Former mayor, former lawmaker Bill Hurley has died

Nov. 26--John W. "Bill" Hurley, a former Fayetteville mayor and former state lawmaker who worked tirelessly to make his adopted hometown a better place, died shortly after 2 a.m. Monday.

He was 85.

Fayetteville wouldn't be the city it is today without Mr. Hurley's lifetime of public service, several people said on Monday.

"He planted the seed. We're reaping the harvest of what he did," current Mayor Mitch Colvin said.

"Mayor Hurley led efforts to revitalize our downtown, by getting rid of seedy nightclubs, demolishing dilapidated buildings and beautifying downtown with what have come to be known as 'Hurley Pots,'" Mayor Colvin said. "His work as Mayor and in the N.C. House of Representatives gave Fayetteville a new vision for the future, which we continue to see come to fruition with the upcoming opening of our new baseball stadium, new hotel and revitalized Prince Charles Hotel property.

"As a community, we are thankful for his hard work and I extend heartfelt condolences to his family," Mayor Colvin said.

Longtime community booster George Breece also remembers Mr. Hurley well.

"Bill Hurley was a giant of a man and especially when it came to public service," Mr. Breece said. "Bill's vision and footprint in downtown Fayetteville will never be matched."

Before he moved to Fayetteville in 1955 when he was 21, Mr. Hurley never really had a hometown. "I had no roots," he said in 2006, because his family moved to a new eastern North Carolina town every four years as his father, who was a Methodist pastor, received new church assignments.

He came to Fayetteville to live with his older brother and get himself established.

"I just immediately adopted the city as my home," Mr. Hurley said in 2006. "I liked it. People received me. I was able to make a living in the insurance business. I joined the Jaycees, became active in the community. And the rest is history. That's the reason I'm here."

Mr. Hurley founded an insurance business in downtown Fayetteville that eventually became Olde Fayetteville Insurance.

Mr. Hurley was elected to the Fayetteville City Council in 1977 and was the mayor from 1981 through 1987. He followed up with 12 years in the state House of Representatives. He retired from the legislature in 2002. He said later he had grown tired of running for reelection every two years and, as he entered his 70s, he wanted to spend more time with his wife and family.

But Mr. Hurley remained active into his 80s, slowing down only when he became ill. He never wanted to retire.

Mr. Hurley's son Mark Hurley said on Monday that he suffered from a blood disease that eventually developed into leukemia.

Despite his illness, Bill Hurley still went to Holden Beach this fall for an annual family vacation, Mark Hurley said. "He made a point to get down there," he said.

Mr. Hurley didn't clean out his office at Olde Fayetteville Insurance, the company he founded more than half a centurry ago, until just a few weeks ago, Mark Hurley said.

Bill Hurley died about 2:10 a.m. Monday, Mark Hurley said.

His survivors include his wife, Sandy Hurley, sons Mark, Brad and Todd Hurley, and his grandchildren.

(This is a developing story and will be updated.)

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