Town and Gown Committee

Town and Gown Committee Meeting Minutes Tuesday, April 10, 2018 Lawson Conference Room, 8th Floor City Hall ATTENDEES: Ann Bane, Martha Baye (arrived at 12:45pm), Ann Cherry, Novelle Dickenson (Chair), Kellie Goral, Tracy Hanger, Rodenna Kirksey, Steve Lynch, James “Pete” Peterson, Darren Robinson, Pamela Richardson (arrived at 12:35pm), Chad Smith, Raymond Tripp, Toni Williams, and Brenda Bailey (recorder) Guests: Jordan McKinney, Political Science student at Hampton University, soon-to-be elected Student Government President I. Call to Order – Chair Dickenson called the meeting to order at 12:25 pm. II. Roll Call III. Approve March 13, 2018 Meeting Minutes – Mr. Lynch advised the minutes should reflect that Virginia Tech Agricultural and Extension Centers (AREC) requested $2.5M from the Commonwealth General Assembly, not $2.9M as reported in the minutes. With no objections from committee members, the Minutes with corrections were approved. IV. Strategic Direction Subcommittees Goals & Objectives Update Communication/Community Education – In Mary’s absence, Chad Smith reported that while the committee was not able to meet as expected last week due to scheduling conflicts, he would encourage everyone to support the social media feeds on the new Town & Gown Committee webpage which includes individual links to each institutes website; the subcommittee will meet again May 1 at a location to be determined and lunch will be provided. Diana Gulotta’s replacement, Kellie Goral, Hampton City Schools new Executive Director of Public Relations and Marketing, was in attendance and introduced herself. Economic Development – Steve Lynch advised this subcommittee met and began to lay out strategies and goals as well as drafted a survey to obtain information about college students’ lives pre and post-graduation; he indicated the need for additional volunteers as no staff from Thomas Nelson Community College or Hampton University are on this committee and it has been challenging to obtain necessary data and demographics on graduated/graduating student population. Rodenna volunteered to join the subcommittee in their efforts. Steve will provide another update at the May 8th Town & Gown meeting. A recommendation was made to incorporate a schools component to Hampton 101 sessions , Darren will explore a neighborhood commission 101 for students. Due to more and more colleges/universities requiring internships for graduation, a recommendation to implement a city-sponsored summer internship program with the possibility of employment was discussed; internship programs are increasingly more difficult to find and the Town & Gown Committee could potentially make a positive impact in this area. Community Outreach – Pamela reported Bill Thomas was unable to attend today’s meeting due to scheduling conflicts and he intends to be at the May meeting. V. Key Updates Since the March 13, 2018 Town & Gown Committee Meeting Ann Cherry stated Hampton City School Board balanced their budget and sent it to City Council for adjustments and approval. Board member Linwood “Butch” Harper passed away March 15 after 24 years of service; the vacancy will be filled by the May 1st election process. Toni reported a great turnout at the Stuft Restaurant opening at 24 N Mallory Street; Sly Clyde Ciderworks will debut their cider at the April 21st Spring Fling. Kellie Goral introduced herself as the new Executive Director for the Office of Public Relations and Marketing; she distributed Academies of Hampton pathways description catalogs and advised that rising 10th graders will participate in a celebration and commitment ceremony for the Class of 2021 on Monday, April 16 at Hampton Coliseum; a committee member recommended distributing the catalogs to real estate agents in an attempt to dispel the myth that York County has the best area schools in their district; she stated the Superintendent of Virginia Beach Schools is seriously considering adopting the academies strategy based on promising results in Hampton to date; on Thursday, April 12 more than 30 leaders, including VA First Cities superintendents and administrators, as well as members of ChamberRVA and FordNGL will visit Bethel and Phoebus High Schools to learn more about how Hampton City Schools is redesigning the high school experience through Academies of Hampton. Tracy announced Fire & Rescue will host an open house in Phoebus as a recruitment opportunity for volunteers. Chad announced Thomas Nelson Community College will host an open house from 1-4p Friday, April 20 at the Hampton Campus. Raymond advised the 25th Annual Tastefully Yours event (Virginia Peninsula Foodbank’s largest fundraiser of the year) will take place 6-930p Thursday, April 12th at the Hampton Roads Convention Center; the 7th annual Touch a Truck event hosted by Junior League of Hampton Roads will take place at Peninsula Town Center from 10a-3p Saturday, April 14 in the Cunningham parking lot; the Hampton Jazz Festival will take place at Hampton Coliseum June 22-24; Coliseum Central Business Improvement District anticipates an increase in business as the Boo Williams Summer Leagues will begin soon; Chuck’s Famous Chicken and Seafood has opened at 2040 Coliseum Drive, Suite 14; and the 2018 Nike Girls EYBL and Nike Invitational will be held at Boo Williams Sportsplex April 20-22. Rodenna advised that 75% of Thomas Nelson graduates stay on the Virginia Peninsula as tracked by the national clearinghouse database, **She volunteered to join the Economic Development/Student Retention Subcommittee chaired by Steve Lynch; 2018 commencement is scheduled for 7p at Hampton Coliseum. Pamela announced Hampton University’s “Dream No Small Dreams II” fundraising campaign on Friday, April 13 followed by a celebration of Norma B. Harvey on Saturday, April 14; more than 7,200 people attended HU’s High School Day; the Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Gala will feature inductees Norma B. Harvey, Jacqueline McWilliams and Ike Readon at 6p on Saturday, June 1 in the HU Student Center Grand Ballroom; the softball and lacrosse seasons are ongoing, as well as the Wednesday nights Buffalo Wild Wings 10% donations to the HU lacrosse league. Darren stated the March 29th Hampton 101 was very well attended; Community Development is seeking homes and volunteer team leaders for the May 5th Home Repair Blitz in Northampton.  Steve announced Harbor Freight, the nation’s largest tool retailer, opened their store at 423 Mercury Boulevard; Farm Fresh is closing their stores and the following locations will be transitioned to other brands: 608 Mercury Boulevard will become a Food Lion, 227 Fox Hill will become a Harris Teeter, and 2190 Coliseum Drive will become a Kroger; he made assurances that Kroger confirmed they will still be constructing a new building at Riverpointe Shopping Center. Food Lion, Harris Teeter and Kroger have all conducted hiring blitzes to retain some Farm Fresh employees; the severance package offered by Farm Fresh is not available if the employee leaves before the store closes. The following stores will open locations in Peninsula Town Center: Twisted Crab (opening mid-April), Crypto Coin, Ashley Stewart, Sky Zone (opening August 2018), Floor and Décor (opening August 2018). Crowne Plaza Hampton-Marina will retain its flag until the fall of 2019 while the new owner conducts a full property renovation and transition to a Hilton Tapestry Collection; Shamin Hotels CEO Neil Amin owns ten hotels in the area and is considering moving their regional office to Hampton in the near future. Starbucks will open in the former Kentucky Fried Chicken Riverpointe location in Riverpointe Shopping Center and will feature a drive-thru window; Red Wing Shoes has moved from 2129 Coliseum Drive to 2040 Coliseum Drive, Suite 23; and Juice Bar 80/20 will open in the former Ethereal Cupcakes at 3150 Allainby Way. Pete advised the FY19 budget was released on April 15th, public hearings will be held April 25 and May 5 and the final reading will take place May 9. Martha introduced Jordan McKinney as the incoming Student Government President who will be taking her place at the Town and Gown meetings beginning in May. Novelle stated the 40th Annual Conference on the Black Family was well attended; Dr. Harvey’s book “Principles of Leadership: The Harvey Model” has been selected for the Hampton University May 16 read-in at 6p in the Student Center Boardroom where Dr. Harvey will be present to answer audience questions; Hampton University’s 2018 commencement is scheduled for 915a on Sunday, May 13th; and the 3rd annual Hampton University Film Festival will take place April 24-25th. VI. Next Meeting: May 8, 2018 VII. Adjournment – There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 1:19 pm.