Council-Manager Memo #10 Thursday, March 9, 2017

WHAT’S INSIDE: Page Calendar Details ......................................................................................................... 2 Information: March 11-18 – TreesCharlotte Arbor Week to Plant and Celebrate Trees ............... 2-3 March 16 – Project PIECE Graduation ....................................................................... 3-4 Water Supply Drought Stage Status .......................................................................... 4 2017 State Legislative Report #5 ............................................................................... 5 Attachment: City Council Follow-Up Report ................................................................................... 5 --Community Letter Update – CMS Title I Schools February 22 Metropolitan Transit Commission Summary ........................................ 5

WEEK IN REVIEW:

Mon (Mar 13) Tues (Mar 14) Wed (Mar 15) Thurs (Mar 16) Fri (Mar 17)

National League of Cities Conference Washington DC

12:00 PM Community Safety Committee, Room CH-14

Mayor and Council Communication 3/9/17 Page 2

CALENDAR DETAILS: Saturday, March 11 – Wednesday, March 15 National League of Cities Conference, Washington DC Thursday, March 16 12:00 PM Community Safety Committee, Room CH-14 AGENDA: Charlotte Airport taxicabs; CMPD youth and adult diversion program March and April calendars are attached.

March-April 2017.pdf

INFORMATION:

March 11-18 – TreesCharlotte Arbor Week to Plant and Celebrate Trees Staff Resource: Erin Oliverio, E&PM, 704-432-2925, eoliverio@charlottenc.gov Beginning this Saturday, March 11, volunteers with TreesCharlotte will distribute and plant more than 1,300 trees during six Arbor Week celebrations and events. North Carolina Arbor Day is Friday March 17, 2017. The events are:

• Saturday, March 11: Avensong and Maplewoods Community Neighborwoods TreeDay Community residents have registered for 263 trees as part of TreesCharlotte Neighborwoods Program. Avensong event sponsored by Wells Fargo.

• Monday, March 13: WG Byers Elementary School Stewardship event 1415 Hamilton Place, with Carolina HealthCare System volunteers.

• Thursday, March 16: SouthView Park Planting 1720 Vilma Street, with 150 Charlotte Country Day students planting trees in celebration of the school’s seventy-fifth anniversary.

• Friday, March 17: Briarwood Elementary Arbor Day Festival 1001 Wilann Drive. Starts out with activities for Pre-K to Kindergarten to learn all about trees. Also five outdoor stations for all grade levels:

Three stations hosted by NC Wildlife Federation’s Great Outdoor University Charlotte Tree Advisory Commission hosting activity for students to decorate

“tree cookies” (cross sections of trees) Landscape Management Division will have “Bucket Truck” demonstrations

Mayor and Council Communication 3/9/17 Page 3

• Saturday, March 18: City-Wide TreeStore 701 Tuckaseegee Road, 11:00 a.m., 1,000 trees available free to public along with tree clinic. Sponsored by Google Fiber.

• Saturday, March 18: Saint Paddy’s Day Parade 11:00 a.m., Uptown Charlotte; TreesCharlotte Truck is in the parade, along with “Rootie,” the mascot and Charlotte Tree Advisory Commission members passing out free seedlings.

At TreeDay events volunteers, neighbors, and staff from the City and TreesCharlotte provide information on tree planting and care, and help residents plant trees on their property. Council members are invited to attend any TreesCharlotte event. If Council members plan to attend, please contact Erin Oliverio. TreesCharlotte is the civic/private collaborative that supports and leverages Council’s goal of “50% Tree Canopy by 2050.” Using Council’s tree planting budget and the work of dedicated volunteers, TreesCharlotte is raising private dollars to plant trees, educate, and energize the community. For each TreesCharlotte event the City pays for incidentals, including mulch. The City partners with TreesCharlotte to manage logistics for the community NeighborWoods events. City staff provides expertise in neighborhood outreach, tree selection, and creation of planting plans. TreesCharlotte raises the capital to purchase trees and to provide volunteer meals, tools, and t-shirts. March 16 – Project PIECE Graduation Staff Resource: Kevin Dick, NBS, 704-336-3857, kevin.dick@charlottenc.gov Project PIECE (Partners for Inclusive Employment and Career Excellence) will host a graduation ceremony for its inaugural residential and commercial construction training class at the Goodwill Opportunity Campus at 5301 Wilkinson Boulevard, 6—7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 16. City Council is invited to attend the event, which recognizes trainees who participated in the program. Fourteen of the 17 members of the inaugural class are graduating; however, the remaining three have found employment after receiving job placement services. Project PIECE is conducted by the City in partnership with Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont and the Urban League of Central Carolinas. It focuses on addressing identified labor market shortages in key industries and increasing employment opportunities among individuals with multiple barriers to employment, a goal of in Council’s Community Letter. Participants have access to state-of-the-art career centers and services such as mentoring, coaching, and intensive case management. The initiative also offers training in the areas of fiber optics/broadband and premise cabling as well as highway construction. Additional graduation

Mayor and Council Communication 3/9/17 Page 4

ceremonies are planned for the coming weeks. City Council will be notified of these events as final details are confirmed. Water Supply Drought Stage Status Staff Resource: Barry Gullet, Charlotte Water, 704-336-4962, bgullet@charlottenc.gov The Catawba-Wateree Drought Management Advisory Group (CW-DMAG) drought status remains Stage 1. Therefore, Charlotte Water remains under voluntary water conservation recommendations and is asking customers to continue practicing water conservation as the planting season approaches. Under Stage 1 voluntary conservation recommendations, customers are asked to:

• Please only irrigate on Tuesdays and Saturdays between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. if they must irrigate;

• Limit landscape watering to no more than one inch of water per week, this includes rain; • Please conserve all water use indoors and outdoors; • Please refrain from outdoor water use during the day (6 a.m. to 6 p.m.) to reduce

evaporation losses; • Please refrain from filling pools; • Only top off swimming pools on Thursday and Sundays, between 6 p.m. – 6 a.m.; • Please discontinue operation of fountains and other ornamental water features that do

not sustain aquatic animal life. Charlotte Water has been in Stage 1 conditions since November 1. Temperatures were higher than normal and precipitation levels below normal this past winter. Therefore, Charlotte Water does not expect de-escalation in Drought Stage in the coming months without significant inputs of rainfall in the river basin. The next DMAG drought update will occur April 1. If the indices warrant escalation to Stage 2, the Low Inflow Protocol prescribes that all water suppliers in the basin implement mandatory water use restrictions. Under the CW-DMAG’s Low Inflow Protocol, data is collected and used to determine if conditions warrant status escalation. The Low Inflow Protocol is the drought management plan major water users in the Catawba River Basin employ to share responsibility and set priorities in order to conserve the limited water supply during drought conditions. In order to determine the water supply drought stage, the CW-DMAG compares:

• Lake storage indices – the amount of water in the lakes as a ratio of what amount of water is expected to be in the lakes

• US Drought Monitor levels – published by state and federal agencies, and • Streamflow ratios – the amount of water flowing into the river and lakes as a ratio of

what is usual. More information about the drought and voluntary conservation can be found at http://charlottewater.org by clicking on Drought Central.

Mayor and Council Communication 3/9/17 Page 5

2017 State Legislative Report #5 Staff Resource: Dana Fenton, City Manager’s Office, 704-336-2009, dfenton@charlottenc.gov Attached is the Week 5 State Legislative Report.

2017 week 5 report.pdf

ATTACHMENTS: City Council Follow-Up Report

9--March.pdf

--Community Letter Update – CMS Title I Schools February 22 Metropolitan Transit Commission Summary

Feb 22 MTC Summary.pdf

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1

5:30pm

Letter to the Community,

Belmont Center –

700 Parkwood Ave.

2 6:30pm – 8:30pm

Marvin Rd. Sidewalk Public

Mtg., Elon Park

Elementary – 11425 Ardrey Kell

Rd.

3 4 9:00am

District 5 Town Hall Mtg.,

Memorial UMC –

4012 Central Ave.

5 6 12:00pm

Environment Committee Mtg.,

Room 280

5:00pm

Council

Workshop/Citizens’ Forum, Room 267

7 6:30pm – 8:00pm

District 6 Town Hall Mtg., Sharon

UMC – 4411

Sharon Rd.

8 12:00pm

HAND Committee Mtg., Room 280

5:30pm - 7:30pm

Idlewild/Rama/

Monroe

Intersection Proj Mtg., Independence

Library – 6000

Conference Dr.

9 12:00pm

ED&GC Committee Mtg.,

Room CH-14

1:30pm Budget Committee

Mtg., Room 280

6:30pm – 8:00pm

MPT Lyles Town Hall Mtg.,

Elevation Church –

8105 IBM Drive

10 11

12 13

14 15 16 12:00pm

Community Safety

Committee Mtg.,

Room CH-14

17 18

19 20 12:00pm

Council Zoning

Briefing (optional), Room 886

1:00pm

Intergovernmental

Relations

Committee Mtg., Room 280

5:00pm

Zoning Mtg., Room

CH-14

21 9:00am – 7:00pm

West

Trade/Rozzelles Ferry CIP Work

Session, Mosaic

Village – 1635 W. Trade St.

5:00pm – 7:00pm

West Blvd.

Corridor Study Public Kick-Off

Mtg., West Blvd.

Library – 2157 West Blvd.

22 12:00pm

HAND Committee

Mtg., Room 280

1:30pm

Budget Workshop, Room 267

5:30pm

MTC Meeting,

Room 267

23 12:00pm

ED&GC

Committee Mtg., Room CH-14

6:00pm – 7:30pm

Districts 2 & 4

Town Hall Mtg.,

University City UMC – 3835 WT

Harris Blvd.

24 25 10:00am – 1:00pm

Female First

Responders Open House, Police/Fire

Training Academy

– 1770 Shopton Rd.

26 27 12:00pm

Governance &

Accountability

Committee Mtg., Room 280

2:00pm

Transportation &

Planning Committee Mtg., Room 280

5:00pm

Citizens’

Forum/Council

Business Mtg., Room 267

28 29 30 1:30pm Budget Committee

Mtg., Room 280

31

2017

March

NLC

Congressional

Cities

Conference,

Washington,

DC

NLC Congressional Cities Conference

Washington, DC

NCLM Town

Hall Day

Raleigh, NC

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1

2 3 12:00pm

Environment Committee Mtg.,

Room 280

5:00pm

Council

Workshop/Citizens’ Forum, Room 267

4 5 6 12:00pm

Community Safety Committee Mtg.,

Room 280

7 8

9 10 2:00pm

Transportation &

Planning Committee Mtg., Room 280

5:00pm

Council Business

Mtg., Room 267

11 12 12:00pm

HAND Committee

Mtg., Room 280

1:30pm

Budget Workshop, Room 267

13 12:00pm

ED&GC

Committee Mtg., Room CH-14

14 15

16 17 12:00pm

Council Zoning

Briefing (optional), Room 886

1:00pm

Intergovernmental

Relations

Committee Mtg., Room 280

5:00pm

Zoning Mtg., Room

CH-14

18 19 20 12:00pm

Community Safety

Committee Mtg., Room 280

21 22

23 24 12:00pm

Governance & Accountability

Committee Mtg.,

Room 280

5:00pm

Citizens’ Forum/Council

Business Mtg.,

Room 267

25 26 12:00pm

HAND Committee Mtg., Room 280

5:30pm

MTC Meeting,

Room 267

27 12:00pm

ED&GC Committee Mtg.,

Room CH-14

28 29

30

2017

April

2017

Good

Friday

CITY MANAGER’S OFFICE M E M O R A N D U M

March 9, 2017

TO: Marcus Jones, City Manager

Randy Harrington, Chief Financial Officer

FROM: Dana Fenton, Intergovernmental Relations Manager SUBJECT: Week 5 State Legislative Report What You Need to Know The local Charlotte Firefighters Retirement System (HB 58 – Dulin, Autry, Belk, R. Moore / SB 54 – Waddell, Tarte, Bishop) bill was reported out of House Pensions and Retirement Committee and passed the House 118-0. Search and Rescue Name/Funds (SB 222 – Lee, Krawiec, J. Davis) authorizes appropriations of up to $2.4 million annually for State support of the search and rescue teams operated by various fire departments across the State, including those of the Charlotte Fire Department. Terminate Agreement for Tolling of I-77 (HB 266 – Beasley, Bradford) directs the NC Department of Transportation to terminate the Comprehensive Agreement for the I-77 HOT Lanes project in Mecklenburg and Iredell Counties. HB 266 referred to House Rules Committee. No Powell Bill Funds/Sanctuary Cities (SB 188 – Rabon) states that no municipality shall be eligible to receive funds from the Powell Bill program in any fiscal year it is in violation of the statute that prohibits “sanctuary city” ordinances. SB 188 referred to Senate Rules Committee. House Judiciary II Committee held a second discussion on the Citizens Protection Act of 2017 (HB 63 – Warren, Collins, Jordan, Adams), which amends the 2015 sanctuary city legislation (HB 318) to add penalties for cities and counties that enact “sanctuary city” ordinances, resolutions, policies, etc. A proposed committee substitute was introduced to enhance the penalties to include losing for one fiscal year Powell Bill revenues, and state collected local revenues from beer and wine, telecommunications, video programming and piped natural gas taxes. These revenues total approximately $41.5 million annually for the City of Charlotte. HB 63 is tentatively scheduled for a vote of the House Judiciary II Committee next Tuesday, and then would be heard by the House Finance and House Appropriations Committees.

Page 2 March 9, 2017 Week 5 State Legislative Report Three bills have been introduced by Senator Ford to Remove Limits on Light Rail Funding (SB 170, SB 171, SB 172 – Ford). SB 170 removes the limitation on State participation in commuter rail and light rail projects of ten percent (10%) of the estimated total project costs used during the prioritization scoring process. SB 171 and SB 172 remove the 10% limitation and make additional changes to the underlying Strategic Transportation Investments law that better position commuter rail and light rail projects for funding. All three bills have been referred to Senate Rules Committee. Provide Certain Property Tax Relief (HB 2 – Dollar, Saine, Hardister, R. Turner) expands the exemption from residential property taxes for disabled veterans from the first $45,000 of property value to 100% of the property value and creates a new exemption for the surviving spouses of emergency personnel such as police and firefighters. HB 2 was reported favorably from House State and Local Government II with new language that reimburses counties and cities for their loss of revenues. The introduced version would have led to a loss of revenue to the City estimated at between $550,000 and $600,000 annually. If approved, the bill would take effect July 1, 2017. HB 2 will next be heard in House Finance. The Mecklenburg / Police Countywide Jurisdiction (SB 5 – Tarte, Bishop, J. Jackson) legislation was reported out of Senate State and Local Government. SB 5 amends the 1969 local legislation (SL 1969-1170) that was one of the legal bases for the consolidation of the City and County Police Departments in 1993 and that provides the framework for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department to provide law enforcement services in the unincorporated areas of the County. SB 5 adds police officers of the six towns (Cornelius, Davidson, Huntersville, Matthews, Mint Hill and Pineville) to those authorized by the Board of County Commissioners to provide law enforcement services in unincorporated areas of the County, provided that an agreement exists to allow the exercise of this authority. SB 5 also gives each town council veto power over any other municipality’s police forces exercising police powers in their extra-territorial jurisdictional planning areas. The lead primary sponsor, Senator Tarte, stated in Committee that the legislation was requested by the County Manager so that the Towns would have the option to allow their local police departments to provide law enforcement services in their own extra-territorial jurisdictional areas. Senator Tarte also stated in Committee that the NC Sheriff’s Association is opposed to the bill. In discussions with their lobbyist, the Association’s position is that law enforcement in unincorporated areas should not be split among multiple local law enforcement agencies. The bill next heads to the Senate Judiciary Committee and then Senate Rules Committees. State Legislative Agenda Citizens Review Board: Rep. R. Moore has signaled his intention to introduce the City’s requested legislation to extend subpoena power to the Citizens Review Board in the House. The bill filing deadline in the House is March 29. Police Recordings: Staff is working on this statewide request through the NC Metropolitan Mayors Coalition, which has convened a workgroup of city attorneys to work through this issue and recommend legislative changes.

Page 3 March 9, 2017 Week 5 State Legislative Report Strategic Transportation Investments: Staff understands that Senate Transportation Committee chairs are working on legislation to revise the Strategic Transportation Investments program to provide more benefits to rural areas. So stay tuned. Sales Tax Redistribution: Change the Local Option Sales Tax Adjustment Factors (SB 126 – Brown) is legislation sponsored by Senator Brown, who championed reallocating local option sales tax revenues in 2015 session, to change the adjustment factors applied to the half-cent local Article 40 sales tax levy. SB 126 would eliminate all current adjustment factors for this particular tax, replacing them with a factor based on the county's economic tier designation. Counties with a Tier 1 designation would receive a boost in tax receipts, with their collected amount being multiplied by a factor of 1.10. Tier 1 counties are the considered to be the most economically distressed counties in the State. Counties designated as Tier 2 would receive no adjustments, while counties designated as Tier 3 would see reduced receipts due to being assigned a factor of 0.90. Since Mecklenburg County’s current adjustment factor is 0.89 and is a Tier 3 county, the County’s adjustment factor would rise to 0.90, which would provide a modest boost in local option sales tax revenues. According to estimates prepared by the non-partisan Fiscal Research Division, approximately $932,000 more in sales tax revenue would accrue to the City of Charlotte. Of the 100 counties in the State, 27 counties would see decreases in local option sales tax revenues while the remaining 73 counties would experience increases. Charlotte Firefighters Retirement System (HB 58 – Dulin, Autry, Belk, R. Moore / SB 54 – Waddell, Tarte, Bishop) is local legislation that enables the Retirement System to comply with the Voluntary Correction Program entered into with the Internal Revenue Service, by which the method for computing a firefighters final average salary is determined. The bill has no fiscal impact upon the System. SB 54 received serial referrals to Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Pensions, Compensation and Benefits and Senate Rules Committee. HB 58 reported out of House Committee on State and Local Government I and House Committee on Pensions and Retirement. HB 58 subsequently passed in the House 118-0.

City Council Follow-Up Report

March 9, 2017

March 6, 2017 – City Council Workshop Community Letter Update - CMS Title I Schools Staff Resource: Kevin Dick, NBS, 704-336-3857, kevin.dick@charlottenc.gov At the March 6 City Council Workshop, it was erroneously stated that there were nineteen Title I schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School system. The correct statement should have been that there are nine Title I, priority and focus schools.

February 22 Metropolitan Transit Commission Meeting Summary Staff Resource: John Lewis, CATS, 704-336-3855, John.Lewis@charlottenc.gov MTC considered one action item and heard one information item at the meeting: All-access Pass Discount Program MTC members unanimously approved a change to the Fare Policy to add a section on a new All-access Pass discount program. The All-access Pass will apply to all employees/members of an organization and will offer a greater discount than the current ETC program, which is purchased by a small number of an organization’s employees/members. In exchange for the greater discount under the All-access Pass, CATS will receive a significant increase in overall revenue since it will apply to all the organization’s employees/members. As part of the motion, MTC members unanimously approved the first All-access Pass discount program, with UNC Charlotte. The pass will be integrated into the data chip in UNC Charlotte’s student IDs. Future All-access Pass requests will be negotiated and brought to MTC individually, as each organization’s unique nature will likely require different solutions. FY2017-18 Budget Overview Last year, CATS recommended no fare increase as allowed by MTC Financial Policies and focused instead on reducing or eliminating discounts that reduce the average price per fare. Staff also installed new fareboxes. Four months after new farebox installation, the data shows that average fare per rider increased to $1.36 per rider, $0.20 above budgeted fare. The cost increase in weekly and ten-ride passes resulted in customers moving to monthly passes and cash sales. CATS rail ridership has held steady over the years, but bus ridership has declined. CATS customers who must transfer buses to reach their destination have an average trip time of 90 minutes one-way, an inordinate commuting time. CATS’ Envision My Ride initiative has gathered data from the public as CATS makes plans to transition from the current hub and spoke ride system to more of a grid network to minimize transfers and travel time for riders. Staff is working to develop a bus system that really improves travel time. The guiding themes are better crosstown service and better frequency, using major thoroughfares to keep the buses moving and provide access to opportunities. Staff wants to provide access to opportunities with crosstown connections that people can use to their advantage. Major investments in the capital bus program include new buses, replacements for engines and transmissions and vehicle replacement for the Special Transportation Service (STS). In July, CATS will begin receiving new Gillig low-floor buses, with a dome-type roof for a modern look. The new buses will have vinyl flooring to minimize the appearance of stains and will be easy to clean. The seats will have an inch of padding, making them very comfortable, and a vinyl covering that will be easier to clean than the cloth seating on current buses. New STS vehicles will also be upgraded, smaller and lower-profile vehicles for greater maneuverability. The new low-floor ARBOC vehicle will have ramp access, taking two-thirds less

time for passengers to board than the current lift system. Currently, the lift must be deployed for each passenger, but the ramp will be deployed once for all passengers’ use in boarding. Other investments in the bus capital program are an automated payroll system and a new STS scheduling system, using Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) data to give better estimates on how long it will take to run a route and where an STS vehicle is on its route at any time. Work proceeds on the LYNX Blue Line Extension (BLE), now projected to open in March 2018. Staff is working on the Bus-Rail Integration plan to expand service in the North Corridor area and funnel riders to the BLE for their trips Uptown. CATS Safety & Security provides security for all CATS services. Staff is currently working on a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with UNC Charlotte to delineate clearly the areas of responsibility for CATS and for UNC Charlotte Campus Police. CATS CEO Report Under the CEO’s report, Mr. Lewis discussed: a. CATS Staff Update:

CATS has worked with Central Piedmont Community College to create a bus maintenance and repair apprenticeship program. The first graduates of the program are graduating now. Fox 46 ran a story recently on CATS’ job offer to one of the graduates, Israel Garcia Perez.

b. Fare Collection Update: Security staff performs random fare checks on a daily basis. However, the Ticket Vending Machines (TVMs) for light rail fares are a challenge. If there is a line to purchase a ticket and the train pulls up, most people will just get on. CATS has partnered with a local company, Passport, on a pilot system for mobile ticketing. Passport is a smartphone app for fare payment and verification. Ten percent of Americans have no banking relationship; 20 percent do not have a credit card. As staff works with vendors such as Uber and Lyft for the first- and last-mile connections, staff wants to ensure that all solutions are accessible to all of our citizens. Studies show that eighty-five percent of transit riders have smartphones. Passport has relationships with stores such as CVS, Walgreens and others where customers can go into those stores and load funds onto the Passport app on their smartphones. The ability to level the playing field across all mobility options will broaden options moving forward. CATS will begin rolling out this system in the next couple of months.

The next MTC meeting will be March 22, 2017 at 5:30 p.m.