The Banner News / banner-news.com
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Thursday, February 4, 2016
Montcross Chamber growing by leaps and bounds 56th annual banquet to highlight remarkable growth By Alan Hodge alan.bannernews@gmail.com
Melia Lyerly has served as the Montcross Chamber’s 2015 Board Chair.
The Montcross Area Chamber of Commerce is set to hold its 56th annual banquet tonight, February 4 at the Mt. Holly Municipal Complex and the organization's rapid growth will have the hall buzzing. The Chamber event will see Melia Lyerly of the Lyerly Agency complete her year as Chamber board chair. Taking the helm in 2016 will be ImageMark Business Services CEO Walter Payne. “When I became chair of the Montcross Area Chamber a year ago, I was excited,” Lyerly said. “We had the opportunity to build on the accomplishments of previous chairs who had made great strides for this Chamber -- and I was determined to keep the momentum going. So I laid out some goals and together, the board and members worked especially hard to make 2015 one of the most successful years in our Chamber’s history. ” Fact and figures backed that statement up. In 2015 the Chamber gained 70 new members for a total of 520. In fact, the Montcross Area Chamber is the fastest growing chamber in the Charlotte region. Since 2013 – just three years ago – it has grown 49 percent, from 350 to 520 members. The average two-year growth of chambers in the Charlotte region has been 2 percent. In 2015, through Forward Together, the Chamber worked with more than 60 potential businesses, 23 of which have opened in the Belmont area, creating more than 100 jobs. Thirty-two businesses, municipalities, foundations and individuals committed a total of $375,000 to Forward Together over a five-year period. See CHAMBER page 2
Trey Whitesides living a dream teaching in China By Alan Hodge alan.bannernews@gmail.com
It's 7,843 miles from Belmont to the city of Wenzhou in the People's Republic of China as the kerosene pigeon flies, but for 24-year -old Trey Whitesides, both places seem like home. Trey, the son of Monroe and Sandy Whitesides of Belmont, has been living in Wenzhou for the past five months teaching English to 7th and 8th grade Chinese students at the Foreign Language School there. A 2009 graduate of Gaston Christian School and a recent grad of UNC-Charlotte, Whitesides landed the job after applying with a company called Ameson that places qualified applicants in Chinese schools to teach. Incidentally, this is his second Chinese sojourn. In 2013 Whitesides spent time in Beijing studying the Mandarin Chinese dialect. So how does Whitesides conduct his classes? “We use English as much as possible,” he said. “But I also talk to them in Chinese.” The school is very nice
Walter Payne will be named the Montcross Chamber’s 2016 Board Chair.
Hunt is on for new Belmont city manager By Alan Hodge alan.bannernews@gmail.com
Belmont's Trey Whitesides (right) is teaching English in China. In this photo he's seen in the countryside with fellow teacher Will Kilgore from Virginia. Photo courtesy Trey Whitesides and modern, reflecting the overall modern prosperity of the city. Wenzhou, located near the southeastern coast, is the third city of Zhejiang Province and one of the economic power houses of the region. Wenzhou is frequently used by Western media as a barometer of the Chinese export economy; among other things, Wenzhou manufactures around 90% of the world's spectacles and massive quantities of shoes. Although Mandarin is widely spoken, the local dialect is Wenzhounese and is regarded by Chinese nationals as one of the most difficult dialects in the country, See TREY page 3
After a “snow delay” the Belmont city council and other municipal officials were finally able to meet last weekend at the U.S. National Whitewater Center for their annual planning retreat. The meeting touched on a wide variety of topics and one was a discussion on the process for selecting a permanent city manager to replace Barry Webb who retired January 29. Assistant city manager Adrian Miller was named interim city manager but an official search must still be conducted and a permanent replacement effective by July 1, 2016. Miller has been with the City of Belmont since 2007, serving as the senior planner in the planning department from 2007 until 2010, when he was promoted to assistant city manager. The city can advertise the job internally to current city employees or externally with the possibility of also using a recruitment firm. Candidates either way must meet certain criteria and job duties including serving as the chief administrator of the city's day to day functions such as budget preparation, providing the city council with information, and the general state of municipal functions. Other job functions include supervising the administration of all city departments and offices, attending council meetings, making sure all state and city laws and ordinances are complied with, submits an annual “state of the city report” at the end of each fiscal year, and prepares other types of reports as needed. The job requires an undergraduate and preferably a Master's degree in Public or Business Administration or related field, and five years experience as a city manager or assistant city manager or department head, or any equivalent combination of experience and training which provides the required knowledge, skills, or abilities. The city manager serves at the pleasure of the council and is ultimately supervised by those elected officials. Webb, who started as city manager in Belmont in March 2000, was feted at a going away gathering at city hall last Friday. He reflected on what he had brought to the table during his tenure. See CITY MANAGER page 3
GO PANTHERS! NFL SUPER BOWL time 6:30pm Sunday • February 7 • 2016
Carolina Panthers vs Denver Broncos