Apr 11, 2013
Openly-Lesbian Lydia Lavelle Running for Carrboro Mayor
Carrboro, N.C. – Board of Aldermen member Lydia Lavelle announced today that she will file to run for mayor of Carrboro in the November election. If elected, Lavelle would be the first openly-lesbian mayor in North Carolina.
Lavelle, who has been on the Board of Alderman since 2007, will be running for the seat that Mark Chilton has held since 2005. Chilton has announced that he will not be running for re-election.
If elected, Lavelle said in a release she would “promote the values and ideals that have helped Carrboro become one of the most progressive and forward thinking communities in North Carolina.”
Pointing to her years of service on the Board, Lavelle said, “this experience has given me the opportunity to study the many issues our town faces in great detail and to develop public positions on a variety of different topics.” She noted that “this close scrutiny of local and regional issues has prepared me for this run, and it also has given the residents of Carrboro a chance to learn a bit more about my style as an elected leader and the careful, practical approach I bring to the table.”
Referring to the town’s current leader, Lavelle said, “I have greatly admired the job Mark Chilton has done as mayor of Carrboro, and I know I join many others when I thank him for his service and dedication to this town.”
She is the Town’s representative to the regional Transportation Advisory Committee of the Durham/Chapel Hill/Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (TAC-MPO), a group she formerly chaired. The TAC-MPO is composed of elected officials from Orange, Durham and Chatham counties responsible for addressing and planning for transportation needs for the region. In addition, she sits on the Transit Partners Committee, a work group of elected officials and staff that discusses issues related to Chapel Hill Transit. She also represents Carrboro on the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau Board of Directors, and is the BOA liaison to the Appearance Commission and Orange County’s Intergovernmental Parks Work Group. Prior to her election in 2007, Lavelle served on the Carrboro Planning Board and on the New Horizon’s Task Force.
Lavelle is an assistant professor at the North Carolina Central University School of Law in Durham. She has lived in the triangle area for thirty years. She and her family live in the Fox Meadow neighborhood.
Contact information: Lavelle can be reached regarding her campaign at lydlavelle@nc.rr.com or by calling 919-942-5640. Her web site is www.lydialavelle.com.