Fallout:
The Growing Economic Cost of a Disappearing Community
On a humid June morning in Charlotte’s east side, David Rebolloso unlocks the doors to his laundromat and walks past rows of idle machines. This time last year, the shop would already be buzzing with Latino families folding clothes, children darting between dryers, neighbors catching up.
Now, there’s mostly silence, and it’s not just because of inflation or seasonal slowdowns. It’s fear. Fear of being seen. Fear of being targeted. Fear of ICE.
At the start of 2025, new immigration policies took effect with the stated goal of removing undocumented individuals with criminal records, but in practice, enforcement expanded to include anyone perceived to be in the country unlawfully. Even those with pending or approved temporary protections were vulnerable to removal. The ripple effects have reached far beyond those directly targeted.
Over the past several months, immigration enforcement activity, both real and rumored, has frightened communities across Charlotte. Latino residents, regardless of status, have been adjusting their daily lives. Many have reduced shopping, gathering and other public activities. Legal residents and U.S. citizens alike now keep passports close at hand as they go about their day.
While headlines often focus on political arguments and border statistics, the local consequences are playing out quietly, in corner stores, laundromats, bakeries, and on city balance sheets.
Photo: Nia Moréno /Facebook
Laundromat owner David Rebolloso
According to Dr. Tom Regan, in collaboration with Camino Research Institute, Latino-linked economic activity contributes over $344.2 million in state and local tax revenue annually in North Carolina.
In the Charlotte metro area alone, that figure is $45.5 million.
This funding supports core public services: schools, parks, public transit and health programs, the continuation and growth of which rely on a steady, reliable stream of government revenue.
If immigrant families stay home, they don't shop.
If they don't shop, businesses fail.
If businesses fail,
tax revenue disappears.
Who loses?
By early this year, local business owner Manolo Betancur noticed a shift at his bakery.
The Store That Feeds The Block
Oscar Chavez has operated a convenience store in a largely Latino neighborhood of Charlotte for over a decade. It’s the kind of place where neighbors drop in daily, not just to shop but to talk. That routine has been fractured. Chavez said these last 6 months have been particularly difficult as revenue continues to drop.
For Chavez, the impact is financial and emotional. “I'm worried about it,” he admitted. “Sometimes I think about closing the business. Keep forward? I don't know.” Chavez attributes the drop not to prices or product selection, but fear. “Every day since four months ago, they see people from ICE around the city,” he said. “They are afraid to go to work. They are afraid to go shopping. They are even afraid to be driving and get stopped by ICE.”
“It's not just bad for my business, it's bad for the community.”
Chavez shared the concerns he's heard from his Latino customers.
“They are afraid to go to work. They are afraid to go shopping. They are even afraid to be driving and get stopped by ICE.”
- Oscar Chavez -
With many of his Latino customers staying home, Chavez worries about the future of his business.
Chavez said his financial decline began in February when he first noticed a 10 to 15% dip in revenue. By July, this worsened to around 50%, largely due to a severe drop-off in visits from his core Latino customer base.
A 15% drop in revenue may sound modest, but when multiplied across similar businesses throughout the state, it signals a ripple effect that could drain millions from state and local budgets. That loss alone could wipe out funding for consequential projects.
What Could a 15% Loss in Latino-Linked Tax Revenue Mean for North Carolina?
A Neighborhood Cornerstone, Struggling
Rebolloso, who was born in the United States, owns two laundromats in Charlotte. One is located in a shopping center where 95 to 98% of the customers are Latino. “It was jam-packed all the time,” he said. “You go by there now, it's half empty... hardly anything because people are staying away.”
Rebolloso’s revenue reflects that change.
Once jam-packed, Rebolloso’s laundromat is now far from full.
Rebolloso described the steep revenue decline his laundromat has faced since the beginning of the year.
“I was making maybe $12,000 a week,” Rebolloso said. “Now I'm at $8,000.”
Rebolloso saw a 44% drop in revenue. A loss like that jeopardizes more than payroll and rent. It reduces the taxes Rebolloso pays as a business owner. Applied to the $45.5 million Camino Research Institute attributes to Latino-linked tax revenue for the Charlotte metro area, a 44% average loss among similar businesses could translate into nearly $20 million in lost local tax revenue.
What Could a 44% Loss in Latino-Linked Tax Revenue Mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools?
When The Lights Turn Off
Manolo Betancur is a well-known figure in Charlotte’s immigrant business community. A naturalized U.S. citizen for 18 years and proud entrepreneur, he once operated three bakeries. One is now closed.
The presence of ICE changes everything.
“Whenever there’s ICE activity here in Central Avenue, I have to turn the lights off. I have to close my doors. So that’s one day we are out of business,” Betancur said.
Eventually, the losses became unsustainable.
“After January 20, everything started going down... 10% down, 20% down... When I saw that 30% down, we had to close that bakery,” Betancur said. “We closed our bakery three months ago.”
When Betancur closed Tita’s Cake House, his bakery just 45 minutes northeast of Charlotte, it represented more than the loss of bread. It meant lost jobs, lost sales tax, lost property tax, and lost services those taxes help fund – from CMS buses to park maintenance.
Whenever ICE shows up in the area Betancur said customers stay away, and his business closes for the day.
Betancur shared how months of falling revenue forced him to shut down one of his cafés.
The Cost of Silence
Charlotte is a growing city with rising needs. Budgets are tight, and every dollar counts. Latino-owned and -serving businesses help meet those needs.
They create jobs, attract customers, and pay into a public system.
Latino businesses contribute millions in revenue that help fund schools, transportation, health care and safety programs.
When businesses close, cities lose money. And when cities lose money, they’re forced to make hard decisions: Cut funding for schools? Delay road improvements? Close libraries?
Betancur opened up about his fears for the future.
The economic effects are still unfolding. Some businesses are adapting, others have shut their doors. City, county, and state budgets will need to account for those losses, while public projects and services that depend on steady tax revenue may face delays or cuts.
Regardless of its original aim to remove those deemed unwanted or foreign, immigration enforcement is now producing economic impacts that extend even to those who are anything but – American citizens.
Built with Shorthand