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 Meetings of City Council: (a) The Public Hearing Meeting Minutes of February 25, 2012; and (b) The Regular Meeting Minutes of February 28, 2012. City Council approved the public hearing meeting minutes of February 25, 2012 and the regular meeting minutes of February 28, 2012. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ RECOGNITION OF YOUTH BY MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL 4. Recognition of the Third Annual Jesuit Rugby Classic To Be Held in the City March 17-18, 2012. City Council recognized the rugby classic. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ PROCLAMATIONS None. REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CITY MANAGER CONSENT CALENDAR (5-10) (Resignations and Uncontested Appointments) 5. Receipt of the Following Resignation from Members of Boards, Commissions and Committees: (a) Affordable Housing Advisory Committee Dimitri M. Warren (b) Commission for the Arts Leisa Collins 6. Uncontested Appointments to Boards, Commissions and Committees: (a) Commission for Women 1 Citizen Member (b) Commission on HIV/AIDS 1 Citizen Member (c) Community Criminal Justice Board 1 Citizen Member (d) Community Policy and Management Team 1 Parent Member Who is Not an Employee of Any Public or Private Program Which Receives Funds From the Comprehensive Services Act (e) Community Services Board 1 Licensed Physician Representative (f) Economic Opportunities Commission 1 Representative for Councilman Krupicka (g) Environmental Policy Commission 1 Member From the Field of Environmental Sciences (e.g., Environmental/Sanitary Engineering, Ecology, Geology, Botany, Hydrology, Chemistry) or Who Have Alexandria Waterfront Expertise (h) Historic Alexandria Resources Commission 1 Planning District II Representative (i) Landlord Tenants Relations Board 1 Resident Member Who is Neither a Landlord or a Tenant (j) Sister Cities Committee 1 Citizen Member (k) Urban Design Advisory Committee 1 Old Town Business Representative (Reports and Recommendations of the City Manager) 7. Consideration of a Grant Application to the Virginia Department of Health for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Summer Food Service Program for Children. 8. Consideration of a Grant Application to the Rescue Squad Assistance Fund Grant Program, Department of Health, Commonwealth of Virginia. 9. Consideration of a Grant Application for the United States Environmental Protection Agency for the 2011-2012 Chesapeake Bay Green Streets-Green Jobs Initiative Grants Program. (Ordinances for Introduction) 10. Introduction and First Reading. Consideration. Passage on First Reading of an Ordinance Authorizing and Empowering the Issuance, Sale and Delivery of General Obligation Bonds to Finance Various City and School Capital Projects. END OF CONSENT CALENDAR City Council approved the consent calendar. The City Manager's recommendations were as follows: 5. City Council accepted the following resignations with regret: (a) Dimitri M. Warren, Affordable Housing Advisory Committee; and (b) Leisa Collins, Commission for the Arts. 6. City Council made the following appointments to boards and commissions: (a) appointed Brian Morreale as the one citizen member to the Commission for Women; (b) appointed John Wedeles as the one citizen member to the Commission on HIV/AIDS; (c) reappointed Laura Zimmerman as the one citizen member to the Community Criminal Justice Board; (d) appointed Todd Walls as the one parent member who is not an employee of any public or private program which received funds from the Comprehensive Services Act to the Community Policy and Management Team; (e) appointed Robert Pinney as the one licensed physician representative to the Community Services Board; (f) appointed Rebecca Thorsen as the one representative for Councilman Krupicka on the Economic Opportunities Commission; (g) reappointed Kurt Moser as the one member from the field of environmental sciences (e.g., environmental/sanitary engineering, ecology, geology, botany, hydrology, chemistry) or who have Alexandria waterfront expertise to the Environmental Policy Commission; (h) appointed Susan Hellman as the one Planning District II representative to the Historic Alexandria Resources Commission; (i) reappointed Debra Zusman as the one resident member who is neither a landlord or a tenant to the Landlord-Tenant Relations Board; (j) appointed Patricia Shaffer as the one citizen member to the Sister Cities Committee; and (k) waived the residency requirement and reappointed Elisabeth Lardner as the one Old Town business representative to the Urban Design Advisory Committee. 7. City Council authorized staff to: 1. submit the grant application (due April 27, 2012) to the Virginia Department of Health for United States Department of Agriculture for continued funding and an estimated reimbursement amount of $112,000 for program expenses; 2. affirmed that there are no funds available in the City budget to continue these activities once the grant funds are expended; and 3. execute all necessary documents that may be required. 8. City Council: 1. approved the submission of the grant application (due March 5, 2012); and 2. authorized the City Manager to execute the necessary documents that may be required. 9. City Council: 1. approved the submission of a grant application, not to exceed $100,000; and 2. authorized the City Manager to execute all necessary documents that may be required. 10. City Council passed the ordinance on first reading and set the public hearing for March 17, 2012 for an ordinance authorizing and empowering the issuance, sale and delivery of general obligation bonds to finance various capital projects. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ CONTESTED APPOINTMENTS 11. Citizen Corps Council 1 Representative of the Emergency Medical Services Council, the Medical Reserve Corps, or a Person With Emergency Medical Response Experience City Council appointed Nancy Pomerleau as the representative of the Emergency Medical Services Council, the Medical Reserve Corps, or a person with emergency medical response experience to the Citizen Corps Council. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 12. George Washington Birthday Celebration Committee 1 Member Nominated by the Alexandria Jaycees City Council waived the residency requirement and appointed Amber Johnson as the one member nominated by the Alexandria Jaycees to the George Washington Birthday Celebration Committee. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE CITY MANAGER FOR DISCUSSION 13. Receipt of Report on Items Before the 2012 Virginia General Assembly. City Council received the report. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 14. Consideration of Revisions to the City Code and Zoning Ordinance to Clarify Development Conditions Regulating Visitor/Guest Permit Parking. City Council directed staff to revise the City Code and Zoning Ordinance to clarify that residents of developments with certain development special use permit conditions limiting residential parking permits may obtain guest/visitor parking passes. City Council also directed staff, whether through community outreach or through contact with local civic associations, to try to get an understanding of the other issue and report back to Council with identification of the issue and potential solutions. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 15. Consideration of the Monthly Financial Report for the Period Ending January 31, 2012. City Council received the monthly financial report for the period ending January 31, 2012. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 16. Consideration of Funding Allocation for Rebuilding Together Alexandria. City Council: 1. approved a grant of $50,000 in housing trust fund monies to Rebuilding Together Alexandria to fund its activities in FY 2012 as described in the staff report; and 2. authorized the City Manager to execute all necessary documents and agreements. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 17. Consideration of a Grant Application to the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) for Funding From the 2012 COPS Hiring Program. City Council: 1. authorized the grant application (due March 22, 2012) to the U.S. Department of Justice that provides 75 percent funding for approved entry-level salaries and benefits for 3 years (36 months) for newly-hired, full time sworn officer positions (including filling existing unfunded vacancies); and 2. authorized the City Manager to execute all necessary documents that may be required. 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 (a) Councilman Smedberg said the CEO of VRE is retiring as of June 30, and a search will be underway for a new CEO. He said they are meeting Thursday morning to go over proposals for a consultant to help with that search. (b) Vice Mayor Donley said the recent ACPS audit of the capital budgets has been completed and it's portrayed the Schools CIP process as dysfunctional. He said he found a number of the recommendations are fairly basic and fundamental and the basic procedures, regarding internal fiscal controls, have not been in place but more importantly should have been in place. He said that ultimately, the situation comes down to one of accountability and responsibility. ACPS is a $100 million plus organization, and the fact that the basic accounting principles and fiscal controls were not in place calls into question the administrative and managerial responsibilities of senior staff and ultimately the Superintendent. Vice Mayor Donley said that in this instance, the School Board was not well served by senior staff at ACPS, but more importantly, the taxpayers of the City were not well served. Vice Mayor Donley said it is his opinion that the Superintendent should resign because of the problems. He said he respects the authority of the School Board in terms of their relationship with the Superintendent, and said he comes to that conclusion after reading the audit and hearing the response that's come forward from the Superintendent. There needs to be more accountability in the system. After discussion and comments on the issue, Mayor Euille noted that this will be discussed further in a budget work session on March 28. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ ORAL REPORT FROM THE CITY MANAGER None. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS 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 2012 (Fiscal Year 2013.) City Council: 1. passed the ordinance on first reading after establishing the tax rate at $1.008 per $100 assessed value, an increase of one cent, to be advertised for residential and commercial real property and personal property; and 2. set the ordinance for public hearing on Saturday, April 14, with second reading and final passage on Monday, May 7. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 19. Consideration of a Resolution Authorizing the Issuance of Refunding Bonds by the Industrial Development Authority of the City of Alexandria for Episcopal High School. [ROLL-CALL VOTE] City Council adopted the resolution authorizing the issuance of refunding bonds by the Industrial Development Authority for Episcopal High School, as recommended by the Industrial Development Authority of the City of Alexandria. (RES. NO. 2490) Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 20. Consideration of a Resolution to Establish an Ad Hoc Towing Services Contract Advisory Board. [ROLL-CALL VOTE] City Council: 1. adopted the resolution establishing a five-member ad hoc advisory board consisting of two representatives of the local towing industry, two citizens and one representative from the Alexandria Police Department to review the existing contract and make recommendations to City Council on the appropriate provisions to be included in the terms and conditions of the new five-year contract for towing services utilized by various City agencies as required by State Code; and 2. authorized the City Clerk and Clerk of Council to advertise the vacancies. (RES. NO. 2491) Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 21. Consideration of a Grant Application and Resolution to the Virginia Department of Emergency Management for the Acquisition, Detection, Monitoring and Personal Protective Equipment for the Alexandria Fire Department. [ROLL-CALL VOTE] City Council: 1. adopted the resolution to the Virginia Department of Emergency Management for the acquisition, detection, monitoring and personal protective equipment for the Alexandria Fire Department; 2. approved the submission of a grant application and the resolution to VDEM for grant funding totaling $50,000; and 3. authorized the City Manager to execute all necessary documents that may be required. (RES. NO. 2492) Council Action:_________________________________________________________ 22. Consideration of a Resolution to Proceed With the South Washington Street Streetscape Improvement Project. [ROLL-CALL VOTE] City Council adopted the resolution approving the major design features for the streetscape improvements along South Washington Street, between Church Street and Gibbon Street as presented at the January 25, 2012 public meeting held by staff. (RES. NO. 2493) Council Action:_________________________________________________________ OTHER 23. Consideration of City Council Schedule. City Council: 1. cancelled the scheduled Wednesday, March 21 budget work session; 2. postponed the Tuesday, March 27 work session on the housing master plan to provide additional time to complete the plan. Staff will brief Council on housing FY 2013 budget issues at the March 27 Council legislative meeting; 3. hold the Wednesday, March 28 budget work session as planned at Samuel Tucker Elementary School, beginning at 5:30 p.m., and include Schools and City employee compensation matters on the agenda. Given the discussion at the recent joint City Council/School Board work session, agenda items would include the proposed fields in the Jefferson Houston Project and Headstart classroom space; and 4. received the revised calendar, which includes: the citizens police academy graduation ceremony on Wednesday, May 23 at 6:30 p.m. The ceremony will be held at 3600 Wheeler Avenue, the Police Department headquarters; removal from the calendar of the Wednesday, April 18 Alexandria Neighborhood Health Services Incorporated (ANHSI) Cinco de Mayo Celebration, which has been cancelled. ANHSI expects to hold another fundraising event in the future, and Council will be advised when further information is received. Council Action:_________________________________________________________ EXECUTIVE SESSION 24. Consideration of Convening a Closed Meeting For the Purpose of Discussion of a Legal Matter and For Real Estate Matters. City Council convened in closed executive session at 9:43 p.m., pursuant to the Code of Virginia, for the purpose of discussion, the acquisition of real property for a public purpose, the disposition of publicly held real property and consultation with counsel and briefing by staff pertaining to actual or probable litigation. City Council reconvened in open session at 10:11 p.m. City Council adopted the resolution pertaining to the Executive Session. (RES. NO. 2494) Council Action:_________________________________________________________ The meeting adjourned at 10:12 p.m. 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.