McKinney Believes ‘It’s Our Time’ in Greensboro

Michael McKinney first moved to Greensboro in the eighties and has worked in finance in Greensboro and High Point for decades. His lending work led to a deep interest in housing policy and service on the Guilford County Planning Board and Greensboro’s Minimum Housing Standards commission. In 2008, he mounted an unsuccessful campaign for Guilford County School Board and in January of this year, applied to fill the seat left vacant when Yvonne Johnson died in office. In the end, the council chose Jamilla Pinder to complete Johnson’s unexpired term. Now McKinney, a Democrat, is one of ten candidates running for three available at-large seats on the nine-member council. This time, he’s emphasizing his financial background and his quest for a Greensboro everyone can be proud of.

McKinney has been endorsed by the Greensboro Regional Realtors Association. 

This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

You’ve had a long career in finance. What has that been like?

I have 30 years of experience in finance. Currently, I’m the CEO of Piedmont Business Capital. We’ve been around for 32 years. We’re a CDFI, which is a community development financial institution. We operate under the U.S. Treasury Department, and we’re a community lender. Our mission is to provide access to capital to small, low to moderate-income people who would otherwise be denied access to capital by traditional banks. We’re a bridge for small businesses to get established and sustain themselves and grow.

Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, and supporting them is very important, not just for our city, but for our state and our country.

Given the many years of banking and finance and economic development experience I have, I do think it sets me apart.

You’re also passionate about affordable housing. Tell me more about that.

I’ve always had a passion around housing and affordable housing. Many years ago, I was an executive with United Guaranty Mortgage Insurance Company. We worked to ensure mortgages for homeowners who do not have at least 20 percent down. 

I just think the American dream is built around being able to have a home that you can leave to your family, and I think we’ve gotten away from that. We’ve got to figure out how to make it within reach again.

Tell me about your vision for Greensboro.

This election will probably be one of the most consequential elections we’ve seen in the city’s history because of the number of seats that are turning over and the number of people who are coming on board. Coupled with that, we are experiencing prosperity as a city. We are starting to grow. It’s our time. We’ve watched Raleigh, Charlotte, and other areas around us boom and excel. Now the tables have turned. It’s our time. I think it’s important that we do it right. We have to be smart, strategic, inclusive. We don’t have to be another Charlotte or Raleigh. We can have our own identity. I also think that not one person is going to have that answer, of a vision for Greensboro. You have to build consensus, you have to find commonality.

What do you think has been missing from council that you would bring?

One of the things that I hear often is that council needs to listen more to the people. I think it’s important that members of council host periodic town meetings to gauge the desire and passion of its citizens to ensure we are moving forward together. That’s the only way to leverage economic growth—to do it collectively and inclusively. 

What other specific policies are you concerned about?

Greensboro is an education town. We have seven colleges and universities. We have a wealth of power in our young people. We need to work collectively and cohesively together to get our young people to choose Greensboro first, rather than taking that brain power to Raleigh or Charlotte. That means we need to bring them amenities they enjoy. Expanding our transportation is critical. 

Also, with growth, every city experiences some increase in crime. I think public safety is an issue. We need to look at preventative measures, including community intervention programs and accountability. In order to have trust, there needs to be accountability and transparency. We need to support our law enforcement, but we also need to hold accountable those who don’t follow policy. 

Why do you think you should be elected?

There’s one gift I think I have. I can connect with anybody from any background, from any culture. And I’m able to connect and meet them where they are. I think this is a unique trait, and I don’t take it lightly. I want to bring people together from conservatives to progressives to independents. It doesn’t matter to me. People are people. We all want the same thing: to live in a safe city, to build wealth for our families. I love this city, and Greensboro has the opportunity to truly be one of the greatest cities in this country. It is our time, and what we do with this moment is up to us. If we do it right, we can all live in a city that we are proud of, and it’s up to leadership to bring that about and make it happen.