Charlotte city government officials are now dealing with the aftermath of former mayor Patrick Cannon’s arrest and resignation. Charlotte could have a new mayor as soon as Monday.
Charlotte city council will meet on Monday evening to layout a timeline, possibly consider candidates and vote. City manager Ron Carlee held a press conference Thursday afternoon, in which he said the charges against Cannon don’t represent the way the city operates.
Carlee began with a quick lesson in how a council-manager system of government works: "Charlotte is more than one man."
He went on to say he’s spoken with federal investigators several times and will honor their request not to speak about the investigation.
"If there are any questionable activities anywhere in this government, we want them uncovered," Carlee says. "I don’t expect that there are, but I can’t say that definitely. So if there’s a problem somewhere, we’re going to work with the federal investigators so we can identify it and deal with it."
According to the federal complaint, Cannon said he called a city zoning official on behalf of the undercover agent who posed as a potential real estate investor. The complaint also says Cannon gave him the contact information of someone involved in planning he said would give the agent special attention. Carlee said the city’s good reputation drew him to the job in the first place and Cannon’s arrest hasn’t changed his opinion.
