Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, November 27, 1993 TAG: 9311270203
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Harvey wants to see the $40 million project completed before he leaves council.
He had made up his mind not to run for re-election next spring, but that was before he was elected chairman of the Hotel Roanoke Conference Center Commission.
And it was before Vice Mayor Beverly Fitzpatrick Jr. resigned to become director of the New Century Council.
Those two developments have caused Harvey to reconsider.
Now he plans to run, if his health allows it.
Harvey, 53, had surgery recently for lung cancer.
A Democrat, Harvey said he probably will seek the remaining two years of Fitzpatrick's term rather than a new four-year term.
John Edwards was recently appointed to fill Fitzpatrick's term until June 30, but there will be a special election to fill the remaining two years.
Edwards, Harvey or others could run for the two-year term. Of course, they could also run for the three four-year terms that will be on the ballot in May.
If Edwards, a Democrat, wants to remain on council, he will not be required to seek Fitzpatrick's seat. He has not decided whether he will run next spring.
Harvey, who has been on council for 12 years, said Fitzpatrick's resignation offered him the chance to stay on council without having to run for a four-year term.
"The hotel project will be finished in two years, and I just want to see that finished," he said.
The six-member Hotel Roanoke Conference Commission, led by Harvey, is overseeing the project and Harvey will operate the conference center. It has three members from the city and three from Virginia Tech.
Harvey said he did not have a preference about the party's using a mass meeting or primary election to choose its council candidates.
"It didn't really matter to me either way," he said.
Now that the party has decided to have a primary, however, he supports the move, saying it will allow voters to select the candidates.
Harvey said the primary will help neutralize the effort by some groups to control mass meetings and dictate the selection of candidates.
"Some people aren't satisfied with sharing power. They want to have all the power," Harvey said.
Opening up the nomination process with a primary election will help ensure that the party's candidates have a broad base of support, Harvey said.
The other two seats on the ballot in the May election are held by William White and Howard Musser. White will run for a new term, but Musser, who is recovering from a stroke, has not decided whether to seek re-election.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB