City Council

Special Session 04/07/20 HON. MARY KATHERINE GREENLAW, MAYOR CITY OF FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA HON. WILLIAM C. WITHERS, JR., VICE -MAYOR, WARD TWO HON. KERRY P. DEVINE, AT-LARGE CITY COUNCIL HON. MATTHEW J. KELLY, AT-LARGE HON. JASON N. GRAHAM, WARD ONE HON. DR. TIMOTHY P. DUFFY, WARD THREE HON. CHARLIE L. FRYE, JR., WARD FOUR Council Chambers, 715 Princess Anne Street Fredericksburg, Virginia 22401 April 7, 2020 The Council of the City of Fredericksburg, Virginia, held a special session on Tuesday, April 7, 2020, beginning at 4:00 p.m. using electronic communication through GoToMeeting. City Council Present. Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw. Vice-Mayor William C. Withers, Jr., Council members Kerry P. Devine, Dr. Timothy P. Duffy, Charlie L. Frye, Jr., Jason N. Graham and Matthew J. Kelly. Also Present. City Manager Timothy J. Baroody, Assistant City Manager Mark Whitley, City Attorney Kathleen Dooley, Deputy Fire Chief Mike Jones, Economic Development Director Bill Freehling, Community Planning and Building Services Director Charles Johnston, Zoning Administrator James Newman, Development Administrator Marne Sherman, Budget Manager Brenna Erford and Clerk of Council Tonya B. Lacey. Opening Prayer and Pledge of Allegiance. Council was led in prayer by Councilor Matthew J. Kelly followed by the Pledge of Allegiance led by Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw. Resolution 20-24, Approved, Approving Meeting by Electronic Communication Means Under Virginia Code §2.2-3708.2 (D19-110). Councilor Kelly made a motion approving meeting by electronic communication means under Virginia Code §2.2-3708.2; motion was seconded by Vice-Mayor Withers and passed by 20555 Special Session 04/07/20 the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). Ordinance 20-05, First Read Approved, Addressing Continuity of City Government During the Pendency of a Pandemic Disaster (D19-111 thru D20-112). City Attorney Dooley presented the continuity of government ordinance and noted that there was correction to the ordinance. Ms. Dooley asked the Council to approve the ordinance and make the following correction to Article III, Section 2-5, which states in the draft that the public meeting agenda will “identify Public Entity members physically and/or electronically present.” She noted that when the agenda is first published, the staff would not know which members will be present at the meeting, therefore, she recommended the Council adopt the ordinance with that language stricken from Article III, Section 2-5. Councilor Kelly made a motion approving Ordinance 20-05, on first read, addressing continuity of city government during the pendency of a pandemic disaster, as amended; motion was seconded by Councilor Frye and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). Ordinance 20-05, Second Read Approved, Addressing Continuity of City Government During the Pendency of a Pandemic Disaster. Councilor Graham made a motion approving Ordinance 20-05, on second read, addressing continuity of city government during the pendency of a pandemic disaster; motion was seconded by Councilor Devine and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). 20556 Special Session 04/07/20 Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update. Deputy Chief Mike Jones reported that in the Rappahannock Health District there were 93 positive cases and nine of those were in Fredericksburg. There was one person in Fredericksburg hospitalized all the others were self- quarantined. There have been two deaths in the district. Chief Jones said they continue to get the message out daily to keep the public up to date. There is an expected surge in mid-April to May. Testing is coming along, albeit slow, 28,000 have been tested in the Commonwealth and there are over 3,000 cases. Chief Jones said the City has created a tiered system for the government to determine when the City should close and go to teleworking and from teleworking to opening emergency operations center. He said the City was the first in the area to do this and this shows that the City was out in front of the pandemic. Mayor Greenlaw said she had received many compliments on how informative the updates were. Councilor Devine thanked staff and the fire department and all who keep the City safe. Budget Overview Fiscal Year 2020 (D20-113). Assistant City Manager Whitley reported that meals, lodging and sales taxes were heavily impacted by the restrictions put in place to protect the public health. Those taxes equal about a quarter of the general budget. Budget Manager Erford prepared a general revenue outlook for FY20 and there may be a shortfall of $4 to $8 million. Given this reduction they presented a table to show proposed reductions in FY20 General Fund. The proposed reductions can be seen in D20- 113. 20557 Special Session 04/07/20 Councilor Graham asked staff if they knew the amount or the timeline of the money coming from the federal government. Ms. Erford noted that given the City was under 500,000 people the City would not be able to get money from the $2 trillion stimulus in brevity like many of the larger jurisdictions. The City would have to wait and it was not clear on the share the City would get from the Commonwealth. She noted that a lot of the guidance from the federal and state governments were not available yet. Councilor Graham also asked if she thought the City would be eligible for any sort of bridge loans at zero to very low interest rates if the need were to arise to make ends meet. Ms. Erford said these were federal aids that were coming through and that was not the direction the federal government was taking at this time. Mr. Whitley said the City’s financial policy prohibits short term borrowing. He said the Council could look at suspending the policy or amending it if there was a need to pay bills. He said that was not something they were looking to do at this time. Councilor Devine said these cuts were an eye opener and she understands that many would be affected. She wanted to make sure everyone understood that cuts to local library funding would also affect state contributions to the library. Councilor Kelly said this was important information for the citizens to know and he said the City needed to prepare for the worst case scenario. He said this is a time to think outside the box but he was against borrowing money. He said he would like this information out to the public sooner rather than later. Mayor Greenlaw agreed that the City must be realistic and share this information to the public and businesses as soon as possible. She said the cuts would have to be strenuous. 20558 Special Session 04/07/20 Councilor Duffy was hopeful that the City would be able to work with some of the partners to get some savings such as through the schools and the pool. He expressed his concern with pay reductions. Councilor Frye urged small businesses to get to know the Economic Development Authority because they could be a big help to those businesses. Postponement of Various Tax Deadlines (D20-115). Mr. Whitley proposed that each of the tax payments be extended for 60 days for both the excise taxes (admission, lodging and meals) and the personal property taxes. Councilor Graham asked staff if they could make sure businesses were aware, in advance, when the schedule would be condensed and staff said they would take care of it. Councilor Devine asked if the changes had already happened and whether Council was approving what had already been put in place and Mr. Whitely explained that businesses have a copy of the proposal but they have been telling people to pay what they could. Councilor Kelly said the City would like to maintain its tax base so that the businesses would be here when it gets through the pandemic. He said this was an effort to help businesses out. He also asked if the payments could be spread out some so that the businesses were not hit all at once. Ordinance 20-06, First Read Approved, Extending the Due Dates for Payment of Admissions, Lodging, and Meals Taxes Due to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (D20-115). Councilor Kelly made a motion to approve Ordinance 20-06, on first read, extending the due dates for payment of admissions, lodging, and meals taxes due to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency; 20559 Special Session 04/07/20 motion was seconded by Councilor Devine and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). Ordinance 20-06, Second Read, Approved, Extending the Due Dates for Payment of Admissions, Lodging, and Meals Taxes Due to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (D20-115). Councilor Kelly made a motion to approve Ordinance 20-06, on second read, extending the due dates for payment of admissions, lodging, and meals taxes due to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency; motion was seconded by Councilor Graham and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). Ordinance 20-07, First Read Approved, Extending the May 15 Due Date for Fiscal Year 2020 Personal Property Taxes (D20-115). Councilor Devine made a motion to approve Ordinance 20-07, on first read, extending the May 15 due date for Fiscal Year 2020 personal property taxes; motion was seconded by Councilor Frye and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). Ordinance 20-07, Second Read, Approved, Extending the May 15 Due Date for Fiscal Year 2020 Personal Property Taxes (D20-115). Councilor Devine made a motion to approve Ordinance 20-07, on first read, extending the May 15 due date for Fiscal Year 2020 personal property taxes; motion was seconded by Councilor Kelly and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). 20560 Special Session 04/07/20 Resolution 20-25, Approved, Appropriating $54,000 from the Economic Development Opportunity Fund to the Fredericksburg Economic Development Authority (EDA) for a Business Relief Grant Program (D19-114). Mr. Freehling reported that this was an emergency business relief program and a possible city appropriation into this fund. The EDA created the fund on March 23 for businesses struggling in the wake of COVID-19. They took applications from small businesses and received approximately 225 applications, total funds requested was approximately $825,000. EDA taskforce and staff would be reviewing the applications. The money could be used to help keep the business afloat. He said there were many federal grants available for small businesses but this was something to help. Councilor Graham asked why not empty the entire $54,000 out of the Economic Development Opportunity Fund account to put towards the cause. Mr. Whitley said he would amend the resolution to reflect Council’s wishes. Councilor Kelly was concerned that this amount was not going to help much but he said the City could not help all the businesses. He said he was aware the EDA had additional money that could add more funding but the City would have to do the same if it asked the EDA to give additional funding. He also offered his salary to put towards the EDA or where ever so that it could be used for grants to give back to the community. Vice-Mayor Withers said this is what the EDA was here for, to help maintain existing businesses as well as recruiting new businesses. He said they were in a better position to help than the City until the City could figure out its finances. Mayor Greenlaw asked what the process would be to determine who received funding. Mr. Freehling explained that the Taskforce would be evaluating the applications 20561 Special Session 04/07/20 based on their fiscal impact to the community, length of time they have been in business, demonstrated need and other factors. The taskforce would be making a recommendation to the EDA and the EDA would be asked to allocate additional funding in at its next meeting. she said clearly this what not what everyone needed but it was a stop gap for the businesses and she was sure the money would be allocated well. Councilor Graham made a motion to approve Resolution 20-25, on second read, amending the appropriation to $54,000 from the Economic Development Opportunity Fund to the Fredericksburg Economic Development Authority (EDA) for a Business Relief Grant Program; motion was seconded by Councilor Kelly and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). Ordinance 20-08, First Read Approved, Suspension of Deadlines for the General Reassessment of Real Estate, to Assure the Continuity of Government During the Pendency of the COVID-19 Disaster (D19-116). After staff presentation Councilor Kelly made a motion to approve Ordinance 20-08, on first read, suspension of deadlines for the general reassessment of real estate, to assure the continuity of government during the pendency of the COVID-19 Disaster; motion was seconded by Vice-Mayor Withers and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). Resolution 20-26, Approved, Approving an Emergency Appendix to the Unified Development Ordinance Procedures Manual Relating to Commercial Temporary Signs (D19-117). After staff presentation Councilor 20562 Special Session 04/07/20 Devine made a motion approving an emergency appendix to the Unified Development Ordinance Procedures Manual relating to commercial temporary signs; motion was seconded by Councilor Kelly and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Withers, Devine, Duffy, Frye, Graham and Kelly. Nays (0). Mayor Greenlaw thanked the residents of Fredericksburg for wearing their mask, staying home and staying 6 feet apart. She asked that everyone take care of their family’s and to give aid to those in need. Adjournment. There being no further business to come before the Council at this time, Mayor Greenlaw declared the meeting officially adjourned at 5:19 p.m. Mary Katherine Greenlaw Mary Katherine Greenlaw, Mayor Tonya B. Lacey Tonya B. Lacey, Clerk of Council, CMC 20563 Special Session 04/07/20 [This page intentionally left blank.] 20564