CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As Charlotte leaders continue to seek solutions to the growing violence in the Queen City, one idea that's been proven to help could be running out of money.
The Alternatives to Violence program started in 2021 as a way to intervene before a trigger is pulled. But emails from the city obtained by WCNC Charlotte show money for that funding isn't guaranteed.
We're seeing the deadliest start to a year in Charlotte in more than a decade. Now, community activists and neighbors are concerned about what will happen if the successful ATV program is put on hiatus.
"How are we going to get the outcomes that we want?" Action NC leader Robert Dawkins said.
Action NC is a nonprofit aimed at addressing the root cause of poverty, underdevelopment and inequality. For Dawkins, part of the solutions means addressing city leaders head-on. In an email to the city, Dawkins asked Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police about the city's commitments with respect to continuing to fund and fully staff the Alternatives to Violence work in the Beatties Ford community.
The response came from City Manager Marcus Jones instead. In an email, Jones said two other sites under ATV would be funded for the next year and, "The city and county were still in conversations to understand what continuing the Beatties Ford site entails."
That's as time is winding down to find a solution. The money funding what is arguably one of Charlotte's most violent areas is expected to run out this summer. With no revealed plan or numbers, WCNC Charlotte took the same question to City Councilmember Tiawana Brown.
"It's very important to me, but I have 10 other colleagues that have to look at it as well," Brown said.
Right now, City Council is working on the next budget. Charlotte leaders already identified addressing crime, especially among youth, as a top priority in their annual strategy meeting in January. Even further back last spring, an analysis on Alternatives to Violence proved the program is a promising solution.
A UNC Charlotte study researching the impact of ATV shows murders involving guns went down after the first year of the program. The report added that ATV work resulted in over 40 violence interruptions.
Now it's up to the same leaders identifying crime as one of Charlotte's top issues to reflect that stance with the city's money. Brown says it's a team effort from the community and government.
"It's simple. It's collaboration," she said. "I know the parents that are involved, their kids are not in this number. Our youth don't want to get in trouble for the most part. We have to find something for them to do."
Finding something to do, like after-school programs to curb crime, is just part of the issue. The bottom line is the city has yet to reveal a plan to continue the already existing ATV program that's been proven to work.
Contact Kia Murray at kmurray@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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