CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Voters said yes to bonds that were on Tuesday’s midterm election ballots, but opposed an increase in sales tax and an amendment that would allow criminal defendants to waive jury trials.
The bonds, which collectively totaled $146 million, are a package and are the first part of a larger $816 million capital improvement plan that was approved by the Charlotte City Council in 2013.
Individually, the bonds were $110 million for transportation projects, $20 million for neighborhood improvements, and $16 million for low income housing.
The investments are aimed at projects that will improve roads, sidewalks, streetlights, and bridges; increase public transportation; develop affordable housing for lower income families; and stimulate job growth.
According to early vote totals, voters opposed a quarter-cent tax hike that would generate nearly $28 million toward increasing teacher salaries. Charlotte Mecklenburg County Schools Superintendent Dr. Heath Morrison unexpectedly resigned Monday, which may have affected the outcome of the tax referendum.
The state constitutional amendment that would allow criminal defendants to waive their right to a jury trial and allow a judge to decide their case also appears to have come up short on Tuesday’s ballot.
