While 2020 has required many adaptations from all of us, Sustain Charlotte has continued to work hard for the long-term health of our community. Here are a few of the things we’ve been able to accomplish thus far this year:

Partnered with local government

• Appointed to, and served on, the Charlotte Moves Task Force to inform transportation investment priorities and funding mechanisms.
• Served on the Unified Development Ordinance Advisory Committee to help ensure that Charlotte’s future rules for development will ensure smart growth.
• Served on the Planning Department’s Tree Canopy Action Plan Stakeholder Group to provide input on protecting our tree canopy.
• Worked to help the City achieve its goal of a zero-carbon vehicle fleet by 2030 by advocating for CATS to begin transitioning our bus fleet to electric battery buses and celebrated the City’s recent $3.7M FTA grant to begin this process.
• Partnered with Charlotte DOT, CMPD, Mecklenburg County, CMS, and others to work towards the city’s goal of zero traffic deaths and serious fatalities by 2030 by serving on the Vision Zero Task Force.
• Partnered with Charlotte DOT to publicly share plans for the new Uptown CycleLink during one of our Shifting Gears events.
• Launched a statement of support to demonstrate public support for the funding needed to implement the recommendations of the 2017 Uptown Connects study to build a safe bicycle network throughout Uptown Charlotte.
• Partnered with the Mecklenburg County Solid Waste Department to host a “7 R’s of Waste Reduction” online workshop.
• Supported a clean energy future for Charlotte by serving on the Transportation Work Group for the Strategic Energy Action Plan (SEAP).
• Supported the CATS Bus Corridors Study by advocating for bus prioritization so all people can get where they need to go more quickly and efficiently and spoke in support of the 4th St. bus & bike lane at a Charlotte City Council meeting and Metropolitan Transit Commission meeting.
• Advocated for emergency transit funding from the federal government in cooperation with other national transit advocates, and celebrated CATS’ receipt of $57M in CARES Act funding.

Gave residents a voice

• Partnered with the North End Neighborhood Coalition, CharlotteEAST, and the West Boulevard Neighborhood Coalition to launch a new countywide transportation coalition to advocate for safe, connected, accessible transportation for all.
• Assisted low to moderate-income neighborhoods in learning about the benefits of Shared Streets and how to navigate the process of requesting one from the City.
• Activated the voice of residents to ensure the funds needed to improve connectivity and safety for people walking, bicycling, and riding transit were included in the city’s FY21-22 budget.
• Partnered with the West Boulevard Neighborhood Coalition to draft a petition to build resident support for greenway connectivity.
• Built a new partnership with Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance to address lack of connectivity for bus riders and people riding bikes, and created a Story Map of transportation challenges for residents.
• Activated the voice of residents in helping shape the Charlotte Future 2040 Comprehensive Plan, a plan that will guide Charlotte’s growth over the next twenty years.

Organized inspiring events

• Hosted 2 Grow Smart CLT events (1 in-person, 1 online) that are helping to grow Charlotte smarter by educating attendees about how they can be more sustainable.
• Organized an online Shifting Gears event to introduce attendees to Charlotte Department of Transportation’s plans to build the Uptown CycleLink and other protected bike infrastructure, and gave a voice to resident leaders of Lakeview and The Plaza to share their advocacy stories.
• Adapted to the stay-at-home order by hosting 4 additional online public engagement events to educate residents about ways to make an impact.
• Partnered with the Plaza Midwood Neighborhood Association, Stroll and Roll Plaza Midwood, Charlotte Cycles, and the Charlotte Department of Transportation to help launch the new Protected Bike Lanes on The Plaza during our first Shifting Gears event of 2020.

Informed thousands of residents

• Published 5 newsletters, 32 blog posts, 1 email action alert, and hundreds of social media posts.
• Featured or quoted by local media 30 times, reaching hundreds of thousands of residents.

Partnered with community organizations

• Partnered with WakeUP Wake County and the Transit Alliance of Piedmont to better coordinate our work to advance smart growth in North Carolina’s three largest metros.
• Partnered with over 200 community and neighborhood organizations to advance our shared sustainability goals for Charlotte.
• Hosted 3 summer interns to help educate the next generation of sustainability leaders.

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