City Council Agendas & Minutes

City of Hampton, VA 22 Lincoln Street Meeting Minutes Hampton, VA 23669 www.hampton.gov City Council Ross A. Kearney, II Christopher G. Stuart Angela Lee Leary Donnie R. Tuck Will Moffett George E. Wallace Molly Joseph Ward, Mayor Staff: Mary Bunting, City Manager Cynthia Hudson, City Attorney Katherine K. Glass, CMC, Clerk of Council Wednesday, September 7, 2011 1:00 PM Council Chambers, 8th Floor, City Hall CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Molly Joseph Ward presided Present: Ross A. Kearney, II, Angela Lee Leary, Will Moffett, Christopher G. Stuart, Donnie R. Tuck, George E. Wallace Mayor Ward called the meeting to order at 1:00 p.m. The Clerk called the roll and all members of Council were present. The Mayor stated that there were three items on the agenda, all dealing with Hurricane Irene. Agenda 1. 11-0280 Resolution Of The Council Of The City Of Hampton, Virginia Confirming The Declaration Of A Local Emergency Made Necessary By Hurricane Irene And Declared By The Hampton Director Of Emergency Management On August 25, 2011 WHEREAS, Section 44-146.21 of the Code of Virginia, 1950, as amended, prescribes necessary actions precedent to a declaration of a local emergency; and WHEREAS, Section 44-146.21 prescribes two methods for declaring an emergency: the first is accomplished by the local director of emergency management with the consent of the governing body; the second is accomplished by the director of emergency management without the initial consent of the governing body, but such declaration must be confirmed by the governing body at its next regularly scheduled meeting or at a special meeting within fourteen days of the declaration, whichever is first to occur; and WHEREAS, it was necessary and proper on August 25, 2011 for the City Manager acting as Hampton Director of Emergency Management to declare a local emergency in the city without first obtaining the consent of the Hampton City Council (the “Council”), and confirmation by the Council is now required by law; and WHEREAS, the Council is satisfied that the storm surge, high winds, heavy rains and flood conditions predicted to be caused by and actually caused bv Hurricane Irene City of Hampton, VA Page 1 of 8 Printed on 10/12/2011 City Council Meeting Minutes constituted a real and substantial threat to health and safety of persons and property in the City and necessitated a declaration of local emergency; and WHEREAS, the emergency conditions created by Hurricane Irene also made necessary the mandatory evacuation of certain property in the City and imposition of a curfew and such evacuation and curfew were appropriately ordered by the City’s Director of Emergency Services, and appropriately and timely terminated. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia: 1. That it hereby confirms the Declaration of Local Emergency made on August 25, 2011 by the Director of Emergency Management, and such declaration shall remain effective until the emergency conditions occasioned by the storm are declared terminated by this Council. 2. That it understands and confirms that the Declaration of Local Emergency and the Governor of Virginia’s Declaration of Emergency empowered the Director of Emergency Management with special authority and duties, said authority and duties being defined by the laws, rules, regulations and plans of the United States of America, the Commonwealth of Virginia and the City of Hampton. 3. That it understands and confirms that when, in the judgment of this Council, all needed emergency actions have been taken, appropriate action to end the declared local emergency will be taken. 4. That all evacuation and curfew orders issued and since lifted by the Director of Emergency Services pursuant to the Declaration of Local Emergency are hereby ratified and confirmed. Mayor Ward read item #1 and turned the meeting over to Mary Bunting, City Manager. Ms. Bunting thanked the Council for accommodating the special meeting time which was necessary to comply with State Law in that declarations of emergency must be ratified by the governing body within fourteen (14) days and the next regular meeting of the City Council is beyond that time frame. Ms. Bunting said that staff would like to take 10-15 minutes to recap the events surrounding Hurricane Irene. She indicated that Mr. James Gray, Assistant City Manager, would take the lead on the presentation with assistance from Ms. Sara Ruch, Acting Emergency Management Coordinator. Mr. Gray stated that he would give a brief recap of the activities around Hurricane Irene which happened on August 27, 2011. He said he would cover the activities associated with the storm as well as the initial responses and recovery activities led by the emergency management team. He continued that the experts predicted an active hurricane season this year with a prediction of 12-18 named storms. He indicated that we are about halfway through the season and are now on storm number 13, Hurricane Maria. Hurricane Irene was the first named hurricane of the season, was a major storm and the city took the appropriate City of Hampton, VA Page 2 of 8 Printed on 10/12/2011 City Council Meeting Minutes actions necessary to respond to citizens’ needs and to lessen the impact on citizens. He stated that the emergency management staff and first responders did an excellent job. As the initial response to the storm, the city followed the emergency operations plan which provides detailed guidance to staff on the activation of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), emergency notifications to citizens, sheltering citizens who can’t evacuate or care for themselves, responses after the storm, and emergency medical needs and law enforcement needs. On Wednesday, August 24, 2011, the EOC was activated and staff was briefed by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management and the National Weather Service. The briefings happen on a daily basis and help staff to put resources in place. Mr Gray continued that, all along this storm was predicted as a major event for the Hampton Roads region and Hampton responded based upon the information provided. Partnering with Hampton in the EOC were Sentara, Langley Air Force Base, Hampton University, Veterans Administration Hospital, Red Cross, Thomas Nelson Community College, Fort Monroe, and local amateur radio operators. The EOC had real time communication. During this a new tool was used, Web EOC, which is a web-based crisis management system which allows real time exchange of information with locals and other jurisdictions along with our state partners. On August 25, 2011, at 11:26 a.m., the Governor of Virginia declared a state of emergency. This made resources available and pre-positioned state resources. Significant flooding was anticipated so Hampton requested six high water vehicles and the National Guard was put on alert. The vehicles ended up not being needed but were available. The City Manager declared a local emergency at 4 p.m. on August 25, 2011, which allowed Hampton to take advantage of the state resources and to recover losses from the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) based upon actions by the President and Governor. Mr. Gray shared that the city did four Reverse-911 calls and has determined a need to add cell numbers. He encouraged citizens to add their cell numbers to the directory by contacting the 311 Call Center. The first call was a general call alerting citizens to the potential impact of the storm. The second call went to the special needs registry which contains 120 citizens who have signed up for inclusion in that registry. The third call was notification of a mandatory evacuation for Category 1 storm surge areas which represents 20,000 households. The fourth call notified citizens of a mandatory curfew based upon power outages and to protect citizens and prevent crimes of opportunity. The city received lots of feedback on those calls. Councilman Stuart asked if the mandatory curfew became something the city could do after the Governor declared the state of emergency and if the city was restricted in the kinds of curfew which could be set. City of Hampton, VA Page 3 of 8 Printed on 10/12/2011 City Council Meeting Minutes City Attorney Cynthia Hudson responded that, under the general police powers to guard and secure the health, safety and welfare of citizens, the city has the inherent authority to do so as long as it is done very narrowly and only for the duration of the actual storm event so that it isn’t so broad as to infringe upon rights granted to citizens by the Constitution. Mr. Gray continued that special evacuation orders were issued for Paula Maria, Sweetbriar, and Century Apartments. When the evacuation was made mandatory, door to door notification was done and staff provided assistance and transportation to those taking advantage of shelter. Mr. Gray stated that the city has emergency shelters available. In response to Hurricane Irene, the city opened Bethel High School for citizens and pets and Phenix K-8 School for citizens with special needs. The Hunter Andrews K-8 School was also available but there was no need to open it. Approximately 400 citizens were sheltered for two days along with fifty animals. These were managed by the community animal response team and supported by the Hampton animal control team. Hampton was one of two jurisdictions in Hampton Roads that offered pet sheltering. Emergency responders were pre-positioned. The Hampton Police Division was activated at the Hampton Roads Convention Center with 168 officers on duty Saturday morning. The Fire Department set up at the Briarfield Station and there were additional resources at all fire stations. There were 217 personnel on duty on the day of the event along with additional 311 and 911 operators to field phone calls. Mr. Gray indicated that Ms. Ruch, Acting Emergency Management Coordinator, would continue the presentation. In response to a question by Councilman Kearney, Mr. Gray answered that all of the mechanical aspects and technology worked well during this event and in the manner they were designed to. Councilman Kearney stated that the city installed ice machines at all of the fire stations following Hurricane Isabel. He asked if they were used much by the neighbors in those areas. In response, Mr. Gray stated that there wasn’t a real need this time for ice machines and generators and they were also available at the shelters too. There weren’t citizens needing that additional assistance. Councilman Moffett stated that 77,000 Reverse-911 calls were made and asked how long that takes. Mr. Gray responded that the calls are not done in-house and he has a report but it doesn’t specify the time required. Mayor Ward stated that she was encouraged to hear that citizens can call and have their cell phone numbers added to the Reverse-911 Directory by calling 311. Ms. Bunting stated that social media was used much more during this event and word got around so much that we had 600 new subscribers to the city’s Facebook page during the four days of the event. It provided a good source of information as the City could immediately push out facts and tips. The information was sent to the local media as well. City of Hampton, VA Page 4 of 8 Printed on 10/12/2011 City Council Meeting Minutes She stated that she was encouraged to see how much the audience grew in a few short days because the information being pushed out was valuable. Councilman Stuart stated that citizens continually expressed their thanks to the City for communicating so effectively by Facebook, e-mails, phone calls, etc. Ms. Ruch continued the presentation by stating that, 48 hours after an incident, the City is required to submit initial damage estimates to the state. This figure is our first good guesstimate of what the City has expended for the event so far. Since the Presidential disaster declaration on Saturday night at about 9 p.m., Hampton is eligible for public assistance to recoup costs through FEMA and the state. There is a 75/25 split with 75% coming from the federal government and 25% from the state which could end up being just from the city although the state has always covered at least a portion. That hasn’t yet been decided. Councilman Tuck asked what the 1.2 million figure includes. Ms. Ruch responded that we used all in-house resources such as our trucks, our personnel, overtime, and reimbursement for mileage on the trucks. The City also pays for cubic yard and tonnage in the landfill and is also able to bill for administrative costs. With respect to citizens’ debris removal, the first pass on Monday banished 20,000 cubic yards of limbs and 6,000 pounds of bulk trash. FEMA saw lots of trees and limbs down and that represents most of the tonnage. This wasn’t as much as the November Nor’Easters or Hurricane Isabel. There was a second pass on Tuesday and the removal of storm debris will continue until the end of September to give citizens time to complete their clean-ups. The individual damage assessments show the following: Single Family Homes - $2,260,630 Multi Family Homes - $57,740 Mobile Homes - $500 Business/Industry - $3,000 Public Assistance is estimated at: Debris Removal – $1.2 million Emergency Protective Measures – $163,000 Public Buildings & Equipment – $260,000 Parks and Recreation - $850,000 Ms. Ruch continued that there has been restoration of power to 66,000 people and, at the height of the storm, over half of the citizens didn’t have power. The state is still looking at individual assistance and, if we don’t qualify, they’ll look at bringing in the Small Business Administration for a low interest loan program. At the beginning of August a list was started of severe repetitive losses for possible assistance through the home elevation process. City of Hampton, VA Page 5 of 8 Printed on 10/12/2011 City Council Meeting Minutes To compare tidal levels between Irene and Isabel, the tide at Sewell’s Point during Isabel was 7.89’, the November Nor’Easter was 7.75 and Irene was 7.55. The main difference in the height of the tides was due to the path the storm took. The City Manager shared that she heard countless stories of citizens helping others and expressed that Hampton is very luck to be such a neighborly city where citizens help others. Mayor Ward thanked the EOC team for their long hours, little sleep, and eating the weird food. She stated the City is grateful for the Public Works and Parks and Recreation staff too. She has heard nothing but compliments from citizens and her fellow members of Council. Councilman Stuart stated that he visited the shelters and the shelters played out tremendously and many departments were involved. The citizens were thrilled to be there from an appreciative sense. He stated he didn’t know how to thank the staff but they should understand how grateful the citizens are when they leave their families to serve our citizens. Vice Mayor Wallace stated that he also visited the shelters and saw how efficiently they were managed. He stated that Phenix was extraordinary since it was built and designed to be a shelter and this made the conditions better than in our older schools. He gave accolades to the entire staff for the things they do. He stated our citizens go to bed every night and rest well because we have an effective staff that proves themselves again and again. PRESENTED by Mary Bunting, City Manager. ADOPTED Motion made by: Councilmember Ross A. Kearney, II Seconded by: Vice Mayor George E. Wallace Aye: 7 - Ross A. Kearney, II, Angela Lee Leary, Will Moffett, Christopher G. Stuart, Donnie R. Tuck, George E. Wallace, Molly Joseph Ward Nay: 0 2. 11-0279 Ordinance To Amend Chapter 24 Of The Code Of The City Of Hampton, Virginia To Add Thereto A New Section 24-2.1, "Curfews After Declarations Of Emergency The City Manager introduced Item #2 and indicated that the City had the authority to institute curfews but this is a clarifying ordinance for the future. The City Attorney indicated that it was her thinking that, rather than doing this ad hoc each time there is a natural emergency with decisions being made on opening the EOC, etc. while in the energy of the event occurring at the time, staff wants to be able to explain the thinking which goes into the declaration of a curfew. She stated that this ordinance gets the City out of that ad hoc situation where there is an ordinance to guide the City Manager’s thinking and so the public will have prior notice of the police powers in a situation. This ordinance takes care of that. City of Hampton, VA Page 6 of 8 Printed on 10/12/2011 City Council Meeting Minutes Vice Mayor Wallace stated this ordinance is an excellent addition and is more definitive of what we’re doing and how. He suggested that Hampton may want to ask other jurisdictions to consider this so it applies multi-jurisdictionally. He stated that several elected officials he has spoken with from other localities are interested and suggested the City Manager may want to mention this to her peers. Councilman Stuart stated this is a tool that is incredibly important for public safety. Councilwoman Leary had some changes to suggest but stated that this information should be shared with others including the National League of Cities (NLC). She asked for permission to share it with the Human Development committee of the NLC after it is adopted so that others in the United States can see it since they have 19,000 members and the public safety issue is the same. She suggested that on Page 2, Item 4, 24-2.1 that ‘damage to property’ be moved to the end of the sentence placement. She also stated that the last six words of item 3c is so broad that it should state to be housed as part of the Council records so it is there for everybody. She stated that Item B1 mentions alleys but some are private and some are public. With respect to E2 where it refers to hospital personnel, city employees and volunteers, she inquired as to how we can know if the person is a volunteer and she believes it should be beefed up in some way before passed. The City Attorney shared that the officers use their reasonable judgment in enforcing ordinances. Councilwoman Leary asked if it is possible to start a curfew earlier when it gets dark. The City Manager stated that she couldn’t make such a declaration now but in each individual circumstance and time, she would entertain an earlier curfew but she can’t pre-judge what time. The City Attorney stated that the curtailment of individual freedom is a big deal under the law and the curfew must be on a case by case basis on the City Manager’s judgment based on what is happening with that particular disaster. ADOPTED Motion made by: Councilmember Ross A. Kearney, II Seconded by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary Ayes: 7 - Ross A. Kearney, II, Angela Lee Leary, Will Moffett, Christopher G. Stuart, Donnie R. Tuck, George E. Wallace, Molly Joseph Ward Nays: 0 3. 11-0278 Ordinance Of The Council Of The City of Hampton, Virginia Ratifying The Suspension Of Payment Of Certain Fees Associated With Permits To Repair Property Damage Occasioned By Hurricane Irene, And Further Suspending The Imposition Of Such Fees Until Further Action By City Council Mayor Ward read item #3. The City Manager clarified that this wouldn’t be for new construction but rather for repairs required due to the storm. There are various building code and permit fees which are generally required and it has been the City’s practice in City of Hampton, VA Page 7 of 8 Printed on 10/12/2011 City Council Meeting Minutes the past of not requiring these fees where you had a documented situation such as Hurricane Irene. ADOPTED Motion made by: Vice Mayor George E. Wallace Seconded by: Councilmember Christopher G. Stuart Ayes: 7 - Ross A. Kearney, II, Angela Lee Leary, Will Moffett, Christopher G. Stuart, Donnie R. Tuck, George E. Wallace, Molly Joseph Ward Nays: 0 Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 1:48 p.m. ___________________________________ Molly Joseph Ward, Mayor _________________________________ Katherine K. Glass, CMC Clerk of Council Date approved by Council:______________________ City of Hampton, VA Page 8 of 8 Printed on 10/12/2011