Recently, the Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce submitted a list of questions to the candidates running in the May 6th Roanoke City Council election. Below are their responses:
Background: Over the last several years, the City of Roanoke has built a solid foundation for expanding economic growth and enhancing the quality of life, not only in the City, but throughout the Roanoke Region. From the Chamber’s perspective, there are several components that have collectively contributed to the City’s prosperity:
-Rejuvenation of Downtown Roanoke – Downtown Roanoke is the business core of southwest Virginia, with 902 total businesses employing 14,507 people. In addition, more than 1400 people live downtown, a number that is expected to increase. The renovated City Market Building, the newly designed Market Square, and the construction of an outdoor amphitheater and other improvements to Elmwood Park have created a synergistic relationship between these new projects, retail establishments, restaurants, and other arts and cultural amenities, strengthening the economic vitality of Downtown Roanoke.
-Focus on Education – A strong public education system is critical for economic development and stability. Currently, 40 percent of property and other local tax revenues is allocated to K-12 education, a prudent investment in the City’s future workforce. Significant strides have also be made to improve the school readiness rate. Investment in the Virginia Tech/Carilion School of Medicine and Research will continue to build the region’s growing reputation as a center for medical research and innovation in health care.
-Outdoor Recreation – The Roanoke Regional Partnership’s goal is to make Roanoke the best outdoor town on the East Coast. Investment in the growing network of Greenways and other outdoor amenities will enhance region’s quality of life.
-Regional Cooperation – Collaboration with other localities creates economies of scale and opportunities for localities to pool their resources. Recent successful initiatives include the Regional Broadband Authority, the Western Virginia Regional Industrial Facility Authority, and the efforts of each locality to fund the marketing efforts of the Roanoke Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau.
-Public Private Partnerships – Collaborative efforts between the public and private sectors to promote economic expansion, including the Bridges Project along the South Jefferson Corridor and the Market Garage Hotel.
-Governance – Disagreement and debate play an important role in democratic society. However, elected officials should strive to elevate compromise and solution oriented dialogue over narrow ideological beliefs.
Questions:
1) In one or two sentences, please share your perspective on each of these components.
2) If elected, what additional strategies would you recommend to promote economic growth and enhance the quality of life in the City of Roanoke?
Bill Bestpitch (I) / http://www.bestpitchforcouncil.com/
Downtown: This has been one of the most important accomplishments over the last four years, because it not only strengthens the economic vitality of Downtown Roanoke, it provides additional revenue we can use for improvements throughout the city. With the completion of the City Market Building, Market Square, and Elmwood Park projects, we can direct our capital investments to fund priorities elsewhere in Roanoke.
Education: Another significant achievement since 2010 has been the increase in the funding formula for our public schools, while allowing the two-cent hike in the meals tax to expire as promised. We have supported the Smart Beginnings early childhood education program, career and technical education (ROTEC) in our high schools, and the Community College Access Program (CCAP) at Virginia Western. These efforts are helping to raise our graduation rates and prepare our workforce for the jobs of the future, many of which will come from the work at the VTC School of Medicine and Research Institute.
Outdoors: One of the most exciting aspects of the Bridges development between Jefferson Street and the Roanoke River is the plan to include a landing for kayaks and canoes. With our initiatives to improve the quality of the storm water that drains into the river, we will be able to provide an opportunity for paddlers that we never have had before.
Regional Cooperation: The two new authorities are still in their infancy stages, so ongoing support is crucial to ensuring their success. The regional agreement on funding the RVCVB marketing efforts is just beginning, and will greatly enhance the impact of the many articles featuring the Roanoke Valley that have appeared in numerous publications over the last few years. Increased tourism will provide much-needed new revenues to all local governments.
Public Private Partnerships: The Bridges project never would have happened without the city’s commitment to providing necessary infrastructure improvements. City council members strongly supported the diligence and persistence of the City Attorney, City Manager, and Economic Development Department in overcoming many unforeseen challenges to building the new hotel atop the Market Garage. We now have an agreement that will create new athletic fields in the Countryside area, and we are supporting a new public/private funding mechanism for the arts, both of which will further enhance our quality of life.
Governance: Having served on and worked for many non-profit and membership organization boards, I have never seen any group that worked as hard as the current city council members to reach consensus on difficult issues. Civil disagreement and debate depend on mutual respect and trust, as well as commitment to common goals.
Answer: Additional strategies to promote economic growth and enhance the quality of life – We need to make clear to our existing businesses that we will work with them to provide the same incentives we offer new businesses if they are significantly expanding their operations and increasing their workforces. We need to follow through on our plans to improve libraries and parks throughout the city, while we continue to support expansion of the greenways and other trail systems. We must keep raising our high school graduation rate and promoting post-secondary training and education to increase the income level of the average household in Roanoke. We cannot neglect the efforts to reorganize our Police Department and fully implement data-driven policing to ensure that the public feels even safer. We cannot abandon the work of encouraging more retail establishments to locate in our Downtown and planning for a new passenger train and bus station. We must continue our diligent management of the city’s finances, borrowing carefully and investing strategically in capital projects that will keep up moving forward. We can never stop looking for more ways to collaborate with other local governments and institutions in the Roanoke and New River Valleys. Whatever benefits one of us benefits all of us.
Freeda Cathcart (D) / http://www.democracy.com/FreedaForRoanoke
Downtown: The rejuvenation of Downtown Roanoke has been beneficial and I will work to support its continued success. I will also work to support the rejuvenation of village centers in Roanoke’s neighborhoods by supporting local small businesses.
Education: I am glad to have the endorsement of the Roanoke Education Association. I support early childhood education, Pre-K-12, vocational training and higher education institutions.
Outdoors: I agree and I have been working for several years with the Grandin Court Neighborhood Association to preserve the Blackwell House in Fishburn Park. My vision is to create a respite for the Greenway users to enjoy a bite to eat while listening to local music on the back porch.
Regional Cooperation: I agree and my background is in Reinsurance. It is usually beneficial to pool resources when possible to create a higher probability for profit.
Public Private Partnerships: I support public private partnerships. That is one of the paths that we are pursuing to preserve the Blackwell House.
Governance: I agree. My experience as a Reinsurance Broker and my skills in conflict resolution will be helpful and effective on city council.
Answer: I have knocked on thousands of doors and have talked to hundreds of people. Roanoke has many talented people who have stayed here after they lost their jobs, when the company they worked for moved their home office out of Roanoke. Even though they had job offers to move away from Roanoke, they stayed.
They stayed because they know they have a great quality of life in Roanoke: friendly neighbors, safe neighborhoods, clean air and beautiful views. Many of them are underemployed in low paying jobs. They deserve better job opportunities. Roanoke will benefit when talented people are realizing their full potential in gainful employment.
When I was the President of the Roanoke Natural Foods Co-op, I was able to create the foundation for the thriving business that it is today. We don’t have to attract talented people to Roanoke when they are here and ready to get to work. I will work to support our local talent and businesses in order for Roanoke to prosper.
Ray Ferris (I) / http://www.ferrisforcouncil.com
Downtown: I strongly support our investment in downtown Roanoke, which has generated economic activity that benefits all our neighborhoods and allows us to invest in our city’s future. Over the past four years, more than 1,500 people have moved downtown; new businesses have opened; and, the city has become a regional destination for arts, entertainment, and economic growth.
Education: I agree with the Chamber that sustained, dedicated investment in our Roanoke’s schools is vital to our city’s economic development. Not only are our schools improving – increasing the graduation rate from 59% to 80% in four years – but our city’s partnership with Virginia Tech and Carilion has established a foundation for a thriving technology and research sector.
Outdoor: Many companies that have expanded or re-located to the Roanoke region cite our outdoor amenities as a top reason for choosing our city. Protecting and preserving the Roanoke greenway, Mill Mountain, and our parks is more than just promoting an enhanced quality of life: it is part of our efforts to attract businesses to Roanoke and drive economic development.
Regional Cooperation: As a member of the Roanoke Valley Alleghany Regional Commission and the Roanoke Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization Policy Board, I have made regional cooperation a priority during my tenure on council. We have a common goal in funding efforts to market our region for tourism and economic development.
Public Private Partnerships: On city council, it is my belief that the business community must be our partner in moving Roanoke forward. That’s why I supported efforts to develop the downtown – the City Market Building, Market Garage Hotel, and the Bridges project – and I will continue to promote business-friendly policies to create jobs throughout the city.
Governance: This year, I am running for re-election as an independent because I want to be judged by my record, not a party label. I am proud of the progress we have made for our city. The politics that divide Richmond and Washington, DC, have no role in local government, and I want to continue our tradition of working together to improve our city.
Answer: I have been honored to serve my hometown on Roanoke city council. I am a small business owner who comes from a family of entrepreneurs, and I understand the importance of promoting economic growth in the city. Roanoke is better than ever. Our schools are improving. Our business community is thriving. Our city is safer than ever, and our neighborhoods offer unparalleled quality of life for families and seniors.
The next four years will provide a great opportunity to build on Roanoke’s momentum: the Bridges project will connect the downtown to the Virginia Tech-Carilion research center, creating new opportunities for growth; the Market Garage Hotel and Amtrak transportation depot will increase tourism to the city; and, our investments in downtown Roanoke and the city’s infrastructure will provide new avenues to attract businesses to our community.
The current city council has worked diligently to focus on common sense solutions to move Roanoke forward. Together with the city staff, we have worked with the business community to enhance our quality of life and promote economic growth. Can we do more? You bet, and I am excited about the work ahead. I would be honored to earn your vote for re-election.
Valerie Garner (I) /http://www.garnerforcouncil.com/
Downtown: “Downtown Roanoke is the business core” and as such investment in the core should produce a measurable Return On Investment (ROI). Just as any business would look to the bottom line to see if his investment has produced an increase in profit. Revenue projections however for this fiscal year have not only fallen short but expenses have increased as a result of increased maintenance. It is my hope that fiscal year 2015 will prove to justify these substantial investments. There are almost 100,000 people in the city of Roanoke and 1400 is a small portion. Diversity and an enticement for families to locate downtown is needed.
Education: I am a passionate advocate for RCPS+. It is a six-week summer program that teaches critical thinking without the pressure of tests. The funding for it over the basic summer school cost is $1 million. Enrollment has doubled this summer. RCPS is operationally deficit spending. I am proposing an increase in the 40% for schools to 40.5%. The .5% (with increase of 1% being the ideal) is targeted to RCPS+ only and equates to close to $1 million beginning in the 2016 fiscal year.
Outdoors: Maintaining the quality of life for the citizens of Roanoke is essential to making Roanoke City the envy of other localities and THE place to live, work and play. It is also the key to maintaining property values and halting the decline in residential real estate assessments that affect the city’s bottom line tax base
Regional Cooperation: As a career Information Technology professional I see that fiber optic broadband is essential to creating a diverse business climate along with bringing high-paying jobs. The city being landlocked must look to other localities with larger plots of land to accommodate and entice new businesses to the region. The city with its offerings not found elsewhere will benefit no matter the business location.
Public Private Partnership: These collaborative efforts are the smart way to invest in Roanoke’s future development. Care should be taken however to resist expansion for expansion’s sake. The project must prove itself to be sustainable and not a drain on costly services.
Governance: “Cookie cutter” council members is not the ideal. One would be hard pressed to find seven council members who dissect a decision the same way. Each of the members have diverse backgrounds, come from differing socioeconomic classes and have a variety of different life experiences. All have their biases. Recognizing that you do have biases is what keeps you able to compromise. Expecting a council member to not have any ideological beliefs is not realistic. There are just as many decisions based on political pressure as ideological beliefs.
Answer: A plan for marketing Roanoke to Amtrak travelers should begin now. Passenger rail gives us a valuable tool in promoting city amenities.
Roanoke’s environmental quality needs to be protected including its valuable green spaces. Development should be concentrated around open spaces with comfortable gathering places.
We shouldn’t forget while we are enticing young professionals to Roanoke that Roanoke is still a city where people come to retire. Senior community development should be considered especially downtown where they can shop and live without needing a vehicle. Retirees have money to spend and that spending can occur downtown.
To encourage small businesses to “stick with it” though they may be operating at a loss the business license tax should be eliminated for those businesses with gross receipts of $5000 or less. This policy can be found in other Virginia cities like Richmond and Fairfax County. If the city is serious in wanting to grow small businesses this policy change could make the difference in a small business renewing their business license or giving up.
Hank Benson, Jim Garrett and Roger Malouf (R) http://www.gop4thecity.com/
Downtown: In the context of residents, this is a small neighborhood that has recently gotten a great deal more emphasis than most neighborhoods in the city and after going door to door it is clear this is causing huge friction with many Roanoke citizens; so this matter needs to be addressed immediately after we are elected. In the context of business, we need to expand the reach of our economic development department, to grow sales and therefore sales tax revenue so we can reduce our focus on borrowing (the total bond debt service is now $34 million a year). This large debt service requirement limits our options, however we would like to reduce BPOL taxes on businesses that expand and hire more employees and that is difficult with the rising debt service. We must hit economic growth from every angle and put emphasis on supporting the core of our economic engine – Roanoke’s small businesses. Let’s open Roanoke for Business.
Education: Progress has been made in improving local schools. Our ticket focuses on controlling our debt, and reducing spending will ensure Roanoke has the resources to continue to improve our schools. With the median household income in the city at $39,000 per year, 30% of our population at poverty level or below, and 75% of our school children on free or reduced lunches, we have to be strong advocates for education in order to have great job candidates, strong economic growth, reduced crime, and a rising tide that will lift our citizens out of poverty.
Outdoors: We would like to see a balanced approach where we continue to expand outdoor recreation, control our debt situation, improve public safety, and foster economic development. Appomattox River Company, in Farmville, Virginia, is the largest Canoe and Kayak retailer east of the Mississippi and we need to approach them about a partnership or incentives to open a store in Roanoke and grow interest in our beautiful river. We need to reach out to other Marathons throughout the East coast and send teams to recruit more participants. We have to work harder to recruit events and bring in more tourism dollars. There are so many avenues to grow tourism if we get active and think outside of the box. Let’s open Roanoke for Business.
Regional Cooperation: Our ticket supports regional cooperation where it makes sense for the people of Roanoke. Singularity creates duplication and inefficient models that can be avoided through regional cooperation.
Public Private Partnerships: Our ticket supports public private partnerships when it makes sense for the people of Roanoke. An open fiber network through public/private partnerships would bring huge economic opportunities. Mid-Atlantic Broadband Cooperative now has a sales office in the Silicon valley. Their efforts landed Rolls Royce in Prince George County and a $5 billion investment from Microsoft in Mecklenburg County. We should work to join them and their efforts to recruit technology companies from across the country. Let’s open Roanoke for Business.
Governance: In a republic, our primary responsibility is to represent the people of Roanoke and we will be working every day to address the poverty issues and lack of financial opportunities in Roanoke. We look forward to working with the other city council members to those ends. We believe that more ideas and healthy debate will lead to better solutions.
Answer: We plan on working to bring prosperity to people through free market principles. First of all we will make Roanoke City a partner instead of an obstacle to existing and new businesses. Then we bring fiscal responsibility back to Roanoke. With a plan to eliminate wasteful spending and limit unnecessary capital expenditures, we can avoid worsening our debt problem and start reducing our debt obligations. That will free up money to ensure that we can attract businesses, tourists and residents to a safe, well run city.
Tuan Reynolds (I) / http://www.tuan4roanoke.com/about.html
Downtown: I feel the improvements were needed; however I am not sure I would have voted to have them done so close together. I think we have to be mindful of our other responsibilities throughout the city. In addition our economy is slowly recovering from the housing crisis and subsequent recession.
Education: I believe that education is vital to leading the 30 percent of our children who reside in poverty out of poverty to a more productive life. The research center will be a draw for students and scholars from around the world to learn, live, and start families here in the valley. Hopefully, they will create spin off businesses here in the city from their research and findings. One final point, I would like to see our high schools offer online classes for student that excel in the classroom. This will allow our students to graduate faster and start earning college credit from colleges like Virginia Western at little to no cost.
Outdoors: Yes, these things are great but I feel we need outdoor entertainment for our youth. I would like to see the city and corporate partners build a world class skate board and bike park that can host national and regional events. The park can be used by our kids here and regionally. In addition the park can become a part of a series these links are an example.http://www.orangeybmx.com/index.html / http://www.tillys.com/tillys/post.aspx?id=194
Regional Cooperation: This is an area we must do better in order to grow as a city and a region. We are land locked here in the city and we have no large plots of land for business recruitment. We have to find a workable solution between our regional partners so that we can attract entrepreneurs and businesses looking to expand. This cooperation will be vital to our future growth of our economy.
Public Private Partnerships: I think we need more public private partnerships. I believe we should have partnered with Carilion or Wells Fargo or a number of other companies in the area to finance the amphitheater. The debts the city accrued could have been lessened if a partnership was secured.
Governance: Disagreements will definitely arise in the course of any political family. The best way to resolve issues is to build relationships with one another outside of the workplace. It is important to respect and understand the vision of one another and find a common ground to move the city forward in a progressive manner.
Answer: If elected to city council I would like to see bus service extended in order to provide those less fortunate with transportation to and from 2nd and 3rd shift jobs. I would like to see the market building act as a real incubator by allowing a five year limit on occupancy; this will allow new businesses into the market building and existing businesses to grow into neighborhood businesses. I believe the downtown area is still lacking an anchor to draw family’s downtown on a regular basis. I would try to end the policy of protectionism that the city has against big box retailers and eateries from doing business downtown. It is my economic belief that competition is good for a healthy and vibrant economy. In addition chain retailers and eateries will bring more families downtown and bring foot traffic to existing small businesses. The final economic issue I would advocate for is to increase homeownership by those persons using section 8 vouchers for rent. This will create more home-ownership and build equity for the persons purchasing a home. I would like to see the police departments create neighborhood precincts and build better relationships with the citizens living in the precincts. The mere sight and presence of neighborhood precincts can reduce criminal activity immediately. In addition the police officers get to know the citizens and build relationships by walking through the community. We have to stop policing from downtown and get out in the communities where crimes happen. The police officers have to become vested in our neighborhoods to build trust and open communication lines. We have to eliminate the crime element by deterring crime not trying to predict where the next crime will occur.
David Trinkle (D)/ https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dave-Trinkle-for-Roanoke-City-Council/1448599975362680
Downtown: The fact that Roanoke is the urban hub of Southwest Virginia is key to our ongoing economic success. I am proud of what has been accomplished in downtown Roanoke and that growth has offered a strong foundation for the entire city. Development and prosperity in the city core has a ripple effect – in turn benefiting neighborhoods, education and overall quality of life.
We have done a lot but there is still work to be done. In my tenure on City Council, I have been leading a charge to change our economic incentives in downtown to really focus on retail and commercial growth. We have seen great success in the areas of entertainment and residential opportunities, but we need a greater balance of retail and commercial enterprises in our city core. I am committed to the goal of further developing and connecting the hospital complex and Jefferson Street corridor to downtown. We also need to encourage more education centers to consider locations in downtown and to better embrace Jefferson College of Health Sciences and the Higher Ed Center, Culinary Institute and so on.
Education: I was co-chair with Todd Putney on re-doing the funding formula and working out all the details that come along with simple math. It is a solid formula and is working. Our k-12 system is steadily improving on multiple measures. With VTCSOM and RI we have now brought in technology, research and higher education to our city. I am proud to work as an associate dean at VTCSOM and know firsthand the tangible and intangible economic benefits that students and well paid employees and their families are bringing to our community.
There is work to be done here as well. I worry about the coming capital needs of our urban school system. There may need to be a closer look at capital funding to RCPS in out years as this is now in that 40% funding formula. Also- there is a gap in education in our city. We have increasing poverty in our school system and these social needs need to be addressed. There is also a further gap in education. While improving high school graduation rates, we still have incredibly low career and technical/college and post graduate degrees in our midst. I believe the single most important economic driver facing Roanoke in the coming years is per capita income. As we all know- Roanoke’s is low and this is a frequent fact used in decisions to bring businesses, retail and transportation to our community. The city has started programs like Bank-On to help low income families improve their situation and not rely on pay day lenders and high interest rates. There is work in progress with Virginia Western Community College (a huge asset for our city) to improve career and technical training programs and opportunities. The RCPS ROTEC program is a huge success but needs to attract more students and connect them to careers in our community. The CCAP program is growing and connecting more with colleges and even with health tracks, but dropout rates are too high. We need better incentives and mentors for our students. Finally all of these programs and new ones need to be coordinated in a strategic effort to improve per capita income for our citizens.
Outdoors: I have now run three campaigns on improving and marketing our outdoor amenities as a means of growing our economy: business relocation, family relocation, people moving into the urban hub from neighboring communities, tourism and of course quality of life for all. I am pleased the city has and continues to focus many resources in this endeavor, has conserved and protected much of our outdoor assets, and is working to get more marketing dollars to the right people to brand this. I am also pleased the private side and community leaders are doing the same, especially with the regional partnership and roanokeoutside.com. It is working- for example we now are experiencing population growth for the first time in 30 years. As a result, while this is still a focus of mine in this campaign, I have found I have to be less verbal about it. People now know, appreciate and want the outdoor concept. Our incredible outdoor amenities will continue to be preserved, enjoyed and touted by all as our economic and quality of life brand.
There is more work to be done and will always on this. We need to continue to support funding to our outdoor amenities. We need to finish and bridge the gap for our greenways and then continue funding to maintain them. We will now have money for stormwater projects and we need to be good stewards of these projects to further clean our water sheds. We need to continue to pursue higher bike friendly status with better bike lanes. We need improved access to many of our outdoor amenities. We need improved park and recreation facilities- especially fields and basketball courts- to provide not only for our youth but to bring in more tournaments. Finally continuing efforts with the Regional Commission on monitoring ozone, tree canopy and other environmental markers will be key to our success.
Regional Cooperation: During my time on council I have been honored to have been Chair of the Regional Commission and the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). I also continue to serve on the regional RVTV commission. I have and will continue to support regional cooperation wherever and whenever it can occur. Every project mentioned above is a good example. There have been times however where while regional cooperation makes sense, it gets stuck in the weeds and some localities may have to go first with others joining later. For the sake of progress, I believe this too can happen but still with regionalism in mind. I good example is the definitive need our city and all other municipalities face with stormwater regulations. We went first with a utility fee but not without years of planning with regional partners at the Regional Commission. While we went first, others are getting ready to develop their own strategies but knowing that there are regional methods in place to monitor quality measures and DEQ requirements that will save us all money.
Regionalism seems easy, makes sense. In fact is it is hard and requires a lot of effort from many dedicated people to see it through. It also takes creativity. It takes a sincere effort to try to work through the politics of a project and do what is best for the region. As a leader I will remain dedicated to pursuing regionalism with these qualities in mind. This approach will be key to attracting new businesses to the valley and in meeting the needs of businesses already here.
Public Private Partnerships: I am pleased to have supported all of these and more. I was early believer in supporting downtown revitalization for residential units which has taken off in ways I don’t think many have expected. My approach here is to pursue private public partnerships that are clearly win win but do not put the city at risk. Even with failures like Ukrops, the city was not put at risk due to our approach of using performance measures and tax incentives based on performance.
I will always look eagerly to public-private proposals and give them careful consideration to achieve the win win status with the city not being put at risk. I look forward for more to come. With our current tight budgets, these proposals will probably realize the best economic development opportunities we will see over the next several years. I have also been instrumental in leading the charge along with private individuals, especially David Wine, for an Arts and Culture Endowment Fund. This fund will hopefully mix public and private dollars and over many years grow to be an endowment that can then spin off annual predictable and sustainable funds to our vital and vetted arts and cultural institutions. This is yet another example of a public-private project that is vital to our quality of life, our urban hub, our youth and their education, tourism and overall economy. I am hoping as a member of city council to continue to promote this effort.
Governance:
It seems all my professions are customer based and involve much dialogue and negotiation. Psychiatry, restaurants, city council really are all service industries where working honestly and carefully with those that may have disagreements is critical to the success of these careers. I believe I have shown the ability to listen, become informed, and if disagree to negotiate to a resolution and not get bogged down with indecision. My temperament is one that can disagree without being disagreeable but I also want to understand why we disagree and not just avoid the conflict and more easily go with the majority. As an example, when I have important issues facing me I call every other council member and discuss it. Many just get to four votes and stop calling. If I get to four, I still call.
If elected I will do more of the same with a focus on what is good for our citizens, our community and our entire region. Obviously indecision, or endless debate over often meaningless items is not good for our economy, quality of life, or our image. We have a very positive image for Roanoke right now. That starts at the top with leaders and administration that stay focused and positive- I believe we are doing a good job as the street chatter about the image of Roanoke is so much more positive now than it was 8-10 years ago. We are no longer always commenting on comparisons but instead focusing on our assets, our quality of life, the many things to do, our education and youth programs- our vibe! We are focused on Roanoke as the authentic city it is. I like debate, healthy and informed debate, it is good to have it. But it is vital that our leaders represent our community to the public in a positive, respectful and enthusiastic manner with healthy debate that leads to decisions. You can be assured I will continue to debate and lead in this manner.
Linda Wyatt declined to submit a response.
Please Vote on May 6th