LEVAR STONEY: Well, I have multiple accomplishments that I like to highlight that I think are significant in terms of an eight year tenure.

First, to look back at where we were and where we are today in terms of poverty.

We've able to reduce the poverty rate by 33%, taking a third out of the poverty rate.

And we've been able to do that with innovative programs like our Richmond Resilience Initiative, which is guaranteed basic income, with our transit being fare free.

The fact that we brought over 6,500 new good paying jobs in the city has allowed a lot of individuals to rise out of poverty.

Number two, I would say, is public education.

Keeping my promises when it comes to public education.

We've increased funding by nearly 60%.

Allowed for every elementary schooler, every middle schooler to have access to an after school program.

And we are paying the way forward for those graduates from RPS to go to community college as well.

Very proud of that.

A third one would be the Diamond District.

20 years in the making, we finally got it over the line.

A new ballpark for the Squirrels.

The Squirrels will be staying in Richmond for the long term.

I'm proud of that.

Last but not least, I know a lot of historians will tie me to this for a long time, is the removal of the Confederate monuments.

For a century, these monuments stood.

And we are now writing our own future, writing the future of what Richmond may look like for every resident.

Who knew that inclusivity and being more welcoming would be also not just good socially, but good economically as well?

KEYRIS MANZANARES: You know, one of...

Looking back at 2020, and you're right that historians are going to be looking at that, you published an opinion piece in the New York Times during that time apologizing for, you know, what happened during the protest, including Richmond Police tear gassing a peaceful protest.

Is there anything from that time period that you regret or wish you would have acted differently?

You know, four years removed from that now?

LEVAR STONEY: You know, I have no regrets.

I work way too hard each and every day in this role to have any real regrets.

However, with the wisdom of hindsight, there are some things I would want to have done differently.

And being the chief executive of a city that is unfortunately there's unrest occurring, is a very, very difficult and challenging role to have.

And I did my best to ensure that we brought order back to living here in the city.

And, when things did not go the way I wanted to, not only did I hold individuals accountable, but also I was the one who stood up and said, “We did this wrong.” You know, and apologize for it.

And, you know, I think that's what you need a little bit of both.

Right?

You need someone who's going to, take charge and provide order, but also someone who's willing to admit when things and not work out the way they had desired it to work out.

KEYRIS MANZANARES: Can you talk to us a little bit more about other challenges maybe youve faced in the last eight years and what have you done to deal with that?

LEVAR STONEY: Well, another challenge that, you know, no mayor is prepared to tackle is the pandemic itself.

When I was, I guess you can say studying up to become the mayor, you know, preparing myself to become the mayor, there was no guidebook, playbook, owner's manual that talked about a global pandemic.

And it's hard to be the mayor when everybody's isolated.

Right?

And so you saw me on TV every day.

You saw me on social media trying my best to, give confidence to our residents that everything was going to be okay.

And so that was certainly a challenge.

Beyond that, I look at where we are today and where we were a decade ago.

We are in a far better place, whether as a local government, but also as a city at large than we were a decade ago.

And so, those challenges right there came.

They were sort of unpredictable.

But we were able to navigate it and get to a place where I think we can all be proud of.

KEYRIS MANZANARES: I want to talk about some of the big projects you've had going on during your tenure.

You've said delivering City Center is one of your top priorities before leaving office.

What can you tell us about the status of that project and what's going on there?

LEVAR STONEY: We are certainly in the final stages of City Center, which would be a project that would redevelop the site of the old Richmond Coliseum.

I want to see that, more than anything, I want to see that monstrosity demolished.

However, we have to agree to terms that not only suit the city, but also suit whoever our private partner might be on the other end.

And so, right now, we're doing our best to dot the I's and cross the T's and get to some sort of resolution with one of the partners.

We have two finalists involved.

And whoever is able to give us the best deal, give the taxpayers the best deal, is the one we'll go with and unfortunately have been unable to find an agreement at the moment.

But I feel confident that we are this close to getting something done.

KEYRIS MANZANARES: You know, when you talk about your accomplishments, you mentioned the Diamond District, and certainly that's going to transform that part of the city, what are your hopes for that neighborhood?

And, you know, when you come back to the city what do you hope that that looks like?

LEVAR STONEY: Well, when you think about the Diamond District and its location right there off I-95 next to one of the best neighborhoods in the entire Commonwealth of Virginia, Scott's Addition, and then you team that with the fact that the Flying Squirrels home is right there, and they have one of the best attendance records in all of minor league baseball, you get a perfect mix of dynamism and opportunity.

And so, when I am a private citizen and I come back to see a baseball game, but also maybe even visit the park that will be there, there'll be a number of homes, multifamily homes that will be there as well.

This is going to be- this is going to be a value add also to the Diamond District and to the city.

But I foresee this being one of the most sought after neighborhoods in the entire Commonwealth of Virginia.

That's what I think this area of the city could be a decade from now.

And we are doing our best to find... to fix the imbalance that we have in the city in terms of we put a lot of burden for revenue on the backs of our residents.

We have to change that as a city.

And that's why projects like the Diamond District helps us fix that imbalance.

And I want us to be able to be more balanced like the one that we see in Henrico County, right?

Where we have enough commercial properties who can bring revenue in versus that of our residential population.

KEYRIS MANZANARES: When we talk about, you know, economic growth, property values rose dramatically during your tenure.

How did you balance, the benefits of this increased revenue and the challenges that come with that?

Housing affordability, Long-time city residents leaving the city because they can no longer afford it.

As mayor, what was your thought process during that?

LEVAR STONEY: Well, some have said to me that you can almost be like a victim of your own success, right?

We've seen this happen in other cities around the country where they've seen tremendous economic growth, but unfortunately you see displacement with that as well.

We've seen a little bit of that here in Richmond as well.

And, you know, I will never put up walls around our city.

We have to avail ourselves to new people, to new opportunities, new investment as well.

And you've seen exactly that.

My tenure, you've seen more jobs, more homes, less poverty and less crime.

And that's pretty damn good.

That's what you want out of the city.

That's a city that's growing and thriving versus dying and declining.

However, we must be very intentional about how do we go about keeping the Ms. Johnsons and the Ms. Jenkins who were here in the 70s, who were here in the 80s, who outlasted the crack epidemic and also white flight.

They deserve to be able to stay here long term as well.

And so I believe that when it comes to intentionality, we have focused on affordable housing, you know, putting our money where our mouth is with $50 million in the Affordable Housing Trust fund, but also, using programs like our Performance Grant initiative that will allow for those in the private sector to invest in more affordable housing so people can live here.

I think that's key to our future.

And if you think about the city I would like us to become, this cannot just be a city of those with just... [where] Entry into the city means having a college education.

We need folks of all income backgrounds, all educational backgrounds, and that means we have to have the jobs and homes for them.

We've begun that work.

The work needs to continue beyond our tenure.

KERYIS MANZANARES: And, you know, what advice have you given to Dr. Danny Avula as he prepares to take office at the end of the month?

LEVAR STONEY: You know, the advice that he probably is tired of hearing from me is I'm a big believer that in roles like this where you're the chief executive, right, there are no other roles like this at the local level in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

He is the chief exec- he will be the chief executive of the city.

You have to push the envelope.

Particularly for those who have been left out or marginalized in the past.

And I think when you look at what we've done here in Richmond, you've seen me time and time again, push the envelope.

Now, has that obviously stepped on some people's toes?

Have we broken a few eggs?

Hell yeah, we did.

But I think it's well worth it because you're seeing more investment, more government spending in places that had not seen that in probably three to four decades.

I'm proud of that.

And here's the thing, and when you strengthen the weakest parts of our city, we all become stronger.

KEYRIS MANZANARES: What's next for you, and how will the lessons you've learned here at City Hall directly apply to the position you're aiming for?

LEVAR STONEY: Well, I'm running for lieutenant governor next year in 2025, and so that's what's next for me.

And I'm running for lieutenant governor because I think every Virginian deserves a fair shot.

No matter the ZIP code they live in, how much money they make, who they pray to or who they love or...

I just believe that Virginians needs someone who's willing to fight like hell for their opportunities.

And here's the thing, I know that Donald Trump is was going to go all out for those who make the most and those who were born with the most.

But who will fight for those who make the least and were born with the least?

I come from that background, and I'm going to be a fighter for those individuals here in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

And I think that's what you need in a lieutenant governor.