Chesapeake, Suffolk, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Hampton have installed speed cameras in local school and work zones to deter speeding and enhance overall public safety.

Though law enforcement leaders tout the equipment as a safety measure to deter speeding, the cameras can also be significant moneymakers — with Chesapeake and Suffolk already raking in millions.

Chesapeake has a dozen cameras that have been active since 2022. The city reports a total of 158,075 violations since then, along with about $9.7 million in revenue.

Another 10 cameras in Suffolk went active in fall 2023 along with one at a work zone. Since then, the city reports roughly 196,000 citations, collecting $14.2 million in revenue. After paying the vendor, net revenue is $10.5 million. Suffolk did not specify whether the citation and revenue figures provided to The Virginian-Pilot were specific to school and work zone speed cameras only. The city also operates red light and school bus cameras.

Both cities previously said net revenue would go toward highway safety improvements and personnel costs.

The school zone speed cameras in Chesapeake and Suffolk are targeted in two lawsuits brought by former Del. Tim Anderson, an attorney who alleges the cities are improperly issuing speeding violations and allowing third party vendors to impersonate local government when collecting fees.

Anderson’s case in Suffolk is awaiting an order from a judge on whether it will move forward. A hearing in the Chesapeake case is scheduled for Sept. 18.

The Virginia General Assembly approved legislation in 2020 that allows state and local police to set up speed cameras at highway work sites and school crossing zones. Under that law, only motorists caught going at least 10 mph over the speed limit are ticketed up to $100.

Hampton is in the process of rolling out a dozen cameras in school zones this fall as part of a pilot program with staggered warning periods.

A 30-day warning period began Aug. 26 for cameras located near Bethel High School, Hampton High School and Hunter B. Andrews Pre-K. A 30-day grace period will begin for cameras at Jones Magnet Middle School, Kecoughtan High School, Lindsay Middle School and Machen Elementary School by Sept. 30. And cameras at another set of schools — Mary W. Jackson Elementary School, Thomas Eaton Middle School, Aberdeen Elementary School, Barron Elementary School and William Mason Cooper Elementary — will have a 30-day grace period beginning no later than Oct. 15.

Hampton city officials said about $3.5 million would be budgeted for the school zone speed camera pilot program.

Norfolk has 19 cameras in place across 10 public school locations. A 60-day warning period was slated to end in May, but a city spokesperson said last week that the cameras are still in an active warning period “until summons language can be resolved with the general district court and our vendor, Verra Mobility.”

Part of Anderson’s complaint in his lawsuits was that officers weren’t issuing an official Virginia summons document consistent with other traffic infractions when making the speeding citations.

Portsmouth has 16 cameras, and police began fining drivers in December. The city reports 28,289 citations and $951,061 of revenue collected between January and June. Of the total revenue, $565,042 will be paid to the third-party vendor.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with the latest citations and revenue figures from the city of Portsmouth. The city provided the figures after the article published.

Natalie Anderson, 757-732-1133, natalie.anderson@virginiamedia.com

And industry leaders view improvements in technology as another way to expand access to banking.

Chase Bank continues to expand its retail banking presence in Hampton Roads and expects to open at least 10 more branches by 2027, regional director Alfonso Guzman said.

“We’re big believers in our branches,” Guzman said. “We really believe they are the pillars of the community and they’re important parts of every community.”

Chase currently has two branches in Norfolk and Williamsburg and one each in Newport News and Virginia Beach. By the end of this year, Chase plans to open a second branch in Virginia Beach along with branches in Hampton and Chesapeake, Guzman said. The remaining five new branches will open between 2025 and 2027.

While Chase puts its digital focus on the forefront, Guzman said its branches are still a part of its strategy to meet clients within their communities.

“It’s not either/or,” he said. “We want to make sure that human-to-human interaction is still top of mind and a priority for us as we continue to grow.”

Dollar Bank has opened nine branches since entering the market, said Dave Paradise, senior vice president of Dollar Bank’s Virginia Division. Dollar Bank has 13 branches in South Hampton Roads, including four from its acquisition of Bank @lantec in 2017.

While Dollar Bank has no immediate plans to add branches, it actively looks for opportunities in low- to moderate-income census tracts throughout its markets, Paradise said.

“Technology has really improved access to banking services, which means that it is easier for people to bank with us in a way that is convenient for them,” Paradise said.

In an effort to help Hispanic and immigrant consumers, Chartway Credit Union, which has 16 branches in Suffolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake and Norfolk, opened its first fully bilingual branch in the state in Virginia Beach at the end of April.

And Fulton Bank launched a diverse business banking program designed to meet the needs of minority, women, veteran and LGBTQ business owners last summer. Fulton Bank operates five financial centers in Hampton Roads, including three in Virginia Beach and one each in Chesapeake and Newport News, spokesperson Steve Trapnell said. Last year, Fulton opened a commercial banking office in Norfolk.

“We are committed to making financing and banking products more accessible to groups that, historically, have been underserved,” Fulton Bank Chairman and CEO Curt Myers said.

Sandra J. Pennecke, 757-652-5836, sandra.pennecke@pilotonline.com

Special tax increment financing (TIF) districts were established in South Norfolk and Greenbrier in the early 2000s. Portions of tax revenue from property assessments within the districts are earmarked specifically for projects there, primarily to spur economic development and improve infrastructure.

Both districts have their own funds. For the fiscal 2025 budget that began July 1, $12.4 million of revenue was received for the South Norfolk TIF — an increase of about 11% over the previous fiscal year — and $15.6 million for the Greenbrier TIF. As revenue is received each year, the difference between projected revenue and budgeted expenses within each district is sent back into the respective districts’ fund balance to use for future projects as needed.

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South Norfolk projects

In South Norfolk, the most expensive project is the new municipal center within the Poindexter corridor, a 45,500-square-foot building that also could include a business incubator and retail space. The total cost is about $42 million and primarily will be funded with bonds, but an accumulation of almost $12 million in TIF revenue will also help cover the project. Completion is anticipated in 2026.

Another chunk of money — $6.5 million of TIF money budgeted several years ago — is earmarked for strategic acquisition of residential and commercial property along key transportation corridors within South Norfolk for rehabilitation and redevelopment.

Almost $3 million of TIF funds will cover neighborhood sidewalk connections and expansions beginning next year and spanning to 2027. The projects will be focused along Myers Road; Hull, Ohio, Poindexter, Richmond and Rodgers streets; and Chesapeake, Jackson, Orville, Wright, Chamberlain, Wilbur and Post avenues.

The Freeman Overpass Bridge project will primarily be covered with around $11 million of South Norfolk TIF funding and more than $2 million in bond debt. An accumulation of $3.6 million will fund improvements on Chesapeake Avenue.

Another nearly $1 million of TIF funds is used for a program that assists property owners within historic districts with home improvement projects, grants for façade improvement projects in South Norfolk’s business district, and a parking lot for Poindexter Street that could be complete by the end of the year.

Other projects with less than $2 million of funding earmarked include pedestrian and light improvements on Poindexter Street at the Interstate 464 overpass, the Port Locke Railroad Overpass Bridge, the Guerriere Street closure and conversion and the activation of vacant city-owned parcels at Liberty and 22nd Street.

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Greenbrier projects

In Greenbrier, the biggest expense includes $10 million for site and infrastructure improvements for mixed-use and commercial development within the district, which could include potential redevelopment of Greenbrier Mall and future construction at Summit Pointe.

About $3.5 million will be used to extend Belaire Avenue off Volvo Parkway. More than $1 million will be directed to pedestrian safety improvements in the commercial district, including walkways, paths and crosswalks that could be complete by the end of the year.

A little more than $1 million will go toward stormwater outfall improvements in the district. Other smaller projects include a Greenbrier redevelopment study and intersection improvements on Battlefield Boulevard at Volvo Parkway.

Natalie Anderson, 757-732-1133, natalie.anderson@virginiamedia.com

Defined as a census tract without a physical bank branch within a certain geographic radius from the population center, banking deserts exist where banks are more than 2 miles from an urban area, 5 miles for suburban and 10 miles for rural communities.

While the 2008 financial crisis led to bank closures and consolidations, the pace of branch closures accelerated during and since the COVID-19 pandemic. The total number of bank and credit union branches in the U.S. declined by 5.6% and the number of banking deserts increased by 217 between 2019 and 2023, according to a national report published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. The focus of the report is full-service, brick-and-mortar retail branches, including those of savings and loan associations, commercial banks and credit unions.

Hampton Roads experienced a 38% reduction, or a loss of 143 bank branches from 381 in 2008 to 238 branches in 2023, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. market share reports. The region experienced a 22% reduction by 69 branches from 307 in 2019. These figures don’t include credit unions.

The branch closures coincide with the rise of digital banking, including mobile and online services, and the use of kiosks and ATMs. Long gone are the days when consumers had to walk inside banks for their transactions.

But banking deserts affect people who struggle with transportation, digital services, high-speed internet access and skills to navigate websites and apps, according to the report. It can also greatly impede consumers with lower incomes, disabilities or language barriers — who may still tend to favor in-person banking.

The Fed study shows that 5% of census tracts in Virginia last year were banking deserts and 3% may become a desert if a branch closes. Of those tracts, 80% are suburban and 46% have limited access to broadband.

In Hampton Roads, the Federal Reserve’s interactive dashboard map shows that the southern parts of Virginia Beach (including Blackwater, Sandbridge and part of Pungo), Chesapeake and Suffolk are all banking deserts with the nearest branches from 2 miles to 9 miles away. The region is considered a mix of urban and suburban.

A small urban tract in the Lee Hall section of Newport News, with a population of approximately 3,400, shows its nearest branch is 3 miles away. In Willoughby Spit and West Ocean View on the northern end of Norfolk and in the Lynnwood section of Virginia Beach, consumers have to travel between 2 to 3 miles for their banking needs.

Parts of Isle of Wight and Gloucester counties and the northern Outer Banks area of Corolla also fall within a banking desert. Hampton, Portsmouth, Poquoson, Williamsburg, James City County and York County show no banking deserts although Mathews County is marked as a potential desert, meaning the area is one branch closure away from becoming a desert.

Both larger banks and community-based banks reduced their physical presence in Hampton Roads over the past several years, according to closing notices with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

The merger of BB&T and SunTrust as Truist in late 2019 led to a major consolidation of branches in the region. Bank of America and Wells Fargo have closed multiple branches across Hampton Roads. Bank of America closed its Fort Eustis and Lynnhaven Square branches this year. Wells Fargo most recently closed its Richmond Road branch in Williamsburg in January and its Wells Fargo Center branch in November in downtown Norfolk, where it maintains an ATM.

Hampton-based Old Point National Bank has also closed multiple branches over the past several years and recently announced it will close its downtown Norfolk branch in September due to cost-cutting efforts.

Suffolk-based TowneBank’s acquisition of Windsor-based Farmers Bank also meant the closure of the Farmers branches in Pungo and Chesapeake last year as TowneBank operated locations nearby. TowneBank also closed its Harbour View branch at 6255 College Drive in Suffolk last year.

PNC Bank plans to close a standalone branch at 3012 Pacific Ave. in Virginia Beach on Oct. 18 in an ongoing effort to optimize its physical bank network, spokesperson Kelby Krauss said. Customers will be directed to the branch at 1324 N. Great Neck Road. PNC Bank has 10 branches, ATMs and video banking machines in Hampton Roads.

“Branch locations remain an essential aspect of how we connect with and support our clients and the local community,” Krauss said.

View the banking deserts dashboard at fedcommunities.org/data/banking-deserts-dashboard/.

Sandra J. Pennecke, 757-652-5836, sandra.pennecke@pilotonline.com

Chesapeake resident Nelson Velez filed the lawsuit in Chesapeake Circuit Court this week, asking the court to compel the Virginia Department of Elections and the local registrar to find Carey ineligible to run, remove him from the ballots and delay printing them.

It’s the second legal action taken amid an ongoing dispute over Carey’s candidacy. A majority of City Council members in July approved a lawsuit seeking to compel him to resign his council seat.

At issue is a resign-to-run provision on the books in Chesapeake that requires any council member running for mayor to vacate their council seat by June 30. The provision was established when Chesapeake held city elections in May, but it was not altered when the General Assembly acted in 2021 to shift city elections to November. Carey’s council term will end Dec. 31.

Velez’s complaint states because Carey didn’t resign, he didn’t fulfill all necessary requirements to be a mayoral candidate.

Reached by phone Friday, Carey said the move was “disheartening” and “anti-democratic.”

“It’s just an attempt to disenfranchise not only myself, but the people that I represent and the issues that we’re fighting for,” he said. “I would have never thought to see something like this happening in the city of Chesapeake.”

Carey and Mary Lynn Pinkerman, the city’s elections registrar, confirmed to The Virginian-Pilot that Carey filed all necessary documentation to be considered a candidate. Pinkerman, who’s named in the complaint, didn’t comment on the pending litigation.

Velez’s complaint, which seeks an emergency injunction, urges a hearing no later than Tuesday, but as of Friday, no hearing was scheduled. His attorney, Christopher Woodfin of Woodfin Law in Williamsburg, told The Pilot on Friday that Chesapeake judges have recused themselves, and a judge is being appointed. Still, he’s confident the court will expedite the process before the election.

It’s also unclear when the City Council’s lawsuit will be heard. All Chesapeake Circuit Court judges also have recused themselves in that case and no hearing was on the docket as of Friday.

When Carey declared his candidacy in March, he announced he was switching political parties to become a Democrat in the nonpartisan election. He is running against incumbent Rick West in the Nov. 5 election.

Pinkerman said the window for creating, proofing, printing and delivering ballots begins Sept. 6 and spans to Sept. 20, the start of early voting at the registrar’s office.

Velez’s complaint also states that if Carey is included on ballots, he asks that Carey be forced to resign as a council member and pay back the salary he earned after June 30.

Reached by phone Friday, Velez said he filed the lawsuit because he “needed to act” before the start of early voting.

“I pretty much filed it because I’m a citizen of Chesapeake, and I’m concerned about this absolute disregard of law,” he said.

John O’Bannon, the chair of the Virginia Board of Elections, also is named as a defendant in the lawsuit. He did not respond to a request for comment. Andrea Gaines, a Virginia Department of Elections spokesperson, declined to comment on the pending litigation.

Natalie Anderson, 757-732-1133, natalie.anderson@virginiamedia.com

Suffolk Circuit Court Judge Alfred Bates III heard a case Tuesday brought by former Del. Tim Anderson against the city of Suffolk. In April, Anderson filed a lawsuit in the circuit courts of Chesapeake and Suffolk alleging the cities are improperly issuing speeding violations and allowing third party vendors to impersonate local government when collecting fees. State code says that “any prosecution shall be instituted and conducted in the same manner as prosecution for traffic infractions.”

The crux of the dispute at Tuesday’s hearing was whether the city is entitled to sovereign immunity, a legal doctrine that protects government entities from some legal action. Suffolk Assistant City Attorney Rebecca Powers also disputed, through examples of case law, the interpretation of the word “shall” in state code, noting that the term doesn’t mean it’s mandatory to follow the law precisely as written. The city also argues, through a demurrer, that the plaintiff’s claims are false and the case should be tossed out.

After the hearing, Powers declined to comment. A city spokesperson also declined to comment.

Anderson has said state code for school and work zone cameras in particular is specific about issuing citations with the same official uniform Virginia summons issued for other traffic infractions. It also allows cities to contract with third-party private companies to provide the services. But Anderson’s argument Tuesday was that while cities have the right to use the equipment and issue fines, they can’t do it through a private third-party. And that by doing so, the city waived its sovereign immunity.

“(When) courts have wrestled with this before, there’s really never been a situation where the government has said, ‘You owe us money,’ and then the citizen says, ‘I don’t think you’re doing it legally,'” Anderson said after Tuesday’s hearing. “So I think it’s a case of real first impression for the court to wrestle with.”

The General Assembly approved legislation in 2020 allowing state and local police to set up speed cameras at highway work sites and school crossing zones. Under that law, only motorists caught going at least 10 mph over the speed limit are ticketed.

Several Hampton Roads cities have installed speed cameras since in an effort to deter speeding and enhance public safety. A dozen cameras went live in Chesapeake in 2022. Suffolk has cameras at 10 schools and one work zone — launched last year.

As of April, Chesapeake police issued 150,788 citations and collected $9.35 million in fines, according to information provided by the city. Suffolk issued 167,883 as of March and had collected $11.72 million in fines.

Anderson’s client in the Suffolk case, whom he’s representing pro bono, is Curtis Lytle from the city of Zuni. He received a notice of violation in June in a Suffolk work zone.

A hearing in the Chesapeake case is scheduled in September. Anderson had also filed a federal lawsuit challenging the use of the cameras, but said Tuesday that case had been withdrawn while the state lawsuits play out.

The judge said he’d issue a ruling on the sovereign immunity claim as well as the demurrer within 30 days via a letter.

Natalie Anderson, 757-732-1133, natalie.anderson@virginiamedia.com

Franchise owner Melissa Holt opened the first Hampton Roads location in late 2021 with her mother, Claire. They did so in Hampton’s Peninsula Town Center in an area that’s become a fast-casual restaurant mecca.

Melissa Holt previously worked in management for Domino’s Pizza. She heard about Chicken Salad Chick when company founder Stacy Brown was interviewed on Guy Raz’s podcast, “How I Built This.” Brown, who had been selling chicken salad out of her home prior to opening a restaurant, started the company in 2008 in Auburn, Alabama.

The Peninsula Town Center location proved popular, and Holt recently opened a store in the Railyard at Lambert’s Point on Hampton Boulevard in Norfolk. Two more locations are in the works.

A Chicken Salad Chick will open in Chesapeake’s Greenbrier neighborhood in November followed by another location in Settler’s Market near Williamsburg in early 2025. The Williamsburg-area location will have a room for private parties, Holt said. Further plans include adding a Smithfield location.

Each Chicken Salad Chick restaurant will have a local vibe. For instance, the Hampton location showcases pictures of Peninsula landmarks such as Fort Monroe’s lighthouse and Hampton Coliseum.

Holt has been asked about locating in Virginia Beach many times, but she has yet to find the right spot there. One restriction she faces is from Chick-fil-A, which put in its lease contracts that another chicken restaurant cannot locate within a certain number of feet.

The company requires that franchisees live in the area they serve to encourage community involvement. For example, Holt’s store collected school supplies in exchange for a $1 discount. Kids meals are free with a purchase of an adult meal most Tuesday evenings.

Holt credits fresh ingredients for the franchise’s success. Chicken and vegetables are cut in-house and made daily, with staff starting at 7 a.m. for the 10 a.m. opening.

“We cut our own chicken, celery and broccoli. Our prep team is amazing,” she said.

The restaurant sells 12 chicken salads that all start with the basic Classic Carol recipe. They include Fancy Nancy, which has fruit and pecans, and Barbie-Q, with a hickory-smoked flavor. Rotating varieties include the Greek Goddess, which offers a Mediterranean twist with herbs, olives and feta cheese.

A hearty scoop is served on a garden salad or on a variety of breads. Side dishes include broccoli salad, pasta salad, fruit salad, macaroni and cheese and soups. Non-chicken salad eaters can choose from egg salad, turkey and cheese or pimento cheese.

While health department regulations allow the salads to be sold for up to six days, Chicken Salad Chick does not sell any salad made after two days, the franchise owner said. The leftovers are given to employees and donated to the Market at Thrive in Newport News.

During its early days, the Hampton location ran out of chicken salad and had to close early at times, Holt said, when an event at the Coliseum or a swim meet at the Hampton Aquaplex would bring a huge influx of customers.

“I finally asked them for a schedule of events so that we can be prepared,” Holt said.

Her employees also contribute to the brand’s success. Six employees, including a few moving into management, have been with Holt since the first day. Having a competent management team means Holt can work on the expansion instead of being in the store 24/7.

“The feedback I get is customers feel the warmth that we offer,” she said. “We offer hospitality with a smile.”

Ultimately, city staff helped the mayor’s stepbrother resolve a sewer-related issue he faced in Nahunta, Georgia, while attempting to build on a 29-acre property, according to emails, memos and text message exchanges obtained by The Virginian-Pilot.

Though the city of Chesapeake doesn’t have a written ethics policy for elected officials, one council member and an ethics expert say the mayor’s actions at least raise a red flag.

West’s actions prompted calls for investigation at this week’s City Council meeting, though members sought two very different inquiries.

Robert Ike said at Tuesday’s meeting he’s formally asked the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office to independently investigate the incident. He also tasked the city attorney’s office with providing an accounting of all city resources used to help the mayor’s stepbrother.

“The bottom line is, the mayor used city resources for his own interest,” Ike told The Virginian-Pilot. “It would be very similar if I had public works (staff) come over and landscape my yard, plant trees and some shrubs, and didn’t pay for it.”

Council member Amanda Newins, however, appeared focused on finding how the information was leaked. She tasked the city attorney’s office with searching through the emails of former City Attorney Jacob Stroman, who assisted the mayor in 2022. She asked for a search of all emails Stroman might have deleted or sent to his personal email account before his departure last year.

When pressed by council members and a reporter on why she made the request, Newins declined to offer any specifics but said it was to “protect the city’s interest.” She asked for a report on any ethical concerns as a result of the search and actions council could take if any are spotted.

Even so, West, who’s been mayor since 2017, said this week that he didn’t view the request as unethical since it’s his job as mayor to help people with local government issues.

Reached by phone, Jonathan West, said he didn’t see the request as unethical since he only asked his stepbrother to check on legal options and “whatever was done was done on the city attorney’s behalf.”

“I did not ask him to do anything but to give me an opinion of what I could tell my stepbrother,” Rick West told The Pilot. “That’s all I asked him to do.”

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The ask for help

Details of the mayor’s request to Stroman are laid out in a series of emails, memos and text messages that began Aug. 9, 2022, when Jonathan West emailed Rick West about the sewer-related issuein Georgia. Jonathan West said he was attempting to connect his property to the city’s sewage system but faced a sewer and septic tank moratorium in Nahunta — a city roughly 80 miles northwest of Jacksonville, Florida.

“I was going to see if maybe you could have one of your lawyers for the city take a look at it and see if this is something worth fighting for or if we are in a losing battle with the city,” Jonathan West said in his email to Rick West. “I have wasted a pile of money already if we are and do not want to waste another ($3,000 to $10,000) to find out there is nothing we can do legally.”

The mayor replied the same day that he’d check with Stroman. The city attorney texted the mayor the same day, telling him “we are happy to see what we can find out.”

Over the course of several days, emails, memos and text messages — first reported by WHRO — show correspondence among the mayor, Stroman and his staff tasked with looking into the issue, including current Deputy City Attorney Ellen Bergren, who typed up a summary on the issue and weighed in on relevant city ordinances.

On Aug. 12, 2022, Jonathan West emailed Stroman directly to thank him for the city’s efforts after learning the Georgia Department of Health approved his septic tank permit.

“Please let me know what I owe you for your time,” Jonathan West said. “If you ever find yourself in Southeast Ga I owe you a cold beer or two at least!”

“You don’t owe us a dime; we were happy to help,” Stroman said in a same-day reply. “I don’t get to South Georgia very often these days, but when I do, I’ll take you up on that beer!”

Stroman told Jonathan West he reached out to the Nahunta city manager and city attorney and filed a Freedom of Information Act request for that city’s relevant ordinances. Chesapeake staff also spoke with a Georgia Department of Health contact to help resolve Jonathan West’s issue.

“We shared with him our experience that in Virginia a local ordinance imposing a moratorium on new septic or alternative onsite systems when sewer was not available would be preempted (overruled) by state law,” Stroman said in the email. “I suspect that is what did the trick.”

Stroman also credited Bergren’s assistance, noting she was a utilities law expert.

Bergren did not return a call and message left with her city office. Stroman, who no longer works for the city, also did not return calls requesting comment.

The city doesn’t have a formal written ethics policy for elected officials, so there’s no specific provision that would deem the mayor’s behavior unethical or in violation of city policy. City Attorney Catherine Lindley told The Pilot that the Virginia State Bar allows the city to perform pro bono work. It’s not clear whether the mayor’s request would be considered allowable pro bono work.

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Lack of ethics rules

Rick West’s request for his stepbrother came just two months after he voted against renewing Stroman’s appointment in June 2022. He resigned in January 2023, though plans were already in the works to terminate him before the option to resign was presented seemingly due to disagreements over legal interpretations Stroman provided at the time, The Pilot previously reported.

West is being challenged by sitting council member Don Carey, who is facing a divided call to resign from his current seat during his mayoral bid in order to comply with the city charter. At Tuesday’s meeting, he and council member Ella Ward pushed Newins to explain what prompted her request for an investigation into Stroman’s emails. At the time Newins did so, no mention of the mayor’s 2022 request had been made, and she told Carey to ask City Attorney Catherine Lindley what motivated Newins’ request. Lindley was not present for Tuesday’s council meeting.

Carey, Ward and Ike all voted against Newins’ request, but it passed 6-3.

“I think citizens should hear the purpose of us sending our city attorney’s office on what seems to be, dare I say, a witch hunt, for, again, God knows what,” Carey said at the meeting.

In Chesapeake, the city attorney is hired by City Council, so Rick West was considered Stroman’s boss. But even with the power dynamics at play, it’s still incumbent on a city attorney to notify his bosses that an action may be perceived as unethical or not allowed, said Frank Shafroth, director of Center for State and Local Leadership at George Mason University.

Shafroth once directed policy with the National League of Cities and said worked with elected officials in the city of Alexandria to craft ethics policies, though he said he was met with resistance.

“(It’s) a challenge because, in effect, you’re asking them to judge themselves, and I don’t think we ever trust someone to judge themselves in a way that is necessarily fair or unbiased,” Shafroth said.

But having an ethics policy on the books is about public trust, he said.

“(You) ought to have a code so people respect it, respect the elected officials and understand how a process works if there’s a question about or a challenge to an action taken by an elected or appointed city official,” Shafroth said. “(You) need one that’s enforceable, so the people know what the code is. They understand what the violations are, and they understand the process for a violation of that code.”

Chesapeake has an ethics policy for employees, but council members are only bound to a Rules of Order and Procedure, which Shafroth said was problematic.

“You can’t say there’s one standard for employees of the city and a different standard for the elected officials,” he said.

Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated Ellen Bergren was the deputy city manager. She is the deputy city attorney.

Natalie Anderson, 757-732-1133, natalie.anderson@virginiamedia.com

While the Virginia Beach Hilltop location will continue to be operated by their son and daughter-in-law, the Tuttles, both in their late 70s, want to spend time with family, volunteer and travel. They have closed the Chesapeake location.

The couple started their business when Keith was employed as an electrician for a contractor. Annette had experience in the retail lighting business.

“We just got tired of working for other people,” Annette Tuttle said.

With each knowing different industry facets, duties were easily divided. Annette handled retail and administrative duties while Keith dealt with building contractors, as he had developed business relationships with them while previously employed.

Married 55 years, both agreed that dividing the duties made working as spouses successful.

“We each know our side of the business and we stick with that,” Annette Tuttle said laughing when asked about working with her husband.

When asked the same question, Keith Tuttle responded, “Each working their part of the business worked for us. I would do it again.”

In their 31 years in business, they experienced significant changes. Annette Tuttle noted LED lighting is now the lighting of choice.

“It’s a cooler light, so it doesn’t heat the room,” she said. “It enhances colors and has a nice brightness to it.”

Keith Tuttle emphasized the change that the internet and e-commerce brought to retail.

“We enjoyed the business but with the internet, it’s harder and harder to compete and harder to make a profit,” he said. “Customers can order online and have it delivered two days later.”

Annette Tuttle said she liked working with customers, helping them select the right lighting for their home.

“That’s what I am going to miss the most — seeing people happy with their selection,” she said.

Keith Tuttle said being spoiled by suppliers with trips to Europe or Caribbean cruises was a plus.

“I think we’ve seen more of Europe than we have of America,” he said.

In retirement, they hope to travel to the American West. Keith Tuttle said he plans to play golf and nurture his love for animals with volunteer work. Annette Tuttle plans to “finally clean out closets,” garden and volunteer more with their church, St. Mark’s Catholic Church.

Around 10:30 p.m., Virginia State Police said John Francis Duff, of Norfolk, was standing outside of his 2009 Chevrolet Malibu by the westbound lanes after crashing into the jersey wall. Shortly after he got out of his car, state police say Dahnna Renita Meno, 19, was driving a 2019 Dodge Challenger “at a high rate of speed.” Meno, of Hampton, lost control of the car, ran off the interstate and crashed into the man and the Malibu.

Duff was taken to the hospital, but he died of his injuries. Meno and four passengers in her vehicle were not injured.

Virginia State Police have charged Meno with reckless driving, but more charges may be pending. Police said it is unclear if alcohol was a factor in the crash.

Eliza Noe,  eliza.noe@virginiamedia.com

Correction: Due to incorrect information provided by police, the story previously said Meno’s car was Dodge Charger. It is a Dodge Challenger.