September 3, 2025 • 31 mins
Tune in here to this Wednesday's edition of Breaking With Brett Jensen!
Breaking Brett Jensen kicks the show off by talking about Charlotte’s growing concerns over public safety and the urgent issues surrounding the city’s transit system. Joined in studio by Charlotte City Council member Edwin Peacock III, Brett dives into Tuesday night’s high-stakes meeting on CATS safety following a recent deadly incident on the light rail. Councilmember Peacock shares insights from the meeting, which brought together top officials like CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings and District Attorney Spencer Merriweather. He highlights key takeaways, including a need for increased security visibility, better staffing, and more aggressive enforcement of fare policies. Peacock also expresses cautious optimism about new safety leadership within CATS and calls for transparency and data collection to guide future policy. The conversation shifts to broader questions about accountability, the so-called “honor system” on public transit, and how the city can rebuild public trust. It’s an eye-opening look into a system at a crossroads.
Later, Jensen shifts the conversation to the controversial one-cent transit tax that will appear on the November ballot. Still joined by Charlotte City Council member Edwin Peacock III, in studio the discussion explores whether the estimated $30 billion in projected revenue over 30 years could be used to improve transit safety. Peacock affirms that while the plan doesn’t explicitly spell out safety upgrades, there is flexibility in how the funds could be allocated—especially for new technology, fare enforcement, and system modernization.
Listen here for all of this and more on Breaking With Brett Jensen.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
Hi, Oh, Let's go oh, Let's go oh, Let's go oh,
Let's go.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
News Talk eleven ten and ninety nine three WBT Brett
Jensen here with you on this special edition of Breaking
with Brett Jensen on this Wednesday night, as we go
up until seven o'clock tonight. As always, telephone number seven
oh four five seven eleven ten. That's also the WBT
text line driven by Liberty Buick gmc guys. Follow me
on exit Brett Underscore Jensen for all the latest and
(00:53):
breaking news in and around the Charlotte area. As I
broke last night the news of who the Fraternal Order
of Police in Charlotte hasn't on the Democrats side for mayor,
and it was actually the same person that I had
a big, long interview last night. And I still tell
you if you didn't hear last night's interview with Brenda McGinnis,
go back to our WBT web page, go down to
my show and listen to it. It's he had a
(01:13):
lot of very pointy things to say about vylaws. And
again he's in the Democrat primary and he just earned
the FOP endorsement. But instudio with me for the entire
hour tonight is Charlotte City Council Member Edwin Peacock, the
third who is currently filling the vacancy of Tarkmacari because
he went to DC and he was appointed to the seat.
But he's also running for City Council at large and
(01:36):
we'll get into that later on. So Edwind, I appreciate
you coming in tonight. I really do appreciate this, And
because things going on with the city right now, there's
a lot going on. There's a lot going on, and
not just your normal zoning votes and stuff like that,
and a lot of it, I mean, the majority of
its all centers around transit and safety. So there was
(01:57):
the meeting last night, and like Johnny jen came out
from wherever he's been for the last four months and
actually made an appearance and to prove everyone that he's
still around. So he actually shut up and a lot
of other people shut.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
Up last night.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
So how would you describe the meeting last night? And
you know, how would you describe it? And what were
your thoughts about how everything transpired? Was it productive? Was
it not productive? What do you think happened last night?
Speaker 3 (02:27):
Overall?
Speaker 4 (02:28):
I give it much higher expectations than I had for it.
I think CATS did an excellent job and presenting their
facts of what they're doing prior to the incident. On
the twenty second, it was good to see in the room,
Johnny Jennings. You had Spencer Merriweather, district attorney. You had
the county manager, mister Bryant there as well too. You
(02:50):
had an all hands on deck governmental response to what
has happened. That is a positive because it's tough to
sometimes get all these individuals in the room. Now the
question is going to be the follow through. So overall,
I think Katz did a good job last night explaining
things where obviously the limitations on where the investigation are
right now in this murder are there, and now they
(03:12):
are under the microscope.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Brett.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
The one thing that I would tell you last night
that surprised me was we have we had somebody that
we hired earlier this year, Chief Safety and Security Officer,
Eric astnas I hope I have mispronounced his name, but
he's a direct report, obviously to Brett Kagele. I was
impressed with his level of clarity about what needs to
(03:35):
be done, and it's primarily because he came from the
New York metro system, and obviously when you're in a
big metro system, you kind of get really serious problems.
So he's been here before, and I felt good about
his level of understanding now where he is in the process.
He's only about five or six months in on the job,
so let's see what he does from here.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
So okay, So did they come up with any solutions
or any mandations or about safety and you know, the
honor system where people can ride the rails like hobos
for free up and down the light.
Speaker 3 (04:08):
Like you did the other night.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Like you put out a really nice video the other
night where you went from one end of the light
rail all the way to the other end of the
light rail Friday night, wrote it for an hour and
a half and you said no one wants to checked
you for your ticket, and that security had handcuffs and pepper.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
Spray or what or you know. And I'm just like, Okay,
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (04:26):
What pepper spray exactly does with someone who has a
gun on board or a knife like what happened the
other night.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
Maybe it'll work, you know, maybe it won't.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
But I'm just I'm just wondering what solutions, if any
were offered last night that you were satisfied with.
Speaker 4 (04:43):
I think what I'm satisfied with is that obviously they
know that a response from a visibility standpoint needs to
increase substantially. Their staffing problems are going to be under
a microscope and they're going to have to respond by
putting more people on the trains. We have three types
of security officials, unarmed, the partially armed, and the fully armed.
And obviously just seeing somebody with the cat's vest on
(05:08):
a logo on someone that's even just doing simple checking
is I think what everybody wants to see.
Speaker 3 (05:13):
Now.
Speaker 4 (05:13):
Ideally we'd love to see Charlotte Mecklenberg Police Department on
every single one of those forty eight trains, but that's
probably not going to happen. My experience over why is that?
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Well because people will say, why aren't people on the
trains if we're not checking for tickets?
Speaker 3 (05:29):
Yep? Why are we do? Why do we not have
security on the trains?
Speaker 4 (05:33):
You bring up a point that was brought up last
night by several council members. Had a conversation of all
things with one of our CMPD officers in the room
who actually worked also in the new York Metro system.
That was what he did for his first six years,
I think the first six years of his career. Yeah,
we need to obviously have beat officers that are working
that beat because in many regards what we hope we're
(05:53):
going to find out. The one thing I heard last
night was at number one, they're getting together information that
I've requested, which is I want to go back least
thirty six months to find out all the incidents of
crime that we've had on the light rail or on buses,
and are the individuals that are repeatedly doing these types
of activities? Are these are central problems? Are these the
(06:13):
problems in criminal activity? And many studies have shown obviously
at these low level offenders many cases are actually offenders
at other different levels as well too. So I look
forward to finding out what the data is going to
be from CATS and CMPD. I take them for their
word that they're going to get back.
Speaker 3 (06:29):
To us with them.
Speaker 4 (06:30):
So that's the biggest takeaway for me, is they're going
to get us that information so that we can make
a policy decision on how.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
To staff it well, and you know, and just in
the next ninety seconds or so, and we can carry
this on over to the next segment.
Speaker 3 (06:42):
That's why I wanted you in here for the full hour.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
The chicking or excuse me, the ticket checking policies.
Speaker 3 (06:51):
You know.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
I spoke to Governor McQuary and he's and I asked
him about the honor system and he responded it was
never an honor system them. We were to have ticket
checks with penalties. The capital cost and land logistics of
fencing and gates was very costly and impractical for the
outside corridor with limited space to work with. Okay, So
(07:14):
if you're not and I heard you know, and I
heard them say last night, well, other light rails across
the country they don't have turn styles and gates and
everything else like that as well. So would it be
possible like they do in Europe to have someone making
sure that before they actually get on the light rail,
someone actually checking tickets, Like you might have security one
(07:34):
per light rail, but you actually have people checking tickets,
you know, per car.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
Is that even a possibility?
Speaker 4 (07:40):
It absolutely is. That should be the standard. The standard
should be safety is number one on both the bus
and the light rail. Obviously, we've gotten the wake up
call that nobody wanted, but one of the other things
too that we pointed out is we've had a rise
in these types of serious instences prior to this. So
this is occurring, it's live, and it's happening on our
(08:00):
train and our bus systems, and so the question is
not what has happened, is now, what are we going
to do? I think, more than anything what I heard
from Brent Kagel as they're taking this as serious as
I've ever seen him. He's also come into an organization
as you know that he is in a transition from
a leadership standpoint, and he's carrying a hot potato right now,
(08:21):
and he knows what he has to do in order
to get the confidence back in the public's eye.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:25):
I just thought it was you know, when Dimple ashmro
was out there being the voice of reason last night saying, hey,
if you check tickets, this young girl might actually still
be alive if you have some of their checking tickets,
and then I think the response was we will never
be checking all the tickets, and I thought that was alarming.
To be brutally honest with you.
Speaker 4 (08:44):
Yes, the goal should be one hundred percent. This should
not just be a system that's based off of the
trust and let's just hope that people pay. My point,
along with council member as Miro was, is that if
you don't pay, you shouldn't be riding. Now, we heard
a little something different last night that I wasn't aware of.
And this is where you've got the sensitivity factor on
(09:04):
the transit individuals who are there. Do you confront somebody
because they do not pay, because they cannot pay, or
how do you deal with that? You turn it into
an elevated situation. Their training, as they've reported it to us,
is that their bus drivers are to allow that person
to get on the bus if they just simply insist. Now, again,
do we want to see an altercation? Do we want
(09:26):
to see violence start as a result of a driver
trying to stop something? The answer is no, obviously, But
if you're seeing that repeatedly, and we have the technology,
we have the cameras that are available, and we now
know the data of who are the individuals that keep
repeatedly being our fair evaders. These are the individuals that
obviously deserve to be arrested and removed from the system.
(09:46):
And that is the data that we hope to see
and I hope my other board members will back me
as well as I know if the others will, and
making sure that we fill the gap.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
When we return, we'll continue our conversation with council member
Edwin Peacock, who is currently representing District six and who
is running for the City council at large seat come November.
(10:22):
Welcome back to breaking with Brett Jensen on this Wednesday night.
Edwin Peacock, the third is in studio with me as
we go up until seven o'clock. He's the Charlotte City
council member currently in District six who is running.
Speaker 3 (10:32):
For the at large bid.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
So we talked a little bit about what happened last
night at the meetings and everything today.
Speaker 3 (10:42):
Well, were you there today? I haven't even spoken to you.
Speaker 4 (10:45):
No, we didn't get home until almost ten thirty last night.
Our meeting prior to talking about cats, had more to
do about the Memorandum Understanding, which is essentially the agreement
that all six of the towns in the City of
Charlotte have engaged in. If the transit referendum is on
which it is on the ballot on November fourth, if
it passes, what type of news structure will we have
(11:07):
to govern this new entity that will help establish regional priorities.
That probably took up a good hour and fifteen minutes.
The room was full on that topic and there was
even a break. Council member Ashmir's birthday was last night.
We had a little impromptu cake ceremony for her. That
was interesting. It was a nice pattern interrupt before a
(11:27):
very serious situation. We saw a council that, unlike the
previous Monday Night, all everyone was acknowledging obviously what had
happened on Friday, August twenty second to a refugee from
Ukraine brutally murdered by an individual who's been arrested eleven
times starting back as early as two thousand and two
(11:47):
and has been going through the system. Did anybody see
it coming? Apparently not. We're going to find out someday
when we get a chance to look at even maybe
a partially available video.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
Yeah, and the FOP, you know, I had the president
of the shelf Maternal or Police dend you're refort on
last week and he talked about how every city council
members should be forced to watch it. Like you don't
have a room you all sit in there on one
of your scheduled meetings.
Speaker 3 (12:15):
You sit there in the back.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
Because I'm not positive they're going to release it to
the public, and if they do, they're going to probably
blur a lot of things out.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
Ye because apparently it was very gruesome. But he said every.
Speaker 2 (12:24):
City council member should be forced to watch this to
see what's happening.
Speaker 4 (12:28):
I think what every city council member needs to do
is I think they need to ride the light rail.
I think they need to see what I commented on
last night, which is our light rail system is essentially
the living room to the city of Charlotte. You have
everyone on that train, and that is a positive. But
at the same time, and I didn't reference this last night,
but in the basement, if you will, of this house,
you have a lot of individuals who should not be
(12:50):
riding on this train because either they are potentially harmed
of themselves and most certainly just by their body language,
could be a harmed to you. Now, I rode on
one train. I rode eighteen stops from newbern all the
way to UNCC. The train then has the individual get
out and go to the next end of the train
(13:12):
and take you back. It took about an hour and
fifteen minutes. I saw anything and everything, But I tell
you what I did see about fourteen to fifteen individuals
who I know A didn't pay the fare and B
this was simply that they did not have a home.
Let's just say they were traveling, several of them were partying,
and you had a criminal element that everybody seemed to tolerate.
(13:34):
And you can only imagine on a Friday night at
ten thirty what might happen and what happened did happen.
And that's really what I think as a board member,
I'm most concerned about that. I brought up with Brent
Cagle last night as well too. Certainly, as I mentioned
to you, I'm impressed that we have an individual that
came from New York City and knows really serious threats
(13:54):
that can be either a national security threat or possibly
an international security threat if you think about it from
a true public safety standpoint, if you had a mass
attack on a train and you had simply no deterrence
and you had a completely open system, Brett, my question
to you, as well as to the listeners, is how
quickly do you think that we would close the system
and make sure that everybody who's going in has to
(14:17):
pay their way to get through. I think immediately we
would obviously change everything if we knew there was something
terrible to happen. I'm never going to wish that, and
I don't want to see that happen. But if you
travel in major metropolitan transit systems Atlanta, New York, Boston,
you have to pay to get through, to get through
(14:39):
the turnstile, they know exactly where you're there, and you
do see a police force in all of those cities.
I don't see why we're any different.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
Speaking with Brent Kegle, sorry, speaking with PIGOCT the third,
Let's call Brett.
Speaker 3 (14:52):
I'd love to call some Brett.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
I would loved to speak a PIGOC the third Charlotte
City Council Member District six, who is running at large
and you'll be able to vote for him in November. Okay,
when we come back, I do want to talk to
you about the transit tax that is up for ballot.
Speaker 3 (15:10):
Along with you in November.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
That will be on the ballot, and I want to
talk to you about that, and because i'd like to
know whether or not that some of that thirty billion
dollars over.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
Thirty years or whatever it's going to be some of.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
That could actually be used for safety, even though it
may not be on the books right now. So we'll
talk about that when we return. Welcome back to Breaking
with bred Jensen Wednesday night, going up until seven o'clock,
(15:46):
so we got about.
Speaker 3 (15:47):
Twenty three more minutes to go.
Speaker 2 (15:49):
Edwin Peacock, the third Childow City council member who represents
District six, is in studio with me for the full
hour tonight and he's currently running for city council at large.
So before we get into that, I want to get
to to the one cent transit tax that is going
to be on the ballot in November. And I think
what estimates itsel is like thirty billion dollars is what
they hope to gain off of this over the next
(16:09):
thirty years, or essentially a billion dollars a year. I
could be wrong on those numbers, but I think thirty
billion is what I've heard. Part they're saying, well, nowhere
in the plan that they put together, did any of
the money talk about safety for the transit?
Speaker 3 (16:25):
Is that accurate?
Speaker 2 (16:26):
And can there actually be money from this transit tax
to make transit safe in higher security or ticket checkers
or whatever.
Speaker 4 (16:37):
I don't know explicitly if it says that, I just
know if you're buying new equipment and you're setting up
things like I'm arguing, which is, I don't believe that
we can sustain an open architecture system like we are.
The more we grow, I think you're gonna have to
obviously use that money to obviously address things that I'm
bringing up, which is, can we find a way to
(16:59):
put plexiglass to be able to know who's coming into
the box, who's going to pay their ticket, who's gonna
get on? Can we use technology to do that? I'd
be wonderful if we had something that would be the
equivalent like we have on the Monroe Bypass for a
toll road. If you've got a cell phone in your
pocket and it knows that Brett Jensen has walked on
the train, Brett, you didn't pay your fee, fine, we're
gonna We're just gonna.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
Go ahead and pull it from your credit card.
Speaker 4 (17:20):
Does that technology exist? I'm sure someone is thinking of
it as we speak, but it's not in our hands
right now. So again, will the transit tax allow for
us to be able to go after a product that
will help us be safe.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (17:33):
Well, it's good to know because some people were concerned
about that would only be used for, you know, potholes
in the new light rail system, you know, the red
lines or whatever and all that.
Speaker 4 (17:40):
But but well, ask yourself, why why do you think
that five of the six towns are in favor of this?
I mean they're the ones that have always been looking
at Charlotte saying, hey, you guys are the ones moving
the chips around here, and we're really responding to you.
Why do why did they come on board? I mean
I think that's you've been covering Cornelia's, Davidson, Huntersville, Pinevale,
(18:01):
mint Hill, Matthews. These are the towns that are obviously
the ones that are responding to the growth that Charlotte creates,
the many things that we do in the center city
echo well beyond just this, but very much in your
listening audience as well too. I mean, I'm reminded when
I'm in Morsville, where do you all fly out of?
They say, we fly to Charlotte. I mean, they are
responding to our growth, and so we're trying to address
(18:24):
things regionally, and again, from a transit standpoint, I want
control over the monies that we are going to receive
from this. I would much rather work off of the
system that allow a regional body here in Charlotte in
the metro area to determine how we want to prioritize
those dollars versus this hope and praise system that we've
(18:45):
been under with NCDOT for more than a century. And
we're simply underfunded in many areas. And you know it's
not just roads.
Speaker 2 (18:52):
Yeah, and you know the whole thing is be proactive,
not reactive, you know.
Speaker 4 (18:57):
And that's look, we've been creeping up to this. I mean,
listeners need to recognize that this began really in nineteen
ninety eight. Up to nineteen ninety nine. We used the
first half cent to prove that we could build out
the bus system that was more than eighty percent of
the dollars that were used to expand and use that
half cent wisely because people still then and now travel
(19:17):
mainly via bus. It was two thousand and seven that
we cut the ribbon on the Blue Line from uptown
Charlotte to Pineval, a twenty two minute ride that still
remains to this day. It was controversial then in many regards.
There's controversy to this day on any mass transit project.
But I think what you see is you're seeing more
embrace and understanding that we have to have multiple choices
(19:38):
to be able to move people to and from the
center city of Charlotte, if that's where the major work
center is. But as you know, major cities are also
going to be building out around the perimeter of Charlotte.
You very much see that in Balentine. You see it
in North Charlotte and the UNCC and the expanding areas there,
and most certainly in our towns surrounding us.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Speaking of transit and the taxes and everything else like that,
think what I saw, and please correct me if I'm wrong,
because it wouldn't be the first I've been wrong.
Speaker 3 (20:08):
About dollars in numbers and everything else.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
But the possible expansion of the trolley, which would be
what I think, I think about eight hundred and fifty million,
is what I would think. I was told the full
expansion for something that nobody wanted. They called it Anthony
Fox's folly, and you know, the light, the trolley to nowhere,
the tran you know.
Speaker 3 (20:29):
And what and correct me if I'm wrong.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
They don't charge for that that's completely free, right, and
so a system that nobody uses, very few people use,
and we're going to jump on eight hundred and fifty
million dollars more into a system that nobody uses, that's
for free.
Speaker 3 (20:43):
What's the ROI on that?
Speaker 4 (20:46):
Well, when you bring up the street car, you remember
that we are operating two different rail systems, the light
rail and of course the street car. The street car
did come with federal dollars that were matched with general
obligation dollars from the City of ark. The fundamental problem
when those early actions for the streetcar were taken was
they went outside really the principle and the governance around
(21:09):
what is currently the Metropolitan Transit Commission, which was to
not have Charlotte be deciding where something was built, but
to allow the region and those around our towns to
help make that decision. I've always fundamentally believed, number one,
I don't have a problem fundamentally with the street car.
I had a problem with the fact that it actually
leapfrogged other priorities. And so your point is, does this
(21:32):
remain a priority. And I think what we're going to
find out in this new body, which is a twenty
seven member body nine members that the City Council can
appoint to that We're not the only voice in the room,
So I think others will recognize that traveling at the
pace of other cars destroying streets in a very expensive
(21:54):
project that took almost ten years on the Hawthorne Bridge
which crosses over Independence Boulevard. For those listening, this is
just an enormously taxing experience to put down the rails.
And what I've really was fearful of was in many regards,
it just became technology that is just not as efficient
as using obviously uber or lyft. Is it less expensive, yes,
(22:18):
because free is better than paying for it. But I
think people's time is is what you're going to see
transit options be around is ease and efficiency and obviously
safety and.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
So and that.
Speaker 4 (22:31):
And therein brings the next point up, which is what
is on the street car? Is it the same as
the light rail? We shall see. I'll pay a visits
in well.
Speaker 2 (22:40):
And not to mention the fact that the jokes were
you could actually walk faster down the sidewalks and it
would be on the street car.
Speaker 3 (22:47):
Those were the jokes for the longest time. Yeah, it's
not just a joke.
Speaker 4 (22:50):
I mean, I work out often with my friends in
the F three nation here in Charlotte, and we have
many workouts that occur in and around that light rail,
and we have we run faster than that on that
segment and Elizabeth Avenue there.
Speaker 3 (23:02):
So all right, when we can.
Speaker 2 (23:04):
When we continue, I do want to talk to Move
Move Shift Gears a little bit and talk to Edwin
Peacock the third about his campaign running for Charlotte City
Council at Large. We'll talk about that when we return.
(23:31):
Welcome back to the final segment here breaking with Brett
Jensen as we go up until seven o'clock to night.
Edwind Peacock, the third, Charlotte City Council member for District six,
has been my guest all night in studio, and I
highly recommend that you go to the website WBT dot com,
click on my show page, and the entire interview will
be there probably around eightish or so eight o'clock or
so between eight and eight thirty, the.
Speaker 3 (23:53):
Entire segment, the entire show.
Speaker 2 (23:54):
Okay, So Edwin, I want to talk to you a
couple other things real quick. Okay, So, Charlotte City Council
you're running for at large. And because of that, you know,
you've you've been on Charlotte City Council now enough.
Speaker 3 (24:11):
You've been there long enough, even though.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
It's been like somewhat short short terms, but you've been
there enough that you see things that either you think
need fixing or things that need changing.
Speaker 3 (24:21):
Or so when you.
Speaker 2 (24:23):
See the Charlotte City Council and you see the city
as a whole, because now you are grossly involved in it,
what is what are your thoughts, what are your takeaways
from the Charlotte City Council as well as what's going
on in the city and what needs help.
Speaker 4 (24:36):
I think the biggest thing it needs right now is
it needs balanced leadership. We are in almost a decade
of one party government. I serve with one other Republican
at Driggs. I'm hoping that perhaps after this election we
can get to possibly an eight three. I've served under
Governor McCrory, then Mayor McCrory, then with Anthony Fox. You
(24:59):
make a better to decision. And right now I see
us going in circles. I see us going in circles,
and we keep circling around the same problems that consistently
keep coming up, which We've talked a lot about crime,
and in fact, that is the topic that I would
say if I were to center anything on my campaign,
it would be around looking at a comprehensive crime evaluation
(25:20):
in this community that we can all get around. We've
done that with the Leading on Opportunity Council that responded
to the fact that Charlotte became fiftieth out of fiftieth
and major US cities and we're at the bottom and
economic mobility. Our community rallied around that, put an enormous
amount of effort into it, put money behind it, housed
(25:40):
it within the Foundation for the Carolinas, and we've got
to follow through team trying to address and addressing what
I call breaking up generational poverty. Could we do the
same thing with a comprehensive crime plan that's looking at
mental health, that's looking at our county, that's looking at cats,
that's looking at obviously, new leadership at CMPD, and how
will that new leadership set a standard that we as
(26:02):
a council can monitor and not just worry about arrest,
but actually bring down real elements of crime, elements of
crime that are the most visible. As I said, we're
obviously on our cats in our transit system. I think
those are things that we can definitely accomplish, especially as
we break into the new year. If I'm fortunate enough
to be given to given the opportunity to serve for
(26:22):
two years, this is a blessing to be appointed to
the city council.
Speaker 3 (26:27):
I haven't been elected.
Speaker 4 (26:28):
I was elected eighteen years ago to this very position,
and I'm hoping to do it again.
Speaker 2 (26:33):
Well, you are the last Republican to win in a
large seat on the Chlott's City Council. Real quick, because
you just brought up CMPD in the new police chief,
Mark A had a question and I can answer this
one real quick. Is CMPD still a few hundred officers short?
Technically no, but yes, because they lowered the allocated position
and they go back where they're supposed to be, then yes,
(26:56):
they will be still a few.
Speaker 3 (26:57):
Hundred officers short. Absolutely, So I just wanted to offer.
Speaker 4 (26:59):
That direct hiring officers is delayed reward, delayed punishment. Right
now we are experiencing, i think four and five years
from the lowest point ever in being a cop in
the United States. We have to get back to being
pro police, backing the blue encouraging this as an honorable
(27:21):
profession and supporting it wholeheartedly. That's number one. You have
to give dignity to what these individuals do. Bret I
mentioned to you earlier. Should council members ride the light rail?
They absolutely should. If you want to get firsthand experience,
go do it. Be out there. The other thing that
I've encouraged council members to do, and I was a
(27:41):
part of it, and I got encouraged. I was made
to do it as a part of a program called
Leadership Charlotte is I did a police ride along.
Speaker 3 (27:47):
I didn't do one.
Speaker 4 (27:48):
I ended up doing five, and I ended up doing
one as well as Charlotte Fire Department. Eighty percent of
our budget is police and fire. If you want to
understand what's going on in neighborhoods, I invite any rep
on the city Council or even the County Commission. If
you want to get close to understanding what's really going on,
go ride on a Friday or a Saturday night with
a police officer. Just spend five hours. Just spend five hours.
(28:09):
And even the most benign calls, calls for services you
think don't mean anything. You see the significance of what
our police do every day. It is unbelievable to me
the amount of situations that they've de escalated that we
will never hear about. But they are extremely professional, and
I'm very proud of CMPD. We cannot arrest our way
(28:32):
out of our crime problem, but what we can do
is set a very high standard of what we expect
from our officers from the top down.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
Edwit Peacock the third is my guest here tonight.
Speaker 2 (28:44):
We got about two minutes ninety seconds to two minutes here,
and I do this with everyone. It doesn't matter if
it's the person running for the lowest city council at
the smallest city in America, or if it's a senator
or a US Congressman. Is there anything that I didn't
ask you about, or anything that you want to say
to the listeners and to the audience that are listening
(29:05):
to this live or will be listening to this later
on in the podcast.
Speaker 3 (29:08):
The floor's yours.
Speaker 4 (29:09):
Yeah, let's just finish off with what we started off,
which was around this cat's incident. One of the things
I recommended last night partly tongue in cheek, but I
also brought up something that I think got some responses.
I got several texts about it. We all go to
the airport and we hear the voice of y Lyles
welcoming us to the city of Charlotte. One of the
things I asked for last night was could we have
(29:31):
an announcement on our cat's system announcing Brett you must pay,
and if you don't pay, we're going to ask you
to get off. If you don't pay and you don't
get off, there's a fine or you're going to be arrested.
We're just not using things that I think are right
in front of us, and that is one of them.
We can change that PA system on those trains to
(29:53):
send a message of safety to let citizens know, hey,
there is someone watching either camera or obviously, hopefully we're
going to be able to staff it more. That was
my second idea. And we have something called the Bus
Ambassador program. These are individuals that volunt that are paid,
that are on the bus to help make it easier.
I think we could see I'm sure if we asked,
(30:16):
could we could we help a rider incentivize them to
be a volunteer, again, unarmed, but an official. That would
obviously help individuals who are coming on and off the
light rail, and also help us in fair enforcement, help
us with identifying individuals that should or should not be
on the train, someone whose sole job is to obviously
facilitate safety and help bring our PSS or a CMPD
(30:39):
officers to the scene. Again, it's just an idea, but
obviously this is the time in which we need to
introduce those ideas well.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
Edwin Peacock. The third, I really do appreciate.
Speaker 2 (30:48):
You coming in here tonight and again represents the District
six and is running for Charlotte City Council at Large
and that will be.
Speaker 3 (30:55):
On the ballot in November.
Speaker 2 (30:57):
Seriously, thank you to taking the time because I thank
you in a couple busy weeks for you, So again,
thank you, Thank you.
Speaker 3 (31:02):
Everyone. Coming up next is TJ. Ritchie.
Speaker 2 (31:04):
We're gonna be doing this all over again tomorrow. So
until then, my name is Brett Jensen, and you have
been listening to Breaking with Brett jenson
Hi, Oh, Let's go oh, Let's go oh, Let's go oh,
Let's go.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
News Talk eleven ten and ninety nine three WBT Brett
Jensen here with you on this special edition of Breaking
with Brett Jensen on this Wednesday night, as we go
up until seven o'clock tonight. As always, telephone number seven
oh four five seven eleven ten. That's also the WBT
text line driven by Liberty Buick gmc guys. Follow me
on exit Brett Underscore Jensen for all the latest and
(00:53):
breaking news in and around the Charlotte area. As I
broke last night the news of who the Fraternal Order
of Police in Charlotte hasn't on the Democrats side for mayor,
and it was actually the same person that I had
a big, long interview last night. And I still tell
you if you didn't hear last night's interview with Brenda McGinnis,
go back to our WBT web page, go down to
my show and listen to it. It's he had a
(01:13):
lot of very pointy things to say about vylaws. And
again he's in the Democrat primary and he just earned
the FOP endorsement. But instudio with me for the entire
hour tonight is Charlotte City Council Member Edwin Peacock, the
third who is currently filling the vacancy of Tarkmacari because
he went to DC and he was appointed to the seat.
But he's also running for City Council at large and
(01:36):
we'll get into that later on. So Edwind, I appreciate
you coming in tonight. I really do appreciate this, And
because things going on with the city right now, there's
a lot going on. There's a lot going on, and
not just your normal zoning votes and stuff like that,
and a lot of it, I mean, the majority of
its all centers around transit and safety. So there was
(01:57):
the meeting last night, and like Johnny jen came out
from wherever he's been for the last four months and
actually made an appearance and to prove everyone that he's
still around. So he actually shut up and a lot
of other people shut.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
Up last night.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
So how would you describe the meeting last night? And
you know, how would you describe it? And what were
your thoughts about how everything transpired? Was it productive? Was
it not productive? What do you think happened last night?
Speaker 3 (02:27):
Overall?
Speaker 4 (02:28):
I give it much higher expectations than I had for it.
I think CATS did an excellent job and presenting their
facts of what they're doing prior to the incident. On
the twenty second, it was good to see in the room,
Johnny Jennings. You had Spencer Merriweather, district attorney. You had
the county manager, mister Bryant there as well too. You
(02:50):
had an all hands on deck governmental response to what
has happened. That is a positive because it's tough to
sometimes get all these individuals in the room. Now the
question is going to be the follow through. So overall,
I think Katz did a good job last night explaining
things where obviously the limitations on where the investigation are
right now in this murder are there, and now they
(03:12):
are under the microscope.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Brett.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
The one thing that I would tell you last night
that surprised me was we have we had somebody that
we hired earlier this year, Chief Safety and Security Officer,
Eric astnas I hope I have mispronounced his name, but
he's a direct report, obviously to Brett Kagele. I was
impressed with his level of clarity about what needs to
(03:35):
be done, and it's primarily because he came from the
New York metro system, and obviously when you're in a
big metro system, you kind of get really serious problems.
So he's been here before, and I felt good about
his level of understanding now where he is in the process.
He's only about five or six months in on the job,
so let's see what he does from here.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
So okay, So did they come up with any solutions
or any mandations or about safety and you know, the
honor system where people can ride the rails like hobos
for free up and down the light.
Speaker 3 (04:08):
Like you did the other night.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Like you put out a really nice video the other
night where you went from one end of the light
rail all the way to the other end of the
light rail Friday night, wrote it for an hour and
a half and you said no one wants to checked
you for your ticket, and that security had handcuffs and pepper.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
Spray or what or you know. And I'm just like, Okay,
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (04:26):
What pepper spray exactly does with someone who has a
gun on board or a knife like what happened the
other night.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
Maybe it'll work, you know, maybe it won't.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
But I'm just I'm just wondering what solutions, if any
were offered last night that you were satisfied with.
Speaker 4 (04:43):
I think what I'm satisfied with is that obviously they
know that a response from a visibility standpoint needs to
increase substantially. Their staffing problems are going to be under
a microscope and they're going to have to respond by
putting more people on the trains. We have three types
of security officials, unarmed, the partially armed, and the fully armed.
And obviously just seeing somebody with the cat's vest on
(05:08):
a logo on someone that's even just doing simple checking
is I think what everybody wants to see.
Speaker 3 (05:13):
Now.
Speaker 4 (05:13):
Ideally we'd love to see Charlotte Mecklenberg Police Department on
every single one of those forty eight trains, but that's
probably not going to happen. My experience over why is that?
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Well because people will say, why aren't people on the
trains if we're not checking for tickets?
Speaker 3 (05:29):
Yep? Why are we do? Why do we not have
security on the trains?
Speaker 4 (05:33):
You bring up a point that was brought up last
night by several council members. Had a conversation of all
things with one of our CMPD officers in the room
who actually worked also in the new York Metro system.
That was what he did for his first six years,
I think the first six years of his career. Yeah,
we need to obviously have beat officers that are working
that beat because in many regards what we hope we're
(05:53):
going to find out. The one thing I heard last
night was at number one, they're getting together information that
I've requested, which is I want to go back least
thirty six months to find out all the incidents of
crime that we've had on the light rail or on buses,
and are the individuals that are repeatedly doing these types
of activities? Are these are central problems? Are these the
(06:13):
problems in criminal activity? And many studies have shown obviously
at these low level offenders many cases are actually offenders
at other different levels as well too. So I look
forward to finding out what the data is going to
be from CATS and CMPD. I take them for their
word that they're going to get back.
Speaker 3 (06:29):
To us with them.
Speaker 4 (06:30):
So that's the biggest takeaway for me, is they're going
to get us that information so that we can make
a policy decision on how.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
To staff it well, and you know, and just in
the next ninety seconds or so, and we can carry
this on over to the next segment.
Speaker 3 (06:42):
That's why I wanted you in here for the full hour.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
The chicking or excuse me, the ticket checking policies.
Speaker 3 (06:51):
You know.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
I spoke to Governor McQuary and he's and I asked
him about the honor system and he responded it was
never an honor system them. We were to have ticket
checks with penalties. The capital cost and land logistics of
fencing and gates was very costly and impractical for the
outside corridor with limited space to work with. Okay, So
(07:14):
if you're not and I heard you know, and I
heard them say last night, well, other light rails across
the country they don't have turn styles and gates and
everything else like that as well. So would it be
possible like they do in Europe to have someone making
sure that before they actually get on the light rail,
someone actually checking tickets, Like you might have security one
(07:34):
per light rail, but you actually have people checking tickets,
you know, per car.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
Is that even a possibility?
Speaker 4 (07:40):
It absolutely is. That should be the standard. The standard
should be safety is number one on both the bus
and the light rail. Obviously, we've gotten the wake up
call that nobody wanted, but one of the other things
too that we pointed out is we've had a rise
in these types of serious instences prior to this. So
this is occurring, it's live, and it's happening on our
(08:00):
train and our bus systems, and so the question is
not what has happened, is now, what are we going
to do? I think, more than anything what I heard
from Brent Kagel as they're taking this as serious as
I've ever seen him. He's also come into an organization
as you know that he is in a transition from
a leadership standpoint, and he's carrying a hot potato right now,
(08:21):
and he knows what he has to do in order
to get the confidence back in the public's eye.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:25):
I just thought it was you know, when Dimple ashmro
was out there being the voice of reason last night saying, hey,
if you check tickets, this young girl might actually still
be alive if you have some of their checking tickets,
and then I think the response was we will never
be checking all the tickets, and I thought that was alarming.
To be brutally honest with you.
Speaker 4 (08:44):
Yes, the goal should be one hundred percent. This should
not just be a system that's based off of the
trust and let's just hope that people pay. My point,
along with council member as Miro was, is that if
you don't pay, you shouldn't be riding. Now, we heard
a little something different last night that I wasn't aware of.
And this is where you've got the sensitivity factor on
(09:04):
the transit individuals who are there. Do you confront somebody
because they do not pay, because they cannot pay, or
how do you deal with that? You turn it into
an elevated situation. Their training, as they've reported it to us,
is that their bus drivers are to allow that person
to get on the bus if they just simply insist. Now, again,
do we want to see an altercation? Do we want
(09:26):
to see violence start as a result of a driver
trying to stop something? The answer is no, obviously, But
if you're seeing that repeatedly, and we have the technology,
we have the cameras that are available, and we now
know the data of who are the individuals that keep
repeatedly being our fair evaders. These are the individuals that
obviously deserve to be arrested and removed from the system.
(09:46):
And that is the data that we hope to see
and I hope my other board members will back me
as well as I know if the others will, and
making sure that we fill the gap.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
When we return, we'll continue our conversation with council member
Edwin Peacock, who is currently representing District six and who
is running for the City council at large seat come November.
(10:22):
Welcome back to breaking with Brett Jensen on this Wednesday night.
Edwin Peacock, the third is in studio with me as
we go up until seven o'clock. He's the Charlotte City
council member currently in District six who is running.
Speaker 3 (10:32):
For the at large bid.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
So we talked a little bit about what happened last
night at the meetings and everything today.
Speaker 3 (10:42):
Well, were you there today? I haven't even spoken to you.
Speaker 4 (10:45):
No, we didn't get home until almost ten thirty last night.
Our meeting prior to talking about cats, had more to
do about the Memorandum Understanding, which is essentially the agreement
that all six of the towns in the City of
Charlotte have engaged in. If the transit referendum is on
which it is on the ballot on November fourth, if
it passes, what type of news structure will we have
(11:07):
to govern this new entity that will help establish regional priorities.
That probably took up a good hour and fifteen minutes.
The room was full on that topic and there was
even a break. Council member Ashmir's birthday was last night.
We had a little impromptu cake ceremony for her. That
was interesting. It was a nice pattern interrupt before a
(11:27):
very serious situation. We saw a council that, unlike the
previous Monday Night, all everyone was acknowledging obviously what had
happened on Friday, August twenty second to a refugee from
Ukraine brutally murdered by an individual who's been arrested eleven
times starting back as early as two thousand and two
(11:47):
and has been going through the system. Did anybody see
it coming? Apparently not. We're going to find out someday
when we get a chance to look at even maybe
a partially available video.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
Yeah, and the FOP, you know, I had the president
of the shelf Maternal or Police dend you're refort on
last week and he talked about how every city council
members should be forced to watch it. Like you don't
have a room you all sit in there on one
of your scheduled meetings.
Speaker 3 (12:15):
You sit there in the back.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
Because I'm not positive they're going to release it to
the public, and if they do, they're going to probably
blur a lot of things out.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
Ye because apparently it was very gruesome. But he said every.
Speaker 2 (12:24):
City council member should be forced to watch this to
see what's happening.
Speaker 4 (12:28):
I think what every city council member needs to do
is I think they need to ride the light rail.
I think they need to see what I commented on
last night, which is our light rail system is essentially
the living room to the city of Charlotte. You have
everyone on that train, and that is a positive. But
at the same time, and I didn't reference this last night,
but in the basement, if you will, of this house,
you have a lot of individuals who should not be
(12:50):
riding on this train because either they are potentially harmed
of themselves and most certainly just by their body language,
could be a harmed to you. Now, I rode on
one train. I rode eighteen stops from newbern all the
way to UNCC. The train then has the individual get
out and go to the next end of the train
(13:12):
and take you back. It took about an hour and
fifteen minutes. I saw anything and everything, But I tell
you what I did see about fourteen to fifteen individuals
who I know A didn't pay the fare and B
this was simply that they did not have a home.
Let's just say they were traveling, several of them were partying,
and you had a criminal element that everybody seemed to tolerate.
(13:34):
And you can only imagine on a Friday night at
ten thirty what might happen and what happened did happen.
And that's really what I think as a board member,
I'm most concerned about that. I brought up with Brent
Cagle last night as well too. Certainly, as I mentioned
to you, I'm impressed that we have an individual that
came from New York City and knows really serious threats
(13:54):
that can be either a national security threat or possibly
an international security threat if you think about it from
a true public safety standpoint, if you had a mass
attack on a train and you had simply no deterrence
and you had a completely open system, Brett, my question
to you, as well as to the listeners, is how
quickly do you think that we would close the system
and make sure that everybody who's going in has to
(14:17):
pay their way to get through. I think immediately we
would obviously change everything if we knew there was something
terrible to happen. I'm never going to wish that, and
I don't want to see that happen. But if you
travel in major metropolitan transit systems Atlanta, New York, Boston,
you have to pay to get through, to get through
(14:39):
the turnstile, they know exactly where you're there, and you
do see a police force in all of those cities.
I don't see why we're any different.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
Speaking with Brent Kegle, sorry, speaking with PIGOCT the third,
Let's call Brett.
Speaker 3 (14:52):
I'd love to call some Brett.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
I would loved to speak a PIGOC the third Charlotte
City Council Member District six, who is running at large
and you'll be able to vote for him in November. Okay,
when we come back, I do want to talk to
you about the transit tax that is up for ballot.
Speaker 3 (15:10):
Along with you in November.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
That will be on the ballot, and I want to
talk to you about that, and because i'd like to
know whether or not that some of that thirty billion
dollars over.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
Thirty years or whatever it's going to be some of.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
That could actually be used for safety, even though it
may not be on the books right now. So we'll
talk about that when we return. Welcome back to Breaking
with bred Jensen Wednesday night, going up until seven o'clock,
(15:46):
so we got about.
Speaker 3 (15:47):
Twenty three more minutes to go.
Speaker 2 (15:49):
Edwin Peacock, the third Childow City council member who represents
District six, is in studio with me for the full
hour tonight and he's currently running for city council at large.
So before we get into that, I want to get
to to the one cent transit tax that is going
to be on the ballot in November. And I think
what estimates itsel is like thirty billion dollars is what
they hope to gain off of this over the next
(16:09):
thirty years, or essentially a billion dollars a year. I
could be wrong on those numbers, but I think thirty
billion is what I've heard. Part they're saying, well, nowhere
in the plan that they put together, did any of
the money talk about safety for the transit?
Speaker 3 (16:25):
Is that accurate?
Speaker 2 (16:26):
And can there actually be money from this transit tax
to make transit safe in higher security or ticket checkers
or whatever.
Speaker 4 (16:37):
I don't know explicitly if it says that, I just
know if you're buying new equipment and you're setting up
things like I'm arguing, which is, I don't believe that
we can sustain an open architecture system like we are.
The more we grow, I think you're gonna have to
obviously use that money to obviously address things that I'm
bringing up, which is, can we find a way to
(16:59):
put plexiglass to be able to know who's coming into
the box, who's going to pay their ticket, who's gonna
get on? Can we use technology to do that? I'd
be wonderful if we had something that would be the
equivalent like we have on the Monroe Bypass for a
toll road. If you've got a cell phone in your
pocket and it knows that Brett Jensen has walked on
the train, Brett, you didn't pay your fee, fine, we're
gonna We're just gonna.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
Go ahead and pull it from your credit card.
Speaker 4 (17:20):
Does that technology exist? I'm sure someone is thinking of
it as we speak, but it's not in our hands
right now. So again, will the transit tax allow for
us to be able to go after a product that
will help us be safe.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (17:33):
Well, it's good to know because some people were concerned
about that would only be used for, you know, potholes
in the new light rail system, you know, the red
lines or whatever and all that.
Speaker 4 (17:40):
But but well, ask yourself, why why do you think
that five of the six towns are in favor of this?
I mean they're the ones that have always been looking
at Charlotte saying, hey, you guys are the ones moving
the chips around here, and we're really responding to you.
Why do why did they come on board? I mean
I think that's you've been covering Cornelia's, Davidson, Huntersville, Pinevale,
(18:01):
mint Hill, Matthews. These are the towns that are obviously
the ones that are responding to the growth that Charlotte creates,
the many things that we do in the center city
echo well beyond just this, but very much in your
listening audience as well too. I mean, I'm reminded when
I'm in Morsville, where do you all fly out of?
They say, we fly to Charlotte. I mean, they are
responding to our growth, and so we're trying to address
(18:24):
things regionally, and again, from a transit standpoint, I want
control over the monies that we are going to receive
from this. I would much rather work off of the
system that allow a regional body here in Charlotte in
the metro area to determine how we want to prioritize
those dollars versus this hope and praise system that we've
(18:45):
been under with NCDOT for more than a century. And
we're simply underfunded in many areas. And you know it's
not just roads.
Speaker 2 (18:52):
Yeah, and you know the whole thing is be proactive,
not reactive, you know.
Speaker 4 (18:57):
And that's look, we've been creeping up to this. I mean,
listeners need to recognize that this began really in nineteen
ninety eight. Up to nineteen ninety nine. We used the
first half cent to prove that we could build out
the bus system that was more than eighty percent of
the dollars that were used to expand and use that
half cent wisely because people still then and now travel
(19:17):
mainly via bus. It was two thousand and seven that
we cut the ribbon on the Blue Line from uptown
Charlotte to Pineval, a twenty two minute ride that still
remains to this day. It was controversial then in many regards.
There's controversy to this day on any mass transit project.
But I think what you see is you're seeing more
embrace and understanding that we have to have multiple choices
(19:38):
to be able to move people to and from the
center city of Charlotte, if that's where the major work
center is. But as you know, major cities are also
going to be building out around the perimeter of Charlotte.
You very much see that in Balentine. You see it
in North Charlotte and the UNCC and the expanding areas there,
and most certainly in our towns surrounding us.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Speaking of transit and the taxes and everything else like that,
think what I saw, and please correct me if I'm wrong,
because it wouldn't be the first I've been wrong.
Speaker 3 (20:08):
About dollars in numbers and everything else.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
But the possible expansion of the trolley, which would be
what I think, I think about eight hundred and fifty million,
is what I would think. I was told the full
expansion for something that nobody wanted. They called it Anthony
Fox's folly, and you know, the light, the trolley to nowhere,
the tran you know.
Speaker 3 (20:29):
And what and correct me if I'm wrong.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
They don't charge for that that's completely free, right, and
so a system that nobody uses, very few people use,
and we're going to jump on eight hundred and fifty
million dollars more into a system that nobody uses, that's
for free.
Speaker 3 (20:43):
What's the ROI on that?
Speaker 4 (20:46):
Well, when you bring up the street car, you remember
that we are operating two different rail systems, the light
rail and of course the street car. The street car
did come with federal dollars that were matched with general
obligation dollars from the City of ark. The fundamental problem
when those early actions for the streetcar were taken was
they went outside really the principle and the governance around
(21:09):
what is currently the Metropolitan Transit Commission, which was to
not have Charlotte be deciding where something was built, but
to allow the region and those around our towns to
help make that decision. I've always fundamentally believed, number one,
I don't have a problem fundamentally with the street car.
I had a problem with the fact that it actually
leapfrogged other priorities. And so your point is, does this
(21:32):
remain a priority. And I think what we're going to
find out in this new body, which is a twenty
seven member body nine members that the City Council can
appoint to that We're not the only voice in the room,
So I think others will recognize that traveling at the
pace of other cars destroying streets in a very expensive
(21:54):
project that took almost ten years on the Hawthorne Bridge
which crosses over Independence Boulevard. For those listening, this is
just an enormously taxing experience to put down the rails.
And what I've really was fearful of was in many regards,
it just became technology that is just not as efficient
as using obviously uber or lyft. Is it less expensive, yes,
(22:18):
because free is better than paying for it. But I
think people's time is is what you're going to see
transit options be around is ease and efficiency and obviously
safety and.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
So and that.
Speaker 4 (22:31):
And therein brings the next point up, which is what
is on the street car? Is it the same as
the light rail? We shall see. I'll pay a visits
in well.
Speaker 2 (22:40):
And not to mention the fact that the jokes were
you could actually walk faster down the sidewalks and it
would be on the street car.
Speaker 3 (22:47):
Those were the jokes for the longest time. Yeah, it's
not just a joke.
Speaker 4 (22:50):
I mean, I work out often with my friends in
the F three nation here in Charlotte, and we have
many workouts that occur in and around that light rail,
and we have we run faster than that on that
segment and Elizabeth Avenue there.
Speaker 3 (23:02):
So all right, when we can.
Speaker 2 (23:04):
When we continue, I do want to talk to Move
Move Shift Gears a little bit and talk to Edwin
Peacock the third about his campaign running for Charlotte City
Council at Large. We'll talk about that when we return.
(23:31):
Welcome back to the final segment here breaking with Brett
Jensen as we go up until seven o'clock to night.
Edwind Peacock, the third, Charlotte City Council member for District six,
has been my guest all night in studio, and I
highly recommend that you go to the website WBT dot com,
click on my show page, and the entire interview will
be there probably around eightish or so eight o'clock or
so between eight and eight thirty, the.
Speaker 3 (23:53):
Entire segment, the entire show.
Speaker 2 (23:54):
Okay, So Edwin, I want to talk to you a
couple other things real quick. Okay, So, Charlotte City Council
you're running for at large. And because of that, you know,
you've you've been on Charlotte City Council now enough.
Speaker 3 (24:11):
You've been there long enough, even though.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
It's been like somewhat short short terms, but you've been
there enough that you see things that either you think
need fixing or things that need changing.
Speaker 3 (24:21):
Or so when you.
Speaker 2 (24:23):
See the Charlotte City Council and you see the city
as a whole, because now you are grossly involved in it,
what is what are your thoughts, what are your takeaways
from the Charlotte City Council as well as what's going
on in the city and what needs help.
Speaker 4 (24:36):
I think the biggest thing it needs right now is
it needs balanced leadership. We are in almost a decade
of one party government. I serve with one other Republican
at Driggs. I'm hoping that perhaps after this election we
can get to possibly an eight three. I've served under
Governor McCrory, then Mayor McCrory, then with Anthony Fox. You
(24:59):
make a better to decision. And right now I see
us going in circles. I see us going in circles,
and we keep circling around the same problems that consistently
keep coming up, which We've talked a lot about crime,
and in fact, that is the topic that I would
say if I were to center anything on my campaign,
it would be around looking at a comprehensive crime evaluation
(25:20):
in this community that we can all get around. We've
done that with the Leading on Opportunity Council that responded
to the fact that Charlotte became fiftieth out of fiftieth
and major US cities and we're at the bottom and
economic mobility. Our community rallied around that, put an enormous
amount of effort into it, put money behind it, housed
(25:40):
it within the Foundation for the Carolinas, and we've got
to follow through team trying to address and addressing what
I call breaking up generational poverty. Could we do the
same thing with a comprehensive crime plan that's looking at
mental health, that's looking at our county, that's looking at cats,
that's looking at obviously, new leadership at CMPD, and how
will that new leadership set a standard that we as
(26:02):
a council can monitor and not just worry about arrest,
but actually bring down real elements of crime, elements of
crime that are the most visible. As I said, we're
obviously on our cats in our transit system. I think
those are things that we can definitely accomplish, especially as
we break into the new year. If I'm fortunate enough
to be given to given the opportunity to serve for
(26:22):
two years, this is a blessing to be appointed to
the city council.
Speaker 3 (26:27):
I haven't been elected.
Speaker 4 (26:28):
I was elected eighteen years ago to this very position,
and I'm hoping to do it again.
Speaker 2 (26:33):
Well, you are the last Republican to win in a
large seat on the Chlott's City Council. Real quick, because
you just brought up CMPD in the new police chief,
Mark A had a question and I can answer this
one real quick. Is CMPD still a few hundred officers short?
Technically no, but yes, because they lowered the allocated position
and they go back where they're supposed to be, then yes,
(26:56):
they will be still a few.
Speaker 3 (26:57):
Hundred officers short. Absolutely, So I just wanted to offer.
Speaker 4 (26:59):
That direct hiring officers is delayed reward, delayed punishment. Right
now we are experiencing, i think four and five years
from the lowest point ever in being a cop in
the United States. We have to get back to being
pro police, backing the blue encouraging this as an honorable
(27:21):
profession and supporting it wholeheartedly. That's number one. You have
to give dignity to what these individuals do. Bret I
mentioned to you earlier. Should council members ride the light rail?
They absolutely should. If you want to get firsthand experience,
go do it. Be out there. The other thing that
I've encouraged council members to do, and I was a
(27:41):
part of it, and I got encouraged. I was made
to do it as a part of a program called
Leadership Charlotte is I did a police ride along.
Speaker 3 (27:47):
I didn't do one.
Speaker 4 (27:48):
I ended up doing five, and I ended up doing
one as well as Charlotte Fire Department. Eighty percent of
our budget is police and fire. If you want to
understand what's going on in neighborhoods, I invite any rep
on the city Council or even the County Commission. If
you want to get close to understanding what's really going on,
go ride on a Friday or a Saturday night with
a police officer. Just spend five hours. Just spend five hours.
(28:09):
And even the most benign calls, calls for services you
think don't mean anything. You see the significance of what
our police do every day. It is unbelievable to me
the amount of situations that they've de escalated that we
will never hear about. But they are extremely professional, and
I'm very proud of CMPD. We cannot arrest our way
(28:32):
out of our crime problem, but what we can do
is set a very high standard of what we expect
from our officers from the top down.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
Edwit Peacock the third is my guest here tonight.
Speaker 2 (28:44):
We got about two minutes ninety seconds to two minutes here,
and I do this with everyone. It doesn't matter if
it's the person running for the lowest city council at
the smallest city in America, or if it's a senator
or a US Congressman. Is there anything that I didn't
ask you about, or anything that you want to say
to the listeners and to the audience that are listening
(29:05):
to this live or will be listening to this later
on in the podcast.
Speaker 3 (29:08):
The floor's yours.
Speaker 4 (29:09):
Yeah, let's just finish off with what we started off,
which was around this cat's incident. One of the things
I recommended last night partly tongue in cheek, but I
also brought up something that I think got some responses.
I got several texts about it. We all go to
the airport and we hear the voice of y Lyles
welcoming us to the city of Charlotte. One of the
things I asked for last night was could we have
(29:31):
an announcement on our cat's system announcing Brett you must pay,
and if you don't pay, we're going to ask you
to get off. If you don't pay and you don't
get off, there's a fine or you're going to be arrested.
We're just not using things that I think are right
in front of us, and that is one of them.
We can change that PA system on those trains to
(29:53):
send a message of safety to let citizens know, hey,
there is someone watching either camera or obviously, hopefully we're
going to be able to staff it more. That was
my second idea. And we have something called the Bus
Ambassador program. These are individuals that volunt that are paid,
that are on the bus to help make it easier.
I think we could see I'm sure if we asked,
(30:16):
could we could we help a rider incentivize them to
be a volunteer, again, unarmed, but an official. That would
obviously help individuals who are coming on and off the
light rail, and also help us in fair enforcement, help
us with identifying individuals that should or should not be
on the train, someone whose sole job is to obviously
facilitate safety and help bring our PSS or a CMPD
(30:39):
officers to the scene. Again, it's just an idea, but
obviously this is the time in which we need to
introduce those ideas well.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
Edwin Peacock. The third, I really do appreciate.
Speaker 2 (30:48):
You coming in here tonight and again represents the District
six and is running for Charlotte City Council at Large
and that will be.
Speaker 3 (30:55):
On the ballot in November.
Speaker 2 (30:57):
Seriously, thank you to taking the time because I thank
you in a couple busy weeks for you, So again,
thank you, Thank you.
Speaker 3 (31:02):
Everyone. Coming up next is TJ. Ritchie.
Speaker 2 (31:04):
We're gonna be doing this all over again tomorrow. So
until then, my name is Brett Jensen, and you have
been listening to Breaking with Brett jenson
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