BY KARISSA MILLER
The Iredell County Board of Commissioners held its winter planning retreat on Thursday to define their priorities for fiscal year 2025-2026.
Growth in Iredell County continues to bring challenges and growing pains. The county population continues to grow at a relatively high rate and there have consistently been 20,000-plus new homes projected or planned each year.
Chairman Bert Connolly explained, in an interview, that despite an exhaustive list of budget requests there will be absolutely no increase in taxes this upcoming fiscal year.
“We have planned ahead as a board. We will be fine this upcoming fiscal year, but we will put some things on hold or wait and see,” he said.
Economic Outlook 2025
County Finance Director Caroline Taylor shared financial projections for the upcoming fiscal year with the board. The projections are based on historical data, local economy and anticipated growth.
Commissioners use these projections to help guide their budget preparation.
Economic Forecast
• Construction employment is expected to be moderate, with some growth.
• Labor market is expected to hold steady.
• Economists are projecting moderate growth and inflation.
• North Carolina is expected to meet or exceed national economic trends.
• One caution is uncertainty of the effect Hurricane Helene will have on tourism.
Financial Projections & Trends
• Iredell County property tax revenues are projected to increase by around $10.2 million, or 3 percent, to $219 million in FY 2026.
• Local sales tax revenues is projected to increase by $1.2 million, or 2 percent, to $61.1 million in FY 2025.
Education
• Iredell-Statesville Schools, the Mooresville Graded School District and Mitchell Community College can anticipate a modest increase in per pupil funding — from $2,287 to $2,353. If student enrollment increases by 1.5 percent as projected, the county will increase current expense funding for I-SS, MGSD and Mitchell by around $3.3 million in the next budget.
• Estimated Increase in Current Expense Funding: $3,285,000
County Manager Beth Milton told commissioners that they have around $8 million in new revenue for the next budget year.
New Positions
Milton shared requests from department heads for a total of 34 new full-time employees. She noted that the requests have not been vetted by the administration. The total cost of filling all of those positions would be $2.5 million.
The position request include:
• Department of Social Services: 24 positions
• Emergency Communications:1 position
• Facility Services: 3 positions
• Human Resources: 1 position
• Parks & Recreation: 2 positions
• Planning: 1 position
• Tax Collector: 1 position
Facility Improvement Requests
The board opted to prioritize the Facility Improvement requests at a later time. The total cost of filling all requests would be $425,000. Requests range from new carpet in the auditorium and meeting rooms at the Ag Center to repairing parking lot cracks at the library.
Capital Improvement Projects Requests
The board received 53 project requests for next year. Some of the projects are contingent upon grant funding. The total cost of filling all of those requests is around $59 million.
The big-ticket item is $24 million requested for the new building at the fairgrounds. The new building would consist of an arena, multi-purpose building and parking. The county has secured a $10 million grant and has committed $6 million in fund balance.
Chairman Connolly said that this project has been paused for now. The board will circle back and discuss this item at a later time.
As commissioners reviewed some of the requests, they opted not to fund a $1 million project that included a new building for vehicle services, facility services and ICATS design.
Commissioners also expressed concerns about committing millions of dollars to a Parks and Recreation request for a greenway. They crossed it out, deciding no against including it.
Some yes items were replacing the voting machines for $310,175 and replacing the incinerators at Animal Services for $125,000.
Guest Speaker
North Carolina Rep. Todd Carver spoke to commissioners briefly during the retreat.
“When I ran for office, I had three goals,” Carver told commissioners. “First, to stand up for law and order. Second is to improve on communication. Third, is to be an advocate for education.”
According to his discussions, Carver said any extra money in the state budget will probably go to Western North Carolina recovery efforts.
Commissioner Gene Houpe brought up the need to advocate for impact fees. Impact fees are one-time payments made by developers to local governments to fund new public services and infrastructure. These fees are used to pay for the additional costs of growth, such as new roads, schools, and parks.
“That’s a policy decision that benefits the schools,” Houpe said.
Carver, who is a former school board member and chairman, said he will do the best he can to fight and advocate for local education. He said that one bill he’s working on is to help with rehiring retiree teachers in math, science and special education. It would allow them to come back and fill some of the vacancies.