Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 28, 1992 TAG: 9201280354
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER MUNICIPAL WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
TAYLOR TO ANNOUNCE DECISION TODAY
Mayor Noel Taylor, Roanoke's most popular and enduring politician in the past two decades, is expected to announce today that he will not seek a new term this spring.Taylor has scheduled a news conference to say he will leave the post when his term ends June 30, according to sources in city government and the Republican Party.
Taylor would say Monday only that he will make a statement today regarding the May 5 election.
Unless he changes his mind at the last moment, Taylor will announce that he will step aside, said one City Council member who would talk only if not identified.
In recent weeks, Taylor, 67, has undergone a series of medical tests and said his health would be a factor in his decision, but not the only one.
Taylor, pastor of High Street Baptist Church, has been a City Council member since 1970 and mayor since 1975.
GOP officials and several business leaders have urged him to seek another term. Even some Democrats wanted him to seek an unprecedented fifth term.
Taylor said he has been touched emotionally by the outpouring of support, adding that he has received more encouragement to run this year than ever. With so many people urging him to run, he said that made his decision more difficult.
If Taylor steps aside, GOP leaders have urged Willis Anderson, a former mayor, to seek the party's nomination for the post. Anderson was on council from 1958 to 1962, and was mayor starting in 1960.
The Democrats will have a contest for their party's nomination for mayor. Vice Mayor Howard Musser has scheduled a news conference for Thursday, when he is expected to announce his candidacy. Councilman David Bowers also is seeking the Democratic nomination.
Keywords:
POLITICS