HARRY JONES
Managing Mecklenburg County
By Suzanne Bledsoe
  
                        
As Harry tells it, Lynn Wheeler, like a "gnat at a picnic", relentlessly pursued him until he agreed to speak to our Club about his role as manager of Mecklenburg County. Her persistence paid off and we are all more enlightened about the inner workings of our great city and county as a result. Harry has been manager of Mecklenburg County since October 2000, an appointment that followed his service as assistant manager for 9 years and a lifelong career in public service. In his role as county manager, Harry is responsible for the day to day operations of Mecklenburg County government, including development of an annual budget and overseeing the jobs of 4,700 full time employees.
  
Unlike the City of Charlotte, which was created by charter, the county government is a subdivision of the state of North Carolina. Its purpose is to administer and fund various facilities and functions for state agencies. Members of the Board of County Commissioners are elected every two years. Most counties in North Carolina elect commissioners on a four year cycle. Mecklenburg and Watauga counties are the only two that follow a two year cycle.
  
Harry talked at length about the budget adoption process, commenting that the current budget has been the most difficult during his tenure with the County. The overall budget is $1.45 billion, with approximately $1 billion of that raised locally. The initial shortfall of close to $90 million was a result of several factors: reduced sales tax revenues, reduced fees and charges such as deed stamps, etc. and increased debt service. Virtually all county and state services funded by Mecklenburg County were subject to budget cuts, some quite significant. As a result of the budget process, 302 job positions were eliminated, although of that number, only about 50 resulted in actual job losses. Educational facilities and services (CMS, CPCC, etc) suffered an almost 10% cut. Throughout the process, Harry and his team sought to identify opportunities for consolidation and collaboration, particularly in the area of health and human services. Over 12% of the citizens of our county are at or below the poverty level; during this economic downturn, there has been an almost 40% increase in the demand for basic human services.
   
Harry does not see budgetary increases back to previous levels anytime in the near future. This is impacted, of course, by the general economy both locally and nationally. He believes that our biggest challenge as a community is to identify and prioritize those human services that are most critical and determine the most efficient and practical way to address them. Consolidation and collaboration in the not for profit sector will likely be an important component of this initiative.
  
Harry reminded us all that we are very fortunate to live in "the greatest community in the country." He has faith in our citizens to continue to want to work together to make this a better place for everyone.
Harry, we thank you for your insights and your leadership. Mecklenburg County is, indeed, a great place to live and, like you, we feel very lucky to be here.
 
   
Head Table: Karen Simon, Fred Brown, John Snyder, Lynn Wheeler, Elsie Garner, Tony Zeiss;
Invocation: Jessica Graham;
Visitors & Guests: Tom Bartholomy; Health & Happiness: Trent Merchant; Song: Gregg Walker; Piano: Thomas Moore; Photos: Bert Voswinkel

• Mac McCarley introduced Tracy Grooms, who is the first new member of 2009-2010. Tracy is SVP-Consumer and Small Business Checking for Bank of America and can be reached at tracy.grooms@bankofamerica.com. Welcome!
            
• Made the Business Journal…David Norman offered up advice on how to recognize growth opportunities in a slow economy; Kristi Walters (Jerry Walters) was named in this year's class of 25 Women in Business Achievement Awards; Kemp Dunaway has closed H. Y. Dunaway Co. and joined Allen Tate. Ed Turner was quoted in the Observer's article on the current stability in financial industry jobs.
   
• Dal Shefte's granddaughter, Whitney, has received an award from Women Photo Journalists of Washington for the second year in a row. 25 year old Whitney was recognized in 2008 in the New Media, Best Use of Photography category for her work to produce and edit "Struggle in Mississippi Delta." In April, 2009 she won Best Multimedia Single for her work on "A Guide to Nationals Park." Both awards were presented to Whitney at the White House by then President Bush and current President Obama.
   
• HOST FAMILY UPDATE: Luther Moore is glad to report all three host families are in place for the youth exchange student arriving from the Czech Republic. However, only one family is locked in for Leo, who arrives from France and is enrolled at Charlotte Country Day School. Time frames needed are winter (late November to end of March) and spring (April until he leaves for home). Contact Luther Moore or Ed Wadsworth for additional information.

• Updated Roster information for Tom Cottingham: Winston, Strawn LLP, 214 S. Tryon St, 704-350-7745, tcottingham@winston.com.