Port Moody Mayor Joe Trasolini will not seek re-election in November.
The four-term mayor has served as the city's top politician since 1999 and as a city councillor for three years before that.
Trasolini told The Tri-City News Monday that he had already decided not to run for another term during the 2008 mayor's race but didn't want to announce it in the middle of his final term out of fear of becoming a "lame duck" mayor.
"And this gives a couple months too for potential candidates to get organized and seek the office," Trasolini said Monday.
No candidates have officially announced their nominations yet for Port Moody mayor in the Nov. 19 general election.
Trasolini said he felt there were three issues he needed to tackle in his final term as mayor and, for better or worse, those issues have now been resolved.
"For the Murray-Clarke overpass and the Evergreen Line, I've done all that I can at the municipal level. It's in the hands of TransLink and the provincial government now," he said. "And for [Port Moody] Fire Hall No. 1, we just finished a very successful process of building a state-of-the-art fire hall at the most affordable price. So things have been put to rest and it's an opportune time."
Mayor Trasolini said he is not the kind of person to rest on his laurels and may likely stay involved in politics, possibly at the provincial level.
"I will be evaluating my opportunities in the more relaxed summer months that hopefully lay ahead," Trasolini said. "Anything is possible. I am not eliminating anything at this time."
