Former Mayor of Charlotte, NC Richard Vinroot, at Metropolitan Richmond Day 2008. (Photo: Kathy Aquilina)Hundreds of community leaders from the Richmond region gathered for Hope in the Cities’ 12th annual Metropolitan Richmond Day breakfast and forum on November 20. The keynote speaker was the former mayor of Charlotte, Richard A. Vinroot who forged creative regional partnerships during his tenure, 1991-1995.

Vinroot said the best piece of advice after his election came from Andrew Young who had just stepped down as Atlanta’s mayor. “Don’t make the mistake of thinking you are the mayor of Charlotte, when what you really are is mayor in a region that will sink or swim together.” Young advised him to reach out to his neighbors. “The first thing I did was to invite ten mayors and their wives to our home for dinner” to talk about issues of common concern, said Vinroot.

He went on to tell those gathered that the Richmond region must build relationships and learn to collaborate or it would lose jobs and sporting events to other cities – including his own. He stressed that the metropolitan leaders need to realize that they are not in competition with each other but with other “city states” like Charlotte.

(Photo: Kathy Aquilina)

Charlotte now has a light rail system reaching 25 miles beyond the center city. The Charlotte regional partnership includes 16 connected “cogs” in North and South Carolina. All this was achieved because of trust and collaboration. Vinroot told the Richmond audience, “You are all in this together – for better or worse.”

The theme of the day was “Building trust in the Region”, and Vinroot emphasized that “relationships are fundamental for doing anything good in your community.”

The breakfast was co-chaired by Thomas N. Chewning, chief financial officer of Dominion and Christy Coleman, president of the American Civil War Center at Tredegar.

Following the breakfast a community forum featured a panel interacting with the audience. The panelists were Attorney Robert J. Grey, Jr., John Sarvey, a community activist, and John Moeser, a senior fellow at the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement. Grey said, “Central to building trust is being able to walk in someone else’s shoes.” Sarvey, a community activist and blogger, commented, “We often think about what ‘they’ aren’t doing, but how do we extend trust to others?” Moeser remarked that citizens need to hold their leaders accountable. “People want public transportation and good integrated schools. We want to get to know people who are different from ourselves. If the people lead the leaders will follow.”

(Photo: Kathy Aquilina)

Transportation, education, regional economic development and collaboration were high on the list of concerns. “The middle class needs to reinvest itself in the city’s public schools for the common good,” said one participant.

The panelists urged the audience to write to their elected official. John Sarvey highlighted the nexus between advocacy and leadership. “How do we help our leaders become better conveners and guides and not make them feel that they have to have all the answers?” Citizens need to contact the Chamber of Commence and the Richmond Regional Planning District Commission saying, “We demand a public planning process for the region.”

Make your views known on regional planning and regional cooperation:

Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce
Kim Scheeler, President and CEO
(804) 783-9333
www.GRCC.com

Richmond Regional Planning District Commission
Robert A. Crum, Jr., Executive Director
(804) 323-2033
www.richmondregional.org

Visit the Richmond City Council , Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors , Henrico County Board of Supervisors , and Hanover County Administration .

In September David Campt utilized audience response keypads and table dialogue to advance the region's conversation on cross-jurisdictional cooperation . Download the PowerPoint Forum Output response of the attendees.

Read the article published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch detailing Metropolitan Richmond Day.