Dayton City Mayor Bob Vincent

DAYTON, Tenn. - Vice Mayor Bobby Doss and fellow Councilman Gary Louallen will compete in April in the Dayton mayoral race. Current Mayor Bob Vincent won't seek re-election.

Louallen, a self-employed businessman for more than 42 years, said the city "is a big business," and that he understands the commitment and availability needed from a mayor to operate it as a business.

"[I want] to help Dayton prosper," he said.

Doss, who has been vice mayor for the last two years, said he received considerable encouragement from others to run for mayor. If elected, he said, he planned to "keep striving" to increase available jobs in Dayton by bringing more industries to the area.

Doss praised the wealth of knowledge he said Vincent had shared during his long tenure as councilman and mayor.

"There's a lot of knowledge that will be hard to replace," he said, but "the council is strong."

In a written news release, Vincent said, "I will miss the campaign and the privilege to serve, but it is time for me to encourage someone with new ideas and energy to have the opportunity."

He said it was "extremely gratifying to be elected as Dayton's first at-large mayor."

Vincent was appointed the city's mayor in April 2005 and served on the Dayton council and school board for more than 30 years. While mayor, he served on the Regional Planning Commission and the Rhea Economic and Tourism Council, as well as being a director for the Southeast Tennessee Human Resource Agency and the Southeast Tennessee Development District.