Cabarrus Cheap Seats

Last night, I was one of a half-dozen volunteers handing out information related to the NCRC TIF before the Cabarrus Board of Commissioners Meeting. Thanks to all who showed their support - remember…this is only the first meeting where comments on the NCRC will be taken. So, make plans for April’s meeting.

At any rate, when I poked my head into the meeting - I saw something that warmed my heart: Joni Juba sitting in the center seat of the Commissioners. Bob Carruth couldn’t make the meeting. As Vice-Chair, Joni Juba presided over the meeting in Bob’s absence. As I drove home, I thought about how different the County would be if she hadn’t been elected in 2004 and Richard Suggs won instead - I simply shuddered at the thought.

For instance, there was one bit of good government that was present in the agenda that the press missed; but you should notice.

The image above was taken from the Consent Agenda - that’s the part of the Agenda that the Board approves in bulk following their Agenda Meetings before the Regular Meeting (the one for March was held last night). Why is this such a big deal? Well, last year, approving this same measure was a complete fiasco [read more here]. Quite simply, this Board was the first to help County employees take the edge off of rising health-care costs and give those who were non-smokers a break. A common sense solution that would not have been carried out before Joni Juba was elected; because the old majority simply ignored common sense.

OK, so the discount is not the biggest thing; but over the past few years - a number of smart decisions like this were made without people noticing. Even though we still face many issues from growth and wanton mismanagement of the County by Cabarrus Taxpayers’ Association-controlled boards, this county is making steady progress towards being a community that can face 21st Century challenges. There’s no way that a County Commission controlled by likes of Richard Suggs (who, in spite of being an incumbent, Juba spanked in the 2004 Republican Primary by a 2-1 margin) could ever wrap their minds around a project like the NCRC. He was even opposed to building the schools we needed during the 2004 school bond referendum!

She might make it look easy, but Joni Juba has worked hard for the past couple of years with the new majority to help turn around the Commission to working for all of the people of Cabarrus County and not just special interests. Her election in 2004 marked the point of the Cabarrus Taxpayers’ Association’s (CTA) decline that they were truly irrelevant. Since then, the CTA has not been able to put a new person in any office anywhere in the County and the only CTA-backed candidate in office is Coy Privette - who trailed Jay White and Grace Mynatt…in spite of the CTA’s baseless attacks against Jay.

Since her election in 2004, it’s her been success that drives her critics crazy - so much that they fabricated a false scandal - that was proven wrong. We have a long way to go and the mistakes of past Boards will be very expensive to fix; but the new majority elected 2 1/2 years ago, and strengthened in the past election, is putting this County on the right track.