Elect Bob Kirby

Good Morning and welcome elected officials, guests, and most especially the membership of the Republican Party of Chowan County.

My name is Bob Kirby and simply put, I am applying for a job. I would like to be the next County Commissioner for District 1. This job is among the most important jobs in our beautiful Chowan County.  As a political position, this means that you and your neighbors will be my employers, and this platform today is my job interview.

Like any applicant, before I ask you to hire me, you should know a bit more about me.  I will try to cram 62 years of history into a few minutes.  I was born about 50 miles north of here in Norfolk, Virginia, the oldest of four children.  Mom was a homemaker and Dad was a plumber.  Neither attended a day of college, yet it was their dream that their children should be college educated. To their credit and pride, all of us earned 4-year degrees, and went on to be a civil engineer, a teacher, a bookkeeper, and a mechanical engineer.

I graduated with my Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from The Virginia Military Institute in 1978 and was immediately commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy Civil Engineer Corps.  I served for four years on active duty culminating with the job of Public Works Officer at the Naval Hospital in Newport, RI.  While stationed in Rhode Island, I married my best friend, Michelle, and we began a truly incredible life together.

In the early 80s, I resigned my active commission to begin working with my father at his relatively new mechanical contracting firm in Portsmouth, Virginia.  At the same time, I sat for my Professional Engineer’s Examination and earned my Virginia Professional Engineer License in 1982.  I continued with my Naval Service in the Reserves for another ten years, resigning in 1992 after achieving the rank of Lieutenant Commander.  By that time, Michelle and I had become the very proud parents of three delightful daughters, Alice, Jennifer, and Sarah, and we joined Prince of Peace Church in Chesapeake.

I continued working and helping to grow the family business, ultimately becoming President of the company in 1997, a position which I held until late last year when I stepped aside to allow my brother to run the business while I tried to slow down some.  At that time, the shop employed some 60 employees, designing and installing mechanical systems throughout Southeastern Virginia and Northeastern North Carolina.

While raising our family in Chesapeake, I became affiliated with the Republican Party and worked with many local and statewide campaigns.  My mentor and former Reserve Commanding Officer, Mr. Frank Driscoll, nominated me for a fellowship at the Political Leaders Program of the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership at the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia.  I was accepted and proudly completed the program in 1998. This experience reinforced my vision of one day entering the realm of elected political office.

Life was good for Michelle and me in the late 1990s and we began searching for property in a quiet, rural setting where we could live on a part time basis until we were ready to retire. After pin-pointing this area on a map, we fell in love with Edenton and Chowan County. In February 2000 we purchased our beautiful property on the Chowan River in Rocky Hock and slowly began building our dream home.

In the meantime, I received a Gubernatorial appointment to the Commonwealth of Virginia Board for Contractors in 2002 and was reappointed in 2006. I served in this position for 8 years and was elected Chairman by the board in 2009 and served for two years.  This Board is responsible for regulating and disciplining over 80,000 Contractors and Tradesmen throughout Virginia and this experience taught me the importance of building consensus with my peers and working with people of varying professions.

In 2010 we finished building on the property and my family established a permanent residence in North Carolina.  We moved our church membership to St. Anne here in Edenton and I spent the next 7 years commuting to my work in Portsmouth, listening to audiobooks about history and politics and mulling over my own political aspirations.

My political interest in this community was piqued a few years ago when I learned that Apex was planning to develop a Utility Scale Wind Facility in Chowan and Perquimans Counties.  I was very vocal during the series of Conditional Use Permit Hearings held in Chowan County, and I was urged by several individuals within the local Republican Party to channel my energy toward a seat on the County Commission, which is why I am here today, applying for a job.

My platform is centered around 3 main areas:

First, I believe Chowan County needs a more open government. In gathering research regarding the turbines, I learned that Chowan County does not record County Commissioner meetings. I would like more transparency in our county government and I believe I can make that happen.

Second, I believe Chowan County needs to be more fiscally responsible and accountable to its citizens. Contrary to the recommended practice by the Government Finance Officers Association, Chowan County does not have a debt policy, nor does the county maintain a formal capital improvement plan. For those of you unfamiliar with the County debt crisis of 2008, we do not want to see this history repeated.  The County needs a debt policy and a plan for capital improvement.

Finally, I believe in consistently applying county ordinances. Specifically, developing and maintaining a comprehensive zoning ordinance so that citizens know their property rights. Robert Frost said, “good fences make good neighbors” and the same applies to county ordinances.

This is my resume: a Christian, a father, a veteran, an engineer, a businessman, a friend, a neighbor, a concerned citizen, and with your support, a County Commissioner.