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CHARLOTTE – Officials in Mecklenburg County say that though times are tough right now, things won’t be staying that way for too long.

County commission chairwoman, Jennifer Roberts, presented her annual address on where the region stands Friday morning. Despite the economy’s impact on the Charlotte area, Roberts says the county will make a turnaround.

Roberts continually used the theme “Pulling together and pulling through” during her address, despite recent indicators of a struggling local economy. Those indicators include a $30 million budget gap, 10.5 percent unemployment rate in the region and a 39 percent increase in food stamp applications.

Regardless of that, Roberts was positive in saying that the county will turn the corner and start heading toward a positive economic position. One reason she believes that is due to property tax targets for the county.

Mecklenburg Co. is expected to collect slightly more property taxes this year than last. Property taxes are where the county gets most of its revenue from.

At least one commissioner disagrees with Roberts’ hopes on the economy. Republican Karen Bentley said in a phone conversation with News 14 Carolina that no one is talking about the elephant in the room: the significant amount of debt being carried in the county budget.

Roberts says some capital projects are delayed as a result of a new debt policy, but some projects are still on track – such as the park and recreation department’s Little Sugar Creek greenway set to open sometime this spring.

With other projects around the county still on schedule, Bentley adds that some were a little too robust to start with. The commissioner says that republicans on the board have always said the county needs to take a serious look at the spending plan.

Meanwhile, Roberts pointed to millions of dollars in federal stimulus money which will be coming to the region for transportation, school construction and housing projects, and to recent job announcements from companies like GMAC.

“We know that we will turn the corner and this region will soon be on its feet again,” said Roberts, who stated that Mecklenburg Co. will be the first to make it out of the recession. “We know that our regional collaboration is stronger than ever.

“We know our chamber of commerce and our regional partnerships and our workforce initiatives are working overtime to get people back on their feet.”