When Eddy Pineiro nailed a kick in overtime to secure the Carolina Panthers win over the New York Giants in Munich, Germany, numerous members of Charlotte City Council and employees of the city of Charlotte were there. Records released to Channel 9 show the city of Charlotte spent more than $64,000 in tax money on the trip across the pond.
Charlotte Ledger and other media outlets also requested expense records. An email with eight follow-up questions to a city of Charlotte spokesperson wasn’t immediately returned.
Records show the total cost of the trip was $64,488.86. In attendance was Mayor Pro Tem Dante Anderson, Councilmembers Malcolm Graham, LaWana Slack-Mayfield, Victoria Watlington, Marjorie Molina, Tariq Bokhari and Ed Driggs. City of Charlotte staffers in attendance were Assistant City Manager Tracy Dodson, Special Assistant to the City Manager Ed McKinney, Housing and Neighborhood Services Director Rebecca Hefner, Chief Sustainability and Resiliency Officer Sarah Hazel, Transportation and Planning Engineer Paul Benton and International Business Manager Alexis Gordon.
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Flight costs ranged from $631 for Dodson to $1,558 for Councilmember Driggs. Driggs was the only member of the delegation to fly into Frankfurt instead of Munich. Records show Councilmembers Mayfield and Molina both paid extra in “airline fees.” It’s unclear what these fees were for.
Councilmembers Anderson, Graham, Slack-Mayfield, Molina and Driggs had stays for five nights, each at a cost of $2,914. McKinney, Benton and Gordon were both booked for six nights at a cost of $3,497 each. Records show Gordon was charged $2,914 in a cancelation fee. It is unclear who this is for. Gordon used her card to book the rooms for attendees, according to the city.
The city delegation paid hundreds in parking, Uber and taxi fees. Records show Dodson paid the most for airport parking, $145, and Anderson paid the most in Uber and taxi fees, $395.
Of the 13 people traveling to Munich, 12 received a per diem for food and beverage expenses. McKinney’s per diem was the highest, $1,216. Hefner’s per diem was the lowest, $339. Hefner was only booked for three nights. Records show Councilman Bokhari declined out-of-pocket reimbursements.
Charlotte City Councilmembers had to pay for their own tickets to the Panthers-Giants game, according to the city. But the city still purchased some tickets to the game. Records show the city spent $853 on tickets and provided them to “business recruitment prospects.” The city says these are “four competitively active project leads.”
The city also spent more than $1,000 on food for a business networking reception, which had 77 people in attendance.
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