Hampton Roads Transit board to discuss replacing chief executive Michael Townes
By Austin Bogues 247-4536
DailyPress.com
Replacing a man with a reputation for bringing scarce state and federal dollars into the region is not an easy task, board members of Hampton Roads Transit said Wednesday.
Today, they’ll meet to begin the process to replace embattled Chief Executive Michael Townes, who will step down at the end of the month.
Townes announced his retirement Jan. 11 in the wake of controversial budget overruns on a Norfolk light-rail project, which led several board members to ask for his resignation.
It’s not known whether Townes will attend today’s board meeting. He has been at home recovering from knee replacement surgery. He is scheduled to give a report.
Jim Wood, who is the chairman of HRT’s board, said in an interview Wednesday that the organization should conduct a national search for Townes’ replacement, but cautioned he was not speaking on behalf of other board members. In the meantime, the board is also looking for an interim executive.
The hierarchy at HRT isn’t clear, Wood said. Five senior vice presidents are listed on its Web site.
“The biggest thing is strong managerial skills,” Wood said, referring to what he is looking for in a replacement for Townes. “I think a lot of the problems that we’ve had have been the result of frankly no real organization.”
Newport News Councilwoman Pat Woodbury, who sits on HRT’s executive committee, said the organization needs someone who can “hit the ground running.”
She said she hopes Townes would continue to help HRT in the future with securing federal and state funds.
“He certainly is the best,” Woodbury said.
“He certainly has gotten funding when probably no one else has been able to do it. I’m hoping that he still cares enough about HRT that he can offer his services along those lines,” she said.
The light-rail project in Norfolk is the first of its kind in Virginia. Townes helped secure millions of dollars in federal and state funds to finance the project, which might be as much as $100 million over budget.