County, city hire marketing director
By Steve Herring
Published in News on August 25, 2016 1:46 PM
A Goldsboro native and graduate of Eastern Wayne High School has been hired as the joint marketing/communications director for Wayne County and the city of Goldsboro.
The hiring of Tracie Davis was announced Wednesday afternoon by Wayne County Manager George Wood and City Manager Scott Stevens.
Ms. Davis will begin her new duties Tuesday, Sept. 6. Her office will be in the old law library at the Wayne County Courthouse where the information technology director and assistant were previously housed. This will put her near the other communications personnel on the fourth floor of the courthouse, Wood said.
Ms. Davis, who currently lives in Goldsboro, will be a county employee, but will be supervised by both the county and city managers as she directs their respective communications operations.
Ms. Davis will oversee advertising, media relations, assist with speech writing and even provide training for making public presentations that would promote and market the county.
There were six applicants for the job, including Ms. Davis, Wood said
She will be paid $68,000, which does not include benefits, split by the city and county.
The agreement between the county and city is for two years with automatic annual renewal unless a written notice to cancel is sent by either party to the other at least 90 days before the end of the original term or any subsequent annual renewal term.
Either the county or city may terminate the agreement without cause by giving a 90-day written notice to the other.
"Ms. Davis has a solid background in local government at the senior management level and extensive experience in directing communications departments in a jurisdiction larger than ours," Wood said in a press release. "And she is a native of Wayne County.
"Both Scott and I think she will be an excellent fit for both organizations. We are excited about having someone with her experience to improve our communications function."
Ms. Davis, a 1988 graduate of Eastern Wayne High School, served as Fayetteville's communications director from January 2013 through January 2015.
Earlier in this year Wood visited Fayetteville to see how its marketing/communications department works.
She earned a bachelor's degree in political science in 2000 and a master's degree in public administration in 2003, both from UNC-Wilmington.
Ms. Davis was a self-employed consultant from December 2010 to December 2013.
She served as town manager for Belville from November 2006 through January 2010. Ms. Davis was deputy town manager at Nags Head for four months prior to that.
From September 2002 to May 2006, she was planning and parks director for the town of Wrightsville Beach having been promoted to that job after starting with the town as an intern.
The county has been without a county public information officer since commissioners eliminated the position in 2015. Barbara Arntsen was making $65,262.60 and was also receiving a monthly travel allowance: $646.22 ($7,754.64 yearly) and a monthly cell phone stipend of $100 ($1,200 yearly).
Goldsboro officials decided in December not to fill the city's public and government affairs position, following the resignation of Kim Laverick, who was making close to $68,000 a year, Stevens said.
The city will match the required amount.
The Goldsboro City Council unanimously approved the intergovernmental agreement to create the position at its Aug. 1 session.
However, commissioners split 4-2 at its Aug. 2 session to approve the agreement.
Commissioners Joe Gurley and Ray Mayo, both voted no, questioning the need and expressing concerns about it being a shared position.
Commissioner Wayne Aycock, who did not attend the meeting, had previously voiced reservations about the position. He has since said he would have voted no.
Mayo argued that other entities, including the Wayne County Chamber of Commerce and Wayne County Development Alliance, that already promote and market the county.
Gurley had suggested contracting out the service, but was told by Wood and Commission Chairman Joe Daughtery that would be more expensive.
Mayo and Gurley worried as well about a provision that in order to avoid any conflicts of interest, the city and county agree that the director cannot "prepare, or assist in preparing, information in any format for one that is negative" toward the other.
It adds that the director is "to remain neutral and abstain from participation in any issue that may arise between the parties where they disagree on a course of action."
"If we in a partnership with Goldsboro, there will come a time when we are going to disagree," Mayo said at the Aug. 2 meeting. "It could be a big disagreement. You said this person needs to be neutral. Well, to me, if this person is neutral -- is that an injustice to what is being put out to our citizens of the county? Are they going to get a true story, or are they going to have to get it from us as commissioners walking the streets in our communities?"