Ahead of a planned move to Carrboro, Chapel Hill Town Council member Karen Stegman will step down from her seat on June 27, a few months before her term expires.
Stegman announced her early departure in a public statement on Thursday, saying, “I feel both sad and proud as my service on the Council comes to a slightly premature end.”
That end is only “slightly” premature because Stegman had already announced plans to step down from the council in December, at the end of her term in office. But she and her family are about to move into a new home in Carrboro, and state law requires elected officials to live in the jurisdiction they represent.
Stegman initially planned to stay on through the end of her term despite the move: in a May 28 News & Observer article about the issue, she argued that the state law has generally been interpreted in a way that would allow her to remain on the board.
But in Thursday’s statement, Stegman said she’d uncovered new information that suggested otherwise. “I thought there was a clear path for me to finish my term,” she wrote, “(but) I have since learned that there is gray area in this area of law, and I do not want to create any potential for distractions or be a source of concern for the Town I have called home for most of my life.”
Karen Stegman was first elected to the Chapel Hill Town Council in 2017; she’s one of only a few dozen LGBTQ elected officials in North Carolina – a list that also includes her wife, Superior Court Judge Alyson Grine. In this week’s statement, Stegman listed her advocacy for LGBTQ rights among her greatest achievements, along with her work to promote affordable housing and climate action in Chapel Hill.
And because she’s not stepping down until the end of June, her work on the Town Council isn’t quite done yet: Stegman will still be in her seat when the Council approves next year’s budget on June 18, and she could still be on the Council when they decide on Chapel Hill’s next permanent town manager.
In the meantime, Stegman’s colleagues are weighing in with praise for the work she’s done in the last eight years – including Mayor Jess Anderson, who said Thursday that “it has been an honor” to have served with Stegman on the Town Council for the last eight years.
“She has fought hard for the most vulnerable, both from the dais and behind the scenes, be it advocating for affordable housing funding in our town budget to helping set up cold weather cots at churches for our unhoused neighbors,” Anderson wrote on Instagram. “I know public servants and I have no doubt that (Stegman) will continue to serve her community. It’s just who she is.”
As for Stegman herself, she concluded Thursday’s statement with thanks for the community.
“Thank you for placing your trust in me to serve Chapel Hill,” she wrote. “It has been at once the most challenging and rewarding role I have undertaken. Truly, it has been an honor.”
Here is Karen Stegman’s full statement from Thursday, June 12:
Dear friends,
I have made the difficult decision to step down from the Chapel Hill Town Council, effective June 27th. This decision comes after deep reflection and with immense gratitude for the opportunity to serve the community that has shaped me. I feel both sad and proud as my service on the Council comes to a slightly premature end.
Over nearly eight years of service, I have come into closer relationships with so many of the caring and engaged residents of Chapel Hill and gotten to know the community in ways I never imagined. I have had the opportunity to play a role in important milestones such as approving $25 million in affordable housing bonds, passing a comprehensive non-discrimination ordinance protecting LGBTQ+ individuals from discrimination, and adopting Chapel Hill’s first Climate Action and Response Plan.
You may be wondering why I am leaving before my term ends in December. My family has moved forward with plans to live in Carrboro in a home we have owned and rented out for a while. Based on the legal counsel I sought, I thought there was a clear path for me to finish my term during this time of transition. I have since learned that there is gray area in this area of law, and I do not want to create any potential for distractions or be a source of concern for the Town I have called home for most of my life.
I like to finish what I start and I admit it feels bad to leave even a minute before my term expires. As a practical matter though, the Council is heading into summer break and then the election season will be upon us once again and the bulk of my work is definitely behind me.
What I really want to say to you is thank you. Thank you for placing your trust in me to serve Chapel Hill. It has been at once the most challenging and rewarding role I have undertaken. Truly, it has been an honor.
Photo via Karen Stegman.
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