🧵 In Today’s Edition

1. “He Never Stopped Being Mayor”
2. Guilford College Appoints Jean Parvin Bordewich as President
3. The Agenda
4. What We’re Reading

Jim Melvin during his tenure as Mayor of Greensboro. (Courtesy of the City of Greensboro)

‘He Never Stopped Being Mayor’

When Jim Melvin was growing up in Greensboro, his father Joe had a rule: If he ate at the family table, he worked for it. The young Melvin pulled many shifts at the family’s two-pump Texaco gas station on Asheboro Street (now Martin Luther King Jr. Drive). Later in life, he would joke he had to go off to UNC-Chapel Hill and the Army just so he could stop working Saturdays.

That work ethic never left him, fueling his early volunteering with the United States Junior Chamber (Jaycees), a successful banking career, city politics, and beyond. He served as mayor of Greensboro for a decade from 1971 to 1981—a period of rapid growth, social change, and shocking violence that, in some ways, continues to define the city. He left office, he would say, but never left service, shaping the city and mentoring generations of new leaders as president of the Joseph M. Bryan Foundation for the rest of his life.

When Melvin died last week at 91, he had been taking meetings just weeks earlier—with an oxygen tank and private nurse in tow.

“That’s how he was,” said Mayor Nancy Vaughan. “You couldn’t stop him. Always on the phone, always having a meeting with someone. In a way, he never stopped being mayor.”

Read the full story here.

— Joe Killian

Thanks for reading The Thread, a 3x week newsletter written by Greensboro editor Joe Killian and reporters Sayaka Matsuoka and Gale Melcher. Reach us with tips or ideas at greensboro@theassemblync.com.

Newly appointed Guilford College President Jean Parvin Bordewich on campus. (Carolyn de Berry for The Assembly)

Guilford College’s Board of Trustees appointed Jean Parvin Bordewich to a two-year term as president Friday. Bordewich has been acting president since January.

The move comes after years of financial uncertainty and cost-cutting at the private Quaker institution. Many in the Guilford community have praised Bordewich’s leadership as the college navigates a financial crisis that has led to probation from its accreditor.

“She’s displayed such a positive aura facing a lot of challenges,” said Dan Mosca, chair of Guilford’s Board of Trustees, in a Friday statement. “Others have seen that and are drawn to her. They want to help the college succeed.”

Read the story here.

— Sayaka Matsuoka

Here’s this week’s rundown of what’s happening in local government.

City of Greensboro 

City Council Meeting
Tuesday, Aug. 19, at 5:30 p.m. @ Melvin Municipal Office Building, 300 W. Washington St., or watch the meeting live here.

City leaders have a 58-item agenda to pass this week, including 14 zoning public hearings.

The consent agenda includes:

  • Setting public hearings for Sept. 16 to consider annexing more than 900 acres into the city, a request on behalf of David Couch.
  • Authorizing signing authority to the city’s Office of Sustainability and Resilience (OSR) for environmental report certifications, environmental deed restrictions, and brownfield agreements. What this means: The signature authority for these actions is currently possessed by the Solid Waste and Recycling Department, but thanks to a departmental reorganization, OSR now has the necessary expertise and resources to effectively manage environmental oversight. According to the city, this will “enhance coordination, improve response times, and facilitate better communication with stakeholders.”
  • Adding $610,837 to this year’s HOME program budget.

Highlights from the general agenda:

  • A $1.65 million contract with NovoaGlobal for a red light camera system. This is for a three-year contract with two optional one-year extensions at $330,000 annually.
  • A $26.5 million contract with Hilco Logistics for municipal solid waste hauling services.
  • A $1.49 million contract to replace the Kalwall cladding on the Greensboro Cultural Arts Center.

Guilford County

Board of Commissioners Meeting
Thursday, Aug. 21, at 5:30 p.m. @ The Old County Courthouse, 301 W. Market St., or watch the meeting live here.

This agenda hasn’t been posted yet. Check here later.

City of High Point

Special City Council Meeting
Monday, Aug. 18, at 4:30 p.m. @ High Point Municipal Building, 211 S. Hamilton St., or watch the meeting live here.

This meeting is a closed session due to attorney-client privilege.

City Council Meeting
Monday, Aug. 18, at 5:30 p.m. @ High Point Municipal Building, 211 S. Hamilton St., or watch the meeting live here.

Links to local board meetings and agendas:

Guilford County – Board of Commissioners

Guilford County – Board of Education

Greensboro – City Council

Greensboro – City Calendar

High Point – City Council

— Gale Melcher

What We’re Reading

A High-Speed Game of Tag: Some Guilford County Sheriff’s Office patrol cars will be equipped with a device that allows them to shoot GPS trackers onto cars. The technology may prevent high-speed chases as deputies won’t have to pursue speeding suspects to be able to follow them, the sheriff’s office says. The devices will be paid for with federal forfeiture funds. Yes Weekly has the story.

Quick Change: Summerfield Mayor Tim Sessoms abruptly resigned last week. The town council appointed Lee Haywood, the only candidate who filed to run for mayor, to fill the vacancy. The troubled town is currently suing its former town manager and finance officer. WFAE has the story.

Aggies Court Adult Learners: N.C. A&T State University is the latest UNC System campus to partner with Project Kitty Hawk to expand online degree programs for adult learners. The Carolina Peacemaker has the story.

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