Bingham resigns as Richmond utilities director after water crisis, city taps replacement
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The director of Richmond's Department of Public Utilities resigned Wednesday and will be replaced by a state water official in the interim, per a city news release.
Why it matters: The outgoing DPU director April Bingham was heavily criticized for her management of the city's week-long water crisis, which left residents without running water for three days.
The big picture: Bingham's role, which she's had since Dec. 2021, was increasingly scrutinized last week due to her not being an engineer and working mostly in customer service throughout her career.
- Her predecessor, Calvin D. Farr, Jr., and the surrounding counties' directors of public utilities all have some engineering background, per an Axios review.
- So does Bingham's replacement: Anthony "Scott" Morris, who was the director of water for the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.
- Morris also worked for Richmond as a plant operator (and chief operator) from 2008 to 2012 and Chesterfield from 2012 to 2022, according to his LinkedIn.
The latest: Mayor Avula told Axios on Wednesday that it was "a very amicable separation" and after conversations regarding "what does the plant and the utility need in the next phase of leadership, ultimately, she decided to step down."
- Avula added there's "expertise" with Morris he thinks "will be really helpful to us."
- He wouldn't say if the resignation was his call but told Axios she's getting severance.
Catch up quick: Last Thursday, when asked whether Avula had confidence in Bingham moving forward to lead the department, the mayor said "I've been absolutely impressed with April's attentiveness and response."
- He also later added people would be held accountable if leadership or personnel failures are found, saying "That's the job."
Zoom in: Bingham had been absent from last Thursday's press conferences, which Avula said was due to him needing her at the plant, and Friday's, which Avula said was due to being at the plant overnight and going home at 6am.
- By Friday, the Daily Wire, a popular conservative media outlet co-founded by Ben Shapiro, published an anti-DEI piece about her.
- Some of the comments under the story were racist against Black women, and shortly after it was published, her LinkedIn page — which was included in the article — was taken down.
- There was also a Change.org petition to fire Bingham. As of Wednesday afternoon, it had 1,146 signatures.
An older LinkedIn page that remains up says Bingham graduated from the University of Maryland with a business administration degree and got her Master of Public Administration from the University of Phoenix.
- She was a senior specialist of cash receipts at Washington Gas in D.C. for nearly 9 years and a team lead of cash receipts at Accenture for another year.
- Bingham was at DC Water from 2008 until 2020, when she came to work for Richmond DPU as deputy director of the customer service division.
What we're watching: The Times-Dispatch reports Virginia Senate Republicans are considering proposing a bill requiring directors of water utilities to have a professional qualification — likely an engineering degree.