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Attorney for fired Hopewell city manager calls termination illegal, demands she be rehired
The attorney for former Hopewell City Manager Dr. Concetta Manker is demanding she be reinstated to her post immediately, claiming her May 1 termination was handled improperly according to Roberts Rules of Order, the almost-universal conduct manual local governing bodies, including Hopewell's, follow for meetings. In a June 9 letter to City Attorney Anthony Bessette, Richard Hawkins gave City Council until June 20 to give Manker back her job or face legal action for wrongful termination. In addition to violating Roberts Rules, Hawkins also said one of the votes to terminate – from newly elected Ward 4 Councilor Ronnie Ellis – violated Virginia’s conflict-of-interest laws because Ellis works for the city.
Wilkins: Cutting solar tax credits will cost Virginia billions
When my company first began installing solar panels in Virginia, I knew I was helping businesses and homeowners save on their energy bills, hedge against utility rate increases, and achieve environmental goals. Now, 12 years later, I’ve witnessed solar energy grow from a promising technology to an engine of economic development, creating thousands of good-paying jobs and attracting billions in private investment.
Manouchehri: A smarter, more efficient defense budget starts in Virginia
Growing up in an Iranian-immigrant household shaped by service and sacrifice, we never took our opportunities for granted. My parents believed in hard work, giving back, and reminded me often: public service requires commitment and sacrifice. Today, I have the privilege of leading MetroStar, a Reston-based, venture-backed AI-enabled services company focused on digital modernization for the federal government — including the Department of Defense and intelligence community. Our work sits at the intersection of national security and innovation. It’s here, in Virginia, where we believe the future of cost-effective, software-defined defense begins.
Ejecting international students will diminish Va. schools
In its haste to drive out international students it deems hostile to the United States, the Trump administration is needlessly disrupting the lives of more than 21,000 students enrolled at Virginia colleges and universities and undermining academic freedom in a way that could do lasting damage to medical research, technology development, job growth, tuition costs and more.
Virginia Beach cleared 100 homeless encampments in the past year
Since spring of last year, a team of city departments have cleared 100 encampments where homeless people had set up makeshift shelters. Twenty individuals living in the encampments were connected to shelter and as many as 10 were placed in housing. Not all of the cleared camps were occupied, Ruth Hill, director of Virginia Beach Housing & Neighborhood Preservation, told the City Council last week.
Environmental groups slam federal plan to ship wetlands mitigation out of Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads environmental groups are alarmed over a proposed federal decision that they say could undermine decades of local tidal wetlands restoration and protection. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality are moving toward approval of a new wetland mitigation bank in Prince George County — 50 miles upstream from Hampton Roads — that would allow developers to purchase mitigation credits from outside the region. Wetland mitigation banks are designed to compensate for environmental damage caused by permitted development projects. Developers buy credits from these banks to offset the impacts, typically by funding the creation or restoration of similar wetlands nearby.
Virginia Democrats beat early primary voting record
Virginia Democrats beat their previous record for early primary voting over the weekend. According to the Virginia Department of Elections, nearly 134,000 Virginians voted early in statewide Democratic Party primaries for Attorney General and Lt. Governor since early voting opened in early May. The previous record, set in the summer of 2023, saw 129,000 early Democratic primary votes cast, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.
Healthcare company Molina laying off hundreds of employees in Henrico
As it prepares to wind down a contract with the state of Virginia, a California-based healthcare plan management firm is shutting down its local operations. Molina Healthcare plans to permanently close its office at 3829 Gaskins Road and lay off 268 workers at the end of June, according to a notice that the company recently submitted to the state government. Molina is a Fortune 500 company that manages government-sponsored healthcare programs in multiple states, including Virginia. But the company’s work with the Old Dominion is coming to an end.
With funding cut, what is the future of key Virginia refugee resettlement program?
For years, Commonwealth Catholic Charities has led much of Virginia’s work to help newly arrived refugees build lives in the United States. The nonprofit has operated its refugee resettlement program in the greater Richmond region, Roanoke and Newport News since 2010. ... But in January, the Trump administration abruptly suspended the Biden-era U.S. Refugee Admissions Program by executive order, halting all new refugee arrivals into the country and freezing government funding ... Luckily, the nonprofit was met with an “outpouring of support from the community,” Dillon said, which helped CCC secure housing and services for every refugee that had already been referred to CCC ...
Truitt: How Va. Democrats can reclaim the education issue
In 2021, Republican Glenn Youngkin was able to flip the K-12 education issue to pull off a victory by focusing on parents. This year, Democratic nominee Abigail Spanberger should learn from 2021 by embracing higher educational standards to reclaim the education issue. As has been shown nationally, typical Democratic proposals for higher teacher pay and increased funding alone are not sufficient. In fact, those were major planks of Terry McAuliffe’s 2021 education platform.