April 3, 2018

The Forum’s rules are not totally inflexible, but James Mitchell knew that when he was offered 10 minutes for his presentation this morning, he had better get into sprint mode.

And so he did, as those who watch the video below will attest.

The longest-serving current member of Charlotte City Council, who now heads the Economic Development Committee, is a central figure in what he believes are the most fundamental tasks facing the city: developing wealth, creating jobs. creating jobs. Oh, and did we mention creating jobs?

The presentation came with a small blizzard of handouts: the 2017 Charlotte Business Inclusion Program report; on Mitchell’s April 12 town hall meeting; on the May 1 kickoff of Small Business Month; on the June 6-9 Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit; and fliers big and small and small on Project PIECE, the Partnership for Inclusive Employment and Career Excellence, a training program collaborative involving the city, the Urban League and Goodwill.

In the video below, the presentation begins at minute 10:05. The Q&A begins at minute 28:16. Elected officials introduced themselves at minute 1:18:44. Candidates for elective office introduced themselves at minute 1:21:46.