Nelson Wolff | |
|---|---|
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| Bexar County Judge | |
| In office 2001 – December 31, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Cyndi Taylor Krier |
| Succeeded by | Peter Sakai |
| Mayor of San Antonio | |
| In office June 1, 1991 – June 1, 1995 | |
| Preceded by | Lila Cockrell |
| Succeeded by | Bill Thornton |
| Member of theSan Antonio City Council | |
| In office 1987–1991 | |
| Succeeded by | Bill Thornton |
| Constituency | 8th district |
| Member of theTexas Senate from the26th district | |
| In office 1973–1975 | |
| Member of theTexas House of Representatives from the Bexar County district | |
| In office 1971–1973 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1940-10-27)October 27, 1940 (age 85)[1] |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | [2] [3] |
| Children | 4 |
| Residence(s) | San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Education | St. Mary's University (BBA,JD) |
Nelson William Wolff (born October 27, 1940) is a retired American judge andDemocraticpolitician fromSan Antonio, Texas. He representedBexar County in theTexas House of Representatives from 1971 to 1973 and theTexas Senate from 1973 to 1975. He served on theSan Antonio City Council from 1987 to 1991 and then asmayor ofSan Antonio from 1991 to 1995.[4] He served as Bexarcounty judge from 2001 until December 31, 2022.
Wolff was born and raised inSan Antonio. He earned a Bachelor of Business administration fromSt. Mary's University and aJuris Doctor from theSt. Mary's University School of Law.[5]
Wolff is only the second person to serve as both San Antonio mayor and county judge of Bexar County.[6] (The first wasBryan Callaghan, Jr., who became mayor in 1885 and county judge in 1892.)[7]
With his late father and two brothers, he owned several businesses, most notably Sun Harvest Farms grocery stores and Green Fields Market, a health foods andorganic grocery store in San Antonio, which Wolff sold in 2011.
Wolff has penned five books. InChallenge of Change, he describes his experience in the Texas legislature and his participation in the 1974 Constitutional Convention, of which he was instrumental in bringing about. InBaseball for Real Men, Wolff reflects on life and his love of the game.Mayor is a memoir of San Antonio politics focusing on his time in City Hall. InTransforming San Antonio (Trinity University Press) Wolff gives an insider's view on signature economic-development projects with which he was involved: theAT&T Center, aToyota factory, the PGA Village, and the extension of theSan Antonio River Walk. He also authored the book95 Power Principles: Strategies for Effective Leadership in Government, which documents the lessons learned over his decades in public service and in business.[8]
Wolff was initially appointed to this current position in 2001 to succeedCyndi Taylor Krier, aRepublican, who resigned to accept an appointment from then GovernorRick Perry as a regent of theUniversity of Texas System. Wolff has since been elected to this position three times. In January 2012, he announced that he would seek a fourth full term in 2014.[9] He defeated in the general election the Republican candidate, Carlton L. Soules, a former member of the San Antonio City Council from the North Side. Known as a "budget hawk" while on the council, Soules since entered into an alliance with the unsuccessful2017 San Antonio mayoral candidate Manuel Medina, the chairman of the Bexar County Democratic Party organization. The two had opposed a defunct a downtown street car project, which they considered a "boondoggle."[10]
Wolff won re-election as county judge in the general election held on November 6, 2018. He defeated theRepublican nominee, Probate JudgeTom Rickhoff.
In October 2021, Wolff announced that he would not seek re-election for the position of county judge.[11]
Since 1989, Wolff has been married to his second spouse, the former Tracy Hoag. He has four children from the first marriage to Melinda Wolff: Kevin Alan, Lyn Marie, Scott, and Matthew. He has two stepchildren through the second marriage. His oldest son from his first marriage, Kevin Wolff (born c. 1965), a Republican, served with his father on the Bexar County Commissioners' Court as the Precinct three commissioner until 2021. The two disagreed over a downtown streetcar plan favored by the father and adamantly opposed by the son. They agreed on a proposal to build a rail system with the use of eighteen miles of existingUnion Pacific track from downtown San Antonio toLeon Springs.[12]
TheNelson W. Wolff Municipal Stadium, home field of theSan Antonio Missions located offU.S. Highway 90 near the intersection withState Highway 151, is named in his honor.
| Preceded by | Mayor of San Antonio, Texas 1991–1995 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theTexas House of Representatives fromDistrict 57-8 (San Antonio) 1971–1973 | Succeeded by Inactive district |
| Preceded by | Texas State Senator from District 26 (San Antonio) 1973–1975 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Bexar County Judge 2001– | Succeeded by Incumbent |
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