CARRBORO, N.C. – Following a nationwide search, Mayor Lydia Lavelle and the Town Council are pleased to announce the appointment of Richard J. White III as Carrboro’s next Town Manager.
With 24 years of municipal government leadership, including at the City of Asheville, the Town of Elon, Unified Government of Athens-Clarke County, and the Town of Carrboro, Mr. White will bring extensive experience to the position.
“We are delighted to be bringing Richard back to Carrboro,” Mayor Lydia Lavelle said. “The valuable experience he gained during his time away from us makes it possible for him to come back to this town he is so familiar with and hit the ground running.”
“Carrboro was a wonderful community where I was able to learn and grow professionally at the beginning of my career,” Mr. White said. “I am grateful and excited to have the opportunity to return and to join with the Town Council, residents, and staff to achieve extraordinary outcomes.”
Mr. White currently serves as Assistant City Manager and Interim Equity and Inclusion Director for his hometown city of Asheville, N.C. Here he is responsible for the supervision of five department directors including capital projects, information technology, public works, sustainability, and water resources. Among his list of accomplishments, he led the internal COVID-19 Response Team and assisted with the Vance Monument Task Force and implementing the Council’s Reparations Resolution for Black Asheville which is designed to increase minority homeownership, provide access to other affordable housing, develop strategies to grow equity and generational wealth, and close gaps in a number of areas.
Prior to Asheville, Mr. White served as Town Manager for Elon, N.C. from 2014 to 2019, where he led the transition of volunteer-led fire service to town–managed combined fire department, initiated and obtained the N.C. Main Street Designation for the town, developed a Strategic Plan framework, and managed the Comprehensive Land Use Plan development process. As Assistant Manager for Athens-Clarke County, Ga., from 2006 to 2012, he supervised nine department directors and managed the $14 million American Recovery and Reinvestment Program.
During his time in Carrboro (2000 to 2006) as Assistant to the Town Manager, he assisted with the acquisition of the Adams Tract.
Mr. White earned a bachelor’s degree from UNC-Chapel Hill, where he was both a Morehead Scholar and a North Carolina Fellow; and a master’s degree in public administration from NC State University, as a Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Fellow.
He will begin his position as Carrboro’s next Town Manager on Aug. 23, 2021.
National Search
The Town Council conducted a nationwide search for the position and involved the management team and town employees, as well as the Comprehensive Plan Task Force, in the candidate review process.
The position opening follows the announcement by Carrboro Town Manager David Andrews of his plans to retire after more than 30 years in local government service.
Manager’s Office
Carrboro has a council-manager form of government. The seven council members, including the mayor, are elected. The council appoints the town manager. Each has a different set of responsibilities. The council sets policies; the town manager and his/her staff carry them out. As a professional administrator, the town manager coordinates all day-to-day operations and administration of about 200 employees and an annual budget of $71 million.
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