Key Facts
Background
W Howard Myers served as the Mayor of Petersburg from 2015 to 2017. Myers is currently serving his 3rd four-year term as Council Member in Virginia’s 5th District. Myers is the President and CEO of W Howard Myers Enterprises LLC, a property management company [2].
Myers graduated from VCU’s community music school with a focus on Computer Operations. He also has an honorary degree of Applied Science In Business Management from Centura College of Richmond [2].
During his term as mayor, Myers faced many scandals. He was sued in 2015 for banning a resident from speaking in a city council meeting for an unpaid fee. In 2016, dozens of residents attended a city council meeting (Myers was sick and did not attend) and demanded that he resign due to rising crime rates and city water management problems. In 2016, it was revealed that Myer’s online biography on the Petersburg official website was incorrect because it stated that Myers graduated from John Marshall High School. In reality, Myers only attended, and did not graduate—he obtained his GED later in time [2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 13, 14].
Myers is Chairman of the Economic Development, Tourism, and Land Use Standing Committee. He also serves on the Probation and Parole Reentry Council [1].
Myers’s awards include the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority “Minted Coin” for Excellence in Public Service (2017) and the U.S. Army Command Logistics “Minted Coin” for Excellence in Public Service (2016) [2].
Key Issues
Economy
Myers states that a key task for the council is to better the economy. Myers believes that he has done a good job of this as Petersburg has obtained an A+ bond rating and increased the amount of higher paying jobs, especially through the pharmaceutical sector [12].
Infrastructure
Myers believes that upgrading city infrastructure is a key part of his role as a councilman, and the city of Petersburg obtained $60 million in grants for infrastructure while he served [12].
Housing
Myers wants to increase safe and affordable housing, and throughout his terms he has brought down over 150 derelict structures [12].
Public Safety
Myers wants to raise the salary of police officers and firefighters as an attempt to increase public safety [12].
Seniors
Myers has shown his support for seniors by redeveloping community centers and reestablishing the Veterans Freedom Support Center [12].
Endorsements
No endorsements could be found.
Sources
1 LinkedIn
2 W Howard Myers
3 CBS Richmond – Myer’s Response
4 CBS Richmond – Calls for Resignation
5 ACLU
6 Plaintiff Response to Defendant (Lawsuit)
7 Myers Lawsuit
8 Staff Directory
9 Ballotpedia
10 Richmond Times Dispatch
11 The Progress Index
12 W Howard Myers for City Council
13 ABC 8
14 ABC Exclusive