Top Stories for Dec. 6, 2023

Small happy group of multiracial toddlers, sitting in classroom and looking in awe at their teacher.

Mecklenburg County provides this weekly rundown of top stories from the Board of County Commissioners meetings from the Public Information Department’s newsroom. The Board met on Tuesday, Dec. 5. The agenda is available online. View the meeting at Watch.MeckNC.gov. The Board’s next budget and public policy meeting is scheduled for Dec. 12 at 2:30 p.m. 

1. Choosing Chairs: The Board of County Commissioners has elected its leadership for the next year. The Board re-elected Commissioner George Dunlap (District 3) as Chair and elected Commissioner Mark Jerrell (District 4) as Vice Chair. Chair Dunlap has served as a Board member since 2008 and as Chair since 2018. Vice Chair Jerrell has served on the Board since 2018 and begins his first term as Vice Chair. The nine-member Board holds a leadership vote every December, with the Chair and Vice Chair serving one-year terms.

2. Ten and 15 Years of Service: County Manager Dena Diorio presented Commissioner Pat Cotham with her 10-year service pin, and Chair George Dunlap and Commissioner Vilma D. Leake with their 15-year service pins. All Mecklenburg County employees are celebrated upon reaching these milestones. Diorio remarked that all three have served through some of Mecklenburg’s most challenging years, including the global financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, which altered how Mecklenburg County conducts business. 

3. Best of the Budgets: Mecklenburg County has been recognized for its FY2024 budget. The budget office received the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). The award reflects the commitment of County leadership and staff to meet the highest principles of governmental budgeting. With more than 1,700 participants this year, it marks the 31st straight year that Mecklenburg County has received the honor. Mecklenburg County received special recognition for the budget process and for strategic goals and strategies. 

4. Nurturing a Child’s Mind: When dramatic changes occur in the life of a baby or young child, they are affected in ways that shape their growth. Public Health’s Children’s Developmental Services Agency now offers free mental health services for children from birth to age 3 and their families. With funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the program helps families and children reduce the impact of traumatic events, learn to deal with challenging behaviors, and cope with the ongoing stress of displacement, illness, or loss.

5. Same Day Decision on HOMES: A HOMES application fair will be offered on Saturday, Dec. 9, from 9 a.m. to noon, at the Ella B. Scarborough Community Resource Center, 430 Stitt Road in northeast Charlotte. HOMES, or Helping Out Mecklenburg’s homeowners with Economic Support, is a program designed to help Mecklenburg County residents reduce the cost of annual homeownership. The program, open through Dec. 15, provides economic assistance grants of up to $660 for qualifying homeowners. To get a decision on the same day, applicants should bring to the fair documentation for income verification, such as their 2022 W2, W4, 1099-DIV, 1099-INT, 1099-G, SSA-1099, SSI, a complete IRS 1040, or proof of alimony. To learn more about HOMES, visit MeckNC.gov/4HOMES.