I’m sorry.
I thought out-loud about bad ideas, about how to use a new half-cent sales tax in Cabarrus County. Somebody heard me.
A month ago during Bruton-palooza I observed:
Want to tie everything together? Remember that Bruton once asked that the Northeast light rail line to UNCC be extended out to his speedway? Even offered to help pay for it. Were our local officials smart rather than scared and easy to manipulate, they’d take the half-cent idea and turn it into a twin of the Mecklenburg’s half-cent and use it to help build the light rail line to UNCC and Concord.
Gets them both the coveted Northeast line to UNCC and a regional transit authority with two countywide sales taxes.
Now News14 reports:
“We have probably 25,000-30,000 people that commute from Cabarrus County every day into downtown Mecklenburg,” said Concord Mayor Scott Padgett. “Presently light rail is going to come to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. And as we know we are very close to that and pretty much a straight shot.” …
Padgett said Concord is in the talking stages right now, but it is exploring options like a half-cent sales tax that could help fund the light rail.
“The topic right now is if we wanted to do a half cent sales tax how would we do that, how would it be structured,” said Padgett.
Uh-oh.
There is no way the General Assembly is going to give the county new taxing authority just to pay for Bruton Smith’s goodie-bag. A new half-cent authority for mass transit? There is precedent for that. Put a stop at Lowe’s Speedway — presto — all the associated road improvements become transit-related. Plus you make Bruton very happy.
And we all know how important that is.
