Rosemary A. Wilson

Wilson, 58, is running for City Council in Virginia Beach (At-Large)

Opponents: Georgia F. Allen, Leona M. Shuler, Keith J. Strausbaugh, Lawrence J. Teator

Years in city: 53

Education: Bayside High School; Old Dominion University, bachelor of science, elementary education; Sorenson Institute of Political Leadership, civic leadership; Hampton Roads Real Estate School.

Occupation: Realtor, Prudential Decker Realty

Family: Thomas, managing partner Goodman & Co., married 33 years; Kari, 30, scholarship student at Kellogg's MBA at Northwestern University; Sarah, 27, Smith College graduate, working in South Africa with a UN program for refugees

Civic involvement: 2007 Women in Business Award – Inside Business, Virginia Municipal League Executive Board, Virginia Beach Economic Development Authority Liaison, Oceana Land Use Board, Workforce Housing Advisory Board, ODU Alumni Board

As a former schoolteacher, I have always been committed to our children's education. From my years serving you on the School Board as well as City Council, I continuously work for better educational opportunities and funding for our schools. Safety is a supreme priority, and I have led to make sure our streets, schools, roads and neighborhoods are safe for all citizens. Even in tough economic times, we've made the commitment to increase salaries and benefits for our police and fire employees to make sure we attract and retain the best public safety professionals. Common sense solutions like making new roads safe for bikers and joggers increases safety for everyone. I also led the fight to ensure that businesses contracting with the city obey the law and only hire workers who are legally in this country. Even with these commitments, we've lowered the real estate tax rate from a high of $122 when I took office down to 89 cents today. I hope you vote for me so we can continue working together on these priorities.

To even have an opportunity for light rail, we need to acquire the Norfolk Southern right-of-way, so we can control our own destiny. Mass transit is vitally important to any major community and is crucial to a thriving business, and if we want to have light rail as an option, acquiring that right-of-way is crucial.

When government revenues are down, that means that family revenues are down. We shouldn't pursue policies that would add to the problem, like proposals that are anti-business or anti-growth. I co-chaired the Blue Ribbon Task Force on our budget, which produced dozens of ideas to make government more efficient and implementing those savings would be among my first suggestions.

If it is in the public's best interest to participate in developments, including schools, libraries or rec centers, we need to know how vital public money is to the development. With no city involvement, would the project move forward? If the answer is no, and project fulfills an economic need, we may need to partner on infrastructure costs that the public will utilize. These need to be individual judgments.

I've always valued Oceana in Virginia Beach and have opposed encroachment on the base. The military is such an integral part of our city and our economy, and we need to keep that relationship strong. Also, my neighborhood preservation project helps with aging neighborhoods and obsolete housing, offering incentives like tax abatements. We also need to improve access to workforce housing, so people who work in Virginia Beach can live in Virginia Beach.

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