SILER CITY — Norma Boone will fill the vacant seat of the late Dist. 2 commissioner Larry Cheek following a unanimous decision by Siler City’s Board of Commissioners last Tuesday night.
In a special session, board members selected Boone over two other residents who’d expressed interest in the position — Travis Patterson and Albert Reddick.
Cheek, who’d also served as Mayor Pro-Tem, passed away in May. His tenure was acknowledged by current Mayor Pro-Tem and at-large commissioner Cindy Bray.
“We know how much everyone thought of Larry,” she said. “He’s an icon; he’ll be hard to replace.”
While interviewing the three candidates, questions asked by commissioners included subjects like the potential closure of a portion of Third Street, how the candidates plan to fill the remaining two years of the term and what their respective visions were for Siler City.
Each candidate was concerned about potential negative impacts on traffic and business activity if part of Third Street were to close — as has been requested by Mountaire Farms — and that the welfare of residents in the area is a priority.
Boone said that she was especially worried about the Pine Glades senior community suffering from an overflow of traffic, and said she’d rather have the decision postponed because of too many unknowns. Boone also brought up potentially expanding the town’s parks and recreation programs to cater to more people above the 12- to 13-year-old age range. She also added that making legitimate connections with her constituents and having routine community engagement would be crucial in taking on the role.
On the subject of economic growth, Boone said Siler City needs to do a better job of marketing itself if it wants to attract business. She called projects like the downtown revitalization a step in the right direction.
“We’ve got to have more appeal,” Boone said.
A point hammered routinely by Patterson in his interview was the need for affordable housing. He cited it as a linchpin in creating economic development and job creation.
“We need a trained workforce, but by increasing affordable housing, you can also encourage spending locally,” he said. “Without affordable housing, people come from out of town (to work) and take their money back home.”
Patterson echoed Boone by saying having a strong community makes a more attractive landing spot for potential businesses, but he also said it’s important to ask young adults already in the community what businesses they want to see and what will encourage them to stay as they develop professionally.
Reddick, the former mayoral candidate who’s challenged and lost to current Mayor John Grimes three times, said he was deeply worried about the town’s drop in sales tax revenue and city-run agencies finding themselves cash-strapped. He added that if he were appointed to the seat he’d work to make Siler City more of a destination and create a supportive town environment.
In the end, the board’s vote to name Boone to the seat was unanimous. In a phone interview after the decision, Boone told the News + Record it felt good to have the board’s unanimous confidence behind her and she’s hoping to live up to expectations.
Boone is a lifelong resident of Siler City with more than 30 years of experience in Chatham County Schools, including serving as principal at Jordan-Matthews High School. She holds several advanced degrees and serves as executive director for teacher instruction for Chatham County Schools. She also serves on the boards of BB&T Bank and Chatham Habitat for Humanity and is a member of the West Chatham branch of the NAACP.
She mentioned she expects to do some learning while taking on the new role, but it some of it may feel familiar.
“I know it will be a learning curve with looking at (municipal) codes and looking at the town budget,” she said. “But the one thing I look at is I’ve run a school, I’ve also served on different boards of directors in different capacities. I know how to navigate those kind of things, so I think I’ll be able to adjust. Working on those smaller organizational boards…that’s a smaller portion of what the bigger picture is with Siler City. It’s going to command more attention (from myself) because it’s not just one organization. This is a town.”
Boone is also coming into the job with reverence for the man who up until a few months ago held the seat. Boone explained Cheek was someone she always came to with community issues, and that he encouraged her to get involved with projects like National Night Out. Boone further stated that while she hopes to do some things that carry on Cheek’s legacy, her main goal is to show what she brings to the table.
Election laws vary on the protocol for replacing an elected official by the nature of the office. For municipalities, a vacancy on a town board is usually filled by the board appointing someone to serve the remainder of the term.
On July 20, the Board of Commissioners decided to fill Cheek’s vacancy with the same model it used in 2013 to replace a Dist. 4 vacancy, the Chatham News + Record previously reported. That vacancy was created when then-commissioner John Grimes was appointed by the board to serve the rest of Mayor Charles Johnson’s term; Johnson died in office. The board appointed Bill Haiges to Dist. 4, who was later elected to his seat and is still serving.
Boone was sworn in at the commissioners meeting Monday.