City of Hampton, VA 22 Lincoln Street Meeting Minutes Hampton, VA 23669 City Council

City of Hampton, VA 22 Lincoln Street Meeting Minutes Hampton, VA 23669 www.hampton.gov City Council

Randall A. Gilliland Angela Lee Leary Charles N. Sapp Joseph H. Spencer, II Rhet Tignor Paige V. Washington, Jr. Ross A. Kearney, II , Mayor

Staff: Jesse T. Wallace Jr., City Manager Cynthia Hudson, City Attorney Katherine K. Glass, Clerk of Council Brenda J. Vaccarelli, Deputy Clerk

Wednesday, December 13, 2006 7:30 PM Council Chambers, 8th Floor, City Hall

CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Ross A. Kearney, II presided Present: Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington

INVOCATION - Paige V. Washington, Jr.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO FLAG

MAYOR'S COMMENTS

Mayor Kearney deviated from the published agenda and the following items were heard in the following order.

• Item #17, Awards for the Holly Days Parade first, followed by • Item #42, Presentation to the Food Bank. • Item #18, Parking Signs. • Item #19, Rental Inspection, • Item #20, Dredging Program. • Item #27, Fishing Pier.

Mayor Kearney stated that later in the evening Council and the City Manager will be extending Holiday Greetings, although the meeting may continue past midnight!

Mayor Kearney thanked Dr. Kevin Steel and the Downtown Hampton Development Partnership (DVDP); Mr. Jim Wilson, newly appointed Director of Parks and Recreation; Mr. Todd C. Bridgford, Executive Director and CEO, Virginia Air and Space Center, and in particular, Ms.

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Cyndi Masterstaff, Recreation Programs Coordinator, for Parks and Recreation, for the events of the last three weekends:

1. The Lighted Boat Parade, and all those boaters who participated (including the Grinch, & Elvis). 2. The Hampton Tree Lighting and festivities in Carousel Park with music, big band, children’s vendors & activities, ice skating in the Peninsula’s only outdoor ice skating rink, carriage rides and train rides through downtown, attracting well over 10,000 people! 3. The Ninth Downtown Holiday Parade with our four High School Bands, numerous floats, The Wave morning celebrities, civic groups, scouts, Volunteer and Career FD, and much more. Thank you Parks and Recreation and Ms. Masterstaff for a job well done. WVEC-TV covered the parade live and for the 3rd year was the #1 televised show for its time slot!

Mayor Kearney extended warm congratulations to the Phoebus High School Football team for winning the State Championship. He stated that this is the third time in six years, and the second consecutive win for a Hampton City team winning the State title. He congratulated Phantom Coach Mr. Bill Dee, the Phantom Band Mr. Jim Stanley, and the Phantom Cheerleaders, faculty and of course the students! He said that Council was very proud of their accomplishments!

CONSENT AGENDA

Consent Items - First Reading

1. 06-0718 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 22 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA, ENTITLED "NOISE."

MOVED TO waive the second reading of the ordinances on consent agenda items 1 through 4. Motion made by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Seconded by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

MOVED TO adopt consent agenda items 1 through 4 on first and final reading. Motion made by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Seconded by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Aye: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nay: 0

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2. 06-0719 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 23 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA, ENTITLED "OBSCENITY."

MOVED TO waive the second reading of the ordinances on consent agenda items 1 through 4.

Motion made by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Seconded by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

MOVED TO adopt consent agenda items 1 through 4 on first and final reading.

Motion made by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Seconded by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Aye: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nay: 0

3. 06-0720 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 25 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA, ENTITLED "PARADES."

MOVED TO waive the second reading of the ordinances on consent agenda items 1 through 4.

MOVED TO adopt consent agenda items 1 through 4 on first and final reading.

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4. 06-0721 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 26 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA, ENTITLED "PARKS AND RECREATION."

MOVED TO waive the second reading of the ordinances on consent agenda items 1 through 4.

MOVED TO adopt consent agenda items 1 through 4 on first and final reading.

5. 06-0702 VDOT Revenue Sharing Program – Application for up to $1 Million of VDOT Funding

RESOLUTION REQUESTING UP TO $1 MILLION FROM THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION’S FY07 REVENUE SHARING PROGRAM FOR VARIOUS ROADWAY IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS IN THE CITY OF HAMPTON

WHEREAS, the City of Hampton desires to submit an application for an allocation of funds up to $1 million through the Virginia Department of Transportation’s fiscal year 2007 Revenue Sharing Program; and

WHEREAS, the City of Hampton has identified a number of potentially qualifying projects for VDOT’s consideration for funding under this program; and

WHEREAS, the City of Hampton commits funding for these projects in excess of any VDOT revenue sharing funds received.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia hereby authorizes the City Manager to submit the following projects for consideration by VDOT of funding up to $1 million through the Revenue Sharing Program:

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Estimated Project Cost

Hampton Roads Center Parkway/”Gateway” auxiliary lane $400,000 Freeman Drive Realignment $600,000 LaSalle Avenue/Kecoughtan Road Intersection Improvement $500,000 Pembroke Avenue/Mallory Drive Intersection Improvement $300,000 Resort Boulevard Extension $800,000

Total $2,600,000

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City Council hereby grants authority for the City Manager to execute project administration agreements for any approved revenue sharing projects.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

Motion made by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Seconded by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

6. 06-0733 Approval and appropriation of donations made to the Hampton Division of Fire and Rescue.

RESOLUTION ACCEPTING DONATIONS MADE TO THE HAMPTON DIVISION OF FIRE AND RESCUE FROM WAYNE & JACQUELIN SPEAS ($1,000), WAL-MART FOUNDATION ($3,000) AND HAMPTON CHEVROLET ($2,500)

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA that the donations totaling $6,500 be accepted and appropriated to the Hampton Division of Fire and Rescue from the undesignated fund balance to be used for fire station needs, supplies and equipment.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

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CONSENT ITEMS - Other

7. 06-0685 Hampton Adult Drug Treatment Court Grant

A RESOLUTION APPROVING THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA’S PARTICIPATION AND APPROPRIATION OF THE 2006-2007 HAMPTON ADULT DRUG TREATMENT COURT GRANT PROGRAM FUNDING PROGRAM THROUGH THE HAMPTON-NEWPORT NEWS COMMUNITY SERVICES BOARD FROM THE SUPREME COURT OF VIRGINIA

WHEREAS, the Supreme Court of Virginia has awarded the Hampton Adult Drug Treatment Court Grant to the City of Hampton on behalf of the Hampton-Newport News Community Services Board for the reimbursement of meeting the requirements of the grant in the amount of $232,000 in Federal and State funds; and,

WHEREAS, the grant award covers the period July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2007; and,

WHEREAS, the City of Hampton will draw down the funds to reimburse the Hampton-Newport News Community Services Board for maintaining, facilitating, and completing the designated grant reports to the Supreme Court of Virginia, as the reports are submitted and the City if invoiced; and,

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of Hampton accepts and appropriates the Hampton Adult Drug Treatment Court Grant award in the amount of $232,000 and any related supplemental funding made by the Supreme Court of Virginia in accordance with the grant agreement;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City Council authorizes the City Manager, or his designee, to take the necessary steps to implement this grant award.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

8. 06-0686 Praxair Grant

RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, the Praxair Foundation, Inc. has awarded the Praxair Grant to the City of Hampton in the amount of $15,000, and

WHEREAS, the grant covers the period of January 1, 2007, through June 1, 2007.

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NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA accepts and appropriates the Praxair Grant in the amount of $15,000;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City Council authorizes the City Manager, or his designee, to take the necessary steps to implement this grant award.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

9. 06-0695 Approval of Minutes from Special Joint Session of Hampton City Council and the Hampton School Board held on November 8, 2006, and from the Afternoon and Evening Sessions of Hampton City Council held on November 15, 2006.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

10. 06-0714 2006/07 Fatality Elimination ~ Speed Enforcement Occupant Protection Project

A RESOLUTION APPROVING THE CITY OF HAMPTON’S PARTICIPATION AND APPROPRATION OF THE FY2006/07 FATALITY ELIMINATION / SPEED ENFORCEMENT / OCCUPANT PROTECTION PROJECT GRANT FUNDS FROM THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION / NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION (USDOT/NHTSA) THROUGH THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES’ TRANSPORTATION SAFETY SERVICES (DMV/TSS)

WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Transportation / National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (USDOT/NHTSA) through the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles’ Transportation Safety Services (DMV/TSS) has awarded the Fatality Elimination / Speed Enforcement / Occupant Protection Project to the City of Hampton in the amount of $24,810 in federal pass-through funds with a $6,203 soft match requirement, for a total award of $31,013 and

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WHEREAS, the grant award covers the period October 1, 2006, through September 30, 2007.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia accepts and appropriates the Fatality Elimination / Speed Enforcement / Occupant Protection Project grant in the amount of $24,810 and any related supplemental funding by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles in accordance with the grant agreement.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the City Council authorizes the City Manager to take the necessary steps to implement this grant award.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

11. 06-0726 Resolution approving and accepting the transfer of .194± acres located in Hampton Roads Center South Campus to the City of Hampton from the Industrial Development Authority of the City of Hampton to be used as right of way for a signalized intersection.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

12. 06-0732 Authorization for the City Manager to Execute a Memorandum of Agreement Guiding the Hampton Roads Regional Water Supply Planning Process.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

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13. 06-0734 Resolution approving the contribution of $16,700 from Nondepartmental Funds/Explore Hampton 2007 to the Hampton University Museum for expenses related to the African American Furniture Making and Pamunkey Indian Pottery Exhibits.

WHEREAS, Hampton is a community partner in Jamestown 2007; and

WHEREAS, Hampton plans a year long celebration, Explore Hampton 2007, in 2007 to commemorate Hampton’s unique role in the 400th anniversary of America and Hampton’s spirit of exploration; and

WHEREAS, the Hampton University Museum will be offering special exhibits in support of Hampton’s 2007 celebration; and

WHEREAS, the Hampton University Museum has requested funding to support The Jamestown Exhibition, Hampton Institute and the Gilded Age: African American Furniture making in Virginia and From the River: Pamunkey Indian Pottery Tradition.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HAMPTON, VIRGINIA:

1. That it approves the contribution of $16,700 from Non-departmental Funds/Explore Hampton 2007 to the Hampton University Museum for expenses related to the African American Furniture Making and Pamunkey Indian Pottery Exhibits.

2. That funds be disbursed on a reimbursement basis.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

14. 06-0712 Discussion of approval of payment of surplus proceeds to Betty Mae Brock and Frances Lewis Schilson pursuant to Hampton City Code Section 37-31.

ADOPTED - consent agenda items 5 through 14.

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PRESENTATIONS, PROCLAMATIONS, AWARDS

15. 06-0731 In Recognition of Dr. Mary T. Christian

WHEREAS, Mary T. Christian, born in Hampton, Virginia, was educated in the local public schools; and

WHEREAS, in 1955, Mary T. Christian was awarded her B. S. degree in Elementary Education from Hampton Institute (now Hampton University), with highest honors, and continued her education, receiving her M. A. degree from Columbia University in 1960, with a major in Speech and Drama; and

WHEREAS, in 1967, Mary T. Christian earned her Ph.D. at Michigan State University, with a major in Elementary Education and cognate in Special Education; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Christian began her professional career as a teacher at Aberdeen Elementary School in Hampton, Virginia and taught there until she accepted a position as an Instructor at Hampton Institute in 1960; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Christian is married to Wilbur Christian and through that union has two daughters and one son (deceased); and

WHEREAS, for more than twenty-five years, Dr. Christian taught at Hampton University in the School of Education, becoming Dean of the School of Education in 1980; and

WHEREAS, in 1989, Dr. Christian retired as Dean of the School of Education at Hampton University and is presently a Professor Emeritus; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Christian was elected to the Virginia General Assembly, 92nd District, in 1986 and retired in 2004 after serving as a member of the House of Delegates for eighteen years; and

WHEREAS, during her tenure, Dr. Christian was a member of the following committees: Appropriations; Conservation and Natural Resources; Education; Labor and Commerce; Militia and Police; and Rules; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Christian has been active in the community, having served on the Hampton City School Board; Board of Directors, NationsBank; and the Community Advisory Board, Junior League of Hampton Roads; and

WHEREAS, at the present time, Dr. Christian is an Honorary Board Member, Patient Advocate Foundation; Board of Directors, National Kidney Foundation; Member, Hampton City School Investment Panel; Visiting Specialist, Jamestown 2007; Board of Directors, Y. H. Thomas Community Center, Incorporated; Board of Directors, Youth Challenge; Board of Directors, Peninsula Association for Sickle Cell Anemia; and Co- Chair, Coalition for the Preservation of Virginia School for the Deaf, Blind and Multi- Disabled in Hampton, Virginia; and

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WHEREAS, Dr. Christian is a member of First Baptist Church, Hampton, Virginia, and participates in the Christian Fellowship Choir, the Women’s Auxiliary and is Chair of the Constitution Advisory Committee;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia, that Dr. Mary T. Christian be, and hereby is, recognized and commended for her many contributions to the community and the Commonwealth of Virginia;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be spread upon the minutes of the December 13, 2006 meeting of the City Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia, and that an appropriate copy be signed by the Mayor, attested by the Clerk, and presented to the Honorable Dr. Mary T. Christian.

Councilman Washington stated that presentation of this resolution has special significance for him. He stated that Dr. Christian was his 6th grade teacher at Aberdeen Elementary School, and she has been his inspiration over the years.

Councilman Washington read and presented the resolution to Dr. Christian.

Dr. Christian stated that it was a wonderful pleasure to accept the recognition with sincere thanks and great gratitude and with a deep sense of humility. She quoted Bishop Desmond Tutu “If it seems that some way I am above the crowd, it’s because I’m standing on the shoulders of many.” She said that it would have been impossible for her to do some of the things that she has done without the support of many friends.

Dr. Christian thanked her husband Chuck and her family, her Pastor who is her spiritual leader and FOMC, Friends of Mary Christian.

Dr. Christian thanked Council and wished everyone a happy, prosperous, healthy and spiritual holiday.

Ms. Harriett Storm, stated that she was spearheading a speciaL public tribute for Dr. Mary Christian and her more than 50 years of service to the community, state and Nation. She said that the very special event which the City has graciously helped with is going to be on Sunday, January 14, 2007 from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Hampton Roads Convention Center. She said that it will be a reception, a full-seated dinner with entertainment and video presentation. Ms. Storm said that Governor Kaine will be attending and it will be an evening to remember. She said for tickets and information please call 723-6810.

Ms. Storm thanked Council for the recognizing Dr. Christian.

APPROVED

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Motion made by: Councilmember Paige V. Washington Seconded by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary Aye: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nay: 0

16. 06-0688 Presentation of Certificate of Appreciation from the Department of Defense.

Councilwoman Leary asked Lt. Col. John Gately, (retired), of the Military Affairs Committee and Ms. Peggy Mertz, President of the Remote and Waiting Spouses to come forward.

Councilwoman Leary stated that a group of citizens went to the Pentagon on Thursday, November 9, 2006 to dedicate a Tree of Hope in remembrance of September 11, 2001, and honoring all those who protect and serve. She explained that soils from the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon and from Sommerset County, Pennsylvania, and from the City of Hampton, Virginia were placed at the Tree of Hope.

Councilwoman Leary said that the Tree of Hope was dedicated at the entrance where 38,000 people will pass it every day and remember that it is a remembrance of hope. She said that Lt. Col. Gately made the presentation and crew members of the USS Hampton were there to spread the soils. The invocation was given by Kenneth Jenkins, Chaplain, Langley Air Force Base. She said that over 1,200 letters and artwork were presented and had been sent to the soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Lt. Col. Gately, read and presented the Certification of Appreciation from the Department of Defense and the men and women of the Pentagon, to Mayor Kearney.

Councilwoman Leary presented 500 additional letters to Ms. Peggy Mertz to be sent to the men and women overseas.

Mayor Kearney thanked Councilwoman Leary for her efforts.

17. 06-0479 Presentation of 2006 Hampton Holly Days Parade Awards

Mayor Kearney stated that the Fire Marshal has indicated that Council Chambers is over capacity and that chairs are set up downstairs. Mayor Kearney asked that anyone not signed up to speak to Council, or not involved in the program, to go down stairs.

Councilman Sapp and Councilman Tignor presented the awards to the following winners of the Hampton Holly Days Parade.

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High School Band Cash Awards

1. Bethel High School - $300 award and trophy 2. Kecoughtan High School - $200 award and trophy 3. Phoebus High School - $200 award and trophy 4. Heritage High School - $100 award and trophy

Precision Marching – Military

1. Bethel High School JROTC - $75.00 and trophy 2. Phoebus High School JROTC - $50.00 and trophy 3. Kecoughtan High School JROTC - Trophy

Precision Marching – Non-military

1. New Generation Drum Corps - $75.00 award 2. Marching Elites - $50.00 award 3. Downing Gross Drum Line - Trophy

Floats

1. Langley Federal Credit Union - $75.00 award and Plaque 2. Old Point National Bank - $50.00 award and Plaque

Floats – Non-commercial

1. Cinderella Scholarship Pageant - $75.00 award and Plaque 2. Boy Scout Troop #13 - $50.00 award and Plaque

Mayor Kearney thanked Mr. Ray Burton and the students at New Horizons. He said that at the Holly Days Parade, the students from New Horizons never appeared on the television broadcast because of a break. He said that Ms. Cindy Masterstaff, Recreation Program Coordinator, Parks and Recreation, is working to praise them and give them additional time and attention. Mr. Charles Costas, Senior Recreation Professional assisted in presenting the awards.

Mayor Kearney thanked New Horizons for all the work they have done.

REPORTS BY CITY MANAGER, CITY COUNCIL, STAFF, COMMITTEES

18. 06-0696 Removal of the No Parking Signs from North First Street.

The City Manager stated that in June 2006, this matter was brought before Council requesting support to remove the “No Parking” signs to provide 15 parking spaces. He said that at that time Council chose not to support the proposal and Councilman Sapp requested that this matter be brought back to Council. He asked that Council support the proposal for removal of the “No Parking” signs on North First Street to make way for the 15 parking spaces.

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Mr. Rob Kerr, 7 Channel Lane, said that he thought that at the last meeting before any decisions were made alternatives were going to be given. He said that he just found out today that it was going to be brought up. He said that once again, there was no public notice and no notice to the adjacent property owners. He said that he lives in the second house from the entrance of Salt Ponds. He said that it would be one of five houses where the parking would be in their back yard. He said that originally when the development was done, there was an agreement between the developer and the City that there would be no parking on First Street because it was a gated community. He said that it is logical that you would not have public parking at a gated community. He said that no developer would agree to something like that or move forward without an agreement from the City. He said that part of that is the reason that there has been no parking on the part of First Street since development. He said that it is his understanding that the City does not have the paperwork to back that up. He said that he has some documentation which he offered to the City. He said that his family was one of the first to buy a lot in Salt Ponds, and the third condo owner in Salt Ponds. He said that the beach was to be built and developed to be accessed by bikers and walkers.

He said that during a meeting Captain Seals of the Police Divison discussed the pluses and minuses of parking on North First Street. Mr. Kerr said that he asked Capt. Seals if the parking would increase potential crime to the houses where people can park and have access to their back yards. He said that Capt. Seals said that it would increase the crime.

Mr. Kerr said that the residents have not been given the opportunity to discuss this. He said that they are being told that this is moving forward without any consideration on the part of the residents. He said that his eight-year-old daughter’s safety is more important than whatever the 15 parking spaces that Council is trying to push through, are worth.

Ms. Erin West, 5 Channel Lane, stated that she was told that Council was going to discuss this issue only a half hour before the meeting was to start. She stated that she feels it is a tremendous disservice to those who have fought hard for the issue. She said that Council voted to keep the parking signs. She said that they had a promise from Mayor Kearney that those who are interested in the issue, pro and con, would form a committee to decide the best way to get public access to the beach. She said that no one has been contacted on the issue. Ms. West said that she would like to see statistics in relation to parked cars, because crime is going up in Hampton. She respectfully requested that Council postpone this matter because many people were not notified that it was going to be on the agenda.

Mayor Kearney asked the City Manager to address the crime issue. In response, the City Manager stated that the actual crime rate is going down in Hampton. He said that the issue that was brought up in this

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discussion was the lack of response time of the police department to the calls from North First Street. He said that it was investigated and found that the average response time for the past six years was about eight minutes. The City Manager stated that the response time was not an issue.

Councilman Sapp said that Council is challenged to provide a balance to access to a public beach that is maintained by public funds, and the concern for private property rights of those folks who live adjacent to that beach. He said that there are very real and serious security concerns. Councilman Sapp stated that he was one who voted against the initiative when the City Manager brought it to Council. He stated that his concerns were as much about logistics as anything else, including restroom facilities, lifeguards, and the type of support you would expect at a remote end of the beach. He stated that he also has concerns about how the City would protect the property that was co-located to the public beach. Councilman Sapp said that he could not get proper answers to the question, therefore he voted against it at that time because he felt that all the homework had not been done on making that end of the beach more accessible to the general public.

Councilman Sapp stated that since that time he has had a chance to think things through and talk to the City Manager and staff and consider public input. He said that Council told the City Manager that they did not support the effort. He said that he is ready to support it now and he feels that this needed to be brought back to be discussed in public so Council could give the City Manager their direction, support or lack of it, in order to clear this issue off of the agenda.

Councilman Sapp said that the parking spaces are located on a public street. He said that they may be next to a gated community, but they are located on a public street maintained by public funds. He noted that the parking space would only be accessible during daylight hours. Councilman Sapp said that he is convinced after talking to the City Manager and listening to what he and staff says, that there were will be adequate support provided in terms of sanitary facilities and there would also be adequate security for adjacent private property. He said that he is not making a motion at this time.

Councilwoman Leary stated that she was one of the individuals along with Councilman Tignor that met with the residents of Salt Ponds to discuss the issue. She said that the night Council was asked to give their opinion to the City Manager she had just received the report from the Police Division regarding comments that had been brought up by the community about safety issues. She found that after reading the report there were 387 phone calls in a three year period and seven of the calls were on North First Street. She said that the average response time was eight minutes. She said that following the vote and reading the information, she went to see how the shuttle was working. She said the first time she was almost side-swiped and the second time she saw five dune buggies on the beach. She said that based on the information that is availble to

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her from staff, she felt that she had to give the City Manager her approval to give this a try. She said that going into the cold weather season it might be a good time to try this. She offered to help with a committee to research the matter further.

Councilman Tignor said that the action requested is for Council to approve the City Manager’s recommendation. He asked Councilman Sapp if he was going to make a motion later. In response, Councilman Sapp said that he would make a motion if that is appropriate.

Councilman Tignor stated that he can’t support the issue until he hears from the citizens. He said that there were a number of people that came out and he believes that it is Council’s function to take time to hear from the citizens.

Councilman Washington said that it was his impression that Council was discussed this issue in June 2006 when he was not on Council. In response, the City Manager stated that the conversations occurred in June 2006.

Councilman Washington stated that he remembers conversations that there was going to be a committee established to study the process. He hopes that Council would not take any action at this point, but allow a citizen committee to provide Council insight regarding their community.

Councilman Spencer stated that the reason this matter has resurfaced is because at the November 15, 2006, Council meeting, there was a discussion about the Buckroe Master Plan and parking that is now going to be in the Cantamar Apartment areas, Tappan and two other streets, that will open up those areas to the public. He explained that some of the criticism Council has received from those neighbors was why the City was opening up some streets and keeping others closed.

Councilman Spencer requested a report from the City Manager as to how successful the shuttle was and how the City is going to deal with facilities at the Salt Ponds area. He said that it is a public street and the hours are limited from sun up to sundown. He said that there was a discussion regarding a committee that would look into the matter. He said that he has no problem with the City Manager providing Council with a more detailed report as to who he intends to carry out this effort and what the ramifications are going to be as far as the beach at the Salt Ponds. He said that Council wishes to have the Salt Ponds beach accessible as easily as possible to the citizens. He said that it is a public beach and the dilemma is how to make it accessible without infringing on other people’s quality of life and their safety. Councilman Spencer said that Council is taking this matter very seriously.

Vice Mayor Gilliland said that he opposed the removal of the “No Parking” signs the first time and he hasn’t changed his position. He said that he hasn’t seen anything that has been presented as new evidence that would change anyones vote on the issue. He said that the reality is when

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the project was designed there was to be an off street parking lot and facilities to access the public beach. He explained that a previous Council made the decision not to do that, and by doing that, destroyed the functionality of a public beach. He said that in his opinion, it was a bad decision a long time ago and it has been dumped in Council’s lap to try and fix it. He doesn’t think it is truly fixable to anyone’s satisfaction. He said that it is a remotely located public beach with no public facilities and not adequate parking for that stretch of beach.

Vice Mayor Gilliland stated that parking will be created at Tappan, Richmond and Pilot and this parking is part of the Buckroe Master Plan. He said that these are areas that can be gated in the evening. He said that this was part of a lengthy public participation. He said that if there is something that the City Manager can present with respect to creation of public facilities to make it a functional public beach, that would be great, and he is suspect as to whether it could be created without buying private property to create a parking lot and facilities for the beach.

Mayor Kearney asked the City Manager and his staff to look into the matter. He said that he supports the parking on North First Street. He said that there were some “sweet deals” occurring in which the parking lot was taken and it was supposed to be accessible to the people in the City of Hampton. He said that somewhere along the line a deal was made with Hoffler and it was switched to the inside and a berm was put up. He said that parking lot serves no purpose other than overflow with the residents of Salt Ponds.

Mayor Kearney stated that the City has been spending a half million dollars a year maintaining the beach at Salt Ponds. He said that the contract said that the City was supposed to opening it up once the keys were turned over to the marina. He said that the City has spent well in excess of $1.5M. He said that this is not about me against you, it is against what is right for the taxpayers and what is not right for the taxpayers. He said that he understands and respects the comments from Council, but the public paid for the dredging and creation of the Salt Ponds beach area, the road and the maintenance of that road and he cannot turn around and tell the residents of Cantamar that they are going to have to allow parking there. He said that the street was made wide to accommodate parking.

Mayor Kearney stated that he does not want the City Manager and staff to spend a lot of time researching this matter. He said that the City Manager met with staff and others and came up with the idea of a shuttle.

Mayor Kearney stated that he was never so hurt by what was said by people in Council Chambers that “we don’t want people like them down at our beach”. He said that there are many people who do not live on the water who pay for that beach and they have a right to use it. He said that the issue is going to end and he is sorry that it is ending like this. He said that maybe Vice Mayor Gilliland had a good idea that the people living on

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the beach need to buy the beach and they can maintain it. He said that Council cannot continue to ask the taxpayers to pay for this. 19. 06-0705 Update on alternative program to Rental Inspection Ordinance.

The City Manager stated that on October 11, 2006, Council requested that staff develop an alternative program to the Rental Inspection Ordinance that could be piloted for a given amount of time and then compared to the results from the Rental Inspection Ordinance. He stated that a pilot program is being proposed that they feel will accomplish Council’s goals.

Mr. Steve Shapiro, Director, Codes Compliance, stated that he was tasked at the October 11, 2006, Council meeting to provide Council with an alternative to the rental dwelling program that was discussed. He said that the program being presented is a two-pronged program that two prongs. He said the first would use the existing Hampton Housing Improvement Program (HHIP) and the essence of that program is a computer model that has risk factors. He said the primary risk factors are the exterior condition of the building, prior violations within the last five years.

Councilman Tignor asked if this would apply to owned and owner- occupied properties. Mr. Shapiro answered yes.

Mr. Shapiro stated that he met with the Chief Magistrate and she is comfortable, particular since the Circuit Court judges have said that the model is probable cause for the administrative warrant, and she is comfortable in issuing those. He said that the second prong would be if someone from the Police Department, Fire Department, Health Department or Social Services, in their normal course of business was in a structure and saw that there were issues that would threaten the safety of the residents. The Magistrate is also comfortable that information would be reliable in order to issue a warrant and the inspectors would take it from that point forward.

Mr. Shapiro said that he would like to pilot this program for six months. He said that training is required, particularly with other departments and the actual initiation of the program would not start right away. He said that after six months staff would come back to Council and compare it with the results of the Rental Inspection Program. He said that he is requesting that Council suspend the enforcement of the Rental Dwelling Ordinance for a period of time to pilot the alternative program.

Mayor Kearney asked the City Manager if he is requesting a motion to suspend the current ordinance and implement an alternative program as proposed for six months. The City Manager answered yes.

Mayor Kearney stated that there were many people who signed up to speak. He asked if there were any people in Chambers that would like to speak against the motion.

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Mr. Barry Epstein, owner of Barry Realty, 185 East Mercury Boulevard, stated that he was also the Chairman of the Landlord Committee for Peninsula Home Builders Association. He said that he agrees to the alternate housing improvement program. He said that this is already on the books and part of the City Code. He said that he wants everyone to understand that it would be overseen by the Citizens Oversight Committee which is already in place. He believes that this would be accommodating and fair to all property owners. He asked that the Rental Improvement Program be terminated.

Mr. Dan Bohlke, 17 Pine Cone Drive, stated that he owns several businesses in Hampton, mostly property management and brokerage and a number of residential and investment properties. He said that he serves on the Rental Inspection Oversight Committee and he has served on that committee with an open mind. He endorses the HHIP and State Code allows administrative search warrants with probable cause and the rental inspection program subverts that probable cause and we thought it was problematic from the beginning. He feels that the Rental Inspection Program has created a sense of divisiveness among citizen property owners, tenants and landlords.

Ms. Sue Creech, 48 Doolittle Road, thanked Council for having the Oversight Committee and giving her the opportunity to serve on the Committee. She said that she would be happy to serve on any other Oversight Committee that would continue to bring the City staff and citizens together to better understand the needs of each other.

Mr. Robert Duckett, Director of Public Affairs for the Peninsula Housing and Builders Assocation,760 McGuire Place, Newport News, stated that the Association and the subchapter of the Peninsula Apartment Council is made up for 440 firms that employ more than 10,000 people across the Peninsula. He said that the members support the alternative program and it is a City-wide consensus on how to improve the City’s housing. He stated that they recommend that the Rental Inspection Ordinance be removed from the City Code. He said that they support the alternative recommendations for several reasons. 1. The alternative treats all Hampton citizens in the same manner. It doesn’t presume that because you live in a rental property, in a certain area, that your home needs an inspection. 2. Does a better job of focusing the City’s efforts on problem properties instead of imposing another burden on owners who already properly maintain their properties. 3. Focusing on the more at risk properties, the alternative makes for a more efficient use of City staff time. 4. Does a better job of respecting the rights and privacy of renters and property owners.

Mr. Duckett stated that under the alternative, a Hampton citizen isn’t compelled to open the door to his or her home unless a Judge or Magistrate finds that there is probable cause. He said that wasn’t the

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case under the Rental Inspection Ordinance and they believe that is an important protection.

Mr. Duckett said that it is to Council’s credit that they recognize the problems under the previous ordinance and ask for an alternative program. He said that credit should also go to the City Manager and Mr. Shapiro for crafting the alternative program, and to Ms. Patricia Massenberg, Chief Magistrate of the 8th Judicial District, for her willingness to further review case law and the administrative search warrants.

Mr. Duckett said that one of the fundamental flaws of the Rental Inspection Ordinance is that it did not do anything better than the existing State law.

Mr. Andy Bigelow, 39 Inglewood Drive, member of Rental Inspection Oversight Committee and a past member of the Neighborhood Commission, stated that he has a different view of the Rental Inspection Program than what is projected by those who own and operate those interests. He said that he was disgusted that the solution to the program was worked around the program and probably under the table with some people. He believes it is a sham effort. He said that he was involved in the development of the HHIP Ordinance and it never worked. He said that the HHIP was not designed to attack the problem that the City of Hampton has. He said that it is people not maintaining their property to the standards that they need to. He said that there is no program designed to rectify that. Mr. Bigelow said that it is something that needs to be done because it undermines the homes in the area and it undermines the quality of life in the neighborhoods. He said that the problem is a real one, and one that other communities have found a solution for. He believes that the Hampton real estate interests that work in this community are being aided by certain members of Council, namely, Councilman Sapp, Vice Mayor Gilliland and Councilman Spencer and Councilman Washington, in an attempt to avoid dealing with the issue of not providing for a means of checking to ensure that landlords are meeting published federal, state and local property maintenance responsibilities. He believes that the proposal is to substitute a “don’t ask don’t tell” approach to property maintenance that is a sell out of the Council’s responsibilities to the citizens of Hampton.

Mr. Phillip Egert, 347 East Pembroke Avenue, President of Pasture Point Neighborhood Association and member of the Rental Inspection Oversight Committee, established by Council, stated that it is the fourth time in a year he has spoke in favor of some form of rental inspection program. He said that he and the residents of Pasture Point feel very strongly about the issue. Mr. Egert said that after a year he does not understand why there are people in the City that are opposed to any form of rental inspection programs. Mr. Egert said that Hampton is coming up on its 400th Anniversary and the City has a lot of things to be proud of, but not having an effective, robust means of expeditiously cleaning up run

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down, and blighted rental properties is not something that any City should be proud of.

Ms. Veronica Davis, 13113 Glenbrook Drive, said that she is trying to understand this and trying to figure out the pros and cons of this situation. She asked if Mr. Shapiro would be willing to entertain a homeowner to explain what it is that the City wants to accomplish. She said that the home next to hers is about to fall apart. She feels that she is being harassed. Ms. Davis said that she received another letter after the inspector testified in court saying that there was nothing wrong with her home. She said that a car is sitting in the back yard, the grass is overgrown.

Mayor Kearney requested that Mr. Shapiro contact Ms. Davis regarding her property and inspections.

Mr. Billie Jeffries, 808 Marshall Street, member of Pasture Point Neighborhood Association, stated that he heard rumors that the renters guild and some land owners are singing victory tonight before the session. He said that he has lived in Downtown Hampton for eight years and he lives near rental property. He said that he has seen good renters and bad renters, and good landlords and bad landlords. He said that the house located at 420 Cooper had a large tree fall on the roof during a storm and the house stayed in disrepair after numerous calls.

Mayor Kearney asked if the house has been repaired. In response, Mr. Jeffries stated that the house at 420 Cooper Street is in the process of being repaired.

Mayor Kearney asked if this home was across from Ms. Burton. Mr. Jeffries said that it was.

Mayor Kearney said that he placed an inquiry about this house based on Ms. Burton’s comments.

Mr. Jeffries said that it is time for the City to put a stop to this. He said that the landlords do not run the City and the elected official are here to do that for the citizens. He asked Council to take charge and take care of the problem for the citizens of Hampton.

Ms. Amy Hobbs, 1913 North Mallory Street, stated that she is as disgruntled as Mr. Bigelow and feels that the neighborhoods came out and gave an honest showing. She said that it was brought up at the last meeting that the job was not done within the time frame. She said that she takes issue with that because Mr. Egert clearly pointed out at the last discussion that he saw significant changes in the neighborhood just because people knew it was coming. She said that there were numerous houses within Pasture Point that immediately started cleaning up when they knew the ordinance was coming. She said that the Ordinance was passed in November 2005 and was given one year to come up with results. She said that Council tasked Codes and Compliance to get a

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committee together and form guidelines, timeline and rules. She said that this program did not hit the streets for four months after Council tasked Codes and Compliance specifically to come up with the committee. She said that things cannot be done overnight and she would have hoped that would have been taken into consideration. Ms. Hobbs said that she would like something to happen, whether it be the HIPP program or the Rental Inspection Ordinance Program.

Mayor Kearney requested the City Manager and Mr. Shapiro to address the points that the neighborhood representatives were not consulted. In response, the City Manager stated that the neighborhood was not consulted. He said that he discussed it with Mr. Shapiro and was asked to go to the Rental Inspection Oversight Committee for approval.

Mr. Shapiro stated that the alternative presented to Council was discussed with the Rental Inspection Oversight Committee. He said that the Committee is made up of 10 representatives, five at-large citizens and five rental property managers.

Mayor Kearney asked if the Neighborhood Commission was part of the process before. In response, Mr. Shapiro stated that they were part of the old program.

Mayor Kearney asked if the Neighborhood Commission was part of the program before, why they were not consulted in the proposal of the solution now. In response, Mr. Shapiro stated that they felt that taking it back to the Oversight Committee was adequate because they had citizen input and the rental property owners input.

Mr. Shapiro said that the alternative presented to Council was discussed with the Oversight Committee, but not the Neighborhood Commission members who were involved before.

Mayor Kearney stated that he is concerned that the people who were involved in the old program were not informed of the new.

The City Manager stated that he wasn’t aware how the original plan was put together. He knows that it was criticized severely in October 2006 and was not going anywhere. He said that he and Mr. Shapiro crafted a plan they felt would work. He asked Mr. Shapiro to go back to the group that was criticizing the old plan, which was the Oversight Committee. He said that he didn’t know that the Neighborhood Commission had anything to do with it at any time, so he didn’t see a reason to include them.

Mayor Kearney asked if Council would mind deferring this item to the next meeting in order for the City Manager to have time to discuss the matter with the Neighborhood Commission. He said that it would not be a public hearing, but a report from the City Manager to Council.

The City Manager suggested that the report be brought to Council at the January 24, 2007 meeting.

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Councilwoman Leary moved to defer to the second meeting in January.

Councilman Tignor stated that he is not willing to continue to enforce the current ordinance. He stated that he wanted the ordinance and voted for it. He said that he is not willing to enforce the ordinance to the end of January. He said that he is willing to suspend it and defer action on the new program.

Councilwoman Leary stated that this was discussed before and Council received a poor presentation on Pictometry. She asked Mr. Shapiro if he has had the opportunity to look at Pictometry. In response, Mr. Shapiro stated that he has been to the demonstration. She asked if Mr. Shapiro has seen the HHIP program in comparison to Pictometry.

Councilwoman Leary stated that she would like to defer to the January 24, 2007, meeting because Pictrometry is in the process of photographing the grid for the City of Hampton. She believes that any one of the inspectors will be able to use the equipment and they will be able to visually see the property and see any code violations.

Mayor Kearney asked if there was another motion by Council.

Vice Mayor Gilliland made a motion to repeal the Rental Inspection Ordinance and to support the newly revised program that has been presented to Council by Codes Compliance.

Ms. Cynthia Hudson, City Attorney, stated that if Council is going to appeal the Ordinance, it is just like passing one, and it has to be done on two readings.

Vice Mayor Gilliland asked if he needed to move to waive the second reading.

Vice Mayor Gilliland made a motion to waive the second reading in appeal of the Rental Inspection Ordinance.

Councilman Sapp stated that one of the primary concerns of this body and staff is to provide for the health and security of the citizens. He said that there are laws and ordinances on the books specifically to protect citizens. He stated that he appreciate Ms. Hobbs findings and others who disapproved at his constitutional concerns over the original formulation of the program which essentially cast a net around a large chunk of Hampton and declared it a depressed area in order to qualify under the program approved by Richmond, and made virtually every rental activity subject to inspection, without proper court clearance to do so. He doesn’t give up those protections lightly, especially when he feels that there are other ways to accomplish the same thing.

Councilman Sapp said that this was put in place to get at the slum landlords and not one slum landlord was caught. He said that if this has

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been worked on for decades and everyone knows who the slum landlords are and there is a program to get them, he is not compelled to continue with something that challenges one particular class of citizens and looks the other way on another class. He said that the laws will not enforce themselves. He said that the HHIP law is on the books and he feels more comfortable with that from a constitutional standpoint.

Councilman Sapp said that this informed renters of what their rights were. He said that many probably did not know they had any rights at all and an education program for renters can be powerful in arming people to standup for themselves. He supports removing this ordinance and moving forward with the HHIP program which fully enforces the laws that are on the books.

Councilman Spencer said that enforcement is the key with what is available on the books. He said that Council wants people to live in quality houses without issues that are hazardous to their health. He said that the good landlords that voluntarily went through the inspections support the same things that Council does. He believes that something needs to be crafted that doesn’t punish the good people and something that goes after those who are trying to get an edge on the law. He said that hopefully this program that the City Manager and Mr. Shapiro have come up with will address those issues. He said that he has concerns with visual inspections and cannot understand why the slum landlords cannot be found. He said that inspectors’ time and energy are being wasted when they should be finding the issues that should be addressed.

The City Attorney stated that she is having some legal discomfort with the idea of repealing an ordinance in this fashion. She said that addressing it by way of the requirement of two readings initially doesn’t really get to the point of the fact that the repeal of an ordinance has not been advertised on the agenda to the public. She said that what is on the agenda is discussion of an alternative Rental Inspection Program. She said that ordinances require public hearings for repeal and enactment and she thinks Council would be circumventing its responsibilities in repealing it on a motion pursuant to an agenda item that speaks to something else.

Mayor Kearney asked the City Attorney for her suggestion would be. In response, the City Attorney suggested that this item be placed on the January 10, 2007 agenda and at that time Council can waive two readings and move to repeal the ordinance.

Vice Mayor Gilliland asked the City Attorney how encouraging Council to support a motion to suspend is different from a motion to repeal. In response, the City Attorney stated that the item didn’t speak to suspending either. She said that when the discussion reached this point, that is not what she understood. She thought that Council’s reaction to the alternative program would be discussed. She said that is a valid question. She said that suspending it is not repealing it and it doesn’t stand on the same level as enactment or repeal. She said that Council is not making law or taking law out of existence in that situation. She said

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that those two things require a specific type of action and notice to the public that isn’t present.

Vice Mayor Gilliland asked for clear direction from the City Attorney. In response, the City Attorney stated that Council needs to advertise this issue on a published agenda for the January 10, 2007, meeting, and if at that time Council seeks to repeal it, they can move to repeal it and take a vote.

Vice Mayor Gilliland withdrew his motion and asked the City Manager, with Council’s approval, to place the repeal of this ordinance on the January 10, 2007 agenda

Councilman Tignor seconded the motion.

Mayor Kearney stated that the previous motion has been removed and the second has been removed.

Vice Mayor Gilliland stated that the motion is to approve the alternative program as proposed.

The City Attorney stated that it was an appropriate motion.

Councilman Tignor stated that he would like to hear something by June 2007, because if it is not working, something else has to be done. He asked that Mr. Bigelow and the rest of the Neighborhood Commission start watching the program again. He asked that the City Manager make a report to Council in June 2007.

Mayor Kearney requested that the City Manger ensure that everyone is involved on this issue when the report comes to Council in June 2007.

The City Manager asked Mayor Kearney what report he would like to receive on January 10, 2007. In response, Mayor Kearney stated that he would like the people on the Neighborhood Commission to be consulted on this issue to ensure that everyone is included.

Mr. Shapiro said that some training will be required with the other departments so it will probably be August 2007.

Councilman Tignor said that he would like to hear about the program’s progress in six months.

Vice Mayor Gilliland stated that everyone wants the same end result which is to clean up the properties, there is just disagreement on how to get there. He hopes that the City Manager hears from Council that they are unanimously united to fix the problem. He said that the City Manager’s direction to staff should be that it is a huge priority for Council.

Councilwoman Leary stated that this has been a passion of hers for a long time. She said that with the help of Codes Compliance, the City

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Assessor’s Office and the City Manager, the Neighborhood Commission and the neighborhoods will be pleased. She thanked the Peninsula Housing Builders Association for their comments in support.

DEFERRED (1/24/2007) - This motion died for lack of a second.

Motion made by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary

MOVED TO waive the second reading on repeal of the current ordinance. - MOTION WITHDRAWN

Motion made by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Seconded by: Councilmember Paige V. Washington

MOVED TO repeal the current ordinance and support the newly revised program as presented. - MOTION WITHDRAWN

Motion made by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Seconded by: Councilmember Paige V. Washington

APPROVED - The alternative program, as proposed, was approved. The repeal or suspension of the ordinance is to be brought back to Council in January. A report on the results of the alternative program will be brought back to Council in June.

20. 06-0744 Briefing Regarding a Citywide Dredging Program

The City Manager stated that he has received many comments regarding Hampton’s waterways silting in and he has asked Public Works to gather the facts surrounding the subject. He said that there is a great deal of agreement on the need for dredging, however the same is not true on how it is paid for. He said that in order to commence this conversation, he has offered the following proposal. He said that there is 11 ½ years of dredging work necessary in Hampton waterways and he proposes that the City purchase the necessary equipment to do the dredging. He said that the cost would be $3M and the dredging operation will be placed in the Public Works Division and equipment costs to be funded by the reinstitution of the boat tax. He said that the annual operating budget of $1.1M will be funded from the general fund budget. He said that the purpose is for Council to receive public comment on this subject and he will include the information in the budget discussions that will be occurring in the spring.

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Mr. James A. (Pete) Peterson made the following presentation to Council:

WHY NOW? • Hampton’s greatest Asset is the Water • Hampton Waterways Are Gradually Filling in With Silt From Natural and Man-Made Blocking the Channels and destroying Habitat Which Also Causes Them to Become Increasingly Unnavigatible. • The Corps Maintains The Hampton River Channel (Up to the Booker T. Washington Memorial Bridge) and The Southwest Side of Ft. Monroe • The Main and Stem Channels of the Other Waterways Within Our Boundaries Are Becoming More Like “Mud Flats” • Corrective Action Citywide Dredging Has a Significant Price Tag • Once We Start The Process It Will Take Several Years Before The Problem Is Fixed. • There Are Still Other Risk and Concerns That Will Have to Be Addressed Before We Decide on a Course of Action. • One such Issue May Be The Dumping Site For Dredged Materials.

WHAT ARE OUR OPTIONS • Dredging Select Waterways Using Contracted Dredging • Developing an In-House Dredging Program

IN HOUSE DREDGING CONCEPT • Develop an In-house Dredging Capability Using a Long Reach Excavator Mounted on a Barge • The Excavator Would Dump The Dredged Material Into Bottom Dump Barges. • We would Acquire at Least Two Barges (custom built to be useful under our Bridges). • We Would Also Need To Acquire A Work Boat to Maneuver the Barges and the Dredge Barge and a Hydrographic Survey Boat. • Our Plan Would Be to Haul The Dredged Material to Craney Island Using Contracted Tug Services (owning a tug to haul the barges would be cost prohibitive). • It Is Estimated That We Would Only Be Dredging 600 Hours Each Year. • The Proposed Personnel Requirements Include: 1. Environmental Engineer 2. Boat Captain 3. Dredge Operator 4. 4-Crew Members (Deck Hands) 5. Hydrographic Surveyor 6. • Public Dollars Would Be Used to Dredge Main and Stem Channels. • Individual Property Owners Would Have to Hire and/or Pay to have a Private Channel Dug to Their Pier. • The Mechanics and Coordination of How This Would Work Would Need to be Worked Out Regardless of Whether a Private

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Contractor Does the Private Channel or If The City Dredge Is to Perform That Work in Conjunction With the Public Dredging.

Annual Costs Equipment Cost $ 303,500 Contract Tug 270,000 Personnel 445,000 Hours of operation/YR 600/Hrs.Yr. Operating Costs 250 /Hr. Annual Operating Costs 150,000 Annual Storage/Pier Costs 120,000 Annual Disposal Costs 105,000 Total Annual Costs $1,393,500

Estimated Total Cost $16,002,257

Estimated Time to Complete 11.5 Years

POSSIBLE FINANCING SOURCES

• Use G. O. Bonds or Equipment Lease Financing to Acquire the Equipment • Annual Debt Service and Operating Cost Would Be Absorbed within the General Fund • Develop a Dedicated Revenue Source Within The General Fund to Cover all or a portion of The Annual Debt service and Annual Operating Cost • Dedicated Revenue Source • The City Manager was Asked to Look at The Impact of Raising the City’s Boat Tax As an Option • The Following Chart of Projected Revenues From the Boat Tax Was Calculated by the Commissioner of The Revenues and Is Based Simply on the Assessed Values of Boats Currently on the City’s Tax Rolls • All Things Being Equal It would Take a Minimum of $1.75/$100 Assessed Value to Fund the In-House Dredging Program As Outlined above.

Mayor Kearney stated that this is just a proposal and he is asking for public comments regarding whether or not the dredging should be done and how the dredging would be paid for.

Mr. Greg Richardson, 5 Tomahawk Road, stated that there are many citizens represented that were part of the Hampton River Commission several years ago. He said that the net conclusion of three years and many hours of time was that the rivers, basically the six major rivers to include the Salt Ponds, Little Back River, and Mill Creek are natural resources that need to be protected. He said that the Commission issued a strong prediction at that point that they were running out of time. He

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said that the situation is causing the difficulty in navigation which is not as accurate as comparing the precipitous changes from 75 to 100 feet depth was the traditional volume of the channels in terms of depth. He said that today, there is anywhere from two to four feet. He said that four feet is about average. Mr. Richardson said that the time has come and it will be a short time before the City would not be able to bring barges in to conduct the dredging.

Mr. Rick Bagley, 5 Oldenburg Lane, Chairman of the Economic Development Committee for the Downtown Business Improvement District (BID), stated that he was chairman several years ago and lobbied hard against the personal property tax on boats. He said that one of the first initiatives on the downtown group as to create the public piers. He said that it captured the transient boat business to augment the revenues for the restaurants, shops and the hotel in the Downtown area. He said that the other endeavor was to get more visibility for the marinas. He said that the marinas are a significant part of the BID. He said that at that time the marinas were 40% vacant. He said that the City didn’t do a good job of converting those people to permanent slip holders. He said that Portsmouth eliminated their personal property tax on boats and Virginia Beach and Norfolk soon followed. He said that because Council eliminated the personal property tax on boats the vacancy rate has gone from a 40% to 5%. He said that the marina owners have been able to increase their slip fees by 26.4%. He said that it is a significant amount of revenue and they have documented the economic impact of having the boats in Hampton and produced a report that Council has been provided with. Mr. Bagley said that if Council uses the boat tax to implement the dredging the City will find itself in a deep economic hole that the City will find a hard time finding their way out of.

Ms. Elise Fee, 136 Columbia Avenue, stated that the Maryland study was a study conducted in 2000 by the University of Maryland and the Maryland Sea Grant Program. She said that it was updated in 2004. She said that it covered all of documented and registered boats of all types. Ms. Fee said that for transient boats, the average economic impact of a transient boat in 2004 was $7,111 per vessel per year, plus .1 equivalent of a full time job. She said that another way to look at it is the average economic impact of a transient slip which would house several boats over the course of a year, which is $38,000 and .5 equivalency full time jobs. She said that if the Maryland data is applicable to Hampton, 3.46% of all slips were transient and Hampton had 1,300 privately owned slips for rent and 27 City owned slips and 200 new slips going on line at Blue Water that year. She said that multiplying that by the number of the percentage of transient which is 3.46%, there were 169 transient slips or 905 transient vessels per year in Hampton. She said that the annual projected economic annual impact of just the transient boating market in Hampton is $6.425M annually and 91 new jobs created. Ms. Fee said that the potential total economic impact for permanent in-water power boats and sail boats is $13.25M per year and 157 full-time equivalent jobs.

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Mr. Perry Pilgrim, 202 Mill Point Drive, spoke against the return of the boat tax. He said that the fund piece is critical. He requested that Council consider the various funding alternatives that are available. He said that the reinstitution of the boat tax appears to be the easiest way to go. He said that it is simple and it appears logical. He said that if the same logic was applied to the schools only people with school age children would be taxed. He said that upscale housing efforts fall short in the City of Hampton compared to the rest of the Peninsula. He said the effort to gain more expensive housing, which generates more taxes has been unsuccessful. He said that upscale housing with the availability of a boat slip is very attractive to both people who would live full time in Hampton and want their boats there and also people who would want to have a place for their boat and come to it some times during the year. Mr. Pilgrim said that it would be misleading for him to say that the developers would not come to Hampton if the boat tax returned. He said that the boat tax is one of the many pieces that economic development has to work with to make an attractive package for residents to come in and for developers to spend their money in Hampton.

Mr. Pilgrim requested that Council weigh all of the financing alternatives that are available and don’t opt out for the simple route of taxing the boaters.

Mr. Jack Robinson, 118 Deer Path Road, Williamsburg, stated that he is a new boat owner and one of the main attractions for him to come to Hampton with his boat was the low tax or no tax. He said that he is spending his money in Hampton and he doesn’t mind paying a small tax, but his boat is portable and he will take his boat elsewhere.

Mr. Dwight Wolf, 113 Patrick Lane, Newport News, stated that he is a boat owner and owns a lot of property in Hampton. He is favor of the dredging and believes that Hampton’s waterfront property is it’s greatest asset. He stated that he has looked into some high end real estate development at the end of Ivy Home Road and has contracted to buy those properties. He said that this property is projected to bring in $60M of real estate value to the City of Hampton. Mr. Wolf said that if the boat tax is reinstated he would leave. He said that the real estate tax is a source of revenue. Mr. Wolf asked that the City think about dredging the waterways themselves.

Mr. Larry Cumming, 2236 Cunningham Drive, stated that it is clear that the City needs to dredge the rivers because they are a tremendous asset to the community. He doesn’t believe that the dredging should be paid for by a boat tax, and suggested that Council consider having a private contractor do the dredging.

Mr. Earl Hall, 130 Creek View Lane, stated that he believes there are a lot of flaws in the dredging plan. He said that with an 11 ½ year plan of 330,000 cubic yards that is 30,000 yards a year with the debt service going on for 12 months a year. He asked why pay the debt service for 10

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months while the equipment sets idle. He said that the employees who would work for the City on the dredge would fall under a new set of rules.

Mr. Hall said that Council supercharged the waterfront economic with the abolition of the boat tax. He said that money was brought into the City from not only other cities, but from other States. He said that with the boat tax back in place, the boats will leave Hampton.

Mr. John Velines, 2703 Robert Earl Circle, Richmond, stated that he has a boat in Hampton. And every weekend between May and Thanksgiving, he and his wife come down and spend time on the boat and spend money in the City of Hampton. He said that they love to shop in Hampton and eat in Hampton’s restaurants. He said that 40% of the boats in the marina are non-residents of Hampton. He said that they support the dredging and oppose the boat tax.

Ms. Cindy Hawkins, 2 Ivory Gull Crescent, stated that she is the General Manager and part owner of Salt Ponds Marina. She said that over 60% of the boaters at the Salt Ponds are from other cities. She said that she has people that need to renew a lease but they will not renew a lease until the problem is solved. She said that over $80,000 a year is paid on the slips alone. She believes that there is a way to come up with money for the dredging and it is not taxing the boats, because the boats will leave the CIty if they are taxed.

Mr. John Whittington, 784 North First Street, has lived in Hampton for nine years and he would hate to see what would happen to Hampton if the boats were forced to move away. He supports the dredging but believes there are better ways to pay for it.

Mr. Chris Hall, Blue Water Yacht Sales, 1 Marina Road, stated that he is prejudiced. He said that he is proud of what people have said. He said that Council and the City made the decision to put the tax in the current statues because information was brought to Council that has proven to be correct. He said that he is in favor of the dredging and he is excited about having deep water back in Hampton.

Mr. Jim Holt, 15 Thimble Shoals Court, stated that he was representing Joey’s Marina built in 1951 and the Customs House Marina which was built in 1984. He said that he supports the dredging. He said that in 2003 he had an empty building, and an electronic technician came to him and said he had a one-horse operation. He said that after three years, there are three technicians and a full-time office person. He said that if the boats are driven way, those jobs are gone.

Ms. Gay Larue, 119 Linden Avenue, said that she is not present as a boat owner, but as a homeowner. She said that she first visited Hampton in 1982 at a outdoor festival. She said that she was intrigued to see a Chinese Junk sailing up the Hampton River towards the Downtown area. She said that three years later she moved to Hampton. She thinks it

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would be a huge mistake if Hampton reinstated the boat tax. She agrees that the dredging is needed, but thinks there is a better way to pay for it.

Mr.Tom Pantellides, 51 Bay Front Place, stated that he supports the dredging and also supports the DHDP’s proposal to pay for the dredging by setting aside a portion of the real estate tax that will be collected from high value waterfront property. He said that his home is a good example. He stated that his taxes went up 50% which is new revenue coming into the City. He said a portion of those taxes should be set aside for the dredging.

Mr. John Robbins, 1 Lake Ferguson, said that he supports the dredging issue but would like Council to address the issue so it takes into account waterways that are upstream of the Pembroke Bridge, the Mercury Boulevard Bridge and the Indian River Bridge on Chesapeake Avenue. He said that he has heard that the City will buy a lot of equipment, including barges, and the City is going to use tugs. He said that he doesn’t know how they are going to get under the bridges. He said that the only boat that he has is a canoe and those areas are not going to be dredged with a canoe. He asked that all waterways be taken into account.

Mayor Kearney stated that Robinson Creek and Mill Creek are important to all of us.

Mr. Larry Snyder, 213 Skipper Court, stated that he lives near Gosnolds Hope Park and there is a relatively small waterway where he lives. He said that he agrees with most of what has been presented to Council. He suggested that there is a Recreational Fishing Advisory Board Fund (RFABF) that is administered by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC). He said that he participates in that and he noticed that the City of Hampton does not come to that board as far as pushing for waterfront access projects. He said that most of the other communities on the southside and on the Peninsula have hit the fund frequently. He said that there is a public boat ramp in Gosnolds Hope Park and the dock is in disrepair. He said that money is probably available from the RFABF.

Mr. Tom Wallis, 5 Jayne Lee Drive, supports the dredging. He said that financing is fragmented because there are so many diverse areas that have to funded and supported. He said that it is paramount that the equitable distribution of the money for the required services is paramount.

Mr. Lawrence Dunn, 30 Great Lakes Drive, member of Boards of Directors of Phillips Lake Homeowners, stated that they have discussed the dredging in their association meetings and they are in favor of the dredging. He said that they have not discussed the boat tax. He said that the folks on the water are willing to pay something to having dredging done close to their homes. He said that the waterway at Phillips Lake used to be 30 feet deep and the City of Hampton storm drains empty into the lake. He said that at low tide, it is called Philips Mud.

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Mr. Al Palmer, 3002 Woodside Avenue, stated that he has waterfront property that he is pleased to occupy. He said that he supports the dredging. He said that he doesn’t believe all of the resources have been explored.

Ms. Jan Morrison, 306 Burgh Westra Drive, stated that she supports the dredging. She said that many of the people from Elizabeth Lakes did not want to come to Council because they said nothing would be done.

Ms. Carol Garrison, 410 Shoreline Drive, stated that she was a representative of the Pastures Point Civic Association. She said that the Pastures Point Civic Association represents about 70 residents and their area has been flooded three times this year and four times over the last three years. She said that they have never had a flooding problem in forty years, until recently. She said that some residents used to have boats, but the boats are long gone. She said the most days it is just silt and there is no way to have a boat. Ms. Garrison said that they were on the list to be dredged, but they never got dredged. She said that water is running in from drains and various parts of the City. She said the streets and houses are flooding and the worst part is that when the water hits, it blows the sewer lines and the sewer runs into the houses. She said that the water runs so fast that they can barely get their cars out in time. She said that they pay a lot of taxes for deep water access and the only deep water access they have is when it floods. She said that when some of the residents moved their vehicles to the police station they were told to move them or they would be towed. She said that they would rather pay the towing fee than buy a new car that has been flooded out. She said that there is no evacuation plan for their area, or no plan that anyone knows about.

Mayor Kearney apologized because he took the issue of flooding and he was thinking this was another issue.

Ms. Garrison said that by dredging the waterways would alleviate the flooding problem.

Mr. Tommy Leary, 415 W. Gilbert Street, President of the Pastures Civic Association, stated that on November 23, 2006, the Association held a special meeting at Tyler School for the specific purpose to discuss the flooding problems along the Little Back River. He said that 35 people attended the meeting along with Ms. Gale Hicks from the City Engineer’s Department. He said that the consensus at the meeting was that the City has been remiss in its maintenance of the rivers, tributaries and creeks and storm water systems in the City. Mr. Leary said that the Pastures and the Tyler-Seldondale areas have suffered for the last four years with flooding. He said that the silt that has built up in the waterways is causing the flooding. He requested that the City Council make dredging a priority. He said that the Newmarket watershed is having a meeting on January 8, 2007, and has asked to participate in that meeting, because his area is part of the Newmarket watershed.

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Mr. James Ellis, 329 Woodside Drive, stated that he is a new waterfront property owner. He said that the storm drains into his canal. He said that the silt that is coming into the waterways is coming from all over Hampton, so it is not a specific point you need to address to solve the problem. He said that any business that can raise its fees 26% over a period of years can support some extra burden and the non-boat tax has done that for the City. He said that everyone supports the dredging but it cannot be pointed to one specific fund or source of funds to pay for it. He said that a modest increase in taxes would not drive a lot of people away.

Mr. John Nash, 406 Roane Drive, stated that he supports the dredging because of the flooding in their neighborhood. Mr. Nash said that is overwhelming. He said that it has been getting worse since Hurricane Isabel.

Ms. Audrey Nash, 406 Roane Drive, said that she feels that it is an atrocity and injustice, as a taxpayer, that they have to live in these conditions. She said that they have sewer problems that need to be addressed because of the flooding. Ms. Nash asked that this issue be addressed as soon as possible, because the next season is fast approaching.

Ms. Veronica Davis, 1313 Glenbrook Drive, asked Mayor Kearney if it was possible to raise the money for dredging through an event. She said that the City of Pittsburgh has boating events that raise millions of dollars each year.

Mayor Kearney said that the City Manager will be researching all kinds of events where the dredging is concerned.

Ms. Chris Ausink , 66 Salem Street, in the Tyler-Seldondale neighborhood, said that every time there is a heavy rain, the water is coming up, especially at the end of Roane Drive, where the Nash’s live. She said that the one thing that has not been addressed is the personal responsibility. Ms. Ausink said that residents are responsible for clearing out the ditches and not raking their leaves into the street to go into the storm drains. Ms. Ausink believes that the process of silt build up can be slowed by personal responsibility.

Mr.Greg Candley, 403 Creek Avenue in Pasture Point, stated that Brights Creek and Hampton Creek are very much in favor of the dredging. He said that when there is flooding, it doesn’t matter how deep it is, the water is going to rise.

Ms. Julie Waltrip, 400 Roane Drive, supports the dredging. She said that since 1968, the water has gotten deeper and it is up to her porch in the smallest of storms. Ms. Waltrip said that she would appreciate anything Council could do and she is for whatever it takes to get the job done. Mr. John Ishon, 108 East Queen Street, stated that from a business stand point he commended Council because what they have seen tonight

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during the Council meeting is what they set as a goal to accomplish. To generate business, to bring people to our community, to have tax revenue outside of the City’s borders help pay for what we do, and this is exactly what the charge was to gain higher value housing and bring people to the City of Hampton. He said that it is a good thing, not a negative thing. Mr. Ishon said that it is fortunate that the business community has come to support Council to help. He said that the citizens have come because they have the same issues because the number one asset of Hampton is the water and we need to make sure that we take care of that and we are good stewards of our community.

Mr. Ishon said that Council should be proud of what they have done, because the goals that were set years ago have come to fruition. He said that he doesn’t believe putting the tax back on boats is the right answer. He said that Council needs to be creative to find a way to do that.

Mayor Kearney said that there was a lot of information provided to Council and the City Manager has his charge of what needs to be done. He said that it was probably unanimous about the dredging.

The City Manager said that we know now how the citizens feel about dredging.

Mayor Kearney said that if it was an easy decision, it would have been done years ago.

Councilman Tignor said that when this topic initially came up, he suggested that the City Manager get some elasticity studies. He said that he would like those studies to be presented when this issue is discussed again.

The City Manager stated that he did not include the elasticity studies because Council was not required to act on this matter at this meeting.

Councilman Tignor said that he would like to have some knowledge of the results of the studies regarding the threshold of losing boats in the City if a boat tax is implemented.

Councilwoman Leary thanked everyone for attending the Council meeting and provide Council with both views of the issue regarding the boat tax and dredging. She said that she would like to appeal to the community to think about the possibility of having a one-time tax to get the ball rolling on dredging, especially in those areas where people’s homes are flooding from normal rainfall.

Councilman Spencer said that a lot of marina owners have expressed their opinions regarding the boat tax and Council appreciates the job growth, revenue increase and people spending money in the community. He said that he hopes that there is some way that the City Manager and staff can come up with a formula that shows how much taxes are

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generated from those facilities because they are directly tied to the waterways. He said that it may be an alternative to a boat tax.

Councilman Sapp said that he has grave concerns about the City getting into the dredging business. He said that someone is going to have to show him that all other possibilities have been exhausted before the City starts purchasing equipment. He said that he submitted a proposal to staff as an alternative to what was being looked at as initially a reinstatement of the boat tax, which would have partially spread it over a broader base such as waterfront property owners. He said that there have been discussions regarding how Hampton can become more effective in accessing state and federal funds to address the flooding and other issues that can take the burden off of the local taxpayers, and to bring back the federal and state tax dollars that go to Washington and Richmond. Councilman Sapp said that he appreciates staff and the work they have done on a very complex issue.

Mayor Kearney thanked everyone for their comments on the dredging and flooding. He said that Mr. Ishon was correct, Council wants to attack this issue and they are going after it. He said that Council is going to do whatever they can and the community is going to be part of it.

21. 06-0754 Motion to extend the meeting beyond 11 p.m.

APPROVED

Motion made by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary Seconded by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

PUBLIC HEARINGS

Rezonings - Second Reading

22. 06-0658 Zoning Ordinance Amendment to amend Article XV. Sec. 17.3-114 “Special Public Interest District - Coliseum Central; Boundary and Application,” of the Zoning Ordinance by amending the boundary map.

HELD PUBLIC HEARING

ADOPTED ON SECOND AND FINAL READING

Motion made by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Seconded by: Councilmember Rhet Tignor

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Aye: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nay: 0

Rezonings - First Readings

23. 06-0703 Rezoning Application No.1235 by James Crocker to rezone 78 Butler Farm Road from One Family Residence District (R-11) to One Family Residence District (R-9) to develop 15 single family homes.

The City Manager stated that this proposal is to rezone 78 Butler Farm Road from R-11, R-9, to develop 15 single family homes. He said that the Planning Commission and Planning Staff recommend approval of Rezoning Application No. 1235 with the following nine (9) proffered conditions:

1. The subdivision will be constructed in substantial conformance with the conceptual plan prepared by J.S.G. Development Consultants, P.C., dated November 1, 2006. 2. The developer will preserve the existing non-tidal wetlands as on the site plan and implement the storm water management area designated as a non-buildable lot on the conceptual site plan, dated November 1, 2006. 3. The subdivision will be developed and the building improvements will be constructed in compliance with all of the R-9 zoning district requirements with the sole exception of the following: a. Minimum dwelling size will meet the R-11 zoning district requirement of no less than 1700 square feet. 4. The developer will install the following: (as shown on the conceptual site plan, dated November 1, 2006). • A 20’ landscaped buffer and berm along the Butler Farm Road right of way • A single row of evergreen trees (on 10 foot centers) along eastern and western perimeter of the subdivision • The storm water management area on the designated non- buildable lot. 5. An easement will be dedicated to a homeowners association to maintain the following: as shown on the conceptual site plan dated November 1, 2006. • The 20 foot landscaped buffer and berm along Butler Farm Road. • The existing non-tidal wetlands at the rear of residential lots 7 and 8. 6. Berms shall consist of grass sod/landscape mulch with large street trees (on 40 foot centers) and streetscape shrubs. 7. Fencing installation along the Butler Farm Road right of way shall be installed on the northern side of the berm. 8. All buildings initially constructed on the property will be substantially the same as the homes shown on the conceptual elevations, dated October 19, 2006. The Planning Director or his designee must review additional

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buildings elevations prior to the issuance of a building permit. Design review is required for all lots within the subdivision and all home building facades. 9. Lots within the subdivision shall not be further subdivided.

HELD PUBLIC HEARING

ADOPTED ON FIRST READING

24. 06-0722 Rezoning Application No.1236 by Spivey Disposal L.L.C to rezone 228 Salters Creek Road from Limited Manufacturing District (M-2) to Heavy Manufacturing District (M-3) with conditions for a Material Recovery Facility.

The City Manager stated that this proposal is to rezone 4.3 +/- acres at 228 Salters Creek Road from M-2 (Limited Manufacturing District) to M-3 (Heavy Manufacturing District) for a Material Recovery Facility. The City Manager stated that the Planning Commission and Planning Staff recommend approval with the following proffered condition:

1. The only M-3 use that could be on this site is an enclosed material recovery facility.

HELD PUBLIC HEARING

ADOPTED ON FIRST READING

Motion made by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary Seconded by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Aye: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nay: 0

Use Permit

25. 06-0724 Use Permit Application No.1014 by T-Mobile Northeast to install three building mounted antennas on the roof of Embassy Suites Hotel located at 1700 Coliseum Drive.

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The City Manager stated that the Planning Commission and the Planning Staff recommend approval of Use Permit Application No. 1014 subject to the following two (2) conditions:

1. The color of the screening equipment shall match the color of the background building material. 2. The antenna and all mounting assemblies shall match the color of the background building material.

HELD PUBLIC HEARING

APPROVED

Motion made by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Seconded by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Aye: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nay: 0

26. 06-0735 Use Permit Application No. 1018 to allow a 2.4+/- acre public park at the northeast corner of River Street and Pembroke Avenue.

The City Manager stated that the Planning Commission and Planning staff recommend approval of Use Permit No. 1018 with the following six (6) conditions:

1. The proposed park design shall be approved by the Director of Parks and Recreation as to compliance with the requirements of the American Disability Act and Consumer Product Safety Commission prior to issuance of permits for construction.

2. Hours of operation shall be from sunrise to sunset, 365 days a year.

3. The facility will be designated as a public park. A sign noting hours of operation shall be posted to enforce the no trespassing regulation after the park is closed.

4. All project identification signs shall be approved by the Planning Director prior to the issuance of any sign permits for determining consistency with the Downtown Hampton Master Plan.

5. Parking shall be restricted to designated on-street parking spaces. No vehicles shall be allowed to park in the green areas.

6. The proposed park shall be constructed in accordance with the Conceptual design by WPL dated September 21, 2006. Modifications to this Conceptual Design may occur to comply with applicable State, federal and local ordinances and regulations.

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HELD PUBLIC HEARING

APPROVED

27. 06-0736 Use Permit Application No. 1019 by Marcellus “Boo” Williams to construct and operate a 130,000 square foot sports complex with accessory uses at Armistead Pointe.

The City Manager stated that the Planning Commission and Planning Staff recommend approval of Use Permit Application No. 1019 with the following three (3) conditions:

1. Architectural Review a) Prior to issuance of any land-disturbing or building permits, the Developer shall provide to the Director of Planning, for review and approval, detailed building elevations (all elevations). b) The general design of the facility will be in conformity with the Coliseum Central Master Plan, the Facility Design Criteria as defined in the Development Agreement and the Coliseum Central Design Guidelines, as set forth by the Development Agreement. The design of the facility is subject to the approval of the Planning Director and the Industrial Development Authority. c) Construction materials shall include masonry, split face block, concrete tilt-up panels, storefront glass and other high quality, durable, attractive materials as determined by the Director of Planning. The intent is to design and build a high-quality facility that establishes the design direction for the overall park development. d) All building elevations will be designed using scale, proportion, and symmetry reflected in the building elements such as doors, windows, roof, and front entry feature. e) Any subsequent alterations to the structure shall be subject to these conditions, and shall require review and approval by the Director of Planning, or his designee. 2. Site Design a) Site design shall be in substantial conformance with the conceptual site plan for “Boo Williams Sportsplex” dated October 19, 2006.

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b) Storm water treatment shall be addressed in such a way as to protect or enhance the physical and biological integrity of waters in such conditions that will permit all reasonable public uses, including fishing, as determined by the City Manager or his designee. Development of storm water treatment methods shall be sensitive to the future recreational and fishing opportunities offered by the pond.

3. Hours of Operation The hours of operation shall be limited to: 5:30 am to 11:00 pm, except during special tournaments and events.

HELD PUBLIC HEARING

APPROVED

28. 06-0737 Use Permit Application No. 1015 by the City of Hampton for a fishing pier on the Chesapeake Bay waterfront in Buckroe further identified as LSRN #13001556 and 12007408. The site is located south of the Buckroe Park at the southern end of Resort Boulevard and north of Fort Monroe on the Chesapeake Bay coast.

The City Manager stated that the Use Permit is a request to replace the Buckroe Fishing Pier which was lost during Hurricane Isabel. He said that Planning Staff is recommending approval of Use Permit Application No. 1015 with the following (6) six conditions. He said that the Planning Commission recommends denial of this application.

1. Use Permit No.1015 shall supersede Use Permit No.1004. 2. The maximum length of the pier shall be no greater than 709’. 3. The materials used for constructing the pier shall be consistent with those shown in the Staff Report for Use Permit #1015 (Revised December 2006), including but not limited to concrete pilings and structure topped with a wooden deck. 4. A minimum of 50 on site parking spaces shall be provided. 5. The developer shall acquire and maintain all required permits from other agencies, such as the Virginia Marine Resources Commission. 6. The pier shall not be constructed in the area zoned Special Public Interest – Public Land (SPI-PL) on the parcel identified as LRSN #12007408 as shown on this map labeled “Pier Location” [See Staff Report for Map].

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Mr. Michael Hayes, City Planner, stated that one of the features of the Buckroe Master Plan was to restore the fishing pier that was taken away from the community by Hurricane Isabel. He said that the Planning Department is proposing that the pier be restored to 709 feet. He said that it is a conceptual plan and there is no specific parking configuration or exact location.

Mr. Jim Holt, 17 Thimble Shoals Court, said that there is over a half a mile of City-owned beach that is not encumbered by prime real estate directly behind the proposed pier. He said that Council is in the process of negotiating with the Abbott Family to purchase more of the trailer park. He said that the value of land will automatically decrease a minimum of 50%. He said that the City is paying $500 a front foot for property along the Chesapeake Bay. He said that property is worth well over a $2M. He said that any type of housing project could be built to re-coop the loss the City has paid and relocate the pier somewhere between Point Comfort Avenue and the Old Pier One.

Mr. William Marchant, 324 N. First Street, said that he retired from New York and moved to Hampton. He said that one of the things that brought them to Hampton was the quaint seaside community. He said that the City has an asset that is reeking money if it is put to the right use for the City. He said that they travel from New York to Virginia via boat. He said that it took over a month to get to Hampton, and they stopped at every port imaginable. He said that there are beaches along the East Coast that charge $7 a person to go on a public beach. He said that some marinas charge up to $3.50 a foot a night for a transient slip. He said that these are things that Hampton has in their back yard. He suggested that in rebuilding the pier, to reinstitute a plan where it can be generating revenue for Hampton. He said that he doesn’t think that taxing boats is the answer and believes the fishing pier is a major source of income.

Mr. Marchant said that he saw the beauty in Buckroe and also saw the negative side of Buckroe. He said there were places that were undesirable and the City addressed them in the four years they have been in Hampton. He thanked Council for getting rid of Todds Cottages and Golden Sands.

Mr. Frank Blake, 1662 Old Buckroe Road, stated that he has been a resident of Buckroe for 20 years. He said that the fishing pier was in cooperation with the amusement park that was in Buckroe. He said that the fishing pier was there long before it was a commercial endeavor. He said the fishing pier being at that end of the resort area is the ideal place for it. He doesn’t believe it is going to be as much of a problem in that area as some believe.

Ms. Alice Callahan, 228 North First Street, President of the Buckroe Civic Association, and District 6 Commissioner, requested Council’s support in approving the Use Permit to rebuild the pier in its present location. She said that it was part of the original Master Plan which was approved by

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Council. She said that the Buckroe Civic Association continues to support the plan. She said that any issues the people from Chesapeake Landing had about rebuilding the pier have been addressed by the City regarding any problems that might arise from that.

Ms. Amy Hobbs, 1913 North Mallory Street, agreed with Ms. Callahan’s comments.

Mr. Steve Moore, 18 Thimble Shoals Court, asked what the six conditions were regarding the fishing pier. He said that they may address some of his concerns.

Mr. Michael Hayes said the six conditions were that the Use Permit supersedes Use Permit No. 1004 which was approved a year ago. He said that it was for the 550 foot pier. He said that based upon the drawing that was reviewed for Use Permit No. 1004, the pier did not appear to cross the property lines and they had to re-advertise and go through another Use Permit process to allow the pier to be built across the property line. He said that the second condition is that the maximum length of the pier would be 709 feet. The third condition is that the materials used for constructing the pier would be consistent with the materials in the staff report, concrete pilings with a wood frame over top. The fourth is a minimum of 50 parking spaces to be provided on site. The fifth condition is that the developer shall require and maintain all the required permits from other agencies such as the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC). The sixth condition is that the pier shall not be constructed in the areas zoned Special Public Interest-Public Lands (SPI-PL).

Mr. Moore said that he would like to see the pier rebuilt, but he believes it is in the worst place to do it.

In response to Councilman Spencer, the City Manager stated that there is no restaurant associated with the pier.

Councilman Spencer asked if a restaurant could be resurrected based on the way Council may taking action. In response, the City Manager stated that Council would be approving a Use Permit for a fishing pier only, with no restaurant.

Councilman Spencer stated that the discussion on the fishing pier is a close to the old fishing pier as possible. The City Manager said that was correct.

Mr. Lee Marks, 2224 N. Mallory Street, said that he supports the fishing pier. He believes it is an asset to the community and the City of Hampton, as well as the Peninsula. He asked Council to move forward to show the community that Council is continuing to move forward with improvements in Buckroe.

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Mr. Herman Green, 209 Seaboard Avenue, said that he has a problem with moving the pier north because it splits the beach.

Mr. Joel Petrie, 4 Thimble Shoals Court, stated that he supports rebuilding the fishing pier. He asked if the pilings would be removed. In response, the City Manager stated that the pilings that were part of the restaurant would be removed. He is concerned about the pier being close to the homes and asked that Council relocate the pier to the north.

Mr. Tom McDermott, 3 Thimble Shoals Court, stated that all homeowners have the right to enjoy their property and a right to expect their homes to be free of encroachment and pollution caused by light, noise and obnoxious odors that would be generated by this type of facility. He said that at the October Planning Commission meeting, a former resident of Chesapeake Landing described some of the problems. He said that everyone supports the pier, but they are asking for a buffer zone. He said that the VMRC stated that the fishing would be the same up and down the coast, and they will accept the City’s current application without delay, regardless of location as long as the pier is built on publicly owned beachfront.

Councilwoman Leary asked Mr. Hayes how much farther south the parking lot went toward Chesapeake Landing, from the existing parking lot. In response, Mr. Hayes said that compared to the previous conceptual design, they have included a larger buffer between the parking and Chesapeake Landing.

Councilwoman Leary asked if the lighting being turned away from Chesapeake Landing would be taken into consideration. In response, Mr. Hayes said that is an operational issue and it is something that can be included as another condition.

Councilman Sapp said that his statement at the Planning Commission was not that the pier and the amusement park were developed together. He said that there was a point in history when they were there together. He said that those uses seem to be compatible, but the amusement park went away and the pier was still there. He said that another Council decided to build houses and now there are houses next to the pier. He said that in review of the record, he cannot find any indication that folks moved next to the runway and then complained about the airplane noise. He said that he doesn’t believe that there has been concern about pier operation.

Councilman Sapp said that according to records from spring 2004, Parks and Recreation reviewed alternate locations and came to the conclusion that the old location was the only location. He said that he does not have the criteria used to evaluate that. He said that in March 2005, Council approved the Master Plan for Buckroe and everything seemed to be moving ahead. He said that in May 2005, the Department of Defense (DOD) base closure list came out and Fort Monroe was on it. He said that in November 2005, Congress signed the list into law and what was

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conjecture became fact. He said that the entire area was transformed by that decision. He said that 2011 is a long way from now and the City is focusing on many other things. He said that Council decided to put the Buckroe Plan on hold to consider Buckroe, Phoebus, Downtown and under one piece of cloth. Councilman Sapp said that they were ridiculed for that decision and they were accused of being stone-wallers and out of touch. He said that internationally known land use consultants, federal and state officials have since endorsed that decision. He said that it was a wise thing to do to step back and look at previous decisions, in light of the new development.

Councilman Sapp said that there were some projects there were underway that were grandfathered. The Pembroke Avenue Improvement Project, which was already under contract and it didn’t make sense not to do that. He said that the Council was set to move forward with the pier construction. He said that a developer said he would come in and build it on his cost and relieve the City from the $200M construction costs. He said that there were compelling reasons to put the pier in the same location as it was before. He is recommending that the City move ahead with the Use Permit so the City can engage all the issues and start moving ahead.

Councilman Tignor said that this is one of those issues where there are no good answers. He said that the City needs a fishing pier as soon as they can get a fishing pier.

Councilman Spencer stated that the fishing pier needs to return to the City and one of the ideas that he had was to put it on the Pier One site. He said to give some reassurance to the neighbors that are close to the location, he asked that a condition be added, or an understanding about not having a restaurant at the fishing pier. He also asked the lighting be directed to the pier and not to the homes. He also requested that the maximum amount of buffering that planning would allow for the efficient use of parking be included in the design.

The City Attorney stated that those can be conditions of the permit. She said that it would be condition of granting the Use Permit in addition to the six conditions.

Mayor Kearney stated that the three additions are to work on a stronger buffer between the parking lot and the pier, that the lights be friendly to the residents in the community and that there would be no restaurant or bar on that particular site.

Councilwoman Leary said that she would like noise factors to be addressed.

The City Attorney asked if Councilwoman Leary was requesting that as an additional condition. She said that the City already has a noise ordinance that would address those concerns. HELD PUBLIC HEARING

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APPROVED Motion made by: Councilmember Charles N. Sapp Seconded by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary Aye: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nay: 0

29. 06-0687 PUBLIC HEARING regarding the sale of approximately 17,610 sq. ft. and the franchise of 1,433 sq. ft. of real property located at Settlers Landing Road and known as 602 Settlers Landing Road, portion of RPC No. 2002990 to WSMZ, L.L.C. pursuant to the authority set forth in §§15.2- 1800 and 15.2-2100 of the Code of Virginia of 1950, as amended.

Mayor Kearney stated that he was informed by staff that the public hearing cannot be properly held at this meeting due to an inaccuracy in the advertisement of the hearing relating to the description of the land proposed to be sold.

Mayor Kearney requested a motion to defer the public hearing to a later meeting, following a correction advertisement or request a motion to remove it from the agenda. He said that in the interest of efficiency, rather than to defer the matter, he chose to request a motion to remove the item from the agenda and direct the City Manager to stop further efforts to finalize the development of the proposal currently under consideration.

Mayor Kearney said that it is true that the development concept was part of the Downtown Master Plan, the building of retail space along the harbor canal, adjacent to the 1900’s Carousel and the eastern side of the park and the Virginia Air and Space Center (VASC). Mayor Kearney explained that he did not endorse the original presentation of the concept. He said that his objection was the loss of public space to commercial development, but he was willing to forgo that and wait to see what might be put there.

Mayor Kearney said that the original concept presented showed a more narrow building set back from the Carousel and from Settlers Landing Road. He said that the new presentation offers a building much wider and intruding into the area of the Carousel. He said that a second, smaller building is located on Settlers Landing Road. He said that with the requirements the City demands with retail to provide parking, he said that Becky’s Florist is being forced to provide paved parking before they can have their grand opening on the existing gravel lot. He said that he sees this as a double standard and unfair treatment. He said that the new proposed retail is not required to provide any parking whatsoever except on City streets. He said that this view of the water is the only view that separates Hampton from other downtown areas on the Peninsula.

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Mayor Kearney said that the property is going to be sold for less than $150,000 and then the restaurant will be provided with paved dining area and a redesign of the Carousel Park in excessive of $600,000. He doesn’t believe this makes economic sense.

Mayor Kearney stated that the maintenance of the area around the restaurant will be a cost to the City. He said that the City currently maintains the walkways, planters, trees, cleaning and sweeping, and mowing, all around the Radisson Hotel. He said that this would be the same situation. He said that he finds this to be an additional expense and liability that he is unwilling to accept.

Mayor Kearney stated that there is no definite restaurant determined to be located there, so he doesn’t understand the haste in settling this issue now. He said that he has owned a restaurant and the trash that accumulates, the used oils and grease, the delivery of goods and exit of debris, has a fragrance and unsightly appearance. He said that the reduced and remaining park adjacent to the museum, a major roadway and the waters edge, is not an inviting place to have a restaurant.

Mayor Kearney said that he is excited with what has been done with the inclusion of Mr. Todd Bridgeford and the VASC participation in recent downtown events. He said that the Childrens’ Fall Festival, the lighted Christmas tree and Boat Parade, and recently the excellent Parks and Recreation’s Christmas light parade are examples of where Council wants to see the downtown activities headed. He said that monthly events should become the norm in attracting residents and visitors to shop, eat and actively participate in a great and vibrant downtown that Hampton has to offer. He doesn’t feel that the design is in the best interest of the existing park and the loss of the water’s view, with the concept that is presented. He said that the loss of the park will make it difficult to maneuver in the downtown area and limit additional family oriented activities. He said that the cost is prohibitive.

Mayor Kearney said that it is going to take six of seven votes to sell the land, and he knows that there are not six votes and he doesn’t want the City Manager spending more time on something that there is no support for at this time.

Mayor Kearney requested a motion to remove Item 28 and to direct the City Manager to stop further efforts to finalize the proposed development currently under consideration. He asked the City Attorney that was a if legal request. In response, the City Attorney stated that the Mayor could properly solicit that motion from one of the members of Council.

Councilman Spencer stated that on agenda item #19, there was a motion to repeal and Council tried to do that by waiving the first reading requirements. He said that because it had not been advertised, Council was not able to do that. He said that it was going to be properly advertised and would be on the agenda for the January 10, 2007 Council

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meeting. He said that in this case, there has been proper advertising to have a public hearing.

The City Attorney stated that the defect in the advertisement had to do with the description of the area of the property that was proposed to be conveyed. She said that it was inaccurate and the amount to be conveyed is larger than what was advertised. She said that the public hearing could go on if the property was smaller, but not if it is larger. She explained that was the defect in the advertisement and technically, it is improper for Council to hold the public hearing pursuant to defective advertising.

Councilman Spencer asked what the recourse is as a City government, when there is an inaccurate advertisement with an issue that at this point, is the first issue out of the box from the Downtown Master Plan. He said that Council should go through the public hearing whether it is a foregone conclusion it is not going to pass. He believes that the public should have an opportunity to discuss the matter. He said that the downtown business group is in favor of this and he knows that Council passed this a year ago to bring a development agreement back. He asked if the City Manager was going to bring this back to Council. The City Manager answered yes.

Councilman Spencer said that he remembered in March 2006 when Council changed the makeup of the Heritage Apartments and took the retail out without doing anything. He said that he has learned from that experience and he certainly would not support anything other than going through a public hearing, particularly when there have been stakeholders that have come to meetings for months. He said that there have been complaints that Council was not following through on the Master Planning process that they had spent a lot of time and energy on. He said that Council owes it to the public to follow that course.

Mayor Kearney said that he is not changing the Master Plan. He said that it has already been presented to Council, and once with Mr. James Eason, Director of Economic Development, because they entered into a debate over it. He said that Mr. Eason has delivered the information to the Downtown Hampton Development Partnership (DHDP) and all the other groups concerned and they have expressed their support for this. He said that he doesn’t like the proposal and he does not want to change the direction of the Master Plan.

Councilman Spencer said that as Mayor, he should take that position publicly with the folks who are stakeholders and participate in that process through a public hearing.

Mayor Kearney asked how the same group that says they don’t have enough business to build retail space and go down to the only park along the waterfront and say they are going to build a retail space. He said that he is getting two views that he is having difficulty understanding.

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Councilman Spencer stated that he is not trying to argue with Mayor Kearney about what his feelings are. He said that he is suggesting that the position this Council should take is that we learn from what happened in the past, and in particular, with the Downtown Master Plan, they want to ensure that Council has done everything to ensure no one alleges that the City of Hampton can’t get things right, which we all know is an inaccurate statement.

Mayor Kearney said that he has asked for a motion and if he doesn’t get one, it is a moot point.

Councilwoman Leary asked that if there were some ordinances or rules to be adopted for outdoor dining. In response, the City Attorney stated that all that Council was dealing with at this Council meeting was the item of a public hearing which was simply Council’s opportunity to hear from the public if they wanted Council to sell the land to anyone, and to this particular developer specifically. She said that the details of that proposal were not on the agenda. She said that part of that involved general franchise, open-air, café regulations that are not just specific to this project, but would apply anywhere downtown.

Councilwoman Leary stated that there are not six votes for this proposal, and she agrees with Mayor Kearney. She said that if there is a decision that a public hearing should be held, and there are people that want to speak on behalf of the issue, she said that she would not have a problem. She said that whoever drafted the outdoor ordinances is very good work that Council can use City-wide. In response, the City Attorney stated that Ms. Vanessa Valldejuli drafted the ordinances and they are regulations that Council would be asked to adopt regardless of whether or not the project goes forward.

Councilwoman Leary said that she has a problem with this particular project and she is not going to change her mind about it.

The City Attorney stated that in response to Councilwoman Leary’s statement regarding having a public hearing, she said that it would not be legally proper because it would be held pursuant to a proper advertisement. She said that Mayor Kearney said that he could solicit a motion to defer, to have an opportunity to correctly advertise and have a proper public hearing, or he could ask that it be removed because the Mayor doesn’t believe there are enough votes to pass the item. She said that the Mayor has not received a motion on either.

Councilwoman Leary said that she would make a motion to remove the item from the agenda to see if it gets seconded.

Vice Mayor Gilliland said that whether it was properly advertised or not, the folks who came to Council to speak were not aware that it had not been properly advertised. He said that whether they are for it or against it, they should be heard no matter what. He believes that the public hearing process should be held, whether it is a “legal public hearing” or

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not. He said that they came to speak on the issue and then entertain whatever issues are going to be made or not made.

Councilman Tignor said that the item needs to be re-advertised. He said that the folks need to be heard and maybe out of that will come some different marching orders to the City Manager about what is wanted in that project and what the public will want in that project. He said that it begins by deferring this item. He said that he is not against listening to the speakers, but he believes it should be re-advertised and go through the process.

Ms. Gay LaRue, 119 Lindon Avenue, stated that she came to the meeting expecting the Council to postpone the public hearing because that information was given to the DHDP Executive Director and she forwarded that information to all of the members on the DHDP Board. She said that she knew it would be on the agenda and she was curious to see exactly how Council would handle it. She said that she was extremely disappointed that Council is considering not having a public hearing on a project that has been on the table. She said that the developer is ready to start construction and Council has not heard anything from the public. She said that the public has not had an opportunity to speak and to think that Council would take a centerpiece project of Downtown and not give the people the opportunity to speak is appalling to her.

Mayor Kearney said that he doesn’t understand that the developer is ready to go when Council hasn’t even given its okay to go ahead.

Ms. LaRue said that the developer has done everything he needs to do and he is just waiting for the okay from Council.

Ms. LaRue said that the public hearing was what they were told would be deferred because of the advertising problem.

Mayor Kearney asked if the City Attorney gave the notice that the item was going to be deferred. In response, the City Attorney stated that there were inquiries about whether or not this was going to be on the agenda. She said that the issue became why it was left on the agenda, once the agenda was published and there was actually a public hearing on this. She said that it was widely discussed that this item was going to be deferred. She said that the only reason it was left on the agenda was that with the collaboration of the Clerk, the City Attorney and the City Manager’s Office, decided that once a public hearing is advertised, people are going to come expecting to speak to it. She explained that typically, at the beginning of the meeting, the people in Council Chambers are told that an item is going to be deferred for whatever reason.

The City Attorney said that if the item is taken off the agenda after it has been advertised, the citizens have been done a disservice because it was not advertised that it was not going to happen. She said that she is not sure whether or not there was any improper communication.

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Councilwoman Leary asked Ms. LaRue if she was told it was going to be deferred. In response, Ms. Larue said that she received an email from Ms. Sherry Spring, the Executive Director, who she believes was in conversation with the City Attorney.

The City Attorney stated that she did not speak with Ms. Spring. She said that she received a call from a member of the Board of Directors of DHDP stating that they saw on the published agenda that there was going to be a public hearing on this transaction and that they understood that it was to be deferred. The City Attorney said that she confirmed, that it was her understanding that the Economic Development Department was going to request that it be deferred due to a defect in the advertising.

Councilman Tignor made a motion to defer to the January 24, 2007, Council meeting, after it has been appropriately re-advertised.

MOVED TO remove item 06-0687 and direct the City Manager to stop further efforts on the proposed development. The motion died for lack of a second.

Motion made by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary

DEFERRED (1/24/2007)

Motion made by: Councilmember Rhet Tignor Seconded by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Aye: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nay: 0

General Items

Resolutions

30. 06-0715 Proposed acquisition of residential property known as 114 E. Pembroke Avenue from Gwyndolyn L. Lomax.

Mr. Jeff Cundiff, Real Estate Manager, stated that the land is being purchased for the expansion of the Courts complex.

ADOPTED Motion made by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Seconded by: Councilmember Paige V. Washington Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

31. 06-0716 Proposed acquisition of residential property known as 1814 Rawood Drive from Edgard Leclerc and Rosa C. Leclerc.

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ADOPTED

Motion made by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Seconded by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

32. 06-0717 Proposed acquisition of property located on Royston Drive from Devone Farrackan, widow.

ADOPTED

Motion made by: Councilmember Paige V. Washington Seconded by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

33. 06-0725 Proposed acquisition of property, known as 501 Kirby Lane, from Terresa W. Vines.

Councilwoman Leary asked if this was for the Kecoughtan Corridor Study acquisition. In response, Vice Mayor Gilliland stated that it was.

ADOPTED

Motion made by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Seconded by: Councilmember Paige V. Washington Ayes: 6 - Randall A. Gilliland, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 1 - Angela Lee Leary

34. 06-0729 Resolution Appropriating $75,000 from Undesignated Fund Balance to the Virginia Air and Space Center and Authorization for the City Manager to Execute a Promissory Note for a $75,000 Loan to the Virginia Air and Space Center for an Ice Skating Rink

BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia that $75,000 is hereby appropriated from undesignated fund balance to the Virginia Air and Space Center as part of a loan for the ice rink project. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, upon repayment, the funds will be returned to undesignated fund balance. ADOPTED

Motion made by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II

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Seconded by: Councilmember Paige V. Washington Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

35. 06-0741 Resolution appropriating $1,090,125 of designated fund balance from EMS fees for various EMS and Fire Capital Needs

BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia that $1,090,125 be appropriated from EMS fees designated fund balance to the Fire & EMS Department Capital Outlay for the purpose of purchasing various fire and emergency medical equipment needs.

ADOPTED

Motion made by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary Seconded by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

36. 06-0743 Resolution Appropriating $593,925 from Fund Balance to Capital Improvement Fund for School Maintenance

BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia that $593,925 be appropriated from fund balance to the Capital Improvements Fund School Maintenance project.

ADOPTED

37. 06-0745 Resolution Authorizing the Appropriation of $3,287,500 from Undesignated Fund Balance of the General Fund to Fund One-Time Capital Projects.

BE IT RESOLVED, by the City Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia, that the sum of $3,287,500 be appropriated from the Undesignated Fund Balance of the General Fund to the projects as outlined on Exhibit A which is attached hereto and made a part hereof.

ADOPTED Motion made by: Councilmember Rhet Tignor

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Seconded by: Councilmember Joseph H. Spencer, II Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

Appointments

38. 06-0662 to consider an appointment to the Industrial Development Authority to fulfill an unexpired term.

APPOINTED James R. Joseph to fulfill the unexpired term of Dr. James Parham which will expire on March 31, 2007.

Motion made by: Councilmember Rhet Tignor Ayes: 6 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 1 - Paige V. Washington

39. 06-0689 to consider appointments to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board.

APPOINTED Harry R. Bukovich to a term beginning January 9, 2007, and expiring on January 30, 2011. One appointment remains open.

Motion made by: Councilmember Rhet Tignor Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

40. 06-0691 to consider an appointment to the Hampton-Newport News Community Services Board.

APPOINTED Leroy Branch to fulfill the unexpired term of Dr. Ruth P. Holland, which expires on June 30, 2008.

Motion made by: Councilmember Rhet Tignor Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

41. 06-0693 to consider an appointment to the Wetlands Board.

APPOINTED Ms. Leigh Morgan, who has been serving as an alternate, to a term commencing immediately and expiring on December 30, 2011. Another alternate will need to be appointed.

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Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

42. 06-0713 to consider appointments to the Citizens' Unity Commission

APPOINTED Paula Bazemore, Genie Robinson, Sherri Reese and Terry Gilliam to terms expiring on June 30, 2007, and Benjamin Cuker to a term expiring on June 30, 2009. Jeremy Roca was appointed as a youth member.

Motion made by: Councilmember Rhet Tignor Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

Other Items

43. 06-0746 Resolution Authorizing the Appropriation of $200,000 from Undesignated Fund Balance of the General Fund as a Contribution to the Building Capital Campaign for the Food Bank of the Virginia Peninsula

BE IT RESOLVED, by the City Council of the City of Hampton, Virginia, that the sum of $200,000 be appropriated from the Undesignated Fund Balance of the General Fund to the Building Capital Campaign for the Food Bank of the Virginia Peninsula.

Vice Mayor Gilliland asked the following representatives to come forward for the presentation. Mr. Steve Terveer, Executive Director, Mr. Andy Cohen, Past President, Mr. Don Raglan, Past President and Chair of the Capital Campaign, Ms. Jane Susan Frank, Board Member and Chair of the Development Committee, and Ms. Katie Whitehead, staff member.

Vice Mayor Gilliland stated that he has had the honor of serving on the Board of the Peninsula Food Bank for a few years and he said that the need in the community may not be seen each and every day, but there is a tremendous demand that the Food Bank struggles to meet. He said that they do an incredible job and tons of food is supplied to those in need.

Vice Mayor Gilliland stated that Council was very proud to present the resolution.

Ms. Frank, President of the Food Bank, thanked Council for taking the time to visit the Food Bank, hear their story and see their plight. Ms. Frank said that the original Food Bank was built in 1986 and designed to accommodate about $1M worth of food. She said that the Food Bank presently serves over $8M pounds of food out of the facility. She said that there are 68 agencies in the City of Hampton and they are serving over 17,000 citizens. She said that there are five Kid Cafes where

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children that come to after school programs and have a nutritious, safe, comfortable place to be after school. She said that those same children are qualified for the food assistance program. She said that this is an enhancement to their day by giving them a quality of nutrition so that they are not returning home on an empty stomach.

Ms. Frank said that Council understands that the facility needs to make this move. She said that with the generous gift, the Food Bank will be able to proceed by the end of 2007 and break ground for a new facility. She said that they hope by the beginning of 2008, the Food Bank will have a 40,000 square foot facility and they will better serve the community.

Ms Brooke Smith, a 7th grader at Jones Magnet Middle School, stated that she is representing the Jones Advisor Group (JAG). She said that one of their service projects they have been working on food drives and raising money for the Food Bank. She said that she had the opportunity to tour the facility. She said that she saw the overcrowding of the food storage and not much room in the freezer. She said that the sad thing about the overcrowding is that they don’t have as much food as they need, but there is no space in the Food Bank.

Ms. Rebecca Rossman, 7th grader at Jones Magnet Middle School, stated that the Food Bank is in great need of a larger building, or an addition of the facility they currently use. She said that some food donations are turned away because of a lack of storage space.

Ms. Frank said that the Food Bank in collaboration with the Junior League of Hampton Roads has contracted with Paula Deen with the Food Network Television broadcast to do two shows at the Hampton Roads Convention Center on February 10, 2007. Ms. Frank said that there will be at 2:00 p.m. show which is 90% sold out and a 7:30 p.m. show which is about 50% sold out. She said that tickets are available at www.ticketweb.com.

Ms. Frank thanked Council and the City Manager for giving the facility to do the production gratis, as a gift to the Food Bank. She said that every dollar they save feeds four people.

ADOPTED

Motion made by: Vice Mayor Randall A. Gilliland Seconded by: Councilmember Angela Lee Leary Ayes: 7 - Randall A. Gilliland, Angela Lee Leary, Charles N. Sapp, Joseph H. Spencer, II, Rhet Tignor, Paige V. Washington, Ross A. Kearney, II Nays: 0

Audiences Granted to the General Public

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Miscellaneous New Business

Vice Mayor Gilliland said that he hopes everyone has a wonderful holiday. He said that there is nothing more terrific and magical than the holiday season. He said that in whatever way you celebrate the holidays, share it with your family and friends and enjoy the time.

Councilwoman Leary thanked everyone for their prayers when she had surgery. She thanked the staff for a year of service and thanked the citizens for the opportunity to serve them. She wished everyone a wonderful, blessed holiday. She said that to her, Jesus is the reason for the season, but to all of those, whatever their beliefs, she wished them hope.

Councilman Sapp offered a special wish for a peaceful and safe holiday celebration for those men and women who are deployed world-wide, not just in the military, but serving the nation, often in harms way in a variety of different settings. He said that he knows that service comes at a price and everyone owes them a great debt of gratitude. He hopes their holiday celebrations are safe and that they return home quickly. He wished everyone a joyous holiday season, a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

Councilman Spencer said that everyone enjoys the holiday season gathering with family and friends. He wished everyone safety as they travel to be with their friends and family as they enjoy the love and fellowship. He said that he would be remiss if he didn’t have a special wish for those men and women in service throughout the world who are representing our country. He asked that God be with them. He wished everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Councilman Tignor said that there is not much to be added except to say a special thanks to the loved ones to the folks who are serving overseas. He said that he remembers some Christmas’es when he was overseas was sad, but he knows that his family in Hampton was wishing he were home then. He said to those who have loved ones deployed, “God bless you, God save you and give you good cheer.” He said that the City of Hampton has a great deal to be thankful for.

Councilman Washington said that he wished everyone the best of everything that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ can bring before them, because He is what it is all about for this season. He wished everyone a prosperous New Year. He also sent out a special wish for Mr. Pete Vann, who on Tuesday, December 12, 2006, had a lung removed, and asked everyone to remember him and his family in their prayers.

Ms. Cynthia Hudson, City Attorney, wished the community best wishes for the happiest holiday they can possibly have.

Mr. Jesse T. Wallace, Jr., City Manager, wished everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. He said that as we begin next year

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working with the issues of Hampton and making it a better place, we will be prepared to do that after the break at the end of the year.

Ms. Katherine K. Glass, Clerk of Council, wished everyone in Hampton a Merry Christmas, and thanked them for the opportunity to serve them.

Mayor Kearney thanked his fellow Council members. He said that they see a great horizon of things that they can do together. He said that the vision statement they had was excellent and they learned that they may disagree on which door to go into, but they are all on the same floor. He said that the next few months are going to be very exciting and he appreciates their participation.

Mayor Kearney wished everyone a safe holiday. He said that it is a time to remember, as we get older, those who are not with us. He said to reflect on that and do it with humor, love and laughter. God Bless you and Merry Christmas.

Adjournment

______Ross A. Kearney, II Mayor

______Katherine K. Glass Clerk of Council

Date approved by Council______

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