In his State of the County address, Chatham County Commission Chairman George Lucier sounds the alarm over growth, which he says is “out of balance.” According to this story in the Raleigh News & Observer:
A high growth rate has already taken a toll on quality of life and affordability of housing in Chatham, he said, adding that the board was working to make sure the county didn’t become a “victim of unrestrained development.”
Concerns over appropriate planning for needed infrastructure are legitimate. However, as detailed a few months ago in this Regional Brief by Locke Foundation Local Government Analyst and Research Director Michael Sanera, what’s at issue in Chatham County is spending:
County spending has not been properly managed or prioritized. Currently, about $24.5 million is available to be spent on high-priority government functions, such as school construction (about $172.9 million over 10 years) (see Appendix A). In addition, growth has more than paid for itself. County revenues have grown 3.9 percent faster than population and inflation over the last six years (see Appendix B). Thus new residents have paid more than their fair share of county expenses.
