2017 Reston Association Board Election: Meet Victoria White

Victoria White/RAVoting in the 2017 Reston Association Board of Directors election will run through April 3. We will be posting profiles on each of the candidates. Featured here is Victoria White, who is facing Syazana Durrani (profile) in the race for the Hunters Woods/Dogwood District seat. The two squared off in a candidate forum last week.

Profiles of candidates in the race for an At-Large seat will run later this week.

The profiles are in a Q-and-A format. Each candidate had an opportunity to answer the same questions in their own words.

How long have you lived in Reston? What brought you here? 

In 2004, while searching for our first home, my husband and I chose Reston for its relative affordability and natural resources. Since that time, we’ve come to appreciate the wide variety of amenities available to RA members and cherish the sense of community we have found here.

What inspired you to run for the board?

In the time I have lived in Reston, I have seen a number of questionable actions undertaken by RA Board which have had an adverse affect on our community. As such, I decided that rather than continue to watch from the sidelines, the best way to prevent such further mistakes from being made would be for me to become more directly engaged in the decision making process itself. Further, this would allow me to set an example for our young son, on how to become better involved in his community.

What are three of the biggest concerns you have for Reston?

  • RA’s less than ideal communication with its members, which leads to mistrust and lack of engagement by the community.
  • Poor management of our resources — Our pools are possibly the greatest example of this poor management where budget concerns lead to significantly reduced hours at some facilities in 2016.
  • One of the things that makes Reston truly special is the green space available to our community.  As the pace of development increases, our green space is threatened. We must band together and find creative solutions to protect this shared resource.

What do you hope to accomplish by being on the board?

  • Promote transparency to enable Members to comment on the decision-making process and substance of issues before the Board, and to hold the Board and Staff accountable for its decisions.
  • Manage RA better. Reston is undergoing major and unavoidable change. Yet, RA should continue to provide services to all Members, independent of their life stages, or socio-economic status.  Annual assessments have escalated at an unsustainable rate. RA needs to maintain its current infrastructure, amenities, and environment, before jumping headlong into new ventures. Well-considered long range planning and budgeting is a way to achieve that.
  • Improve cooperation between the Clusters, Members, Covenants and the RA Board to assist Members in complying with DRB guidelines. As our Members age, it is more difficult for many to make the required improvements. We can use the experience and expertise of individual Clusters and the RA to assist many more Members to meet the requirements with creative solutions.

How will your personal or professional experience help you in your role with RA?

I am an experienced contracts administrator with over 10 years of experience negotiating and managing contracts in the non-federal space. I have managed 25-plus year sales and service support contracts valued at up to $1 billion, and short-term consultancy contracts of various values. I have an excellent track record of building consensus to successfully conclude contracts, while mitigating risks and managing cost and revenue throughout the contract life-cycle.

PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED CANDIDATE PROFILES:

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