Warrenton Mayor Greg Costello, a 20-year veteran of city politics, confirmed Tuesday he will not seek another term. Costello is wrapping up his second two-year term in his most recent run as mayor, a position he's held since 2008. He first served as mayor for 12 years, from 1986 to 1998, before taking a break. He later returned to municipal government as an alderman serving for two separate two-year terms in 2003 and 2006. Costello said he is looking forward to traveling more and not having to fulfill the time commitments required in an elected capacity. "I'm the type of person where I don't want to miss meetings," he stated. "I want to travel in the winter months out of state and I wouldn't be comfortable missing meetings." He added, "After 20 years, they need to see a new face." Costello emphasized that his decision to step away from public office was a decision he made for no other reason. "I'm not unhappy," he said. "I'm not unhappy with any other governments. It's not out of frustration. I'm very comfortable with the decision." Dec. 13 was the first day for candidates could file for city offices in the April 3, 2012, municipal election. The filing deadline is Jan. 17. As of Tuesday, Ward 3 Alderman Don Broering was the only candidate to file for mayor. Broering is currently completing his first term as alderman. "I had a lot of people in the community who said or requested that I should consider running for mayor," Broering said. "I really had to think about it. It's an important job. I'm not running to say ‘I'm the mayor.' " A retired employee from General Motors, he said he would continue to rely on his business and engineering background and lean on his time serving on the board. "I have a grip on what is going on," Broering said. "There are a lot of positives going on in the city." In other filings, longtime Ward 2 Alderman Fred Flake is the only new candidate to file in the past week. So far he is unopposed. In Ward 1, newcomer Josh Pellerito is the lone candidate, as is Jim Dreyer in Ward 3. Dreyer is a former alderman. -recnews@centurytel.net