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Office of the City Clerk
November 25, 2009

City Council Held a Work Session
on the Potomac Yard Plan at 5:30 p.m.
in the City Council Work Room.


Regular Meeting
Tuesday, November 24, 2009 - - 7:00 p.m.

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OPENING

1. Calling the Roll.

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

2. Moment of Silence and Pledge of Allegiance.

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

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

(a) The Regular Meeting Minutes of November 10, 2009.

City Council approved the regular meeting minutes of November 10, 2009.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

RECOGNITION OF YOUTH BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL

City Council recognized the Department of Human Services, the Capital Area Food Bank and Giant Food for its donation of 100 $50 gift cards for the Department of Human Services holiday sharing program.

PROCLAMATIONS

4. Presentation of a Proclamation Declaring December 5, 2009 as the 39th Anniversary of the Campagna Center's Scottish Christmas Walk.

City Council endorsed the proclamation.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

5. Recognition of the Alexandria Citizens Academy Graduates.

City Council recognized the graduates.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CITY MANAGER

CONSENT CALENDAR (6-9)

(Resignations and Uncontested Appointments)

6. Receipt of the Following Resignations From Members of Boards, Commissions and Committees:

7. Uncontested Appointments to Boards, Commissions and Committees:

(a) Affordable Housing Advisory Committee
1 Designee of the Commission on Aging

(b) Archaeological Commission
1 Member From the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce

(c) Citizen Corps Council
1 Representative of the Emergency Medical Services Council,
Medical Reserve Corps, or a Person With Emergency Medical
Response Experience

(d) Commission for the Arts
1 Member Who Represents the Public-at-Large, as Arts Consumer
and Participant

(e) Commission on Persons With Disabilities
1 Citizen Member
1 Representative of the Commission on Aging

(f) Community Services Board
1 Citizen Member

(g) Environmental Policy Commission
1 Citizen-at-Large Member

(h) Potomac Yard Advisory Committee
1 Member Representing the Potomac Yard Area
1 Member Representing the Potomac West Area

(i) Sister Cities Committee
1 Citizen Member

(j) Waterfront Committee
1 Representative From the Environmental Policy Commission
1 At-Large Citizen Representative Other Than From Areas Noted
(Resides West of Washington Street)
1 Representative From the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce
1 Representative From the Archaeological Commission

(Reports and Recommendations of the City Manager)

8. Consideration of Grant Application to the SAFER (Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response) Grant Program, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency for Funding for Firefighters.

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

END OF CONSENT CALENDAR

City Council adopted the consent calendar, with the removal of item #8 and considered it under separate motion. The City Manager's recommendations were as follows:

6. City Council accepted the following resignations with regret: (a) Allison Taylor, Alexandria-Caen Sister City Committee; (b) Kenneth Hill, Alexandria-Gyumri Sister City Committee; (c) JoAnn Maldonado, Human Rights Commission; and (d) Patrick Mallory and Christine Samonds, Social Services Advisory Board.

7. City Council made the following appointments: (a) reappointed William Harris as the one designee of the Commission on Aging to the Affordable Housing Advisory Committee; (b) appointed Ellen Hamilton as the one member from the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce to the Archaeological Commission; (c) appointed David Adams as the one representative of the Emergency Medical Services Council, Medical Reserve Corps, or a person with emergency medical response experience to the Citizen Corps Council; (d) reappointed Barbara Boehm as the one member who represents the public-at-large, as arts consumers and participants, to the Commission for the Arts; (e) appointed Fred Scheigert (identified a disability) as the one citizen member and reappointed Mary Parker as the one representative of the Commission on Aging to the Commission on Persons with Disabilities; (f) appointed Thomas Craig, III as the one citizen member to the Community Services Board; (g) reappointed Peter Pennington as the one citizen-at-large member to the Environmental Policy Commission; (h) reappointed Maria Wasowski as the one member representing the Potomac Yard Area and appointed Jennifer Taylor as the one member representing the Potomac West Area to the Potomac Yard Advisory Committee; (i) reappointed Dianne Markowitz as the one citizen member to the Sister Cities Committee; (j) reappointed Peter Pennington as the one representative from the Environmental Policy Commission, reappointed Nathan Macek as the one at-large citizen representative other than from areas noted (resides west of Washington Street), reappointed Michael Geissinger as the one representative from the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce and reappointed Pete Petersen as the one representative from the Archaeological Commission to the Waterfront Committee.

8. City Council: 1. approved the submission of the grant application (due December 18, 2009); and 2. authorized the City Manager to execute the necessary documents that may be required. (separate motion)

9. City Council authorized $4,148,500 in capital project allocations and planned expenditures for the capital projects as detailed in the Capital Improvement Expenditure Summary.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

CONTESTED APPOINTMENTS

10. Commission For the Arts
1 Member Who Has Expertise in the Arts, Either as Practitioners of
Various Arts Disciplines or as Professional Administrators
Working in the Field

City Council reappointed David Livingston as the one member who has expertise in the arts, either as practitioners of various arts disciplines or as professional administrators working in the field to the Commission for the Arts.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

11. Commission on Information Technology
5 Citizen-at-Large Members

City Council reappointed Daniel Brooks and Kostas Liopiros and appointed Nina Baliga, Steven Cooper and Bob Soltys as the five citizen-at-large members to the Commission on Information Technology.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

12. Community Criminal Justice Board
1 Citizen Member

City Council reappointed Raighne Delaney as the one citizen member to the Community Criminal Justice Board.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CITY MANAGER FOR DISCUSSION

13. Consideration of Adoption of the City’s Legislative Package for the 2010 Virginia General Assembly.

City Council adopted items A.1 and A.2, B.1 through B.11, C.1 through C.9, D.1 and D.2 as positions in the City's Legislative Package for the 2009 General Assembly session.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

14. Consideration of the Following Charter Amendments: 1. An Amendment to Increase the Membership of the City’s Board of Review of Real Estate Assessments (Sometimes Referred To As The Board of Equalization) From Five To Nine; 2. An Amendment To Authorize the Board of Review of Real Estate Assessments to Create Panels of Three Members To Hear Assessment Appeals. All Three Members Would Have To Be Present To Constitute a Quorum For Any Appeal. If The Panel Decision is Unanimous With Regard To An Appeal, The Panel Decision Would Be Final Unless the Full Board Voted To Hear The Appeal. The Full Board Would Also Hear Any Appeals in Which a Panel Decision Was Not Unanimous; and 3. An Amendment To Authorize the Board of Zoning Appeals To Grant a Variance To a Property Owner To “Alleviate a Clearly Demonstrable Hardship.” Charter Language Currently Requires a Property Owner to Demonstrate That The Hardship is “Approaching Confiscation.” This Change Would Bring Charter Language Into Conformity With The Language in State Law, Which Was Amended in the 2009 General Assembly Session.

City Council adopted items A.1 and A.2, B.1 through B.11, C.1 through C.9, D.1 and D.2 as positions in the City's Legislative Package for the 2009 General Assembly session.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

15. Receipt of Updated Special Events Policies.

City Council: 1. received the updated special events policies; 2. will hold a Council work session on Tuesday, December 8 to discuss special events policies and procedures; and 3. scheduled a public hearing on the special events policies on Saturday, January 23, 2010.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FROM BOARDS, COMMISSIONS AND COMMITTEES
None

ORAL REPORTS BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL

and

ORAL PRESENTATIONS BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL

Vice Mayor Donley said he is the representative to the Council on the Eisenhower Partnership, and there is an on-going debate about funding for the current fiscal year. In the past they were receiving $26,000 annually, they were proposed to be cut, economic development money in the final budget got restored, and they thought they got their money, but they didn't. He said there seemed to be a communication/action issue, and Council will be getting a letter to restore the funding. Vice Mayor Donley said he would work with the City Manager to see what they can come up with in terms of the accommodation for the Eisenhower Partnership and will report back to Council or the City Manager will bring something to Council for consideration.

Councilman Krupicka said the City Schools meeting met last night and the Schools continue to refine their projections about capacity and space needs. He said they saw the first draft last night of a list of opportunities for the City and Schools to share and collaborate to share services, reduce costs and bring about efficiencies, and there is work to do to bring those things to closure. He said he wanted Council to know there is a concrete and thoughtful list of items being reviewed by the Schools and City staff. He said he is hopeful they will see some of those in the next budget.

Councilman Krupicka said the previous executive director of the Eisenhower Partnership understood that the City was planning to phase out funding of the Eisenhower Partnership, the idea being that every other business organization doesn't receive City funding. The Eisenhower Partnership has reached a level of maturity that would enable them to sustain themselves. If it is revisited, it should be revisited for every business association in the City at the same time.

Councilman Fannon said many City employees live outside the area and he wanted to let the City employees know about the opportunities for Police, Fire and Sheriff Departments grants, so on December 14 he will have a seminar with Shane Cochran and Tom David from the Office of Housing, at 8 a.m., where it will have some members of the real estate community to talk about options to allow the City employees to take advantage of the real estate market while it is down and give them the opportunity to move to Alexandria.

Councilman Fannon said the Turkey Trot race is this Thursday, Thanksgiving day, at Cora Kelly school at 10 a.m.

Mayor Euille said the City Manager received a presidents award for excellence from the Virginia Building and Code Officials Association for outstanding achievement and support of their mission, which is protection of the health, safety and welfare of all persons who live, work or visit Virginia.

Councilwoman Pepper invited everyone to attend the Mayor's Prayer Breakfast at 7:30 a.m. on November 25 at the Mark Center Hilton.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

ORAL REPORT FROM THE CITY MANAGER

None.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS

16. Consideration of Grant Application and Resolution for a Transportation Enhancement Program Grant from VDOT, to Partially Fund Restoration of Gadsby’s Tavern Museum Ice Well. [ROLL-CALL VOTE]

City Council adopted the resolution and authorized the City Manager to: 1. reapply for a federal transportation enhancement program grant to partially fund the restoration of Gadsby's Tavern Museum ice well in the amount of $200,000; and 2. authorized the City Manager to execute all necessary documents that may be required. (RES. NO. 2370)
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

17. Consideration of a Resolution Establishing FY 2011 Budget Targets for the Alexandria City Government and the Alexandria Public Schools. [ROLL-CALL VOTE]

City Council approved a resolution establishing FY 2011 budget targets for the Alexandria City government and the Alexandria Public Schools. (RES. NO. 2371)
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

OTHER

18. Consideration of City Council Schedule.

City Council adopted the schedule with the following notations: 1. scheduled the annual meeting of the Alexandria Transit Company stockholders at 6:45 p.m. before Council's Tuesday, February 23 legislative meeting; and 2. received the revised calendar which includes: the 6th annual Mayor's Unity Breakfast on Wednesday, November 25 from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the Mark Center Hilton, 5000 Seminary Road; the annual Inova Hanukkah Celebration on Tuesday, December 15 at 5:30 p.m. at the Inova Alexandria Hospital Atrium, 4320 Seminary Road; the "First Responder's Night" hosted by the Andrew Jackson Lodge #120 on Thursday, February 18 at the George Washington Masonic Memorial (dinner at 6:15 p.m. and presentation following in the Association's Lodge room); and moved the Tuesday, January 12 work session on King Street retail and the Parking work session to Tuesday, February 9 and moved the Tuesday, January 26 work session on Urban Forestry and Athletic Fields to Tuesday, January 12, and on Tuesday, January 26 will have the Potomac Yard Council/Planning Commission joint work session.

Councilwoman Hughes noted that she would be absent from the December 12 public hearing meeting, as she has her UVA Sorenson graduation.

Deputy City Manager Evans confirmed that Governor Kaine will be in Alexandria on December 1 at 2 p.m., and it will be at Chadwick's Restaurant.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

19. Consideration of a License Agreement with TCG, Inc., Virginia, to Install Conduits and Fiber Optic Cable in the Public Rights-of-Way.

City Council approved the five-year license agreement with TCG Virginia, Inc., and authorized the City Manager to execute the license agreement and to take any other actions that are necessary to implement the agreement.
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

EXECUTIVE SESSION

20. Consideration of Convening an Executive Session Closed to the Public for the Purpose of Consultation with Legal Counsel Regarding A Legal Matter.

At 8:33 p.m., City Council convened in executive session, pursuant to Sections 2.2-3711(a)(7) of the Code of Virginia for the purpose of consultation with legal counsel regarding specific legal matters.

At 8:43 p.m., City Council reconvened the meeting.

City Council adopted the resolution pertaining to the Executive Session. (RES. NO. 2372)
Council Action:_________________________________________________________

The meeting was adjourned at 8:44 p.m.

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Note: The action docket is a summary of Council's meeting deliberations prepared largely for staff follow-up. Formal minutes of the meeting, when approved by Council, become the official record of the meeting and of Council decisions made at the meeting.




This docket is subject to change.

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Full-text copies of ordinances, resolutions, and agenda items are available in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of the Council. Meeting materials are also available on-line at alexandriava.gov/council
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City Council meetings are closed-captioned for the hearing impaired.
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