Kevin Foy

Kevin C. Foy (born January 28, 1956)[2] is an American politician and professor who served as Mayor of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, from 2001 to 2009. He is a member of the Democratic Party. As mayor, Foy focused on land-use ordinances and urban planning in the town. He now teaches at North Carolina Central University School of Law.

Kevin Foy
Mayor of Chapel Hill
In office
December 3, 2001 – December 3, 2009
Preceded byRosemary Waldorf
Succeeded byMark Kleinschmidt
Chapel Hill Town Council
In office
December 1, 1997 – December 3, 2001
Personal details
Born (1956-01-28) January 28, 1956
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Nancy Feder[1]
ResidenceChapel Hill, North Carolina, U.S.[2]
Alma materKenyon College (BA)
NCCU School of Law (JD)
OccupationPolitician, professor, lawyer

Education and early work

Foy graduated from Kenyon College in 1979 and later worked for two Democratic Ohio state senators. After several years, he attended North Carolina Central University School of Law studying environmental law. Foy paid attention to land-use decisions made by the town of Chapel Hill and noted that in 1995 the town was "a really nice place that was going to be exploited by people selling it out."[1]

Career

1995–2001: Litigation and town council

Foy and his neighbors sued Chapel Hill in 1995 to prevent development that the town had approved of 15 houses in a floodplain of 3–4 acres (1.2–1.6 ha). Foy did some of the legal work to save on costs. They lost the case (Lloyd vs. Chapel Hill) at both the district and appellate levels, though the town renegotiated with the developer to keep the space open.[1]

He ran for mayor in 1995 after he and his neighborhood had lost a second land-use case to the town. He and several other neighborhood groups opposed the then-proposed development of Meadowmont, North Carolina. The incumbent mayor, Kenneth Broun, was not seeking reelection, so Foy ran against town council member Rosemary Waldorf. Foy was labeled an "antigrowth" candidate, which he said was inaccurate, and he was seen as a newcomer to the town. He was endorsed by the Sierra Club and the Independent Weekly. Foy spent $3,000 and lost the election receiving 46 percent of the vote.[3]

In his 1997 campaign for town council, Foy again received endorsements from the Sierra Club and the Independent Weekly as well as support from several sitting members. He received the second-highest number of votes among the eight candidates, securing a seat.[4] He was sworn in to town council on December 1, 1997.[5] He decided not to run for mayor in 1999, only two years into his four-year town-council term and thought Waldorf was doing a good job.[4]

2001–2009: Mayoralty

Mayor Waldorf decided not to run for a third term in 2001, prompting Foy to enter the race.[4] He ran against Lee Pavao, a fellow town council member.[6] Donations from individuals were limited to $200; each candidate spent $25,000 on the campaign.[7] Foy's campaign focused on three things: protecting the environment; inclusivity, like affordable housing; and university–town relations.[8] Pavao, a businessman, supported Meadowmont's development, though both were in favor of "smart growth".[6] During the election, Foy continued running his law practice. He won by a considerable margin, against expectations that the race would be closer.[8]

Foy was sworn in as Mayor of Chapel Hill for his first two-year term on December 3, 2001.[5] He was reelected in 2003 against just write-in votes and in 2005 against a "stealth candidate" who had moved to Chapel Hill just a week before the filing day. Local news noted that Foy had done a similar thing in 1995.[8] The "stealth candidate", Kevin A. Wolff, ran again in 2007.

As mayor, Foy negotiated the expansion of the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC).[9][10] Several times, UNC wanted to expand, so community members spoke in opposition to the town council, and the mayor and council generally approved the expansion if it was appropriate.[11] He also formed a downtown partnership group with input from UNC and businesses on Franklin Street.[12] After town manager Cal Horton's resignation in September 2006,[13] Foy selected Roger Stancil to fill the position, who was unanimously confirmed by the council.[14]

Foy was the chair of the state's Metropolitan Mayor's Coalition, promoting the fare-free[5] Chapel Hill Transit (CHT) and asking the Department of Transportation to keep maintaining major roads. He kept CHT from merging with the Triangle Transit Authority in 2003 and kept the town library separate from that of the county.[10]

Foy has remarked that his two main achievements while in office were rewriting the town's land-use ordinance and renaming a main thoroughfare in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.[8][9] The town manager (Horton) had recommended an elaborate process for citizen input about land use, which tired some town council members, though Foy kept up the energy to secure reform.[15] Airport Road (part of NC Hwy. 86) was renamed Martin Luther King Boulevard, which raised tensions in Chapel Hill over financial concerns of changing addresses on paper, giving up a long-time address, and race.[16][9] The United States Conference of Mayors awarded Foy the Climate Protection Outstanding Achievement Award in June 2008 and named Chapel Hill America's Most Livable City in June 2009.[5]

Foy and the council asked the state legislature to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (1996) and had Chapel Hill grant domestic partnerships.[17] Foy did not seek reelection in 2009 and considered a run for U.S. Senate in 2010.[18] Support for incumbent senator Richard Burr, however, was greater than that of any Democrat, including Foy.[19] Foy endorsed the 2009 campaign of his eventual successor, Mark Kleinschmidt.[20]

Post-mayoralty

Foy teaches courses on environmental law, businesses, remedies, and torts at North Carolina Central University School of Law, where he received his Juris Doctor degree.[21]

Electoral history
2001 Chapel Hill mayoral election results[22]
Candidate Votes %
Kevin Foy 4,993 56.61
Lee Pavao 3,490 39.57
Cam Hill 117 1.33
Write-in 220 2.49
Total votes 8,820 100
2003 Chapel Hill mayoral election results[23]
Candidate Votes %
Kevin Foy 5,520 92.74
Write-in, Pat Killian 182 3.06
Write-in, other 250 4.20
Total votes 5,952 100
2005 Chapel Hill mayoral election results[24]
Candidate Votes %
Kevin Foy 4,289 77.78
Kevin A. Wolff 1,178 21.36
Write-in 47 0.85
Total votes 5,514 100
2007 Chapel Hill mayoral election results[25]
Candidate Votes %
Kevin Foy 4,333 70.17
Kevin A. Wolff 1,803 29.20
Write-in 39 0.63
Total votes 6,175 100
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See also

References
  1. Svara 2008, p. 146.
  2. "Kevin C. Foy – Candidate for Chapel Hill Mayor". Indy Week. October 24, 2007. Archived from the original on June 21, 2013. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  3. Svara 2008, p. 147.
  4. Svara 2008, p. 148.
  5. "A resolution honoring the service of Kevin C. Foy" (PDF). Town of Chapel Hill. December 7, 2009. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  6. Geary, Bob (September 12, 2001). "Fight for the Hill". Indy Week. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  7. Ross, Kirk (February 12, 2003). "Cost of race takes big leap; Mayor's race shows need for reform". Chapel Hill News. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017 – via Town of Chapel Hill.
  8. Svara 2008, p. 149.
  9. "Memories With The Mayors". Chapel Hill Magazine. March 17, 2017. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  10. DeConto, Jesse (December 6, 2009). "Mayor Foy leaving legacy of collaboration". The News & Observer. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017 – via North Carolina Metropolitan Mayor's Coalition.
  11. Svara 2008, p. 152–153.
  12. Svara 2008, p. 154.
  13. Svara 2008, p. 159.
  14. Svara 2008, p. 161.
  15. Svara 2008, p. 150.
  16. Svara 2008, p. 150–151.
  17. Svara 2008, p. 157.
  18. Schwartz, Joe (August 19, 2009). "Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy tests the Senate waters". Indy Week. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  19. Cowell, Rebekah L. (August 19, 2009). "Dems enter U.S. Senate race with a Burr under their saddles". Indy Week. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  20. Frier, Sarah (October 30, 2009). "Mayor Kevin Foy endorses Mark Kleinschmidt". Daily Tar Heel. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  21. "Kevin C. Foy". North Carolina Central University School of Law. Archived from the original on May 3, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  22. "2001 Municipal and Bond Elections". Orange County. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  23. "November 4, 2003 Municipal Election Results by Precinct" (PDF). Orange County, North Carolina. November 11, 2003. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 1, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  24. "Orange County, North Carolina November 8, 2005 Election". Orange County. November 11, 2005. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  25. "November 6, 2007 Election - Summary of Results". Orange County. November 13, 2007. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
Bibliography
  • Svara, James H. (December 9, 2008). The Facilitative Leader in City Hall: Reexamining the Scope and Contributions. CRC Press. ISBN 9781420068320.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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