City Council

Public Hearing 09/22/20 HON. MARY KATHERINE GREENLAW, MAYOR CITY OF FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA HON. CHARLIE L. FRYE, JR., VICE -MAYOR, WARD FOUR CITY COUNCIL HON. KERRY P. DEVINE, AT-LARGE HON. MATTHEW J. KELLY, AT-LARGE HON. JASON N. GRAHAM, WARD ONE HON. WILLIAM C. WITHERS, JR., WARD TWO HON. DR. TIMOTHY P. DUFFY, WARD THREE Council Chambers, 715 Princess Anne Street Fredericksburg, Virginia 22401 September 22, 2020 The Council of the City of Fredericksburg, Virginia, held a public hearing on Tuesday, September 22, 2020, beginning at 7:41 p.m. using electronic communication through GoToMeeting pursuant to and in compliance with the City Council Ordinance 20- 05, an ordinance to address Continuity of City Government during the pendency of a pandemic disaster. City Council Present. Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw. Vice-Mayor Charlie L. Frye, Jr., Council members Kerry P. Devine, Dr. Timothy P. Duffy, Jason N. Graham, Matthew J. Kelly and William C. Withers, Jr. Also Present. City Manager Timothy J. Baroody, Assistant City Manager Mark Whitley, City Attorney Kathleen Dooley, Community Planning and Building Services Director Charles Johnston, Zoning Administrator James Newman, Fire Chief Mike Jones, Economic Development Director Bill Freehling, Economic Development Specialist Amy Peregoy, Diversity, Equity and Economic Advancement Officer Angela Freeman, Human Resources Director Lesley Moore, Budget Manager Brenna Erford and Clerk of Council Tonya B. Lacey. Notice of Public Hearings (D20-464 thru D20-472). The Clerk read the notice of the public hearings as they appeared in the local newspaper, the purpose being to solicit citizen input. 20757 Public Hearing 09/22/20 Resolution Granting a Special Exception for Residential Density for the “Hanover House” Development at the Corner of Sophia Street and Hanover Street in Downtown Fredericksburg (D20-464 thru D20- 465). no speakers. After staff presentation the Council had discussion on the affordability which is based on the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Statistical Area. Council also questioned why the commercial element had been scaled down and staff stated that the applications previous iteration included two or three restaurants which were more expensive and not fiscally attainable and the applicant decided he would not do restaurants. Mayor Greenlaw closed the public hearing but noted that the public comments would be accepted through October 13. Resolution Granting a Special Exception to Permit a Duplex Dwelling at 315/317 McKinney Street (D20-466 thru D20-467). 1 speaker. Staff gave a brief presentation and Council asked who Havens for Heroes was, what other projects they have done and how they identify their tenants. Brazel McKinney, 2217 Princess Anne Street, stated that Havens for Heroes was a 501C-3 organization formed by veterans who work with Veterans Affairs and local housing specialist to identify veterans who need housing. He said their first project was complete in Hampton. Council was excited about the project and asked if they had planned to do other projects in the City. Mr. McKinney said he had not located another property yet. Mayor Greenlaw closed the public hearing but noted that the public comments would be accepted through October 13. 20758 Public Hearing 09/22/20 Resolution Granting a Special Use Permit for Crown Trophy, a Retail Sales Establishment at 1529 Olde William Street (D20-468 thru D20-469). no speakers. Staff gave a brief PowerPoint presentation and Council was pleased to see this business expanding within the City. There was also concern with the process of the applicant having to get a Special Use Permit when the area was entirely commercial. Staff explained that the CT zoning was the least intensive commercial district. Mr. Johnston said it was usually adjacent to residential areas but this property was some distance from residential and he said some of the CT zoning areas needed to be reevaluated. Mayor Greenlaw closed the public hearing but noted that public comments will be accepted through October 13. Resolution 20-73, First Read, Amending the Fiscal Year 2021 Budget and the Fiscal Year 2021 Fredericksburg City Public School Budget to Appropriate CARES Act Funds (D20-470 thru D20-472). After a staff presentation Councilor Duffy disclosed that he is the Principal at James Monroe High School and he could participate fairly, objectively and in the public interest and Vice-Mayor Frye disclosed that his spouse is an employee of the Fredericksburg Schools and he could participate fairly, objectively and in the public interest. Councilor Graham made a motion to approve Resolution 20-73, on first read, amending the Fiscal Year 2021 budget and the Fiscal Year 2021 Fredericksburg City Public School budget to appropriate CARES Act Funds; motion was seconded by Councilor Devine and passed with the following recorded votes. Ayes. Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly, Withers. Nays. None. 20759 Public Hearing 09/22/20 Resolution 20-73, Second Read, Amending the Fiscal Year 2021 Budget and the Fiscal Year 2021 Fredericksburg City Public School Budget to Appropriate CARES Act Funds (D20-472). Councilor Graham made a motion to approve Resolution 20-73, on second read, amending the Fiscal Year 2021 budget and the Fiscal Year 2021 Fredericksburg City Public School budget to appropriate CARES Act Funds; motion was seconded by Councilor Devine and passed with the following recorded votes. Ayes. Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly, Withers. Nays. None. Mayor Greenlaw asked City Manager Baroody if the receipt of the CARES funds would allow the restoration of the staff’s salaries and what the plans are for doing so. Mr. Baroody said they were working on a plan to restore salaries and add a one percent increase across the board. Assistant City Manager Whitely explained that this was a two-part plan first would be to restore the salaries, step two would be to give a one percent increase. Mr. Whitley said through various funding they would make this happen with the Council’s approval. It would be effective on October 3 and show up in the October 23 paycheck. Councilor Kelly asked for an explanation on what funding sources would be used to make this happen. Mr. Whitley said transit received major federal support and that funding would cover transit. He said they plan to use contingency, and funds from other sources that did better than expected during the pandemic. He said the CARES Act funding must be used carefully, but it could be used for somethings and free up money in other areas. Council was in full support and thanked the staff for all their hard work during the pandemic. There has been a lot of effort on the staff’s part and many people take a lot for 20760 Public Hearing 09/22/20 granted and many of these things are available because staff is working and making it all happen and they deserve a huge thank you. Mayor Greenlaw reminded everyone that many were furloughed and the other staff had to take on more work while taking a pay cut and there were no complaints. She was thankful for that. Adjourned. There being no more speakers to come before the Council at this time, Mayor Greenlaw declared the hearing officially adjourned at 8:35 p.m. Mary Katherine Greenlaw Mary Katherine Greenlaw, Mayor Tonya B. Lacey Tonya B. Lacey, Clerk of Council, CMC 20761 Public Hearing 09/22/20 [This page intentionally left blank.] 20762 Regular Session 09/22/20 HON. MARY KATHERINE GREENLAW, MAYOR CITY OF FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA HON. CHARLIE L. FRYE, JR., VICE -MAYOR, WARD FOUR HON. KERRY P. DEVINE, AT-LARGE CITY COUNCIL HON. MATTHEW J. KELLY, AT-LARGE HON. JASON N. GRAHAM, WARD ONE HON. WILLIAM C. WITHERS, JR., WARD TWO HON. DR. TIMOTHY P. DUFFY, WARD THREE Council Chambers, 715 Princess Anne Street Fredericksburg, Virginia 22401 September 22, 2020 The Council of the City of Fredericksburg, Virginia, held a regular session on Tuesday, September 22, 2020, beginning at 7:30 p.m. using electronic communication through GoToMeeting pursuant to and in compliance with the City Council Ordinance 20- 05, an ordinance to address Continuity of City Government during the pendency of a pandemic disaster. City Council Present. Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw. Vice-Mayor Charlie L. Frye, Jr., Council members Kerry P. Devine, Dr. Timothy P. Duffy, Jason N. Graham, Matthew J. Kelly and William C. Withers, Jr. Also Present. City Manager Timothy J. Baroody, Assistant City Manager Mark Whitley, City Attorney Kathleen Dooley, Community Planning and Building Services Director Charles Johnston, Zoning Administrator James Newman, Fire Chief Mike Jones, Economic Development Director Bill Freehling, Economic Development Specialist Amy Peregoy, Diversity, Equity and Economic Advancement Officer Angela Freeman, Human Resources Director Lesley Moore, Budget Manager Brenna Erford and Clerk of Council Tonya B. Lacey. Opening Prayer and Pledge of Allegiance. Council was led in prayer by Vice-Mayor Charlie Frye, Jr. followed by the Pledge of Allegiance led by Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw. 20763 Regular Session 09/22/20 Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update. Chief Mike Jones reported that there have been 533 COVID cases in the City, within the health districts three hospital there were 19 patients who have tested positive. There have been four deaths since the last reporting period. The positivity rate has dropped to 6.1 a little higher than the state. Since the beginning of COVID there have been 37 outbreaks many have been in long term care facilities and 14 in a congregate setting. There are a little less than 1,000 cases in the hospital statewide. There have been 17,000 recovered and or released from the hospital statewide. Information from the University of Virginia determines that the caseloads have plateaued but remain higher in the southern counties near North Carolina. Chief Jones reported that if there were cheaper and faster testing results, it could slow the spread down. He said some school systems are back in session and it will take a couple of weeks before they will know if the infection rates increase. The number being tested in the state is on target where they wanted it to be several months ago. He said that allows a test and trace strategy. Chief Jones noted that the levels may rise after October because of seasonal changes, distancing fatigue, in-person school, increase in interstate travel and hurricane season. He noted that they have conference calls weekly with the University of Mary Washington. They have been doing random testing and out of 600 they found one case and that person was isolated. They are making sure there have not been any large parties which there have not been any. The University has been a very good partner. Councilor Duffy said he was pleased with the University’s plan as it has been very effective. He was grateful for their work. Consent Agenda Accepted for Transmittal as Recommended (D20- 456 thru D20-464). Councilor Kelly moved approval of the City Manager’s consent 20764 Regular Session 09/22/20 agenda; motion was seconded by Councilor Withers and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly, Withers. Nays (0). • Transmittal of Boards and Commission Minutes o Architectural Review Board – March 9, 2020 (D20-456). o Architectural Review Board – May 11, 2020 (D20-457). o Architectural Review Board – June 8, 2020 (D20-458). o Architectural Review Board – June 22, 2020 (D20-459). o Economic Development Authority – August 10, 2020 (D20-460). o Fredericksburg Clean & Green Commission – July 13, 2020 (D20-461). o Planning Commission – June 24, 2020 (D20-462). o Planning Commission – July 8, 2020 (D20-463). Public Hearing (D20-464 thru D20-472). The regular session was recessed in order to conduct scheduled public hearings and immediately reconvened upon their conclusion. Citizen Comment. The following comments were submitted to be read during the citizen comment portion of this evening’s meeting. Rebecca Rubin (D20-472.1), 724 Lee Avenue, submitted a letter from the members of Fredericksburg CLEAR (Climate, Environment and Resilience) Committee asking the Council to consider the information put forward by CLEAR, and relaying any decisions on how the information would be integrated into city planning and decision making going forward and they would like a work session to discuss the priorities. The priority areas for CLEAR are: Land and Water Conservation, Sustainability Director/Guru, Comprehensive 20765 Regular Session 09/22/20 Climate Plan, Renewable Energy and Food Security and the Allocation of Food. See D20- 472.1 for more information. Council Agenda Presented. The following items were presented to Council for discussion. 7A. Update on Racial Equity Plan – Mayor Greenlaw Update on Racial Equity Plan (D20-472.2). Diversity, Equity and Economic Advancement Officer Freeman presented an update on the happenings since the August update. Goal A: She spoke about the protest that took place on September 4 which were lawful and peaceful. Goal B: The Crisis Communications Consultant will soon present a final communications plan to help guide the City’s communications strategy, production of the “Ask the Mayor Series and the Communications Team meet regularly to provide pertinent messaging via social media, news releases, letter to downtown businesses, etc. Goal C: Preliminary on events that occurred May 31 and June 2 was provided to the Citizen Advisory Panel (CAP) and discussed in detail by Chief Layton. CAP also met with Police Executive Research Firm (PERF) to discuss the report. PERF also met with members of the Fredericksburg Police Department and PERF is accepting public comments. The Police department identified areas in its response to civil unrest and mass arrest procedures and have made recommendations for changes or additions and it was given to PERF for review. Goal D: the application period for new CAP members closed and the Police Department have conducted interviews and they are in the process of selecting potential new 20766 Regular Session 09/22/20 members. Staff is planning an outreach session supported by a facilitator in late October or November. Information will be complied and analyzed to provide to the Council for consideration at its upcoming retreat. Goal E: Work is continuing on the “Telling Our Story” projects, interpretation of Charles and William Streets, relocation and interpretation of Slave Auction Block at the Fredericksburg AREA Museum, final edits on wayfinding panels for DeBaptiste, Freedom Rider and the Green Book and staff is reviewing recommendations to consider in updating the tourism film. Finally, an internal team has been working on the Council’s off-site retreat. Adoption of Minutes. Councilor Graham moved approval of the September 8, 2020 Regular session minutes; motion was seconded by Councilor Withers and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly, Withers. Nays (0). Fredericksburg Arts Commission Appointment – Kenneth Lecky (D20-473). Councilor Graham made a motion to reappoint Kenneth Lecky to the Fredericksburg Arts Commission; motion was seconded by Councilor Devine and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly, Withers. Nays (0). Ordinance 20-21, First Read Approved, Expanding the Arts & Cultural District, and Extending Tax Incentives, up to $250 Per Year, to Ten Years for All Qualifying Businesses in the District (D20-474). After a brief staff presentation Councilor Devine made a motion to approve Ordinance 20-21, on first read, expanding the Arts & Cultural District, and extending tax incentives, up to $250 per year, to ten years for all qualifying businesses in the district; motion was seconded by 20767 Regular Session 09/22/20 Councilor Graham and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly and Withers. Nays (0). Resolution 20-74, Approved, Implementing Changes to the Holiday Schedule, Contained in the City Human Resources Policies (D20-475). After staff presentation Councilor Withers made a motion to approve Resolution 20-74, implementing changes to the holiday schedule, contained in the City Human Resources policies; motion was seconded by Councilor Graham and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly and Withers. Nays (0). Resolution 20-75, First Read Approved, Amending the Fiscal Year 2021 Fredericksburg City Public Schools Budget to Supplement Resources for the School Operating Fund and the School Grants Fund (D20-476 thru D20-478). After a brief staff presentation Councilor Duffy disclosed that he is the Principal at James Monroe High School and he could participate fairly, objectively and in the public interest and Vice-Mayor Frye disclosed that his spouse is an employee of the Fredericksburg Schools and he could participate fairly, objectively and in the public interest. Councilor Kelly made a motion to approve Resolution 20-75, on first read, amending the Fiscal Year 2021 Fredericksburg City Public Schools budget to supplement resources for the School Operating Fund and the School Grants Fund; motion was seconded by Councilor Withers and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly and Withers. Nays (0). Resolution 20-75, Second Read Approved, Amending the Fiscal Year 2021 Fredericksburg City Public Schools Budget to Supplement 20768 Regular Session 09/22/20 Resources for the School Operating Fund and the School Grants Fund (D20-476 thru D20-478). Councilor Kelly made a motion to approve Resolution 20-75, on second read, amending the Fiscal Year 2021 Fredericksburg City Public Schools budget to supplement resources for the School Operating Fund and the School Grants Fund; motion was seconded by Councilor Graham and passed by the following recorded votes. Ayes (7). Councilors Greenlaw, Frye, Devine, Duffy, Graham, Kelly and Withers. Nays (0). City Manager’s Report and Council Calendar (D20-479 thru D20- 480). City Manager Baroody directed the Council’s attention to the Manager’s Update: Voting in the City, Wind Down Wednesdays, Ask the Mayor Video Series, Chatham Bridge Closure, Upcoming Council Meetings, Census 2020, COVID-19 (Coronavirus), CARES Act Funding in Action, Christmas Parade 2020, Nature Programs, Fall Programs and Fred Focus. Adjournment. There being no further business to come before the Council at this time, Mayor Greenlaw declared the meeting officially adjourned at 9:46 p.m. Mary Katherine Greenlaw Mary Katherine Greenlaw, Mayor Tonya B. Lacey Tonya B. Lacey, Clerk of Council, CMC 20769 Regular Session 09/22/20 [This page intentionally left blank.] 20770