Gov. Mike Easley will be the keynote speaker at the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce's annual meeting at the Carolina Club in UNC's Alumni Center.
Easley will address the chamber Jan. 30 and is expected to speak about economic issues, said Aaron Nelson, executive director of the chamber. "We expect him to talk about the state's economy and role that small businesses and the University play in it," he said.
Chamber of Commerce member Jonathan Howes, a secretary in former Gov. Jim Hunt's Cabinet, helped the chamber lure Easley. "He had some connections, and he helped us out as we started to look for speakers," Nelson said.
"We're very excited to have the governor speak," he said.
Last year's speaker was N.C. Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight. "This is the first time a sitting governor has addressed the chamber," Nelson said.
Nelson said the chamber's recent growth helped attract Easley. "We've nearly doubled our membership in the past two years."
The outgoing chairman of the chamber's board of directors, Scott Maitland, will give a year-in-review synopsis of the chamber's accomplishments in 2002 at the meeting. The chamber also will present Business of the Year Awards and unveil its new Web site.
Tickets for the event are $25 for chamber members and $50 for non-members. There are about 400 seats available, and Nelson said he expects them to sell out quickly.
The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu.
