Charles R. Samuels will take his seat on the Richmond City Council next month with a healthy respect for those who came before him.
The 2nd District, which sweeps across the Fan District and includes Gilpin Court and part of Jackson Ward, has been represented since 2001 by the council's president, William J. Pantele.
He was preceded by Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, whose political ascendancy to mayor, lieutenant governor and governor started in 1994 with his ouster of a district incumbent.
Samuels, a 32-year-old attorney who grew up in Goochland County, said he understands his priorities must include being accessible to constituents and listening to their concerns.
"Bill and Tim did a good job with that, and I have to continue that," he said.
Samuels, a past president of the Fan District Association, will be the lone newcomer when council members take the oath of office on Jan. 2. He'll also be the council's youngest member.
Under changes to the city charter, the council members will be serving four-year, rather than two-year, terms for the first time.
Samuels was elected last month by a comfortable margin over two opponents for the seat that Pantele vacated to run for mayor. Samuels finished with 4,187 votes, compared with 3,232 for Patrick D. Kjellberg and 1,839 for Tyron K. Bey.
During the campaign, Samuels emphasized how he would interact with constituents, by listening and reflecting their concerns, rather than offering a lot of ideas or proposals.
"With the economy [in a recession], you just don't know what you're going to be able to afford to do," he said.
Samuels said he's eager to work with the 2nd District's new School Board representative, Kimberly B. Gray, who defeated incumbent Lisa Dawson.
Samuels expects the city budget to require the council's immediate attention, and he's also eager to provide a perspective on quality-of-life issues. For example, he noted that the city recently reduced from two to one the number of leaf pickups per year. He said the cost savings are important but he wondered whether uncollected leaves will ultimately wash into storm sewers and cause additional problems and expense there.
"He's very capable, very smart," said Pantele, who endorsed Samuels. As president of the Fan District Association, "he really demonstrated to me that he will be a very dedicated and hard-working public official."
Samuels said he hasn't been told of his council committee assignments and he's trying to figure out how he'll meld his new responsibilities with his work as an attorney and time with his wife, Krista Mathis Samuels. Much of Samuels' legal work involves being a court-appointed guardian for cases in Richmond and Henrico County.
"I'm trying to read everything I can that will be coming up in front of council," he said. "I want to make sure I can hit the ground running."
Contact Will Jones at (804) 649-6911 or wjones@timesdispatch.com.
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