Clean City Commission

FULL COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES Hampton Clean City Commission May 14, 2019 ~ 3:30pm Board Members Present: Barb Abraham; Ryan Adams; Jackie Cannan; Chris Grady; Wendy Iles; Will Kotheimer; Alex Maness; Gayle Mooney; Jamie Osso Also Present: Gaylynn Johnson, VCE Agent; Diallo Touré, HCCC Intern; Jim Williams; Debbie Blanton, Cris Ausink, C’Faison Harris Opening Business Welcome and Time Sheet: Will Kotheimer opened the meeting. Roll Call & Protocol: Roll call was conducted and it was announced that a quorum was present. Debbie Blanton asked that introductions be delayed until the arrival of the newest board member, Chris Grady; and upon his arrival, both Chris and HCCC’s intern Diallo Touré, were introduced and welcomed. Approval of April Minutes: Minutes from the April meeting were approved. Motion to accept minutes as written offered by Barb Abraham, seconded by Gayle Mooney. Motion approved. City Council: No report City Attorney’s Office: No report 1 Parks, Recreation & Leisure Services: No report. Public Works: Debbie announced that the former Solid Waste Superintendent Chip McDonough is completing cross training at the Steam Plant and that Barry Dobbins is now the superintendent. She is waiting on Mr. Dobbins to confirm being able to present at the June 11 board meeting. Financial Report: Debbie read over the financial data, noting that several line item transfers had been made to cover other operational expenses to close out FY2019. Ideas and Projects from April Minutes None New Business Debbie talked about the Resilient Hampton initiative’s summer community meeting and encouraged members to become involved and discuss the plan with others in the community. She will also provide a link to for interested persons to sign up for the Resilient Hampton newsletter. Debbie announced the nominees for Board Chair were Will Kotheimer and Ryan Adams. Nominees for Vice Chair were Ryan Adams, Jamie Osso, Alex Maness, Barb Abraham, and Will Kotheimer. After tallying the votes, Ryan is the new Chair and Alex is the Vice Chair. Congratulations were extended to both and a thank you to outgoing Chair Will was given. New terms begin in July. Discussion Items Debbie discussed the need for volunteers to coordinate and participate in scheduled long-term events during the summer months. The first event is the Farmer’s Market, which occurs each Saturday morning, 9am-12pm at Buckroe Beach. She asked for sub-committees to present displays about their committees each month. One event will be Groovin’ by the Bay, which will be each Sunday evening, 5pm-9pm at Buckroe Beach. This will be a litter-free event and volunteers are need to help keep the beach area free of trash & debris. Newest board member Chris has already signed up to be a site coordinator and Debbie is requesting that more members do the same. Between 5-6 volunteers are requested for each Sunday, from 5pm to about dusk. Supplies and equipment will be distributed at the meeting site. Debbie stated that event and sign-up info are available on social media platforms. The Hampton Clean City Commission works to improve and enhance the physical environment of Hampton through beautification, solid waste management education, coastal awareness activities, and litter abatement programs; educates citizens; and encourages their participation. As an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful Inc., we share the philosophy that each of us has a responsibility for enhancing our community environment. 20190611 Walk Hampton Clean: Cris Ausink stated that Walk Hampton Clean was a success although 12 groups who initially signed up did not participate. She also noted that the number of miles covered this year was only half of that of last year, but there were more sites and volunteers for this year’s event. Final results for the event were:  666 volunteers  55 miles of city space covered  82 total groups participating  497 bags of trash & debris collected  12,887 cigarette ends collected Appointed Member Reports Bee City USA: Barb announced that she needs assistance with the Bee Fest display at the June 15 Farmer’s Market, which will have native plants. She also stated that May 18 was endangered species day, which also includes several bees; May 20 is World Bee Day; a Coliseum walk-about is scheduled, and on May 22, she and other Bee City committee members will meet with city planners regarding pollinators. Debbie added that the City Attorney wants to review the Bee City Plan before it is presented to City Council. Will made a motion to endorse the Bee City Plan; Alex seconded. The motion was approved. Beautification Committee: Debbie reported that the YARDS Committee had its first judging on May 13 and the winners were the Haywoods on Big Bethel Road. She said she is currently waiting on photos of the yard for social media sites. The next judging will be June 10. Fund-Raising Committee: No report Hampton Community Gardens: Wendy Iles commended the WeLoveYou Foundation, an international organization, for providing much needed care to the community gardens at North Phoebus Community Center. She said they did an excellent job and worked until the job was done. She also said that the Hypertufa workshop will be May 23 at Phoebus Community Gardens, and is open to the public. A photography class will be presented on June 8, 9am at Westhampton Community Center and is free and open to the public. On June 14, players from the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals will be on hand at North Phoebus Community Gardens. 2 Standing Committee Reports Clean & Green Workplaces: Jim Williams reported that Fox Hill Central United Methodist Church was the Spring Quarter Clean Business winner because of their coordination of a Creation Care Day and a pollinator garden. Jim also said the committee is looking into rotating meeting sites and asked board members to invite those they think would like to participate. By taking meetings to other sites, Jim said it would generate greater participation from area businesses. Jackie Cannan asked if a letter of commendation or recognition for businesses was available and if businesses could be nominated for the Clean City Awards. Debbie said she would work with the committee on both of those ideas. Jim also announced a tentative date for another recycling event would be August 10. He hopes to include videos that would have a humorous but teachable component. Ryan suggested asking the Cincinnati Bengals players to be a part of the videos and Jim said that would be an excellent idea. Hampton Waterways Restoration Project: Jamie Osso announced that site captains are needed for the June 1 Clean the Bay Day event, 9am-12pm. She asked that interested persons contact Cris Ausink for more information. A kayak cleanup is scheduled for May 18 at Ft. Monroe. Litter and Recycling Awareness: Debbie reported that a community cleanup is scheduled for E Street on Friday, May 17, 3pm. Because she will be on leave May 15, she will cancel the cleanup if a site coordinator is not available. The next community cleanup will be along Wingfield Drive on Friday, June 21, 9am. Master Gardeners: Gaylynn Johnson noted that Master Gardener training applications are now available on the Hampton VCE website. Gaylynn stated that the semi-annual MG plant sale went very well and that additional sale dates are possibly every Wednesday in order to reduce the number of summer care plants. Barb noted that the Master Gardeners will have a Summer Flowers display at the June 15 Farmers Market and will have a Pollinator tabled dedicated to butterflies at the June 27 Farmers Market. Master Naturalists: No report School Pride in Action: No report Virginia Cooperative Extension: No report The Hampton Clean City Commission works to improve and enhance the physical environment of Hampton through beautification, solid waste management education, coastal awareness activities, and litter abatement programs; educates citizens; and encourages their participation. As an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful Inc., we share the philosophy that each of us has a responsibility for enhancing our community environment. 20190611  Staff Reports Debbie announced that she will be out on leave May 17 through June 14 but that she has announcement and pertinent notifications on delayed delivery so there should be no break in information being provided. Jackie, Jamie, Gayle and Wendy were thanked for their willingness to provide office coverage if the need arose. Debbie also stated that nominations for the Clean City award will become available May 15. Announcements  LARC Community Cleanup, E Street, 3:30pm  Clean & Green Workplaces Meeting, May 21, 3:30pm, Goodwill Resource Center  Groovin’ by the Day Litter Free Event, May 26, 5pm, Buckroe Beach VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  MEMORIAL DAY OBSERVANCE, May 27 – Offices Closed  Clean the Bay Day, June 1 – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  Groovin’ by the Day Litter Free Event, June 2, 5pm, Buckroe Beach – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  Litter & Recycling Awareness Meeting, June 6, Mama Rosa’s, 11:30am  Groovin’ by the Day Litter Free Event, June 9, 5pm, Buckroe Beach – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  HCCC FULL COMMISSION MEETING, June 11, 3:30pm, HCCC  YARDS Judging, June 10, HCCC, 8:30am  Buckroe Farmer’s Market – Pollinator Week, June 15  Groovin’ by the Bay Litter Free Event, June 16, 5pm, Buckroe Beach – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED 3  Clean & Green Workplaces Meeting, June 18, Goodwill Resource Center, 3:30pm  Bee City USA Meeting, June 20, HCCC, 1pm  LRAC Community Cleanup, June 21, Wingfield Drive, 9am – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  Groovin’ by the Bay Litter Free Event, June 23, 5pm, Buckroe Beach – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  Buckroe Farmers Market – Native Flowers for Native Bees, July 27  Groovin’ by the Bay Litter Free Event, June 30, 5pm, Buckroe Beach – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  INDEPENDENCE DAY OBSERVANCE, July 4-5 – HCCC OFFICES CLOSED The Hampton Clean City Commission works to improve and enhance the physical environment of Hampton through beautification, solid waste management education, coastal awareness activities, and litter abatement programs; educates citizens; and encourages their participation. As an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful Inc., we share the philosophy that each of us has a responsibility for enhancing our community environment. 20190611