On November 17, 1908, local officials from across North Carolina met in Charlotte to discuss their experiences in city and town management. Governor Robert Glenn joined them, as did the mayors of Boston, Houston and Roanoke, Va.
Gathered in the 500-seat auditorium of the Charlotte Academy of Music building, those present voted to form the Carolina Municipal Association, for the “advancement of good civic management in all municipalities.”
Twenty-two North Carolina cities enrolled as founding members of the group. The association has met annually since, and it changed its name to the North Carolina League of Municipalities (NCLM) in 1934. Today, the Raleigh-based League represents over 530 Tar Heel cities and towns.
The organization’s accomplishments include advocacy that has led to zoning regulations and group insurance for municipal employees. In 1951, the NCLM led an effort to provide for a percentage of the state gasoline tax revenues to be passed to local governments for road development and improvement.
More recently it advocated successfully for the local option sales tax and for the return of historic preservation tax credits.