Latest news with #VirginiaBeachCityCouncil
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Former state delegate, political newcomer square off in District 97 GOP primary
VIRGINIA BEACH — A former state delegate will square off with a political newcomer in the Republican primary for Virginia House District 97. The candidates are Tim Anderson, 50, an attorney, and Christina Felder, 28, a substitute school teacher. The seat is considered competitive. Republicans lost control of it to Democrat Michael Feggans in 2023 and are hoping to oust him to win it back. Anderson, an attorney who represented House District 83 from 2021-2023 and later ran unsuccessfully for a Virginia Senate seat, is making a bid for District 97 in an effort to flip the Democratic-controlled majority in the House. 'This seat by far is the absolutely No. 1 flippable seat in the commonwealth of Virginia,' Anderson said. 'The district is really 50/50.' Anderson wants to substantially lower the car tax that residents pay each year, and instead use Virginia's budget surplus to reimburse localities for the lost revenue. 'Basically reallocating Virginia's budget surplus to give people meaningful tax relief,' he said. He's banking on his prior experience in the state legislature and his communication skills to propel him through the primary. Anderson enjoys using social media to dissect and summarize current issues, an effort he began during the pandemic. 'I'm going to like getting back in there and being in the center of what's happening and letting people know what's going on with their government from the inside,' he said. Felder is fired up about running for state office for the first time. Last year, she ran for Virginia Beach City Council in District 3 and faced two opponents including incumbent Michael Berlucchi who held onto his seat. 'I was new, fresh, didn't really know the ropes,' she said. 757 Votes: The Virginian-Pilot and Daily Press 2025 primary election guide House District 97 Republican primary: Tim Anderson faces Christina Felder Felder worked with a charitable group that helped young mothers in need and that led her to run for state office where she feels she could make a significant impact on people's lives by sponsoring bills, she said. 'I definitely want to help my community,' Felder said. 'I take it very seriously.' She has a 1-year-old child and has been a teacher in Virginia Beach Public Schools for several years. Felder is currently a substitute teacher in Virginia Beach. If elected, she would work to improve education and oppose vape shops near schools, she said. Anderson has moved to different districts in order to run for office. He moved last August near Lynnhaven Mall to run for the District 97 seat. Anderson was elected in 2021 to represent House District 83, a competitive seat that at the time covered western Virginia Beach and a sliver of Norfolk's Ocean View. He resigned in 2023 and moved because redistricting placed him in the same boundary lines as Republican Del. Rob Bloxom. But he was unsuccessful in a primary bid for Virginia Senate District 19 against fellow Republican Christie New Craig, who now holds the seat. Felder officially joined the Republican Party earlier this year. She lags far behind Anderson in campaign fundraising, with $1,152 for the first quarter of this year, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. Anderson's campaign has $112,192 for the first quarter of 2025, according to VPAP. His top donor is Jeff Bruzessi, owner of the Closet Factory Hampton Roads. Bruzessi, who also ran in the 2023 Senate District 19 Republican primary, has donated $71,000 to Anderson's campaign as of March 31. Other donors to Anderson include developer Bruce Thompson, $5,000, and former Gov. Bob McDonnell, $1,000. Anderson plans to use those resources to ramp up a campaign crusade against Feggans' platforms if he wins the primary. The district includes parts of Virginia Beach and has 63,024 registered voters. Feggans ousted Republican incumbent Karen Greenhalgh with 52% of the vote in 2023. Early voting is underway leading up to the election June 17. Anderson earned his law degree from Regent University. He's a father of two sons and a recreational pilot. He often flies his Cessna for work, representing cases across Virginia. 'That's probably my happy place,' Anderson said of flying. Felder has faced questions from Anderson and others about her credentials and public statements she's made. She became defensive in explaining her affiliation with the Republican party and her personal background at the local party's city committee meeting last month, as seen on a video of the event. Felder said she's not afraid to admit she's an impassioned person. 'It shows I care,' she said. In a recording obtained by The Virginian-Pilot of a Republican breakfast forum in April, Felder stated she voted for President Barack Obama when she was 18, but Obama last ran in 2012, and Felder would have been 15 years old. The Pilot confirmed she has embellished some personal details on her campaign website, where she states that she attended Ivy League colleges and was 'the youngest homeowner in Virginia Beach in 2020.' Felder clarified those statements in an interview last week, explaining that she 'never left Virginia Beach,' and earned degrees and certifications online only including undergraduate degrees from Tidewater Community College and Old Dominion University, post-graduate degrees from Liberty University, and certifications from Yale and Oxford universities. The Pilot is in the process of verifying her degrees with the schools. As for the statement about being the youngest homeowner in 2020, Felder said her realtor at the time told her he had never worked with someone as young as her. 'I was just so happy,' she said. Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125,
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Virginia Beach residents voice concern over proposed city budget
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — On Wednesday, the Virginia Beach City Council held a public hearing on the proposed budget for 2025-2026 fiscal year. Virginia Beach City Council to hold public hearings for proposed budget Residents and employees took to the podium to voice their concerns with the proposed budget. 'If I have to tell you that households are out of free cash flow and the life is already unaffordable for most Americans and affording just the basic necessitates many families going deeper into debt, then you are totally out of touch with economic reality,' one resident said during the hearing. The proposed operating budget is $2.8 billion, which represents a 4.74% increase over last year's amended budget. One woman took to the podium concerned for the retirees in districts 1, 3 and 7 and working families in the city. She said that if city council continues to create blanket raises, their income is not going up to match the proposed rates. 'It's making it harder for some of them to live, some of them are having to come out of retirement, some are having to work second jobs and some are planning to leave Virginia Beach,' she said. 'For the fees the more you keep asking for the less people can put into businesses.' Another issue mentioned was trash pickup. An automation worker called on the city council for help to close the gap. 'We are arranging about 1200 cans to 1400 cans an operator,' he said. 'That's bad and it's no one in the country moving that many units, but if we could get just a little help from the city council so we can come up with a plan to help cut these units down and be safe on the roads, especially according to VDOT standards.' Another resident highlighted his concerns with the proposed boat tax. If the city enforces the new boat tax, he says it punishes boat ownership. 'A proposed boat tax is wrong and it's gonna hit folks like me too hard, my boats over 20 years old. Maintaining it, fuel repairs cost me plenty already,' he said. 'A $1,500 assessment — this new $1.50 per $100 boat tax means that is a $225 bill. That's steep when I'm barely keeping it afloat financially.' Community voices said tax increases are not the answer. 'What is necessary is tax cuts, not higher taxes,' one resident said. 'The current recommended budget financially punish his families and rob them of hope.' The next and final hearing will be on Tuesday, April 22 in the council chambers. If you wish to make comment, you have to register with the city clerks office by calling (757) 385-4304 prior to 5 p.m. on the day of the hearing. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Virginia Beach city council requests residents' input on voting system change into charter
Virginia Beach city staff has been preparing a resolution for residents' feedback on adopting the 10-1 voting system into the city's charter, under direction of the Virginia Beach City Council on April 1. The resolution will be ahead of a city council vote where on May 6, councilmembers will vote on if 'the method of City Council elections set forth in the Virginia Beach City Charter be changed from a 'modified 7-3-1' system to a '10-1' system?' According to the city of Virginia Beach, a yes vote is in support of the 10-1 system, which was used in the 2022 and 2024 City Council elections. A no vote is in support of the 7-3-1 system, which was used in 2021 and is outlined in the current city charter. VB city council put the issue to vote in November 2024, where the idea to put the 10-1 system in the charter was voted down due to its failure to at least a three-fourths majority. Previous coverage: VB council votes down putting 10-1 voting system into charter During November's vote, councilwoman Jennifer Rouse said she supported the 10-1 system because people in her district (District 10) had never seen anyone campaign in that area before the system's introduction. 'People were able to garner votes just from certain pockets of the city, which then meant many neighborhoods and communities were underrepresented because candidates didn't go and speak to those residents to learn about their issues and then to represent them,' said Rouse. Mayor Bobby Dyer, who stood in support of the 7-3-1 system since being elected in 2004, told 10 on your side in November the 10-1 system had 'a bunch of ambiguity out there' and that it 'would benefit the public to hear both sides of the equation.' Previous coverage: VB council expected to vote on 10-1 voting system The city of Virginia Beach provided ways to give your feedback ahead of the May 6 vote: Provide thoughts, comments and concerns via SpeakUp VB until 11:59 p.m. on May 3, 2025, using any of the following options: Email Leave a voicemail by calling 1-855-925-2801. Enter Project Code 11338 Text referendum to 73224 Attend the April 15, 2025, public hearing at 6 p.m. in City Council Chamber, 2401 Courthouse Drive. Speak virtually during the April 15, 2025, public hearing. Sign up with the City Clerk's Office by calling 757-385-4303. Email City Council at . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
VB budget proposal includes revived boat tax, meals tax and stormwater rate increase
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — In order to help combat inflation in the coming fiscal year, the city manager is proposing several tax and fee rate increases, including placing a tax on pleasure boats. In a presentation to Virginia Beach City Council Tuesday afternoon, Budget Director Kevin Chatellier revealed the FY 2025-2026 $2.8 billion budget plan had to take into account cost increases of 40% for some city initiatives. And while the real estate tax is recommended to stay the same at $0.97 per $100 of assessed value, Chatellier said it has recommended other taxes and fees be increased in order to continue to preserve and maintain existing services. The resurrected boat tax would be applied to anyone with a boat 18-feet or longer at a rate of $1.50 per $100 of assessed value. Chatellier estimates this would produce an estimated $4.3 million in yearly revenue that would go towards projects boaters use, such a dredged waterways. 'Larger boats typically draw more water, driving more of the necessity for frequentdredgings to maintain navigable waterways,' City Manager Patrick Duhaney wrote in a letter to City Council. If approved, this would actually be a return on the boat tax eliminated in 2002. Suffolk also taxes boats at the same rate. Duhaney's budget would also increase the meals tax by .5%, bringing a diner's full tax for a meal in Virginia Beach to 12%. A proposed fee increase is also included for the stormwater enterprise fund. The rate will go up 8.9 cents a day, working out to annual increase of $32, or around $2.70 per month. 'Significant inflation on the cost of goods and services in the last six years, coupled with increased labor costs have substantially impacted the sustainability of the stormwater fund,' Duhaney wrote. Balances to the budget have also been made by eliminating proposed Capital Improvement Projects (CIP). Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Something in the Water's request to reinstate festival denied
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Something in the Water Festival organizers reportedly reached back out to Virginia Beach City Council to request a reinstatement of the annual festival, which was scheduled in April after the original October date was postponed. Despite the plea, Mayor Bobby Dyer said the city is holding firm to its decision to cancel the festival, opting to explore other options for entertainment, including through Beach Events. Previous Coverage: Virginia Beach City cancels Something in the Water Previously unregulated, the annual festival — put on by Virginia Beach-native Pharrell Williams — led to mass confusion, frustration and financial loss after ticket buyers waited in line in September 2024 for the event, originally scheduled in October. Despite no lineup being released, people waited in line — only to be abruptly told that the festival was postponed. Virginia Beach mayor says city 'moving on' from Something in the Water, for now The public and the city were caught off guard at both the cancelation and the decision to hold the event in April. A decision made without any input from city officials. The fiasco prompted the city to require more oversight and provide deadlines for information to be released. A back and forth struggle ensued between organizers and the city as their attempt to regulate the event and ensure a smooth process for attendees was met with unanswered questions, deadlines coming and going, and ultimately resulting in the cancelation of an annual event. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
