Editor’s note: This is part of an occasional series about people at work.

By Maggie Blackwell

For the Salisbury Post

SALISBURY — “The one philosophy I learned years ago: If you go somewhere you’ve never been, pull in where you can get out in a hurry. You don’t want to have to back up.”

That wisdom comes from a man who often has to tell people there’s been a complaint about their properties. Lloyd Pace, a small-built man with a giant smile, has been a code enforcement officer for Rowan County for 20 years.

He carries a stun stick on calls just in case there’s an aggressive dog.

“People tell me, ‘That dog won’t bite,’ and I say, ‘You’re right; it won’t bite me.’”

Pace is a pragmatic man with a sharp sense of humor. The planning department used to keep a list of funny things people said over the years. The list was lost, but Lloyd remembers many of the comments on it.

“My God, Lloyd, you made me mow my yard and I found a single-wide.”

“Lord, I hate to see your number come up after a good rain.”

Pace works with folks who own properties that were the subject of complaints.

“Helping people: I mean, you can help people who’ve screwed up, help them do better. If you’ve called in a complaint, I can get it resolved.”

He says he gets 50 calls a week.

“Listening to people. That’s 90 percent of it. Just listen to people. If I can’t fix it, I can tell them who to call. Just listen.”

He fondly remembers Marion Lytle, the county planning director who died in 2004.

“He was a super great guy. Marion was smart as a whip. To look at his desk, it was so unorganized, but he knew where everything was.

“Marion came in one day and said, ‘Dang! I have to present to the county commissioners today and I don’t have a tie.’ Well, I just live a little down Main Street, so I ran home and got a tie for him to use. Over the years, I suppose I loaned him a half-dozen ties to go to commission meetings. And I never got ‘em back.”

Pace’s job includes ensuring people comply with county ordinances for homes. This includes things like setbacks, solid waste and, at one time, tall grass.

“For a while we carried China Grove planning and code enforcement. I bet you we were doing 150 tall-grass cases a month out there.”

The county no longer contracts with China Grove, and the county no longer works tall-grass cases.

He says people from TLC, a cable TV channel, called him for about five years looking for hoarding cases. After they quit calling, he had a good one.

“Lady had 42 Boston terrier dogs in a single-wide mobile home. You could smell it a block away.”

Pace worked with local companies and got her a used mobile home. He got it installed on her lot for free.

“Unfortunately, she was a repeat customer. Ten years later, she had 30 dogs. She’d open the back door and throw trash in the yard.”

Being prepared

Pace is prepared for such cases. He keeps duct tape and rubber bands in his truck so nothing can run up his pants legs or sleeves. He also keeps a clean change of clothes.

He’s had scary moments, too, like working with a man and his mother one time who said, “We know how to get rid of you. We know how to dig a hole. We’d throw a rug over your body and cut you to make you fit in the hole.”

Another time he and Lytle were in the west end of the county, walking through a field. They were about a quarter mile from the road when a bull came charging at them. They ran all the way to the truck with the bull on their heels.

“We had a fellow jump over the counter one time. Marion and Ed (Muire) called the police. Thank goodness SPD got here quick. They got him outside quick.”

Muire, director of Rowan County planning, is Pace’s current boss. Muire can be a man of few words, but he is happy to talk about Pace.

“The enforcement of county nuisance and zoning rules is not a glamorous job and can often be contentious, but Lloyd’s friendly demeanor and willingness to engage the public have made his efforts successful time and again,” Muire says. “He is a key fixture in the enforcement of county policy and, after 20 years, is still able to bring a smile to work each day. He is an asset to the Planning and Development Department.”

Pace says the planning department has felt like family for a long time — a family that has lost several members.

“Marion (Lytle) was the first one we lost. Lost him to a heart attack. Then not long after, Bonnie Ely came in from lunch, said something to Becky, went back to her desk, we heard a thud. She was gone. They had to bring the gurney up the stairs; it wouldn’t fit in the elevator.”

Then Steve Cottingham had some health problems and passed away. It’s a long list for a small department, and it’s drawn the staff close together.

Pace lost his daughter in an auto accident in 2012, and the department was there for him. This month, as he celebrated his 60th birthday, and his wife invited all the staff to a party at the driving range with cake for all. “They were all there for me when I needed them,” he says.

At one point, Pace considered leaving for a job with less stress.

“But you know, whatever you do, you’re not going to please everyone.”

So he has stayed for 20 years. He’s seen the work transition from paper files to GPS.

“Things have gotten more simple and more complicated. We do so much that we didn’t do before. We’re trying to do what the citizens want, and I try to help all I can.”

Pace the philosopher has learned many lessons over the years. The biggest one?

“Most people are nice. The few percentage are not, but most are. You can smile in their face. When they leave, you can say what you want. But smile to their face.”

Another lesson?

“Time takes care of most things. We had a lady with four or five years of solid waste in her home and yard. It was 15 to 18 truckloads of trash and debris. The estimate to get it taken care of was $12,000.

“Long story short, lady filed bankruptcy, and it went into the courts. That can take forever. But 60 days later, it was all cleaned up. You’d never know it was there.

“Time takes care of things.”

He’s not quite ready to retire. He’ll take a look at the numbers when he reaches 62.

“But hey, I enjoy what I’m doing. Over the years, it’s been fun, and I get to help people.”