Morning, gang.

With early voting beginning for Greensboro City Council primaries on Sept. 18, we’re bringing you more candidate profiles in the coming weeks. Today, we’re spotlighting two candidates from this year’s crowded at-large field. Ten total candidates are going into the primary. Six will emerge to compete for the council’s three at-large seats, which are voted on by the entire city.

These profiles are just the beginning of our election coverage this season. We’ve heard from many readers how much they appreciate them, and they’ll keep coming, along with profiles on specific races, throughout election season.

— Joe Killian

Latoya Gathers is running for an at-large seat on the Greensboro City Council this year. (Courtesy of Latoya Gathers)

Latoya Gathers Wants to Represent All of Greensboro

LaToya B. Gathers is making her second run for Greensboro City Council—and this time she wants to represent the whole city.

In 2022, Gathers ran for the District 2 seat against incumbent Goldie Wells and candidates Cecile Crawford and Portia Shipman. Gathers didn’t make it out of the primary. Ultimately, Wells retained her seat, winning by a margin of 121 votes over Crawford, who is vying for the same seat again this year. 

This time around, Gathers has thrown her hat in the ring for one of the council’s three at-large seats, on which the entire city votes. Though council races in Greensboro are officially non-partisan, Gathers is the only registered Republican in the crowded at-large field in a left-leaning city. Her work on various city boards and commissions, along with her career in health care led her to run again, she said—this time citywide. 

Read the full story here.

— Sayaka Matsuoka

Thanks for reading The Thread, a 3x week newsletter written by Greensboro editor Joe Killian and reporters Sayaka Matsuoka and Gale Melcher. Reach us with tips or ideas at greensboro@theassemblync.com.

Greensboro City Council Member Hugh Holston is running for a second full term. (Courtesy of the City of Greensboro)


Hugh Holston is finishing his first full term on Greensboro’s City Council—and he’s looking for another.

When former at-large council member Michelle Kennedy vacated her seat in 2021, the council selected Holston to finish her unexpired term. He ran for the seat in his own right in the next election. He won, coming in third behind the late Yvonne Johnson and Marikay Abuzuaiter, who is stepping away from her at-large seat to run for mayor this year.

Holston first came to Greensboro in 1984 with his wife Olymphia. He worked for Wachovia, now Wells Fargo. These days, he’s the CEO of the Greensboro Housing Coalition. A registered Democrat, Holston is sometimes the odd one out on council when it’s time to pass or deny an agenda item, often opting to vote on principle. He cast one of the two votes in favor of keeping loose leaf collection, and one of two votes in favor of fully remediating Bingham Park rather than the less expensive cap-and-cover method.

We sat down with Holston last week to learn about how he operates on council, why he’s running again, and his hopes for Greensboro’s future.

Read the full story here.

— Gale Melcher


Good morning, folks. This week, the City of Greensboro is hosting several public information sessions, and Guilford County’s Board of Education is having its regular meeting. Let’s dive into this week’s meetings and agenda items. 

City of Greensboro

Historic District Design Standards Drop-In session

Tuesday, Sept. 9, from 1-7 p.m.


This session invites the public to ask questions and learn about the new Greensboro Historic District Program Manual and Design Standards. The updated program manual draft is available for review. These updated standards aim to protect the special character of Greensboro’s locally designated historic districts, College Hill, Dunleath, and Fisher Park. City staff, the Greensboro Historic Preservation Commission, and Samantha Stewart of Gate City Preservation will be onsite to explain, address questions, and receive feedback on the changes, plus copies of the new certificate of appropriateness application will be available for pickup. According to the city, the standards haven’t been substantively updated since 2003. Final edits will be made with consideration of drop-in session feedback. The new program manual and design standards are expected to be adopted this fall. For more information, call the city’s planning department at 336.373.2144 or email HDProgram@greensboro-nc.gov.

Human Rights Department Commissions Meet-and-Greet
Wednesday, Sept. 10, from 6-8 p.m. @ Barber Park Event Center at 1502 Barber Park Drive

According to the city, the public is invited to meet commissioners and representatives to the three commissions under the administration of the city’s Human Rights Department: the Commission on the Status of Women, the Human Rights Commission, and the International Advisory Committee.  

According to the city, the public is invited to meet commissioners and representatives to the three commissions under the administration of the city’s Human Rights Department: the Commission on the Status of Women, the Human Rights Commission, and the International Advisory Committee.

Greensboro Transit Agency Rider Public Information meeting
Wednesday, Sept. 10, from 6-7 p.m. @ J. Douglas Galyon Depot at 236 East Washington Street

This is GTA’s quarterly meeting to share information about transit services operations and to receive feedback from riders.

Guilford County

Board of Education meeting
Tuesday, Sept. 9, at 5 p.m. @ Assembly Room, Community Education Center at 2703 East Florida Street

The board’s agenda lists several contracts and financial decisions, including:

  • A contract with Monteith Construction Corp. for the Page High School auditorium and bathroom renovation project for $4.57 million
  • Revised project ordinances for the construction of new and replacement schools and deferred capital replacement projects. This will reallocate and decrease funding by $3.59 million from Brooks Global Studies, Claxton Elementary, Cone Elementary, and Florence Elementary.
  • Increasing funding for the Sumner Elementary replacement school project by $59.15 million, which currently has $10 million allocated to it.

They’ll also hear:

  • The 2024-25 state accountability report
  • A report from the superintendent

Links to local board meetings and agendas:

Guilford County – Board of Commissioners

Guilford County – Board of Education

Greensboro – City Council

Greensboro – City Calendar

High Point – City Council

— Gale Melcher

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Joe Killian is The Assembly's Greensboro editor. He joined us from NC Newsline, where he was senior investigative reporter. He spent a decade at The News & Record covering cops and courts, higher education, and government.