M. Cody Conner is a candidate for Virginia Beach City Council – District 8. His name will appear on the ballot on November 5, 2024.
Conner is running against three challengers for Virginia Beach City Council.
The first day of in-person early voting at your local registrar’s office for this election is Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. Click here to see who is on your ballot.
10 On Your Side reached out to all of the candidates running in this race, with a request for a bio and a list of questions to answer. If you do not see the candidate listed with a profile, we did not receive one.
Biography: My family and I moved to Virginia Beach two years ago looking for a home and that is what we found. I have over two decades of experience in facilities, construction, and management. When I talk about jobs and homes, I’m speaking from hands-on experience. I grew up in a military family, so I understand the challenges and needs of the many military families in our city. I’ve lobbied our school board, and city council and I’ve volunteered with our non-profits because I truly love this city. I am just a working class family man that wants to make our city better for working class families.
Why are you running for this office?
Accountability and a desire to work for the city that has become my home. We need more representation of our working class. We have more people earning paychecks than we do writing them, and that majority deserves more of a voice. I believe we are a city for everybody and what makes us great is just that, everybody. I know housing and infrastructure and those are two of our city’s biggest challenges. I have the knowledge, passion, and determination needed to tackle the problems we currently face and help our city grow stronger.
What is the top challenge facing Virginia Beach, and how would you address it?
Affordability. The first step is making sure we are not just increasing housing supply, but building the right housing in the right places. We don’t need more million dollar single family homes. We need more homes for first time home buyers and middle income families. We need more 1 and 2 bedroom housing for young professionals and young families. We need to make sure we are building new developments with affordable options and in areas that can trigger migration chains so we can maximize a new development’s impact on affordability in an area.
What is your view on preserving agricultural land while also addressing the affordable housing crisis?
Virginia Beach is one of the least densely populated big cities in the country. There is no reason to encroach on agricultural land when there are still so many opportunities for redevelopment and infill. We need to be focused on creating areas of strategic density to promote affordability and economic activity.
How do you view Virginia Beach’s continued growth strategy? What would you change?
I agree with the strategic growth areas identified in the plan and the overall strategies for those areas. I would like to see some strategies for developing along the new bike trail to encourage usage and maximize possible impacts to economic activity. I would also like to see an updated master transportation plan that prioritizes a much more robust and comprehensive public transportation plan across Virginia Beach.
What is your view on changing the operational model of the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center?
I want, and think a lot of people want, the city to retain ownership of the aquarium, but a lot more goes into making that decision than wants. It will require a lot of money to complete the repairs and updates needed to just keep the aquarium open. I think that needs to be the main objective. We need to look at what the city is capable of putting into the aquarium and if the people are willing to support those costs. We also need to evaluate what outside ownership brings to the table and make that information available to the public to weigh in on. Ultimately we need to make the decision that best facilitates keeping the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center open and positioned to grow in both its ability to serve the community and as a destination for visitors and residents.
What is your view on taking money from individuals who will likely have business before the city?
When businesses contribute large amounts of money to campaigns they allow a small group of interests to have an over represented influence over an election. Campaign donations equal marketing and labor and the ability to reach more people and generate more votes. Many working class people can’t afford to make big donations to a candidate that they support. When one business donates $10,000 to a campaign, that one business can have the influence of what can amount to hundreds of actual voters on a local election. It is hard to trust that a candidate who receives massive donations from businesses will serve the people and not those businesses if they are elected.
How will you still value constituents with whom you disagree with?
I value everybody. We are not always going to agree and as long as we are able to communicate with the goal of growth and understanding then disagreeing is not necessarily a bad thing. Being different and seeing things differently is perhaps a community’s greatest strength. When we use our differences to find the best answers together everybody wins.
