Willcox & Savage is a Norfolk law firm. One of its partners, Lisa M. Murphy, is chairman of the Virginia Beach Development Authority (VBDA), the board that sells city land and hands out economic development grants. Murphy is also a zoning attorney who brings developers’ projects to the Planning Commission and City Council. Another partner, Jimmy Wood, is the grandson of former VBDA Chairman Dot Wood. The City of Virginia Beach has paid the firm $2,515,727.24 since January 2016.
Standing conflicts: Still in place today
- Murphy is chairman of the VBDA, which is a defendant in the lawsuit over the golf course sale. Murphy’s firm represents the city’s side in that case. (See below)
- The federal judge hearing that case, Rebecca Beach Smith, was the first woman to practice law at Willcox & Savage. (See below)
- The VBDA’s tax grant to Concorde Apartments, a Willcox & Savage client, pays out every year for up to 30 years. (See below)
- The VBDA’s garage deal with Runnymede, Murphy’s zoning client, is still going. It has paid Runnymede $298,222 so far. (See below)
- The city is still paying the firm: $55,387.40 from January to May 2026. (See below)
- Murphy’s VBDA term ended August 31, 2025, and she is still chairman. (See below)
- Murphy keeps bringing developers’ cases to the Planning Commission and City Council while she is chairman of the city’s development board: seven in 2026 alone. (See below)
- Clients on both sides: Murphy’s firm represents the developers and landlords whose tenants get VBDA grants. On October 20, 2020, Murphy listed 40 grant winners ($330,537.77) whose businesses, or their landlords, use Willcox & Savage. The landlords include Dragas, Sifen, Breeden, McLeskey & Associates (six tenants), Gold Key | PHR, Armada Hoffler and Potter & Company. Murphy also does legal work for Verizon, and the VBDA gave Verizon an easement at Town Center on March 21, 2023. (See below)
- Murphy sits on the board of Virginia Beach Vision. (Willcox & Savage)
Runnymede: Murphy’s client, then the VBDA’s
On March 11, 2026, Murphy stood before the Planning Commission as the zoning attorney for The Runnymede Corporation, which wanted a 160-unit apartment complex in Pembroke. The commission recommended it for approval by consent, 11-0. (Planning Commission minutes, March 11, 2026)
Three months later, on June 9, 2026, the VBDA, where Murphy is chairman, voted 8-0-1 to sign a pre-development agreement with Runnymede for a 1,000-space public garage at 19th Street and Parks Avenue, and to accept $1.9 million from the city to pay for it. Commissioner Akhil Jain, who sits on the same TowneBank board as Runnymede co-chairman Andrew Fine, seconded the motion. (VBDA minutes, June 9, 2026)
By June 30, 2026, the VBDA had paid Runnymede $298,222. (VBDA minutes, September 2026) See the TowneBank post for the rest of the Runnymede ties.
VBDA money: Willcox & Savage clients
The VBDA’s own minutes say these applicants were Willcox & Savage clients, or tied to its clients, when the board approved them with Murphy as chairman:
- January 13, 2026: Concorde Apartments, LP and Concorde Apartments Phase II, L.P. A 30-year Attainable Workforce Housing grant, paid every year as 100% of the new real estate taxes over a base of $2,893. Approved 7-0-2. The VBDA letter in the minutes says Willcox & Savage “provides legal services to the Applicant.” (VBDA minutes)
- March 19, 2024: Plaza Bakery, LLC. Facade Improvement Grant. Willcox & Savage “provides legal services to affiliates of the landlord.” (VBDA minutes)
- September 2024: Cantina of Virginia LLC (Cantina Laredo). Extension of its Open Air Cafe Agreement. Murphy “provided legal services to a principal of the Applicant.” (VBDA minutes)
- March 11, 2025: JMT Sweets & More, LLC. Facade Improvement Grant, one of nine totaling $45,211. Willcox & Savage “provides legal services to the Applicant or its landlord.” (VBDA minutes)
- March 21, 2023: Verizon Virginia LLC. An easement across Block 2 at Town Center, on VBDA land. Approved 6-0-1. Murphy’s letter in the minutes says that through Willcox & Savage she provides “legal services to Verizon and/or its affiliates.” The same day, the board approved 14 Facade Improvement Grants ($109,385) that the firm “may have” served. (VBDA minutes, March 21, 2023)
- October 20, 2020: 40 EDIP Part E grants totaling $330,537.77, approved 7-0. Murphy’s letter says “the applicants, or their landlords” use Willcox & Savage, and that the firm itself checked the list. Landlords on her list: Dragas Company (1 tenant), Sifen (2), The Breeden Company (3), McLeskey & Associates (6), Gold Key | PHR (4), Armada Hoffler (1), Potter & Company (3), S.L. Nusbaum (4), Pembroke (3), Harvey Lindsay (2) and the City of Virginia Beach (1). Nine CARES Act grants that day were on a second list, including Indoor Skydiving Virginia (iFLY), Murphy’s 2026 zoning client. (VBDA minutes, October 20, 2020)
The golf course: Defending the Dragas sale
The VBDA runs Virginia Beach National Golf Course. On July 14, 2026, when staff briefed the VBDA on selling it to Dragas Companies, Chairman Murphy said a 2023 audit found the course in “significant disrepair” and the old funding model could not pay for it. The board called the Dragas plan “a crucial opportunity.” (VBDA minutes, July 14, 2026)
On August 11, 2026, City Council voted 9-2 to sell the 341.4 acres at 2500 Tournament Drive to Dragas Associates, Inc. Voting yes: Berlucchi, Cummings, Dyer, Hutcheson, Jackson-Green, Ross-Hammond, Rouse, Schulman and Wilson. Voting no: Henley and Remick. (Council minutes, August 11, 2026)
Residents sued in federal court to stop the sale. The suit names the city, the VBDA and Dragas. Willcox & Savage represents the city’s side. (Council minutes, October 20, 2026)
The federal judge hearing the case is Senior U.S. District Judge Rebecca Beach Smith. She practiced law in Norfolk from 1980 to 1985 and was the first woman to practice law at Willcox & Savage. (William & Mary, Federal Judicial Center)
The money: $2.5 million from the city
A Freedom of Information Act request (#021654-061126) returned every city payment to Willcox & Savage from January 2016 to May 2026: 78 payments totaling $2,515,727.24. The city’s report does not say which department paid or for what work.
| Year | Payments | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 8 | $17,479.35 |
| 2017 | 3 | $18,923.80 |
| 2018 | 11 | $569,882.13 |
| 2019 | 12 | $1,264,742.62 |
| 2020 | 6 | $98,899.06 |
| 2021 | 5 | $28,857.60 |
| 2022 | 11 | $260,475.07 |
| 2023 | 8 | $119,650.93 |
| 2024 | 5 | $9,199.98 |
| 2025 | 5 | $72,229.30 |
| 2026 | 4 | $55,387.40 |
| Total | 78 | $2,515,727.24 |
Murphy joined Willcox & Savage as a partner on May 31, 2018, nine months after she took her VBDA seat. (Willcox & Savage) In the 29 months before she joined, the city paid the firm $139,842.16. From June 2018 through December 2019, it paid $1,731,185.74.
Much of that went to the arena lawsuit. The city hired Willcox & Savage after Mid-Atlantic Arena sued it in January 2018 for walking away from the arena deal. By January 28, 2019, the city had paid the firm more than $721,000 since the suit was filed. (WAVY, January 28, 2019) The city’s report shows $824,616.46 paid from January 16, 2018 to that date.
The city attorney: A Willcox & Savage alumnus
Mark D. Stiles began his career at Willcox & Savage, where he spent a decade, then served the City of Virginia Beach for 27 years. He was City Attorney from 2009 until he died on September 25, 2026. Every payment in the city’s report, $2,515,727.24 from January 2016 to May 2026, was made while he ran the City Attorney’s Office. (Obituary)
Zoning: Lisa Murphy’s 2026 clients
In 2026 alone, Murphy represented these applicants before the Planning Commission while she was chairman of the VBDA. The commission recommended every one for approval:
- January 14, 2026: iFLY Virginia Beach, parking lot at 2402 Pacific Avenue. Vote 10-0. (minutes)
- February 11, 2026: Cavalier Golf & Yacht Club, pickleball courts next to homes on Bobolink Drive. Vote 11-0. (minutes)
- March 11, 2026: The Runnymede Corporation, 160 apartments in Pembroke. Vote 11-0. (minutes)
- June 10, 2026: Shore Drive Area Properties LLC, a McLeskey and Associates affiliate, rezoning of 3853 Shore Drive for apartments. Vote 9-1. City Council approved it July 14, 2026, with proffers “Prepared by: Lisa M. Murphy.” (minutes, council)
- July 8, 2026: 1036 F.P. Road, LLC, mini warehouse and bulk storage at 1036 Ferry Plantation Road. Vote 11-0. (minutes)
- September 9, 2026: Bonney Rd Apartments, LLC. See below. (minutes)
- September 9, 2026: Sectorsite Tower Assets, LLC, rezoning plus mini warehouse and bulk storage. Vote 10-0. (minutes)
Bonney Road: City land, then apartments
On June 4, 2019, City Council agreed to sell 11.77 acres at 4576 Bonney Road to Olympia Development Corp. (Cecil V. Cutchins) for $2,312,000, for an office park. In 2021 the deal was changed to give the buyer a credit against the price. (Council briefing, December 7, 2021)
In 2026 the owner, OB 22, LLC (manager Cecil V. Cutchins), listed Willcox & Savage for legal services. Murphy took the land to the Planning Commission on September 9, 2026, to rezone it from industrial to 209 apartments, and to shrink the public Thalia Creek Greenway easement. Commissioner Walter Camp asked whether the city had already put $625,000 into the parcel. Murphy answered that the price cuts were “a city council action.” The commission voted 9-1. City Council approved both the rezoning and the easement cut 10-0 on October 20, 2026. (Planning Commission minutes, Council minutes)
McLeskey: The Wood connection
On June 10, 2026, Murphy told the Planning Commission that her client, Shore Drive Area Properties LLC, is a McLeskey and Associates affiliate. (Planning Commission minutes, June 10, 2026) Cheryl P. McLeskey is chief executive officer of McLeskey & Associates, LLC. (Military Aviation Museum) McLeskey sits on TowneBank’s Virginia Beach board with VBDA Commissioner Akhil Jain and Runnymede co-chairman Andrew Fine. (TowneBank)
Chris Wood, Jim Wood’s brother and Dot Wood’s son, was a McLeskey vice president from September 2017 to June 2024. Cheryl McLeskey gave $500 to Jim Wood’s campaign on August 22, 2018. (Virginia Department of Elections) Twenty-seven days later, on September 18, 2018, Vice Mayor Wood nominated McLeskey to the city’s Community Organization Grant committee, and council approved it 10-0. (Council minutes, September 18, 2018) See the Wood family post.
The Green Line: Rename it
On March 11, 2026, the same day she represented Runnymede, Murphy spoke on the new Comprehensive Plan “as chair of the Virginia Beach Development Authority.” Murphy asked the Planning Commission to stop calling the area the Green Line and rename it the “Rural Boundary Area.” (Planning Commission minutes, March 11, 2026)
The Woods: A partner and a nomination
Jimmy Wood, a Willcox & Savage partner, is the grandson of Dot Wood, who was VBDA chairman from 2016 to 2018. Dot Wood’s son, former Vice Mayor Jim Wood, nominated Murphy for a second VBDA term on July 13, 2021. Council reappointed Murphy 8-1. Murphy’s term ended August 31, 2025. No reappointment appears in council minutes since then, and Murphy is still chairman. (Council minutes, July 13, 2021) See the Wood family post.
Sources: Public records
- City of Virginia Beach payments to Willcox & Savage, January 2016 to May 2026 (FOIA #021654-061126)
- VBDA meeting minutes, 2020 to 2026
- Planning Commission formal minutes, 2026
- City Council minutes (eDocs)
- Willcox & Savage, Lisa M. Murphy biography
- Federal Judicial Center, Rebecca Beach Smith
- Mark D. Stiles obituary
Have records or evidence about this? Email keepvbabovewater@gmail.com.
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