Raleigh City Council at Large
Jonathan Melton
Are you an incumbent?
Yes
1. Do you support the City of Raleigh’s $275 million parks bond on the ballot this November?
Yes
2. Do you support the $353.2 million Wake Tech bond on the ballot this November?
Yes
3. Do you support the $530.7 million Wake County schools bond on the ballot this November?
Yes
4. What is your long-term vision for growth in Raleigh?
We must work to eliminate exclusionary zoning, allowing more housing types across the city, focus our denser developments in our urban core and along transit corridors, invest in public transit and multimodal transportation to reduce car dependency, and work to put goods and services closer to where people live.
5. What do you see as the city's number one challenge?
Housing affordability and affordable housing, which is a challenge facing many growing cities across the country. No one has solved this problem, but we're not going to solve it doing things the exact same way that got us into this mess. We must continue to increase our subsidy to fund affordable housing, and we must work to eliminate exclusionary zoning to make more types of housing available in more places to address housing affordability.
6. What are you hoping to achieve as an elected official that will foster a healthy and innovative business environment in both the near and long term?
I want to continue to make doing business with our city more efficient, especially as it relates to construction and permitting. Many small business owners simply cannot afford to endure long delays in the permitting and construction process. During my term, we have worked to streamline this process, including pivoting to tiered site plans. We also eliminated burdens on opening home-based businesses.
7. The Wake County Transit plan will expand bus service countywide, implement four bus rapid transit lines, and initiate a regional commuter rail system. What would you like to see the City of Raleigh do to complement or modify this enhanced transit service?
To compliment this enhanced service, we must make sure the land use around these transit corridors provide housing, including affordable housing, and retail and employment opportunities. We're working to accomplish this goal with the Transit Overlay District (TOD) zoning tool as well as a special fund aimed to address other community disparities in these areas.
8. How do you plan to involve the community in the decision-making process in our city, especially area businesses?
In general, we need to decentralize our approach to community engagement and work to meet people where they are. In person meetings are important and will continue to play a role. The city offers a neighborhood registry program where neighborhood groups can register to get access to staff resources and community centers for meetings. These meetings are helpful. But we must also take steps to engage with a more diverse, representative community and provide greater access. During this term, we included renters in all mailed and posted notices for city issues for the first time (rezonings, street projects, etc.). We funded a Community Engagement Bus to go into traditionally disengaged communities and meet people where they are, and we created the Office of Community Engagement to help embed engagement in all city departments. I think that’s how we work to better involve constituents in the decision making process. All of these tools are applicable to the business community as well, including leveraging the connections of our business alliances, like Midtown Raleigh Alliance and Downtown Raleigh Alliance.
9. How will you balance increased infrastructure and personnel funding needs of the city while also addressing economic growth, affordability, and quality of life?
Focusing density in our urban cores and transit corridors is the most sustainable way to grow. The greatest strain on our infrastructure and personnel funding is single family sprawl; it's the greatest stress on our ability to provide police, fire, and solid waste services, roads and sidewalks, and sewer and water service. Our denser, urban areas really help subsidize the rest of the city.
Transportation/Transit – Continue to promote and implement an effective transit plan to optimize service delivery and position the city for ongoing growth.
Support and implement the Wake County Transit Plan and compliment those major transit investments with multimodal transportation access- sidewalks and protected bike lanes.
Economic Strength - Create a business-friendly environment to attract, retain and grow business, diversify the economic base, and create job opportunities for all citizens.
Invest in local talent, working with our community colleges and universities in the area, as well as eliminated red tape that hinders business development and growth.
Affordable Housing – Develop an effective affordable housing plan through collaboration with the government, the private sector, the community, and individuals.
Continue to invest funds received through the Affordable Housing Bond and yearly 1 cent sales tax to help longtime homeowners stay in their homes, new residents find affordable rentals or access generational wealth through assistance with homebuying. We must also work with our private and nonprofit community to leverage and extend city funds for construction of affordable housing.
Are you an incumbent?
Yes
1. Do you support the City of Raleigh’s $275 million parks bond on the ballot this November?
Yes
2. Do you support the $353.2 million Wake Tech bond on the ballot this November?
Yes
3. Do you support the $530.7 million Wake County schools bond on the ballot this November?
Yes
4. What is your long-term vision for growth in Raleigh?
We must work to eliminate exclusionary zoning, allowing more housing types across the city, focus our denser developments in our urban core and along transit corridors, invest in public transit and multimodal transportation to reduce car dependency, and work to put goods and services closer to where people live.
5. What do you see as the city's number one challenge?
Housing affordability and affordable housing, which is a challenge facing many growing cities across the country. No one has solved this problem, but we're not going to solve it doing things the exact same way that got us into this mess. We must continue to increase our subsidy to fund affordable housing, and we must work to eliminate exclusionary zoning to make more types of housing available in more places to address housing affordability.
6. What are you hoping to achieve as an elected official that will foster a healthy and innovative business environment in both the near and long term?
I want to continue to make doing business with our city more efficient, especially as it relates to construction and permitting. Many small business owners simply cannot afford to endure long delays in the permitting and construction process. During my term, we have worked to streamline this process, including pivoting to tiered site plans. We also eliminated burdens on opening home-based businesses.
7. The Wake County Transit plan will expand bus service countywide, implement four bus rapid transit lines, and initiate a regional commuter rail system. What would you like to see the City of Raleigh do to complement or modify this enhanced transit service?
To compliment this enhanced service, we must make sure the land use around these transit corridors provide housing, including affordable housing, and retail and employment opportunities. We're working to accomplish this goal with the Transit Overlay District (TOD) zoning tool as well as a special fund aimed to address other community disparities in these areas.
8. How do you plan to involve the community in the decision-making process in our city, especially area businesses?
In general, we need to decentralize our approach to community engagement and work to meet people where they are. In person meetings are important and will continue to play a role. The city offers a neighborhood registry program where neighborhood groups can register to get access to staff resources and community centers for meetings. These meetings are helpful. But we must also take steps to engage with a more diverse, representative community and provide greater access. During this term, we included renters in all mailed and posted notices for city issues for the first time (rezonings, street projects, etc.). We funded a Community Engagement Bus to go into traditionally disengaged communities and meet people where they are, and we created the Office of Community Engagement to help embed engagement in all city departments. I think that’s how we work to better involve constituents in the decision making process. All of these tools are applicable to the business community as well, including leveraging the connections of our business alliances, like Midtown Raleigh Alliance and Downtown Raleigh Alliance.
9. How will you balance increased infrastructure and personnel funding needs of the city while also addressing economic growth, affordability, and quality of life?
Focusing density in our urban cores and transit corridors is the most sustainable way to grow. The greatest strain on our infrastructure and personnel funding is single family sprawl; it's the greatest stress on our ability to provide police, fire, and solid waste services, roads and sidewalks, and sewer and water service. Our denser, urban areas really help subsidize the rest of the city.
Transportation/Transit – Continue to promote and implement an effective transit plan to optimize service delivery and position the city for ongoing growth.
Support and implement the Wake County Transit Plan and compliment those major transit investments with multimodal transportation access- sidewalks and protected bike lanes.
Economic Strength - Create a business-friendly environment to attract, retain and grow business, diversify the economic base, and create job opportunities for all citizens.
Invest in local talent, working with our community colleges and universities in the area, as well as eliminated red tape that hinders business development and growth.
Affordable Housing – Develop an effective affordable housing plan through collaboration with the government, the private sector, the community, and individuals.
Continue to invest funds received through the Affordable Housing Bond and yearly 1 cent sales tax to help longtime homeowners stay in their homes, new residents find affordable rentals or access generational wealth through assistance with homebuying. We must also work with our private and nonprofit community to leverage and extend city funds for construction of affordable housing.