NACo President Hails Invigorated Partnership with Mayors, Pledges Continued Commitment

NACo’s President, Howard County Council Chair C. Vernon Gray, brought greetings from his organization to the 68th Winter Meeting of the Conference of Mayors. Gray has worked hard throughout his presidency to cement the long-standing association between the Conference of Mayors and NACo. This partnership has become even more crucial to both organizations since the compilation of gross metropolitan data has revealed that cities and counties form regions that need to collaborate in order to be economically competitive with other regions and nations. The formation of the Joint Center for Sustainable Communities has been key to reviving and institutionalizing the partnership. Councilman Gray stood with other county leaders and the USCM leadership in its foray to New York City to promote metro economies and bring our united message to Wall Street. (See story on page 64.) Gray cited data from U.S. Economies: The Engines of America’s Growth and noted that NACo and USCM being in New York together sent a powerful message to Wall Street to ‘invest in America’s counties and cities’.