RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — In an exclusive interview with 8News, Danny Avula told us what his plans are as the next mayor of the city of Richmond. The 46-year-old pediatrician at Chippenham Hospital has been a resident of Richmond’s East End for 20 years. Avula came to the U.S. after his father, who grew up in rural India, came to the country and joined the U.S. Navy. In a nearly hour-long conversation, the former director of the Richmond and Henrico Health Districts (RHHD) reflected on his experience with leading Virginia’s COVID-19 vaccination effort in 2021 and becoming the first immigrant mayor in the city’s history. Avula said it's a reflection of what the city is and what it will continue to become. “We are going to continue to see a shift in our demographics -- and how we ensure that [it] is not a point of division, but that we are really becoming a place that is inclusive and accepting and welcoming of everybody, and creating a new vision for how we operate as a true community moving forward," Avula said. On affordable housing Avula said the biggest issue for him is tackling the affordable housing crisis. “We, especially post-COVID, have seen this huge influx of people coming from larger, more expensive cities across this country -- [coming] to Richmond because it's affordable,” Avula said. “But then what happens is that it starts to push up demand and that starts to push up rents.” In recent months organizations like the Richmond Redevelopment Housing Authority (RRHA) have launched last-chance payment plans for residents struggling with past-due rent, as well as income-based apartment housing projects approved by the city. Avula said he’ll start by making sure long-term residents aren’t being pushed out of their homes by putting a cap on property taxes for residents and providing more income-based subsidized housing.  Issues facing taxpayers Avula also discussed improving years-long tax issues for businesses. In April, a report from Richmond’s city auditor found more than 600 food establishments in the city owed nearly $11 million in past-due meals tax payments, including nearly 300 that didn’t receive a notice from the city. Avula said fixing the problem would require an investment into technology that better tracks city finances. “I think the city is well on its way to making changes both in personnel and improving processes and systems, but clearly there's more work that needs to be done there,” Avula said. “I think there's a real opportunity to hit reset, to start to prioritize -- communicate in a different way, and really to work with our restaurateurs who are so much of the lifeblood of our culture and vibrancy as a city.” Remodeling school infrastrucutre Another item on Avula’s agenda: remodeling aging school infrastructure. He said students have also been plagued by the years of poverty that make it hard to succeed in school. “The reality is that we have deep concentrations of generational poverty in this city and that the kids who grow up in those circumstances haven't had the support and the resources needed to thrive when they get to school,” Avula said. Gun violence in the city The issue of gun violence was also something Avula wants to address. Earlier this year the Richmond Police Department launched Operation Safe Summer (OSS), a seasonal program that targets juveniles with the goal of quelling violence.  Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards broke down the hard data from the OSS period and shared during an Oct. 2 briefing that violent crime in the city went down by 18%.   Avula believes police intervention should be the last step in addressing violence. “If we’re overly focusing on police, we're missing the root causes of what drives so many young folks in particular to engage in violence,” Avula said. “We've got to intervene earlier and make sure that we are equipping kids with strategies around conflict resolution -- that we're identifying kids who are at high risk of either perpetrating or being the victims of violence and wrapping them with the mental health support.” Positive, historic monuments Avula also highlighted positive things that make the city what it is. “We have an incredible river, we have a great food scene, we have a great art scene, we have great corporate partners,” Avula said. He also emphasized spotlighting sites across the city with rich history, like Monument Avenue and Shockoe Bottom, so everyone knows why the city became what it is.