City Council

409 S. Main Street City of Harrisonburg Harrisonburg, VA 22801 Meeting Minutes - Final City Council Tuesday, August 22, 2023 7:00 PM Council Chambers 1. Roll Call Present: 5- Mayor Deanna R. Reed, Vice-Mayor Laura Dent, Council Member Christopher B. Jones, Council Member Dany Fleming and Council Member Monica Robinson Also Present: 6- City Manager Ande Banks, City Attorney Chris Brown, City Clerk Pam Ulmer, Police Chief Kelley Warner, Chief Matthew Tobia and Acting Deputy City Manager Amy Snider 2. Invocation Council Member Jones offered the invocation 3. Pledge of Allegiance Mayor Reed led the Pledge of Allegiance 4. Special Recognition Mayor Reed recognized and welcomed Jennifer Sandiego Cruz with Skyline Literacy and the Skyline Literacy Citizenship Preparation Class members in attendance. 5. Consent Agenda (any item placed on the consent agenda shall be removed and taken up as a separate matter, if so requested by any member of Council, otherwise all items will be voted on with one (1) motion) A motion was made by Vice Mayor Dent, seconded by Council Member Fleming, to approve the consent agenda as presented. The motion carried with a recorded vote as follows: Yes: 5- Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Dent, Council Member Jones, Council Member Fleming and Council Member Robinson No: 0 5.a. Minutes from the August 8, 2023 City Council Work Session and Regular Meeting These minutes were approved on the consent agenda 5.b. Consider a request from Blue Stone Designs LLC to rezone three parcels at 201, 203, 205, and 207 Broad Street, and 264 and 266 East Wolfe Street The rezoning request was approved on second reading. 5.c. Consider a request from Lowell H. Miller Trustee to rezone two parcels at 1621 and City of Harrisonburg Page 1 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 1641 Smithland Road The rezoning request was approved on second reading. 5.d. Consider a request from Katherine S. Moran and Marcie E. Harris to rezone 361 Franklin Street The rezoning request was approved on second reading. 5.e. Consider a request from Box Nine LLC to rezone 231, 251. and 261 South Liberty Street The rezoning request was approved on second reading. 5.f. Consider the special event application request for the Alpine Loop Gran Fondo on Sunday, September 24, 2023. The special event application was approved on the consent agenda. 5.g. Consider the special event application request for HDR’s Skeleton Festival on October 7, 2023 from 2-5pm. The special event application was approved on the consent agenda. 5.h. Consider the special event application request for the Harrisonburg Half Marathon on Saturday, October 7, 2023. The special event application was approved on the consent agenda. 6. Public Hearings 6.a. Consider a request from Sunchase Harrisonburg LLC to rezone two parcels at 1900, 1901, 1904, 1908, 1909, 1913, 1914, 1916, 1921, 1924, 1929, 1932, 1933, 1940, 1941, 1948 Sunchase Drive and 720, 723, 728, 736, 744 Chase Court Adam Fletcher, director of Community Development, stated Item 6a and 6b are presented together. He presented a rezoning request for two parcels at 1900, 1901, 1904, 1908, 1909, 1913, 1914, 1916, 1921, 1924, 1929, 1932, 1933, 1940, 1941, 1948 Sunchase Drive and 720, 723, 728, 736, 744 Chase Court from R-3 to R-5C and a Special Use Permit to allow more units (22) to existing buildings. He reviewed the surrounding land use, the property, and the submitted proffers. He stated staff and Planning Commission (5-0) recommended approval of both the rezoning and special use permit requests. Council Member Fleming stated a few of the Planning Commissioners spoke about the stormwater issue in the area, since built prior to the stormwater regulations, and asked if this property is still grandfathered in even with the new development. Mr. Fletcher stated the stormwater regulations they were referring to are the quality regulations that came into effect in 2014, quantity has been around for a number of years, they would have had to account for quantity on this site. He stated there are City of Harrisonburg Page 2 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 some known stormwater matters in this area, a Woodland Drive Flood Study was done, however the new dwellings will be above the level of the drainage and won't require any additional stormwater remediation other than a few items such as sidewalk, etc. Further discussions took place regard flood sensors in the area Council Member Fleming spoke on the sensors for flooding. Council Member Robinson asked if the parking was still adequate even with the additional dwellings. Mr. Fletcher stated it is. Vice Mayor Dent stated since these are basement dwellings, once renovated will they have windows. Mr. Fletcher stated they will still need to comply with building regulations, windows, ingress, egress, etc. At 7:15 p.m., Mayor Reed closed the regular session and called the first and second public hearing to order. A notice appeared in the Daily News-Record on Wednesday, August 9, 2023, and Wednesday, August 16, 2023 Trey Steigman, authorized agent for the property owner and vice president for M Management Services Corp., shared the history of the development, the proposed additional development, and noted it is a very low impact project. He stated they anticipate these new units to be 4-bedroom units targeted to students. Shawn York, 1149 Westmoreland Drive, stated he has heard concerns about traffic impact and the safety on Neff Avenue. He reviewed the area where safety is an issue, and noted he hopes something will be done to help with the safety of the pedestrian crossing. At 7:22 p.m., Mayor Reed closed the public hearing and the regular session reconvened. Council Member Fleming stated he likes the idea of adding housing to the city without using any additional land space, the parking is more than sufficient, he is aware the crosswalk has flashing lights to draw attention, and he would like to know if there is any traffic information for Neff Avenue. Tom Hartman, director of Public Works, stated this intersection has been talked about several times about different ways to address safety issues, there are lots of ideas such as road reconfigurations, lane stripping to better accommodate safe crossing, discussions with VDOT for lane reconstruction, and staff is open to any additional possible solutions. Further discussion took place regarding ideas explored. Council Member Robinson asked what communication is going out to the students regarding the safety in that area. Mr. Hartman stated they have done quite a bit of social media, etc. but they could always do better. Mayor Reed stated the safety is the biggest concern, and we should look at this City of Harrisonburg Page 3 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 outside of the actual request to rezone and special use permit. Further discussion took place about the area and the safety. A motion was made by Vice-Mayor Dent, seconded by Council Member Fleming, to approve the rezoning request as presented. The motion carried with a recorded roll call vote taken as follows: Yes: 5- Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Dent, Council Member Jones, Council Member Fleming and Council Member Robinson No: 0 6.b. Consider a request from Sunchase Apartments LLC for a special use permit to allow more than 12 multi-family dwellings per building at 1900, 1901, 1904, 1908, 1909, 1913, 1914, 1916, 1921, 1924, 1929, 1932, 1933, 1940, 1941, 1948 Sunchase Drive and 720, 723, 728, 736, 744 presented with Agenda item 6.a. A motion was made by Vice Mayor Dent, seconded by Council Member Robinson to approve the special use permit request as presented. The motion carried with a recorded vote as follows: Yes: 5- Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Dent, Council Member Jones, Council Member Fleming and Council Member Robinson No: 0 6.c. Consider a request from Christophel Properties LLC and Abigail J. Christophel to rezone two parcels at 853 and 853-A Hillside Avenue Adam Fletcher, director of Community Development, stated items 6c and 6d are presented together. He presented a rezoning request for two parcels located at 853 and 853-A Hillside Avenue from R-2 to R-3C and a Special Use Permit to allow for multi-family dwellings. He reviewed the surrounding zoning designations, the property, summary of City Code Section 10-3-48.6, submitted proffers and suggested conditions for the special use permit. He stated staff and Planning Commission (5-0) recommended approval of both the rezoning request and special use permit. Vice Mayor Dent asked for clarification on the actual changes to the dwelling. Mr. Fletcher stated it is currently a two dwelling unit duplex and the applicant would like to make it into four dwelling unit. At 7:39 p.m., Mayor Reed closed the regular session and called the third and fourth public hearing to order. A notice appeared in the Daily News-Record on Monday, July 24, 2023, and Monday, July 31, 2023. open @ 7:39 pm Abigail Christophel, applicant, stated she was available for any questions. City of Harrisonburg Page 4 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 At 7:40 p.m., Mayor Reed closed the public hearing and the regular session reconvened. Vice Mayor Dent stated again we are increasing housing without increasing the footprint. Council Member Robinson stated this provided opportunities for different family sizes. A motion was made by Vice Mayor Dent, seconded by Council Member Robinson, to approve the rezoning request as presented. The motion carried with a recorded vote as follows: Yes: 5- Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Dent, Council Member Jones, Council Member Fleming and Council Member Robinson No: 0 6.d. Consider a request from Christophel Properties LLC and Abigail J. Christophel for a special use permit to allow multiple-family dwellings at 853 and 853-A Hillside Avenue presented with agenda item 6.c. A motion was made by Council Member Robinson, seconded by Council Member Fleming, to approve the special use permit request with conditions as presented. The motion carried with a roll call vote as follows: Yes: 5- Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Dent, Council Member Jones, Council Member Fleming and Council Member Robinson No: 0 6.e. Consider granting a sewer easement to Harrisonburg-Rockingham Regional Sewer Authority (HRRSA) Chris Brown, city attorney, presented a request for three sewer line easements over city owned property for upgrades of the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Regional Sewer Authority’s (HRRSA) sewer main. He stated staff has met with members of the Authority, and as the project may interfere with a few obstacles at the training centers obstacle course, HRRSA will replace any obstacles. He stated there will also be a delay in the construction, and possibly several years before project is complete. He stated staff supports the grantee of these easements. At 7:45 pm p.m., Mayor Reed closed the regular session and called the fifth public hearing to order. A notice appeared in the Daily News-Record on Monday, August 14, 2023, and Monday, August 21, 2023 A motion was made by Council Member Fleming, seconded by Vice Mayor Dent, to approve the easements as presented and authorize the city manager to execute the Deeds of Easement. The motion carried with a roll call vote as follows: City of Harrisonburg Page 5 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 Yes: 5- Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Dent, Council Member Jones, Council Member Fleming and Council Member Robinson No: 0 7. Regular Items 7.a. Consider a request from Harrisonburg Ford Property LLC to preliminarily subdivide 55 Baxter Drive to create a new public street and for variances from the Subdivision Ordinance Adam Fletcher, director of Community Development, Adam Fletcher, director of Community Development, presented a request to preliminarily subdivide 55 Baxter Drive to create a new public street and for variances from the Subdivision Ordinance . He reviewed the site, the long term plan for the area, and noted sidewalks will not be required. He stated staff and PC (5-0) recommended approval of this request. Council Member Fleming asked if the narrowing of the street naturally reduce speed through the streets. Mr. Fletcher stated there are theories to that effect. A motion was made by Council Member Robinson, seconded by Vice Mayor Dent, to approve the request as presented. The motion carried with a roll call vote as follows: Yes: 5- Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Dent, Council Member Jones, Council Member Fleming and Council Member Robinson No: 0 7.b. Consider approval of letter to the Commonwealth Transportation Board regarding Smart Scale Vice Mayor Dent stated this came to her attention through being on the HRMPO along with Council Member Fleming, where the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) is proposing a series of extreme changes that, in her opinion, would render us non-competitive. She stated the three key items that the Harrisonburg Rockingham Metropolitan Planning Organization (HRMPO) is concerned about are: The changes severely restrict the kinds of projects that are high priority - namely making them for new roadways, new interchanges, widening roads, basically all about roads and traffic, and they are trying to cut out bike and pedestrians which is where we have been thriving lately with our SMART SCALE that Mr. Hartman has done such a great job with. The changes cut the project cap in half, whereas now we can apply for four projects, we would only be allowed to apply for two if these changes are made; City of Harrisonburg Page 6 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 The changes weight the land use scores towards congestion mitigation and away from safety, which is our top priority in our rural area; Vice Mayor Dent also highlighted that transit was removed completely, which would be a huge impact on us as we want a thriving downtown with a readily accessible transit system. Vice Mayor Dent stated a letter was drafted with the help of Ann Cundy, staff member of HRMPO and chair of the Virginia Metropolitan Planning Organization, a letter from the Central Shenandoah Planning District Commission (CSPDC) was also distributed, and it is encouraged that localities also draft their own letter to the Commonwealth Transportation Board. She stated the directors of the city ’s Departments of Transportation and Public Works got together along with the city attorney and city manager, and drafted a letter, and she really appreciated the added emphasis on transit and on a walkable/bikeable city being legitimate mode of transportation. She stated Mr. Hartman, director of Public Works, had a great point, the United States has been building for cars for decades, so in proposing bike /ped programs we are trying to remedy that and make a walkable/bikeable safe downtown. She hardily recommends this letter be approved by the rest of Council. Council Member Fleming stated this is really important for the city, the changes being proposed by the CTB will have a significant affect on the safety, bike /ped projects and other roadway projects we can do in the city. He stated there is a $ 10M project to address safety issues, pedestrian traffic, for the entire corridor of Route 11 near the new high school, and this project could be in jeopardy if the CTB makes the changes to SMART SCALE process. He stated that process has been around for a decade and has been a good way to evaluate and measure transportation projects against state transportation priorities of congestion, safety, pedestrian traffic, and economic development, and has been working well for that decade. He stated any changes proposed now make a really broad sweep change where the priority is really going to be about anti-congestion in large, populated areas, new interchanges, new roads, and widening of roads. He stated that doesn’t help us in our area, and probably the case for most other college towns in Virginia, for the most part we are going to be cut out of being able to address those types of funds we are used to through the Department of Transportation. He stated our Public Works Department is extremely good at identifying what our needs are and putting out projects that meet those needs efficiently, makes our streets safer and better for the pedestrians to get around. He stated the change in the SMART SCALE grant requirements could interfere with that significantly in our city. He stated this would affect long range plans we have for the city. He stated he is in whole support of this letter. Mayor Reed stated all members of Council received a copy of the letter. Council Member Jones stated he is in support of this letter. Further discussions took place regarding Virginia Municipal League committee mergers, topics on transportation, and state legislation. City of Harrisonburg Page 7 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 A motion was made by Vice Mayor Dent, seconded by Council Member Fleming, to approve the letter to the Commonwealth Transportation Board regarding SMART SCALE as presented. The motion carried with a roll call vote as follows: Yes: 5- Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Dent, Council Member Jones, Council Member Fleming and Council Member Robinson No: 0 7.c. Consider amending and re-enacting Section 7-2-10 - Separate Water Meters Required for Each Building; exceptions, of the Code of Ordinances, City of Harrisonburg, Virginia Chris Brown, city attorney, stated agenda items 7c through 7g are presented together. He reviewed ordinance revisions related to fire suppression systems and water/sewer hook ups and meters that expands the exceptions to the general requirement that each building on City water have a separate water meter to include situations where there are multiple residential and multi-use buildings on one lot under single ownership and certain other criteria are met. The proposed ordinance requires that when multiple buildings on a single lot are permitted to be served by one meter, a “Connection Fee” for that meter must be paid. Additionally, the customer must pay a “Capital Recovery Fee” for each unit served by the meter. He reviewed the protections built in for the city and specific changes in the ordinances. Mike Collins, director of Public Utilities, stated the Sewer Renewal Program involves splitting the cost of any repairs the owner and the city. He stated these ordinances haven’t been updated since 2008, we had the connection fee and the recovery fee in the same fee and so overtime as inflation occurred the construction costs increased, we had built in some flexibility for some increases in costs, but now we need to increase to current standards. He reviewed the reasoning behind the other amendments. Vice Mayor Dent stated she likes hearing the way a discount for higher density was built in. Mr. Collins stated there was a collaboration of staff members to be able to do that. Council Member Fleming stated it seems to him is that one of things these ordinances will do is to potentially lower the cost for developers and as we look to expand housing opportunities, we hope to make it easier for small or local people to do these types of projects. Mr. Collins stated we did the current level, but we built in the discount, we are current, we are very competitive, one of the lower ends of the market, yet we have the discount. Council member Jones stated his goal was to try and help dispel the myth that it ’s hard to do business in the city, and thanked Mr. Collins for helping with that. Council Member Fleming stated it also speaks to public enterprise, our water system is a City of Harrisonburg Page 8 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 public enterprise, we service the customers, the city is known across the state for having a high quality well run water system. Council Member Robinson stated the crew of Public Utilities, during the Citizens Academy, did a wonderful job explaining in detail where the developer ’s responsibility ended and the city’s responsibility started, how if there is a problem Public Utilities should be contacted first in case some assistance in costs is available, and how there are services that may be offered to help with billing costs. Mr. Brown stated since a public hearing needs to be done for agenda item 7g, which is scheduled for September 12, 2023, City Council meeting, he suggested that agenda item 7c through 7f be voted on during that meeting as well. Vice Mayor Dent stated she appreciates that this will make it easier to do business in the sense of one owner of a multi-building complex, now has much more leeway to include the multiple dwellings on a single meter which will dramatically reduce the cost. This Ordinance was tabled. 7.d. Consider amending and re-enacting Section 7-3-64 - Separate Building Sewer Required for Each Building; and exceptions - of the Code of Ordinances, city of Harrisonburg, Virginia presented with agenda item 7.c. This Ordinance was tabled. 7.e. Consider amending and re-enacting Section 7-2-5 - Sprinkler Systems Generally, of the Code of Ordinances, City of Harrisonburg, Virginia presented with agenda item 7.c. This Ordinance was tabled. 7.f. Consider amending and re-enacting Section 7-2-9 - Private Water Lines, to the Code of Ordinances, City of Harrisonburg, Virginia. presented with agenda item 7.c. This Ordinance was tabled. 7.g. Consider adopting and re-enacting Section 7-4-22 - Charges for Installing New Water Service Lines and Sewer Laterals, of the Code of Ordinances, City of Harrisonburg, Virginia presented with agenda item 7.c. This PH-Ordinance was tabled. 7.h. ARPA Project Update City of Harrisonburg Page 9 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 Brian Mancini, direct of Parks and Recreation, presented information about the skate park as requested by Council. He provided the background of the Skate Park Project created with ARPA funding, the renderings provided by Sourcewell’s top three companies, and noted that all three companies would be willing to come to the city for community engagement. He reviewed the estimated pricing from all three companies and noted that the contract with American Ramp Company may or may not be able to be cancelled without some sort of fee, they anticipate it being $ 60,000 but could be much higher. He stated the square footage of the renditions from company # 2 and #3 would be smaller than American Ramp due to the shortage of funding that would be available if we chose to go with another company. He reviewed the square footage of each of the renderings and noted that it does not take up the entire footprint of the previous skate park. Amy Snider, interim deputy city manager, stated she visited a newly opened concrete skate park in Wilkes-Barre, PA, that was ARPA funded in the amount of $450,000 for 10,000 square feet and created by American Ramp Company. She stated she spoke with some of the users of the park, some of the scooter riders were part of a team that travels to skate at different parks in a 4-hour radius, who stated this park was a long time coming and their concerns were they might become bored over time as they master the obstacles, they would like more obstacles to be added in the future and they would like a bowl to be added and something more advanced, but the level is good because it means a lot of younger children have been coming out to learn how to skate and scooter and brought those two communities together. She stated the skateboarder recommended making the rails longer, the drops bigger, he liked the ramps. She stated she was impressed, the finished product looked nice. Mayor Reed stated this is why she loves city staff, Ms. Snider took the time out of her personal time to stop by and check this park out, it is appreciated, and shows the level of concern and compassion that staff and Council has. Mr. Mancini stated staff is strongly suggesting maintaining the contract with American Ramp Company, they cannot find any reason not to. Mayor Reed stated the decision before Council is to decide which company to chose to do the skateboard park and we also need to look after the taxpayers’ money. Ande Banks, city manager, stated as the city attorney shared at a previous meeting, staff has done some research and have realized that if Council were to make a decision to breach an existing contract ARPA federal dollars cannot be used for any penalty, and the $60,000 figure was thrown out by a contract holder that was in a good relationship with the city of Harrisonburg, if that changes that figure could very well be much higher and could sue for as much as they think they would make on the project. He stated local taxpayers would have to pay that penalty. Mayor Reed stated each company agreed to come in an do a community engagement, and that is the most important . Council Member Jones asked if a bowl could be added to any of the renderings and could we expand the park in the future if we wish. Mr. Mancini stated yes to both questions, and Parks and Recreation already planned for it to be included in the upcoming Capital Improvement Plan as a Phase II. City of Harrisonburg Page 10 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 Council Member Jones reflected on what happened in the United States that created this ARPA funding, all the people lost due to the pandemic, and we must keep that in mind as we use these ARPA funds. Vice Mayor Dent stated she appreciates that we have done our due diligence, staff has reviewed all the options, the penalties that could be involved, and now that we have looked into all the alternatives, we can in good conscience say we are better off staying with the existing contract, rather than taking the risks of throwing the financial penalties in the air and having a much smaller and a less satisfactory park. Council Member Fleming stated whatever we go with will be an unfinished project, we will still need to add lights, shade structures, possible expansion etc. He has concerns that if the size of the skate park drops it will be difficult and not very safe with combined uses. He likes the idea of the city becoming a destination for biking and skating and we have a strong community to do that, and by maximizing the money we have allocated for this project to accommodate the most use, is the best way to start. Council Member Jones stated he would like to see extension and a bowl in the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) for the future. Council Member Robinson stated with the community engagement we will know what is wanted by the community and plan accordingly. She agrees that possibly losing ARPA funding if we chose to go with another company is concerning. She stated throughout this process American Ramp Company has been holding the blame for all that has gone wrong so far on the project and perhaps we didn ’t do our due diligence to get the community input we needed, so she doesn’t know that if we chose a different company means it would be a solution to the problem. She stated we need more voices from the community for a better outcome. She is concerned about what the total cost could be if we chose to go with another company. She stated all three companies offer the community engagement, she feels we need to move forward with the initial contract and make sure the community engages. She stated she would have liked to go with a different company because there has been such longing from the community for us to do that, but when she weighs that against what we may lose financially she has to go with staying with the original contract. Mayor Reed stated it sounds like we are all in favor of staying with American Ramp Company. She doesn’t feel comfortable forfeiting any funding, we have been engaging with the skate community and we have been doing what we can do. Vice Mayor Dent stated one of the main complaints about going with American Ramp Company was that the skating community did not want a metal ramp, and what the renderings show is without metal from all three companies. Mr. Mancini stated we have done all of our city park projects with quality and at a high City of Harrisonburg Page 11 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 level, this park will be no different, we will get the best we can get built and include expansion in the CIP. All Council members were in agreement and directed Mr . Mancini to move forward with American Ramp Company This Presentation was approved. 8. Other Matters 8.a. Comments from the public, limited to five minutes, on matters not on the regular agenda. (Name and address are required) Kenneth Ford, Jr., stated he and his family lost their home in Weyers Cave, on February 15, 2019. He spoke on Voice to Skull weaponry, and suggested Council look into this topic further. Panayotis “Poti” Giannakouros, stated as the secretary of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Way Coalition, he would like to make everyone aware of the upcoming African American Festival, September 9, 2023. He stated the coalition will be attending and look forward to a spectacular, joyful, loving event. 8.b. City Council and Staff Council Member Jones stated Harrisonburg City Public Schools had a good launch today, he appreciates all they are doing, children got home safely, he thanked everyone for being safe. He stated his heart goes out to Ohio where a school bus overturned. Vice Mayor Dent stated our Council Retreat will be held on August 26 and 27, 2023, Block Party in the ‘Burg is on August 26, 2023, and the mural dedication August 30, 2023. Council Member Robinson stated she is looking forward to the African American Festival, she is very happy with the beginning of school, we appreciate the community slowing down all over town, Parks and Recreation in conjunction with Harrisonburg City Public Schools will be hosting Back to School Night, prayers for those in Ohio, Washington State, and our country. Council Member Fleming stated after the last Council meeting, he met with Liz Webb, housing coordinator, with a follow-up conversation with Virginia First Cities Access to Housing Committee, and they continue to have dialogue on housing issues throughout the state, including discussions on land banks and land trusts, issues with buyers purchasing multiple properties to turn into short term rentals, among other topics. He spoke on how the city changes when school is back in session. Mayor Reed stated she had a very productive Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee (PRAC), they went over the CIP projects, a very detailed wish list, but what City of Harrisonburg Page 12 Printed on 9/20/2023 City Council Meeting Minutes - Final August 22, 2023 is being focused on for FY 2024/2025 are things we have already been discussing such as the Smithland Athletic Complex Phase 2, Kids Castle, Ralph Sampson Park Splash Pad, Heritage Oaks drainage, Riven Rock restrooms, Westover Pool dome, along with a few others. She stated many don’t realize our Parks and Recreation is more than just parks and recreation, they do Pre-K and after-school programs, each have waiting lists, and it is important to understand how this department reaches beyond just parks and recreation. She stated James Madison University and Eastern Mennonite University students are back, the Block Party in the ‘Burg will be August 26, 2023, for JMU students, EMU will also have an event welcoming back their students that evening, and Royals Go Downtown will be held in September. She stated we have several taking their children to college, Council Member Fleming will be taking his daughter and our city attorney just dropped his daughter off. She stated the African American Festival will be held on September 9, 2023, from 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm. Mr. Banks stated the ARPA funded Housing Fund application went live today, for those that are focused on affordable housing in our community and have an idea take a look at the city’s website, the application process, the eligibility parameters, and start thinking about how these funds can be utilized. 9. Adjournment At 9:37 p.m. there being no further business and on motion adopted, the meeting was adjourned. ________________________ ________________________ CITY CLERK MAYOR City of Harrisonburg Page 13 Printed on 9/20/2023