Dave Hoback is seeking his first elected term on the Stuart Town Council. Hoback, 66, was appointed to the council in 2021 to finish the unexpired term of John “Mac” Deekens.
“This is actually the first one I’m on the ballot for,” he said, adding that being part of the council wasn’t something Hoback initially aspired to do.
“I wasn’t really planning to seek elected office. But when they approached me, I wanted to be able to serve the community because I was asked by the mayor and council to do so, and I had some relative experience to be able to make a contribution,” he said.
Since joining the town council, Hoback said he’s found it enjoyable and likes the direction Stuart is heading. He wants to continue to contribute and ensure that some planned projects are accomplished.
Hoback said he sees Stuart facing two major ongoing challenges:
“One of them is maintaining the town’s water and wastewater systems. We have a rather complex system even though it’s a small community, and it’s a costly proposition to be able to maintain those things,” he said.
While improvements are underway on the systems, Hoback said the systems still have old components.
“It’s a continuous improvement process to maintain the water and sewer systems at the levels that they are now. That was a challenge 50 years ago, and it’ll be a challenge 50 years from now,” he said.
Hoback also sees the continuous promotion and encouragement of commercial, retail, and industrial development within town limits, “because we’re in a situation where the taxpayers of the community pay county taxes and then they have to pay the town taxes on top of that. So, we always have to be cognizant of the fact of not making that burden any greater than it’s just necessary, and the way to continue to limit that burden is by encouraging and seeing the implementation of new development,” he said.
To fund these challenges, Hoback believes the town should continue with its plan of seeking grant funding.
“I think I’m correct in saying that almost all the improvements in the infrastructure system have been funded by either state or federal grants. We’re in a very favorable position right now where Mayor (Ray) Weiland stated at the last meeting that we currently have $5 million of grants within the pipeline,” he said.
That, Hoback said, is impressive, especially considering the town’s $2.1 million budget.
“Basically, we have two and a half times grant money in the pipeline than the annual town budget, and that’s really the only feasible way that we can pursue the projects that we have ongoing and will need to pursue in the future,” he said.
Hoback supports public involvement in local government. He noted Stuart started a committee of town citizens and interested stakeholders to provide input regarding the downtown revitalization project.
“I think always where there is an issue of public concern, that we should be having community meetings as well as legally required public hearings to solicit public input,” he said.
Having worked in local and regional government for over 25 years, Hoback said he always considered it important to observe the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) laws.
“It’s the public’s money, it’s the public’s business. With the exception of those things that are included within the Code of Virginia that exempt matters from public discussion,” Hoback said he supports transparency “very much. Both at the council level as well as the staff level. Everyone should go over and above to be open and transparent about the business of government,” he said.
On occasion, the information sought is not contained in a document, may not exist, or can’t be readily provided without extensive research. Hoback said those situations create a more complex issue, making the FOIA guidelines frustrating when an information request is made.
Hoback believes the town excels at having efficient operations with the staff doing a good job at administration.
“We are staying within budget, we are limiting the burden on the taxpayers, and we have been phenomenal in soliciting and receiving both federal and state grant monies,” he said.
Hoback said he thinks the town needs to more aggressively pursue its quality-of-life projects.
“Some of the comments that I hear from citizens, probably more than anything else, are issues having to do with property maintenance, and blight, inoperable vehicles,” he said. “It’s not as if we aren’t doing anything in that area, the staff is doing what they can, but at some point down the road, I think we’re going to need a dedicated staff person, a code enforcement type of person, to be able to be able to have the time to dedicate to some of those issues.”
Hobak said people should vote for him in part because of his experience in the local government arena and the perspectives he can bring to the table
“I hope my service in the current term to date has been helpful to the council, and if people are kind enough to support me, then I look forward to continuing in that role,” he said.
Hoback worked as a Special Projects Director for Patrick County for three years before he served as County Administrator for 16 years.
After leaving that position, he worked as a Human Resources Director at Roto Metrics in Meadows of Dan for 11 years and then served as the Executive Director of the West Piedmont Planning Commission before he retired in 2021.
Hoback received a B.S. in political science from Radford University and an M.A. in Public Administration from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
Hoback has been married to his wife, Deborah, since 1989. The couple have two children, Hayley and Aaron, and one grandson named Roman. In his free time, Hoback enjoys walking, reading, and watching football.
