City Council

October 14, 2015 A special meeting of the Council of the City of Martinsville, Virginia was held on October 14, 2015 in Council Chambers, Municipal Building at 7:00pm with Mayor Danny Turner presiding. Council Members present: Mayor Danny Turner, Vice Mayor Jennifer Bowles, Council Member Gene Teague, Council Member Sharon Hodge and Council Member Mark Stroud. Staff members present included: City Manager Leon Towarnicki, City Attorney Eric Monday, and Clerk of Council Karen Roberts. Mayor Turner called the meeting to order at 7:15pm. Hear presentations regarding proposals submitted for possible reuse of the Former City of Martinsville Housing Office located at 605 Fourth Street - Representatives from FAHI (Fayette Area Historical Initiative) presented a Power Point proposal for their plan for the Housing Office. The proposal introduced Council Members to current FAHI board members. Lawrence Mitchell described the historical significance of the Housing Office which was formerly a West End school. Ms. Holland explained that the utilization of the Housing Office building would allow the museum to be larger to help display more history of the area, after school programs, reading enrichment programs, summer programs, community interaction seminar, senior citizen activities, nutrition and wellness programs, SOL preparedness programs, GED programs, and would continue to serve as a local voting precinct. Representatives described the relevance to the African American Community in general and the advantage to the City of Martinsville. The proposed hours of operation would be Monday-Friday 10:00am-4:00pm, some hours would fluctuate to accommodate students & various programs. Mr. Mitchell questioned how a voting facility could be located in a for-profit facility. City Attorney Monday said he would check into that and would get him an answer. All Care representative Tony Jones said that due to unexpected circumstances, All Care had asked for an extension but were denied and are unprepared with a presentation. Suggestions were made by Council Members to allow proposals from both organizations to be presented at the October 26, 2015 Neighborhood meeting and/or at the next Council meeting on October 27. Council Member Teague said he wants the community to hear both proposals and provide input. Council Member Hodge stated that she would like to put the building back on the tax roll so that it would October 14, 2015 generate income. She felt if the proposals were made at the Neighborhood meeting at the Housing office then the public would be more likely to attend. Chad Martin addressed Council & stated that there are several advantages to extending the proposals and that it would provide both organizations the opportunity to prepare and complete their presentations. Council Member Hodge made a motion to adjourn at 8:20pm; Vice Mayor Bowles seconded the motion, all Council Members voted in favor. ___________________________________ ___________________________________ Karen Roberts Danny Turner Clerk of Council Mayor