When the majority of the Spring Lake Board of Aldermen took office in 2021, the small town of just under 12,000 was freshly enmeshed in a financial crisis in the wake of the Local Government Commission’s takeover in October 2021.
The LGC, which falls under the state treasurer’s office, oversees local governments’ finances throughout the state and approves any issuances of debts for local governments, according to the body’s website.
Now, those troubles appear to be in the rearview mirror, with state officials praising the town for its recovery and a bevy of new projects on the horizon. Residents met that growth with a resounding mark of approval, reelecting the entire board in November.
CityView spoke with the Board of Aldermen on Monday about how they turned the tide for Spring Lake and what drove their success as a team.
Their answers are excerpted below and have been edited for brevity and clarity.
CITYVIEW: What did you do prior to being elected?
ALDERMAN MARVIN LACKMAN: I retired from the Army after 23 years and currently work for the N.C. Dept. of Agriculture as a compliance officer.
ALDERWOMAN ADRIAN JONES THOMPSON: I was a stay-at-home mother. I have two grown children. I retired from the Army and I moved back home in 2016.
MAYOR PRO TEM SOÑA COOPER: I’ve been working from home since about 2009. My youngest graduated high school in 2010 and college in 2015 … For a couple years, I was like, “What do I do?” … Then, somebody said, “You should run for office.” So I did in 2017 and I won.
ALDERWOMAN ROBYN CHADWICK: I am an educator. I’ve been in education for over 13 years. I’m a very passionate teacher. I love children. I was a foster mom for many years. I’ve dedicated a large portion of my life to community service. I have one son. I call him my sunshine. He’s my blessing; he’s my “why.” He’s my reason that I’m so passionate about children … I started in local government two years ago. I’m a long-time resident of Spring Lake; I’ve been here all my life. My father retired from the military. This has been my home.
ALDERMAN RAUL PALACIOS: I’ve been in personal finance since I was 21. Born and raised in Spring Lake.
MAYOR KIA ANTHONY: I am a military veteran. I am also an entrepreneur. I’m a military transplant; I’m here because of Fort Liberty, but I’m originally from Flint, Michigan. I’ve been here for 24 years now.
Had any of you worked together prior to being elected, or was joining the board the first time any of you worked together?
Anthony: I’ve worked with Soña. Soña was a member of the Juneteenth Freedom Festival planning committee. She was our government liaison, our resident fund-finder [laughs], interactor with governmental bodies. So we had a chance to work together for a few years with festival planning before we joined forces to rebuild Spring Lake.
It doesn’t happen often that every elected official in a municipality gets reelected when facing opposition. Why do you think the citizens of Spring Lake put their faith in you as a team?
Chadwick: From the very beginning, we were very transparent. We included the community in decision-making, and we wanted to show them that we wanted to rebuild Spring Lake and make them a part of a prosperous town. We kept it real from the very beginning. We didn’t fan no flies and tell no lies. [everyone laughs] … Everything we did, we let them know, because trust was one of the biggest things that they had an issue with. We wanted them to know that they could trust us.
What do you all think you’ve learned from your time working together?
Anthony: One thing I have learned is that these five additional people, they genuinely care about Spring Lake. We were run through the ringer. It’s a joke that we’ve had 30 years of problems in our first term — having to join together to navigate being a municipality of all newly elected officials except one, having to navigate the LGC [Local Government Commission] and working as elected officials with no financial control. One of our primary responsibilities is managing the budget, and we had no say over that … We didn’t have the authority to make the decisions, but we did have control over what we learned about the processes, and everybody made sure that we learned as much as we could. One thing I learned about this board is that they don’t hold back, but they do it from their heart. They do it with love and compassion and genuine concern for our community … We have to have people who are bold enough to stand up and say, “This is right and this is wrong.” People don’t oppose the LGC because they are big dogs, but these guys right here — I would walk into battle with any one of them any day because they’re strong, they care and they’re compassionate, and they take pride in what we do.
Cooper: If we disagree, we do it respectfully … I’ll never forget the first time Alderman Lackman and myself voted differently — he brought me flowers the next meeting. We disagree, but we do it respectfully.
Palacios: There was one time where we disagreed on a vote publicly, and Soña called me the next day and said, “I respect you for disagreeing.” It means a lot, that kind of stuff, because publicly, you’re here making the decisions for the town, and it doesn’t always happen that we disagree on a vote, but when it does, it can either rub you the wrong way or you go along with respect for your other board members.
Anthony: We all share the same vision and the same goal. We want Spring Lake to prosper and we don’t look at our differences as opposition. That’s opportunity for us to look at other avenues. It may just be that what we’re presenting isn’t good enough yet, and we’ve got a board to say no … Our differences isn’t opposition; it’s opportunity. Even when we disagree on a vote, when we leave, we’re laughing, making sure everybody gets out safely. It’s a different type of environment. We share the foundational belief that all we want is for this town to do well.
Cooper: We don’t look at things from a partisan standpoint. We look at, how does that benefit the citizens? I don’t care about anybody’s party. I care about the people.
What do you think makes your group uniquely successful?
Thompson: We can agree to disagree, but we still get along.
Chadwick: It’s about the maturity level. We all hold a certain amount of maturity and expectation and come here with expectations, even for our community’s citizens that come and watch and listen. We fine-tune a lot of things … because we want better, for ourselves, for the community … It’s a point that when we come together, even when we don’t always agree, the expectation is that, it’s OK to have differences and it’s OK to have a different opinion. The party’s still gotta go on, so let’s bake a cake.
Palacios: The obvious is that all of us except Cooper were put in office at the same time, all fresh from a very turbulent time in Spring Lake’s history. Most of us didn’t know each other, or at least had not worked together. We all came in drinking from a fire hose and willing to learn and grow. After we were sworn in, we met that same week two more times just to make sure we understood the town and town staff. I think that was a great foundation, us getting in and willing to learn and grow.
Did you get any specific feedback from voters on what you have accomplished as a board?
Cooper: I think our feedback shows in the number of people who show up to our meetings. That number continues to increase and we continue to get new people. For me, that speaks volumes, because I can remember when I used to be here – it was maybe two people or three … Two or three people in the audience, and now, we have a robust number of people, some who come on a regular basis.
Anthony: I can definitely say from the office of the mayor, being kind of the target, when I first took office every couple of weeks I received a letter from the community with them bashing this, that or the other. It was something negative. We’ve gotten handwritten thank-you letters from multiple community members. I don’t see as many as negative, but the fact that they’re coming now and they’re noticing and they care enough to write it down to let us know. We’re getting compliments on social media. Alderman Lackman and his social media group, Spring Lake Matters, there’s someone in there regularly now thanking town staff for the work that they’re doing. I think the community’s feeling seen now … The community is really engaged now. It definitely helps me sleep better at night.
Are there any particular initiatives that you all are especially excited about or want to highlight?
Chadwick: We have a new housing development that’s coming, and we really need housing in Spring Lake. I know Mayor Pro Tem Cooper was talking about maybe some federal funding for affordable housing.
Anthony: To be at the cusp or at a point to where they are planning the end [of being under Local Government Commission control]. A permanent town manager — we’re on the cusp of bringing in that permanent position. We are really turning a corner.
Thompson: The revitalization of Main Street.
Anthony: That mural is spectacular … Even at nighttime, you can see it … It’s powerful. You feel that mural. It’s right on Main Street on Spring Avenue … Mutzberg Park project. We’ve got 33 acres of walking trails, natural walking trails with a scenic overlook right over Little River that we are working with Cumberland County Parks and Rec on. They’re allocating a couple million dollars to help us with this project so our planning department is working very closely with them to make this project come to fruition. Natural gas; that project is right in the pipeline. Veterans’ Park. We’re updating it … Thanks to the help of Fayetteville, they came and moved a bunch of dead trees. They were infested with weevils, so we had to clear all of those trees out … They did it all for free. Now, we are in the process of remodeling.
Lackman: Statues, monuments. Thanks to Rep. [Marvin] Lucas for fighting for the town of Spring Lake.
Anthony: And Sen. [Tom] McInnis, definitely … Cumberland County will be updating our neighborhood parks with all-new equipment … All of our parks will be to the standard of all Cumberland County parks. Same thing with our rec center … The general fund is healthy. We got a little money [laughs]. We got tons of new equipment. We’ve got new police vehicles. We’ve got a new fire truck, a ladder truck. We got new meter readers for the meters. Finance software that was allocated in the state budget; they gave us money specifically for upgrading all of our software, and we’re starting with finance because they are in dire need of updating that system first. There’s so much happening; so many good things.
Your board is the most diverse board of any municipality in Cumberland County. How do you think that contributes to your success?
Lackman: It begins with an individual with a servant’s heart, one who wants a better Spring Lake for all. Spring Lake’s proximity to Fort Liberty will always bring a diverse group of people to our town. Seeing something from different viewpoints allows for a better Spring Lake.
Thompson: It sparks creativity.
Chadwick: It just builds a great momentum. With [Palacios’] background in finance and [Anthony’s] background in military and [Cooper’s] background in everything — together, we’re a force to be reckoned with.
Anthony: We all have our strong points. We highlight each other’s strengths and help each other with our weaknesses. I think that’s one thing that’s been rock solid since we started is we’re a team, and we have to work together. Our diversity is just an additional asset, from not just our ethnicity but from our belief systems, where we come from…
What do you want Spring Lake residents to know about what you all will accomplish together over the next two years?
Lackman: The simplistic answer to your question is communication and transparency. With my vote, I always look at what is best for the residents, because I am a resident of Spring Lake. I took an oath and my priority is working for the residents of Spring Lake and do what is best for the town.
Thompson: We’re going to continue doing what we’re doing, working as a team and working for the citizens. That’s what we’re here for; the citizens. It’s not about us; it’s about the citizens.
Palacios: I think we were reelected because they liked the progress we’ve been able to make so far. Like I said at the swearing-in, I feel like we’ve got our training wheels off now. I feel like that’s kind of where we are.
Cooper: I think people like to see how we interact when we’re at the dais. I think people like to see how we work together.
Anthony: We operate off the agenda of the town and not personal agendas. It’s not very political, very stuffy. We’re here to do a job for our community and I think what we need our residents to know, what I think the message should be is that we are going to continue to do the work that they elected us to do. We have a lot of irons in the fire right now, and I hope that they'll allow us to continue to work for them knowing that they’re our bosses, not the other way around. We’re just gonna keep giving Spring Lake everything we have because we love this community.
Thompson: You can’t spell community without unity.
Reporter Lexi Solomon can be reached at lsolomon@cityviewnc.com or 910-423-6500.
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