Forsyth County Commissioners approve tax hike to fund community grants, against staff recommendations

The Forsyth County Board of Commissioners has voted to raise property taxes in order to restore funding for several community organizations in next year’s budget, going against a recommendation from County Manager Shontell Robinson.

Robinson’s proposed budget eliminated all community grant funding for the upcoming fiscal year. She argued the cuts were necessary to replenish the county’s fund balance — a kind of savings account — and maintain its bond rating.

The proposal drew significant pushback. Representatives from affected organizations voiced their concerns for more than four hours during a May 19 public hearing. Their efforts appear to have paid off.

“We realized that this impacts a lot of people on the various levels, with a lot of different agencies that do a lot of good work in this community,” Board Chair Don Martin said during a special meeting Thursday.

The commission ultimately voted 4-3 to restore $1.5 million in grant funding — about $300,000 less than what was initially proposed. Funding was not reinstated for Kaleideum, Winston-Salem State University, or the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina.

The board approved a property tax increase of just over a quarter cent to finance the move. Vice Chair Gloria Whisenhunt was among the no-votes. 

“It looks like to me that the only people who are going to suffer from this school drama and the county drama are the taxpayers,” she said. “I cannot believe that you all cannot call a halt to community grants for one year.”

The “school drama” she referenced is Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools’ $42 million budget shortfall. The district has requested a loan from the county to help address it. Commissioners were unable to reach a decision on the matter during Thursday’s meeting. Discussions are expected to continue in the coming days.