By GRACE RANDOLPH

(URCNS) – The 2024 Richmond Citizens Debate this week presented a multitude of varying issues and yielded some unpredictable responses from mayoral candidates.

The debate at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture featured all five candidates: Adreas Addison, Danny Avula, Michelle Mosby, Maurice Neblett, and Harrison Roday

Host Greg McQuade and panellists Bob Holsworth, Reba Hollingsworth, and Chris Coates asked candidates questions concerning varying issues such as  housing affordability, pedestrian safety, and FOIA compliance.

Roday, a nonprofit investor, criticized city hall’s lack of transparency, asserting it should go beyond information requests like FOIA, but also include major projects such as the Mayo Bridge Replacement Project.

On improving Richmond’s public school system, Roday said that he would stand up to Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who he said, has tried to ban books and erase Black history.

Addison, who has represented Richmond’s 1st District since 2017, boasted about his eight years serving on city council which he said oversaw the creation of four schools, a $15,000 increase of average teacher pay, and a $22 million direct investment to Richmond classrooms.

On gentrification’s impact on housing affordability, Addison discussed racial disparities among Black homeownership and emphasized the importance of equitable tax relief by working with the city council to balance the budget for homeowners.

Avula, who is a practising pediatric hospitalist at Chippenham Hospital, spoke from his 20 years as a resident in the East End of Richmond. He said he was motivated to run for mayor after seeing his low income neighbors get pushed out from rising property taxes and rental rates and also supports equitable tax relief. 

He quipped at the end of his answer that the solution needed to alieve the issue would likely be made by the city council before any of the candidates took office, to which Addison gave a bemused expression.

On the other hand, Neblett, an entrepreneur, said the city should create new streams of revenue to usher in tax relief by building more micro communities and prefabricated homes under $100,000.

Candidates were asked for their plans for  streamlining the city’s permanent process and shifting the perception of the Richmond government being inefficient.

Neblett offered equipping government workers with updated technology that can track the permit process and its progress, which he likened to the Domino Pizza tracking app to the amusement of the audience.

“That’s very clear and transparent so that people know exactly where they are in the process,” Neblett said. “Is it in the oven? Is it on its way?”

Mosby, a former 9th District Richmond City Council member, said acquiring expert help through bordering countries like Henrico and  Chesterfield would help get things done faster.

Pedestrian deaths, Virginia Commonwealth University’s role in the city, and the future of Monument Avenue were also spotlighted during the debate, to which the candidates mainly agreed on how they would address these respective issues.

After the debate, Robin Dickerson, a Richmond native and educator in Richmond public schools, said it was clear to her who the most qualified candidates for the job were: Addision and Mosby, who both have served on city council.

However, out of the two, she said she would most likely vote for Mosby.

“I think we need that female representation for the city,” Dickerson said.