Clean City Commission

FULL COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES May 10, 2016 ~ 3:30pm Members  Lynn Allsbrook  John Golden  Pat Parker  Dennis VanCamp, Chair  Shirley Boyd  Wendy Iles  Luretta Ray  Jim Williams  Jackie Cannan  Sally Lewis  Brian Rueger  Cris Ausink  Clovis Calloway  Kevin Myers  Edward Robinson  Debbie Blanton  Nethea Calloway, Alt.  Claire Neubert  Teresa Schmidt  CFaison Harris  Treazure Davis  Jamie Osso  Tom Tinsley Welcome, Public Comment, Time Sheet: Chair Dennis VanCamp opened meeting, welcoming newest Board Member, Treazure Davis, encouraging her to become involved with the subcommittee of her choice. Guest Andrew Stith was also present. Approval of March Minutes: Tom Tinsley noted revisions. Motion to approve offered by Shirley Boyd, seconded by Claire Neubert. Parks & Recreation Report: No report. Public Works Report: No report. Budget Discussion: Executive Coordinator Debbie Blanton provided information regarding current expenditures and proposed purchases prior to the end of the current fiscal year. A copy of the April 2016 budget was provided in the agenda packet. To date, out of a FY budget of $186,569, $154,139.29 has been expensed with $139,462.39 dedicated to full-time salaries and benefits, and $14,676.90 dedicated to overall operating expenses. Other budget information to date (remaining balances): Keep Hampton Green Donations = $141.88 KAB Community Improvement Grant = $16,358.00 C.H.A.N.G.E Grant = $4,114.93 DOF Water Monitoring Grant = $38.12 HWRP Donations = $1,179.50 Walk Hampton Clean Donation - $52.66 (included in 06013 – Education/Recreation Supplies line item) Jim Williams asked the significance of the line item numbers and if they were part of the City Code. Debbie confirmed. Tom asked when the FY17 budget would be approved. Council Representative Teresa Schmidt stated Council would review at the May 11 session. She noted that she was able to request an additional $3,000 for the Commission which will be decided upon at the session also. Volunteer Recognition Celebration: With the resignation of Edward Robinson as the committee chair, a new chair has not yet been decided upon. John Golden provided update information, stating that he and Debbie visited the Quality Inn and Bethel Temple, two proposed sites. He stated that Bethel Temple’s facility could host events with a maximum capacity of 1500 persons. Included in Bethel’s costs are the facility, audio/visual usage, custodial services, and table lines/setups. Bethel provided a list of three caterers with whom they work and John provided a cost breakdown for those (see attached). Debbie stated, as the former committee chair had researched, that while the Quality Inn would provide its facility free of charge, it came with the condition that their preferred vendor be used for table setup/linens. John noted that the environment at Quality Inn did not appear to be as inviting as that of Bethel Temple. Nethea Calloway stated that she was employed by First Baptist Church and would like to submit that location as a possible site. She will provide facility/catering information as soon as available. 20160510 Full Commission Minutes 10 May 2016 Page 2 Dennis then asked what happened to the idea of serving ‘heavy’ hors d’oeuvres rather than a sit down or buffet style meal. He suggested that caterers at the Hampton Golf Course do a fantastic job and that he would check into their offerings and availability. Wendy asked if the Calvary Assembly of God, a site that asked to be considered earlier, was not longer on the list of proposed sites. John stated that he visited the site and spoke with its liaison. While the site is beautiful and could accommodate the event, it was not available on the requested date. Additionally, it did not have the required number of tables/seating nor linen needed; that equipment and supplies would have to be contracted through Hampton Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Services or a private vendor and transported to the site. They also did not provide catering services. Shirley Boyd asked if school sites had been considered and what costs, if any, were involved. Debbie stated that schools may have custodial costs of about $75. Jim asked why schools no longer were being considered. Teresa stated that Phoebus HS has a culinary department that is very good. She opted to check on the school’s availability. Dennis encouraged members to offer more site/catering suggestions with Debbie adding that the information must be submitted by Tuesday, June 17. Keeping in mind anywhere from 170 to 200 attendees, she asked that suggestions include any price differentials between the two headcounts, specific menu offerings for either dinners or hors d’oeuvres, what is included (i.e., tableware, linens, dinnerware, etc.), and total costs (including taxes, gratuities). Election of Chair & Vice Chair: Debbie said that she had sent a survey monkey link to members asking for nominations, noting that only Council-appointed members could serve in those capacities. Dennis VanCamp received the nomination for Chair; Jackie Cannan and Clovis Calloway received nominations for Vice Chair. Ballots were distributed and collected with Dennis voted in as Chair and Jackie Cannan as Vice Chair. Walk Hampton Clean 2016: Cris Ausink announced that this year’s event was very successful with 741 reported volunteers participating, covering 104.06 linear miles, and collecting 301 bags of trash and debris and 16,843 cigarette ends. Riverdale Regional Neighborhood Association cleaned the most area, covering 9.38 miles, and LAFB 10 Intelligence Squadron collected 39 bags of trash. Cris also have a special thank you to the First United Methodist’s Boy Scout Troop #151 and Girl Scout Troop #10102 for the wonderful work they did along Hall Road. Cris will begin preparing now for next year’s event. Both Dennis and Teresa stated that sharing the event on Facebook got the message to the public. Andrew asked if the event could be done more than once annually in order to promote the brand and get more people involved. Cris responded by saying that she does have two other city-wide cleanups each year – the International Coastal Cleanup and Clean the Bay Day, but that she would look into extending Walk Hampton Clean. Audit Update & By-Laws: Discussion of the two versions of the bylaws took place. The versions under discussion were the changes made by Debbie that addressed the Internal Audit recommendations and more comprehensive changes recommended by Edward. At issue was whether the bylaws should be more specific and in-depth in terms of the rules and responsibilities of the board and staff. Discussion was held and Wendy called for a vote to approve the version that addressed the Internal Audit Department’s concerns. The motion was seconded. The majority of the members approved. Edward opposed the motion. Tom made a motion to form a subcommittee to create a volunteer policy manual; Pat Parker seconded. Tom volunteered act as chair and asked Edward to work with him. Claire Neubert also volunteered. Beautification Committee Report: Shirley Boyd announced there were three YARDS winners for May and encouraged members to nominate beautiful yards. Debbie stated that photos of the winning yards were available on the Clean City Facebook page. Clean & Green Businesses Committee Report: John noted that the next Clean Business Forum Breakfast, hosted by Newport News, will be Wednesday, May 25, at Angelo’s Steak & Pancake House. Hampton’s quarterly Clean Business winner is Calvary Assembly of God due to its maintaining and sustaining beautiful grounds and engaging regularly in beautification and cleanup outreach activities. Community Gardens: Wendy discussed the expansion of the Phoebus community garden to 34 plots, with only 6 available. The Buckroe community garden has two full and two partial plots (Towing created some 7-foot plots instead of the normal 10-foot). 20160510 Full Commission Minutes 10 May 2016 Page 3 A class is also being offered at 9am on Saturday, May 14 at the Buckroe garden on Pollinators. A nature photography class will be at 6pm on May 19 also at Buckroe, and a culinary class will be offered in June on ‘eating out of the garden’; however, no date has been specified. All classes are open to the public and free of charge. More information may be found at https://www.facebook.com/HamptonVAcommunitygardens/. Andrew asked if Shell Road be considered as a community garden site. Wendy responded that other sites are being considered, with Briarfield high on the list. Teresa and Tom asked about public or city-owned properties along Kecoughtan Road. Wendy advised that areas known as “food deserts” are being targeted for community gardens. Jim noted that an informative video along those lines and worth watching is called “Food Waste.” Hampton Waterways Restoration Project Report: Claire stated that water quality testing is still being done, noting that citizens who wish to observe may do so. We are hoping to get that information out to the public for more educational opportunities. Also in progress is work on bat houses at several sites, including Grundland and Ridgeway Parks. The Boy Scouts are also working on a bat habitat at Spratley Gifted Center. She also announced that HWRP T-shirts are available for sale. Upcoming events are a kayak cleanup along Pembroke Spit on May 21. The committee will also participate in the Sponge Bob Square Pants event at the Hampton History Museum on June 11th. Clean the Bay Day is June 4th. We will be working on the Sym's shoreline and Upper Hampton to include Elizabeth Lake. In addition, Elizabeth Lake Estates community built an oyster sanctuary at the top of the Hampton River. Debbie put Betsy McCallister from Hampton City Schools in touch with Claire, so now Hampton City Schools will be bringing the oysters that they grew to the Hampton River-Elizabeth Lake Oyster Sanctuary. Debbie stated that the shoreline planting data previously emailed to members has been postponed until May 20 or 21. She will advise of correct date. Next meeting: May 24th, 6:30 p.m. Fort Monroe Community Center. There will not be a June meeting. Litter Awareness Committee Report: Pat Parker stated several topics were discussed at the May 5 meeting, including KAB’s requirement of expanding to ten the number sites within each district for the Community Appearance Litter Index. Members were asked to offer suggestions on site additions, keeping in mind land usage of each site. April Adopt-A-Spot statistics (includes reported Walk Hampton Clean statistics): 100 cleanups; 962 volunteers; 2,355 volunteer hours; 449 total bags; 26,796 cigarette ends. School Pride in Action Committee Report: Debbie said the committee is currently trying to see how to best capture information for the annual Green Schools Awards. The committee is also working on the 2017 Student Earth Day Art Exhibit. C.H.A.N.G.E. Report: No report. Master Gardener Report: Tom stated the plant sale was very successful, noting that over 200 people were early arrivals for the event. The MGs also participated in the Remarkable Trees of Bluebird Gap Farm Tour. Tom also noted that MGs have put together teaching videos and will be offering Saturday courses. Master Naturalist Report: No report Other Business: Andrew questioned whether the City had a renewable energy commission. Dennis noted that while the City has adopted minimums regarding renewable energy, he did not believe a commission had been formed. Teresa advised that he needed to present the question to Council; from there Hampton representatives would address the State legislature. 20160510 Full Commission Minutes 10 May 2016 Page 4 Andrew also noted that the American Red Cross, in partnership with area fire departments is providing up to three alarms per household, free of charge. Contact the American Red Cross or local fire departments for more information. Adjournment: A motion to adjourn was made and accepted. Announcements Langley ES Earth Day Stories, May 17, 19-20, 23, 9am – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED HWRP Pembroke Spit Cleanup, May 18, 8:30am Household Chemical/Computer Collection, May 21, 8am-Noon, 419 N Armstead Ave. LAC Community Cleanup, May 20, 3:30pm, Ireland Street HWRP Meeting, May 24, 6:30pm, FMCC CBF Breakfast, May 25, 8:30 am, Angelo’s Steak & Pancake House MEMORIAL DAY, May 30 – OFFICES CLOSED LAC Meeting, June 2, 11:30am, Mama Rosa’s Clean the Bay Day, June 4, 9am-12pm YARDS Judging, June 13, 8:30am, HCCC Full Commission Meeting, July 14, 3:30 pm, HCCC 20160510