CLEVELAND — Commissioner Richard Taylor formally resigned from his position on the Cleveland Town Board.

The announcement was made during the board meeting on Monday at Cleveland Town Hall.

On Wednesday, Taylor said it was not a hasty decision, adding that it took some time to make up his mind.

“I had been thinking about it for a while,” Taylor said.

Taylor, who retired from his career as a schoolteacher seven years ago, added that he felt he hadn’t had a chance to enjoy retirement and was missing out on making memories with his family.

“Right now, I have to spend a little more time on me, my wife and my daughters,” Taylor said.

The decision weighed heavily on Taylor. He is stepping down in the middle of a four-year term, so the board will have to appoint a replacement.

Mayor Pat Phifer said that the board would most likely endeavor to have the seat filled by the first of the new year.

Cleveland lost a commissioner early this year when Danny Gabriel died in April. Gabriel’s seat will be filled during the election next month, but Taylor’s seat will have to be appointed.

Phifer called Taylor one of the “finest people you will ever meet” in a phone call on Wednesday, adding that he would be hard to replace.

The mayor said that he understood where Taylor was coming from, however.

“It’s hard to get someone to donate time for this job,” Phifer said. “In Cleveland, it’s not a political seat as much as it is an oh-Lord-we got-this-much-work-to-do-and-only-so-many-people-to-do-it seat. It’s got to be a labor of love.”

Taylor concurred in his comment, saying he felt like he just bit off more than he could chew. He had not planned to run again after his term was up but was simply unsure he could continue to give it his all for the next two years.

He’s looking forward to finding some long-awaited downtime. As he gets older, Taylor wants to monitor his health. He tries to lead an active lifestyle, regularly swimming at the YMCA. In fact, he is closing in on the 100-mile swimming challenge, which began in February and runs through December. He is currently on pace to meet the mark.

More than anything, he is looking forward to spending more time with his family.

Taylor would not rule out running in the future but said he plans to take things one step at a time for a little while.