Seils will run for empty Alderman seat

The Carrboro Board of Aldermen will soon welcome a new face to the board — and Damon Seils is putting his name in the hat for the position.

Seils, first vice-chairman of the Carrboro Planning Board, announced Nov. 14 that he will run for election after Alderman Dan Coleman steps down next month.

Coleman has served on the Board of Alderman since February 2006, but he will soon move to Melbourne, Australia, where his wife will teach at Monash University.

Seils, who has served on the planning board since 2008, said he thinks his experience with town and county government has prepared him for a seat on the board.

“I have built some good relationships with many different people in the community, in and out of politics,” Seils said.

Seils — who was born in Texas and came to Carrboro in 1999 — is part of the Carrboro Green Leaves Commission and the LGBT Task Force at Duke.

Seils currently works as a health services researcher at the Duke University School of Medicine.

“These various organizations have given me the opportunity to make decisions and learn about the processes of local government,” he said.

Braxton Foushee, who works on the planning board with Seils, said he thinks Seils would be a good fit for the town.

“I like his style,” Foushee said. “We have some of the same ideas of how the town should look.”

Foushee said he thinks Seils’ biggest strength is his ability to listen to the community.

“He’s a great listener and he wants everyone to feel like they can contribute,” Foushee said. “He tries his best to incorporate those ideas in the final product.”

Alderman Sammy Slade said the board will have a meeting to discuss how it will handle the election.

Seils said it’s customary in Carrboro to hold a special election when there is a vacancy for a position with more than one year left in the term.

Because Coleman’s term is not set to expire for another two years, the board will have to schedule an election.

According to a press release from Seils, the election could take place as early as March.

If he is elected, Seils will take on a variety of issues that the board is currently working on — including affordable housing, designating a landfill, providing remediations for the Rogers Road community and meeting the climate change greenhouse gas emission targets, Slade said.

Slade said he hasn’t heard of any others planning to run at this time.

But he thinks Seils would be a good fit for the board.

“I’ve been impressed with Damon and what he’s been able to contribute on the planning board and what he’s done for the Carrboro community,” Slade said. “I think he would be a great addition.”

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