Thursday, May 15, 2008
Lea hopes to elevate influence on council
Shanna Flowers
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Sherman Lea is poised to be a BMOC, Big Man on Council
Not the BMOC -- that's Mayor-elect David Bowers -- but a voice of leadership.
It's about time.
Since his election four years ago to Roanoke City Council, Lea has been seen as a toady for his running mate and fellow council member Brian Wishneff.
Earlier this year, Lea cut ties with Wishneff and joined ranks with Mayor Nelson Harris as the two sought re-election in last week's municipal election.
Harris didn't retain his seat, but Lea was the highest vote-getter, with 6,562 and will become vice mayor July 1. He will become the longest-serving member on the council. If Lea's runaway victory showed anything, it showed he can stand on his own. Without Wishneff, without Harris.
"It's humbled me," Lea said in a lengthy interview this week. "Anytime you receive the number of votes I got, a lot of people have affirmed what you've done and put their trust in you to lead."
During his first term on the council, Lea has been the go-to guy for a number of Roanokers who wanted the ear of city government but didn't know how to bring their grievances forward.
Lea met with residents in living rooms and church halls over issues such as neighborhood street lights, domestic violence, a suspended principal and most recently with residents who sought -- and received -- new tennis courts at Eureka Park.
Though a tireless worker, Lea's efforts were mostly behind the scenes. His forays into the spotlight too often were with Wishneff on the short end of 5-2 council votes.
But a glimpse of a new, more assertive Lea appeared the day after the election. With Bowers, fresh off his mayoral victory and pledging to put the brakes on a number of controversial city projects, Lea publicly checked him.
"I would hope we don't get to the point where he is saying, 'This is my agenda, and I'm moving forward whether you like it or not,'" Lea said at the time.
Lea, who thought of running for mayor, stressed to me when we talked Tuesday that he does not want to usurp Bowers' role. He said he thinks he can share some insights with the incoming mayor.
"Things have changed since David was on council," Lea said of Bowers, who left the council in 2000. School issues are more pressing, Lea said, and the business community is much more involved.
Lea also noted the shifting dynamic on the council with the appointment of Alvin Nash and election of political newcomers Anita Price and Court Rosen.
They will join fellow council members Gwen Mason and David Trinkle, who both came on the council two years ago.
"This makes for an exciting time," Lea said. "Everybody is going to come together and give David a chance."
Lea said he had no idea how political alliances would stack up.
"I want to lead, recognizing that we do have a mayor," Lea said. "The city is expecting me to lead when the opportunity presents itself."
It's encouraging to hear Lea eager to elevate his influence on the council. He always has struck me as being more concerned about serving constituents than engaging in petty political squabbling -- which brings me back to his ties to Wishneff.
Several months ago, Lea and I talked about their political relationship and how Lea was perceived as being too aligned with Wishneff, known for his bombast.
Lea let me know then in no uncertain terms that "I am nobody's 'yes man.'"
He reiterated the point this week when we revisited the subject. We talked about why the two men ran together for the council in 2004.
Lea noted they had served together on the school board. Lea said he resigned from the school board because he was caring for his elderly parents. When the Victory Stadium issue came up, he and Wishneff had similar opinions.
After they were elected, Lea said he was impressed with Wishneff's knowledge on issues but did not let his colleague tell him how to vote. The men would discuss issues, and Lea would hear Wishneff's opinion. But he would make up his own mind.
"I wasn't an automatic vote," Lea said.
He said the public should not forget that Wishneff attended a number of community meetings to hear residents' concerns. Lea said Wishneff also was a strong supporter of restoring the house of civil-rights lawyer Oliver Hill and went so far as to make a motion to buy the property.
Lea said he parted ways with Wishneff as a result of the Roanoke Democratic committee meeting in December. Lea, who had announced his re-election in December, planned to seek the party's nomination to run as a Democrat -- "win lose or draw."
After Bowers ran for party chairman in December and lost, he and Wishneff were unhappy with the party and eventually left it and ran as independents.
Lea, who had voted for Bowers for party chairman, said the vote also had caused a rift in his own family. His son Sherman Lea Jr. felt pressured to vote for Bowers although he was a friend of Tony Reed, who won the job.
The party was in a swirl of "who's on whose side? Who's for who? -- and we're all Democrats," Lea said incredulously, recalling the political turmoil.
At that point, Lea said, he met with Harris and they talked about aligning and bringing the city together.
No one has ever accused Nelson Harris of being a dumb man. Lea didn't say this, but I will: Harris saw a political opportunity to run with a popular candidate.
Lea said he talked to Wishneff about his meeting with Harris. His former council ally "was disappointed," Lea said.
After he and Harris announced their alliance, Lea said he received calls at home and at his job at the state Department of Corrections, calling him a "traitor" and "Benedict Arnold."
Despite the detractors, Lea will return to office July 1.
As Lea looked forward, I asked him about City Manager Darlene Burcham. In recent years, her job has been a recurring issue in campaigns. Lea said Burcham has his support.
Bowers, however, has been no fan of Burcham's. Lea said he believes the council under the new mayor will ask more direct questions of her and want more information about how staff decisions are made. Lea saw that as a plus.
Getting back to Lea, I reminded him of his flirtation last year with the idea of running for mayor. With the large vote tally, did he regret that he hadn't gone with his first instinct?
Lea laughed and said that he had decided to try to retain his council seat because it was where he felt "comfortable."
Would he consider running for mayor in the future. He smiled and devilishly said, "You never say never."
Shanna Flowers' column appears on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.
