Neighborhood Commission Agendas & Minutes

MINUTES Hampton Neighborhood Commission Meeting Community Development Conference Room, City Hall January 9, 2012 Time 6:00-7:30pm Present Ann Bane, School Rep. Nancy Belew, District 3 Alice Callahan, District 6 Robin Carpenter, District 7 Karen Duncan, District 1 Tammy Flynn, City Rep. James Gray, City Rep. Judy Hart, District 10 Joseph Johnson, At-large Henry Mills, Institutional Rep Catherine Winston, District 8 Tommy Southall, Chair Terry O’Neill, Executive Director Rashida Costley-Clarke, Recording Secretary Absent Lynn Allsbrook, City Rep. Sadie Boone, District 5 Tina Banks-Gray, District 4 Antonio Davis, At-large Rep. Deborah Roundtree-Jones, Institutional Rep. Valerie Twine, District 2 Guests I. Opening Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 6:00pm A. Roll Call and Verification of Quorum Quorum verified. B. Pledge of Allegiance 1  C. Approval of Minutes of the December 12, 2011 Neighborhood Commission Meeting The Chair asked for consideration of the minutes for the December 12, 2011 Neighborhood Commission meeting. Robin Carpenter made a motion to approve the minutes. Ann Bane seconded the motion. The Chair called for a vote. Chair voiced, “All in favor please say aye.” Response, “aye.” Chair voiced, “Opposed?” Response – none. Minutes approved. D. Chair Announcements E. Youth Report • Karla Triggle introduced the new Neighborhood Youth Advisory Board (NYAB) Chair and Administrative Assistant. • The next NYAB meeting is scheduled for Friday afternoon at Sparetimes bowling alley. • Commissioners were provided with flyers to assist NYAB in recruiting new members. F. Items to be presented by public None II. Actions (New Business) Item A. Consideration of the Neighborhood Organization Registration Program • Karen Duncan presented the proposed revisions to the Neighborhood organization Registration program. • The recommended changes came about because the process was seen as cumbersome by neighborhood organizations. • In addition, incentives previously associated with the process were no longer available due to budget cuts. • The new program is a partnership. It simply is a registration; there is no approval process for neighborhood. APPROVED AYES: 12- A. Bane, N. Belew, A. Callahan, R. Carpenter, K. Duncan, T. Flynn, J. Gray, J. Hart, J. Johnson, H. Mills, C. Winston, and T. Southall. 2  NAYS: 0 ABSTAIN: 0 ABSENT: 6- L. Allsbrook, T. Banks-Gray, S. Boone, A. Davis, D. Rountree-Jones, and V. Twine. Item B. Briefing regarding Neighborhood Grant Programs • Amanda Olwig, Neighborhood Grants Clerk made a presentation regarding the grant programs; (1) Neighborhood Improvement Fund grant and (2) the Community Action Project grant. • Highlights of the presentation include; o Examples of potential projects for each grant program o Explanation of the internal and external process o Review of the important definitions within the grant policies o Review of match requirements III. Dialogue (Ongoing/Old Business) A. Strategic Issues Discussion • The Chair passed around a sign-up sheet for Commissioners to serve on a Commission Committee. • The Chair also explained the Neighborhood Commission Decision Process and provided Commissioners with handouts. o This process outlines the way the Commission will address issues that bubble up from the community and other sources. o The process also allows most of the work to be done in committees with review by the Executive Committee (and Neighborhood Commission, if necessary). B. Updates on Work Plan progress • The Neighborhood Commissioners will request to meet with City Council to discuss the roles and focus of the Commission in March. In preparation this meeting, committees were asked to meet to discuss focus areas using the Community Plan as a guide and the outstanding Commission items which include; o Bylaws changes such as; committee structure, chair terms, and membership and composition. 3  o Meeting location o Meeting structure o Blueprint development • All Commissioners are expected to attend the joint meeting with City Council. • The Chair asked Commissioners their opinion about the formality of the Commission meetings. Some feel that the meetings are too casual and as a result the Commission is not taken seriously. The majority of Commissioners agreed that making meetings more formal would make them feel uncomfortable. Also, Commissioners felt that as long as they followed protocol and policies, there was no need to be more formal during meetings. C. Other Matters by Commissioners • What is the status of the Community Plan and how can we get involved or stay involved? The City Manager is in the process of forming an ongoing committee made up of representatives from each of the 10 focus groups to meet regularly to monitor progress on the Community Plan goals. • When will pool operators know whether the pool grant will be available this fiscal year? The Resources Committee is going to bring forward a recommendation at the February Neighborhood Commission meeting regarding the pool grants. • NASA is looking for female speakers for upcoming seminars, conferences, etc. Please contact Nancy Belew if you know of someone interested in participating. • The Animal Control Advisory Committee is currently looking for feedback regarding a change to the city ordinance regarding tethering dogs. The recommendation from the Animal Control Advisory Committee is to limit tethering to no more than 8 hours. A survey is available online at Hampton.gov for citizens to give their opinions. The survey closes on January 17. D. Committee Status Reports None IV. Director’s Report 4  • Commissioners received a short paper survey regarding orientation dates and topics. Rashida Costley-Clarke and Sabrina Carr will be coordinating Commissioner trainings once feedback is gathered. • Commissioners received an updated neighborhood organization list. District Commissioners were asked to make contact with neighborhood organizations within their area and to notify staff of neighborhood organizations not listed. • Terry reminded Commissioners that we are entering budget season. Terry will keep Commissioners informed about the process. • The recommended Capital Improvement Plan for FY2012 will be reviewed by the Planning Commission in March. • Terry informed the Commission that he will be transitioning the Executive Director position of the Neighborhood Commission to the Division Manager, Angelique Shenk. • Terry also introduced Tamaria Green, new City Planners. Next Meeting Date: February 13, 2012 @ 6:00pm. Location: Community Development Conference Room, City Hall. 5