Kannapolis attorney to retire in August, replacement named

Published 12:10 am Thursday, January 30, 2025

By Elisabeth Strillacci

elisabeth.strillacci@salisburypost.com

KANNAPOLIS — Walter Safrit, affectionately known as Wally, the attorney for the city of Kannapolis, wrote the documents that created the city, and has been the city’s only attorney of record during its 40-year history.

But Safrit recently announced his plans to retire in August.

Kannapolis was established as the company town of Cannon Mills in the early 1900s but it was not incorporated as a city until 1984. According to a release from the city, in the 1980s, as leaders met to explore incorporation, Safrit was in private practice with the law firm of Rutledge, Friday, Safrit and Smith. He assisted the first elected city council and was officially appointed the first city attorney in February 1985.

He continued with his private practice and served with the city part time until 2011 when he joined the city as its first full-time in-house attorney.

Monday, City Manager Mike Legg announced that the city has found Safrit’s replacement in Andrew Kelly, who will start Feb. 19 and will attend his first council meeting Feb. 24.

The council approved a revision to Safrit’s contract that acknowledges his retirement date and establishes him as an advisory attorney until August. Legg said he was also giving Safrit the title of “City Attorney Emeritus.”

Mayor Darrell Hinnant read a listing of Safrit’s activities, saying “he has attended 940 city council meetings, 350 Board of Adjustment meeting, drafted 394 ordinances or resolutions, been to Washington, D.C., 35 times to meet with Congress people or Senators to help the city…and consumed 43 pounds of Jiggy barbecue.

“Thank you for your contributions, to us on the council, to the city, and most of all to the residents,” Hinnant added. “Wally knows more about the city than anyone because he has been here the longest. His institutional knowledge of every legal agreement and contract, the city’s history, and his relationships with residents and staff have made him an integral part of our organization. We also welcome Andrew to the city and are excited about his addition to the Kannapolis team. We look forward to celebrating Wally’s career with us later this year.”

In some lighthearted ribbing, council member Ryan Dayvault told Safrit, “You’ve been the city attorney longer than I’ve been alive by one year. But as a fellow A.L. Brown grad, you have made a lot of people proud.” He described how, when he was just starting his political career, Safrit sat next to him at Board of Adjustment meetings and was always polite and professional. “I guess they thought someone had to take care of me,” and Dayvault said he would “never forget that courtesy.”

“Wally has been the attorney half as long as I’ve been alive,” laughed council member Doug Wilson, “We met on the basketball court when we were 15, and I can’t thank you enough for what you do.”

Safrit will help Kelly get acclimated and established in the months between February and Safrit’s official retirement in August.

Kelly is currently serving as a senior assistant city attorney with the city of Charlotte where his focus is on real estate and economic development matters city-wide. While working for Charlotte, he has been one of the lead attorneys working on the city’s agreements with the Charlotte Hornets, Carolina Panthers and the revitalization of Eastland Mall, collectively representing more than $1 billion in economic development investment.

A native of Winston-Salem, Kelly graduated from North Carolina State University with a B.A. in political science and received his juris doctor from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law with a concentration in intellectual property.

Kelly began his career in San Francisco where he worked in entertainment law and remains licensed to practice law in California. He returned to North Carolina to begin his municipal law career at John G. Wolfe, III & Associates in Kernersville, where he worked in private practice on a variety of matters, including contracted legal support for the town of Kernersville. He served as an assistant city attorney with the city of Greensboro before joining the city of Charlotte. Kelly is a member of the North Carolina Bar Association and the Mecklenburg County Bar Association and a fellow of the International Municipal Lawyers Association.