AND
AND THE
AND THE TOUGH QUESTIONS GET ASKED AND ANSWERED. THANKS FOR JOINING US HERE ON
FLASH POINT.
I'M BEN THOMPSON.
ARE YOU SICK AND TIRED OF
POLITICIANS THAT DON'T LISTEN
TO VOTERS THEY GET INTO OFFICE
AND THEN FORGET THE REST OF US?
WELL, HERE'S YOUR CHANCE TO BE
HEARD THIS WEEK.
YOU CAN WEIGH IN ON WHAT
CHARLOTTE WILL LOOK LIKE IN
TWENTY YEARS.
THE CITY IS INVITING
YOU AND OTHER MEMBERS OF THE
PUBLIC, ALL OF US TO COME SHARE
YOUR OPINION ON THE CHARLOTTE
FUTURE 20 40 COMPRE PLAN DURING
THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING.
WE'LL TELL YOU HOW TO SIGN UP
IN JUST A FEW MINUTES.
BUT FIRST THE PLAN ITSELF.
IT'S RECEIVED A LOT OF
ATTENTION IN RECENT WEEKS.
IT REALLY THE WHO WHAT WHERE
WHEN WHY WHEN IT COMES TO
DEVELOPMENT, THE QUEEN CITY
OVER THE NEXT TWO DECADES AIMS
TO MAKE IT MORE EQUITABLE,
INCLUSIVE, DIVERSE, CONNECTED,
INNOVATIVE, MAKE A BETTER PLACE
TO LIVE FOR EVERYBODY.
AND AS CHARLOTTE GROWS, THE
PLAN AIMS TO INCREASE HOUSING
OPTIONS AND DECREASE COMMUTE
TIMES.
ANDJOINING US NOW CITY
COUNCILWOMAN VICTORIA
WATLINGTON, A DEMOCRAT
REPRESENTING THE FINE FOLKS
DISTRICT THREE.
COUNCILWOMAN, THANKS FOR COMING
ON.
WE APPRECIATE IT.
THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME .
ALL RIGHT.
SO WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO THIS
PLAN, IT'S A LITTLE COMPLICATED
BUT BUT UNLIKE SOME OF YOUR
FELLOW DEMOCRATS WILL SAY THAT
YOU'VE COME OUT AGAINST PART OF
IT.
WHY SURE.
BECAUSE WHILE THE PLAN HAS A
LOT OF GREAT COMPONENTS AND I
THINK IT IS GENERALLY IN THE
RIGHT DIRECTION, THERE ARE SOME
THINGS THAT I REALLY BELIEVE
MAY DO US MORE HARM THAN GOOD
IF WE DON'T GET THOUGHTFUL
ABOUT THE APPROACH AND WHEN
SPECIFICALLY I KNOW THE SINGLE
FAMILY HOUSING PORTION OF IT IS
GETTING A LOT OF ATTENTION
SPECIFICALLY WHAT PART OF IT
DON'T YOU LIKE?
SURE.
SO IN SECTION TWO POINT ONE IT
TALKS ABOUT CREATING A POLICY
THAT WOULD ALLOW ALL LIVES THAT
ARE CURRENTLY ON SINGLE FAMILY
TO ALLOW UP TO A DUPLEX OR
TRICYCLICS ON THOSE LOTS.
AND THAT'S THE PART THAT IS
CONCERNING TO ME BECAUSE WHAT
THAT MEANS FOR NEIGHBORHOODS
LIKE MINE IS THAT INVESTORS ARE
NOW INCENTIVIZED IN A WAY TO
TAKE THE PROPERTIES THAT MANY
OF THEM ALREADY OWN AND CREATE
DUPLEXES IN NORTH CAROLINA
YOU CANNOT PURCHASE HALF OF A
DUPLEX AS A HOMEOWNER UNLESS IT
IS MADE INTO A CONDO.
AND SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT
RENTAL PROPERTIES THEN BECOME
THE NORM MORE SO THAN SINGLE
FAMILY HOME OWNERSHIP
OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN THESE
COMMUNITIES.
THERE'S A CAVEAT TO THAT IN
THAT OF COURSE DEED
RESTRICTIONS HOA CONTRACTS AND
COVENANTS WILL SUPERSEDE
WHATEVER POLICY WE PUT IN PLACE
.
UNFORTUNATELY MANY OF OUR MOST
VULNERABLE NEIGHBORHOODS DON'T
HAVE THOSE KINDS OF LEGISLATION
OR ELSE THEY CONTRACTS BETWEEN
THE HOMEOWNERS THAT WOULD
PROTECT THEM FROM THESE KINDS
OF THINGS WE ALREADY SEE IN
THESE NEIGHBORHOODS IN THE RING
THAT INVESTORS HAVE COME IN AND
BOUGHT MANY OF THE LOT.
SO WE'RE SEEING MANY OF THOSE
OLDER HOMES BEING TORN DOWN AND
LARGER HOMES BEING PUT IN THEIR
PLACE THAT ALREADY HAVE IMPACTS
ON GENTRIFICATION AND
DISPLACEMENT.
HOWEVER, IT IS AT LEAST
CREATING HOMEOWNERSHIP OPTION
AS WE LOOK AT THIS POLICY AGAIN
TWO POINT ONE IN THE CURRENT
PLAN IT CREATES A SITUATION
WHERE PEOPLE WILL BE
INCENTIVIZED IN MY OPINION TO
DO THINGS THAT DON'T CREATE
EQUITY IN OUR MOST VULNERABLE
NEIGHBORHOODS.
I MEAN YOU'VE SAID, YOU KNOW, A
PLAN THAT THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO
BE SORT OF A BEACON OF
PROGRESSIVENESS IS ACTUALLY
ENDING UP HURTING SOME OF THE
PEOPLE, SOME OF THE COMMUNITIES
PROGRESSIVES OFTEN SAY THEY
FIGHT FOR.
RIGHT.
IF WE IF WE DON'T TAKE A VERY,
VERY DETAILED APPROACH AND
THOUGHTFUL APPROACH TO HOW WE
IMPLEMENT THESE POLICIES, THEN
I BELIEVE THAT WE'RE GOING TO
BE WORSE OFF THAN WHERE WE WERE
TRYING TO BE AND SAY YOU SAY
COULD REALLY IMPACT
NEIGHBORHOODS LIKE
NEIGHBORHOODS IN WEST CHARLOTTE
AS OPPOSED TO SAY THE SOUTH
PARKS OR THE BALLANTINE'S OF
CHARLOTTE.
CORRECT.
CHARLOTTE. CORRECT. BECAUSE THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS
OFTEN HAVE EDGEWAYS AND DEED
RESTRICTIONS.
GOTCHA.
RESTRICTIONS. GOTCHA. I WANT TO BRING UP SOMETHING
THAT A COLLEAGUE OF YOURS HAD
SAID WHEN IT COMES TO THIS
ISSUE BRAXTON WINSTED HE
TWEETED THIS OUT A FEW WEEKS
AGO SAYING SINGLE FAMILY ZONING
IS A TOOL OF SEGREGATION IF
YOU'RE FIGHTING TO MAINTAIN
SINGLE FAMILY WHO'S ZONING
YOU WERE ADVOCATING FOR
SEGREGATION.
STOP BEING RACIST, CHARLOTTE
WHERE IS HE WRONG.
SO I WILL SAY THIS THERE ARE A
COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I THINK
OF WHEN I WHEN I READ THIS
TWEET.
THE FIRST THING IS THAT WE'VE
GOT TO BE VERY CAREFUL NOT TO
CALL ANYBODY RACIST OR AGENCY
OR ANY OF THESE THINGS WITHOUT
A FULL UNDERSTANDING ABOUT
THEIR POSITION.
I THINK THAT ESPECIALLY LAST
NIGHT I HAD AN OPPORTUNITY FOR
MY TOWN HALL TO HEAR FROM
COMMUNITY LEADERS ALL OVER
DISTRICT THREE AND THE ONE
TAKEAWAY THAT I THOUGHT REALLY
RESONATED WITH LISTENERS WAS
THAT WE ARE SO DIFFERENT
EVERYBODY HAS DIFFERENT NEEDS
AND WE WANT TO MAINTAIN THAT
DIVERSITY IN THE CITY.
WE'VE GOT TO ENSURE THAT WE
RIGHTSIZE OUR POLICIES FOR
DIFFERENT KINDS OF PEOPLE WHO
ARE LOOKING FOR DIFFERENT
THINGS.
AND SO I ALWAYS HESITATE TO
PAINT ANYTHING WITH A BROAD
BRUSH IN THAT WAY.
SECONDLY, WE UNDERSTAND THAT
TOOLS CAN BE USED BY ANYBODY
TOWARDS AN INTENT COUNCIL
MEMBER RENE JOHNSON IN A TOWN
HALL EARLIER THIS WEEK BROUGHT
UP A VERY GOOD POINT.
THE CONSTITUTION ITSELF WAS
USED AS A TOOL FOR RACISM.
AND SO WHILE UNDERSTANDING THE
HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF A
PARTICULAR, WE ALSO NEED TO
UNDERSTAND THAT THAT SAME TOOL
CAN BE USED TO COUNTERACT THE
EFFECTS OF RACISM BECAUSE AT
THE END OF THE DAY FOR
ME RACISM IS NOT ABOUT YOUR
HEART.
YOU CAN FEEL HOWEVER YOU WANT
TO FEEL OR WHAT YOU WILL NOT DO
IS DISENFRANCHIZE PEOPLE AND SO
PUTTING POLICIES IN PLACE THAT
COULD CREATE A LACK OF EQUITY
OR PERPETUATE A LACK OF EQUITY
IN WHICH BLACK AND BROWN PEOPLE
HAVE ZERO OWNERSHIP OVER THEIR
NEIGHBORHOODS THAT PUTS THEM AT
MORE RISK OR DISPLACEMENT.
THAT IS ECONOMIC SLAVERY AND I
DON'T THINK THAT'S WHAT ANYBODY
WANTS.
WE CAN PUNCH IT BACK UP AGAIN.
BUT THE BUT THE THE POLICY TWO
POINT ONE PAGE 103 WHEN IT
COMES DOWN TO THE DUPLEXES AND
TRIPLEX IS IN SINGLE FAMILY
HOUSING.
GET RID OF THAT OR FINE TUNE
THAT.
ARE YOU ON BOARD IF WE FIND TO
SO ULTIMATELY WHAT I'M LOOKING
FOR IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE
A POLICY THAT WILL SUPPORT A
VARIETY OF ZONING TYPES.
I BELIEVE THAT WE ABSOLUTELY
CAN KEEP EXCLUSIVELY SINGLE
FAMILY ZONING DESIGNATION.
I THINK THERE'S A PLACE FOR A
FLEXIBLE ZONING DESIGNATION
THAT IS DESCRIBED IN TWO POINT
ONE.
THE ISSUE I HAVE IS A LOT
CHANGED A LOT TO OUR PLACE AND
THEN WE KNOW THAT WE'VE GOT AN
OPPORTUNITY TO PLAN A
NEIGHBORHOOD THAT CAN
INCORPORATE BOTH AND THEN I'M
ON BOARD.
IT'S AN IMPORTANT NUANCE THAT
WOULD REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE
REGARDLESS OF HOW YOU COME DOWN
ON THE ON THE VOTE.
ALL RIGHT, COUNCILWOMAN, THANK
YOU SO MUCH.
WE APPRECIATE YOU COMING ON AND
TALKING TO US AND WE WANT TO
REMIND THE FOLKS AT HOME
YOU CAN SPEAK UP BY GOING TO
CHARLOTTE, N.C. DOT GOV CITY
CLERK OR CALL THE CITY CLERK'S
OFFICE SEVEN FOUR THREE SIX
TWENTY TWO FORTY EIGHT.
I CAN GO HAVE YOUR VOICE BE
HEARD.
DEADLINE 9:00 A.M. MONDAY
SPEAKER I'M GOING TO HAVE TWO
MINUTES TO SPEAK AT THE CITY
COUNCIL MEETING.
LET THEM KNOW HOW YOU FEEL.
BY THE WAY, IF YOU WANT TO
SEE THE WHOLE PLAN READ IT ALL
IN ITS ENTIRETY.
YOU CAN GO TO SYLT FUTURE 20 40
DOTCOM SOME LIGHT READING OVER
THE