The regional agency that provides planning support to local governments has a new executive director.
The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission has hired Charles P. “Chip” Boyles II to serve in the position. Boyles is currently the vice president of programs and administration for the East Baton Rouge Redevelopment. Authority.
“We are excited about the experience and skills that Mr. Boyles brings to the PDC and look forward to collaborating with him on the TJPDC’s work with local governments in the region,” said TJPDC chair Allen Hale in a release. Hale is a member of the Nelson County Board of Supervisors who serves as chair of the planning district’s board.
Boyles has also worked as the community development director in Baton Rouge and has been a manager of several Maryland and South Carolina communities. He holds a master’s in public administration from Clemson University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of South Carolina.
He also spent one year working as executive director of the International Town & Gown Association, a non-profit that seeks to build partnerships between institutions of higher education and the communities in which they are built.
This will be Boyle’s first work experience in Virginia.
“I am looking forward to my move to Virginia and to begin working with the region’s residents and governmental leaders to assist in meeting their local needs and especially in building long-term relationships and partnerships that will address issues of regional concern,” Boyles said in a statement.
Boyles succeeds Steven Williams, whose four-year tenure in the position ended last June when the board decided not to renew his contract. Williams left after an internal review found “an overall lack of project management and leadership” in the handling of a $1 million federal planning grant. Financial miscalculations resulted in the early dismissal of temporary planners who had been hired to help Charlottesville and Albemarle County update their Comprehensive Plans.
Boyles will begin work on April 15. David Blount, the agency’s legislative liaison, has been serving as the interim executive director.
“I think it is important to get up to speed about how the government process in Virginia works, but more importantly, to develop and build good working relationships with those we serve and with whom we partner,” Blount said in an email.
“I am confident that this is a top priority for Mr. Boyles,” Blount added.
The TJPDC consists of Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson Counties, as well as the City of Charlottesville.
