Born and raised in south Alabama, Harlan Stafford earned a BA from Auburn University in 1973 and moved to Wake County the same year. He subsequently completed his MBA at UNC Chapel and now resides with his wife in Cary. Stafford has had a long career in commercial real estate and finance development across multiple sectors, including land acquisition, entitlements, debt and equity placement, construction oversight, ground lease negotiation and development management through stabilized occupancy for retail, multifamily, office, and hospitality assets. During 21 years at NC State University, he led the public/private development program for Centennial Campus, a nationally recognized public/private partnership campus development integrating academic research and private enterprise. In his later years at the University, he also managed the University's 112,000-acre real estate portfolio. He continues some limited consulting with university public-private partnership projects. Stafford has also served as owner's rep on a university campus HOA board, President of Raleigh NAIOP (National Association of Industrial and Office Property Owners), board member, Raleigh BOMA (National Building Owners Management Association) and board member, PAGE of Wake County (Parents for Academically Gifted Education). Since retiring in 2020, he has focused on civic engagement, including precinct-level voter outreach as a Precinct Captain. He has been active with Cary Sister Cities, serving the last two years as a host for visiting teachers accompanying the Le Touquet student delegation. He was recently elected to the Cary Sister Cities Board of Directors and is assisting with planning the organization’s participation in Cary Lazy Daze. He is committed to service-oriented civic engagement that emphasizes active participation in strengthening and shaping the community.