The County Manager is a professional administrator who oversees the day-to-day operations of county government on behalf of the Board of County Commissioners. The manager’s role is to give sound, objective advice to the elected Board who in turn makes policy decisions for the welfare of the citizens. The manager then determines the most effective and efficient way to implement the Board’s directives.

Serving as the chief administrator for Iredell County, the County Manager is selected by the Iredell County Board of Commissioners and is responsible for duties that include, but are not limited to:

• Direct responsibility for the operation of county government services and functions.
• Direct responsibility for budget preparation and implementation.
• To appoint and remove such offices and employees deemed necessary, except officers and employees who are required to be elected or whose appointment is otherwise provided by law.
• Reporting the county’s financial, operational, and administrative activities to the Board of Commissioners.
• Attending meetings of the Board and making any recommendations that are considered important.
• Seeing that the Board’s directives and policies are faithfully executed.

The County Manager has the following people who help him carry out the Board’s directives:

• William P. Pope, County Attorney
• Jean Moore, Clerk to the Board; jmoore@co.iredell.nc.us
• Susan Blumenstein, Director of Finance sblumenstein@co.iredell.nc.us
• Tracy Jackson, Deputy County Manager; tjackson@co.iredell.nc.us
• Retha Gaither, Executive Secretary; rgaither@co.iredell.nc.us
• Steve Warren, Grants & Safety Coordinator
  smwarren@co.iredell.nc.us

Contact Information for the County Manager

• Joel R. Mashburn, County Manager; jmashburn@co.iredell.nc.us

  Address:
  Iredell County Government Center
  200 South Center Street
  Post Office Box 788
  Statesville, NC 28687-0788

  Phone: (704) 878-3050
  Fax: (704) 878-5355

Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Closed County-recognized holidays and weekends.

History of the County Manager in Iredell County

The Commissioner – Manager form of government has been utilized in North Carolina since the early-Twentieth Century, and Iredell County was one of the first counties to appoint a chief administrator.

At a March 7, 1927 Board of Commissioner’s meeting, the Board unanimously voted to create the office of “Business Manager” of the county. C.S. Tomlin, Chairman of the Board of Commissioners, resigned his office and was immediately appointed Business Manager with his term set to expire the first Monday in December 1928. His salary was set at $3,500.00 per year plus expenses. A news account stated that the Board’s action was “made in compliance with a special act of the General Assembly creating a Business Manager for Iredell County.”

The Board’s experiment with a professional manager was short-lived. In the 1928 election, all incumbents were defeated and five new members were elected to the Board of Commissioners. The Business Manager position was eliminated, and Iredell County did not hire another manager until November 1963.

There have been eight different County Managers since 1963 serving for terms that range from one to nineteen years. The longest serving manager is our current chief administrator who has been with Iredell County since 1988.