- POPULATION GROWTH - Wake County’s population is due to double to 1.5 million by 2030. Wake County ranks 7th in the nation in growth.
- OPEN SPACE - 35 acres of natural land are developed every day in Wake County.
- EDUCATION - WCPSS student enrollment is due to more than double to 282,000 by 2030.
- WATER NEEDS - The Neuse River Basin is one of the fastest growing river basins in the country, meaning significantly more demand for drinking water from Falls Lake and the Neuse River.
- WATER QUALITY - Increased discharges from sewage treatment plants and storm-water pollution carried into the river and local drinking water supplies will result in the addition of Jordan Lake and parts of Falls Lake to the state’s list of impaired waters in the next few years.
- AIR QUALITY – Wake County consistently ranks among the top North Carolina counties in the number of unhealthy air quality days per year. Nationally, in 2005 the Triangle was in the 20 top metropolitan areas experiencing the most days of unhealthy air (Air Quality Index ratings above 100).
- TRAFFIC - Demand upon the region’s road system (vehicle miles traveled) will rise by 300% over the next 25 years, while all of the planned road improvements will add only about 50% to road capacity.
- COMMUTES - The Triangle region had the nation’s second largest increase in commute times, according to the 2000 census.
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- Our property taxes alone can’t support this much growth. The 2006 Blue Ribbon Committee on the Future of Wake County concluded that the county faces a shortfall of over $18 billion by 2030 to pay for the infrastructure needs of schools, open space, roads, water and sewer, community college and jails in Wake County.
- Taxpayers are footing the bill for sprawl. Impact fees don’t come close to covering the costs of growth, including new roads, schools, parks and the cost of new water plant and sewer plant capacity. Instead, these costs are subsidized with taxpayer dollars that would otherwise be spent improving existing neighborhood property values and services.
- Our economic competitiveness suffers when our schools become overcrowded, our roads become congested, and our air and water quality are threatened. Our ability to attract the best companies and their jobs depends on maintaining a high quality of life.
- The homebuilding industry has profited handsomely from growth in Wake County, but as the cost of living and of building continues to rise, taxpayers can no longer afford to subsidize sprawl at the expense of our property values, our quality of life, and the long term health and competitiveness of our community. Growth must pay its fair share.
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