Top Stories for Feb. 28, 2024

straight row of voting booths at polling station during American election. US flag in background.

Mecklenburg County provides this weekly rundown of top stories from the Board of County Commissioners meetings and the Public Information Department’s newsroom. The Board met on Tuesday, Feb. 27. The agenda is available online. View the meeting at Watch.MeckNC.gov. The Board’s next regular meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 6 at 6 p.m.

1. Your Vote Counts: Early voting for the 2024 primary election in Mecklenburg County continues through Saturday, March 2, with 22 sites open daily. Election Day is Tuesday, March 5. New this year, absentee ballots must be returned to the Board of Elections office by 7:30 p.m. on March 5. Absentee ballots can no longer be postmarked by Election Day and counted after the election, so voters who plan to mail absentee ballots should do so now. All voters—whether voting early or on Election Day, by mail or in person—should be prepared to show acceptable photo ID, such as a driver license. Voters who do not present a photo ID will be allowed to vote using a provisional ballot. Learn more about the 2024 elections at Vote.MeckNC.gov. 

2. Build Your Own Budget: Mecklenburg County wants to see how residents would spend tax dollars if it was up to them. Our online budget simulator allows residents to build their own budget and share their preferences with the County. Residents also have until tomorrow to complete the resident budget survey for next year’s spending plan. Resident input is important as County leaders develop next year’s budget. The simulator, survey, and other information are available at Budget.MeckNC.gov.

3. Air and Park Priorities: At its budget and public policy meeting, the Board of County Commissioners heard from the Air Quality Commission and Park and Recreation Commission on their priorities for the FY2025 budget. The Air Quality Commission recommends funding for greater outreach to neighborhoods with more people of color, lower income, less education, or are linguistically isolated. The Park and Recreation Commission recommends funding for land acquisition ($75 million), deferred and routine maintenance, programming for seniors and children, and increased support for co-op programs and initiatives. 

4. Healthy Questions, Healthy Answers: Anyone who gets a call with questions about their healthy (or unhealthy) habits is asked to answer the questions. It could lead to a healthier community. Public Health is conducting its annual Mecklenburg Community Health Survey, a phone survey of residents 18 years of age and older. The survey collects information on health-related behaviors such as diet and exercise, the use of preventive services such as immunizations and mammograms, and chronic health conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. The information collected helps design and fund programs to prevent and reduce chronic diseases, injury, and disability, and to reduce health disparities. The survey is completely anonymous. 

5. Keeping the Peace: The Office of Violence Prevention is celebrating the first class to complete the Peacekeepers Academy. Peacekeepers Academy is an interactive learning series designed to build resiliency for community-based organizations working to address community violence in Mecklenburg County. Organizations receive education and technical assistance, lessons on measuring success, lessons on scaling services, a financial grant to support their efforts, and more.