Rockingham Mayor Gene McLaurin hasn’t faced a challenger for his position in an election since last century, but County School Board member and former chairman Bruce Stanback has filed to run on the city’s November ballot.

In a recent interview with the Daily Journal, McLaurin said he welcomed the opportunity to restate his values and the direction he wants to lead the city in over the next term.

Stanback has refused requests for interviews since June. He is currently under investigation for his role with the Rockingham Housing Authority while serving as first the chairman then as a salaried employee of the agency.

The only visible sign on the direction of Stanback’s campaign is the slogan on his election signs, “Stand up for change.”

The walls and shelves of McLaurin’s office at Rockingham City Hall are covered by pictures and letters that commemorate moments of the past 12 years he’s spent as mayor.

He pointed to one letter hanging on the back of his door from a second grade class at Rohanen Primary, thanking him for coming to speak with them.

“To me, that’s what being the mayor is all about,” McLaurin said. “It’s about service, and I enjoy public service and providing leadership for the City of Rockingham.”

He describes himself as “a third generation public servant for the citizens of Rockingham,” pointing out his father and grandfather both served terms on the city’s council.

He said the four characteristics he has tried to build to enhance his role as mayor begin with service and leadership, as well as to build relationships with others and the ability to plan for the future.

Being the mayor isn’t a full-time job, McLaurin explained, and he also works full-time managing Swink Quality Oil.

“I try to get by here every day to check my messages, and I do get here most days,” he said. “I feel it’s extremely important that when folks want to talk to me, they can.”

He said the role of Mayor of Rockingham doesn’t mean that he can solve everyone’s problems, though.

“Sometimes, there’s a problem you can’t solve, but then it’s important to listen, and hear what somebody is telling you about their issue,” McLaurin said. “But what you can do is you can listen and you can try to come up with a solution a problem. That’s what I really try to do.”

He gave the examples of drainage issues and rezoning quarrels as examples of situations there is often no quick fix to.

“It’s a frustrating thing, in difficult economic times, to create job opportunities,” McLaurin said. “It’s been hard all over the country, and it is a challenge for us because we’re in tough times. Certainly, in a small, rural area like this it is difficult.”

However, McLaurin said he’s noted progress since 1997, when he was first elected, in “the investments we’ve made in ourselves.”

“City Hall is a perfect example of this,” he said. “In building the City Hall and Cole Plaza, we not only moved out of an obsolete building that wasn’t handicapped accessible, but we showed visitors to Rockingham that may want to invest in us that we are investing in ourselves.”

In addition to the new City Hall, he pointed to water and sewer projects the city has undertaken that led to development where Wal-Mart is and in industrial parks within the city. He also pointed to the wastewater treatment regionalization project with Ellerbe and efforts to extend water and sewer to the junction of Highway 1 and U.S. 74.

“Since 1997, I’ve learned that maybe things don’t happen as quickly as you’d like,” he said. “But I look back over the past decade and I see some positive things, investments that we’ve made and many of them have started to pay dividends ...

“We clearly have more to do, and it’s very important that we work with our neighbors, trying to help improve the area and build a new economy, because there is no doubt the textile jobs are gone and aren’t coming back.”

He said quality of life improvements like Hinson Lake and Hitchcock Creek and the new recreation complex that are in the works, are ways the city has invested to make this a reality.

“Also, the city has lent over $4 million over the last 10 years to help small businesses expand,” he said. “Some have done very well, and others haven’t done as well, but when you help to fund these businesses you never know when one will take hold and create jobs for Rockingham’s citizens.”

He said the city has also worked to support existing industries through infrastructure projects like water delivery for Perdue and wastewater treatment upgrades for von Drehle’s operations.

“Building that infrastructure is absolutely essential to that development occurring,” he said. “... And we have been proactive in looking for ways to make those investments - to make good, sound financial decisions, but yet to keep investing.”

He said the city’s current financial status gives it the opportunity to look for ways to improve its lot.

“The city’s in very sound financial condition, and I think that’s in large part because we have been very conservative in our budgeting process,” McLaurin said. “While other cities are having to layoff members of their workforce, we haven’t raised taxes in about 10 years, haven’t had to let anyone go and haven’t had to reduce the services we provide our citizens ... I feel those in Washington and Raleigh could learn something from the way we manage our budget.”

He said the question of what he needs to improve in his next term if reelected is an easy one — marketing.

“I don’t think we’ve done a good job of marketing ourselves and these investments we’ve made,” McLaurin said. “I feel like we are headed in the right direction, but we have to find ways to communicate that. There is no doubt we can, and will, do a better job of marketing.”

Finally, he pointed out that he has demanded accountability in the Rockingham Housing Authority, and has worked to provide oversight through the city staff and appointments on the board to ensure the taxpayer’s money is being used wisely.

n Staff Writer Philip D. Brown can be reached at (910) 997-3111 ext. 32, or by e-mail at pbrown@yourdailyjournal.com.