"Charlotte council defers vote on eminent-domain actions for Rocky River sewer after residents’ attorney objects",1707,599000,2306000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2255956-41888176bfb37bf599283b6de3e0910e&start=599&end=2306","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2255956-41888176bfb37bf599283b6de3e0910e/thumbnail_599000.jpg","/articles/6677233/Charlotte/Mecklenburg-County/North-Carolina/Charlotte-council-defers-vote-on-eminent-domain-actions-for-Rocky-River-sewer-after-residents-attorney-objects","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6677233-13d9139efa999bb1d0280097649e78b6/orig.mp4?Expires=1772755148&Signature=oXXkKlGwVB-AqSv~Idd9UpydotGXx~3zbKTQCA2PVnCMEiq16SpeAod1FwbBRE0lB3uT~KeApV7KHUsFUzPyFhrkq0OJ~9DeNYIidq87DS~F2g-krjqFgFv~gXzovmxbu5kGVx7i70zei96msP-PI0qe0gSR~dac7QL9JrpEyLV59f~jKY6VHs44dycRvQSpd1sODPedGE2F6qgYp5C6Ap-IgqyG1xo2ofTLa-Y9RugMmOZyd7Za7ieq438wEc-VtqsgS-A3JKy34MmC0k29Wn5hOsuI2yC7LzvnKAWQAC~KQH6l9HBzkW1WBsVk9hgnOCFf~axCCvv12-xXT9Ni6w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Charlotte City Council on Feb. 10 deferred action on three Charlotte Water agenda items that would have started condemnation proceedings to obtain easements for a Rocky River sanitary sewer outfall, after an attorney representing landowners urged the council not to authorize takings for a private developer.

The council’s delay came after Tommy Odom, an attorney who said he represents the May, Hennenhausen and Davis families, asked members to deny the condemnation action and require the developer to acquire property on the open market. “We believe this is a very serious matter…to condemn these three families’ properties for a private developer would be unlawful and unconstitutional,” Odom told the council.

City and Charlotte Water staff said the project is part of a broader capital improvement plan requested by the town of Davidson and that the work meets the public-purpose standard needed for eminent domain. Thomas Powers, speaking for Charlotte Water, told council the pipeline route was requested by the town in 2016 and that the segment in question is part of phase 1 of the Rocky River CIP. “It is my legal opinion that this does meet the public purpose standard necessary for condemnation under the North Carolina constitution,” Powers said.

Angela Charles, director of Charlotte Water, said the work is for backbone wastewater infrastructure—“All 5,900 feet of this line will be maintained” by Charlotte Water—and that the utility has reimbursement agreements with a developer who will install pipe and be reimbursed under that contract. City Attorney Anthony Fox and other staff explained that tonight’s action would only initiate the condemnation process by authorizing the filing of complaints and making deposit notices; any determination of just compensation would be made in a court proceeding and property owners would have an opportunity to challenge public purpose and compensation there.

Council members debated the legal and procedural questions, including whether the developer’s involvement changed the project’s scope or timing and whether the parcels lie in the rear of properties near the Cabarrus County line. Councilmember Victoria Watlington asked whether the contested parcels are “square in the middle of the development or on the outer edge,” and staff answered that the pipeline runs toward the rear of the properties, near the county line. Staff stated the pipes are 15-inch and 12-inch wastewater mains installed as part of a roughly 5,900-foot set of lines in Davidson that had been included in Charlotte Water’s capital program since 2018.

After discussion, a motion to approve the condemnation items did not receive a majority. A subsequent motion to defer the items until the council’s next business meeting carried, with council setting the items to return on the Feb. 24 business meeting for further information and continued negotiations. Staff said they would continue engaging Mr. Odom’s clients on just compensation and that a court process can be used to determine compensation if voluntary agreements are not reached.

Clarifying details recorded in the meeting: the pipeline work in Davidson totals about 5,900 feet of 15-inch and 12-inch wastewater main; the Town of Davidson requested the line in 2016 and the project has been in Charlotte Water’s CIP since 2018; Charlotte Water described the construction as procured under a reimbursement agreement with a private developer who installs infrastructure that the city will own and maintain; staff said property acquisition to date has included negotiations but appraisers and real estate staff had not reached agreement with the three families represented by Odom, prompting the proposed condemnation initiation.

Council members and staff said the matter remains subject to negotiation and potential court review of just compensation. The council’s deferral will bring the items back at the Feb. 24 business meeting with the expectation that staff will return with additional information and continued engagement with property owners.

","Council members paused action on three Charlotte Water condemnation items after an attorney representing three property-owning families argued the takings would be unlawful; Charlotte Water and the city attorney said the pipeline project meets public-purpose tests and that just compensation would be deposited with the court.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6677224,"Council approves new Arts, Science & Culture governance structure; debate over $2M grants and RFP timeline continues",2887,5293000,8180000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2255956-41888176bfb37bf599283b6de3e0910e&start=5293&end=8180","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2255956-41888176bfb37bf599283b6de3e0910e/thumbnail_5293000.jpg","/articles/6677224/Charlotte/Mecklenburg-County/North-Carolina/Council-approves-new-Arts-Science-Culture-governance-structure-debate-over-2M-grants-and-RFP-timeline-continues","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6677224-abda39655e2f83cb51060c7d2c26a3ea/orig.mp4?Expires=1772755148&Signature=o-2MgoVl8TZyo1npTh7sTdY34aMhABv12ce2dX7bAEiYxO9ax5~zMVx1gKs8jEmAfcFdr6TwMzxYOw5Lf66REZEuZjJqS1KmKGo35XOHo6K8kE3HnklT8~HuYkMU-cFmtm3Mh8WAHzU77mK6IuMqFt-bGKVCmpJ4KZ~0Ga~tJiIl1aikLuq0NVLTFh4zYWs8J-hAHzKewVfpKaHynT67baxBsPh92Xq5Rvg2i-20rGIfu8Qpivjgrtx5yhqwAFexgkVqoGLSkJlE~JiEULj0fmn1Vo9RBXcRYcOJwalYubbrLk7zSnMjdwrhhDEagMUZ0wG6eu7LoLyFsZzQoLvZaA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Charlotte City Council voted Feb. 10 to participate in a new governance structure for arts, science and culture funding that will bring city, county and private (Foundation for the Carolinas) appointments together to oversee grant-making and long-term strategy. The move passed with two council members recorded in opposition, who said the proposed appointment structure and grant process reduce direct public accountability.

The recommendation came to full council after the Jobs and Economic Development Committee reviewed governance options and voted 4–1 in committee last fall. Committee materials and staff presentations described an ecosystem approach that combines the city’s roughly $11 million annual arts allocation (about $9 million in “hardwired” recurring support and $2 million for discretionary grants) with county funds and philanthropic investments, producing about $21 million a year in the agreed model. Under the proposal, the Foundation for the Carolinas would play a coordination role and new boards would make grant recommendations; city and county appointees would sit on the governing body and retain final approvals for certain actions.

Several council members supported the approach as a way to secure long-term collaboration and oversight across public and private funders. “This is a legacy issue we have worked on for years,” said a committee representative who brought the item to the dais. Supporters said the structure is intended to implement recommendations from the city’s cultural plan, expand grant-making for individual artists and small groups and bring more private-sector commitments into the pipeline.

Opponents singled out two issues: (1) the appointment process and what they described as an additional layer of decision-making that could move decisions farther from direct council control and (2) the outstanding distribution of about $2 million in city-authorized discretionary grants for individual artists and small creative groups, approved in the prior year’s budget but not yet distributed. Councilmember Victoria Watlington said she would not support the recommendation because the proposed process “is getting too far away from the voters” and raised concerns about the relationship between recommending bodies and the final grant-making board. Councilmember Renee Johnson said she shared concerns about the appointment and accountability structure and asked staff for a firm timeline.

City Manager Marcus Jones told council that $9 million of the city’s allocation is committed to recurring, long-term support, and $2 million remains for discretionary grants to artists; he said staff had paused an earlier, ad-hoc plan to use Charlotte Is Creative in order to run an RFP as requested by council. Jones said the RFP for the $2 million was being drafted and that staff expected to distribute the grants after the selection process; he also said that if council had chosen not to adopt the new governance structure the city could still pursue an alternate pathway to distribute the $2 million in the current fiscal year.

Council voted to approve the Jobs and Economic Development Committee recommendation to participate in the new governance structure. The vote passed with Councilmember Victoria Watlington and Councilmember Renee Johnson recorded opposed; the rest of the council voted in favor.

Councilmembers and staff requested follow-up: a timeline for the RFP and grant distribution for the $2 million allocated to individual artists, a list of organizations that have been approved in prior budgets but have not yet received funding, and annual performance reporting from the new governance structure once it is operational. Manager’s office staff said the Foundation for the Carolinas will serve a coordination role and that the structure will include grant-making, venue assistance, education grants, and efforts to implement the cultural plan’s remaining pillars.

Council members said they would hold appointments to the new board—and the board’s operating rules—to close review when nominations are brought forward in accordance with the council’s appointments process.

","Charlotte City Council voted to participate in a new governance structure for the Arts, Science & Culture Council that will coordinate city, county and private funds; some members opposed, and council and staff discussed when and how $2 million in city grants for individual artists will be distributed via an RFP.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Charlotte, Mecklenburg outline public-health approach to violence; council asks staff for 45 days of data analysis

Charlotte council defers vote on eminent-domain actions for Rocky River sewer after residents’ attorney objects

Council approves new Arts, Science & Culture governance structure; debate over $2M grants and RFP timeline continues