Oversight board member urges Virginia Beach to "stay the course" on over $500 million flood bond

Scott Miller, a member of the bond referendum oversight board and a Virginia Beach resident, told the Virginia Beach City Council this afternoon that the city should maintain momentum on its flood-protection program funded by the 2021 bond referendum.

Miller recounted living in the Windsor Oaks neighborhood and said Hurricane Matthew in 2016 left "more than a foot of water" in his house and flooded hundreds of nearby homes, a personal account he said helped explain why the city pursued major flood protections. "That night of Matthew made one thing crystal clear," he said: the city could not ignore the risk.

Miller said the storm prompted immediate city actions, including cleanup and canal dredging, and ultimately led voters to approve an "over half a billion dollar" flood bond in 2021. As a member of the oversight board, he said the panel receives detailed briefings on the engineering behind projects and issues a monthly flood protection report intended to show where bond dollars and matching grants are spent.

"It's important to us that it's readable by the citizens so they know what they're getting," Miller said, urging council to keep reports clear and to expand public outreach. He recommended short videos and graphics that show before-and-after views of completed projects and "virtual tours" so residents who never travel through project areas can follow progress.

Miller praised visible construction progress under the city manager's leadership, pointing to cranes, new tide gates and pumps, but acknowledged costs have risen since pre-COVID estimates. He credited city staff with finding efficiencies and securing grants and loans to reduce the burden on residents.

Addressing recent heavy rains, Miller said continued roadway flooding after temporary tide gates and pumps was a result of the volume of rain, not necessarily system failure, and noted that some neighborhood drainage work remains to be completed. He stressed that projects are designed primarily to protect against major hurricane events such as Matthew, not every passing thunderstorm.

He also addressed Pleasure House Point, which he described as a non-bond project whose wetland mitigation credits were used to allow other bond-related projects to proceed. "Many residents obviously were unhappy about the loss of trees and the effect on the wildlife habitat," Miller said, calling the trade-off a difficult but sometimes necessary decision for citywide benefit.

Speaking both as a resident and an oversight-board member, Miller asked council to "stay the course," continue funding both the bond and future projects, invite staff to council meetings and town halls, and plan more in-person citizen outreach alongside videos, blogs and social updates. He said those steps would help "show every part of Virginia Beach the real return on the investment."

A council member thanked Miller for sharing his personal experience and for his service on the oversight board. No formal action or vote was recorded in the transcript.

The oversight board presentation closes with Miller offering to answer questions and with council members expressing appreciation; the transcript does not record any subsequent vote or staff directive in response.