2024 Annual Comprehensive Report

opportunities to implement the goals of the Housing GSO, Greensboro’s 10-year plan for affordable housing adopted by City Council in 2020. The $30 million bond dollars also builds on the successful 2016 bond referendum, which provided $25 million in Housing Bonds to support the development and repair to date of more than 2,000 housing units and has leveraged approximately $153 million from other funds. The 2016 and 2022 Housing Bonds, along with future bond dollars, will continue to support the implementation of the Housing GSO plan. This plan aims to fulfill the Council's priority of providing attainable housing for all residents, particularly those earning between 0% and 80% of the average median income. • Transportation and Infrastructure - A key Council priority is for Greensboro to be a well-connected city. As existing businesses expand and the City continues to attract new economic development opportunities, the impacts on our streets, sidewalks, trails, parks and recreation amenities, parking, public transit, and bicycle infrastructure will continue into the foreseeable future. More people are moving to Greensboro than at any time in recent history, thus our aging infrastructure will need to be updated and expanded to accommodate this growth. The FY 2025-2034 Capital Improvements Plan (CIP) totals over $2.8 billion in projects, and outlines a future financing plan to maintain our current infrastructure and

develop new facilities as needed. The 2016 bond referendum included $34.5 million for capital improvements to, and expansion of, Parks and Recreation facilities; $28 million for transportation enhancements, including $18 million for enhanced roadway resurfacing; $4.5 million for new transit buses; and $5 million for new sidewalk and intersection improvements. As of September 2024, $113 million of the 2016 bond referendum amount has been spent or encumbered, while the remaining is planned for projects currently in progress. The July 2022 bond referendum of $135 million

builds on the progress already made. The 2022 referendum included $15 million for transportation, $14 million for firefighting facilities, $6 million for Police facilities, $30 million to continue implementation of the Housing GSO plan, and $70 million for parks and recreation projects. As of September 2024, $25 million of the 2022 bond referendum amount has been spent or encumbered. Increased annexations, continuous growth, and service costs put pressure on our water and sewer capacity, as well as our solid waste services. The FY 2024-25 budget includes a water and sewer rate increase of 8.5% for customers both inside and outside the city limits, to better support more system growth, address emerging contaminants, and accommodate significant increases to projected capital costs. The FY 2023-24 budget maintained a dedicated property tax rate of 3.5 cents to provide transit services to our residents. Driven by the GoBORO long-range transit plan, the Greensboro Transit Agency launched improved services in FY 2023-24 to meet the City’s transit and infrastructure needs through 2045. A new cross town bus route was added to improve rider connectivity. The pilot Hopper Trolley program seeks to improve downtown mobility and enhanced connectivity beyond the car – fulfilling one of the goals in the GSO2040 comprehensive plan of making our city car-optional. The City is undertaking a Greensboro Downtown Parking Plan study which will support meeting GSO2040 goals, address changes in parking demand, and provide a framework for decision making. The parking plan study draft, completed in February 2024, makes recommendations for improved parking throughout the downtown area.

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