When members of the Carrboro Board of Aldermen chose the Mercer Group Inc. as the firm it will use in its search for a new town manager, a large part of its decision was based on the firm's experience in working with university towns.
Over the past 20 years, the board and town staff have seen Carrboro move away from small-town isolation toward further integration into the communities surrounding UNC. This evolution has changed what the board will look for in a new town manager.
Board members felt comfortable with the Mercer Group's experience with other university towns, such as Ann Arbor, Mich.; Asheville; and Evanston, Ill.
The board must fill the gap left by former Town Manager Robert Morgan, who quit the position to work as assistant town manager for Greensboro.
When Carrboro hired Morgan 18 years ago, he had no experience working with university towns. Morgan said the issue never came up. "Carrboro today is a very different community than Carrboro 18 years ago," he said. "When I got (to Carrboro), they were more concerned with basic services. As it grew, it became more of a part of Orange County."
Eighteen years ago, Morgan dealt with constructing roads and building a sound financial basis for the town. Now the main issues for Carrboro are coordinating transportation with the rest of the county, facilitating economic development and interacting with neighbors -- including the University.
Every town manager's job is defined by the values of the community in which the manager works, Morgan said.
He defined Carrboro as a university town based on the attitudes of its citizens. "As a whole, they're more aware of who they are, who they'd like to be and what's going on in the rest of the universe."
Morgan defined Carrboro today as "very focused and goal-oriented." The board considers seven primary goals when making its decisions and arranging its priorities. "The work plan falls under those seven goals," he said. "We're not just doing a project to do it."
