Newell, a former two-term council member, returned after a two-year hiatus and was elected mayor pro-tem, having led the balloting in October’s non-partisan municipal elections. Stigall, a Roxboro businessman, began his first term on council, and Brown, a retired educator, began his initial term as the city’s chief elected officer.

Prior to administering the oaths of office to the three, along with returning Councilmen Sam Spencer, Henry Daniel and Mark Phillips, Chief District Court Judge Mark Galloway said, “I am not a native, but Roxboro is my hometown and I love it so.”

Brown’s first duty as mayor was to have council elect it’s mayor pro-tem. Daniel, noting the tradition of council to award the position to the leading vote getter, made the motion to elect Newell. That motion was seconded by Spencer and passed unanimously.

At the close of the vote, Brown rapped the gavel loudly and, after hearing laughter from the audience, sported a big smile and said, “Sam [Spencer] taught me that.”

Earlier in the evening, current and former members of council, along with a host of family, friends and well-wishers gathered at the new Roxboro Police Department for a ceremony honoring retiring Councilman James Allen.

Allen, 85, did not seek re-election this year. But Allen’s career on council spans 30 years. Tuesday’s surprise reception caught Allen off guard. He was under the assumption that the reception was being held for all incoming and outgoing elected officials. >>

Looking back on his 30-plus years of service to the city, Allen said, “For the most part, I’ve enjoyed every moment.”

Attorney and former Roxboro Mayor George Jackson was among the many well wishers attending the reception to honor Allen.

“He was my first mayor,” Allen said of Jackson.

And to that, Jackson quipped, “I saw him come in and I decided I needed to see him go out.”

Steve Joyner, stepping down Tuesday after two terms as mayor, described Allen as“one of those rare politicians who are not afraid to change his mind when presented with new information and who will also stick to his guns on issues he personally believes in” as Joyner presented Allen a key to the city.

Allen said his most memorable experiences in office both came when the late D’Arcy Bradsher was mayor.

“I remember when the dam broke at City Lake and we lost most of our water,” Allen said. “We built a new dam and now have a new, larger lake. It all turned out fine in the end.”

Allen also recalled when Uptown Roxboro was refurbished and all utility lines were placed underground.

“That was a big thing,” Allen said.

As best he could calculate, Allen said Tuesday’s meeting would mark his 384th regular meeting.

“And, there has been almost an equal amount of special meetings,” Allen quipped. “So, as best I can tell, I’ve got 700 and some meetings in the books.”

Of those meetings, Allen estimated that he missed no more than “a half dozen or so. And, those were when I was in the hospital,” he added.

Despite stepping down from council, Allen said he planned to still attend the monthly meetings on a regular basis.

“Absolutely,” Allen said. “I am interested in the future of Roxboro.”

And, that is something he pointed out at City Hall Tuesday night as the immediate past council was offered a chance to comment before stepping down.

He reminded council of the decision to construct Lake Roxboro 30 years ago to aid in the city’s water supply. And, he urged the city to press forward with the Dan River water project.

“This is the future we are talking about,” Allen said.

He also stressed to incoming council members the importance of continuing the work on housing problems in the city that Joyner “has worked so hard on.”

If not, Allen said, it “will become a more serious problem than it is now.”

Later Councilman Daniel presented Allen a plaque honoring his lengthy tenure. Daniel said that Allen “has done it all and probably seen it all.”

Burke and Joyner were also presented plaques in recognition of their service to the city. Joyner served as mayor for the past four years and Burke, who earlier was appointed to serve the unexpired term of former Councilman Eugene Keen, served one term.

Spencer praised Burke for his willingness to serve the city. Spencer noted that before Burke was appointed to council “he attended all council meetings as a citizen … He really wanted to serve the people of Roxboro, and he has made that attempt.

“He was appointed because council saw his dedication to wanting to be a part…he served faithfully…I think that shows dedication to the cause of city government.”

Spencer also thanked Joyner for his service. Acknowledging that the two might not have agreed on everything, Spencer observed that if everyone “agreed on everything or disagreed, you would only need one council member.”

Phillips said that when Joyner was elected four years ago, “Roxboro was in need of good leadership…you provided that,” he said to Joyner. “The city will miss your leadership. I will miss it as well.”

Phillips added that Joyner “exemplified what a mayor should be.”

Joyner said he could look back over his two terms in office and be pleased.

“During my four years as mayor, we have come so far and accomplished so much,” he said. “We have funded our water and sewer infrastructure needs and improved relations with our taxpayers, our citizens and our customers. We have increased pay for our public servants, most notably in the police and fire departments, and we have increased productivity.

“We have improved housing code enforcement, built a new police station, reduced the crime rate, made improvements to City Hall, invested in economic development and increased the tax base,” Joyner added. “We accomplished all this and more while also lowering our tax rate.”

But Joyner said his proudest achievement was implementation of the city’s strategic plan, which he said gives the city “a road map for the future.”

He added, “This city is indeed headed in the right direction. …While I give credit where credit is due, to those who actually make the decisions, I also firmly believe many of the accomplishments during the past four years would not have been achieved without me here in this position doing what I think I do well. I can and will leave this office tonight personally satisfied that I did my part and I did a good job.”

Joyner, whose voice later quivered as he thanked his wife, Lori, and daughter, Emily, for their support, ended his prepared four-page farewell speech on a light-hearted note.

“Winston Churchill once said, ‘I drink a great deal, I sleep a little, and I smoke cigar after cigar. That’s why I’m in 200 percent form.’

“Tonight when I go home, Winston Churchill and I are going to share a few things in common as I reflect on my service as mayor. I’ll leave it to your imagination to guess for yourselves which things they will be.”