Cason Gardner

Questionnaire from The Chamber, Leading Business in Cabarrus

Note: The following responses are verbatim from the candidate and have not been edited.

Please provide demographic information about yourself to help voters (age, education, current occupation, where you live).

I am a 23 year-old Concord native and lifelong Cabarrus County resident who currently resides in Concord. I graduated from Catawba College in 2024 with a bachelor's degree in Economics & Finance and currently work as a financial analyst at startup property management firm in Concord.

Why are you running for this role and why should voters pick you? Please share any experience in an elected role that would be relevant to voters.

I chose to run because I saw a need in my community. The citizens of Cabarrus County deserve to know what their local government does, and I promise to be as transparent as possible. My vision for Cabarrus County is simple: lower the costs of living, encourage community engagement, increase government accountability & fiscal responsibility, no unnecessary tax increases, and ensure that Cabarrus County remains a thriving community.

I have been involved with local government from a very young age and have educated myself on the inner workings of government at the local, state, and federal levels, which included becoming well-versed in Parliamentary Procedure (the rules that govern government affairs & meetings) and placed as a national finalist in the category at the 2024 Future Business Leaders of America Collegiate National Leadership Conference. I have also organized meetings with several government officials including former longtime Concord Mayor Scott Padgett and US Congressman Richard Hudson, and have lobbied for bills in front of state representatives in Raleigh. Finally, I have prior experience with the Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners, having served alongside the commissioners as a Cabarrus County Youth Commissioner from 2016-2020.

Tell us about 2-3 professional accomplishments you have achieved in your work experience (not limited to public service) that give voters a sense of your leadership style or skills.

I graduated from Catawba College with honors in 2024 with a degree in Economics and Finance and was a national finalist for the Parliamentary Procedure (the rules that govern official government actions & affairs) competition at the 2024 Future Business Leaders of America Collegiate National Leadership Conference. I also helped my company institute two new revenue streams in the past year and helped the company boost overall profit by more than 70% through my recommendations of redirecting of capital and other company resources.

What is one thing you would like to accomplish in the first six months if elected?

Work on balancing the county budget.

Cabarrus County includes both fast-growing communities and areas facing economic challenges. How would you guide county policy and investment decisions to support balanced growth and opportunity across the entire county?

First, I would work to ensure that annual infrastructure evaluations are done in cooperation with state & federal agencies to ensure infrastructure is maintained and upgraded safely and responsibly to handle anticipated growth. Second, I would encourage more public hearings to get the public's input on where zoning, economic, and infrastructure improvements need to be made. Finally, I would work to build relationships with business owners and the Chamber of Commerce to find opportunities that would provide the most valuable addition to our economy and labor market.

County government plays a central role in funding public school facilities and long-term capital needs. How would you approach decisions related to school capital investment to ensure facilities keep pace with growth, support student success, and remain fiscally responsible for taxpayers?

I believe that we must work with state & federal officials to look at how anticipated growth will affect our school system. This means annual evaluations on the safety of school buildings and their ability for student capacity. Further, we can build with companies that can offer education resources to their employees and their families.

A strong workforce depends on more than jobs alone. It is shaped by access to education, child care, and community resources. How would you use the county’s role to support workforce participation and quality of life for Cabarrus County residents?

First, I would work with county, state, and federal agencies to increase workforce education. Second, I would with local business owners to provide internships, as well as training for trades such as welding or electrical work. Third, I would work with county & state officials to ensure that training in the various blue-collar trade industries and internships in various other industries are mandatory in our high schools to ensure that our high school students have the job training necessary to excel in the workforce regardless of their post-high school education choices. Finally, I would explore giving companies certain tax benefits for providing childcare for employees.

Economic growth is essential to maintaining a strong tax base, supporting public services, and creating opportunity for residents. How would you approach county-level policies and investments to ensure Cabarrus County remains competitive in attracting and retaining businesses while managing growth responsibly?

County policies and investments must be handled responsibly. That said, I would work with my fellow commissioners to balance the needs of the county's residents with policies that attract businesses to Cabarrus. Meaning that I believe the county should reevaluate it's relationship with the Cabarrus County EDC by redefining the required parameters & requirements of the EDC to work with the county commissioners first before offering any incentives to outside businesses to come in. I believe our EDC parameters gives out incentives to companies too freely and too extravagantly. The Cabarrus County EDC should only offer tax cuts to businesses if they promise to keep wages above a certain minimum, such as above the state median salary, or if the companies promise to maintain certain employee benefits such as providing childcare to employees. Having these policies in place will help our county's residents navigate their costs of living and give companies incentives to help our residents on the path to financial stability. Companies will choose Cabarrus County regardless of tax breaks or other county-offered incentives due to its close proximity to an international airport and the financial capital of the Southeast.

Having said all that, we must answer the question of how much do we want Cabarrus County to grow or do we want to maintain our identity as a county with a small-city feel? We also must ask how much should the county pay for infrastructure upgrades in anticipation of growth or do we make incoming businesses cover those expenses? This can be evaluated multiple ways; First, I would work to build the county's relationships with state & federal agencies to update & improve our roads so that they can safely handle a reasonable increase in population, as well as upgrading our school system, sewer system, & other key infrastructure before allowing major developments, such as the proposed Concord Farms development in Concord, to continue. Second, we need to build relationships with local business owners and other companies interested in bringing job opportunities to the county to ensure they can provide the most beneficial economic activity & jobs to our cities with minimal impact on existing infrastructure. Third, we need to maintain strong relationships with business owners to ensure that more job opportunities are provided as our infrastructure improves, this driving an increase in population and daily visitors to the county. Finally, we would need to ensure that annual infrastructure evaluations are done in cooperation with state & federal agencies to ensure infrastructure is maintained and upgraded safely and responsibly to handle anticipated growth. However, we must also value the public's opinion on these matters.

While counties do not regulate businesses in the same way as the state or municipalities, county policies can still influence the cost and ease of doing business. How would you consider the impact of county decisions on the business community?

We must make county policies that meet the needs of Cabarrus residents while providing economic growth to the county. This means listening to the input of residents on matters such as infrastructure maintenance and costs of living concerns while evaluating company presentations to see how Cabarrus can gain the most economic benefit for the well-being of its residents.