League Bulletin

September 7, 2018

The Weekly Recap
Get Pumped for CityVision 2018
State: Revitalized Downtowns are Jobs Boosters
Podcast: The N.C. Town Shaping Drones' Future
NCDOT Offering Drone Workshop

WHAT HAPPENED: After a spate of court actions affecting the November elections, more followed this week. The result kept all six proposed constitutional amendments on the ballot and held in place the 13 congressional districts that had been ruled as partisan gerrymanders.

WHAT IT MEANS: The ballots, after so many legal challenges, probably won't undergo new revisions. Even the plaintiffs who sued for new congressional districts said the current ones should stay in place for this election, as to avoid confusion among the electorate with the clock so near to voting time. (The districts will likely be redrawn afterward.)

ON TAP: Ballot-printing and a lot of campaigning.

THE SKINNY: You'll find the full language to the constitutional amendment proposals you'll see on the ballot on the front page at ncleg.net under the News & Information section on the left.

Get Pumped for CityVision 2018

We're looking forward to seeing everyone at CityVision 2018 later this month in Hickory. So far more than 500 people have registered representing 165 municipalities. If you haven’t signed up, it’s never too late! Contact Diane Godwin at dgodwin@nclm.org to add yourself to the registration list. Onsite registration is also available. This conference will offer the best opportunity for municipal officials from around the state to dive deep into issues like broadband and other technology, infrastructure, branding your municipality, and, most of all, grants – finding the money you need to prepare your municipality for tomorrow!

State: Revitalized Downtowns are Jobs Boosters

North Carolina's certified Main Street communities helped to grow 1,410 new jobs, 275 businesses and close to $230 million in investment in fiscal year 2017-18, according to a news release from the N.C. Department of Commerce this week. The numbers come from the N.C. Main Street and Rural Planning Center, which runs the program that supports more than 60 Main Street communities and 16 Small Town Main Street communities. “The cities and towns represented in this report saw an increase of more than $30 million in investment over last year, demonstrating the health of communities that participate in the Main Street program,” Commerce Secretary Anthony M. Copeland said in the release. The N.C. Main Street Program began in 1980 and has since seen nearly $3 billion in downtown public and private investment, more than 23,000 jobs created and 5,657 business openings. The press release has more figures and information about the program.

Separately, you can read stories from cites and towns across the state about how their intentional planning, investments and partnerships are growing jobs and the economy at herewegrownc.org, a project of the North Carolina League of Municipalities that continues to grow with member involvement. Free to join, Here We Grow is your best vehicle for conveying the hard economic development work your municipal government is doing in context with cities and towns statewide. Send a quick email to about@herewegrownc.org to request login credentials so you can tell your story, too.

Podcast: The N.C. Town Shaping Drones' Future

In the new episode of Municipal Equation -- the League's nationally-recognized podcast about cities and towns adapting in the face of change -- we revisit the intersection of drones, local government and public need with a trip to Holly Springs. This small Wake County town is innovating at a national level with a pilot project -- involving the state and federal governments along with the private sector -- to see commercial food delivery by way of drone. It's huge in implications, but it's also stuffed with logistical and policy questions. Hear how the town arrived at this program and the great care it's taking in the rollout. Says one listener on Twitter, "Thanks for covering this innovation in (Holly Springs) -- nice to see #govtech innovation in other communities in (the Wake County) area -- especially those that may be smaller, but no less focused on leveraging tech to provide better service to citizens."

Is something different, innovative, quirky, funny or challenging happening in your town? Email Municipal Equation host/producer Ben Brown to discuss it for an episode. Find past episodes of Municipal Equation at nclm.org/municipalequation.

NCDOT Offering Drone Workshop

"Drones are the way of the future," writes the N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDOT) at the start of a press release announcing a workshop on how local governments and businesses can learn and leverage the technology. The Oct. 17 event will be at the Tony Rand Student Center at Fayetteville Technical Community College. Seating is limited; register here. "Drone technology is quickly advancing, and so are the possibilities for a business or government organization interested in using one,” the release quotes of Basil Yap, NCDOT Unmanned Aerial Systems Program Manager. “The people in attendance can expect to come away with an understanding of possible real-world applications for drone technology, and what it takes to safely and effectively implement drones into their operations.”