Portsmouth Metropolis Council voted to employ the service of Danny Meeks as town supervisor. He continue to wants to implement for the occupation.
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The Portsmouth City Council voted to employ Danny Meeks — a former councilman who misplaced a bid for mayor in November — as town manager Tuesday night.

Following a number of minutes of dialogue in a shut session, the council took its vote back.
The customers who originally voted for Meeks did not rescind their assistance. Meeks experienced not utilized to be city manager, so his supporters on the council voted to re-open the position application portal right up until Jan. 20.
Selecting a town supervisor, essentially the CEO of the city federal government, was not on the council’s agenda for Tuesday’s meeting.
Recently-appointed Councilman Christopher Woodard Jr. produced the movement to employ the service of Meeks. Woodard, Vice Mayor De’Andre Barnes and councilmen Paul Fight and Invoice Moody voted for the motion. Mayor Shannon Glover and council users Lisa Lucas-Burke and Mark Whitaker voted against it.
Fight was the most vocal supporter of Meeks, declaring he understood the metropolis and experienced the experience to guide it. He stated the city has important issues with violence, health and education and learning, and no just one who applied for this occupation experienced the regional awareness of Meeks.
In the meeting, Glover reported 74 people utilized for the position by a deadline in November. The city then re-opened the software portal for an extra two months and obtained 22 more applications.
Glover mentioned hiring Meeks would be “the worst situation for the City of Portsmouth.” He stated the city invested revenue in searching for a new metropolis manager in a nationwide lookup, and the city’s inhabitants would keep them accountable for forgoing that system. Whitaker, Lucas-Burke and Glover all stated Meeks did not satisfy the educational needs of the career listing.
The listing states an applicant have to have a bachelor’s degree in general public administration, organization administration, urban setting up or related industry — a master’s diploma is most well-liked — alongside with at the very least 7 several years of expertise in a senior executive position in an operation very similar to the city’s federal government.
Meeks did not show up at school. He told the Pilot in 2013 that he straight away established out on a business career soon after substantial university.
He owns and operates Empire Companies, a squander and recycling business, and was elected to the council in 2012. He resigned in 2016 before his phrase finished. In 2020, he ran for mayor and concluded 2nd at the rear of Glover by 2,880 votes.
Meeks put in $458,727 in that race, according to the Virginia Public Entry Undertaking. Glover was the 2nd-greatest spender, expending just under $70,000.
The city’s previous town manager Lydia Pettis Patton experienced held the part of city manager since 2015 and planned to depart at the stop of 2020. She still left quicker than predicted, resigning less than pressure in September immediately after controversy about her suspension of then-Law enforcement Main Angela Greene. Greene’s division submitted criminal expenses versus highly effective Black leaders, which were later dismissed immediately after prosecutors observed insufficient evidence.
This is a breaking story and will be updated.
Josh Reyes, 757-247-4692, [email protected]
