THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 1, 1994 TAG: 9407010031
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Medium: 58 lines
Dr. Mason Cooke Andrews' credentials as an effective leader in medical and civic affairs were substantial well before he became president of Norfolk City Council - that is, Norfolk's mayor - two years ago.
Fortunately for the old port city that he has done so much to enliven and enrich, the 75-year-old Dr. Andrews did not turn his back on public service with his Tuesday-night announcement that he would not be a candidate for re-election as mayor when the seven-member council votes tonight.
He has been on the council since 1974. His current term does not expire until 1996. The power shift that will elevate Councilman Paul D. Fraim to the mayor's chair and Councilman Paul R. Riddick to the vice mayor's places the city's destiny largely in the hands of the council's four youngest members. Their task should be eased by Dr. Andrews' public-spirited refusal to engage in a futile divisive struggle for the mayorship. Experience also argues that the Rev. Joseph N. Green, currently vice mayor, and G. Conoly Phillips will continue to work constructively within the re-arranged governing body.
To do otherwise would injure the city. As Dr. Andrews, a consensus builder, explained in stepping back: ``One important factor in Norfolk's success, against significant odds, has been its ability to maintain harmony on the council.''
Councilmen Riddick, W. R. ``Randy'' Wright and Herbert M. Collins, the council's newcomer, made their reputations challenging the business and professional leadership that has guided Norfolk for a half-century. That leadership transformed a corrupt, decaying Navy town into a city which is the maritime, financial, commercial, medical, college-and-university and cultural-and-entertainment hub of Hampton Roads.
Dr. Andrews has been a visionary force in Norfolk's revitalization, which has greatly strengthened the city's economy and tax base. He was a key player in the creation of Eastern Virginia Medical School and the Jones Institute of Reproductive Medicine, in the establishment of a professional planning department at City Hall, in the organizing of Greater Norfolk Corp. to foster public-private partnerships, in the downtown-waterfront renaissance that continues to trigger private investment and in the placement of Tidewater Community College's Norfolk campus on Granby Street.
The projected MacArthur Center, which Dr. Andrews has long helped nurture, promises to complete Norfolk's resurgence by restoring the downtown's position as the regional retailing center. If Norfolk is also designated an empowerment- or enterprise-zone city, the revival of impoverished neighborhoods - which Dr. Andrews has pushed - could accelerate.
Dr. Andrews departs the mayor's office with honors and honor. It is well that he is not leaving the scene. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
DR. ANDREWS
by CNB