The first terms of Councilmen Scott Foster and Douglas Pons are up this year, and both are running for re-election.
With no other candidates filing paperwork to appear on the ballot, Foster and Pons are running unopposed to reclaim their seats.
WYDaily sent an identical questionnaire to both City Council candidates. Unedited answers from Scott Foster, the first College of William & Mary student to be elected to council, are presented here. The election takes place May 6. Find your polling place, open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Election Day, by clicking here.
For Douglas Pons’ answers, click here.
1. How did your experience differ from the expectations you had heading into your first term on City Council?
- I didn’t anticipate enjoying the other folks on council as much as I do. We are all very different, but we work well together.
- Coming in as a student, I was also pleasantly surprised at how welcoming everyone was. I was worried I would be viewed as an outsider but that was never the case. From day one, all of Council and city staff have been very helpful.
- I did not anticipate how much time and effort I would spend convincing outside agencies and private businesses to take up certain initiatives versus convincing the city itself. As a whole, city government is progress oriented and willing to jump board on with new, innovative ideas. Convincing them of things is easy. Convincing folks outside the city is much more challenging.
2. How are your expectations for the job different for the next four years?
- We have completed some very important things in the last four years. The most important in the long term is probably the adoption of the new comprehensive plan. I think that in the next four years we will be see a number of things come to fruition that were planned for in the comp plan, most notably downtown development and redevelopment, as well as improvements along our entrance corridors.
- I have high expectations for the recovery of the tourism sector of our economy. With the new chamber CEO, Karen Reardon, and the changes she is making, the improved marketing strategies out of Colonial Williamsburg, the critical mass of unique, world-class restaurants, and the overall refreshing of our destination’s tourism product, I’m optimistic we have the right things in place for positive change. Council needs to be active in making these things happen though, with continued support for economic development initiatives and expanded arts and cultural events.
- When I came on Council, I wanted to do more to attract and retain young professionals in Williamsburg. We’re doing better than we were four years ago, but we still have a long way to go. I expect over the next four years to see some positive change in this area, potentially with the establishment of some co-working space and better implementation of the regional incubator.
3. Last year, the College of William & Mary agreed to pay the city $120,000 each year to help offset costs for emergency services on campus. Is this monetary relationship sufficient as the college continues to buy real estate within the city? Should it extend beyond emergency services?
- The $120,000 is a great start. The College really provides the baseline metabolism for our local economy so when they expand, we grow too, so some growth on their part is beneficial. I’m working hard to improve our local economy so that properties similar to the ones the College has been buying are valuable enough that they stay in the hands of the private sector.
4. Talk about the relationship between the city and college and what changes, if any, you would like to see.
- By everyone’s accounts, town-gown relations are at an all time best. We need to continue to make sure that it stays that way, from not only an administration to administration point of view, but from a city administration to student point of view as well.
- I will be very disappointed if the College’s new food vendor is unable to make some element of the meal plan apply to Tribe Square. I want this not only for the success of the Tribe Square businesses, but so that when that extension is a success the opportunity might be extended to other downtown city businesses.
- The College controls all the land along Compton Drive and Monticello Avenue from Compton to the city limit before going into James City at Newtown. That portion of town is not safe for pedestrians or cyclists because it lacks sidewalks and adequate lighting. The college and the city need to cooperate on a comprehensive project to alleviate the issues in that area before someone is hurt while walking or biking there.
- The overpopulation of deer has been the “hot topic” recently, and I think the city and the college have an opportunity to cooperate to attempt to alleviate some of that problem.
5. What is your vision for the Arts District? What steps need to be taken to achieve your vision?
- I would love to see lots of small shops, with local arts and craftspeople focused in that area. I think we have a great opportunity with the current and former Colonial Williamsburg trades folk to populate that area with talented people. There are some serious barriers to implementation there, though. Most of the available space is occupied with commercial tenants and most of the small houses that could potentially be used as live/work space are occupied by W&M students. Absent the city taking on a major project to build a focal point for that area, artists are going to have to infiltrate that area over time. The city has put the incentives in place for this to happen, it just may take some time to materialize.
6. Mayor Clyde Haulman said at a budget retreat in January the city should look for new revenue streams to supplement tourism. Do you agree? Why or why not? If yes, what are your ideas for creating new revenue?
- Tourism is, and will continue to be our breadwinner. We need to work hard to make sure that continues to be the case. At the same time, making efforts to diversify the economy will not distract from tourism and should be pursued. Because of a shortage of available land in the city, whatever is done in this effort will have to focus on intellectually instead of capitally intensive ventures. Again, I believe we need to establish a co-working venture somewhere downtown or adjacent to it, as well as capitalizing on the regional incubator. These seem to be the best way to help current small businesses grow as well as providing fertile places for new businesses to start.
7. As commercial real estate continues a slow road to economic recovery, what can the city do to help quicken the pace locally?
- Traffic patterns are probably the most effective tool the city has to affect commercial real estate value. Much of the city’s commercial real estate is located along our entrance corridors, and the more traffic we can drive to those areas, the more valuable those properties will be come. This is especially true for properties that are ripe for redevelopment.
- Additionally, we can continue to improve the aesthetics of these corridors through street improvements and putting overhead wires underground.
8. Name specific goals you would like to set for City Council to achieve over the next four years.
- An increase of 200,000 in paid visitation to Colonial Williamsburg
- A new focus on remarketing Williamsburg as “The Cultural Hub of the Upper South”, through the mediums of regional foods and beverage, and visual and performing arts.
- Improved attraction and retention of young professionals.
- Improving the experiences of WJCC students, especially those at schools attended by city children, which are in need of attention.
- Continued development and redevelopment in downtown, in an effort to make downtown the “real” downtown it once was.
- Exceeding the standards for the Chesapeake Bay TMDL requirements.
