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RALEIGH Gov. Bev Perdue pledged during last fall's campaign to strengthen ties between Charlotte and state government in Raleigh. Since taking office, she has made an impact in the state's largest city, just not always the impression she probably desired.
A survey by Public Policy Polling, a Democratic polling group in Raleigh, last month showed 58 percent of respondents thought Perdue had not been attentive to the needs of the city, while 25 percent said she had.
Her approval rating in the city was 32 percent, compared with 52 percent for President Obama, according to the poll. Both are Democrats.
Perdue has opened a Charlotte office, the first governor to do so, that's more than a mail drop. Her office director routinely represents her at events in the city. She has visited Charlotte eight times in as many months. At minimum, Charlotte has seen more of Perdue than any governor in recent history.
At the same time, leaders in some parts of the city complain that her appearances have been photo opportunities instead of reaching out to important segments of the community. More widespread is the growing complaint that Perdue's promise in February to start construction on completing Interstate 485 by the end of the year is starting to ring hollow.
“Just having an office here is a step in the right direction,” said Darrell Williams, an architect and former county commissioner who is a Democrat. “You have someone here who you can talk with, face to face, who works directly for the governor.”
Perdue's pledge on I-485, however, was a stumble, said Williams, whose name was suggested by Perdue's office to talk about her relationship with the city.
“I don't think that has helped her, not being able to get that resolved,” he said.
The economy and state revenue nosedived in the weeks after Perdue and Transportation Secretary Gene Conti promised to start work on the highway by year's end. State transportation officials most recently proposed that, in order to accelerate 485 construction, local leaders would have to agree to sacrifice another major road project – a planned improvement of Independence Boulevard.
“When I was campaigning, all I heard was ‘485, 485, 485.' I never heard ‘Independence Boulevard,'” Perdue said in a telephone interview last week.
Perdue made Charlotte a priority destination within days of her election. She flew there for her first public appearance as governor-elect.
She drafted her secretary of revenue, Ken Lay, from Bank of America's headquarters, helping boost Charlotte's representation in the capital.
She opened her Charlotte office in March and installed Budd Berro, a financial consultant from Davidson, as director. Her visibility has registered, particularly following former Gov. Mike Easley, who earned a reputation for rarely venturing beyond the governor's mansion.
“I don't know that I ever met Easley,” said Rep. Ruth Samuelson, a Republican who has served as a county commissioner. “I think I would have met Perdue by now if I was a commissioner.”
Tim Belk, chairman and CEO of Belk stores, complimented Perdue and top administration officials, such as the transportation and commerce secretaries, for repeated trips to hash out road and economic development needs.
“She and her staff, they're here,” Belk said. “They're active in the issues and they're reaching out.”
Some small business owners and some members of the black community contend that Perdue drops in for large corporation events and job announcements but doesn't reach out to the heart of the business sector or, in the case of the African American community, those who were behind her last fall.
Deborah Millhouse owns and runs CEO Inc., a staffing, recruiting and human resources company in Charlotte with around 100 employees. She said Perdue has made a demonstrably greater effort in Charlotte than her predecessors but isn't talking to those on the front lines of the business community.
“It's just not the Carolinas Partnership or the Chamber of Commerce,” said Millhouse, referring to the region's major economic development group and business group. “It seems like now we have a lady who's trying to show her face in Charlotte more, but I'm not sure she's taking the message back.”
Mecklenburg County Commissioner Vilma Leake, a Democrat, said Perdue's visits have yet to include time in black neighborhoods.
“Had it not been for people of color who came out because of Obama being on the ticket, she would not have won,” Leake said. “She has yet to come to the black community to talk about their concerns or even say ‘thank you' for their support.”
In May, Perdue attended an event organized by United Power at a Charlotte church where leaders of the black and Hispanic communities raised a range of concerns with her, according to Perdue's office.
Perdue emphasized that she participated in a variety of events during trips in the midst of a plummeting economy and marathon budget wrangling in Raleigh.
“I was coming to Charlotte, day trip by day trip, because I was in Raleigh managing the most serious budget crisis in North Carolina since the Great Depression,” Perdue said.
Perdue started out with years of history working against her. Charlotte has for decades viewed Raleigh as something of a neglectful landlord who siphons away billions in rent and returns a fraction of that in services, while Charlotte has earned the moniker “The Great State of Mecklenburg” in Raleigh for a perceived arrogance that it should get the most and get it first.
That tension did not ease during Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory's nearly 14 years in office. Now he serves as a regular reminder of the criticisms he leveled at Perdue during last year's election.
Some of Perdue's difficulties in Charlotte have emerged from her own party. Among Democrats, 37 percent of respondents in the recent poll said she was paying sufficient attention to the city, while 47 percent did not. Her approval rating among Democrats was 48 percent, according to the poll. Public Policy Polling surveyed 540 likely voters between Aug. 11 and 14 with a 4.2 percent margin of error.
“Bev Perdue won a surprising victory in Charlotte last fall, but it's safe to say that wouldn't be repeated if there was an election today,” said Dean Debnam, president of Public Policy Polling.
In May the county Democratic Party voted to admonish her for trying to strip power from Superintendent of Schools June Atkinson. Perdue appointed a chief executive officer, former Cumberland County Schools Superintendent William Harrison, to actually run the state's schools, but Atkinson sued and won in court.
Perdue was trying to address North Carolina's complicated structure of essentially splitting responsibility for education among three people: the governor, chair of the state school board and the superintendent of schools.
“One of the things I ran for governor to do was make the schools work,” Perdue said. “I brought in who I thought was one of the best superintendents in America.”
The Charlotte community needs to allow Perdue some time, said Michael Lawson, Democratic first vice chairman for the 8th congressional district and president of the Mecklenburg County African-American Caucus.
“We need to just take a breath,” said Lawson. “I'm for giving her a little more leeway in letting her set up her organization with all her contacts in the city. Let's see in a few months if that's still the way she operates.”
