ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, April 18, 1997 TAG: 9704180090
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: TODD JACKSON THE ROANOKE TIMES
Some felt Cross was in a no-win situation because local politics stood in his way and he had few resources with which to work.
Franklin County's first economic development director, frustrated by local politics that are hampering growth, resigned Wednesday - just a few months after he was hired.
Greg Cross left a consulting firm he headed in New England to take the Franklin County job, and he quickly discovered that he wasn't happy working for a local government, County Administrator Macon Sammons said.
"There's a great deal of difference," Sammons said.
Cross also expressed frustration over the lack of water and sewer services in the county, Sammons said. A stalemate between the Franklin County Board of Supervisors and the Rocky Mount Town Council over the extension of services is preventing development in the county's busiest corridors.
Several local officials felt Cross was in a no-win situation because local politics stood in his way and he had few resources with which to work.
Larry Heaton, a member of the county's economic development commission, said Cross' resignation sends a message.
"This is a blow. We've got to stop looking backward. We are losing opportunities," he said.
Heaton noted a recent lawsuit filed by a company that wants to build a Wendy's restaurant on Virginia 40 just east of Rocky Mount. The company, Wenco of Danville Inc., sued the town after it charged a $125,000 sewer hook-up fee.
Wenco says that's too much. The town says it is trying to recoup the cost of a $1.2 million sewer upgrade that the county was supposed to help fund but didn't.
"How often do you see a Wendy's suing just so it can do business?" Heaton asked. "The inability of the town and county to work together is a deterrent."
The economic development commission was formed several months ago, and Cross' hiring followed. He recently moved into his own office, and he had been meeting face-to-face with the major players in the county.
"I thought Greg was conducting himself in a very professional manner," said Rocky Mount Town Councilman Arnold Dillon, whom Cross visited a few weeks ago. "You have to give the guy credit for trying."
Carthan Currin, general manager of the Comfort Inn in Rocky Mount, said Cross had already made contacts with several business prospects interested in available property behind the hotel.
"I really think Greg was trying to do things the right way," Currin said.
Cross, who served as economic development director for 31/2 months and was being paid a salary in the $30,000-a-year range, will continue to do some "interim consulting" for Franklin County for the time being, Sammons said. The company Cross headed in Portland, Maine - Datatrends Inc. - provides research on economic development issues such as site locations and market analyses.
Sammons said he doesn't know whether Cross will stay in Franklin County or return to Maine.
Cross could not be reached for comment Thursday. He returned Wednesday to Cape Elizabeth, Maine, where his wife and children live, and the family was traveling to Franklin County Thursday, Sammons said.
Cross' decision came as a surprise to other Franklin County officials.
"He didn't even get the seat warm," said Bob Jeans, a commission member.
Several members of the Board of Supervisors said Thursday that they knew nothing about the resignation.
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