Priorities

Gun Violence Prevention

Conditions of poverty are the leading cause of criminal activity. We must improve housing options, access to education, and employment opportunities for everyone in our community. My goals include

1. Restart the Summer Training Enrichment Program (STEP) as a Public/Private Partnership to offer summer internships for at-risk students and a pre-employment program for graduating seniors in at-risk areas to give them a future other than violence.

2. Funding more school counselors in NNPS to address undiagnosed conditions that students struggle with.

3. Improve and expand the No-Cost Rental Inspection Program throughout the city to ensure every tenant in NN has suitable living arrangements.

Economic Justice

To continue growth in our City, we must have jobs that pay well enough for residents to live comfortably. Having attractive neighborhoods, excellent schools, and low crime are critical requirements for attracting more well-paying jobs into the City.

City government should be responsive to the needs of small and large businesses. We need a city government that stops bending over backward for a few well-connected developers and starts making it a priority to help all businesses. 

We also must develop a comprehensive plan to build upon the strengths of our City. A thriving economy allows us to have well-paying jobs, keep taxes low, improve city services, and maintain our infrastructure.

Additionally, the convenient access to I-64 and I-664 provides an excellent opportunity to attract a regional entertainment complex to Downtown Newport News.

housing

We must also have affordable housing for our workforce - teachers, firefighters, police officers, and city/school employees. New housing can be created through a community land trust. A community land trust is a non-profit community-based entity that can sell permanently affordable homes while leasing the land to the homebuyer at a nominal fee. Through this process, a home can sell for 30% under the market price.