COURTHOUSE — The three people in the running to serve the remaining term of City Councilmember Louis Jones, who died this summer, made their respective cases on Tuesday, Aug 2, to the City Council members who will determine which of them to appoint.
The finalists for an appointment that would run through the end of this year are Delceno Miles, a public relations and marketing executive and former member of the School Board, Ronald Ripley, a real estate executive who served on the Planning Commission, and Charlotte Zito, an English teacher who serves on the 5/31 memorial committee.
Each made remarks and answered questions about their priorities and positions during a special meeting at the new City Hall building during what was the first public meeting in a spacious, new council chamber. Public comment about the appointment is scheduled to be heard there at 2 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 9.
The council will deliberate during a closed session and make an appointment during a regular meeting that evening at City Hall, according to a statement released this past month by the city.
[Ed. – Biographical information about the three finalists for the appointment is available online at the city website. Previous news coverage is at this link.]
Mayor Bobby Dyer welcomed the trio to the special meeting following a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new chamber.
“We’re here for a sad reason,” Dyer said, speaking of the passing of Jones, who twice served as mayor. “Losing Louis Jones was a tremendous loss not only to this council but to this community. We’re looking forward to picking somebody who will continue his legacy of excellence, and we have some very remarkable candidates that we’re going to bring forward.”
The three all live within the Bayside District under the former voting system, and none of the finalists are candidates in this year’s race for District 8 under the city’s new 10-district local voting system.
“There’s been a death in our Virginia Beach family,” said Miles, who spoke first, about her mixed emotions over the circumstances that led to the appointment process.
Miles noted her professional background and community service, including her work as president of the Virginia Beach Vision executive committee, and interactions with government leaders at various levels. “Whatever role the City Council needs me to play on the team, I’m up for it,” Miles said.
Miles said her firm is involved as a “subconsultant” on three projects in Virginia Beach, though she has no contracts directly with the city, and she would resign those roles if appointed. She said the city is moving in the right direction on issues such as improving the percentage of contracts held by minority and woman-owned firms, and she said she would review proposals for Rudee Loop carefully with the council as an appointee. “I would certainly respect the leadership and efforts of those council members who have led the charge for Rudee Loop.”
On stormwater and flooding issues, she said, “Voters overwhelmingly supported the referendum last year. However, it is vitally important to ensure a viable implementation plan is in place.” She said transportation is as important to economic development “as our schools and housing stock,” and she supports a multimodal transportation system. She said she wants to continue to focus on Burton Station, saying Jones had been a “tremendous help” in working with the community on issues such as infrastructure.
City Councilmember Barbara Henley said the appointment will be a brief one, and she noted Miles’ service and experience. She asked Miles whether she would like to focus on any particular initiative if given the opportunity to serve. Miles responded that she would like to continue to work on issues Jones had been passionate about during his service.
“He really had a heart to serve the folks at Burton Station,” Miles said. “I really want to keep that momentum going. I don’t want to miss anything there. He worked so hard for so many years to get them city services.”
“He was truly a great man,” Ripley said.
Ripley said he did not plan to reenter public service after many years with the Planning Commission. He said he sought the appointment because of his support for and trust in Jones over many years and because he has developed an interest in public service. He said Virginia Beach is a beautiful, complex city, and he enjoyed helping work on issues that helped shape it.
Ripley served as chair of the commission during the development of one comprehensive plan and supported other plans during his service. He also served what is now the Bayfront Advisory Committee, advocating for an investment in that area and communicating its value, and he would continue to support the area as an appointee.
“I was in a unique position to take a deep dive into a number of major planning studies that helped shape the community,” he said.
He said he has the background on issues such as planning and zoning to hit the ground running. “I have the experience, and I think I can make a difference,” he said.
Councilmember John Moss asked about issues including whether he would consider the preservation of Rudee Loop as recreation space without commercial development.
“I think subject to seeing the plans, I would, yes,” Ripley said.
Ripley also said he would like to look at an initiative to provide affordable housing.
Zito, an English teacher, said she supports strong education as a professional and as a parent, and through her involvement as the chairperson of the community advisory board member for WHRO, the local public media station. Zito said she supports the local arts and wants to “defend and protect” the beauty of the city’s natural resources, address infrastructure issues such as streets without sidewalks and help revitalize commercial properties.
“I will be a council member who gives her time to others,” Zito said. “We need public servants and community leaders in the best of times and in times of crisis. Right now, we are facing difficult economic times and there is major political division. Our city needs leaders who can help our citizens weather the economic storm and who can bridge the divides.”
She said public safety and flood mitigation are also key issues, and she hopes to work to build a better community. She said she would bring an open mind to the work and listen to colleagues on the council.
“I believe any plan for the Rudee Loop development should include well-planned park space” and recreational access for people such as fishermen or surfers, she said in response to a question by Moss. She said she was not sure commercial development would help taxpayers. She said she wanted to maintain green space and consider plans.
Pressed by Moss about whether she was open to any commercial development at Rudee Loop, she said, “I believe primarily it should serve as a park.”
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