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Audit dispute triggers bitter feud between Virginia Beach Republicans and district leaders
What started as a call for financial transparency has exploded into bitter infighting within the Republican Party of Virginia Beach, pitting local GOP chair Laura Hughes and her conservative grassroots allies against the leadership of the 2nd Congressional District GOP Committee — and, by extension, the party’s entrenched establishment wing. With accusations of stonewalling, sabotage, and political retribution flying, the dispute has deepened long-standing tensions and raised concerns about how party unity will hold heading into key statewide elections in November.
Virginia Beach council supports referendum on voting system
Virginia Beach voters will likely find a referendum on the city’s voting system on their ballots this November after City Council approved asking a court to place it on the ballot. After hearing 14 passionate speakers, council members on Tuesday voted 7-4 in favor of having the referendum.
Virginia Beach council votes to put election system question on November ballot
Voters in Virginia Beach will have the opportunity to cast a vote for the method in which they want to elect their City Council members. Seven of 11 council members voted Tuesday in favor of a charter change referendum on the election system to be placed on the November ballot. The referendum question would ask voters whether they want to keep the current single-member district system or if they support a voting system with some at-large seats on council.
Virginia Beach school board keeps anti-DEI policy
The Virginia Beach City Public Schools board convened Tuesday night and voted to keep in place an April resolution to suspend diversity, equity and inclusion policies. School board members who called the emergency meeting introduced a motion to amend the previous resolution, and pause enacting some of its directives while federal courts litigate the issue. The motion failed in a 5-5 vote, with one member absent. More than 50 residents spoke at the meeting, with about two to one speakers in favor of DEI initiatives.
Gov. Youngkin can help strengthen federal emergency response
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is an agency ripe for reform. Residents here know that while its work is essential in the aftermath of a disaster, funding can be slow to arrive, the process of receiving aid can be frustrating and overly bureaucratic, and the agency is routinely impeded by staffing and funding shortfalls. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin was last week appointed to a presidential review council to study that agency and recommend changes to FEMA. That’s a difficult charge, given that President Donald Trump has called for the agency’s elimination, but the council has an important opportunity to make federal emergency response efforts more effective and financially responsible, which would benefit us all.
Mecklenburg solar project neighbors get fake letter dangling cash
Property owners near a proposed solar project in Chase City have reportedly received a fake “good neighbor agreement” that was made to look as if it was issued by solar developer Longroad Energy Holdings, LLC for its 7 Bridges Solar facility. The document in question contains an offer, purportedly from Longroad Energy Holdings, LLC and 7 Bridges Solar LLC, to pay homeowners an initial sum of $10,000 for signing the agreement. . . . Longroad Energy officials say the letter is a fabrication. . . . At least twice, public allegations have been made claiming that Longroad Energy has reached out to nearby landowners, offering money to them, in exchange for the promise of the landowner to withhold any objection to development of 7 Bridges Solar.
Richmond school bus drivers fired after speaking about overtime pay
A union says Richmond Public Schools fired five bus drivers after speaking up about overtime pay at a school board meeting. But the district says the firings came after an unlawful strike. It's the latest in a multiyear controversy over whether RPS bus drivers are being paid overtime for hours they haven't worked, which an audit found last year has cost the district about $150,000 per month. The school bus drivers' union, LiUNA Local 804, has disputed the allegations.
Will politics keep Canadians away from Virginia Beach? The local tourism industry hopes not
With U.S. destinations reporting double-digit drops in Canadian tourists amid political tensions, Virginia Beach is hoping to keep its largest group of international travelers from looking elsewhere. Tuesday, President Donald Trump and Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney met at the White House to try and simmer down tensions between the neighboring countries related to ongoing trade disputes and "51st state" rhetoric from Trump. At least on the U.S. side of things, the fallout has been swift in recent months, with double digit percentage drops in Canadian tourism to many American destinations in protest of U.S. politics.
State inspector general announces investigation into Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center
Tuesday, the Office of the State Inspector General (OSIG) announced it will open an investigation into the Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center, which is Virginia's only youth prison. The news comes in response to a request from the Commission on Youth amid "disturbing reports" of incidents at the facility in recent months.
Misjuns asks about waste, fraud in survey sent to Lynchburg city employees
Lynchburg At-large Councilman Martin Misjuns sent an online survey to city employees Monday morning asking them to identify any waste and fraud they may have seen in the operations of city government. In the email, Misjuns said the survey is part of his “commitment to collaborate with the City Manager on effective governance” and the survey results will help “enhance our financial oversight.” . . . Misjuns said the survey was not coordinated with the city manager’s office, which did not know it was going to be sent out Monday morning.