Top Stories for May 21, 2025

Familes enjoying summer at Ramsey Creek Beach in Cornelius.

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, May 20. The agenda is available online and the meeting can be viewed on MeckTV. 

1. Building a Budget: During a budget workshop on May 21, the Board of County Commissioners will receive a detailed overview of the County manager’s recommended budget for next year and an update on progress for its priorities. A public hearing on the budget will be held on May 22, a straw vote session is scheduled for May 29, and the Board is scheduled to adopt the FY2026 budget on June 3. All meetings can be viewed at Watch.MeckNC.gov with more information available at Budget.MeckNC.gov. 

2. Protecting and Promoting Health: The Board recognized the team from Public Health for its accreditation with honors by the state of North Carolina. Accreditation is a status granted to a local health department that has demonstrated or exceeded the standards set by the N.C. Local Health Department Accreditation Board. The process seeks to assure and enhance the quality of health departments by evaluating their ability to address 10 essential public health functions. Mecklenburg County met 147 out of 147 of the requirements for the highest designation. 

3. Older Americans Month: The Board proclaimed May as Older Americans Month, honoring seniors who are essential contributors to the strength of our community. The proclamation highlights the many Mecklenburg County programs that address the Board’s senior services priority. They include the Age Friendly Mecklenburg initiative, transportation, senior nutrition, and the Adult Protective Services hotline to report abuse, neglect, or exploitation: 704-336-CARE (2273).  

4. Needed Now. Foster and Adoptive Parents: The Board proclaimed May as Foster Care Awareness Month in Mecklenburg County. The proclamation recognizes the importance of foster care and acknowledges the parents, family members, foster parents, kinship caregivers, child welfare professionals and system partners involved in caring for children in foster care. During a campaign over the past year, Youth and Family Services has licensed 28 new foster homes. But many more are needed. Visit MeckNC.gov/KIDS or call 704-336-KIDS (5437) to apply or learn more. The next TIPS/MAPP training session for prospective foster parents begins July 8. 

5. New Jobs, New Opportunities: BHS Corrugated North America, a subsidiary of German-based BHS Corrugated Maschinen- und Anlagenbau GmbH, has selected Mecklenburg County for its new North American Experience Center, creating more than 50 jobs over the next several years. The 25,000-square-foot BHS Experience Center is located in Rushmore Five at Ballantyne. Jobs include executive leadership, service, training, sales, parts, information technology, human resources and finance. This project was a collaborative effort between Mecklenburg County, the City of Charlotte, and the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. 

6. Splish, Splash: Families can begin planning their summertime fun now. Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation’s outdoor water attractions will kick off summer hours and operations Memorial Day weekend. That includes all seven sprayground locations, Cordelia Pool, Double Oaks Family Aquatic Center, and Ramsey Creek Beach on Lake Norman. All will begin operations on Saturday, May 24 with various hours throughout the summer. 

7. Remembering Those Who Gave All: Many Mecklenburg County offices and services will be closed on Monday, May 26 for Memorial Day.