1. Calling the Roll. Mayor Euille called the meeting to order and the City Clerk called the roll. All members of Council were present. 2. Public Discussion Period. (a) Gary Carr, 216 Aspen Street, expressed condolences to the family of Emma Cabrera, noting that his daughter was taught by her. Mr. Carr spoke of the restoration of the running tracks and fields at Frances Hammond and George Washington Middle Schools, and he noted the lack of running tracks in the City, and there are no running track facilities after 5:00 p.m. in the City. He asked if they will build an artificial turf that is funded for this fiscal year at a park or at a school - does it fix a nonfunctional field at Hammond or a functional field in need of maintenance at Ben Brenman Park. He spoke to strategic planning goal #2, respects, protects and enhances the health of its citizens, and goal #4, the public schools should be among Northern Virginia's best. He said the field at Brenman will be fenced and empty during school hours, and a new field at Hammond will provide inspiration to the next generation of athletes and leaders. Mr. Carr said his daughter Christine will not be speaking, but she was going to speak to the lack of a fixed concession stand at T.C. Williams. Councilman Krupicka said Council will have a work session on the field and open space issues at the second legislative meeting in January, and it should be brought up in the monthly School meetings. (b) Jack Sullivan, 4300 Ivanhoe Place, asked that the two parcels east of 395 that are currently part of the Beauregard Corridor planning process be eliminated from the process. Any changes in the area should be considered within the existing Strawberry Hill/ Seminary Hill Small Area Plan, noting that the two parcels are not in the Beauregard corridor but separated by a major highway. He said many were closely involved in the crafting of the current Seminary Hill/Strawberry Hill plan, it has served the neighborhood well and they do not want to see it vitiated in this way and to allow two parcels to be carved out of the existing plan is akin to permitting spot zoning, and the current process will slow down consideration of the proposed development on the sites. Mr. Sullivan said Council can ask the Planning Director to eliminate these parcels from consideration. He said Seminary Hill has not yet had a chance to vote on the proposed change but will have consideration at its December meeting, and they will likely will be back formally requesting action if nothing positive has occurred in the meantime. Mayor Euille asked Mr. Sullivan to give Council a formal request in writing to get this started. (c) Eileen MacLennan, 903 N. Howard Street, spoke of political signs in residential areas, noting the three small median strips near her street and on each of them were posted 25 signs, and it is an eyesore and a safety hazard. She said the numbers of signs need to be limited and the signs should not go up more than 30 days prior to the election. (d) Gwen Fuller, 4017 Forth Worth Avenue, said she is a Council appointed member of the Alexandria Library Board, and she spoke of her concerns about the projected cuts suggested for the City's libraries. She noted the percentage of population that have library cards and use computers in the libraries and she asked the Council to support the libraries and think and re-think the deep cuts that have been proposed. (e) Eileen Bradley, 4705 W. Braddock Rd, Friends of Burke Branch Library, urged Council to do as little possible cutting in the library budget. She noted how the libraries operate on a daily basis and how citizens use the libraries. She said the library is not just a discretionary activity or an expendable activity, but it is a critical and essential service that provides help to all members of the community. (f) Susan Birchler, 311 Lannon Court, said she is speaking on behalf of 12-14 people who live in her neighborhood, and she spoke of the Norfolk Southern night operation, noting the noises and sounds that come from the operation at midnight and throughout the night. She asked the City to find a regulatory agency and have them see what Norfolk Southern is doing, to ask them to stop doing it at night, and to have Norfolk Southern out of their backyard. (g) Mindy Lyle, Cameron Station Civic Association, spoke of the City's winning the Virginia Municipal League communications award for the handling of the Norfolk Southern fiasco. She said the City should only enter competitions where the award was deserved. The purpose of the VML award was to recognize the commitment to creative, imaginative and cost effective local government, and the entries should reflect the highest standards of professionalism and innovation. Ms. Lyle said that if this was the basis of the award, the City should never have entered the competition. She said the 2,500 pages posted to the City's website was only done after a FOIA request from the Cameron Station Civic Association. Ironically, she said, the award-winning communication plan also failed to notify residents and the public of a recent ethanol spill until a day after it occurred. She said this should be classified as inept management in the City government and ineffective oversight by elected and appointed officials. The entry into the competition and the City's acceptance of the award are a slap in the face not only to Cameron Station, but Summers Grove and the entire West End community. She said residents are awakened in the middle of the night by the rail car operation, when it begins activity after 11:00 p.m. and continues to 4:00 a.m. She said they suggest a sound barrier with both a sound wall and a vegetative barrier should be constructed on the railroad side of the run and along the park. Ms. Lyle said another thought is to call David Lawson's home when the transloading operations start in the middle of the night, so that if he shares their pain, something might be done about it, along with calling Mayor Euille and Mr. Hartmann so they can see what the residents are going through. She said the City needs to actively look for solutions and not just give lip service to the problem. E-Government Manager Fifer explained the VML award, noting that the award specifically targeted the City's communications after the transloading operation had begun with the posting of the emails on the City's website and documentation of the project, powerpoint, memos, reports and correspondence. Mayor Euille said the request for a sound barrier is a sound suggestion, and he said there was discussion with Norfolk Southern for a sound barrier wall and they are committed to seeking permanent solutions to the problems. Vice Mayor Donley asked that the City Manager get back to Council with a report on the screening and landscaping, particularly evergreens that will last all year. (h) Nancy Jennings, 2115 Marlboro Drive, King Street/Beauregard Project, spoke of the King Street/Beauregard improvement project. Ms. Jennings said the project is good news, and the project is slated to improve capacity and flow on King Street by adding more turn lanes and restricting some movements, but it does not yet reduce congestion caused by three lanes of traffic being reduced to two. She said the City may now have the opportunity to widen King Street to the west between Beauregard and Dawes Avenue, and the project should be extended about 100 yards west to the City boundary with Fairfax County, widening that section to six lanes, as well as improving the sidewalks. She said she hoped the project would benefit them all by reducing overflow traffic on residential streets and allowing customers easier access to the businesses in that end of Alexandria. (i) Ingrid Sanden, 5238 Bessley Place, secretary of the Cameron Station Civic Association, said tone-deaf is what she wrote down when the discussion of the communications effort came up, because it equals spin and they are tired of spin. Ms. Sanden spoke of the proposed new stormwater tax structure, noting that at the November Cameron Station Civic Association meeting, City staff presented the new proposal to their residents, and the Cameron Station Homeowners Association is responsible for and maintains all sidewalks, private parks, a community center, streets and other services in their neighborhood, including stormwater management. She said the new tax would fall on each individual home, the various condo associations and the HOA itself, which they already pay for via their quarterly dues to the HOA - essentially the Cameron Station residents would pay the new stormwater tax twice and it would still be the HOA's responsibility to maintain the community stormsewers and not the City's responsibility. Ms. Sanden also spoke of the shuttle service to and from the Van Dorn Metro Station, noting that they are not allowed to use the drop off point at the kiss and ride because the shuttle buses are six inches too long and instead are dropped off on Eisenhower Avenue itself. She said they are begging Council to reopen and solve the issue. Director of Transportation and Environmental Services Baier explained the credit policy under consideration for the stormwater utility fee. Mr. Baier also explained that WMATA is trying to re-work the parking lot at the Metro Station and the City is working with WMATA on the problem. (j) Katy Cannady, 20 E. Oak Street, president, Alexandria League of Women Voters, spoke in support of a basic league principle that Americans should not be impeded in the exercise of the right to vote. She said she spoke to Registrar Tom Parkins about the 2012 election with the Presidential race, the Council seats and the School Board seats all on the ballot, using the resources he had in 2008, voters might wait in line to vote for 4-6 hours, and she asked how could the Council contemplate such a thing. The City will have to spend money - she has heard $200,000 in additional expenses, over what would have been needed for a Presidential election alone. Ms. Cannady said they were told last Spring that having Council elections in November would make things easier for voters and save money, but it doesn't look that way today. She said they need a Council election in 2011, as it is the only solution. (k) Amy Slack, 2307 E. Randolph Avenue, said she is a member of the Del Ray Citizens Association, the co-chair of the land use committee for that body, a member of the Federation, on the Federation of Civic Associations Board and their representative to the Wayfinding Program, and a member of the Traffic and Parking Board, and said she is an engaged and interested citizen and participates and she finds herself increasingly found irrelevant by many members of Council, who seeks the disengaged and disenfranchised and those who don't participate, at the expense of those who do. She said she found it increasingly disconcerting that those who have gone to the public meetings and hearings and tried to form and participate in their small area plans and policies on many different issues are being found irrelevant because the special interest groups are superseding what they have had to say. She said most recently on Monday evening, she was supposed to participant in a public hearing on the taxi industry, and the outcome of that was a u-turn by Council and the City Manager to form a workgroup, and she said she is a member of the workgroup and she asked each member of Council to contact her and let her know what is the intent of the workgroup and their feelings of the outcome of the workgroup. (l) Poul Hertel, 1217 Michigan Court, president, Old Town Civic Association, said the Planning Commission rejected the adult use text amendment on November 5, and during the public hearing, representatives of the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce, the Economic Development Partnership, and the Alexandria Convention and Visitors Association spoke in favor of keeping Alexandria a business friendly City, and the Commissioners decided that the right to buy objects and not harming any business overrode all other considerations. In the end, he said, the Commissioners proudly announced that Alexandria is still the only local jurisdiction that does not regulate adult stores. He said he is disappointed that the members of the business community pushed the City into something that could jeopardize all retailers on King Street. Mr. Hertel said that one of the Commissioners commented on how important the business community turnout had been for the result, so in the end it was about business is business, and being so afraid to appear business unfriendly. He said it now has to be porn friendly on King Street. He said Council has the authority to bring the text amendment on its own and he urged Council to do so, as it is not about being business friendly. (m) Anne Paul, 706 Prince Street, with the Alexandria Historical Society Board of Directors, spoke of their concern with the Alexandria libraries and special collections. She noted that Brooksie Koopman, chair of the Library Board, Dick Hobson, a member of the Library Board, and Linden Brenner, the deputy director of Libraries, are all present today. She said special collections opened in 1975, and the Historical Society collected over 12,000 documents for that particular library. She said the City has cut the hours of special collections to a bare minimum and is giving them a skeleton staff. She asked Council to reconsider what it is doing to their libraries and to special collections, as it is giving a setback to education. (n) Carla Fleming, 4918 A Barbour Drive, Alexandria, chair, Alexandria Regional Council of the United Way of the National Capital Area, said the United Way campaign has kicked off and the chair for the campaign this year is Delegate David Englin. She invited Council to join them on December 11 at the Alexandria mid-campaign launch at the Dunbar Alexandria Olympic Boys and Girls Club on Payne Street. She said the goal is to raise $1 million for the regional council of the United Way capital areas community impact club - #9001. She asked for Council's help in making a personal commitment to contribute $500 to the community impact fund, and they ask the residents of the community to match them and meet their challenge. REPORTS OF BOARDS, COMMISSIONS AND COMMITTEES ACTION CONSENT CALENDAR (3-4) Planning Commission 3. SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2009-0053 616 C SOUTH PICKETT STREET (Parcel Address: 600 South Pickett Street) AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR SHOP Public Hearing and Consideration of a request to operate a general repair automotive shop; zoned I/Industrial. Applicant: Qasem Rawad PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 3; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) 4. SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2009-0047 CARLYLE DEVELOPMENT - 333 JOHN CARLYLE STREET Public Hearing and Consideration of a request for an amendment to the special use permit for the Carlyle development to extend the time frame that office space is permitted in the southeastern corner of 333 John Carlyle Street; zoned CDD-I/Coordinated Development District. Applicant: 1900 Duke Street, LP by Kenneth Wire, attorney PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval w/amendments 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 4; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) END OF ACTION CONSENT CALENDAR WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Councilwoman Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council approved the action consent calendar, with the removal of item #4, which was considered under separate motion. The approval was as follows: 3. City Council approved the Planning Commission recommendation. The voting was as follows: Krupicka "aye" Donley "aye" Pepper "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Hughes "aye" Smedberg "aye" 4. SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2009-0047 CARLYLE DEVELOPMENT - 333 JOHN CARLYLE STREET Public Hearing and Consideration of a request for an amendment to the special use permit for the Carlyle development to extend the time frame that office space is permitted in the southeastern corner of 333 John Carlyle Street; zoned CDD-I/Coordinated Development District. Applicant: 1900 Duke Street, LP by Kenneth Wire, attorney PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval w/amendments 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 4; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) The following persons participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) Bill Harvey, 2151 Jamieson Avenue, #1809, spoke in opposition to the request for a waiver and asked that Council get a comprehensive assessment of all the vacant retail space in Carlyle. (b) Ken Wire, 1750 Tysons Blvd., McLean, attorney representing the applicant, spoke in favor of the request. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilwoman Pepper, seconded by Councilman Krupicka and carried 6-0, City Council closed the public hearing and approved the Planning Commission recommendation, as amended, with a change to condition #102C to delete the words "running until December 31, 2019, upon which any and all office uses shall be discontinued" and adding the words, "The permitted office lease term shall commence upon tenant occupancy of the space, but in no case shall the term extend beyond December 31, 2021." The voting was as follows: Pepper "aye" Donley "aye" Krupicka "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Hughes absent Smedberg "aye" REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CITY MANAGER 5. Public Hearing on the Report from the Naming Committee on Naming the Gymnasium and Pool at Charles Houston Recreation Center. (#6, 11/10/09) (A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated November 4, 2009, is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked as Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 5; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) The following person participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) Mr. Jim Henson, 607 S. Pitt Street, chair of the Charles Houston Recreation Center ad-hoc naming committee, expressed support for the naming of the gym and pool at the Charles Houston Rec Center, the gym to be named after Coach Louis Johnson and Morris Seibert, and the pool to be named The Memorial Pool in honor of the nine African American youths who drowned in the Potomac River, since they were not permitted to swim in the Alexandria Municipal Pool before integration. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilwoman Pepper, seconded by Councilwoman Hughes and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearing and named the rooms at the Charles Houston Recreation Center as follows: The gymnasium be named after Coach Louis Johnson and Mr. Morris Seibert and the swimming pool be named The Memorial Pool in honor of the nine African American youths who drowned in the Potomac River, recognizing that before integration, African American youths were not permitted to swim in the Alexandria Municipal Pool. The voting was as follows: Pepper "aye" Donley "aye" Hughes "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye" Smedberg "aye" Mayor Euille said he hoped that the placement of the names for the memorialization does not take long. 6. Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) Proposed Route I-395 Direct Access Ramp Alternatives for the BRAC-133 Project at Mark Center: a) Presentation of Alternatives by Representatives of the Virginia Department of Transportation; and b) Preliminary Public Hearing on Proposed Alternatives. (A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated November 16, 2009, is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked as Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 6; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) Director of Transportation and Environmental Services Baier, along with Paul Perdoe, vice president of Baker Engineering, and Transportation Division Chief Garbacz, made a presentation of the alternatives and they responded to questions of City Council. The following persons participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) Nancy Jennings, 2115 Marlboro Drive, member of the BRAC Advisory Commission and president of the Seminary Hill Association, speaking for Seminary Hill, said they have asked for direct access to and from all 395 lanes into the BRAC site, and said she sensed they would modify their position to be a little more open to other alternatives after they meet again. (b) Laura Medhurst, 1704 Crestwood Drive, member of the Environmental Policy Commission, said the Commission would like to see the Winkler Preserve preserved, and they support any proposal which encourages use of public transportation or carpooling. (c) Jack Sulser, 917 N. Ashton Street, said anyone who traverses the Beauregard/Seminary area regularly is already well aware how the traffic backs up every morning for the employees going into the Mark Center, and yet somehow in less than two years, that traffic will have to accommodate 6,400 DOD employees and the IDA has announced that they wish to put up another building for an additional 400 people, and the additional turn lanes will not be ready by then. Any kind of direct access from 395 is many years in the future. Mr. Sulser said the alternative plans need clarification, and it would help to have good estimates of the number of vehicles to be affected by each of the alternatives. He said he would favor only those alternatives that do not involve encroachment on the nature preserve. (d) Chet Humberd, 4850 Mark Center Drive, director of administration for the Institute for Defense Analysis, said the newly approved IDA office building faces directly on the preserve and nearly abuts the property line, and the Army's development has already done great damage to the Mark Center plan by eliminating open space, cutting down trees and building on top of the planned campus green. He said they learned that VDOT and City staff were considering several alternatives for providing direct access to 395 for the BRAC 133 complex, and they discovered that several of them would have serious adverse impacts on IDA. Alternative B-1 would have the access ramp end not in the public road structure but directly into the IDA owned driveway that provides access to and from their parking garage. Mr. Humberd said alternative B-2, D and E would put an access ramp partially behind IDA's current building and partially not in the Preserve but on IDA's property, and it would also significantly effect the security profile by wrapping IDA with a public road with essentially no stand-off distance. He said that if an access ramp is required, then it seems fair that the main burden of that ramp fall on the BRAC 133 property and not on its neighbors or the community at large, and they recommend the City focus its attention on alternatives A-1, A-2 and C, which affect the BRAC property alone. (e) Mark Rosen, 4825 Mark Center Drive, with the Center for Naval Analysis, said their 900 employees are at 4825 and 2900 Mark Center Drive, and he associated himself with some of the comments of Mr. Humberd. He said the Planning staff had showed them a ramping structure in which a ramp would directly enter the Mark Center, which was northeast of building 4825 and would directly access into the road structure in the Mark Center. Unfortunately, none of the plans which have been offered by VDOT are anywhere close to that and they would hope that the City would take a hard look at the proposals. He asked the City to take another look at the proposals and hoped they would dust off the original one the Planning staff had come up with. He said direct access into the Army parking garage does not seem to be equitable or appropriate. (f) Alice Cave, 3736 Gunston Road, spoke in support of their neighbors in Seminary Hills concerning a possible direct access to the BRAC 133 installation from 395. She said DOD should be forced to pay for all transportation improvements in the area, and the best option is to keep traffic off the Seminary Road exit and provide a dedicated direct access from 395. She said desirable attributes include HOV access, service to places beyond that BRAC installation, no encroachment on the Winkler Preserve and a sensible solution and not just the cheapest option. She said if improvements were funded and designed today for the transportation improvements, they heard that it would take four years to complete, and BRAC 133 is scheduled to open in less than two years. Ms. Cave said the project should not be considered complete and open without direct access from 395, and she didn't understand why there was no recourse to challenge the Army on it. She noted increased consequences of poor BRAC transportation solutions. (g) Duncan Blair, 524 King Street, attorney representing the Winkler Botanical Preserve, said they are the owner of a defined area established in 1979 to promote the research, education and enjoyment of native plants and species and is not a piece of land for which a road can be built on without dire consequences to the habitat and environment that has been established over the last 20 years. A one lane road will not be one lane, as it impacts the Preserve - it is an integral integrated eco-system of innovative technologies and stormwater management disregard any of it as dire consequences on the whole. Mr. Blair said the project and the Foundation cannot support any of the alternatives which will have a negative impact on the nature preserve. (h) Geoffrey Goodale, 493 Naylor Place, president, Brookville Seminary Valley Civic Association, a member of the board of directors of the Alexandria Federation of Civic Associations, and the vice chair of the BRAC Mark Center Advisory Group, said he is speaking as vice chair of the Advisory Group. He gave Council a copy of a resolution passed by the Alexandria Federation of Civic Associations urging the Council to request that VDOT conduct one public hearing before issuing its interchange justification report. Mr. Goodale said the Advisory Group adopted guiding principles relating to VDOT's BRAC access IJR, and a number of the options currently being considered by VDOT include encroachment upon the Winkler Preserve and the IDA and seem undesirable. He went over the guiding principles, noting that it should be transit oriented and accommodate HOV lanes; be consistent with the City's transportation master plan as well as the TMP being developed as part of the BRAC Center process; provide for amenities incentives to encourage alternate transit use; reduce traffic impacts to the 395 and Seminary Road interchange; serve the entire Mark Center campus; protect the Winkler Preserve; be designed for long-term use, seeking the most transit efficient alternative, not necessarily the least expensive or more expedient; the improvements needs to consider and accommodate future development in the surrounding areas, including Mark Center and the Beauregard Corridor; should be funded by the Federal Government through the design and construction phase; and recommends the City urgently work to develop and implement solutions to the current and projected traffic problems on Seminary Road from George Mason to Beauregard, and at least to Kenmore Avenue on the east and consider the Route 7/King Street corridor from Skyline to 395 rather than just Seminary Road, and the City should review traffic solutions along Beauregard Street to the intersection with Little River Turnpike. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Vice Mayor Donley, seconded by Councilman Smedberg and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearing. The voting was as follows: Donley "aye" Fannon "aye" Smedberg "aye" Hughes "aye" Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye" Pepper "aye" WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Smedberg, seconded by Councilwoman Hughes and carried 6-0, City Council held the public hearing to receive testimony on the seven direct access ramp alternatives being considered by VDOT for their IJR analysis; requested the Transportation Commission to hold a second public hearing on this matter on December 2, 2009; and scheduled the item for final Council public hearing and consideration on Saturday, December 12, 2009. The voting was as follows: Smedberg "aye" Donley absent Hughes "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye" Pepper "aye" Item 7 and 8 were heard together: 7. Public Hearing on the City's Proposed Legislative Package for the 2010 Virginia General Assembly. 8. Public Hearing on 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. (A copy of the City Manager's memorandums dated November 21, 2009, and October 19, 2009, are on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked as Exhibit No. 1 of Item No's 7 and 8; 11/21/09, and are incorporated as part of this record by reference.) The following person participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) Monique Miles, 3304 Old Dominion Blvd., spoke about the proposed immigration measures and she encouraged the City to view the long term cause the effect the measures would have on Alexandria. She spoke to 8 USC 1601, the national policy concerning welfare and immigration, and 8 USC 1373, which governs communication between government agencies and federal immigration authorities, 8 USC 1623, limitation on eligibility for preferential treatment of aliens not lawfully present on the basis of residence for higher education benefits. She spoke of the federal government prohibition of local governments from giving benefits and services to illegal immigrants, and Virginia has not passed a law granting the permission for the local government to do so, and a resolution opposing further restrictions would not make any sense. Ms. Miles said regarding sanctuary policies, the Federal law prohibits states and local governments from restricting an officer or government agencies ability to communicate with Federal immigration officials, and any measures to limit communication with the Police Department or local government agencies would be preempted under the Federal law. She spoke of the Northern Virginia Regional Gang Task Force report on the crack down on illegal immigrants, which are driving gangs out of Northern Virginia and into Maryland and D.C., and she encouraged Council to look at the report. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Smedberg, seconded by Vice Mayor Donley and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearings. The voting was as follows: Smedberg "aye" Fannon "aye" Donley "aye" Hughes "aye" Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye" Pepper "aye" WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Smedberg, seconded by Vice Mayor Donley and carried unanimously, City Council held the public hearing, received the report and scheduled it for final adoption on November 24, 2009. The voting was as follows: Smedberg "aye" Fannon "aye" Donley "aye" Hughes "aye" Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye" Pepper "aye" REPORTS OF BOARDS, COMMISSIONS AND COMMITTEES (continued) Planning Commission (continued) 9. SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2009-0046 29 EAST WALNUT STREET SUBSTANDARD LOT CONSTRUCTION Public Hearing and Consideration for reapproval to construct a single family dwelling on a substandard lot; zoned R-2-5/Single and Two-Family. Applicant: Mark Poskaitis PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 9; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) Planner Rafferty and Planning and Zoning Deputy Director Ross made a presentation of the report and responded to questions of City Council. The following persons participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) Caroline Wedding, 28 E. Maple Street, said her back yard adjoins 29 E. Walnut Street and her back yard is six feet lower and she was concerned about drainage and flooding. (b) David Williamson, 22 E. Walnut Street, said he is speaking for himself and Leslie Jones, who are neighbors on Walnut Street, and he spoke in opposition to the permit and spoke about the permit application process and to the loss of shade trees, permeable surface and open space, all of which contribute to flooding and pollution problems. Ms. Ross and Mr. Baier, Director, Transportation and Environmental Services, responded to comments from the speakers. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilwoman Hughes, seconded by Councilman Smedberg and carried unanimously, Council called the question. The voting was as follows: Hughes "aye" Donley "aye" Smedberg "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye" Pepper "aye" WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Fannon, seconded by Councilwoman Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearing and approved the Planning Commission recommendation, with an amendment on page 6, recommendation #8, the words "plot plan" should read "grading plan." The voting was as follows: Fannon "aye" Donley "aye" Pepper "aye" Hughes "aye" Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye" Smedberg "aye" 10. TEXT AMENDMENT #2009-0005 ADMINISTRATIVE APPROVAL FOR SIGNS IN HISTORIC DISTRICTS Public Hearing and Consideration of an amendment to the City's Zoning Ordinance to allow administrative approval of some signs in the historic districts. Staff: Department of Planning and Zoning PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Initiated by Planning Commission 6-0 Recommend Approval 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 10; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) The following person participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) M. Catherine Puskar, 2200 Clarendon Blvd., Suite 1300, Arlington, representing the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce, spoke in support of the text amendment, noting that as to the size of the signs, by right under the Zoning Ordinance you can get one square foot of signage per linear foot of frontage, and they suggest that it should be able to be done administratively as well, and they asked that staff be cognizant that when it goes for review before the BAR, that if it is working correctly if they might be able to increase the size of the signs if not to one square linear foot to .75. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Councilwoman Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearing. The voting was as follows: Krupicka "aye" Donley "aye" Pepper "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Hughes "aye" Smedberg "aye" WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Councilman Smedberg and carried 6-0, City Council approved the Planning Commission recommendation, and to add to the look-back provision that staff has recommended to revisit it in the future to see how it is going, a condition that it look at the size of the signs as well during that review. The voting was as follows: Krupicka "aye" Donley "aye" Smedberg "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Hughes "aye" Pepper absent 11. TEXT AMENDMENT #2009-0007 PUBLIC DISCLOSURE Public Hearing and Consideration of an amendment to add Section 11-350 of the Zoning Ordinance requiring public disclosure of parties having an ownership interest in an applicant or the real estate which is the subject of an application. Staff: Office of the City Attorney and Planning and Zoning Department PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Initiated by Planning Commission 6-0 Recommend Approval 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 11; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Councilman Smedberg and carried 6-0, City Council closed the public hearing and approved the Planning Commission recommendation. The voting was as follows: Krupicka "aye" Donley "aye" Smedberg "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Hughes "aye" Pepper absent 12. SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2009-0043 115 KING STREET LANDINI'S RESTAURANT - VALET PARKING Public Hearing and Consideration of a request for valet parking; zoned KR/King Street Retail. Applicant: Noe Landini PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 12; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Vice Mayor Donley and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearing and approved the Planning Commission recommendation. The voting was as follows: Krupicka "aye" Fannon "aye" Donley "aye" Hughes "aye" Euille "aye" Pepper "aye" Smedberg "aye" 13. SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2009-0052 118 KING STREET PIZZERIA PARADISO RESTAURANT Public Hearing and Consideration of a request to operate a restaurant; zoned KR/King Street Retail. Applicant: Paradise OT, LLC represented by M. Catharine Puskar, attorney PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval w/amendments 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 13; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) Planner Randall and Ms. Ross made a presentation of the report and responded to questions of City Council. The following persons participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) M. Catherine Puskar, 2200 Clarendon Blvd., Suite 1300, Arlington, attorney representing the applicant, spoke in favor of the request and spoke to the off premises sales of single beers and requested that the applicant be allowed to have single sales of beer and asked Council to eliminate condition 7 and revise condition 8 to say "on and off-premises alcohol sales may be permitted. Alcohol sold for off-premises consumption is limited to sales in conjunction with the take-out order of food." (b) Poul Hertel, 1217 Michigan Court, president, Old Town Civic Association, spoke about the Small Area Plan and the restaurant policy, which speaks about parking and retaining a mix of restaurants and shops, and the loss of the retailer in the location is a concern and they would like the staff reports and applications to address that directly, as many applicants say "not applicable" when it comes to the application of the parking impact. He said they would like more adherence to the Small Area Plan and restaurant policy. He spoke of the need for a comprehensive study to ensure it is not a first-come, first-serve but that it serves public purpose and the public purpose dictates that the amendments and changes to it ought to be put in place. Mr. Hertel said they need to retain the residential retail restaurant mix that works for the community. (c) Amy Slack, 2307 E. Randolph Avenue, spoke in support of the Police Department's recommendation that single sales not be allowed for this establishment, and if Council wants to make a change, it should not do it on an ad-hoc basis but that it go through a public process to allow the entire community to look at it. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Councilman Smedberg and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearing. The voting was as follows: Krupicka "aye" Donley "aye" Smedberg "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Hughes "aye" Pepper "aye" WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Councilwoman Pepper and carried 4-3, City Council approved the Planning Commission recommendation, with the acceptance of the amendment to condition #6, to delete the words "No delivery service shall be available from the restaurant (P&Z)" and add the words "or adequate loading zone for delivery vehicles. The use, adequacy and other limitations of a nearby loading zone for delivery service vehicles will be subject to a determination by the Directors of Planning and Zoning and Transportation and Environmental Services that there are sufficient existing, available, well-located zones for use by Old Town restaurants desiring delivery service." Council asked staff to use whatever process is appropriate to review the issue of single sales for restaurants and other uses, to look at it City-wide, and after the study of single sales prohibition, if new language or approach comes up, it can be applied to this application. The voting was as follows: Krupicka "aye" Donley "no" Pepper "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Hughes "no" Smedberg "no" 14. SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2009-0051 902 & 904 KING STREET REDROCKS PIZZA NAPOLETANA RESTAURANT Public Hearing and Consideration of a request to operate a restaurant zoned KR/King Street Retail. Applicant: Firebrick Food Group, Inc., represented by Duncan Blair, attorney PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval w/amendments 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 14; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) The following person participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) Duncan Blair, 524 King Street, attorney representing the applicant, spoke in favor of the application. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Vice Mayor Donley, seconded by Councilwoman Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearing and approved the Planning Commission recommendation. The voting was as follows: Donley "aye" Fannon "aye" Pepper "aye" Hughes "aye" Euille "aye" Krupicka "aye" Smedberg "aye" 15. SPECIAL USE PERMIT #2009-0054 2615-2619 MOUNT VERNON AVENUE LOS TIOS GRILL RESTAURANT EXPANSION Public Hearing and Consideration of a request to expand an existing restaurant and a request for a parking reduction; zoned CL/Commercial Low. Applicant: Mejia Brothers, Inc. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: Recommend Approval w/amendments 6-0 (A copy of the Planning Commission report dated November 21, 2009 is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 15; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) Mr. Randall, with Planning and Zoning, made a presentation of the application The following person participated in the public hearing on this item: (a) Amy Slack, 2307 E. Randolph Avenue, with the Del Ray Citizens Association, spoke in support of the application, noting that they have asked that the signs for their off-premises parking be visible from the street; the applicant has asked for a loading zone and by putting that in front, it would help with the business and the neighborhood; and with the valet parking, there is nothing that limits valet parking to Old Town, and rather than the applicant having to come back, they would allow a condition to allow the applicant to provide valet parking in accordance with the ordinance in place for Old Town. She asked the City to put a bicycle rack in front of the restaurant. WHEREUPON, upon motion by Councilman Krupicka, seconded by Councilwoman Pepper and carried unanimously, City Council closed the public hearing and approved the Planning Commission recommendation. There was a discussion of the valet parking among Council and staff. The voting was as follows: Krupicka "aye" Donley "aye" Pepper "aye" Fannon "aye" Euille "aye" Hughes "aye" Smedberg "aye" ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS 16. Public Hearing, Second Reading and Final Passage of an Ordinance to Amend and Reordain Section 3-2-246 (Exemptions; Limitations on Application) of Article N (Tax on Meals Sold by Restaurants) of the Alexandria City Code (#8, 11/10/2009) [ROLL-CALL VOTE] (A copy of the City Manager's memorandum dated October 28, 2009, is on file in the Office of the City Clerk and Clerk of Council, marked as Exhibit No. 1 of Item No. 16; 11/21/09, 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 as Exhibit No. 2 of Item No. 16; 11/21/09, 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. 16; 11/21/09, and is incorporated as part of this record by reference.) WHEREUPON, upon motion by Vice Mayor Donley, seconded by Councilwoman Hughes and carried unanimously by roll-call vote, City Council closed the public hearing and adopted an ordinance to amend and reordain Section 3-2-246 (exemptions, limitations on application) of Article N (tax on meals sold by restaurants) of the Alexandria City Code. The voting was as follows: Donley "aye" Fannon "aye" Hughes "aye" Krupicka "aye" Euille "aye" Pepper "aye" Smedberg "aye" The ordinance reads as follows: