Alderman Lydia Lavelle
Lydia E. Lavelle has been a triangle resident since 1983 and became a Carrboro citizen via the January 2006 annexation. After becoming a resident of Carrboro, she chaired the New Horizons Task Force and she served on the Planning Board. The citizens of Carrboro elected her to the Carrboro Board of Aldermen on November 6, 2007 and she was sworn into her position December 4, 2007. She was re-elected to a second term on November 8, 2011. As a member of the Board, Lydia serves as the liaison to the Town’s Appearance Commission. She is one of the Board’s two representatives to the Transit Partners Committee and is the designated member to the Triangle Advisory Committee of the Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (TAC-MPO). Lydia currently serves as the 2012 chair of the TAC-MPO. She also is a member of the Orange County/Chapel Hill Visitor’s Bureau Board of Directors.
Background
Lydia was born in Athens, Ohio, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree from St. Andrews Presbyterian College. She earned her master’s degree from North Carolina State University, and worked in the field of parks and recreation administration for several years. She is currently an assistant professor at North Carolina Central University School of Law, where she received her law degree in 1993, and where she teaches seminar courses on “Sexual Identity and the Law” and “State and Local Governmental Law.” She is a member of various legal associations, including the North Carolina Association of Women Attorneys, of which she was president from 2004-05, and the Board of Directors of N.C. LEAF (Legal Education Assistance Foundation).
Community Life & Activities
Lydia lives in Fox Meadow with her partner Alicia Stemper and their children Riley and Avery. She and her family attend the United Church of Chapel Hill. Lydia is a member of the Triangle Land Conservancy, the Friends of Bolin Creek, and the Friends of the Carrboro Library. Lydia enjoys hiking the Appalachian Trail; her local hiking spots include Bolin Creek and Duke Forest. Lydia also enjoys biking with her family, jogging, and occasionally squeezing in a workout at the YMCA. She loves to read, and belongs to a book club she started in 2002. She enjoys participating in a fantasy baseball league, watching various sports (her favorite team is the Wolfpack) and misses the days when she still had time to play bridge.
