Tennyson named North Carolina's transportation secretary

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory late last week announced the official appointment of Nick Tennyson as secretary of the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT).

Since Tony Tata's resignation as NCDOT's secretary at the end of July, Tennyson has been serving as the agency's acting secretary.

Tennyson previously served two terms as mayor of Durham, N.C., from 1997 to 2001. He also worked as executive vice president of the Home Builders Association of Durham, Orange and Chatham Counties from 1995 until 2013, when he was appointed NCDOT's deputy secretary.

"Nick Tennyson is the perfect choice to continue the momentum we have made in North Carolina’s transportation strategy," McCrory said in a statement. "He has been involved in planning all of our key transportation strategies over the last two and half years, and is equipped to hit the ground running to continue our progress."

Tennyson's appointment is effective immediately.