CityView Magazine

Sold onDoug Peters’ job puts him at the center of Cumberland County’s government, business and industry By Khary McGhee Fayetteville D Photo courtesy of Erin Miller with Angel Eyes Photography oug Peters began selling Fayetteville and Cumberland County even before he agreed to become the president and CEO of the Fayetteville-Cumberland County Chamber of Commerce. He made his first pitch to his wife, Whitney, while still only toying with the idea of moving their family from its very comfortable existence in Findlay, Ohio, to take the Chamber job here. Doug Peters took his wife on a drive through town, making sure their tour took them down Hay Street, the centerpiece of Fayetteville’s downtown. “We’re driving and she says, literally with a tear in her eye, ‘We’re moving here, aren’t we?’” Peters said. “She could see the special things going on here.” A few weeks later, Doug and Whitney Peters brought their three children to Fayetteville. But the parents, who were leaning toward making the move from Ohio to North Carolina, billed the trip simply as a vacation. They were hop- ing to gauge the kids’ enthusiasm for Fayetteville and Cumberland County. Near the end of the trip, which was filled with visits to some of the area’s top attractions, the couple’s old- est child, 14-year-old Elliott, said to his parents, “We ought to live here.” Turns out Doug Peters didn’t have to make a hard sell at all; Cumberland County sold itself. That’s a big reason why the longtime Midwesterner uprooted his family from Ohio and left a job he was satis- fied with for new challenges as the head of the Fayetteville-Cumberland County Chamber of Commerce. 48|Winter 2008/2009 “I wasn’t looking for a job,” Peters said. "(We) were very happy where we were living. But after I was contacted about the job and really took a second look at the opportunity, I figured I’d give it a shot. “Then I got to Fayetteville, and the moment I got off the plane I could tell that the people here just got it. They know the potential of this community and are willing to do what’s needed to be done to reach that potential. That’s what attracted me.” Being the leader of the Chamber of Commerce makes Peters essentially Fayetteville and Cumberland County’s head cheerleader. The 44-year-old, who replaced former Chamber head Bill Martin earlier this year, knows that job well. He’s worked for 23 years in the chambers of commerce of several com- munities. It’s a job that puts Peters at the convergence of a community’s govern- ment, business and industry. “I think the best way I can describe what the chamber does is that we do all the things that most people think just happen,” Peters said. “I view it as a triangle with gov- ernment, business and industry. It’s our job to help ensure those three areas work together for the ben- efit of the community as a whole.” That means Peters is one of Fayetteville and Cumberland County’s point people on the dynamic changes the recent Base Realignment and Closure plans will bring to the region. By 2011, it is estimated that anywhere from 25,000 to 40,000 new residents will move to the area thanks to the arrival of Forces Command and U.S. Army Reserve Com- mand at Fort Bragg.

• Cover