1 00:00:04,879 --> 00:00:07,160 Speaker 1: What's going on? Thank you so much for listening to 2 00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:09,640 this podcast. It is heard live every day from noon 3 00:00:09,679 --> 00:00:12,519 to three on WBT Radio in Charlotte. And if you 4 00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:16,719 want exclusive content like invitations to events, the weekly live stream, 5 00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:19,239 my daily show prep with all the links, become a patron, 6 00:00:19,320 --> 00:00:22,640 go to vpeteclendershow dot com. Make sure you hit the 7 00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:25,160 subscribe button. Get every episode for free right to your 8 00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:27,719 smartphone or tablet, And again, thank you so much for 9 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:31,440 your support. Yesterday we spoke with Terry Donovan, the Republican 10 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:35,719 nominee for the mayor of Charlotte. Today we are chatting 11 00:00:35,719 --> 00:00:39,399 with Rob Yates. He is a Libertarian nominee for mayor 12 00:00:39,520 --> 00:00:43,960 of Charlotte. Early voting began yesterday. Rob, Welcome to the program. 13 00:00:43,960 --> 00:00:45,960 Speaker 2: How are you not too bad? How's it going? 14 00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:48,399 Speaker 1: Oh, you know, not too bad. It's a Friday, that's 15 00:00:48,439 --> 00:00:49,119 half the battle. 16 00:00:49,320 --> 00:00:52,159 Speaker 2: So it's a beautiful friday, though. I'll take it. 17 00:00:52,159 --> 00:00:55,039 Speaker 1: It is, it absolutely is. I think this is second fall, 18 00:00:55,280 --> 00:00:57,359 second autumn, I believe is what they call it here 19 00:00:57,359 --> 00:01:00,000 in Charlotte. All right, so first, tell us a little 20 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:05,319 little bit about your bio, like who are you? If 21 00:01:05,359 --> 00:01:08,280 people don't know who you are? Your background, why you 22 00:01:08,439 --> 00:01:10,879 are running for this position. 23 00:01:13,239 --> 00:01:16,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, so it's my second time running for MARIV Charlotte. 24 00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:20,840 I ran for General Assembly in between. I am a Libertarian, 25 00:01:22,560 --> 00:01:26,319 which I'm finding a lot of people are unaware of 26 00:01:26,359 --> 00:01:28,640 what that means, but I'm happy that I've been able 27 00:01:28,680 --> 00:01:32,760 to provide some of that information. I'm the communications director 28 00:01:32,799 --> 00:01:35,120 for the Libertarian Party of North Carolina. I've been in 29 00:01:35,239 --> 00:01:39,640 Charlotte for almost twenty years now, and I'm running because 30 00:01:40,959 --> 00:01:44,640 I've just watched things in the city decline that don't 31 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:49,200 need to be declining. Definitely not the Charlotte I've moved into. 32 00:01:49,599 --> 00:01:52,680 We're losing some of the things that give the city 33 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:56,120 charm and make it unique and special. And I really 34 00:01:56,159 --> 00:02:00,159 think I have some ideas and some policy suggestions that 35 00:02:00,239 --> 00:02:03,200 I have to put out there and help turn things around. 36 00:02:03,560 --> 00:02:07,079 Speaker 1: You said things that are declining that should not be declining. 37 00:02:07,120 --> 00:02:10,120 So do you have any examples of what those things 38 00:02:10,199 --> 00:02:10,479 might be? 39 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:14,599 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I think we all know what the 40 00:02:14,599 --> 00:02:18,319 answers are going to be. It's we certainly have a 41 00:02:18,319 --> 00:02:23,719 public safety issue, and it is much more significant than 42 00:02:23,719 --> 00:02:26,560 it was ten and fifteen years ago. We are housing 43 00:02:26,639 --> 00:02:31,120 costs that are really prohibitive to growth in generational wealth 44 00:02:31,159 --> 00:02:34,960 and sort of starting to create a wealth gap, some 45 00:02:35,039 --> 00:02:38,199 class separation that we don't need to see. Food, transportation 46 00:02:38,319 --> 00:02:43,120 and infrastructure issues. They're perhaps not as bad as people 47 00:02:43,199 --> 00:02:46,960 would like to say during an election season, sure, but 48 00:02:47,319 --> 00:02:51,919 they're getting worse. They're continually getting worse. And then we have, 49 00:02:52,919 --> 00:02:56,639 I think a burgeoning issue with just overall economics. Things 50 00:02:56,680 --> 00:02:59,560 are getting really expensive and job growth is not keeping 51 00:02:59,639 --> 00:03:00,759 up with the clots of people. 52 00:03:01,919 --> 00:03:05,479 Speaker 1: All right, So you also mentioned a moment ago that 53 00:03:07,240 --> 00:03:11,039 things are changing and not for the better, and you know, 54 00:03:11,520 --> 00:03:14,759 sort of hearkening back to this period ten fifteen years ago. 55 00:03:14,960 --> 00:03:19,039 And I have to ask as a libertarian, generally libertarians 56 00:03:19,039 --> 00:03:23,360 oppose the kinds of things that the city of Charlotte would, 57 00:03:23,479 --> 00:03:27,800 you know, promote and do building arenas for example, right, 58 00:03:27,840 --> 00:03:32,919 all sorts of these types of shiny projects and such. 59 00:03:34,080 --> 00:03:36,400 And they say, they would say that those are like 60 00:03:36,479 --> 00:03:40,400 that's the reason why Charlotte became this destination for so 61 00:03:40,479 --> 00:03:43,840 many people and why it was booming, you know, ten fifteen, 62 00:03:43,919 --> 00:03:46,759 twenty years ago. So do you consider that to be 63 00:03:46,919 --> 00:03:50,520 part of the thing that has been diminished? 64 00:03:52,039 --> 00:03:54,280 Speaker 2: So I love questions like this because because we can 65 00:03:54,360 --> 00:03:57,240 really sort of break down what's actually happening versus what 66 00:03:58,080 --> 00:04:00,400 the people who make these deals and benefit from these deals, 67 00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:02,680 which is why I would argue they make them what 68 00:04:02,840 --> 00:04:06,919 they say is happening. Charlotte's been attractive to people because 69 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:10,479 we have a business friendly environment. We are a fairly 70 00:04:10,560 --> 00:04:14,240 young and high tech city. Historically we've been a pretty 71 00:04:14,280 --> 00:04:17,600 safe city. Big businesses have come here, they've attracted jobs. 72 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:20,720 Other jobs have come up around those jobs. People can 73 00:04:20,759 --> 00:04:23,199 start a small business or traditionally could start their own 74 00:04:23,199 --> 00:04:27,519 business here fairly successfully. And that's the kind of city 75 00:04:27,560 --> 00:04:30,519 that attracts a sports team. I certainly don't buy into 76 00:04:30,519 --> 00:04:34,000 the idea that we need to give a billionaire one 77 00:04:34,079 --> 00:04:37,240 hundred and fifty million dollar handout to fix his little 78 00:04:37,399 --> 00:04:41,279 pet project playground while our citizens are struggling to put 79 00:04:41,279 --> 00:04:42,040 food on the table. 80 00:04:44,199 --> 00:04:49,279 Speaker 1: What about the light rail system, all of the parks right, 81 00:04:49,319 --> 00:04:52,600 all of the school construction. These were all of the 82 00:04:52,600 --> 00:04:57,040 things that taxpayers have been asked to fund, or been 83 00:04:57,079 --> 00:05:01,120 forced to fund through taxpayer dollars off viously over the 84 00:05:01,199 --> 00:05:04,439 last you know, fifty years. And then those are the 85 00:05:04,439 --> 00:05:07,279 things that are cited as the things that help attract 86 00:05:07,279 --> 00:05:08,800 those very businesses. 87 00:05:10,079 --> 00:05:15,079 Speaker 2: So sure. I mean, obviously, when you pour money into 88 00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:19,560 something and there's an expectation of a return on that, 89 00:05:19,600 --> 00:05:24,120 you're going to have to have some sort of tangible product. 90 00:05:24,839 --> 00:05:28,879 To what degree that's attracting business versus business coming in 91 00:05:28,959 --> 00:05:31,639 and that driving growth. I mean, I would argue it's 92 00:05:31,639 --> 00:05:36,560 the latter pretty substantially. We do have public money coming in, 93 00:05:36,759 --> 00:05:39,319 and libertarian perspective is always going to be a more 94 00:05:39,319 --> 00:05:43,720 decentralized governance. So the idea that at a high level, 95 00:05:43,759 --> 00:05:46,279 what's right for say the outer banks North Carolina is 96 00:05:46,279 --> 00:05:48,959 certainly not what's right for New York City or San Francisco. 97 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:52,040 And when you get into Charlotte, what's right for Charlotte 98 00:05:52,560 --> 00:05:54,959 might not even be what's right for Raleigh. And what's 99 00:05:55,079 --> 00:05:57,399 right for district Sick might not be what's right for 100 00:05:57,439 --> 00:06:00,800 District three. The more you can localize things, the more 101 00:06:00,839 --> 00:06:05,079 you can specialize the response. If the compromise that we 102 00:06:05,279 --> 00:06:07,319 ended up with was we're going to have a really 103 00:06:07,399 --> 00:06:11,120 nice greenway system and people are going to not pay 104 00:06:11,160 --> 00:06:13,480 a whole bunch of property taxes, like I could probably 105 00:06:13,480 --> 00:06:14,360 be pretty happy with that. 106 00:06:16,079 --> 00:06:19,120 Speaker 1: You mentioned public safety in your at your website. By 107 00:06:19,160 --> 00:06:21,560 the way, I should tell people where to find information 108 00:06:21,639 --> 00:06:25,279 about you and your campaign. It is at prosper Charlotte 109 00:06:25,319 --> 00:06:29,920 dot com. Correct prosper Charlotte, prosper Charlotte dot com. So 110 00:06:29,959 --> 00:06:34,360 when the public safety plank of the platform, you say 111 00:06:34,399 --> 00:06:39,000 funds are wasted on unnecessary military equipment, but the police 112 00:06:39,079 --> 00:06:42,879 union insists cops are not paid enough. So do you 113 00:06:43,079 --> 00:06:45,680 disagree that police are not paid enough or do you 114 00:06:45,920 --> 00:06:48,279 do you think they are? And then what do you 115 00:06:48,360 --> 00:06:53,639 think is the solution to improving public safety? 116 00:06:53,319 --> 00:06:56,199 Speaker 2: So again another good question, but I actually have to 117 00:06:56,199 --> 00:06:58,480 reject the premise of the question. And here's why I 118 00:06:58,480 --> 00:07:02,160 think we need to complete we think our approach to 119 00:07:02,199 --> 00:07:05,600 public safety. So, first of all, we spent something like 120 00:07:05,639 --> 00:07:09,279 a million dollars a couple of years ago on a 121 00:07:09,680 --> 00:07:13,399 military truck for bomb threats that could break through walls 122 00:07:13,399 --> 00:07:17,439 of buildings. And the average person is more likely to 123 00:07:17,480 --> 00:07:19,839 die from a coconut falling on your head than you 124 00:07:19,879 --> 00:07:22,000 are from a bomb explosion in the United States, But 125 00:07:22,000 --> 00:07:25,199 there is a million dollars. Whether or not an individual 126 00:07:25,199 --> 00:07:28,839 officer is paid enough or not should really be based 127 00:07:28,879 --> 00:07:32,959 on the merit of that officer's performance. So then we 128 00:07:33,040 --> 00:07:35,000 get into an incentive structure, and you have to look 129 00:07:35,079 --> 00:07:38,920 at what sort of outcome are you incentivizing. I want 130 00:07:38,959 --> 00:07:45,160 to really push a true community policing initiative where cops 131 00:07:45,240 --> 00:07:48,759 are embedded in the communities where they're serving, They're expected 132 00:07:48,800 --> 00:07:51,959 to be there for a long time, They're rewarded based 133 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:54,600 on crime reduction in the community, their incentives sort of 134 00:07:54,639 --> 00:07:57,959 get involved in the community. There are a few things 135 00:07:57,959 --> 00:08:00,199 out there that I think we could give cops more 136 00:08:00,240 --> 00:08:03,759 of and better. Certainly, if they need body armor, like 137 00:08:04,279 --> 00:08:08,040 protection of law enforcement is not something you're gonna finally 138 00:08:08,120 --> 00:08:11,079 pushing back on. Another thing I would like to see 139 00:08:11,120 --> 00:08:13,560 is really try to give every single cop a cruiser 140 00:08:13,920 --> 00:08:16,920 and have him or her keep it at home. Just 141 00:08:16,959 --> 00:08:18,879 the presence of the police cruiser is going to deter 142 00:08:19,040 --> 00:08:22,639 people that maybe don't have a natural criminal event, but 143 00:08:22,680 --> 00:08:25,920 are sort of, you know, push to the break and 144 00:08:26,160 --> 00:08:29,199 commit some sort of violent act. This is just a 145 00:08:29,279 --> 00:08:36,519 start a true public safety reform initiative that drives better outcomes. Again, 146 00:08:37,679 --> 00:08:40,480 you have to look at everything. You have to reduce 147 00:08:40,559 --> 00:08:42,679 housing costs at the low end so people can afford 148 00:08:42,759 --> 00:08:44,960 place to live. You have to give opportunities so people 149 00:08:45,039 --> 00:08:48,159 have jobs. You have to ensure that police are in 150 00:08:48,200 --> 00:08:51,039 the place where violent crimes are being committed. And you 151 00:08:51,120 --> 00:08:54,080 have to stop asking police to play babysitter for some 152 00:08:54,120 --> 00:08:57,399 of these silly, victimless crimes right now. And you have 153 00:08:57,440 --> 00:09:04,000 to stop the sensationalism too. Charlotte being in the national spotlight. Granted, 154 00:09:04,840 --> 00:09:08,799 the arena stabbing was horrific, and I think it triggered 155 00:09:08,879 --> 00:09:11,159 a lot of people's emotions because the video was out there. 156 00:09:11,240 --> 00:09:15,399 I was unhappy I saw it. Sometimes that's a difficult 157 00:09:15,399 --> 00:09:17,960 image to get out of your head. But there are 158 00:09:18,000 --> 00:09:21,919 a couple things going on right now. One, we as 159 00:09:21,919 --> 00:09:23,919 a city are at a baseline that I would argue 160 00:09:23,960 --> 00:09:27,720 is unacceptable in terms of public safety, because there is 161 00:09:27,759 --> 00:09:31,279 a real, if very small chance for anyone going out 162 00:09:31,320 --> 00:09:33,200 in most parts of Charlotte that you could be a 163 00:09:33,279 --> 00:09:36,279 victim of violent crime. But on the other hand, we 164 00:09:36,440 --> 00:09:39,399 have seen some initiatives and acted that appear to be 165 00:09:39,399 --> 00:09:42,360 paying dividends. We're in the third year of a decline 166 00:09:42,480 --> 00:09:46,879 in violent crime, particularly violent crime. It's very hard to 167 00:09:46,919 --> 00:09:49,799 say over the last five years how much the COVID 168 00:09:49,879 --> 00:09:52,879 bump has affected where we were and where we're going. 169 00:09:53,240 --> 00:09:55,759 But the fact is we're in a place. Again, that 170 00:09:55,879 --> 00:09:57,720 is just not acceptable and we have to address it 171 00:09:57,720 --> 00:09:59,399 from there because people should be able to feel safe 172 00:09:59,399 --> 00:09:59,919 when they walk up. 173 00:10:00,879 --> 00:10:03,039 Speaker 1: Wait, hang on second. You called it the COVID bump. 174 00:10:03,120 --> 00:10:05,519 You think COVID drove up crime? 175 00:10:08,000 --> 00:10:09,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean I think that we saw a spike 176 00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:11,840 around twenty twenty, twenty twenty one. 177 00:10:12,039 --> 00:10:13,679 Speaker 1: Yeah, was there something else going on? 178 00:10:16,879 --> 00:10:18,879 Speaker 2: There were potentially lots of things going on. 179 00:10:20,039 --> 00:10:23,279 Speaker 1: Not potentially there were. There was an entire movement around 180 00:10:23,279 --> 00:10:27,320 defunding the police, right, so. 181 00:10:27,360 --> 00:10:29,200 Speaker 2: Interesting, So you think it was directly related to that. 182 00:10:30,120 --> 00:10:34,440 Speaker 1: Yeah, I'd say the social justice protesting cops, calling them, 183 00:10:34,600 --> 00:10:38,759 you know, pigs and killers and wanting to defund law 184 00:10:38,840 --> 00:10:41,879 enforcement and making them take a knee in order to 185 00:10:42,480 --> 00:10:46,720 prove that, you know, they they're sorry for systemic injustice 186 00:10:46,759 --> 00:10:47,240 and all of that. 187 00:10:47,799 --> 00:10:48,200 Speaker 2: Yeah. 188 00:10:48,240 --> 00:10:50,639 Speaker 1: Absolutely, I'd say that that had a more of a 189 00:10:50,639 --> 00:10:51,759 direct impact than COVID. 190 00:10:53,519 --> 00:10:57,320 Speaker 2: So yeah, that's actually a good point. So we see 191 00:10:57,720 --> 00:11:00,080 an extreme position on either side and a pen and 192 00:11:00,200 --> 00:11:03,600 swinging back and forth. That doesn't serve anyone. We could 193 00:11:03,759 --> 00:11:08,440 in fact eliminate violent crime tomorrow. If we went into 194 00:11:08,519 --> 00:11:10,919 a police state, we could have you know, they talk 195 00:11:10,960 --> 00:11:12,639 about the National Guard. We could have the army come 196 00:11:12,679 --> 00:11:16,320 through and patrol the streets, and instantly you see violent 197 00:11:16,320 --> 00:11:19,720 crime almost disappear. But I don't think that's the country 198 00:11:19,759 --> 00:11:21,000 we live in or the country we. 199 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:22,840 Speaker 1: Want to live in, right then. I don't know anybody 200 00:11:22,840 --> 00:11:24,600 that's advocating for a police. 201 00:11:24,519 --> 00:11:27,480 Speaker 2: Exactly one hundred percent. I'm just that's an example for contrast. 202 00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:29,440 So when you swing the entire other way and it's 203 00:11:30,039 --> 00:11:33,759 defund the police and anyone who's in law enforcement you know, 204 00:11:33,879 --> 00:11:37,279 is automatically a Nazi, well then you're going to get 205 00:11:37,320 --> 00:11:41,080 that sort of encouragement that leads to a bump of 206 00:11:41,120 --> 00:11:47,200 criminal behavior. I do think that the sort of the relicship 207 00:11:47,720 --> 00:11:52,759 of purpose that the lockdown lockdown brought. I mean, we 208 00:11:52,919 --> 00:11:56,639 we sort of set the whole world into an existential crisis. 209 00:11:56,679 --> 00:12:00,320 So I think that played into it psychologically. See of 210 00:12:00,360 --> 00:12:02,879 this confluence of events that's very, very bad for people 211 00:12:03,120 --> 00:12:04,279 looking to lower crime. 212 00:12:05,000 --> 00:12:07,360 Speaker 1: Now, yeah, well, I would say my guess is that 213 00:12:08,279 --> 00:12:13,759 locking people down allowed for the explosion during the summer 214 00:12:13,799 --> 00:12:17,600 of fiery but mostly peaceful riots. I think you would 215 00:12:17,639 --> 00:12:20,799 not have seen the kind of explosion had people not 216 00:12:20,879 --> 00:12:23,480 been locked down and driven to the point of insanity. 217 00:12:23,759 --> 00:12:26,919 Just prior. But yeah, but I don't think that's the 218 00:12:26,960 --> 00:12:31,480 cause of the you know, the crime, the crime increase. 219 00:12:32,159 --> 00:12:33,480 I think it has a lot to do with, you know, 220 00:12:33,519 --> 00:12:36,279 telling people that join law enforcement because they want to, 221 00:12:37,600 --> 00:12:39,639 they want to help people, they want to protect people, 222 00:12:39,639 --> 00:12:42,080 and then being told that that makes them nazis. You know, 223 00:12:42,519 --> 00:12:43,919 they don't want to do the job. Then a lot 224 00:12:44,000 --> 00:12:45,320 of a lot of good people don't want to do 225 00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:47,960 the job, and yet a lot of and we still 226 00:12:47,960 --> 00:12:50,360 don't have all of the ranks full. 227 00:12:52,000 --> 00:12:55,919 Speaker 2: And I do think that that's where a properly designed 228 00:12:55,960 --> 00:13:00,879 community policing initiative works, is that the again, the incentive 229 00:13:00,919 --> 00:13:04,240 structure for the officers involved is to truly get to 230 00:13:04,279 --> 00:13:07,679 know the people in their community. So it's like the example, 231 00:13:07,720 --> 00:13:09,799 I like to say, and you know this, but so 232 00:13:09,919 --> 00:13:11,799 Johnny and Billy get in a fight on the street 233 00:13:11,799 --> 00:13:14,600 corner and the cops break it up, but they know 234 00:13:14,679 --> 00:13:18,039 Johnny and Billy's parents where they're locked in with Johnny 235 00:13:18,039 --> 00:13:21,240 and Billy's school, so they're able to intervene. And instead 236 00:13:21,240 --> 00:13:23,960 of putting a fourteen year old in the system and 237 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:28,799 creating all these barriers to true rehabilitation and coming out 238 00:13:28,799 --> 00:13:31,159 of it, and just two kids getting in a fight. 239 00:13:33,360 --> 00:13:35,919 You have right Now Again, the kids get put in 240 00:13:35,960 --> 00:13:38,240 a system. There are now criminals they have to go 241 00:13:38,320 --> 00:13:39,919 up against all these things. A lot of the kids 242 00:13:39,960 --> 00:13:42,519 that are engaged in this behavior are already facing some 243 00:13:42,600 --> 00:13:46,399 difficulties where they are in life. With the community Policing initiative, 244 00:13:46,399 --> 00:13:50,799 the incentive is to fix everything from the baseline, and 245 00:13:50,919 --> 00:13:53,279 it could. I mean some of the things sound sort 246 00:13:53,320 --> 00:13:55,759 of trite, like you could have barbecues or basketball games 247 00:13:55,799 --> 00:13:57,759 or whatever it may be, go door to door, give 248 00:13:57,759 --> 00:14:01,039 out cards, but that builds trust back in the police, 249 00:14:01,039 --> 00:14:04,960 and then the community engages. So when we say community policing, 250 00:14:05,759 --> 00:14:07,960 it's not this sort of I think it gets a 251 00:14:08,080 --> 00:14:13,679 very like this must be like some new wave leftist 252 00:14:14,080 --> 00:14:18,120 nonsense mumbo jumbo, and it's not. It is engaging everyone 253 00:14:18,279 --> 00:14:20,559 in the act of taking care of their communities. 254 00:14:21,080 --> 00:14:24,440 Speaker 1: My guest is Rob Yates. We gotta pull up there 255 00:14:24,440 --> 00:14:26,240 for a second. So when I was a kid, my 256 00:14:26,320 --> 00:14:29,279 grandpa died with Alzheimer's, and before he died, my mom 257 00:14:29,320 --> 00:14:31,399 and my dad took care of him as he got worse. 258 00:14:31,759 --> 00:14:34,360 Forty years ago, there were no treatments and not much 259 00:14:34,399 --> 00:14:38,080 support for caregivers and family. Things are different today because 260 00:14:38,120 --> 00:14:40,840 of the work of so many people, including the Alzheimer's 261 00:14:40,840 --> 00:14:44,440 Association of Western Carolina. It's a great organization with awesome 262 00:14:44,480 --> 00:14:47,480 people with huge hearts. I've been a supporter for twenty 263 00:14:47,480 --> 00:14:50,559 five years. This cause means a lot to me. I 264 00:14:50,639 --> 00:14:53,960 participate in the annual Walk to end Alzheimer's and I'm 265 00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:56,960 leading a Charlotte team again this year, and it's called 266 00:14:57,039 --> 00:14:59,559 once again Pete's Pack. You can sign up and you 267 00:14:59,559 --> 00:15:01,919 can join the team and walk with us. It's on 268 00:15:01,960 --> 00:15:05,879 October eighteenth, that truest field. Sign up at alz dot 269 00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:08,840 org slash Walk and then you could search for my 270 00:15:08,960 --> 00:15:12,240 team name Pete's Peck. There's also a link at thepetepod 271 00:15:12,279 --> 00:15:14,559 dot com. There's also a link in the description of 272 00:15:14,600 --> 00:15:18,320 this podcast. Also, I'll be am seeing the Gastonia Walk 273 00:15:18,360 --> 00:15:20,559 on October eleventh, and so you can make a team 274 00:15:20,600 --> 00:15:23,039 and join that one too, or make a donation and 275 00:15:23,080 --> 00:15:25,360 help me hit my goal of five thousand dollars. If 276 00:15:25,399 --> 00:15:26,879 you do, I really appreciate it. 277 00:15:26,919 --> 00:15:29,559 Speaker 3: There are a bunch of other walks all over the Carolinas. 278 00:15:29,720 --> 00:15:32,360 You can go to alz dot org slash Walk for 279 00:15:32,440 --> 00:15:35,240 all the dates and locations. We're closer than ever to 280 00:15:35,279 --> 00:15:37,639 stopping Alzheimer's. Can you help us get there? Will you 281 00:15:37,679 --> 00:15:40,519 walk with me? For a different future, for families, for 282 00:15:40,639 --> 00:15:43,679 more time for treatments. This is why we walk. 283 00:15:43,919 --> 00:15:46,720 Speaker 1: Chatting with Rob Yates, he is the Libertarian candidate for 284 00:15:47,919 --> 00:15:52,960 mayor of Charlotte and Rob before the break, we were 285 00:15:52,960 --> 00:15:56,159 talking about public safety, one of the biggest issues. If not, 286 00:15:56,279 --> 00:15:59,360 I would submit it is the biggest issue that's driving 287 00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:04,639 the problems with crime in Charlotte and in Mecklenburg. You know, 288 00:16:04,679 --> 00:16:10,240 at a larger level is the judicial system. And if 289 00:16:10,320 --> 00:16:12,360 you were to win, obviously the mayor is not in 290 00:16:12,440 --> 00:16:16,840 charge of the judicial system. But I mean yesterday or 291 00:16:17,039 --> 00:16:19,440 a couple days ago, we had the Charlotte Mecklinburg Police 292 00:16:19,480 --> 00:16:23,480 released their data and they were pointing out the challenge 293 00:16:23,480 --> 00:16:26,960 they've got with repeat, repeat offenders that keep getting turned loose. 294 00:16:26,960 --> 00:16:30,279 I think they cited some fifteen year old who's got 295 00:16:30,559 --> 00:16:31,600 like one hundred. 296 00:16:31,360 --> 00:16:34,000 Speaker 2: And twelve more than one a day. 297 00:16:34,200 --> 00:16:41,120 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's insane. And how can you, if mayor, apply 298 00:16:41,440 --> 00:16:45,200 pressure to the judicial system or would you even do that? 299 00:16:47,360 --> 00:16:50,159 Speaker 2: So I would absolutely do that. You know, I can 300 00:16:50,200 --> 00:16:54,360 sit here and I can talk about community policing, example statistics, 301 00:16:54,399 --> 00:16:56,879 we can look at other ways of policing the community. 302 00:16:58,200 --> 00:17:01,720 We can talk about social change and underlying issues. But 303 00:17:01,759 --> 00:17:05,359 the fact is, if violent people are on the streets, 304 00:17:05,359 --> 00:17:08,759 they're going to do violent things. And it is it 305 00:17:08,839 --> 00:17:13,000 is unreal the number. And you know, it hasn't been 306 00:17:13,039 --> 00:17:16,799 some swell of people that are getting out on these 307 00:17:17,079 --> 00:17:19,680 these full cashlests bills or violent criminals being released, but 308 00:17:19,759 --> 00:17:22,039 it's way more than it should be. I mean, I 309 00:17:22,039 --> 00:17:25,240 would argue should probably be zero. But I think that 310 00:17:26,279 --> 00:17:29,279 the mayor and Charlotte, at least on paper, is not 311 00:17:30,000 --> 00:17:36,039 particularly powerful. There are sort of delineated responsibilities bully pop 312 00:17:36,079 --> 00:17:39,440 it and bully pulpit abilities, and then behind the scenes capabilities, 313 00:17:39,480 --> 00:17:42,440 and I think that with the judicial system there's real 314 00:17:42,480 --> 00:17:46,759 opportunity to really push on some of the DA's on 315 00:17:48,680 --> 00:17:51,079 I mean, even the judges and the magistrates in line 316 00:17:51,160 --> 00:17:54,200 with law enforcement and other people that agree like, hey, 317 00:17:54,240 --> 00:17:57,400 we need to stop letting these people out. And that's 318 00:17:57,440 --> 00:18:00,720 something that I would make a very high priority. If 319 00:18:01,039 --> 00:18:05,880 someone has stabbed someone before and is on trial or 320 00:18:05,960 --> 00:18:08,880 is a waiting trial or for multiple stabbings, that person 321 00:18:09,400 --> 00:18:14,279 probably shouldn't be walking around, especially the previous previous guilty verdicts. 322 00:18:16,039 --> 00:18:20,319 Speaker 1: Yeah, all right, I want to hit on transportation as 323 00:18:20,400 --> 00:18:23,960 well and a couple other topics here Robyates. You can, 324 00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:27,319 by the way, find more of his information and his 325 00:18:27,680 --> 00:18:31,759 positions at prosper Charlotte dot com. More with Robbyates in 326 00:18:31,799 --> 00:18:34,079 a moment you know. Stories are powerful. They help us 327 00:18:34,079 --> 00:18:37,839 make sense of things, to understand experiences. Stories connect us 328 00:18:37,839 --> 00:18:40,759 to the people of our past while transcending generations. They 329 00:18:40,799 --> 00:18:43,680 help us process the meaning of life, and our stories 330 00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:47,480 are told through images and videos. Preserve your stories with 331 00:18:47,599 --> 00:18:51,440 Creative Video. Started in nineteen ninety seven in Minhill, North Carolina. 332 00:18:51,640 --> 00:18:54,240 It was the first company to provide this valuable service, 333 00:18:54,279 --> 00:18:59,480 converting images, photos and videos into high quality produced slide shows, videos, 334 00:18:59,519 --> 00:19:03,240 and album The trusted, talented and dedicated team at Creative 335 00:19:03,279 --> 00:19:05,400 Video will go over all of the details with you 336 00:19:05,480 --> 00:19:09,319 to create a perfect project. Satisfaction guaranteed. Drop them off 337 00:19:09,319 --> 00:19:11,039 in person or mail them. They'll be ready in a 338 00:19:11,079 --> 00:19:14,039 week or two. Memorial videos for your loved ones, videos 339 00:19:14,039 --> 00:19:18,880 for rehearsal, dinners, weddings, graduations, Christmas, family vacations, birthdays, or 340 00:19:19,039 --> 00:19:22,759 just your family stories all told through images. That's what 341 00:19:22,839 --> 00:19:26,319 your photos and videos are. They are your life told 342 00:19:26,359 --> 00:19:28,880 through the eyes of everyone around you and all who 343 00:19:28,920 --> 00:19:31,119 came before you, and they will tell others to come 344 00:19:31,319 --> 00:19:34,960 who you are. Visit creative video dot com. We're chatting 345 00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:38,400 with Rob Yates. He's the libertarian candidate for mayor of Charlotte. 346 00:19:38,480 --> 00:19:42,920 His website prosper Charlotte dot com. All right, Rob, let's 347 00:19:42,920 --> 00:19:47,000 talk a little bit about transportation. Do you support do 348 00:19:47,039 --> 00:19:52,279 you endorse the one cent sales tax increase for the 349 00:19:52,359 --> 00:19:57,119 transit system and roads as the mailers keep reinforcing it's 350 00:19:57,119 --> 00:19:59,000 all about the roads in the mailers. 351 00:20:00,599 --> 00:20:02,839 Speaker 2: So I want to say this like as crystal player 352 00:20:02,880 --> 00:20:06,839 as possible, because mar Lyles has come out in favor 353 00:20:06,880 --> 00:20:09,799 of it. Terry Donovan was in favor of it. Now 354 00:20:09,839 --> 00:20:15,119 she's saying not now. I am adamantly opposed to the 355 00:20:15,680 --> 00:20:19,920 fourteen percent one point sales tax increase to the entire referendum. 356 00:20:20,119 --> 00:20:22,039 And if you're listening to this, I encourage you to 357 00:20:22,160 --> 00:20:22,599 vote no. 358 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:24,440 Speaker 1: Okay? 359 00:20:24,480 --> 00:20:30,599 Speaker 2: And why where to start first? If you ever want 360 00:20:30,599 --> 00:20:33,759 to go down sort of a descent into the mailstream 361 00:20:33,839 --> 00:20:36,079 rabbit hole, go look at the structure of just how 362 00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:40,000 CATS is run. Just to start with, who reports to who. 363 00:20:40,799 --> 00:20:43,400 There's two different boards, some people sit on different ones. 364 00:20:43,559 --> 00:20:47,480 One executive reports to the city council, but they can't 365 00:20:47,519 --> 00:20:50,359 actually make changes to CATS. It's the most convoluted thing 366 00:20:50,400 --> 00:20:54,279 I've seen, so difficult to get anything done there. Then 367 00:20:54,319 --> 00:20:57,799 you sort of look at how well CATS is doing, 368 00:20:57,799 --> 00:21:00,680 and this is just the public transportation side, and it 369 00:21:00,680 --> 00:21:04,960 doesn't seem to be you know, getting the people to 370 00:21:05,039 --> 00:21:07,359 the places they need. It seems very arbitrary where it's 371 00:21:07,400 --> 00:21:10,000 laid half the people on there, I read, I can't 372 00:21:10,000 --> 00:21:12,319 confirm the statistic. I should clarify that. I don't want 373 00:21:12,359 --> 00:21:15,160 to speculate. I don't like the hyperfectly. But I read 374 00:21:15,160 --> 00:21:18,480 that half the people riding caps are not paying their fares. 375 00:21:19,359 --> 00:21:21,279 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, well, we don't know that data because they 376 00:21:21,319 --> 00:21:23,480 don't collect it. They make no effort to collect it. 377 00:21:23,559 --> 00:21:27,279 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean even it's like ten percent, that seems 378 00:21:27,279 --> 00:21:34,480 pretty wild to me. Second, we have poured so much 379 00:21:34,559 --> 00:21:38,319 money into quote unquote infrastructure development or transportation however they 380 00:21:38,319 --> 00:21:42,640 want to frame it, and if we end up completing 381 00:21:42,799 --> 00:21:46,599 the project, it's delayed by years. It goes way over cost. 382 00:21:47,440 --> 00:21:50,480 You know, the red line they're still dangling that carrot. 383 00:21:53,160 --> 00:21:55,799 And to do this they want to charge you fourteen 384 00:21:55,839 --> 00:21:58,200 percent more. It's going to start with two hundred and 385 00:21:58,240 --> 00:22:01,960 forty dollars a year and probably in and based on promises. 386 00:22:02,000 --> 00:22:04,000 If you read the plan, if you read the proposals, 387 00:22:04,000 --> 00:22:07,279 there's really nothing concrete in there. They don't know how 388 00:22:07,319 --> 00:22:12,559 it's going to be administered. In particular, the oversight board 389 00:22:12,880 --> 00:22:15,880 is supposed to be independent. It's being chosen right now 390 00:22:16,000 --> 00:22:20,799 before the initiative would even pass. And you know, someone 391 00:22:21,000 --> 00:22:23,400 who didn't win the primary and city council is applying 392 00:22:23,440 --> 00:22:26,200 to be on there says she's independent. I mean, the 393 00:22:26,200 --> 00:22:30,039 whole thing is this giant insider deal. And then again 394 00:22:30,119 --> 00:22:33,359 I'm against taxes and spending in general. But if you're 395 00:22:33,400 --> 00:22:34,759 going to do it, if we must do it, I 396 00:22:34,799 --> 00:22:37,039 would like to see it go to help people. But 397 00:22:37,079 --> 00:22:39,200 instead this seems to be a big give out giveaway 398 00:22:39,240 --> 00:22:44,079 to developers. The yes for met crowd. I mean they 399 00:22:44,119 --> 00:22:47,119 have three point three million upfront and spending for this. 400 00:22:48,079 --> 00:22:50,720 They're not spending three point three million because they want 401 00:22:50,759 --> 00:22:53,559 to see people helped. They're spending three point three million 402 00:22:53,599 --> 00:22:56,279 because they stand a profit a whole lot from this deal. 403 00:22:56,920 --> 00:22:59,279 Speaker 1: Well, I mean, and the whole benefit of and this 404 00:22:59,440 --> 00:23:02,319 was explain the argument when the Blue Line was built 405 00:23:02,400 --> 00:23:06,119 was that it does serve as an economic development generator 406 00:23:06,279 --> 00:23:09,960 along the fixed rail corridor in a way that bus 407 00:23:10,039 --> 00:23:13,480 rapid transit, for example, does not. Bus stops are not permanent. 408 00:23:13,559 --> 00:23:15,319 You could just pick them up and move them, and 409 00:23:15,359 --> 00:23:18,960 so they don't generate economic development around them. But a 410 00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:22,960 train station does, you know, putting more high density housing 411 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:25,759 along the corridor. And look, it did work according to 412 00:23:25,799 --> 00:23:28,319 their projections, right that that was what they said was 413 00:23:28,359 --> 00:23:31,440 going to you look at South End. That was what 414 00:23:31,640 --> 00:23:35,440 was predicted and that was promised. So that's what and 415 00:23:35,200 --> 00:23:36,440 they were right about that. 416 00:23:36,519 --> 00:23:42,440 Speaker 2: No to an extent. I mean, it's very hard to 417 00:23:42,599 --> 00:23:48,240 point to a singular cause of economic development, Charlotte. I mean, 418 00:23:48,359 --> 00:23:50,480 we've been doing well as a city overall for the 419 00:23:50,559 --> 00:23:54,240 last thirty years. Just building a train and putting high 420 00:23:54,240 --> 00:23:57,599 density housing around it does not necessarily mean you're going 421 00:23:57,640 --> 00:24:02,480 to see corresponding development. And I mean I have libertarian 422 00:24:02,519 --> 00:24:04,720 reasons for this. I would argue that sort of centralized, 423 00:24:04,720 --> 00:24:08,400 top down planning never works, and you're setting yourself up 424 00:24:08,440 --> 00:24:13,519 for failure. But this proposal is particularly agreed just one. 425 00:24:14,039 --> 00:24:16,119 I mean, prices are high, people are hurting, and it 426 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:18,279 doesn't look like it's going to be getting better, and 427 00:24:18,319 --> 00:24:21,079 they're taking that money away. It's going to affect me, 428 00:24:21,200 --> 00:24:25,759 but I'll be okay. It's the people who really can't 429 00:24:25,759 --> 00:24:29,119 afford it that are going to, i mean, feel it 430 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:30,599 the most, and it's not going to help them. We're 431 00:24:30,640 --> 00:24:34,440 talking even if every single projection the guests from met 432 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:39,039 crowd is making comes true, which I suspect none of 433 00:24:39,119 --> 00:24:43,039 them are. But we're years away from seeing benefits on this. 434 00:24:43,119 --> 00:24:46,160 We have problems right now. And then on the backdrop 435 00:24:46,200 --> 00:24:48,400 of all that, like you mentioned the stadium deals earlier, 436 00:24:48,799 --> 00:24:52,799 you know, we're throwing money away for billionaires little pet projects. 437 00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:56,319 We've seen money squandered and wasted in lots of places. 438 00:24:56,319 --> 00:25:00,640 We have behind the door deals to retiring sheriffs for 439 00:25:00,799 --> 00:25:03,359 a city council that has really become sort of insular. 440 00:25:04,920 --> 00:25:10,039 If their first premise for promoting this as as a 441 00:25:10,160 --> 00:25:14,759 positive thing is trust us, that alone should be enough 442 00:25:14,759 --> 00:25:15,559 for everyone to vote. 443 00:25:15,559 --> 00:25:19,400 Speaker 1: Now you mentioned housing there. This is also a big issue, 444 00:25:19,400 --> 00:25:22,960 the affordable housing situation. I talked with Terry Donovan about 445 00:25:22,960 --> 00:25:28,319 this yesterday. How do you get more starter homes in Charlotte, 446 00:25:28,319 --> 00:25:30,279 how do you and you say in your at your 447 00:25:30,279 --> 00:25:34,559 website prosper Charlotte dot com that you'll ensure that housing 448 00:25:34,599 --> 00:25:37,480 prices adjust at a reasonable rate relative to the market 449 00:25:37,480 --> 00:25:40,880 and affordable housing exists for everyone in all income brackets. 450 00:25:41,160 --> 00:25:43,640 How does a mayor do that? How would you do that? 451 00:25:44,359 --> 00:25:48,680 Speaker 2: So this is uh, you know, you mentioned something I 452 00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:52,880 think on the people texting you after yesterday where someone said, 453 00:25:53,400 --> 00:25:56,680 why isn't there a debate? Yeah, there actually was a 454 00:25:56,680 --> 00:25:59,119 debate Mary Lyles and I debated a few weeks ago 455 00:25:59,519 --> 00:26:01,559 the Stevenson Tuesday forum. 456 00:26:01,640 --> 00:26:03,799 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. 457 00:26:03,880 --> 00:26:05,680 Speaker 2: I thought Harry was going to show up, but it 458 00:26:05,720 --> 00:26:07,920 was just the two of us. But I mentioned that 459 00:26:08,079 --> 00:26:11,039 because I had discussed some of these plans in terms 460 00:26:11,039 --> 00:26:15,839 of affordable housing on there in detail and just bringing 461 00:26:15,880 --> 00:26:19,480 it back up trying to stay consistent. But there are 462 00:26:19,559 --> 00:26:23,119 some places where I've really looked into the codes, the rules, 463 00:26:23,160 --> 00:26:26,119 the restrictions and what the state says, what Raley says, 464 00:26:26,640 --> 00:26:29,920 and talk to council, and I think there are places 465 00:26:29,960 --> 00:26:33,920 that we could really push some boundaries on restrictions and 466 00:26:33,960 --> 00:26:37,559 open up the market. So what we have right now 467 00:26:37,680 --> 00:26:43,559 is this City Council Approval Model UDO. What's allowed, what isn't. 468 00:26:43,799 --> 00:26:49,319 It's incentivizing some high density stuff, but that's not bringing 469 00:26:49,440 --> 00:26:54,680 value anywhere. It's not enticing people to move up, opening 470 00:26:54,759 --> 00:26:57,799 up places that turn into starter homes. It's just creating 471 00:26:57,880 --> 00:27:01,240 high density housing that's way more expensive. I want to 472 00:27:01,279 --> 00:27:02,119 open up the market. 473 00:27:02,799 --> 00:27:04,960 Speaker 1: I want to so how how do you do that? 474 00:27:05,440 --> 00:27:07,720 Speaker 2: I want to remove the owning restriction. I really want 475 00:27:07,759 --> 00:27:09,960 to remove z owning restrictions. I don't want people to 476 00:27:10,000 --> 00:27:12,839 have to ask permission to build on their properties. 477 00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:18,000 Speaker 1: Isn't that what the UDO is testing now? That the UDO, 478 00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:20,640 and that's why you're seeing all of these large tracts 479 00:27:20,680 --> 00:27:23,640 that were you know, one home on five six seven 480 00:27:23,680 --> 00:27:26,799 acres or so, that are now getting torn down, sold off, 481 00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:30,680 torn down and replaced with don't call them duplexes, their 482 00:27:30,799 --> 00:27:34,279 duets or duets or whatever they are, right, But that's 483 00:27:34,559 --> 00:27:37,000 Isn't that what we are seeing right now? And people 484 00:27:37,000 --> 00:27:38,079 aren't happy about it. 485 00:27:39,279 --> 00:27:42,559 Speaker 2: I think that the way the UDO is structured and 486 00:27:43,079 --> 00:27:46,440 it is it is. I mean, if you want to 487 00:27:46,440 --> 00:27:48,680 disagree with me, you know, I respect you on all ears, 488 00:27:48,680 --> 00:27:51,720 but I would argue there's a very restrictive document overall, 489 00:27:51,799 --> 00:27:56,039 and that's why we're getting instead of expansion, instead of 490 00:27:56,200 --> 00:28:00,839 the market driving true market needs drive the homes that 491 00:28:00,920 --> 00:28:05,119 are being built, you're just getting what the UDO seems 492 00:28:05,160 --> 00:28:07,119 to tell people is what we should have. And that's 493 00:28:07,160 --> 00:28:10,119 why you're seeing a lot of new apartment complexes, a 494 00:28:10,160 --> 00:28:14,319 lot of stuff being crammed in. You know, values are 495 00:28:14,440 --> 00:28:17,279 appearing to go up, but it's really just prices going up. 496 00:28:17,319 --> 00:28:19,319 So people are trying to milk that for what it's worth, 497 00:28:19,359 --> 00:28:20,759 but nothing's getting cheaper. 498 00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:24,200 Speaker 1: Right, Well, I guess I tie that back to the 499 00:28:24,559 --> 00:28:28,000 cost of building, right the reason why big. 500 00:28:27,839 --> 00:28:29,599 Speaker 2: Part of it, without doubt, without a doubt. 501 00:28:29,839 --> 00:28:33,240 Speaker 1: Yeah, And like a builder is not going to build 502 00:28:33,319 --> 00:28:36,599 starter homes for you know, one percent profit because if 503 00:28:36,599 --> 00:28:38,880 anything goes wrong, they have a string of bad weather 504 00:28:39,000 --> 00:28:42,279 or something, they're bankrupt, they're done, and so they're Yeah, 505 00:28:42,319 --> 00:28:43,880 so they've got to have a they've got to have 506 00:28:43,920 --> 00:28:46,599 a cushion of a profit margin in there. And so 507 00:28:46,640 --> 00:28:48,799 that's why you don't see a lot of that entry 508 00:28:48,880 --> 00:28:53,039 level housing anymore. Whereas you can build high density, you 509 00:28:53,039 --> 00:28:55,920 can get the density bonuses and such, you also have 510 00:28:55,960 --> 00:28:58,559 to include you know, affordable housing components and that sort 511 00:28:58,559 --> 00:29:03,599 of stuff for more, for more bonuses. And you know, 512 00:29:03,839 --> 00:29:06,920 given that we are so short on housing, it seems 513 00:29:06,960 --> 00:29:09,319 like you would want as much housing as possible to 514 00:29:09,359 --> 00:29:12,559 be built as quickly as possible, which would then create 515 00:29:12,680 --> 00:29:13,400 more supply. 516 00:29:15,200 --> 00:29:20,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I think it's better than nothing, obviously. Sure, 517 00:29:20,359 --> 00:29:23,200 So I read a report last week that the US 518 00:29:23,279 --> 00:29:29,759 is now in the worst housing cost relative to income 519 00:29:29,839 --> 00:29:31,079 situation it's ever been in. 520 00:29:31,200 --> 00:29:31,680 Speaker 1: I believe that. 521 00:29:31,680 --> 00:29:33,680 Speaker 2: I verified that. I just saw that going around. But 522 00:29:34,559 --> 00:29:37,119 there are two cities that have managed to avoid this problem, 523 00:29:37,119 --> 00:29:40,400 and it's Austin and Minneapolis. And the reason they did 524 00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:42,920 that is they never stopped building houses, right, and they 525 00:29:42,920 --> 00:29:44,880 didn't ask what kind of houses they needed to build. 526 00:29:44,880 --> 00:29:48,279 They just let the market beside. When you build high 527 00:29:48,440 --> 00:29:52,039 end homes, then wealthy people move into those homes, leaving 528 00:29:52,039 --> 00:29:56,119 their homes behind, and it resets the market ceiling. And 529 00:29:56,680 --> 00:29:59,400 I hate It's not trickle down, it's just market development. 530 00:29:59,599 --> 00:30:03,039 Speaker 1: Sure, it's like the early adopters of like any technology, 531 00:30:03,079 --> 00:30:05,039 they're going to spend the most money upfront, and then 532 00:30:05,119 --> 00:30:08,440 you know, it drives the prices down for everybody else exactly. 533 00:30:09,279 --> 00:30:12,359 Speaker 2: But what happens is people move up to the next 534 00:30:12,480 --> 00:30:15,160 tier of homes. That opens up real starter homes and 535 00:30:15,599 --> 00:30:17,920 people can buy things that they can afford and you 536 00:30:18,039 --> 00:30:21,359 have pride of home ownership. A lot of this high 537 00:30:21,400 --> 00:30:24,680 density housing that we're being told is being built out, 538 00:30:24,720 --> 00:30:27,079 A lot of it is rental, which is fine. I mean, 539 00:30:27,160 --> 00:30:30,000 people need to rent too, but when they're just cramming 540 00:30:30,039 --> 00:30:35,519 as many rental places into an area that's not able 541 00:30:35,559 --> 00:30:38,880 to absorb it, especially in terms of infrastructure, roads, hospitals, 542 00:30:38,920 --> 00:30:42,480 police schools. These things are all being tested, Traffics getting worse, 543 00:30:43,039 --> 00:30:46,000 and it's from huge amounts of rental places being put 544 00:30:46,039 --> 00:30:48,440 in and then it's not even so I hate the 545 00:30:48,480 --> 00:30:50,960 term affordable housing. All housing is affordable to someone. What 546 00:30:51,000 --> 00:30:53,920 we're talking about is housing that meets different income tiers, 547 00:30:54,519 --> 00:30:57,920 and it's not even meeting that need because the market 548 00:30:57,960 --> 00:31:03,960 is so just desperate for you know, literally places that 549 00:31:04,000 --> 00:31:07,319 people can go live that prices are going way up. Yeah, 550 00:31:07,319 --> 00:31:10,200 so you know, you could rent an apartment in the 551 00:31:10,240 --> 00:31:13,079 outskirts of Charlotte for under one thousand dollars pretty easily. 552 00:31:13,680 --> 00:31:15,599 It's ten years ago, and now I think I've read 553 00:31:15,599 --> 00:31:17,880 that seventeen hundred is like the median apartment price in 554 00:31:17,960 --> 00:31:18,599 Charlotte proper. 555 00:31:18,960 --> 00:31:20,839 Speaker 1: Oh gosh, I would say it's probably more over two 556 00:31:20,839 --> 00:31:23,359 grand that we haven't been able to find anything under 557 00:31:23,400 --> 00:31:24,400 two thousand. 558 00:31:24,039 --> 00:31:25,119 Speaker 2: For a two dollars. 559 00:31:25,400 --> 00:31:29,519 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's crazy. Yeah, Rob, I appreciate the time. A 560 00:31:30,119 --> 00:31:32,559 reminder that early voting is underway. Rob Yates is the 561 00:31:32,559 --> 00:31:36,480 Libertarian candidate for mayor. His website prosper Charlotte dot com. 562 00:31:36,519 --> 00:31:39,279 Good luck on the campaign trail, Rob, and thanks for 563 00:31:39,319 --> 00:31:40,200 your time. I appreciate it. 564 00:31:40,240 --> 00:31:41,799 Speaker 2: Thank you so much, but it always a pleasure. 565 00:31:41,839 --> 00:31:44,680 Speaker 1: Yes, sir, take care. That's Rob Yate. Here's a great idea. 566 00:31:44,839 --> 00:31:47,559 How about making an escape to a really special and 567 00:31:47,640 --> 00:31:50,799 secluded getaway in western North Carolina. 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Cabins of Ashville 583 00:32:42,000 --> 00:32:45,240 has the ideal spot for you for any occasion, and 584 00:32:45,440 --> 00:32:48,640 they have pet friendly accommodations. Call or text eight two 585 00:32:48,759 --> 00:32:52,160 eight three six seven seventy sixty eight or check out 586 00:32:52,200 --> 00:32:54,960 all there is to offer at Cabins Offashville dot com 587 00:32:55,000 --> 00:32:58,640 and make memories that'll last a lifetime on the text line. 588 00:32:58,680 --> 00:33:02,519 Alan says Rob is far and away the best choice 589 00:33:02,559 --> 00:33:06,880 for mayor. Second is the Republican, and very distant third 590 00:33:07,119 --> 00:33:15,519 is the current mayor. Violis Yeah, and look. I asked 591 00:33:16,720 --> 00:33:21,319 Terry Donovan, the Republican, yesterday, about this. I am fully aware, 592 00:33:21,400 --> 00:33:24,440 and Rob is fully aware. He's a Libertarian. He has 593 00:33:24,559 --> 00:33:28,920 run for office before. He knows the demographics, you know, 594 00:33:28,960 --> 00:33:35,359 the voter registration challenges. Shall we say that a libertarian 595 00:33:35,440 --> 00:33:39,599 has in basically every race, but also the Republicans have 596 00:33:39,880 --> 00:33:44,079 in any race really in Charlotte, particularly an at large 597 00:33:44,160 --> 00:33:47,400 race as the mayor's race is, So we shall see. 598 00:33:47,400 --> 00:33:50,559 But you know a third of the voters are unaffiliated, 599 00:33:51,119 --> 00:33:55,279 so there's no party loyalty required there. I'm not in 600 00:33:55,359 --> 00:33:57,039 city limits, so I can't even vote for any of 601 00:33:57,079 --> 00:34:03,200 these mayoral candidates. So good luck to all Right, that'll 602 00:34:03,200 --> 00:34:05,839 do it for this episode. Thank you so much for listening. 603 00:34:05,960 --> 00:34:08,119 I could not do the show without your support and 604 00:34:08,159 --> 00:34:10,840 the support of the businesses that advertise on the podcast, 605 00:34:11,239 --> 00:34:13,280 so if you'd like, please support them too and tell 606 00:34:13,320 --> 00:34:15,039 them you heard it here. You can also become a 607 00:34:15,079 --> 00:34:19,719 patron at my patreon page or go to dpetecleanershow dot com. Again, 608 00:34:20,000 --> 00:34:22,519 thank you so much for listening, and don't break anything 609 00:34:22,559 --> 00:34:27,559 while I'm gone.