Commissioners discuss vision for county at retreat

Paul B. Johnson, The High Point Enterprise, N.C.
·1 min read

Feb. 2—GUILFORD COUNTY — Leaders of Guilford County government took up a discussion Thursday about how they want the future of the county to evolve and benefit their constituents.

The discussion took place during the Guilford County Board of Commissioners' annual retreat at Bur-Mil Park in Greensboro. The retreat concludes today.

The commissioners and county staff devoted Thursday's session to the One Guilford initiative, the county's ongoing effort to align departments and agencies to a shared direction.

County Manager Michael Halford gave an overview of the scope of county government. One example: The county maintains 2.5 million square feet of buildings and 6,000 acres of parks.

The county serves 163,000 beneficiaries of Medicaid, which is 30% of the overall county population. That's up from 24% six years ago, which illustrates the challenges facing the county but also emphasizes the importance of the services provided by the county, Halford said.

Leadership consultant Janet Carlson, who's associated with N.C. A&T State University, led the commissioners in a discussion about how leadership can make a difference in achieving goals and meeting expectations. The commissioners, county department heads and other staff broke into groups to discuss how leadership can help the county achieve its goals.

Today the commissioners and county staff are scheduled to review how the county government has addressed priorities so far in the current fiscal year and look ahead to priorities for the next fiscal year.

pjohnson@hpenews.com — @HPEPaul — 336-888-3528