Record of Results

In April 2020, after the city manager closed the Farmer’s Market to fight the spread of Covid-19, Erik led the effort to lift the order and allow the market to reopen safely. An innovative approach with distancing, masks and scheduled pickups of purchases allowed citizens to access healthy local food and gave nearby farmers a way to keep earning when they needed income the most.

During his two terms on Staunton City Council from 2012 to 2020, Erik worked collaboratively with colleagues to provide citizens with local government that was open, transparent and responsive. He also stood out from other local officials in bringing new ideas to solve some of Staunton’s biggest problems and to keep the city moving forward. Highlights of Erik’s initiatives include:

Envisioned and established our current program for outdoor dining on Beverley Street on weekends
Enabled the Farmers Market to reopen during pandemic restrictions in 2020
Legalized backyard chickens
Established an official Arts and Culture District downtown
Led Staunton’s successful opposition to the dangerous Atlantic Coast Pipeline that would have transported fracked natural gas through the catchment of the city’s water supply

Victory! Shortly after we published this image in April 2020, the investors of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline announced that they were cancelling the project.

Raised Staunton’s profile as a tourism destination, boosting the local economy, bringing in tax revenues from visitors and increasing quality of life for citizens
With then Vice Mayor Ophie Kier and the African American community, renamed a bridge on Richmond Road after the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Convened citizen advisory committees for local food and bicycle/pedestrian planning