Musical chairs
All you wonks who crash in front of public-access TV for Guilford County commissioners meetings might see some new seating arrangements soon.
Right now, interim county manager David McNeill and other senior staff sit at a table that faces the board during meetings, a setup that brings to mind a Congressional hearing.
But new commissioners chairman Paul Gibson wants McNeill, or whoever the next manager is, up at the dais with the commissioners.
The reason: Gibson says the manager should freely participate more in the board's discussions. Having the manager up there, he figures, would encourage him to throw out ideas and get more involved in the debates.
Plopping the county's top administrator next the elected board is more the rule than the exception, at least locally. Back in the day, (or, at least, the 1980s) manager John Witherspoon sat with the commissioners.
Guilford County schools superintendent Terry Grier sits with the school board, and city manager Mitch Johnson sits with the Greensboro City Council. High Point does it the same way.
Gibson will probably need a majority of commissioners to approve his idea, so it's not a sure thing. And McNeill's current seat isn't so bad: he's just a few feet from the distinguished group of reporters who cover the county.