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HONORING MAC WILLIAMS: LEADER IN ALAMANCE COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
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HON. TED BUDD
of north carolina
in the house of representatives
Thursday, July 29, 2021
Mr. BUDD. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of Mac Williams' retirement from his storied tenure as president of the Alamance County Chamber of Commerce and in commemoration of his great achievements on behalf of the county's economy.
Departing with over 45 years of expertise in economic development, Mac's service as President of the Chamber since 2004 has been critical to the addition of numerous businesses and their operations to Alamance County. From 2017 through 2020, Alamance County saw over $425,200,000 in capital investment and has added over 1,265 jobs under Mac's supervision. While the numbers alone speak to Mac's extraordinary ability to attract new employers to Alamance County, Mac's accomplishments are even more impressive when considering the history of the county.
Long a fixture of North Carolina's textile industry, Alamance County's economy has benefitted from its central location within the state. As the textile industry began to boom in the mid-19th century, the area naturally developed into a transportation hub, serving as a link between Greensboro and Raleigh due to its close proximity to the two neighboring cities. Though the textile industry is still strong in Alamance County, textiles no longer make up the same share of the area's economy as they once did. Rather than allowing Alamance County's economic opportunity to fade as much of the manufacturing process has been moved overseas, Mac Williams and the Chamber of Commerce worked hard to ensure that the county adapted its unique geographic and historic advantages to preserve its strong economic performance, pivoting to become a hotspot not only for the manufacturing that remained, but now also for logistics and distribution.
Those who know Mac recognize him as a leader amongst his peers and it has even been said of him by Greensboro Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Brent Christenson that ``Mac has long been the standard by which other chamber leaders and economic development professionals have been measured.''
Please join me in thanking Mac Williams for his commitment to the economic wellbeing and continued prosperity of Alamance County. We wish him the best in his future endeavors. Today, Alamance County is ``A Great Place to Be'' in large part because of Mac's contributions.
Mac Williams To Retire as Alamance Chamber President by the End of
October
The Triad is soon to lose as second veteran economic developer within a year as Alamance Chamber of Commerce President Mac Williams draws the curtain on a 45-year career, around the end of October.
But like Loren Hill, who retired after 20 years as president of the High Point Economic Development Corp. at the beginning of the year, retirement doesn't mean he is going away.
Williams, who joined the Alamance Chamber in 2004, told the Alamance News he will be seeking other opportunities in the economic development community. He may not have to look far.
``Mac has another career in either consulting or site selection,'' Bob Lewis, shareholder and broker at NAI Piedmont Triad, told Triad Business Journal. ``I'd hire him to come work with our company. He would be a dynamite addition to our site selection group.''
Hill wasn't on the job market long. Within a month after leaving his prior post, he was named economic development director of the Piedmont Triad Partnership.
Lewis said Williams ``had a great run'' in his time in Alamance County. He played a key role in the recruitment of companies to both North Carolina Industrial Center and North Carolina Commerce Park. He helped lead the transformation of the county's former textiles-based economy into one focused on logistics and distribution, maximizing the county's proximity to major metropolitan areas and efficient interstate access.
Under Williams' watch, Alamance County brought in food distribution centers for Walmart and grocery chain Lidl; food manufacturing and distribution facilities for Sheetz and Lotus Bakeries; and had manufacturing wins such as Honda Power Equipment expansions and Honda Aero, which builds HondaJet engines for Honda Aircraft Co.
Most recently, he helped secure a new distribution hub for United Parcel Service and a distribution center for Chick-fil-A.
``Mac has long been the standard by which other chamber leaders and economic development professionals have been measured,'' said Greensboro Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Brent Christensen. ``He leaves a lasting legacy of creating jobs for the Alamance County community and being a great advocate for this region. I know that his counterparts in the region and state will miss him, but hopefully we will be able to call on him for advice from time to time.''
Added Brian Hall, director of development of Samet Corp., one of Alamance County's more active commercial construction contractors, ``Mac leaves a legacy of working in partnership with both public and private partners, to secure economic growth, driving investment in the county and helping to create a brighter future for Alamance County.''
Not just ``elephant hunting,'' Lewis, who has known Williams since the early 1980s, said Williams understands the value of recruiting multiple smaller companies that collectively provide similar impact to a single large one. Economic development requires leadership that effectively educates elected officials and the community on the value what is a public/private venture.
``We talk frequently and keep each other informed about various aspects of the market, and he has done just a stellar job for Alamance County,'' Lewis said. ``He is highly respected in the economic development community.
He's forgotten more about economic development than most people will ever know.''
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 133
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
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