Former City Councilmember and President of Downtown Greensboro Inc. Zack Matheny made it official on Tuesday, March 9 that he is running for City Council.
Matheny announced he will be running for the District 3 City Council seat he held from 2007 to 2015. In June 2015, Matheny resigned from the City Council in order to accept the position as president of Downtown Greensboro Inc. (DGI).
At the time, Matheny was advised by the city attorney that he could not serve on the City Council and as president of a nonprofit organization that received funding from the city. However, the current City Council has two at-large councilmembers, Michelle Kennedy and Yvonne Johnson, whose nonprofits receive funding from the City of Greensboro.
Kennedy is executive director of the Interactive Resource Center, a daytime homeless shelter that receives city funding. Johnson is executive director of One Step Further, and runs the Cure Violence program for the city through that organization at a cost of about $900,000 over the past two years.
In the press release officially announcing his candidacy, Matheny said, “Now more than ever, District 3 needs an experienced voice to represent them on City Council. I’ve lived in this District for 21 years, and I, like all of you, have a vested interest in not just the growth of my District, but the entire City of Greensboro.”
When he was on the City Council, Matheny was known for pushing hard for more economic development and he said, “Since 2015, Downtown Greensboro has experienced tremendous growth with over $500 million in development, including numerous new restaurants and shops, as well as new residential and commercial development. Imagine this growth and more occurring throughout the city. What a tremendous opportunity for all of our citizens.”
When Matheny resigned from the City Council in 2015, City Councilmember Justin Outling was appointed to replace him. Outling then won election to a two-year term in 2015 and a four-year term in 2017. Outling has announced he is running for mayor, leaving the District 3 seat open.
Chip Roth has announced he is running for the District 3 seat, and when it was rumored that Matheny was going to run for his old seat, Roth sent out a press release attacking Matheny for having a conflict of interest as the head of DGI.
It should be an interesting race.
What say you now, Mr. City Attorney?
Greensboro has a different city attorney. In 2015 the city attorney was Tom Carruthers. The city attorney now is Chuck Watts.
While Matheny represented District 3 all I saw was that he lobbied for the position at DGI – no other results were forthcoming. He wouldn’t respond to calls or Emails about my concerns or input.
Agreed… Matheney is out for Matheney!
Hello boys and girls. Today’s Council meeting is brought to you by the letter H. Can you say hypocrites boys and girls? Very good! Hypocrites take big handouts from the government bodies they serve on. That’s why uour mommy cries and your daddy swears at night boys and girls! All their hard earned money gets gobbled up by taxes and handed out to crooks and politicians.
What a farce. If this is the best choice for District 3 or the city at large then voters get what they deserve. Conflicts of interest are a major issue as well as his weak record when he was a council member previously and his well known issues in late night parking lots is suspect at best. Our community needs and deserves better that tax dependent nonprofit heads as our representatives.