Meet Portsmouth’s newest city councilman
Woodard has a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Norfolk State University and spent most of his professional life working at Lowe’s, where he said he managed up to 60 people at a time.
PORTSMOUTH — He’s never held a public office. He’s never even received a vote. He spent most of his career working at Lowe’s.
But as of this week, Christopher Woodard Jr. is one of seven members of the Portsmouth City Council. For at least the next 10 months, he’ll have a say in the most consequential decisions facing the city’s newly elected governing board, including hiring a new city manager and passing a budget.
Woodard, 35, has lived in Portsmouth his entire life and said he wants to find ways to make the city a top destination in the region for living, working and visiting.
The council appointed Woodard on Monday, selecting him after a brief interview during a virtual council meeting. Woodard was one of three finalists to be interviewed out of a field of 30 applicants for the seat Shannon Glover occupied until he was elected mayor in November.
Councilmen De’Andre Barnes, Paul Battle, Bill Moody and Mark Whitaker supported Woodard’s appointment. Glover and Councilwoman Lisa Lucas-Burke voted against it, saying they supported Tamara Shewmake, a School Board member who finished fourth in November’s City Council elections.
Woodard has a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Norfolk State University and spent most of his professional life working at Lowe’s, where he said he managed up to 60 people at a time. He said he left his job at Lowe’s and is searching for his next career path.
Currently, Woodard works as a substitute teacher and runs a small media company.
“I see a lot of opportunity in Portsmouth that I think we can obtain if we just change a little bit of our leadership,” Woodard said. Voters in November’s election showed they wanted change by electing a progressive council, and Woodard felt he fit that mindset.
In majority-Black Portsmouth, race has been a political dividing line on the City Council. And Woodard joins as the body shifts from majority white to nearly entirely Black. City leaders have varying views of the extent racism affects life in Portsmouth, but many Black officials and advocates say the city has a deeply entrenched white power structure.
Woodard said there are longstanding racial issues in Portsmouth, but the council can help bring people of different backgrounds together for discussions and communication.
One of the council’s first tasks will be hiring a new city manager, who effectively serves as the CEO of city government. Lydia Pettis Patton, who’d held the role since 2015, had planned to leave at the end of 2020 anyway and left sooner than expected, resigning under pressure in September after controversy over her suspension of then-Police Chief Angela Greene. Greene’s department filed criminal charges against powerful Black leaders, which were later dismissed after prosecutors found insufficient evidence.
In a new city manager, Woodard said he wants to see someone with ambitious goals for the city and a vision for an efficient city government. From his management experience, Woodard said it was important for someone to know all the people and pieces of an organization, and he wanted the same from a city manager.
The new manager will hire a new police chief, and Woodard said he wants that chief to focus on greater transparency and community policing. He also commended the police force and said he wants to work on getting the department fully staffed.
Addressing violence and crime must be a top priority, Woodard said. “What we don’t want to do is work on tourism and not correct the problems that we have at home.”
Still, tourism is one of Woodard’s top concerns. He said there’s been a lack of focus on tourism in recent years, but he thinks there’s opportunity to make Portsmouth a leading destination in the region or at least part of the itinerary when visitors come to the area.
The upcoming casino would benefit that goal, Woodard said, but shouldn’t be Portsmouth’s only project. He sees potential in improving the Atlantic Union Bank Pavilion and fostering an arts district in the city.
In the longer term, Woodard wants Portsmouth to be less of a bedroom community — he said now’s the time to explore what new industries could come to the city.
“Portsmouth has some great people, but we have a hard time retaining (people in) our town,” he said. “There’s a lot of Portsmouthians … who leave here to take high-paying jobs.”
Woodard suggested creating a pipeline between schools and jobs in the city and hoped that bringing in a new industry or businesses would lead to revitalization in areas with empty buildings.
“We’ve got to make sure that we’re doing these things to keep our citizens together and make sure they know that they’ve got opportunities in their city and know that we got their back,” he said.
Woodard’s term on the City Council will last until the winner of a November special election for his seat is sworn in. He plans to run to keep the seat.