Kevin Foy

Kevin Foy

Kevin C. Foy (born 1956) was the mayor of Chapel Hill, North Carolina from 2001-2009.

During his eight years in office, Foy focused on policies that have transformed Chapel Hill into a vibrant mid-sized city. Chief among these is a fare-free transit system. With free buses, ridership grew from fewer than 3 million annual passengers to more than 7.5 million — saving citizens money and freeing the town from the air pollution of all those cars not being used. He also directed investment into the redevelopment of the downtown and preserved the character and natural setting of the community by ensuring that new parks and schools have kept pace with the town’s growth.

In June 2009, Foy’s efforts as mayor were rewarded by the U.S. Conference of Mayors which named Chapel Hill “America’s Most Livable City.”

In addition, Foy served as Chair of the North Carolina Metropolitan Mayors Coalition – the organization representing the state’s largest cities – and led the effort to pass the state’s first anti-gang legislation. The group’s agenda also includes strengthening the judicial system and reducing crime, identifying and implementing transportation options, and managing urban growth.

Foy left office in 2009 and was succeeded by Mark Kleinschmidt. He considered running for the Senate nomination in 2010. Foy believes there has been a lack of leadership from North Carolina's Republican senators. Unlike the “Know Nothings” his ancestors confronted, Foy sees Republican Senator Richard Burr and his former colleague Elizabeth Dole as “Do Nothings,” who sat silently by and ignored the problems facing North Carolina. For example, efforts to provide light rail service to North Carolinians faltered and failed because the state’s senators refused to support it. Meanwhile, a light rail service in northern Virginia moved ahead because their senators got behind it.