Gaylor announces bid for Goldsboro mayor

King was the city’s mayor from 2002 to 2015 prior to Allen who was elected in 2015 and reelected in 2019.

Ham, who has not announced his plans for the 2023 municipal election, was appointed mayor in August 2021.

“My vision is of a city that harnesses the momentum created by the past administrations of King, Allen, and Ham, while also taking a fresh approach to citizen services and quality-of-life issues,” Gaylor said.

Gaylor, a native of Goldsboro, said he has watched Goldsboro’s development through the years and is interested in setting the city on the right track for the future.

“I’ve seen how this city has tasted success and failure,” Gaylor said. “We all see how some parts of town have thrived while others have faced serious decline. We must get creative, and profoundly serious, about attracting responsible development that compliments the diversity of our neighborhoods at every price point.

“We have to rebuild those parts of our city that have essentially been leveled, and we have to assess every element of our own bureaucracy to make sure we are not being part of the problem.”

Gaylor threw his hat in the ring in a bid for the council’s District 5 seat in 2021. The District 5 seat became vacant after Ham was appointed mayor. Ham represented District 5 prior to his appointment as mayor.

Allen resigned in June 2021 after battling cancer for two years. Allen died several months later at the age of 60, in September 2021.

When Gaylor sought appointment to the District 5 seat, he said he was interested in setting his focus on economic development and ensuring the city has a stable water and sewer system for the future. He also said he planned to work to build positive relationships with city staff and members of the council.

Gaylor was born in Goldsboro and has lived in the city nearly 30 years.

“I was born in Wayne Memorial Hospital, went through daycare at First Baptist Church, and then Wayne Montessori, North Drive, Carver Heights, School Street, Dillard, Eastern Wayne Middle, and then graduated from Eastern Wayne High School in 2002,” Gaylor said.

Gaylor received two bachelor’s degrees from the Wilson College of Textiles at North Carolina State University. He also earned a master’s degree in business administration from the Lundy-Fetterman School of Business at Campbell University and holds a juris doctorate from the Elon University School of Law.

A former associate vice president at Wayne Community College, Gaylor is the senior staff attorney for Community Care of North Carolina.

He is a former Wayne County Chamber of Commerce board chairman and Literacy Connections of Wayne County board chairman.

Gaylor has served on the boards of the Wayne County affiliate of the N.C. Community Foundation, Wayne Preparatory Academy, Wayne County Bar Association, Goldsboro Area Metropolitan Planning Organization of the N.C. Department of Transportation, and the Elon University School of Law Alumni Council.

He has also served on committees representing the Downtown Goldsboro Development Corp., N.C. Bar Association, N.C. AgVentures and Wayne Forward. Gaylor has been recognized by the United States Small Business Administration for meritorious contributions to the development of small businesses in Wayne County.

He lives in Goldsboro with his wife, son and two rescue dogs.