Meeting Minutes for Regular Meeting (03/22/2005)

Regular Meeting
Tuesday, March 22, 2005 - - 7:00 p.m.

* * * * *

Present: Mayor William D. Euille, Vice Mayor Redella S. Pepper, Members of Council Ludwig P. Gaines, K. Rob Krupicka, Andrew H. Macdonald, Paul C. Smedberg and Joyce Woodson.

Absent: None.

Also Present: Mr. Hartmann, City Manager; Ms. Evans, Assistant City Manager; Mr. Pessoa, City Attorney; Mr. Jinks, Assistant City Manager; Ms. Boyd, Director, Citizen Assistance; Mr. Neckel, Director, Finance; Mr. Baier, Director, Transportation and Environmental Services; Mr. Culpepper, Deputy Director, Transportation and Environmental Services; Mr. Skrabak, Division Chief, Transportation and Environmental Services; Ms. Davis, Director of Housing; Mr. Cochran, Office of Housing; Ms. Gordon, Public Information Officer; Mr. Kincannon, Director, Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities; Ms. Vogle, Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities; Ms. Barnett, Deputy Director of Program Operations, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Activities; Dr. Gilmore, Executive Director, Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse; Ms. Federico, Director, Historic Alexandria; Police Chief Samarra; Captain Dickinson, Police Department; Ms. Garlan, Police Department; Lt. Uzzell, Police Department; Fire Chief Mesaris; Mr. Dodson, General Services; Mr. Mandley, Director, General Services; Mr. Geiling, General Services; Mr. Johnson, Director, Office of Management and Budget; Ms. Taylor, Budget Analyst, Office of Management and Budget; Ms. Shaw, Personnel; Ms. Baker, Director, Office on Women; and Mr. Lloyd, General Services.

Recorded by: Jackie M. Henderson, City Clerk and Clerk of Council

* * * * * *

OPENING

1. Calling the Roll.

The meeting was called to order by Mayor Euille and the City Clerk called the roll; all members of Council were present.

2. Moment of Silence and Pledge of Allegiance.

City Council observed a moment of silence and recited the Pledge of Allegiance.

3. Reading and Acting Upon the Minutes of the Following Meetings of City Council:

(a) The Regular Meeting Minutes of March 8, 2005; and

(b) The Public Hearing Meeting Minutes of March 12, 2005.

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Vice Mayor Pepper, seconded by Councilman Gaines and carried unanimously, City Council approved the minutes of the March 8, 2005 regular meeting and the March 12, 2005, public hearing meeting. The voting was as follows:

Pepper "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Gaines "aye" Macdonald "aye"
Euille "aye" Smedberg "aye"
Woodson "aye"

RECOGNITION OF YOUTH BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL

None.

PROCLAMATIONS

4. Presentation of a Proclamation Commemorating the 250th Anniversary of the French and Indian War.

(A copy of the proclamation is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 4, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Gaines, seconded by Vice Mayor Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council endorsed the proclamation. The voting was as follows:

Gaines "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Pepper "aye" Macdonald "aye"
Euille "aye" Smedberg "aye"
Woodson "aye"

5. Presentation of a Proclamation Declaring April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

(A copy of the proclamation is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 5, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Macdonald, seconded by Councilwoman Woodson and carried unanimously, City Council endorsed the proclamation. The voting was as follows:

Macdonald "aye" Pepper "aye"
Woodson "aye" Gaines "aye"
Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Smedberg "aye"

6. Presentation of a Proclamation Recognizing Ray Howells as the City Employee of the Month for February.

(A copy of the proclamation is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 6, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Smedberg, seconded by Councilman Gaines and carried unanimously, City Council endorsed the proclamation. The voting was as follows:

Smedberg "aye" Pepper "aye"
Gaines "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Euille "aye" Macdonald "aye"
Woodson "aye"

7. Presentation of a Check to Stabler Leadbeater Apothecary.

Vice Mayor Pepper presented a check in the amount of $1,000 given to her for the Community Builders Award by the Andrew Jackson Masonic Lodge 120, which she presented to the Stabler Leadbeater Apothecary.

7.1 Presentation of a Proclamation Declaring Saturday, April 9, 2005, as City Homeownership Fair Day.

(A copy of the proclamation is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 7.1, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Vice Mayor Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council endorsed the proclamation. The voting was as follows:

Krupicka "aye" Gaines "aye"
Pepper "aye" Macdonald "aye"
Euille "aye" Smedberg "aye"
Woodson "aye"

REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CITY MANAGER

CONSENT CALENDAR (8-18)

(Resignations and Uncontested Appointments)

8. Receipt of the Following Resignations from Members of Boards, Commissions and Committees.

(a) Alexandria Landlord-Tenant Relations Board
Shawn Brunton

(A copy of the above resignations is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked collectively as Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 8 (a), 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

9. Uncontested Appointments to Boards, Commissions and Committees:

(a) Alexandria Affordable Housing Advisory Committee
1 Builder or Developer of Residential Property

(b) Alexandria Commission on Employment
1 Business Representative

(c) Alexandria Commission on HIV/AIDS
1 Member From and Representing an HIV/AIDS Service
Organization Which Provides Services to the Minority
Community

(d) Historic Alexandria Resources Commission
1 Representative From the Lee-Fendall House

(e) Alexandria Social Services Advisory Board
1 Citizen Member

(f) Alexandria Transportation Safety Commission
4 Members From the Alexandria Traffic and Parking Board

(Material pertaining to the above appointments is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked collectively as Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 9 (a-f), 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

(Reports and Recommendations of the City Manager)

10. Consideration of Submission of a Grant Application to the Virginia Commission for the Arts for Funds for a Local Government Challenge Grant for the Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 14, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 10, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

11. Authorization for Grant Submission to the Target Community Giving Program to Provide Violence Prevention Programming in Elementary Schools and Community Sites.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 14, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 11, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

12. Receipt of Report on American Public Works Association Accreditation of the Department of Transportation and Environmental Services.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 14, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 12, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

13. Consideration of the Police Department's Application for the Justice Assistance Grant Program for FY 2005.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 14, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 13, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

14. Consideration of Authorization of Recommended Capital Project Allocations and Planned Expenditures.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 16, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 14, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

15. Consideration of Monthly Financial Report for the Period Ending February 28, 2005.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 16, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 15, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

16. Receipt of the 2004 Board of Zoning Appeals Annual Report.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 14, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 16, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

17. Consideration of Grant Application to the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services for Police Department Equipment.

(Ordinances for Introduction)

18. Introduction and First Reading. Consideration. Passage on First Reading of an Ordinance to Establish the Real Estate and Personal Property Tax Rates for Calendar Year 2005.

END OF CONSENT CALENDAR

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Gaines, seconded by Councilman Macdonald and carried unanimously, City Council approved the consent calendar, with the removal of items 17 and 18 and considered them under separate motion. The City Manager's recommendations are as follows:

8. City Council accepted the following resignation with regret: (a) Shawn Brunton, Alexandria Landlord-Tenant Relations Board.

9. City Council made the following appointments: (a) reappointed Stephen Weber as the one builder or developer of residential property to the Alexandria Affordable Housing Advisory Committee; (b) appointed Allison DiNardo as the one business representative to the Alexandria Commission on Employment; (c) appointed Tomas Cabrera as the one member from and representing an HIV/AIDS Service Organization which provides services to the minority community to the Alexandria Commission on HIV/AIDS; (d) waived the residency requirement and appointed Kristin Lang as the one representative from the Lee-Fendall House to the Historic Alexandria Resources Commission; (e) reappointed Okisade Awodola as the one citizen member to the Alexandria Social Services Advisory Board; (f) appointed Randy Cole and reappointed Lawrence Ruggiero, Thomas Walczykowski and Converse West to the Alexandria Transportation Safety Commission.

10. City Council authorized the City Manager to: (a) submit a grant application, in the amount of $5,000, to the Virginia Commission for the Arts' Local Government Challenge grant program; and (b) execute all necessary documents that may be required.

11. City Council: (a) authorized the grant application to the Target Community Giving Program in the amount of $4,080 to purchase eight get real about violence kits that will be used to implement a proven violence prevention program reaching approximately 400 children aged 5-11 at elementary schools and community sites over the course of one year; and (b) authorized the City Manager to execute all necessary documents that may be required.

12. City Council received the report.

13. City Council authorized the submission of the grant application.

14. City Council authorized the capital project allocations and planned expenditures for the capital projects as detailed in the Capital Improvement Expenditure Summary.

15. City Council received the Monthly Financial Report for the period ending February 28, 2005.

16. City Council received the report and thanked the Board of Zoning Appeals for their efforts on behalf of the City.

The voting was as follows:

Gaines "aye" Pepper "aye"
Macdonald "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Euille "aye" Smedberg "aye"
Woodson "aye"

17. Consideration of Grant Application to the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services for Police Department Equipment.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 16, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 17, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

Questions were asked by Council with regard to the intelligence software and privacy concerns, which were answered by Ms. Garlan, Police Department Crime Analyst and Chief Samarra.

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Smedberg, seconded by Vice Mayor Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council: (a) approved the grant application in the amount of $11,284 of which the State share of 75 percent is $8,463, and the local share is 25 percent or $2,821, to be funded from the Police Department's FY 2006 operating budget; and (b) authorized the City Manager to execute all necessary documents. The voting was as follows:

Smedberg "aye" Gaines "aye"
Pepper "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Euille "aye" Macdonald "aye"
Woodson "aye"

18. Introduction and First Reading. Consideration. Passage on First Reading of an Ordinance to Establish the Real Estate and Personal Property Tax Rates for Calendar Year 2005.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 17, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 18, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.

A copy of the informal memorandum explaining the ordinance is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 2 of Item No. 18, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.

A copy of the ordinance referred to in the above item, of which each Member of Council received a copy not less than 24 hours before said introduction, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 3 of Item No. 18, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

City Attorney Pessoa noted that the ordinance as drafted had a five cent reduction and not the four cent proposed by the City Manager and he asked that the error be corrected.

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Vice Mayor Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council introduced the ordinance to establish the real and personal property tax rates for calendar year 2005 as an eight cent reduction, which is $.915 per $100 of assessed valuation for public hearing on Saturday, April 16, 2005 and for second reading and final passage on Monday, May 2, 2005. The voting was as follows:

Krupicka "aye" Gaines "aye"
Pepper "aye" Macdonald "aye"
Euille "aye" Smedberg "aye"
Woodson "aye"

CONTESTED APPOINTMENTS

None.

REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CITY MANAGER FOR DISCUSSION

City Council took the following item out of order:

20. Presentation on the Current and Future Alexandria Traffic Pattern Changes Necessitated by the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Construction Project.

City Council heard an update on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge construction project by members of the VDOT staff and the consultants, noting the road closures and changes and the impact on the City and commuters. Questions were asked by Council, which were answered by Mr. Ronaldo Nicholson, Mr. Scott Crumley, Mr. John Nunderland and Mr. Marcelena Romera, along with Mr. Baier and Police Captain Dickinson.

19. Consideration of Staff Report on the Feasibility Study on the Location and Construction of an All City Sports Facility.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 17, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 19, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

Mr. Kincannon and Ms. Vosper made a presentation of the feasibility study and answered questions of Council with regard to the proposed facility.

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Vice Mayor Pepper, seconded by Councilwoman Woodson and carried unanimously, City Council: (a) received the All City Sports Facility Feasibility Study, which recommends the location for the facility at Hensley Park on Eisenhower Avenue; and (b) referred the Feasibility Study to the Park and Recreation Commission for public hearing (April 21 is currently planned) regarding the proposed programming and construction of an All City Sports Facility at Hensley Park and requested the Commission to report back to City Council in late May or early June. The voting was as follows:

Pepper "aye" Gaines "aye"
Woodson "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Euille "aye" Macdonald "aye"
Smedberg "aye"

21. Consideration of Proposed Amendments to the City's Marketing Fund Application Guidelines.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 14, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 21, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

Questions were asked by Council concerning the City putting forth a good faith effort and Buy Alexandria, and having a representative from Historic Alexandria on the committee, which were answered by Mr. Jinks.

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Smedberg, seconded by Councilman Macdonald and carried unanimously, City Council adopted the proposed amendments to the Marketing Fund Application Guidelines as proposed by the Marketing Committee, with an addition of a slot on the Alexandria Marketing Committee from the Office of Historic Alexandria. The voting was as follows:

Smedberg "aye" Pepper "aye"
Macdonald "aye" Gaines "aye"
Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Woodson "aye"

22. Consideration of Regulatory Framework for the Alexandria Taxicab Industry, Including the Draft Ordinance.

City Council deferred action on this item.

REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FROM BOARDS, COMMISSIONS AND COMMITTEES

None

ORAL REPORTS BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL

(a) Councilman Macdonald noted a letter he gave to Council by the Council of Governments Board of Directors asking for feedback from local jurisdictions regarding a proposal by a blue ribbon Chesapeake Bay Finance Committee to do the important restoration work needed to improve the quality of the Chesapeake Bay. The idea is to look into establishing a regional financing authority that would look at a variety of options to raise additional revenue for the effort. He asked for support to authorize the Mayor to send the letter.

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Macdonald, seconded by Vice Mayor Pepper and carried unanimously, Council moved to authorize the Mayor to sign the letter to COG and forward it to the COG Board for its further consideration. The voting was as follows:

Macdonald "aye" Gaines "aye"
Pepper "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Euille "aye" Smedberg "aye"
Woodson "aye"

(b) Councilman Gaines said the COG Transportation Planning Board discussed the mitigation of the traffic impacts on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and the need for a coordinated communication system. COG is working with the University of Maryland putting forth a study. Capcom is the outcome to coordinate communications. It is at least one-third of the way through the funding to make Capcom a reality, with help from Congressman Moran who was able to get a $2 million appropriation.

(c) Councilman Gaines said he is the Council representative to the Carlyle Design Board and they are losing their architect, Tom Luebke, who was appointed as Secretary to the Commission on Fine Arts.

(d) Councilman Gaines said the Upper King Street Task Force met today. One concern was the artwork in the concourse, which is beautiful, but the concourse "open sign" is now broken and laying on the side of the road. There was also a request that a map be attached letting visitors know where they are in conjunction to Old Town.

Vice Mayor Pepper requested the minutes of the task force be sent to Council.

(e) Mayor Euille noted that next Wednesday, March 30, WMATA will hold a walk through and site visit of the construction work for the new entrance to the King Street Metro Station at Cameron Street at 10:00 a.m.

(f) Councilwoman Woodson said she was appointed to the National League of Cities Steering Committee for Finance Administration and Intergovernmental Relations. She noted that they would advocate and watch for the very tax issues Council talked about earlier with regard to the unfunded mandates and other legislative issues that NLC will be supporting. She said Council will get it as a policy statement.

(g) Councilman Gaines said he serves on the National League of Cities Public Safety and Crime Prevention Steering Committee and represented the City last weekend at the work shops. One was on gang prevention and the other was on regulating the transport of hazardous materials. Councilman Gaines said he attended two informational seminars and panel discussions. The first dealt with saving the Community Development Block Grant Program, and it is on the minds of every urban area. The second was a panel discussion on takings, dealing with the Kelo versus the City of New London Connecticut decision, which was recently argued before the Supreme Court, which dealt with eminent domain and takings by local government of private property on their waterfront.

ORAL PRESENTATIONS BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL

None.

ORAL REPORT FROM THE CITY MANAGER

The City Manager reported on the following: (a) the Police Department has worked on getting a regional pawn database, and it is a good example of something that COG has helped put together and Congressman Moran helped get seed money for; (b) an open house is scheduled for March 26, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. at Chinquapin Park Recreation Center to kick-off a year long 20th anniversary celebration; and (c) the City will conduct its annual spring clean-up collection event on April 2, 9, 16 and 23.

ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS

None.

OTHER

23. Consideration of City Council Schedule.

(A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated March 16, 2005, is on file in the office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 23, 3/22/05, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.)

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Vice Mayor Pepper, seconded by Councilwoman Woodson and carried unanimously, City Council adopted the City Council Schedule for the months of March through June, 2005, with the following additions and changes: (a) the work session with the Alexandria Housing Development Corporation at 5:30 p.m. before Council's Tuesday, April 12 legislative meeting (revised date) in the Council work room; (b) the annual "Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day," sponsored by the Office on Women, on Thursday, April 28. Kick off at 8:00 a.m. in the Vola Lawson Lobby at City Hall; and (c) the Alexandria Earth Day celebration on Saturday, April 30 from 9:00 a.m. to noon at Four Mile Run Park, 3700 Commonwealth Avenue.

Councilwoman Woodson suggested everyone be a mentor on Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day.

The voting was as follows:

Pepper "aye" Gaines "aye"
Woodson "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Euille "aye" Macdonald "aye"
Smedberg "aye"

* * * * * *

WHEREUPON, upon motion by Vice Mayor Pepper, seconded by Councilman Macdonald and carried unanimously, at 10:12 p.m., City Council adjourned the regular meeting of March 22, 2005. The voting was as follows:

Pepper "aye" Gaines "aye"
Macdonald "aye" Krupicka "aye"
Euille "aye" Smedberg "aye"
Woodson "aye"

* * * * * *

APPROVED BY:

_________________________
WILLIAM D. EUILLE MAYOR

ATTEST:

______________________________
Jackie M. Henderson, CMC, City Clerk
* * * * * *

This docket is subject to change.

* * * * *

Full-text copies of ordinances, resolutions, and agenda items are available in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of the Council.

* * * * *

Individuals with disabilities who require assistance or special arrangements to participate in the City Council meeting may call the City Clerk and Clerk of Council's Office at 838-4500 (TTY/TDD 838-5056). We request that you provide a 48-hour notice so that the proper arrangements may be made.

* * * * *