Anthony Pierce

Anthony Pierce

• Candidate Biography

  Born in Goldsboro, NC and raised in Durham, North Carolina. Has lived in Alamance County for over 13 years now. Family is his top priority in life. He’s a father of three who attend ABSS and a husband to Tina Pierce, local Realtor serving Alamance and surrounding counties.

  He comes of humble beginnings, growing up in low-income housing throughout his entire childhood. He is a product of the public school system and has personally benefited from county services offered as a child.

  His mother retired from manufacturing pharmaceuticals in Morrisville, NC and later retiring from early childcare as a Daycare teacher. His father was a Vietnam Vet and Special Forces Soldier, that later died in a tragic car accident in 1990. He grew up in a single parent home being 1 of 4.

  He graduated high school from Southern Durham High, attended undergraduate school at NC A&T State University, studying Biology, later graduating with a Bachelors of Science from the University of Phoenix. He received several credentials related to EMS to include EMT Paramedic certification and a host of Instructor level EMS credentials.

  He served as a First Responder and later a Paramedic Supervisor/ Lieutenant at Durham County EMS in County Government for more than 15 years before transitioning to the private sector. Currently, he serves in senior leadership as a Sr. Manager of a global team of research professional, primarily in cancer drug development. He serves as a volunteer with Alamance County Rescue, responding to major incidents involving major wrecks with patient trapped, water rescues, people searches, and when there are no ambulances available. Retains his EMS credentials. He also volunteers at local ABSS schools to assist teachers and staff in many different ways. He’s the current President of a local community organization. The lead Deacon at Beyond Measure Ministries in Haw River. Serves as Executive Board member of the FBI Charlotte Citizens Academy bridging the gap between the FBI and Community. Has served on the Alamance County Planning board the past 3 years, by commissioner appointment. Served on the Alamance County Local Emergency Planning Committee, Fellow with the Institute of Political Leadership, Founding member and Board of Director for Alamance For Alamance for Good Government, Chair of Melville 3 precinct and Former Board member of Mebane Business Association.

  Anthony’s key skill set is finding common ground and collaborating with diverse groups to create practical solutions. It’s with his collaborative approach, coupled with his direct knowledge of county government, business acumen, diverse life experiences, and proven ability to deliver results, makes him the ideal candidate for Alamance County Commissioner.

  Follow him on the Website:  www.voteAnthonyPierce.com

  Facebook: 
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  IG: pierceforalamance             

• What motivated you to run for Alamance County Board of Commissioners?

  Serving the public is deeply embedded in my blood. My passion for public service came to me at an early age because of a tragic accident that occurred when I was 12 years old. A tractor and trailer driver fell asleep at the wheel running of the road and collided with a van carrying my dad, aunt, uncle, 2 nephews, 1 niece, and my cousin who were parked on the side of the highway to switch drivers in a rural part of North Carolina on I-95 South. The collision resulted in killing all the males and all the females survived and was transported to the hospital with critical injuries. Unfortunately, there were not enough ambulances to transport all the critically injured which resulted in them needing to leave some behind. As a result, I later became a Paramedic so that I could serve and respond if this ever happens again. My desire to run for Alamance County commissioner was because of seeing how the county neglects to properly fund our EMS department and first responders, resulting in there being no available ambulances in the entire county multiple times per day. I also decided to run for Commissioner because of observing the county leadership continue to refuse to address the decades of county and school facility neglect which caused a reactive response to address the longstanding mold issues within the schools that resulted in delaying school openings and millions of dollars for cleanup. I also see that there is a lack of representation on the current board, in fact, all of them based on the current listed residence are within 7 miles of each other. Who will advocate for those that do not have a voice in county government. I will ensure that the public voice is welcomed and encouraged, prior to all decisions.

• What is your vision for the future of Alamance County, and how will your actions on the Board of Commissioners support that vision?

  My vision for the future of Alamance County is to have county leaders that truly care about the citizens they serve. That we transform from reactive governing to proactive governing and planning as it relates to the needs of the county. Developing a comprehensive plan to address the many facility needs across the county to include schools and county buildings that have been neglected far too long. Ensure our First Responders are fully funded and equipped with the tools and staffing resources needed to ensure the safety of Alamance County residents and those traveling through our county. Ensure taxes are fair and property revaluations are done in an accurate and consistent manner with appropriate oversight by well experienced leaders ensuring accuracy and fairness.

  Some of the actions I plan to take are:

  1.  Ensure there is appropriate oversight of tax dollars for facility projects, using the trust but verify method.

  2.  Repair the fractured relationship between ABSS and the county commissioners to ensure we bring a shared responsibility for the success of our schools and our students.

  3.  Appropriately fund our first responders to ensure we have enough resources available to respond to emergencies across the county when they occur.

  4.  Ensure that appropriate oversight of our county Tax department is performed, to ensure checks and balances occur regularly, safeguarding our tax dollars, to ensure we all pay our fair share whether business, residential or personal property taxes.

• What are the three most significant needs for Alamance County that require the immediate attention of the Board of Commissioners?

  1.  Developing a comprehensive plan to address the many facility needs across the county to include schools and county buildings that have been neglected far too long.

  2.  Ensure our First Responders are fully funded and equipped with the tools and staffing resources needed to ensure the safety of Alamance County residents and those traveling through our county.

  3.  Ensure taxes are fair and property revaluations are done in an accurate and consistent manner with appropriate oversight by well experienced leaders ensuring accuracy and fairness.

  4.  The need to transition from reactive governing to proactive governing as it relates to the needs of the county.

• How would you approach issues of taxation, budget prioritization, and resource allocation?

  Ensure taxes are fair and property revaluations are done in an accurate and consistent manner with appropriate oversight by well experienced leaders ensuring accuracy and fairness. I will also look at alternative ways of funding the gaps we face as a county, to include exploring additional grants and the use of sales tax as a way to share the burden with the many thousands of people who work, shop and pass through Alamance, verses putting the sole burden on those that own property in Alamance. I would also re-evaluate our current resource prioritization and ensure that our budgets truly reflect our priorities and resourcing needs as a county.

• How should the Board of Commissioners be approaching land development planning and preparing for future growth and development in Alamance County?

  As a Alamance Planning Board member I believe growth is inevitable. Alamance County has grown by 20% in such a short period of time. We must move away from the ongoing reactive approach of dealing with land development and growth, and transition to a 21st century mindset of a proactive approach using land development and planning tools such as zoning, as used in most all the counties in North Carolina with similar sized populations or greater. We must continue to encourage public input prior to making decisions. Ensure appropriate education mechanisms are rolled out to the public to ensure they understand the impact of any changes to land development in their communities.

• What is required for an effective relationship between the ABSS Board of Education and Alamance County Commissioners, and how will you work toward that as an elected official? 

  We must truly partner with our local school board and staff. We all play a huge role in improving the local schools. Parent, teacher, ABSS, and our Commissioners. Commissioners can aid in this improvement by developing a comprehensive plan to address the many facility needs across the schools to include ensuring there is a comprehensive maintenance plan to protect our investment. I would strongly suggest fully funding these facility needs but also ensuring that there is appropriate oversight to ensure projects are being completed and the public is informed of progress and milestone achievements along the way.

• How do you plan to work with other local governments, state agencies, and community organizations to achieve the county’s goals?

  I plan to partner with our local, state, and federal partners, community stakeholders and local organizations to ensure we are taking a collaborative approach to solving the many complex issues our county faces. I plan to seek creative ways we can finance our more expensive projects that our local municipalities can benefit from, thus fostering a shared investment approach, as an example. I also plan to contact our state representatives to seek guidance and support for the funding needs we have across the county.

• How do you plan to engage constituent voices in the decisions of the Board of Commissioners? 

  It is important that people all across this great county feel that they are heard. One tool to ensure our communities are heard is by changing the current public comment policy and allow for Commissioners to ask questions and respond to the comments made by our constituents during the public comment period at the beginning of the meeting just after the public comments versus at the end of the meeting. This allows for a timely response and is respectful of the public’s time. Another way I plan to engage with the public is to continue to meet with the public in their communities just as I have done as a candidate. Sometimes its better to meet people where they are versus waiting for them to come to us.

• Please share a specific leadership experience that illustrates how you will be effective as a leader for Alamance County.

  I bring more than 25 years combined proven leadership experience across the public and private industry. Serving as leader in public service as a Paramedic Supervisor helped shape me into the leader I am today. When the public dialed 911 we responded to their emergency and attended to their needs regardless of their background, political party, gender, race, or economic status. This is what is missing from today’s county government and needs to come back. I have many years of experience negotiating multi-million dollar budgets in county government as well as private industry. This skill set will allow for me to ask pertinent questions to ensure we are exhibiting fiduciary responsibility with tax dollars. Lastly, I routinely collaborate with people from all types of backgrounds and experiences in my current role in private industry as well as on the Alamance County Planning board. This experience has taught me how to work together to come up with solutions to the more complex problems that we may not all be 100% happy with but that we can live with.