Mayor Nancy Vaughan announces she will not run again

Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughan, who was first elected to the position in 2013, announced at the very end of the Greensboro City Council meeting on Tuesday, May 7, that she would not seek another term for mayor next year.

Vaughan prefaced her announcement by speaking passionately about the accomplishments the city has made over the past decade, and she said she is immensely proud of the work city and community leaders have done to achieve this progress. .

“It took a lot of work and trust and dedication,” she said of the transformation of Greensboro and Guilford County, which is now clearly a powerful magnet for new businesses in the city. looking for accommodation.

Vaughan cited North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, who said recently that no region in the state has made more progress than the Piedmont Triad.

“This didn’t happen by chance, and our role in the company’s rebirth has been crucial,” she told her fellow board members and those watching in the boardroom and during of the live broadcast Tuesday evening.

Vaughan noted that the city took a controversial “leap of faith” in supporting the Greensboro-Randolph megasite that will now be the Toyota battery plant and did the same in supporting the Piedmont Triad International Airport megasite, which is already reaping enormous economic benefits. .

“These were difficult and controversial decisions, but they will have a positive impact on our regions for generations to come,” she said.

She also said that through community efforts, $13 billion in economic announcements had been made.

“Before we were talking about millions, now we’re talking about billions,” the mayor said.

She joined the city council in 2009 and one of the first votes she took, she said, helped create Greensboro’s state-of-the-art aquatic center. Vaughan also spoke about the large number of children who had learned to swim there and called it the best aquatic facility in the country.

“It saves lives we don’t even know about,” she said.

The mayor added that the Tangier Performing Arts Center “surpassed all projections.”

She added that she cherishes her time as mayor and will remain focused during her remaining time.

“I love being mayor,” she said. “I always say it’s the best job in the city of Greensboro.”

Vaughan said she plans to call a news conference or send out a news release regarding her decision, but she noted she wants to make the announcement directly in the city council meeting room, “where the work was done, the sausage was made, and the job was done.