OUR PROGRAM LAST WEEK

Winchester mayor – and fellow club member – Les Veach shared the latest goings-on from the mayor’s office. He said the difference between being the mayor and being a city counselor is that the mayor also gets to make proclamations and help promote tourism.

He also said he is the ex officio leader of the Complaints Department and fields calls and emails on a regular basis ranging from noisy neighbors and local prisoners asking to be let out of jail. He recognized Winchester Police Chief Ronnie Lewis, who was our speaker last week and is attending now as a prospective member, for the police department’s great work reducing the city’s overall crime rate by 47%.

The council does the city’s Strategic Plan and works with the city staff to implement it. Although the city and the county try to collaborate and have several memorandums of understanding (MOUs), past attempts to more formally connect have been less fruitful.

Les went through some of the key goals of the upcoming strategic plan, which include working on behalf of half of the citizenry, building housing and other infrastructure, strengthening the government, and supporting services for residents. He said the secret to success is open communication between the various parts of government and the public.

Les mentioned that Winchester is the fastest-growing metropolitan area in the state, and we need to balance the need for growth (to sustain our thriving economy) with the importance of maintaining our small-town feel. He cited improvements to the area like on-demand WinTransit and wider sidewalks and upcoming growth, including the redevelopment of Ward Plaza.