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Local Government Consolidation Stalls
KINSTON — Consolidation is much easier said than done, some city and county officials are finding out. Although smaller areas, such as Gastonia County and Bessemer City, are grappling with ways to merge their local governments, the most notable cities and counties trying to create regional homogenous bureaucracies in North Carolina are New Hanover County-Wilmington in the Southeast and Mecklenburg County-Charlotte in the Piedmont. In each case, the idea of merging the two entities and sharing costs has looked good on paper, but has met with less than an enthusiastic response from government officials and the general public.