14. Alexandria Park and Recreation Commission 1 Member From Planning District II City Council appointed Ripley Forbes as the member from Planning District II to the Alexandria Park and Recreation Commission. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CITY MANAGER FOR DISCUSSION 15. Consideration of Recommendations and Status Report on Legislation Introduced at the 2004 General Assembly Session. City Council received the report of the Legislation from the 2004 General Assembly Session. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 16. Update from the Electoral Board on the New Electronic Voting Machines. City Council received an update from the Electoral Board. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 17. Update on the Duke Street Concourse. (Staff presentation) City Council received an update on the Duke Street Concourse. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FROM BOARDS, COMMISSIONS AND COMMITTEES None ORAL REPORTS BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL (a) Councilman Macdonald said the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Neighborhood Task Force and the Waterfront Committee would like to see the City acquire a permanent easement from VDOT for the land behind Hunting Point, currently being used as a bike trail, so that it has the opportunity in the future to continue the Mt. Vernon bike trail along the edge of the river. (b) Councilman Macdonald said he is a member of the Alexandria Library Board and a defacto member of the Duncan Foundation, and the Duncan Foundation received $1 million from a member, and the money is to be used to improve educational resources at the Duncan Library. There was a request to the Foundation to allocate $40-50,000 to help pay for a green roof to the new addition. The Foundation feels it is not appropriate to do that. (c) Councilwoman Woodson said that as Chair of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Development Policy Committee, she reported on the video on Smart Growth and a project coming out of California called Reality Check, which is a joint project with the Urban Land Institute, and the COG is looking at doing this next January. (d) Councilman Gaines said the Citizen Corps Council has been selected and the first meeting will be March 2. (e) Councilman Gaines handed out a brochure entitled "Time to Act," by the Washington Metropolitan COG Transportation Planning Board, which brings attention to the need to act with respect to the Capital Region's transportation funding. (f) Mayor Euille said he represented the U.S. Mayor's Conference last Friday in a panel discussion with the former Secretary of Transportation, Rodney Slater, requesting the Congress and the House to approve the ISTEA 21 Renewal. (g) Councilman Krupicka said the Washington Metropolitan COG Human Services Committee met last week and he provided a summary of the meeting. (h) Councilman Krupicka said the Foster Parent Appreciation Gala will be held May 1. (i) Councilman Krupicka said there will be a very large, national campaign in April that COG is cooperating with that is entirely geared toward promoting adoption programs. (j) Councilman Krupicka spoke about the Potomac Regional Educational Partnership initiative on teacher recruitment and teacher training in the D.C. area. (k) Councilman Krupicka said as part of the Human Services mission for COG, they spent time talking about health care in the region and the reduction in focus on basic health care service due to the efforts on emergency preparedness. (l) Councilman Smedberg said he and Councilman Krupicka will be meeting with staff and officials of INOVA tomorrow to discuss the possible closure of the psychiatric unit at the hospital. He said some members of the community and organizations are planning an event to address some of the issues on the possible closure. (m) Mayor Euille said the City Manager is prepared to briefly tell them what the process will be for the city to provide some protection for the Hunting Towers/Hunting Terrace complex once the property is sold by VDOT. City Manager Sunderland said VDOT will sell the property some time after the first of the year. Hunting Towers/Terrace will soon be the focus of a small area plan study. (n) Mayor Euille said he represents the City on the WMATA Board of Directors and everything is going well except that it needs more money. The Board is looking at ways to make further budget cuts to the operating expenses - there is between $5 to $6 million more that it can cut. There will still be a shortfall of $28-35 million. There will be public hearings to give the public an opportunity to weigh in on rate increases, and the public hearing session at City Hall will be March 15. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ ORAL PRESENTATIONS BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL (a) Councilwoman Woodson passed out Mardi Gras beads to the Council and staff on Fat Tuesday. (b) Vice Mayor Pepper said the Planning staff will make a presentation at the community meeting tomorrow at 7:30 at Bishop Ireton on the Second Presbyterian Church site. Vice Mayor Pepper asked that the memo dated February 24, 2004, be part of what is handed out tomorrow evening. (c) Councilman Smedberg said Congressman Moran held a town meeting last night and the Mirant Plant was a major part of that meeting, and he went over the EPA and State DEQ notices of violations that have been issued. (d) Councilman Smedberg noted an obituary in the Washington Post on former Fairfax County Supervisor John Shacochis. (e) Councilman Gaines noted the article in the Washington Post by Marc Fisher entitled, "One Community Finds Courage Against NIMBY's." (f) Councilman Gaines said there will be a bus trip March 5 to speak in support of Judge Dawkins nomination on the Circuit Court. (g) Councilman Gaines said the Alexandria Fire Department will have its citizen academy April 19, 22 and 24. (h) Councilman Gaines said his community office hours will be March 8th at Beatley Library at 7:00 p.m. (i) Councilman Gaines asked when the Isabel "after" report will be coming. City Manager Sunderland said it will be a significant report and may be at the end of the month. (j) Councilman Gaines asked that a note be put on the doors to the Chambers asking that cell phones be turned off or be inaudible and also to have a blurb on the website. (k) Councilman Macdonald thanked Sandra Whitmore for her many years of service to the City. (l) Councilman Macdonald noted that the Katz Brothers Stereos on Prince Street are closing their shop after 40 years. (m) Councilman Macdonald said he attended a fundraiser at Skyline Sport and Health to be a sponsor and player with the T.C. Williams girls tennis team. (n) Councilman Macdonald said he attended the town meeting last night with Councilman Smedberg and one of the things they heard is that apparently the Mirant Plant is one of the back-up power plants for the Pentagon, and he wanted to find out if it was true. (o) Councilman Macdonald said he has had conversations with the City Manager with regard to the flag policy, where for many years the City has flown both the Red Cross flag and the Irish flags during March. He said it is a good policy and would like to see it continued this year, and the City Manager has declined his request. Council requested that the flag policy be docketed within the next 30 days and if there is a sizeable expense, Council should hear about it. (p) Councilman Krupicka said he attended the Lyceum on Sunday to look at the trains, and the City Attorney has a model train hobby and that Mr. Pessoa's display was the best. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ ORAL REPORT FROM THE CITY MANAGER Health Department Director Konigsberg gave a report on the Norovirus. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS None OTHER 18. Consideration of City Council Schedule. City Council adopted the schedule of Council's regular City Council meetings for February 2004 through June 2004, with the following additions and changes: Scheduled a work session on the Vision for the City for Saturday, March 20 from 12:00 noon to 4:00 p.m.; selected April 23 at 8:00 a.m. as the date for the breakfast meeting with representatives of INOVA Alexandria Hospital in the Hospital Board Room; received the revised calendar which includes the retirement reception for Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities Director Sandra Whitmore on March 4 from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. at the Lee Center; and the "Aging is a Family Affair" event sponsored by the Alexandria Commission on Aging and the Adult Day Services Center on May 19 from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the Lee Center. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 19. DEVELOPMENT SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2003-0036 3 BUZZARDS GAP PICKETT'S RIDGE Public Hearing and Consideration of a request for a development special use permit amendment, with site plan and subdivision, for construction of single family dwellings; zoned R-20/Residential. Applicant: Sutton Building Corporation by Duncan W. Blair, Esq., attorney COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval 4-3 On February 21, 2004, City Council closed the Public Hearing and deferred consideration of this item to its February 24, 2004 Legislative Meeting. City Council adopted the Planning Commission's recommendation with the following amendments to the conditions: New condition 13(h): A bond for all existing trees and landscaping designated to be retained, in an amount determined by the Director of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Activities, and for 100% of the cost of trees and landscaping required to be installed, shall be provided and maintained for a period of five years. Amended condition No. 9: 9. (a) A perpetual public access easement and vehicle ingress/egress easement shall be recorded by the applicant for the entire portion of the internal private street. The easement shall provide public vehicular and pedestrian access. (b)(1) The applicant shall provide a 15-foot wide perpetual public pedestrian access easement running from the private street, starting generally at the common boundary line between Lots 503 and 504, thence running generally south along such common boundary line and west along the southern boundary line of lot 503, and terminating at the southwest corner of Lot 503 on the unopened right-of-way of North Pickett Street. (2) The retaining wall at the point where such pedestrian easement connects to the private street, and all other site features and improvements, shall be designed and constructed to accommodate such pedestrian easement, to the satisfaction of the Directors of Planning and Zoning, of Transportation and Environmental Services, and of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Activities. (3) No construction or improvements for public use of the easement area, except for construction necessary to accommodate the pedestrian easement required under Paragraph (b)(2), shall be permitted unless and until approved by City Council, but no amendment to this SUP to authorize such construction or improvements shall be required. Prior to granting any such approval, public hearings on the proposed public use and any construction or improvements therefor shall be conducted by the Park and Recreation Commission, Planning Commission and City Council and also to include input from the Environmental Policy Commission. Notice as provided in Section 11-301 of the Zoning Ordinance shall be given for such hearings. (4) Signage, to the satisfaction of the Director of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Activities, shall be provided at the trail heads connecting to the public right-of-way of North Pickett Street at the north and at the south of the site, and at the connection to the private street, in the event construction or improvement of the easement for public use is approved by City Council. (c) A plat showing the easements and all required documentation shall be submitted to the City Attorney, Department of Planning and Zoning and Department of Transportation and Environmental Services with the final site plan submission. The easements shall be approved by the City Attorney and recorded among the land records prior to release of the final site plan to the satisfaction of the City Attorney. Actual notice of the easements shall be provided to the initial purchasers of each lot, and, until such time, if ever, as the signage required by Paragraph (B)(4) is installed, to subsequent purchasers, to the satisfaction of the City Attorney. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 20. Consideration of Convening An Executive Session Closed to the Public For Discussion of Settlement of Pending Litigation, Pursuant to Section 2.2-3711(A)(7) of the Code of Virginia. At 10:05 p.m., City Council convened in executive session, pursuant to Section 2.2-3711(A)(7) of the Code of Virginia for the purpose of consulting with legal counsel and briefing by staff with respect to probable litigation concerning the personal injury claim of Brigitte Guttstadt. At 10:13 p.m., City Council reconvened the meeting. City Council moved to authorize the City Attorney to settle the claim which was the subject of the closed executive session along the lines discussed in the executive session. City Council adopted the resolution pertaining to the Executive Session. RES. NO. 2098 Council Action:_________________________________________________________