THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, April 29, 1996 TAG: 9604270011
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A6 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
SERIES: DECISION 96
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
After years of turmoil, Chesapeake needs a kinder, gentler City Council, one whose members can disagree in peace. Enough with the vendettas and hurt feelings.
The right person to head the council is that tried-and-true bridge-builder, incumbent Mayor William E. Ward. He says he builds bridges between races, communities and political groups; and more than anyone else in Chesapeake, he has.
Ward, 62, has been on the council since 1978. Initially, he said, he mainly represented black citizens, but for many years he has represented everybody. He was appointed mayor in 1990 and elected mayor in 1992. He revels in being mayor and appears wherever people meet. He'll discuss government with constituents or represent the city in a ceremonial role. Either way, he'll be there. Ward also is a history professor at Norfolk State University and an enthusiastic spokesman for Chesapeake. He has close ties with the business community and neighborhoods.
His challenger, John A. Cosgrove, an electronics engineer for the Navy, has never tried for public office before. Though he may well have a future in Chesapeake politics, he lacks the credentials and experience to challenge Ward.
All Chesapeake council seats are elected at-large, and eight men and one woman are competing for three seats.
We favor incumbent Dwight M. Parker, along with James E. Whitener and Elizabeth P. Thornton.
That means we oppose the re-election of incumbents Robert T. Nance Jr., who initially said he wouldn't run again but changed his mind, and his sidekick, Dalton S. Edge. Many residents were offended by the seemingly hurried and cruel way Nance led the council to fire City Manager James W. Rein. Nance is often in conflict with one city department or another - currently it's the police. If re-elected, he seems certain to remain a divisive force on the City Council.
What Chesapeake needs is a council that debates issues without personal rancor. The city cannot handle continuing growth, and the problems that come with it, in an atmosphere of division and distrust.
A sure source of civility on the council would be Thornton, long active in top positions in the League of Women Voters. She's running at Ward's request. She said voters have told her that the main issue in this election is confidence in the council, that its members are too partisan. Thornton, 57, is a program coordinator for the international relations doctoral program at Old Dominion University. One of her concerns is the shortage of parks and recreation facilities. She'd be the council's only woman.
Whitener, 47, is a bright, amiable special agent with the U.S. Naval Investigative Service. He quipped that, as a person who serves subpoenas, he's used to being screamed at. Given the city's record in recent years, it wouldn't hurt to have on council a person with some knowledge of investigations. Whitener described himself as a fiscal conservative who is somewhat liberal on social issues. ``Government should have some humanity to it,'' he said. The council has suffered from excessive partisanship, and Whitener is running as an independent.
Parker, 46, was elected to council in a special election last November. He has avoided council's divisiveness; if anything he's had a calming effect at meetings. A lifelong Chesapeake resident, he's a teacher at Deep Creek High School, with a degree in political science. Given that council funds schools, the presence of a person familiar with public education is a plus. He favors more aggressive business recruiting. Parker said he would consider forgiving a new business's taxes for a year or two.
The mayor and the three endorsed council candidates all speak strongly of the need for regionalism, if the individual cities are to prosper as they should. And council needs members capable of disagreeing without taking it personally, people more interested in serving the public interest than in partisan ax-grinding.
KEYWORDS: ENDORSEMENT CHESAPEAKE CITY COUNCIL RACE CANDIDATE by CNB