Food Fight, Vox Populi

Food Fight in Norfolk
A compromise perhaps is in the offering between food cart vendors and entrenched downtown Norfolk restaurant owners.

But if these restaurateurs are feeling heartburn from food carts, imagine how they will feel when Waterside Live! goes live with entertainment and restaurants.

Yet I don’t believe the presence of food carts is going invigorate and energize downtown Norfolk.

Double or even triple the population of Norfolk. Then you will see activity.

Don’t borrow from other cities. Just because other cities have food carts doesn’t mean they will work in Norfolk.

Norfolk isn’t New York, Philly, Austin or the other “hip” places on the map.

It is Norfolk. Plain and simple.

Stop borrowing these clichéd ideas for Norfolk.

Start creating Norfolk’s own ideas.

Find Norfolk’s hip.

Vox Populi?
Norfolk has approximately 103,000 registered voters.

But you wouldn’t know it by the number of comments on the city’s Open City Hall, an online forum for the city’s residents to express their views on several issues. 

This is your town, your city government. Say something. 



Ten residents have registered comments since Feb. 4. The majority, 70 percent, or 7 out of the 10, have come from residents living in Ward 5, represented by Theresa Whibley, neighborhoods that are mostly affluent and influential.

Two comments originated with residents in Ward 5, represented by Tommy Smigel, the Ocean View crowd.

And one comment originated in Ward 3, represented by vice mayor Anthony Burfoot.

Here’s a chance for residents to weigh in on the most pressing issues facing Norfolk.

Are Norfolk City Council members encouraging their constituents to post comments?

How many city council members have web sites where residents can read what their representatives are doing and where they can get the latest information about their neighborhoods?

I count one – Tommy Smigiel. The rest are web sites pitching campaign rhetoric.

The topic that surfaces the most is education.

Here’s a sampling of comments about Norfolk’s educational system. Just for the record, I have abbreviated some of the comments because of space limitations.

Ward 3 - Burfoot

Emphasis should be on getting all of our schools accredited and creating a better school system in general - focusing on both the students and the teachers. If public schools were better, it would give people an incentive to move to Norfolk since Norfolk employs a large majority of people. Otherwise, families will stay in places with better schools such as Virginia Beach or Chesapeake - or they will send their children to private schools. On another level, if neighborhoods that are undergoing revitalization, such as Fairmount Park, had better schools then that would create more incentive for families to move to those neighborhoods which would help the revitalization efforts…

Ward 2 - Whibley

As a parent of 3 children entering their school years and a local business owner I would love to see more emphasis on improving our school districts and helping local businesses succeed. Regarding schools, It is interesting that every school in Norfolk is different. There seems to be a demand for schools like the Ghent Elementary School for younger grades basing how difficult it is to get into this school (lottery system and LONG wait list).

Many Norfolk parents still look at other options instead of public school for their children's education (private, other cities, homeschooling) which we are all aware is a contributing reason for dropped enrollment. Closing a school for this reason is not the real answer. Improving our system to allow children the best public education is a better solution…

Ward 5 - Smigiel

Teachers of Norfolk Public Schools have expressed the pleading request for the city to help get caught up on their step increases based on advancement of degree in education and number of years teaching. Each time an official thanks a teacher for all that they do, it is pretty much equivalent to a spit in the face for the sacrifices we overcome to build accreditation statuses, achievements in the SOL tests, and raise graduation rates.

Behind the scenes, students are not being held accountable for their academics, discipline referrals are getting ripped in the presence of students without notifying the teacher of concern, parents are not being accountable for the actions of their child pointing the blame at the teachers for "making" their child fail.

Before arriving to a final decision of what gets cut, step into the spotlight of (specifically) a science teacher on a regular basis. Walk the halls to hear how our future leaders speak. Plan a lesson from an outdated textbook. Observe … read more

Ward 2 - Whibley

First priority has to be the schools, and I don't mean the physical structures, although that is not without importance.

During my 30 years in Norfolk, with two childen in the system, I was often lobbied by my friends to put my children in private school so that they could receive a valuable education. I briefly taught for Norfolk schools, and have interacted in other ways, and what I have always seen is a very bunker mentality, paired with a passion for looking good, rather than being good.

Remember the Broad prize, not very long ago? I can assure you that the school system has not gone down the tubes in a few short years. That Broad prize was all about smoke and mirrors and PR.

One immediate change for good would be an elected school board. It is not a coincidence that the worst school system among the major Hampton Roads cities is also the one with an appointed school board.

If we can't make it desirable for educated and involved people to place their children in the public … read more