Aired on Dec. 29, 2024

• Economic Growth, VinFast, WolfSpeed, Jobs

Host Randy Voller, welcomes Michael Smith, the president of the Chatham County Economic Corporation. He’s an experienced economic development professional with more than 20 years serving in local organizations and with the North Carolina Department of Commerce in Raleigh. During his tenure, the March 2022 VinFast EV announcement made NC history as the largest economic development project ever announced in the state with a $4 billion investment and 7,500 new jobs.  September 2022 saw the Chatham EDC break the investment record again, with a $5 billion investment and 1,800 jobs at the Wolfspeed silicon carbide materials facility in Siler City. At his previous leadership position in Sanford-Lee County, he had significant success in business recruitment and product development, including 4 of the top 25 announcements in FY 2019-2020. Smith has served as the President of the North Carolina Economic Developers Association (NCEDA).  Smith was born in Durham and lived in Atlanta and Dallas before returning home to NC.  He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a Master’s Degree in Geography with a concentration in Urban/Regional Planning from East Carolina University. https://www.chathamedc.org/

On The Porch is hosted by Randolph ”Randy” Voller. He is also the publisher of Chatham County Line. Randy welcomes guests to the show who are from the communities of art, academia, business, and politics for friendly and informative conversations. On The Porch airs every Sunday at 11:06 AM, and repeated at 4:06 PM and 7:06 PM on WCHL-FM 97.9. The show also streams on ChapelBoro.com
More than 125 conversations are posted as on-demand, ad-free podcasts at ChapelBoro.com

To be a guest on the show or send us a comment, email: ontheporch@wchl.com