Decision 2010: Board of Commissioners District 2 race

(Editor’s note: The following is part of The Mecklenburg Times’ coverage of the Nov. 2 elections.)

Vilma Leake

(Editor’s note: Incumbent Vilma Leake could not be reached for an interview.)

Lee Ann Patton

Age: 49

Hometown: Charleston, W.Va.

Family: Single; no children

Education: Bachelor’s degree in social work from West Virginia Wesleyan College

Political affiliation: Republican

The first time Lee Ann Patton laid eyes on Charlotte it was 1982 and she was on spring break with a group of her sorority sisters from West Virginia Wesleyan College. The girls were headed to Hilton Head, S.C., and made a pit stop in Charlotte. Patton, asleep in the back seat, woke up as they drove through uptown.

“I didn’t even know where we were, but I thought the uptown looked so beautiful and clean,” she said. “It seemed like such a nice town. It had never dawned on me that I would leave West Virginia, but I vowed at that moment that I was going to live here someday.”

True to her word, a few months after she graduated from college in 1984, she packed her Volkswagen Rabbit with a couple of suitcases and her 13-inch color TV and moved to Charlotte.

She and a few friends rented an apartment together, and she landed a job as a waitress at a Pizza Hut. She soon put her degree in social work to use and started working at Lutheran Family Services as a counselor for troubled teens and unwed mothers. She now owns and operates Patton’s House Cleaning Service and said she can relate to the struggles of small-business owners.

“I couldn’t hire somebody if I wanted to right now. A lot of my customers are losing their jobs and taking pay cuts. So what’s the first thing to go? Services like mine. I used to have a waiting list and could pick and choose my clients. No more. The phone never rings.”

Always interested in politics, Patton said she’s served as chairwoman of her voter precinct and delegate to the county, district and state Republican Party conventions. But it wasn’t until the past few years that she thought about running for public office.

“I had been screaming at the newspapers and TV, and my blood pressure was going up. I was tired of being one of those people who just complain. I felt like it was time to get out of the stands and play the game.”

What are the top needs and/or problems you plan to address if elected?

Patton said one of her top priorities is to reduce taxes. She vows not to vote for any tax increases during her term, including sales, property and food and beverage taxes.

She said she would also cut small-business and corporate taxes to encourage hiring, expansions and startups.

“Mecklenburg County has some of the highest taxes in the Southeast,” she said. “I continue to see county officials spend taxpayer money on nonmandated programs that are not necessarily important for us right now in the economic crisis we’re in. There needs to be a whole lot more oversight and accountability in the way money is being spent in our county.”

Patton said another top need is stopping out-of-control government spending. She said she would support reviewing the budget line by line, carefully prioritizing and spending only within budget limits.

“I’ve had to tighten my belt,” she said. “The county is going to have tighten its belt, too.”

By the end of your term, what major accomplishments do you hope to have achieved?

During her term, Patton pledges to lower taxes and cut spending.

“I’ll help set priorities in county spending,” she said. “Jobs will be restored. There will be greater accountability in county government from the manager on down. When we make a decision, it will be in the best interest of all the people. With somebody like me, who’s never been in office before, I have a new, fresh perspective on things. I’ll bring ethics back into the office.”

Sam Boykin can be reached at [email protected].