Holy Neck candidates speak

This is the third weekend of a series of stories about City Council candidates. A story about the candidate for Chuckatuck ran on Oct. 5, Cypress ran on Oct. 12. Look for Suffolk on Oct. 26.

Four years after becoming the first member of City Council to be re-elected from the Holy Neck Borough, Councilman Jeffrey Gardy is looking to make it three terms.

Gardy, a lawyer, was on the other side of the fence from City Council, representing clients for land use decisions, for many years before his first run in 2006. His clients included the Suffolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority.

Since being elected the first time, he has served on the Western Tidewater Water Authority and the Virginia Municipal League Environmental Policy Committee, as well as a brief stint on the Southeastern Public Service Authority.

But asked about what he feels he’s accomplished, Gardy names things like the new Pioneer Elementary School, water service extended to Holland, lights on the ballfields in Holland and a Dollar General store in Holland.

“Sometimes, the small things are more satisfying than the big things,” he said.

Gardy said he is running again because he has enjoyed being on council.

“You feel satisfaction when you feel like you’re doing some good,” he said.

Gardy said he is proud of the city’s financial accomplishments, including its AAA credit rating. He believes it will serve the city well under the pressure of funding cuts he believes are coming from the state and federal governments.

“I’m happy we got our ship in good shape,” he said. “We’ve got to be prepared to make good decisions for the next four years. I think we made good decisions for the last four years.”

Gardy said he believes a new joint city/school task force spearheaded by his fellow council member, Mike Duman, will be able to accomplish what years of back-and-forth between the two bodies have not — an understanding about school funding.

“Mike is a grinder,” Gardy said. “He’ll talk about things. Everybody knows what the problem is — the money issues are tough.”

Gardy is with the law firm of Johnson, Gardy and Teumer, with Mayor Linda T. Johnson’s husband Jesse. He’s a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College and the T.C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond.