Bob Heuts, Beaufort County’s latest economic developer, continues to impress.
One of the things that’s impressive about Heuts is that he explains proposals, projects and ideas in plain English, which is refreshing after listening to many government officials and employees — local, county, state and national — speak “governmentese” or “legalese.”
Earlier this week, Heuts did a remarkable job of explaining Project Blue Goose, an economic-development project involving incentives, grants and property (land and buildings) deals at the Beaufort County Industrial Park. Heuts, as the county’s chief economic developer, made it clear he’s willing to provide accurate, truthful information. That may not have always been the case in the past, before Heuts arrived on the scene. Heuts, so far, appears to be a straight-shooter, not a trick-shot artist.
Commissioner Stan Deatherage, who did not vote to hire Heuts, is impressed with Heuts’ job performance so far.
“I didn’t vote for Mr. Heuts, and he’s a whole lot better than what we had. There’s no snake oil coming out from this man. He tells the truth. He doesn’t have a gang of people putting him up on a pedestal, letting him live in another county for 10 years,” Deatherage said, partially referring to Heuts’ predecessor, Tom Thompson.
“It was snake oil. It was a sideshow,” Deatherage said in another reference to Heuts’ predecessor. “We have a good man, and I didn’t vote for him.”
Coming from Deatherage, that’s a good endorsement of Heuts’ work for the county so far.
If Heuts keeps his existing approach to his job, Beaufort County will greatly benefit.