Convention center foe is a wary well-wisher

With less than a week before Raleigh throws a huge two-day party to celebrate the opening of the convention center, Triangle Politics figured it was a perfect time to check in with Mike Regan.

Regan, a former city councilman, was a staunch opponent of building the center, even going so far as to say that his name would never appear on the building. When he ran for mayor in 2005, Regan said, if elected, he would stop construction of the center. He also wanted to withdraw a pledge of $20 million in county tax money on meals and hotel rooms to pay for part of the new Marriott Hotel on Fayetteville Street.

Reached by phone Friday, Regan, a real estate agent, said he hopes the new center does great.

"I hope it's worth all the money that's been invested," he said.

As for not having his name anywhere near the building, Regan said that mostly has to do with not wanting people to point the finger at him if the center flops.

"I just don't want to be blamed," he said.

PAGEANTRY, RALEIGH STYLE: As we sat watching Barack Obama give his acceptance speech in front of a colonnade and inside a giant football stadium, we couldn't help but wonder what the Raleigh politics equivalent of the Obama campaign's pageantry would look like.

Picture this: Mayor Charles Meeker, standing in front of a row of plastic acorns inside the RBC Center, urging Raleigh citizens to move beyond the politics of fear that led to the repeal of the city's garbage disposal ban.

The Connells and Tift Merritt could provide the musical entertainment. Triangle Politics, of course, would be perched on some ridiculous-looking outdoor stage giving instant assessments of whether Meeker succeeded in looking mayoral but down-to-earth, inspirational but not devoid of substance and different but also the same.

VP MATERIAL AMONG US?: Small town council members in the Triangle should take heart with John McCain's choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate. Palin is a former councilwoman and mayor of the small town of Wasilla, an Anchorage suburb that had an estimated population of about 8,500 in 2005.

Palin has accomplished much since leaving Wasilla. Her resume speaks to just how much of a launching pad such small-town positions can be. Yes, Wasilla's proximity to Anchorage probably helped Palin make a name for herself, but surely some small-town politicians in the Triangle could be poised for a similar leap. Got any suggestions? Send them to us.

POLITICAL TRAIL

* DEMOCRATIC WOMEN OF WAKE COUNTY will host a post-convention celebration honoring Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama at Humble Pie restaurant in downtown Raleigh (317 South Harrington St.) on Sept. 9 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The cost is $10, at the door. RSVP to Nancy Looper at info@dwwc.net or call Martha Farmer at 782-1272 by Friday.

* THE WAKE COUNTY REPUBLICAN PARTY will gather at the Raleighwood Cinema Grill in Raleigh (6609 Falls of Neuse Road) on Thursday from 8:30 to 11 p.m. to watch the Republican National Convention. Seating is limited to the first 200 paid tickets. Cost is $10 for people 21 and over, $5 for ages 13-21. Children under 12 get in free. To order tickets call 302-3726. For more information go to www.wakegop.org.