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Birdie, by the Partners in Progress organization, on the recent hire of its new executive director, Natalie Hawkins.
Hawkins is ending her post this week as Pinehurstâs assistant village manager and walking a few blocks south to her new office, where she is replacing longtime director Pat Corso.
Hawkins is an outstanding choice for a number of reasons, not the least of which is her longtime experience in Moore County and dealing with a multitude of issues and constituencies. Pinehurst can be a tough place to serve, seeing as there is no lack of retirees willing to tell you how to do your job.
Natalie Dean Hawkins has been tapped to lead Moore County Partners in Progress, the countyâs economic development arm. She will succeed outgoing executive director Pat Corso who is stepping down in May.
Hawkins has served as the assistant village manager of Pinehurst since 2005. In that role she oversaw development of the villageâs 2019 comprehensive long range plan, oversaw preparation of the annual strategic operating plan which includes a five-year financial forecast and capital improvement plan, coordinated the villageâs 2020 library needs assessment, and served as the downtown manager, and directed external communications and marketing.
âIf you look at Natalie and what she has accomplished. She also stood out for her versatility and enthusiasm in her interview and her recommendations on things going forward,â said John May, chairman of the Partners in Progress board.
Moore County holds the top spot for âmicropolitanâ areas in North Carolina for the fourth consecutive year, according to the 2021 Economic Strength report published by Policom.
Instead of looking for boomtowns or the latest âhotspot,â Policom, a Florida-based consulting firm, measures 23 different economic factors that determine how an economy has behaved over an extended period of time.
Economic strength is evaluated on the basis of the areaâs long-term tendency to grow in both size and quality. By definition, a micropolitan area has an urban center of at least 10,000 but fewer than 50,000 people.
In the report issued in late January, data stretching from 2000 to 2019 (most current data available) placed the Pinehurst-Southern Pines micropolitan in the No. 1 slot for North Carolina and 53rd out of 543 micropolitan areas across the country. Statistical areas are ânamedâ after the largest city or cities in the area, but it is generally accepted th
Itâs hard to remember a time when Pat Corso wasnât trying to improve life and the local economy here in Moore County.
Indeed, youâd have to go back more than 35 years, to when Bob Dedman Sr., then chairman of ClubCorp., had just made a fateful decision to buy the bankrupt, broken-down Pinehurst Resort and return it to glory. To do that, he hired Corso, then one of his young corporate executives, to lead that restoration. Corso hasnât stopped building since.
Sandhills Community College President John Dempsey is Corsoâs longtime friend, golfing partner and Vitoâs Ristorante dining companion. In a âroastâ of Corso a few years ago, Dempsey said it best when he said Corso alone isnât to credit for the good things we all enjoy today.