Smithfield-based PAC backs four for Town Council

A Smithfield-based group backing four Town Council candidates has registered with the state as an official political action committee.

Renee Bevan of Smithfield is listed as contact for “Citizens for Responsible Leadership in Smithfield,” according to an undated statement of organization filed with the State Board of Elections. The group has been officially registered as a PAC at least since Aug. 7, according to its Facebook page.

Bevan, when contacted by The Smithfield Times, deferred to group organizer Brandon Henderson, who asserted “to improve Town Council governance, the citizens of Smithfield need to elect a majority of members committed to transparency, citizen involvement, and ensuring that development is managed responsibly.”

According to Virginia Public Access Project records, it’s the first Smithfield-based PAC since 2005 when a now-inactive Smithfield Foods PAC registered that year with a Smithfield address.

Citizens for Responsible Leadership has endorsed Councilman Mike Smith, who’s running for reelection, as well as first-time candidates Mary Ellen Bebermeyer, Darren Cutler and Bill Harris.

They’re among six candidates seeking four available seats.

Harris is running unopposed for the two-year remainder term ex-Councilman Wayne Hall vacated last year. Bebermeyer, Cutler and Smith are running against incumbent Councilmen Jim Collins and Raynard Gibbs for the remaining three seats.

Mayor Steve Bowman, meanwhile, has endorsed Collins and Gibbs.

“Citizens for Responsible Leadership (CRL) is a grassroots organization dedicated to promoting transparency and accountability in local government,” the group posted to its Facebook page on July 23. “Founded by concerned citizens of Smithfield, we are committed to preserving the unique charm and character of our small town amidst the pressures of corporate interests and unchecked development.”

All four of the CRL-endorsed candidates have spoken against an influx of approved and proposed housing developments. Smith cast one of two dissenting votes against the 2021 rezoning approval of Mallory Pointe, an 812-home development off Battery Park Road, and in 2023 against mixed-use zoning for the 267-home Grange at 10Main development slated for the western edge of the town’s historic district.

“We know that growth is going to happen, but the density of these housing developments is killing us,” Bebermeyer said at an Oct. 10 candidates’ forum The Smithfield Times hosted at The Smithfield Center.

Bebermeyer, Cutler and Harris, at the same forum, stated their opposition to public-private partnerships with developers, such as the $1.4 million the town committed in 2022 toward moving its farmers market to the Grange.

“CRL was born from a grassroots effort when citizens backing the re-election of Councilman Mike Smith due to his commitment to these principles, gathered the required signatures to ensure his place on the ballot,” Henderson said. “Many citizens wanted to do more to ensure the Town Council not only respects citizen input but actively engages with the public and avoids being a rubber stamp for unchecked development. At the time, Raynard Gibbs and Jim Collins were the only additional candidates we understood to be running for Town Council.”

Gibbs, at the Oct. 10 candidates’ forum, said he and Collins had “asked to be a part of” CRL but “were denied because of our affiliation.”

“I find that really strange,” Gibbs said.

Smith’s reelection campaign evolved into CRL when Darren Cutler, at Smith’s urging, announced his candidacy for council, as did longtime downtown residents Bebermeyer and Harris.

According to Henderson, CRL registered as a PAC to allow supporters to contribute financially. The PAC had raised $2,383 as of Aug. 31 from four donors. Leah Walker, a volunteer for town resident Chris Torre’s unsuccessful write-in campaign against Renee Rountree in last year’s race for the Smithfield-centric District 1 seat on Isle of Wight County’s Board of Supervisors, had contributed the largest amount at $1,050 as of Aug. 31.

On Sept. 10, the group spent $1,325 on advertising with Smithfield Newsmedia, which publishes The Smithfield Times and Slice of Smithfield Magazine. The money purchased fliers, door hangers and newspaper inserts, according to CRL’s large expenditure reports.

The next campaign finance reports for candidates and PACs are due Oct. 15, and will cover activity from Sept. 1-30. Town Council candidates in towns with fewer than 25,000 residents – including Smithfield and Windsor – are exempt by state law from having to file campaign finance reports.

The group has hosted in-person meet-and-greet events with the four CRL-endorsed candidates at the Villas of Smithfield development on Battery Park Road on Sept. 5, the Church Square development on Oct. 3 and at the Riverview Park gazebo by the Luter Family YMCA on Oct. 5.