Clean City Commission

FULL COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES Hampton Clean City Commission June 11, 2019 ~ 3:30pm Board Members Present: Barb Abraham; Ryan Adams; Jackie Cannan; Chris Grady; Will Kotheimer; Gayle Mooney; Also Present: Linda Curtis; George Curran; Jim Williams; Cris Ausink, C’Faison Harris Opening Business Welcome and Time Sheet: Will Kotheimer opened the meeting. Roll Call & Protocol: Roll call conducted; quorum was present. Approval of May Minutes: Minutes from the May meeting required amendments. May minutes to be presented at July meeting for approval as amended. City Council: No report City Attorney’s Office: No report Parks, Recreation & Leisure Services: No report. Public Works: No report 1 Financial Report: Financial data was distributed with C’Faison making note of KAB Affiliation dues highlighted and end of year closings. Special Presentation: Barry Dobbins, Interim Superintendent Public Works Solid Waste Management. Mr. Dobbins, formerly Wastewater Superintendent, has been the Interim Superintendent of Solid Waste for six weeks and finds it to be a rewarding yet challenging position. While distributing statistical handouts, Mr. Dobbins noted that Solid Waste currently has several hundred 311 Call Center task/complaint tickets to resolve while dealing with 67 fulltime vacancies. When asked about response times for complaints and issues regarding solid waste, Mr. Dobbins noted that response times may vary greatly, depending upon the nature of the complaint, but that he is proud to say that the current backlog in complaints is being extensively reduced, and he expects that to continue once staff vacancies have been filled. Mr. Dobbins noted that a service is offered to citizens with different abilities where solid waste employees will retrieve the containers and put them back in place for those unable to do so. A citizen only has to contact the Hampton Customer Call Center to request that service. He also addressed some of the challenges to a smooth operation, one being ‘late put-outs”, which he said could be hard to determine if a missed pickup was due to solid waste error or citizen error. In any instance, however, all missed pickups are resolved as soon as possible. Jim Williams asked if monitoring with the use of cameras had been considered for illegal dumping. Mr. Dobbins said that may be an option in the future, and he also is looking into an increased use of signage. Will suggested that statistical results for the Tours de Trash and Recycling, and the Community & School Appearances Indices be sent to Solid Waste. Mr. Dobbins asked that Will call him during those events so his teams may immediately address issues observed at that time. George Curran stated that he thought citizens should be given options for bulk pickup instead of having to set things out every two weeks. Linda Curtis noted that in an effort to possibly reduce sanitation fees, citizens were asked if they preferred that option and the majority voted no. She added that a comparison study was done with surrounding counties, and Hampton was found to be, by far, the most economical when it came to bulk pickup. Ryan Adams also noted that in many regional meetings/events he has attended, it was stated that Hampton is more efficient than its sister cities. Jim asked Mr. Dobbins if he had participated in any of the tours de trash or recycling, to which Mr. Dobbins said he had not. Jim then asked him to be sure to go on one so he can observe what citizens see and the ideas and comments they may have. Will also asked that Solid Waste address the issue of recycling, with Ryan stating that a good place to start would be with area businesses. Due to time constraints, C’Faison Harris asked that questions end and asked if Mr. Dobbins would be available to return later to go more in-depth with solid waste management. He said he would be pleased to do so. 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 Ideas and Projects from May Minutes None New Business None Discussion Items None Appointed Member Reports Bee City USA: Barb Abraham stated that the Bee City USA plan was completed and submitted to HPRLS Deputy Director Kay Trotter on June 3. Because Ms. Trotter was on leave during that time, the plan was forwarded to and a meeting requested with Director Dave McCauley. The plan must be approved by the City Attorney’s office and then submitted to City Council for approval. The Bee City USA committee met with city planners who were concerned about the integrated pest management plan. Barb said the committee will work with the city on creating such a plan and will submit as soon as completed. She also noted that there may be an issue with the Bee City USA funding plan, and will update members at the next commission meeting. A Bee Fest will be June 15, 9am-1pm, at the Farmer’s Market. Beautification Committee: C’Faison reported that the YARDS Committee selected two winners for June: Yvette Zolea of Woodlawn Drive and Melanie Paul of Beauregard Drive. Photos of both yards were displayed on the agency’s Facebook page. Fund-Raising Committee: No report Hampton Community Gardens: Wendy Iles announced that the Hampton Community Gardens will present a class on Tomatoes 101 and Beginner Beekeeping – dates to be determined and updates will be on Facebook and other social media platforms. 2 Groovin’ by the Bay: Newly board member Chris Grady, Site Captain for Groovin’ by the Bay Litter Team stated that, thus far, 5 volunteers have participated and collected 15 bags of trash/debris and over 800 cigarette ends. Five brochures were distributed, along with about 60 pocket ashtrays. Standing Committee Reports Clean & Green Workplaces: Jim announced there will be a Community Day on August 10, and will provide more information at the July commission meeting. Hampton’s 2nd Quarter winner of the Virginia Peninsula Clean Business Award was Fox Hill Central United Methodist Church. The event was hosted by Newport News and Ryan stated that the presentation involved illegal dumping, code violations, and the like. Lastly, Jim expressed an interest in collaborating with Hampton City Schools on videos about solid waste management. Hampton Waterways Restoration Project: George stated that there will be no HWRP meeting in June. He also announced that there ‘d be an oyster roundup with the Virginia Marine Resource Commission at Ft. Monroe on June 27, 6pm. Litter and Recycling Awareness: C’Faison noted that a community cleanup is scheduled for Wingfield Drive on Friday, June 21, 9am. Members encouraged to participate. May Adopt-A-Spot statistics were attached. Master Gardeners: No report. 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 Clean the Bay Day: Cris Ausink provided statistics for this event  39 volunteers  18 sites (initially scheduled, but only 3 were cleaned on the day of the event due to inclement weather conditions)  6.17 miles covered  52 bags of trash = 40lbs  714 cigarette ends collected Meeting adjourned 5:05pm Announcements  Buckroe Farmer’s Market – Pollinator Week, June 15  Groovin’ by the Bay Litter Free Event, June 16, 23, 30, 5pm, Buckroe Beach – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  Clean & Green Workplaces Meeting, June 18, Goodwill Resource Center, 3:30pm  LRAC Community Cleanup, June 21, Wingfield Drive, 9am – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  Groovin’ by the Bay Litter Free Event, June 23, 5pm, Buckroe Beach – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED  Bee City USA Meeting, June 27, HCCC, 1pm  Buckroe Farmers Market – Native Flowers for Native Bees, June 29  INDEPENDENCE DAY OBSERVANCE, July 4-5 – HCCC OFFICES CLOSED  Full Commission Meeting, July 9, 2019, HCCC, 3:30pm 3 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