WEBVTT

METADATA
Video-Count: 2
Video-1: youtube.com/watch?v=oroNAQnuueg
Video-2: youtube.com/watch?v=nwop7k4gxqw

Part: 1

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:03:21.280
--------- ready. Go. >> Good afternoon everybody. We will uh call the June 15th, 2026 uh Shredsville City Council meeting to order. Miss Thomas, will you please call the role? >> Councelor Fleer >> here. >> Vice Mayor Ashin >> here. Councelor Payne >> here,

2
00:03:21.280 --> 00:03:36.000
>> Councelor Snook >> here, >> and Mayor Wade is traveling. >> Great. Um, is there a motion to approve or amend the agenda? >> I move to approve the agenda. >> Second.

3
00:03:36.000 --> 00:03:52.400
>> All in favor say yes. >> Yes. >> Yes. >> Yes. >> Any opposed say no. All right. Motion passes. Um, this meeting will be divided into three sections. First, we'll have our work session to hear and discuss presentations that do not require a council vote. Then, we'll follow that

4
00:03:52.400 --> 00:04:11.040
with a closed meeting, and then the regular business meeting will begin at 6:30. Um, we've got staff reports to start with with the climate update. Good afternoon, mayor and city council. I'm Crystal Ritter, the um director of the office of sustainability, and I'm

5
00:04:11.040 --> 00:04:27.520
joined here this afternoon by Emily Urban, our climate program manager. We're both pleased to be here to share our annual climate program update. As a reminder, um we're working with emiss we're working with the goals of achieving a 45

6
00:04:27.520 --> 00:04:43.280
deg 45% reduction in our community greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, which is right around the corner, and aiming for carbon neutrality by 2050. We have seen local progress on these ambitious goals, but also acknowledge that climate

7
00:04:43.280 --> 00:04:58.960
change effects and impacts are being actively experienced locally and around the world. And daily it seems new impacts are being recognized. poison ivy that thrives with warmer temperatures and rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, more lightning,

8
00:04:58.960 --> 00:05:15.039
including the variety that starts associated with wildfires, and even rapidly evolving microorganisms that could have implications for us humans. Climate action is both city work and community work. It covers mitigation work, which is the reduction of the

9
00:05:15.039 --> 00:05:32.560
greenhouse gas emissions, as well as adaptation and resilience work, the capacity to adjust to and cope with climate driven stressors and events. We're already feeling such stressors in the form of the early season extreme heat and drought of this year.

10
00:05:32.560 --> 00:05:48.400
Climate work involves education and engagement, support for initiatives that drive action, piloting projects to inform future considerations, tracking the regulatory and policy landscapes, monitoring progress and

11
00:05:48.400 --> 00:06:04.720
outcomes, and researching new technologies and initiatives, including integrating lessons learned from our peer communities. This work is a primary focus for our office of sustainability team and also importantly delivered by our colleagues from many departments who are

12
00:06:04.720 --> 00:06:20.319
operationalizing climate. It is also being done by our community itself which is critically important given that over 95% of the emissions are from community activities most of which are outside of traditional government control.

13
00:06:20.319 --> 00:06:37.520
Charlottesville has been investing in climate action and today we look forward to sharing some of those updates. Work has happened in municipal operations as well as in support of community action. Projects have again tackled various sectors of emissions source sectors the

14
00:06:37.520 --> 00:06:54.080
built environment transportation and waste. Climate adaptation and resilience planning is ongoing with a vision for our community to be strong, safe, and healthy as the impacts of climate change increase. We've tackled solar projects, municipal

15
00:06:54.080 --> 00:07:10.960
and school building energy efficiency projects, high performance buildings, residential energy efficiency initiatives, alternate transportation incentives, electrifying equipment, supporting urban force management planning, and supporting resilience

16
00:07:10.960 --> 00:07:26.800
planning. And if you haven't already, I encourage you to read the recently completed 2026 climate action report. The link in your packet will take you to that report which is also shared on the city's website. In this year's presentation, we've actually chosen to

17
00:07:26.800 --> 00:07:42.960
highlight various initiatives rather than go through the whole portfolio of work. That said, we welcome any questions you have now or later about the many items that are detailed in the report. Um, before we go there though, I'm going to take a moment to cover some of the things that are presenting new

18
00:07:42.960 --> 00:07:58.720
and expanding challenges to climate work. Last year, I referred to a shifting landscape that is undermining commitments to a clean energy transformation and a decarbonized economy. And here are some of the things that we have seen. Projections of energy

19
00:07:58.720 --> 00:08:15.840
demand are outpacing energy production. In the past few years, we've been seeing a steep rise in energy demand, and electricity producers are having a hard [clears throat] time keeping up. Utilities are making investments in clean energy strategies, including battery energy storage systems, but the

20
00:08:15.840 --> 00:08:31.039
pressure to meet demand is driving them to propose new fossil fuel plants and to delay retirement of others. There was an ongoing legal dispute concerning Virginia's withdrawal from the regional greenhouse gas initiative or reggie. This is the capp and trade program

21
00:08:31.039 --> 00:08:47.279
designed to reduce carbon emissions from the power sector. A few months ago, we were encouraged to learn that the appeal of court order striking down the previous governor's administration's removal from Reggie was withdrawn. And furthermore, provisions requiring

22
00:08:47.279 --> 00:09:04.000
Virginia's re-entry into the program are in the proposed state budget bills that have yet to be passed. Um, and now Dominion has filed a cost recovery rider with the state corporation commission. We've seen further loss in federal

23
00:09:04.000 --> 00:09:24.800
funding for various projects, both ours as well as others that would benefit this community or further the the clean energy transition. The passage of federal House Bill 1 this past summer curtailed many clean energy incentivities such as local governments. It terminated

24
00:09:24.800 --> 00:09:40.959
incentives for electric vehicles and efficient appliances. It phased out tax credits for wind and solar and other clean energy technologies. It ended investment in vulnerable communities proportionally disproportionately burdened by pollution. And it

25
00:09:40.959 --> 00:09:56.560
established new and expanded support for fossil fuels. Here are some more updates to this shifting landscape. Federal funding for the solar forall program was rescended. Um, Virginia had been awarded $156 million to aid about 15,000

26
00:09:56.560 --> 00:10:13.360
incomequalified households in accessing solar. Executive orders were issued that, amongst other things, deregulate and accelerate domestic fossil fuel production, reverse prior climate focused mandates, reduces federal support for renewable energy, and

27
00:10:13.360 --> 00:10:28.880
directs the withdrawal from international climate agreements. There's been much ongoing uncertainty about home energy rebate funding. State administers states administer this program and in Virginia, we've been waiting to see this launch for over a

28
00:10:28.880 --> 00:10:44.320
year. Earlier this month, federal department of energy issued guidance that introduced several key changes to the programs that could affect the pace of energy efficient efficiency deployment and eliminate incentives for fuel switching and will probably cause

29
00:10:44.320 --> 00:11:00.480
another delay. The EPA endangerment finding was rescended. In August of 2025, EPA published a notice of proposed rulemaking titled reconsideration of the 2009 endangerment finding and GHG

30
00:11:00.480 --> 00:11:17.839
vehicle standards. The endangerment finding had become the legal foundation for the for federal climate policy, including re regulating vehicle, industrial, and power plant emissions and treating climate change as a public health nuisance under EPA's authority.

31
00:11:17.839 --> 00:11:33.440
And in February of 2026, EPA finalized this resention of the endangerment finding. Litigation on so many of these issues abound. So, now that we've gotten through that, I'm actually really proud to be here to share with you what we've been able to

32
00:11:33.440 --> 00:11:50.683
get done. Anyways, we remain committed to this work. We're com we're encouraged that there's a growing workforce focused on climate action, both mitigation and resilience. We appreciate council support. And with that, I'd like to turn the presentation over to Emily. >> Thank you, Crystal. [clears throat]

33
00:11:50.683 --> 00:12:11.760
[snorts] >> Hi, everybody. Thank you so much for making time for us today. Um, we're pleased to be here to share an update. Let's see. Oh, I'm in charge. Um, all right. So, like Crystal mentioned, we are switching it up just a

34
00:12:11.760 --> 00:12:27.360
little bit this year. We usually try to cram every single thing into the slides, but we're going to focus more on a few uh what we like to think of as wins. I will start with an update uh to our greenhouse gas inventory. We'll talk about those winds. I'll give a brief

35
00:12:27.360 --> 00:12:44.240
update on the adaptation resilience planning work um and then we'll look ahead to the next fiscal year which is coming at us quickly. All right. Um so I want to start by saying that the encouraging news is that

36
00:12:44.240 --> 00:13:02.079
we are making really good progress on the implementation of our climate action plan. So in the cap there are 134 total key actions that are in there which is a lot and um but of those 134 25 are

37
00:13:02.079 --> 00:13:18.079
completed and another 76 are in progress and so that means only 33 are still awaiting resources or we haven't even been able to start them yet. So, um, some of that work that has been started is very long-term, but we're feeling

38
00:13:18.079 --> 00:13:34.320
good about, um, all the many ways that we're pushing forward on implementation of our climate action plan, um, across a lot of different strategies and sectors. So, the disappointing news is that we're also seeing our emissions creep up. Um,

39
00:13:34.320 --> 00:13:51.440
as you can see in this annual greenhouse gas inventory graph here, um, our communitywide emissions are up, um, a little bit less than 5% from last year. Um, and we have been on this upward trajectory since our pandemic driven low

40
00:13:51.440 --> 00:14:07.279
that we saw in 2020. Um, so since last year, I just said up almost four, five percent, it's 4.8%. And so that's about 13% higher than that pandemic low in 2020, but it's also 10% lower than our

41
00:14:07.279 --> 00:14:22.560
2019, which is our last sort of normal year. And then uh 37% below our um 2011 baseline. So over the next few slides, I'm going to walk you all through what we think some of the primary drivers of

42
00:14:22.560 --> 00:14:40.480
the increases that we're seeing. Um, and then it's also important to keep in mind that this is data from 2024. So we're a little bit behind our current the present day. All right. So one driving factor in

43
00:14:40.480 --> 00:14:56.160
rising emissions is the shifts that we're seeing in the transportation sector. So this is something that I first talked about last year when I was here, the return to prepandemic levels of travel. So the data that we use to estimate community transportation

44
00:14:56.160 --> 00:15:11.600
emissions comes from VOTE. Um VOTE's traffic monitoring program collects VMT data or vehicle miles traveled um for each locality around the state. And so VMT is the total miles traveled in a

45
00:15:11.600 --> 00:15:27.600
specific area and it's uh divided by different classes of vehicles. So when we dig into this data, it's kind of an imperfect estimate, but it is a reliable data source year-over-year and um this is standard protocol for communities in estimating their transportation

46
00:15:27.600 --> 00:15:43.760
emissions. Um, so this chart here compares our 2019 transportation data to the current inventory year, which I mentioned is 2024. And so you can see um in the total in the bottom line there um

47
00:15:43.760 --> 00:15:59.040
comparing the two years, it's pretty close. Um we're up less than 1%. So really back to our preandemic levels of driving around. But the big difference that you see here is the distribution of vehicle types. So while we are seeing a

48
00:15:59.040 --> 00:16:15.680
decrease in the percentage of passenger vehicles, we are seeing a pretty big increase in the number of both light and heavy duty trucks which of course are more polluting. >> Can I ask a clarifying question? >> Sure. What what is a light truck? What is a heavy truck?

49
00:16:15.680 --> 00:16:34.959
So, um, the V dot data divides vehicles into, I think, 13 different classes and and types. And, um, when we put that data into the tool that we use for um, doing

50
00:16:34.959 --> 00:16:51.360
our emissions calculations, it classifies them into these three categories. So, some of them are lumped together. So heavy duty is, you know, big um >> big rigs. >> Big rigs. Yeah. Yeah. Things like that. And then light is sort of medium size

51
00:16:51.360 --> 00:17:06.959
like anything that's not light duty. So like not passenger vehicles. I think >> where do pickup trucks are light duty trucks? Do you remember? >> Light trucks would be like F-150s, F250s. >> Okay. >> By federal rule, it's anything under 8,500 pounds.

52
00:17:06.959 --> 00:17:25.199
>> Yeah. Okay. So, so, so the passenger vehicles is maybe like a sedan or a minivan and people might be >> Yes. >> reducing that but then buying pickup trucks instead. >> Yes. Yes. They're in the light truck category. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Yes. >> Okay. So, now we're switching over to

53
00:17:25.199 --> 00:17:40.400
the building sector. So, these two sh charts here are show our energy use that we use in our buildings. So, both natural gas on the top there and electricity on the bottom chart. Um and in both cases we get aggregated data um

54
00:17:40.400 --> 00:17:57.280
by sector. And so this data comes from Charlottesville Gas for the gas and Dominion for the electricity. Um so this is total usage data um for all buildings within the city. And we're comparing energy use in 2024 to the previous

55
00:17:57.280 --> 00:18:13.760
inventory year. And so the data is showing us a small decrease in gas usage and about a 5 and a half% increase in electricity. And so it's the in electricity data that I'm going to dig into a little in the next slide. So when

56
00:18:13.760 --> 00:18:28.880
I was here last year, one of the things that we talked about was the impact of grid greening, which is the electricity from our grid getting cleaner uh less carbon intensive over time. And so this has been a big driving factor in

57
00:18:28.880 --> 00:18:44.799
emissions uh reduction in our region for the past 15 years or so. Um across Virginia, across our region, we've been closing coal fired power plants and largely replacing that which with natural gas which is less carbon intensive. And of course we've also been

58
00:18:44.799 --> 00:19:02.320
bringing on more renewables mostly um in the form of solar but wind and batteries are also on the way. But between 2023 and 2024, uh, we saw a reversal of that trend. So, this is around the time where we were really starting to see an increase in

59
00:19:02.320 --> 00:19:20.080
demand growth that Crystal talked about in her remarks for electricity in our in our region. So, I know that this chart's a little bit hard to see at this um scale. This is annual electricity generation in Virginia. This data is from the um Energy Information Agency.

60
00:19:20.080 --> 00:19:36.880
But what is important to see here um is the rise in generation between 2023 and 2024. So you can see that dark orange uh showed the biggest increase in size. That's that's natural gas. So what that tells us is that to meet the increased

61
00:19:36.880 --> 00:19:54.640
demand um electricity generators in Virginia had to use more gas uh which led to an increase in the emissions intensity of our electricity in our region. Um, so this was the first time we'd seen Virginia's energy grid get dirtier, 8% dirtier, um, in quite a long

62
00:19:54.640 --> 00:20:10.400
time. And so not only did we use more electricity, which we're actually trying to do through building and vehicle electrification, but the emissions intensity of the electricity uh, went up at went up, which means our emissions also went up. And so in Virginia, we

63
00:20:10.400 --> 00:20:27.200
still have the Virginia Clean Economy Act. So legislation in place that requires all of Dominion's electricity to be carbon-f free by 2020 2045. Um so they're going to have to get a handle on on this. Um and this is of course related to all the conversation about

64
00:20:27.200 --> 00:20:42.960
data centers in our region. That's the number one driver of energy demand in our region. We're also seeing increased demand from um electrification of ve of buildings and and electric vehicles and I have to mention that of course. Um but in our region data centers are having

65
00:20:42.960 --> 00:21:00.240
this outsiz impact on um demand on electricity demand and um even though we don't have any in Charlottesville this is a ripple effect of that industry being concentrated in our state. >> And is this also showing that we use more coal this year than last? Is that

66
00:21:00.240 --> 00:21:15.200
kind of >> it >> what the bigger blue is talking about? >> Yeah, the blue is that is [cough] unfortunately also covering some of the >> going the wrong direction. Yeah. Okay. >> But I mean like also the solar the brown solar on the bottom which is a funny color for the solar band is you know

67
00:21:15.200 --> 00:21:30.799
also getting bigger and we expect that to also continue to get bigger. And it is interesting. So this this chart has 2025. We're talking about 2024 today, but you can see like we don't expect to see such a jump in grid emissions

68
00:21:30.799 --> 00:21:46.640
intensity between 24 and 25 because they update that factor every year. And hopefully we'll have we'll have that factor for when we do our next inventory. But it was a particularly big jump that we saw this year.

69
00:21:46.640 --> 00:22:03.200
>> Quick question. Um there is in the key there's a Virginia wind in red line. Is there a red line in there? >> I wasn't able to spot it. Okay. But I mean there's a little [laughter] >> that's what I said. This um so the dashboard that is associated with this

70
00:22:03.200 --> 00:22:20.320
data source is great and I encourage everybody to check it out um if you really want to dig into the details of electricity in Virginia. Um but you know they're working on that big wind farm. Yeah. It's coming online. >> Yeah. Okay. Thank you. >> Um, okay. So, uh, this slide is just a

71
00:22:20.320 --> 00:22:36.640
summary of what I've just talked everybody through. Um, so overall, our community emissions are up a little less than 5%. Our municipal emissions are up 9%. Um, but the the municipal emissions fit inside the community emissions and

72
00:22:36.640 --> 00:22:54.159
they are about 4% of the total. Um and of course city facilities are also being impacted by this increase in um emissions from electricity as the the same as our community is. Um so that's that's a driver in both of those

73
00:22:54.159 --> 00:23:11.039
inventories. Um and if you're interested there are some more of the gritty details in the report that is part of your packet if you want to dig into the details a little bit more. So before we move on to all the good news, I do want to acknowledge that I know this feels disappointing. We felt disappointed

74
00:23:11.039 --> 00:23:27.280
about this when my team member Trey and I wrapped up the inventory. Like the first thing I thought was like, "Oh, I'm going to have to present this to council." [laughter] And um but I really do hope that we don't get wrapped too wrapped up in the carbon accounting because we're still

75
00:23:27.280 --> 00:23:42.799
doing a lot of really good work here in Charlottesville that I think is having a positive impact on our community and our community members. And so like the more solar we put on our buildings, we're buffering ourselves against the increased cost of of utilities um that

76
00:23:42.799 --> 00:23:59.520
we know is coming that's protecting the city and our taxpayers. you know, the more we can help our community members save energy at home, it the more it frees up funds for them for other things. Um, it's the same helping people access alternative transportation, whether that's ebikes or the bus, it's

77
00:23:59.520 --> 00:24:16.080
helping people to save on their transportation costs. And so, um, even though we're not yet seeing a steady decrease of our emissions, I do think we are contributing to improving affordability and quality of life for our community members. And um systems

78
00:24:16.080 --> 00:24:33.760
change is is really hard and um I do feel like we're we're doing we're trying to do our part here. So I'm going to uh transition to the winds. Um and just one more plug for the report. I do uh encourage everybody to take a

79
00:24:33.760 --> 00:24:48.960
look. It is kind of fun. Even though it's a lot of work to get it all together, it it's a rewarding feeling to see everything in one place once we get it all pulled together. So, uh, when I was here last year, um, the K-tech solar array was under

80
00:24:48.960 --> 00:25:04.400
construction. It went into service in the fall and at 263 kilowatts, um, which is also 478 panels, just to some people understand that language a little more. Uh, it's

81
00:25:04.400 --> 00:25:19.919
currently the largest solar system in the city's uh, building portfolio. So far, it's produced over 200 megawatt hours of power. And so it's on track to meet its annual production projections which is awesome. Um this project was

82
00:25:19.919 --> 00:25:35.520
completed under our master energy performance contract which is also the mechanism that we use to do other um energy and water improvement projects within the city and school portfolio. um a local installer did the installation

83
00:25:35.520 --> 00:25:53.120
work and it also had a um small workforce development component that was in partnership with a local nonprofit. Um and as excited as we are about our K-tech solar installation, we are also excited that it will soon be dwarfed by

84
00:25:53.120 --> 00:26:09.919
two larger systems. Um one at Charlottesville High School and one at Charlottesville Middle School. I'm not going to spend too much time on the details of this. Crystal was here not that long ago um sharing about this project with you all. Um but we're really happy to finally have these

85
00:26:09.919 --> 00:26:25.360
agreements executed and moving forward for forward. CHS and CMS are both really excellent candidates for solar because of not just because of their size but also because they have new roofs. And so the combined size of those systems will

86
00:26:25.360 --> 00:26:41.120
be uh 2.2 2 megawws, which is projected to save the city u nearly $4 million in avoided electricity costs over the 25-year term of those agreements. And we're excited about these projects because um they're really going to help

87
00:26:41.120 --> 00:26:56.880
us work on our goal of 100% renewable power for municipal facilities uh by 2030. So since these are two of our biggest buildings, they're also two of our biggest energy users. And so these projects are going to significantly reduce the electricity we need to

88
00:26:56.880 --> 00:27:12.559
purchase from the grid to power these big buildings. So currently uh design for these projects is being finalized and we're waiting on Dominion to do the grid upgrade work that they need to do to interconnect them and um we expect installation to be complete by the end

89
00:27:12.559 --> 00:27:28.320
of 2027. So, uh, one last thing related to the built environment. Um, since 2008, Charlottesville has operated under a green building policy. And so, all new buildings built since that time have

90
00:27:28.320 --> 00:27:43.919
been leadcertified. But ever since the adoption of the climate action plan, staff have been working on ways to codify and standardize our high performance best practices so they're baked into all city building projects, not just new construction. And so the result of that

91
00:27:43.919 --> 00:27:59.840
work is our um high performance buildings res resolution which we brought before you you all just a few months ago in April and the associated high performance building standard um is the implementation tool for that new policy and so that will make sure design

92
00:27:59.840 --> 00:28:15.360
construction operation maintenance and renovation of all of our facilities um are to high standards. So uh just a little personal anecdote this was a really fun project to work on. It brought staff uh together from capital development and facilities maintenance

93
00:28:15.360 --> 00:28:37.200
and sustainability to do a lot of problem solving and relationship building and so it was rewarding as staff to to work on this project. Okay. Um so one of the projects I talked about when I was here last year was our communitywide EV charging study and that

94
00:28:37.200 --> 00:28:54.240
wrapped up in the fall of 25. And so one of the components of that study was an analysis of the city's light duty fleet and about 155 vehicles were identified as possible candidates for electrification. So over the past couple of months our

95
00:28:54.240 --> 00:29:10.000
office office of sustainability has been working with public works to develop a 5-year vehicle replacement plan that integrates EVs into the municipal fleet. And between now and FY 2031, um we've identified 45 vehicles for EV

96
00:29:10.000 --> 00:29:25.200
replacement, um fleet is using their replacement schedule to identify vehicles. So we're not replacing vehicles before their end of life. Um but largely fleet has been handling the vehicle side of things and sustainability has been supporting with

97
00:29:25.200 --> 00:29:39.760
planning for the charging infrastructure to support that electrification. And so when we work with them, we know where the vehicles live, where they're parked, what department they'll be with. So that helps us to understand where we need to build out charging infrastructure at a

98
00:29:39.760 --> 00:29:55.520
couple of locations across the city. So in FY26, six new EVs were purchased for the fleet. And as we integrate more electric vehicles, um we will start to see some significant cost savings on fuel and maintenance.

99
00:29:55.520 --> 00:30:13.760
um electric vehicles can have less um total cost of ownership and so of course that math improves the more gas costs. >> Can I ask a quick question about that? So um do we pay for uh I know when we

100
00:30:13.760 --> 00:30:28.080
get like replacement buses FTA helps fund some of that cost. when we get replacement vehicles for other departments, is any of that offset by the state or the feds or is that entirely coming from us? So, there are

101
00:30:28.080 --> 00:30:43.520
it's mostly our funding. So, some programs that have state funding like um DHS and HHS do get some state support for their vehicles.

102
00:30:43.520 --> 00:31:04.080
>> Okay. Thank you so much. So, the electric school buses, this is one of my favorite wins from this year because it's so visible to the community. Um, so in FY26, we welcomed our first uh electric school buses to the pupil transportation fleet. These

103
00:31:04.080 --> 00:31:20.480
buses were purchased with funds from the 2023 round of EPA's clean school bus rebate. Um, they're Thomas Julie buses is the type and they were ordered in late 2024. They arrived in late [music] 2025 and they started serving students

104
00:31:20.480 --> 00:31:38.320
in January of this year. And by all reports, everyone loves the electric buses, the students, the drivers. If you guys didn't see the video that we released with the press release, totally go back and watch it. It's really, it was really fun to make and it has great testimonials from students and drivers.

105
00:31:38.320 --> 00:31:54.960
Um the DC fast charer chargers that support the electric school buses were um installed and are owned and operated by Dominion through their electric school bus charging program at no cost to us which is nice. Um but one thing that I do have to mention on this front

106
00:31:54.960 --> 00:32:10.960
is um electric school buses unlike electric vehicles are not yet at cost parody with their diesel counterparts. And so even when you take into account fuel and maintenance savings over the life of the bus, we're just not at cost

107
00:32:10.960 --> 00:32:28.559
par yet. And so without outside funding um and until the cost comes down, it is going to be difficult to continue to add electric school buses to our fleet. So, we do continue to work with CAT to explore different options, but I don't feel optimistic that we in the next year

108
00:32:28.559 --> 00:32:48.640
or two we will get any new electric school buses, which is sad. Wait, oh, I'm going the wrong way. Okay, so now I'm going to pivot and share about some of our more communityf facing programs. Um, one popular program has been our ebike voucher program,

109
00:32:48.640 --> 00:33:05.600
which office of sustainability has been working on in collaboration with neighborhood development. Um, the first year the program was really successful. Um, of the 112 vouchers that we gave away, uh, 90 of them were redeemed at one of our three like local bike shops.

110
00:33:05.600 --> 00:33:21.600
As some of you all up there know firsthand, ebikes can be a really good way to get around our little hilly city. Um, and there's a lot of benefits besides just the pleasure of riding an ebike. Uh, fewer cars on the road, less traffic, less air pollution, and of

111
00:33:21.600 --> 00:33:39.120
course, fewer emissions. So, in the first year of the program, all the vouchers that we distributed were worth $1,000. And we noticed that some of our lower income recipients um weren't redeeming where they were redeeming their vouchers at a lower rate than um higher income

112
00:33:39.120 --> 00:33:55.600
recipients. So, it was clear to us that for some community members, $1,000, even though that is a lot of money, was not enough to access an ebike. Um, we also saw an increase in the cost of ebikes over the last year due to tariff pressures. Um, so for the second year,

113
00:33:55.600 --> 00:34:11.520
we redesigned the program so that it's tiered. And um, so now there are three eligibility tiers based on income. And so all community members are eligible for a tier one or $500 voucher. Community members that are at 80% AMI or

114
00:34:11.520 --> 00:34:27.359
less are eligible for a tier two or thousand dollar voucher. And community members who are enrolled in a couple of qualified federal benefits programs are eligible for a tier three or $1,500 um dollar voucher. So, thus far, two cycles

115
00:34:27.359 --> 00:34:42.960
of the redesigned program have happened and um we're collecting data to verify that we are in fact reaching a broader number of community members with the expanded program. And since I'm up here talking in public, I will say that um

116
00:34:42.960 --> 00:34:59.599
signups for Q3 open July the 1st. Um that happens on a quarterly basis. July is the sign up month for Q3. And so, uh, Charlottesville residents can go to seville ebikes.com anytime in July and

117
00:34:59.599 --> 00:35:18.560
register for the Q3 voucher program. Um, okay. The Energy Resource Hub is um, one of my favorites and it's a project that we continue to be really excited about. Um so just a rhy of a reminder the hub is a partnership between the

118
00:35:18.560 --> 00:35:34.320
city the county's climate program um leap local energy alliance program and C3 um Charlottesville climate community climate collaborative um and it supports Charlottesville and Albamaral residents connecting to various energy programs um

119
00:35:34.320 --> 00:35:49.920
not just through a website but with a human being our energy navigator who supports people and guides them through the process. Um, so the thing that we really like about the hub is that it uh provides a suite of services and programs that work together to help our

120
00:35:49.920 --> 00:36:05.280
community members to reduce their energy use. So in FY26, a Charlottesville resident who came to the energy resource hub was eligible for a subsidized home energy audit that using funds from a

121
00:36:05.280 --> 00:36:21.200
federal energy efficiency and conservation block grant program. And then once that audit was completed um they could access one or more programs that directly supported making the improvements that were recommended in the audit. So depending on age,

122
00:36:21.200 --> 00:36:38.640
veteran status or income, um some people were connected to programs offered by um either our own utilities department or Dominion and all residents regardless of income were also eligible for the new home energy retrofit miniigrant program

123
00:36:38.640 --> 00:36:53.920
um which we funded with climate action initiative CIP dollars. So, that program provided up to $2,000 per household to make a variety of energy improvements. And no matter which program um community members accessed, Rosena, who's pictured

124
00:36:53.920 --> 00:37:10.960
up here, our energy navigator, is there to answer questions or help with paperwork or just support the process. So, in 2025, the energy resource hub helped 178 city residents learn about and connect to local energy programs. It

125
00:37:10.960 --> 00:37:28.160
also served an additional 130 county residents. Um, LEAP provided 167 energy assessments uh to Charlottesville residents with over 66% of those being for age or income qualified community members. [snorts] 76 homes received weatherization

126
00:37:28.160 --> 00:37:43.359
services through one or more utility funded energy efficiency programs and 55 more homeowners went on to take advantage of our residential miniigrant program. Um, so we're really pleased with the way that these um, programs work together and are augmenting one

127
00:37:43.359 --> 00:37:58.880
another and this work will continue in FY27. And so far I've only been talking about how the energy resource hub serves homeowners, but it has always also been envisioned to serve the commercial side as well. And so we made significant

128
00:37:58.880 --> 00:38:16.240
progress on that this year. Um we are in partnership with C3 um who's always been the commercial audit partner within the resource hub. Um we're launching a small business energy efficiency program that will help business owners to access um

129
00:38:16.240 --> 00:38:31.760
energy improvements to their buildings. So, we've been working on the program design and we're excited to launch this program within the next couple of weeks and it will provide participants with a commercial level audit um technical assistance that's you know suitable for

130
00:38:31.760 --> 00:38:49.359
commercial space um and and funds to support the up some energy upgrades and it was designed to specifically shake hands with Dominion's um small business improvement program. Um, so leveraging outside funds um for local business

131
00:38:49.359 --> 00:39:05.839
owners that often like lack the time or expertise to be able to take advantage of that program. So we think of this as like a sister program to our residential program. Um, and it will it'll continue to be marketed uh through the energy resource hub. >> Emily, do the businesses have to own the

132
00:39:05.839 --> 00:39:20.800
space that they're in to get that assistance? >> Um, no. >> Thank you. I you know not to access our program. I don't know the answer to the Domin if they have to own their building to take

133
00:39:20.800 --> 00:39:37.760
advantage of the Dominion funds. >> Susan's going like this behind you. So I'm going to say no. >> Okay. Awesome. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Uh so we recognize uh the office of sustainability recognizes that engagement is something that's really

134
00:39:37.760 --> 00:39:54.400
important in this community and we make a big effort to try to be a visible presence within the community. Um I always say it's especially near and dear to the climate program because we know that 96% of our emissions or so are from the community. So we really need everyone's help and we need to we're

135
00:39:54.400 --> 00:40:12.240
here to support that. Um so um we also do a lot of our community engagement in partnership with other partners and that can mean other city departments or outside partners. Um so we're always out and about with friends in the community

136
00:40:12.240 --> 00:40:29.920
it seems. So in FY26 we continued our climate cafe series which is a bimonthly casual um conversation focused gathering around various [clears throat] sustainability topics. Uh we gathered folks this year to talk about transit, energy efficiency, food justice, water

137
00:40:29.920 --> 00:40:47.280
conservation, mobility, and we continue we plan to continue doing doing that series in FY27. Another new thing for us this year was um ecoair. We partnered with the botanical garden at the Piedmont this year um to celebrate Earth Day. That

138
00:40:47.280 --> 00:41:03.280
event brought over 300 people together at the botanical garden and featured community demonstrations, educational talks, volunteer opportunities, performances, and that was a fun that was a fun event. Um, another big event that our office supports every year is

139
00:41:03.280 --> 00:41:18.000
Riverfest, which of course brings folks together to celebrate the Ryana. Um and an aspect of this engagement work that actually is not called out on this slide is the work that we have been doing on our employee engagement program. So in

140
00:41:18.000 --> 00:41:35.359
this past year we piloted our wise or working in a sustainable environment program. Um and that is designed to empower city employees to take part in supporting our climate and sustainability goals. And of course we're talking about

141
00:41:35.359 --> 00:41:51.920
systems change here. So we have to talk about pulling [clears throat] levers beyond our just our community. So there are quite a few key actions in the climate action plan related to state level advocacy and engagement around policies that have an impact on our

142
00:41:51.920 --> 00:42:08.560
sustainability work locally. Um so we're always on the lookout to provide comments or um take positions on climate and clean energy legislation at the state level. So in 2026, we uh participated specifically in two issues.

143
00:42:08.560 --> 00:42:25.040
So in September, Charlottesville joined several other Virginia municipalities um to file a second amikas brief um in support of Virginia remaining in the regional greenhouse gas initiative or reggie. So of course you all know that

144
00:42:25.040 --> 00:42:42.079
um program generates funds for flood flood prevention and lowincome weatherization. So that's climate resilience work and we have benefited locally from those funds several times. So we definitely want to keep that keep that flow of money flowing. Um and then

145
00:42:42.079 --> 00:42:57.920
in January of this year, we submitted written comments to the state corporation commission related to Dominion's um proposal to change its net metering policy. Um so net metering is the agreement between the utility and the owner of a smallcale energy

146
00:42:57.920 --> 00:43:14.319
generation like rooftop solar. Um and it the proposed changes would have really had a negative impact on affordability of solar for all Virginiaians including Charlotte's billions of course. Um and so in May the SEC rejected that depos

147
00:43:14.319 --> 00:43:28.800
that proposal from Dominion and preserved the current net metering policy which is much more favorable for owners of small scale solar. Um and then uh recently there was a victory related to another regulatory issue that we

148
00:43:28.800 --> 00:43:45.760
engaged on not this year but in FY25. So back then we made comment for another SEC item um in support this time of Dominion's shared solar program and since that time that program has been enabled and we're now working with LEAP

149
00:43:45.760 --> 00:44:01.680
and the energy resource hub to connect interested community members with shared solar opportunities. Um, and so that allows community members who maybe cannot have solar at their home, whether they're a renter or in a multif family building or for whatever reason they

150
00:44:01.680 --> 00:44:19.839
live in the shade, they can still access some of the benefits of solar. All right. Um, so we are not going to spend too much time talking about this this afternoon. Um, we plan to bring you all a more in-depth uh presentation on this

151
00:44:19.839 --> 00:44:35.280
later in the year, but uh I wanted to provide a quick status update on the adaptation and resilience planning effort. Um, so you all um you all know that uh climate action falls broadly into two buckets. Crystal talked a little bit

152
00:44:35.280 --> 00:44:50.480
about this during her opening remarks, but mitigation or reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, that's what we're talking about this afternoon. and then adaptation and resilience, which is strengthening our systems to the impacts of climate change. And so the city's

153
00:44:50.480 --> 00:45:06.000
commitment to the global covenant of mayors um requires us to do both. And so the climate action plan talking about today focused on our mitigation work. And then the forthcoming adaptation and resilience plan is the sister document

154
00:45:06.000 --> 00:45:21.359
that will be our roadmap to building community resilience and adapting to more extreme weather. So for the past two years or so we've been working collaboratively with Albam Marl and UVA um on the resilient together project um

155
00:45:21.359 --> 00:45:38.640
and that has been doing research and engagement and um strategy devel development for the resilience plans and so now we have reached the point um which was always planned that we have we have a draft of the Charlottesville specific adaptation and resilience plan

156
00:45:38.640 --> 00:45:55.839
and so it's gone undergone an initial review by a small group of staff stakeholders and will soon go to a broader group of stakeholders for the next phase of the review and that will um include partner organizations. Um so we expect to release a draft for public

157
00:45:55.839 --> 00:46:12.000
comment in the late summer or early fall and then we also anticipate coming back to you all in another work session later in the fall to share about the plan prior to bringing it forward for adoption. It's been a pretty long road to get here

158
00:46:12.000 --> 00:46:27.040
with some detours that we had not planned upon, but I'm actually really pleased with the document and I'm looking forward to bringing it um into the light of day. Um so just a little more detail about it. So I already mentioned it's a

159
00:46:27.040 --> 00:46:44.480
requirement of our commitment to the global covenant of mayors. Um and we think of it as a sister plan to the cap. I feel like you've been using that term a couple times during that presentation this presentation, but it's cool. Uh so like the like the climate action plan it is strategic in nature but we did try to

160
00:46:44.480 --> 00:47:01.599
take some lessons learned from the development of our climate action plan and um make this plan both a little bit simpler and taking a few a few more steps towards the implementation planning part of the work. So within the plan, there are 16 resilience strategies

161
00:47:01.599 --> 00:47:17.280
that cover a pretty broad range of topics. Biodiversity, buildings, emergency response, um community education, urban heat, wildfire preparedness, that's just a few, but so it covers a lot of topics. And then within each strategy,

162
00:47:17.280 --> 00:47:32.480
um there are implementation projects or steps um that are associated in helping that will help us to realize the broader strategy. So the um implementation steps that are that are in the plan are

163
00:47:32.480 --> 00:47:47.920
focused largely on what the local government can do um either on our own or in partnership. Um but what we have said throughout this whole resilient together process is um resilience isn't really something the

164
00:47:47.920 --> 00:48:02.640
local government can do to or for the community. It's really something that has to be co-created. So each strategy also has um a number of suggestions about what community members can do either at the organizational level or at the household level to support

165
00:48:02.640 --> 00:48:23.440
resilience building in our community. And we're almost to the end. Um I want to just spend a few minutes talking about our plans for next year. So, um, one of the packet items this evening is our new FY27 climate action work plan.

166
00:48:23.440 --> 00:48:39.920
It's pretty extensive. I think there are 45 line items on it, um, in nine different outcome areas. We work across the city organization to put that work plan together. Um, and we definitely don't have time to go over it in detail. So, I just like we'll hit a couple of

167
00:48:39.920 --> 00:48:56.559
the highlights. Um, maybe a sampler of the work plan. Um so we talked about the adaptation resilience plan and another thing I wanted to mention about that is um it's our intention to um bring that forward as an amendment to the

168
00:48:56.559 --> 00:49:12.960
comprehensive plan which we also did with the climate action plan. Um and then the next suite of projects that will take place under our energy performance contract or master energy agreement is a suite of schools that will get energy efficiency upgrades this

169
00:49:12.960 --> 00:49:29.599
year. um predominantly lighting retrofits. Um so this work is planned for K-tech and four other elementary schools and will result in energy and cost savings of course. And one thing that just to highlight that's particularly cool about this project is

170
00:49:29.599 --> 00:49:45.440
um it will make our installation of the our solar project at Ktech even more effective because it will reduce the energy usage at KEK. So that solar will will cover even more of that building's energy needs. So that's how we're we're

171
00:49:45.440 --> 00:50:00.880
building we're building on the work. Um I talked a little bit about the um power purchase agreements and the solar installations at CHS and CMS. Those projects have been tons of planning and contracting type work and now they're

172
00:50:00.880 --> 00:50:16.240
moving into installation in this next fiscal year. So we look forward to getting those underway um on the roofs of our buildings. So I mentioned we'll continue our support for the energy resource hub expanded um to businesses

173
00:50:16.240 --> 00:50:32.240
in a more um intentional way in the next year. Um there are also rumors a foot I would say that about the long delayed federal funds for um home energy improvements that there's rumor that that that money may start flowing in

174
00:50:32.240 --> 00:50:48.880
Virginia in the next year. And so if that does materialize, um the energy resource hub will be ready to help our community members to take as much advantage of those programs as possible. Um sharing the love a little, uh CAT will be welcoming its first two electric

175
00:50:48.880 --> 00:51:05.520
transit buses um pretty soon and I know that the installation of the charging infrastructure that will support those buses is underway. Um, and also we're finally making progress on the expansion of our neighborhood compost drop off locations, which is um, a project that's

176
00:51:05.520 --> 00:51:22.000
been languishing a little for a while, but we're excited to be moving on that one. So, that's just kind of a taste, a sampler of things that we have on the horizon for next year. Thank you all again for your time, and we welcome any questions that you have. >> Great. Thank you so much. that was very

177
00:51:22.000 --> 00:51:38.400
thorough [laughter] and uh I learned a lot of about all the great things the work is that the great things that we are able to do given the constraints that you mentioned at the beginning um uh anyone have any questions

178
00:51:38.400 --> 00:51:54.559
couple okay >> um with the list that of like achievements in the 160 or there were 70 that were rolling and where did we think we would be right now? >> Oh, that's a good question. Um,

179
00:51:54.559 --> 00:52:08.800
right. Exactly. >> Right exactly where we are. [laughter] >> Okay, good. That's what I thought. And uh for other do we have any sense of like similar like Harrisonenberg or are there other localities investing like we

180
00:52:08.800 --> 00:52:25.680
are and getting the same ROI like how do we know where we stand with that eight you know the increase the eight or 4% uh sorry >> well everybody in our region is being impacted by that increase in emissions

181
00:52:25.680 --> 00:52:41.599
from the building sector. Okay, >> everybody's being in if impacted by increased like being back to >> preandemic levels of travel. So, I mean those are very broad systems issues that are affecting >> everyone. So, everyone's feeling that.

182
00:52:41.599 --> 00:52:58.240
Okay. >> Yeah, definitely. And um you know, in in Charlottesville, we're very urbanized, so we're not under some like development pressures that the county is under, for example. Um so it it is different per locality like

183
00:52:58.240 --> 00:53:13.920
some of it is locality specific but there are definitely the issues we talked about today are impacting everyone. Okay, >> I will share um we just went to an annual meeting of Southeast Directors Network, Southeast Sustainability Director's Network and there was a conversation about trying to identify a

184
00:53:13.920 --> 00:53:30.640
couple of like key metrics that we're all working on and trying to even aggregate that at the regional level so that we could perhaps show needle moving but have it be whether it's electric vehicles or or electrification. So that's that's work that probably will be

185
00:53:30.640 --> 00:53:45.920
happening over the next while. >> Oh, great. Okay. that yeah that will be super helpful. Does that increase in usage put our 2030 goal at risk or was there already a kind of room for error built into that goal? Like does one this bump

186
00:53:45.920 --> 00:54:03.440
well? I mean, you know, it's a delay, right? We had we we looked at 24 data. A lot of the big projects that we have accomplished, especially within the city's portfolio, over the last couple of years, are definitely not being like they're not

187
00:54:03.440 --> 00:54:19.119
impacting our inventory yet because we just haven't gotten to the to when they would be seen, right? And then between now and 2030, you know, we'll have those big solar installations. Maybe we can do a virtual power purchase agreement, you know, like

188
00:54:19.119 --> 00:54:34.800
I think there's still room to make it. Yeah. And also, I mean, with the in a state with a clean energy standard for electricity, which is what the Virginia Clean Economy Act is, like Dominion is legally required to be moving in the

189
00:54:34.800 --> 00:54:52.079
right direction. So, I do hope >> you don't feel like we should recalibrate, right? You're like, >> I don't I'm not ready to say we should spend time on reccalibrating. >> Fantastic. Can I ask one more question? I think we should just keep putting our resources into making progress. >> And then last question,

190
00:54:52.079 --> 00:55:06.640
>> what are the goals for the energy research hub? I mean, we we did 178, but what what are we track what would be like A+? >> Oh, that's a good question. Um, >> we probably need to work so we're I mean

191
00:55:06.640 --> 00:55:22.400
we track our metrics from the hub. Um, but we probably need to set some specific goals. If we reached 176 community members in our first year, you know, it might be great to reach over 200 community members. >> Yeah. Just to say what success looks like.

192
00:55:22.400 --> 00:55:38.160
>> It'll be interesting to see like if the state program is able to start this year, how many people we can direct into that program will be a metric of success. Um, I will be very excited to see how many

193
00:55:38.160 --> 00:55:52.960
businesses that we can we can serve over the next it's an 18-month period of performance we have. Um, so over the next 18 months, can we use up all of the resources that we have put into that program? That would be success.

194
00:55:52.960 --> 00:56:08.480
>> Excellent. Thank you, >> Michael. Did you have anything? >> Yeah. Um, thank you for, you know, the update and all the information. Um, as you highlighted, there's a lot of negative things in the climate space at

195
00:56:08.480 --> 00:56:25.040
a national and international level, but um, it's definitely worth highlighting and celebrating how much progress we've made locally and how far we've come even just in the adoption of the climate action plan and the fund to implement it annually and the new staff positions and

196
00:56:25.040 --> 00:56:42.319
then all the work that you highlighted today um, is just, you know, a tremendous change I think for the better, you know, locally. Um, a few questions. So, um, obviously the electrification of our bus fleet is

197
00:56:42.319 --> 00:56:59.920
paused with federal funding cuts. Um, but I think there's still an opportunity around hybrid buses as part of the fleet expansion and not just diesel. Um, what does that work currently look like? So um there is an item related to this

198
00:56:59.920 --> 00:57:15.599
in the work plan which is the uh study of whether we need to pivot our plans to include diesel hybrids. >> So that that is something we'll be working on in FY27.

199
00:57:15.599 --> 00:57:32.640
>> Okay. Um I didn't know diesel hybrids were a thing. >> Well for school buses. >> Wait, no transit buses. Yeah. Yeah. Transit buses. Yes, transit buses, >> which we already have some of, but there are old firstgens that are complicated. >> Okay. Yeah.

200
00:57:32.640 --> 00:57:48.880
>> Yeah. Okay. >> Um, so that's good. And I hope we're able to to time it to not have, you know, miss too many opportunities with our fleet expansion because I think the current technology is reliable and obviously the emission impact, but also

201
00:57:48.880 --> 00:58:02.160
just the impact on air quality I think would also be a positive um benefit. Um, in addition, you highlighted like the solar work, um, rooftop solar. What

202
00:58:02.160 --> 00:58:19.440
would it look like or entail if the Charlottesville airport was going to be included as a priority for um, solar installation? >> That's a question you ask me every year that I never have a great answer for.

203
00:58:19.440 --> 00:58:37.359
And I think every year we look at the city's board members on the airport authority to help advise that guide that conversation. But if we put solar on the airport, it doesn't change the emissions in the city. So that is one reality. Um

204
00:58:37.359 --> 00:58:53.520
it's a big airport. It's a big roof. It's got a lot of land. I think the conversation should be explored. Mhm. Um well, I continue to bring it up. It will again just because Charlottesville and Al Marl

205
00:58:53.520 --> 00:59:08.160
do have those board seats to dictate the policy direction and we've heard in the past that the um they just very kind of I think were complacent and not the show itself was complacent and not wanting to explore at

206
00:59:08.160 --> 00:59:25.599
all. um solar. I think their response so far has been, "Well, it's not in our existing master plan, so we're not going to explore it." Well, that's not a very compelling answer to me. >> It's like a missed opportunity. >> Um so, um but I hope that can make it in

207
00:59:25.599 --> 00:59:40.880
because I think as you said, it's a large roof. It's also just a large amount of land. Um so, um other I also had a question you I think you kind of answered it. had a question around what the climate resilience work would look like, but it sounds like at a later date

208
00:59:40.880 --> 00:59:55.760
we're going to get an in-depth presentation about that. >> Um, I think that was largely it. I guess the final question is I know we have the fund for a million dollars annually for the

209
00:59:55.760 --> 01:00:11.040
implementation of the work um in our climate action plan. um what's the kind of scale of um what that money is able to do annually versus kind of work that's still not

210
01:00:11.040 --> 01:00:26.240
able to be completed if that makes sense. >> Well, um we are we are using the fund both for capital projects and for um programmatic type of initiatives and so

211
01:00:26.240 --> 01:00:42.480
frankly that's the limiting factor. more dollars would realize more capital projects, more dollars could realize expanded or additional community type initiatives. >> Okay. >> So, we're trying to we're trying to um find a sweet spot that we're doing

212
01:00:42.480 --> 01:00:57.359
making progress in both. [clears throat] >> Um and real final last question, natural gas utility. I know there's work underway around that. what is where is that currently at in terms of um a date

213
01:00:57.359 --> 01:01:12.960
that we should expect an update on you know the the new decarbonization study around our natural gas utility. So my understanding is that C3, who's the lead in that project, is hoping to

214
01:01:12.960 --> 01:01:33.280
bring their recommendations forward before the end of the calendar year. [snorts] >> Quickly, um, we are Hi, Susan Cruz with C3. the the folks who are doing the energy modeling of the study and mapping

215
01:01:33.280 --> 01:01:49.920
out the pathways are going to be here July I think it's 6th through 6th and 7th and so we're going to be hosting several events um and opportunities for city staff city leadership community members businesses etc to engage with

216
01:01:49.920 --> 01:02:05.839
Dunky climate and energy adviserss who's leading that energy modeling for feedback on our first um at the end of this month we're going get a draft of scenarios and opportunities and get community feedback at that time. So, they will be here for two solid days and

217
01:02:05.839 --> 01:02:21.760
we are working on packing that agenda. And so, you all Cy is not here tonight because she's probably sending you all invitations to attend some of those listening sessions. >> Thank you. Um, that's it for me. Thank you. >> All right. Thank you.

218
01:02:21.760 --> 01:02:37.920
>> Great. Thank you so much. Um, I have a couple questions as well and I know we're we're running low on time a little bit. Um, so I'll try and be brief. >> You have another report. >> Yeah. Um, but I really did appreciate how extensive and thorough this one was. Um, I want to just um mention how great

219
01:02:37.920 --> 01:02:53.680
it was to hear about the teamwork that went into the high performance building standards, the teamwork across departments. It's really nice to see. Um, and then wanted to just clarify that, you know, we saw our numbers go up, but that doesn't include the K-tech installation, which was this past right

220
01:02:53.680 --> 01:03:09.040
year. So that data hasn't been incorporated yet. and neither by class fire station like there's >> right we've done a lot in the last couple of years that wasn't reflected the status >> we've done some big energy savings projects here in city hall city hall annex so we that work will start to show up

221
01:03:09.040 --> 01:03:25.200
>> yeah I'm looking forward to to those numbers you know when we get them >> um and then uh you mentioned for the school for Kchek and for the school solar it will be 60%ish of the usage will be covered by that um

222
01:03:25.200 --> 01:03:41.599
I I don't you might not be able to answer this off the top of your heads, but what kind of like carbon offset does that look like or or what does that reduction look like in in not just kilowatt hours but or percentage but like >> we can get you those estimates but we

223
01:03:41.599 --> 01:03:58.000
don't I don't know off the top of my head. >> Yeah, I think that would be that would be cool to see. Um cool. Thank you. And then um for the solar installation, I know that parking lot installs involve more infrastructure than rooftops and

224
01:03:58.000 --> 01:04:15.760
our goal hopefully as most of our goals and should be to reduce the amount of open parking lots that there are in the city. Um but in the meantime, what kind of programs are available to help add solar to open spaces like that

225
01:04:15.760 --> 01:04:31.839
in a city environment? >> So to my >> none could be the answer. >> Yeah. So to my knowledge, >> it's it's limited. So, uh, there were there was some legislation in the recent general assembly session around solar

226
01:04:31.839 --> 01:04:48.240
canopy allowances, and I believe it's allowed under our in the new zoning code. That's an allowance for parking lots. Um, and so nothing is stopping us in Charlottesville should a

227
01:04:48.240 --> 01:05:04.960
developer or own property owner be interested in that. Um, I mean, I would love to see some development of Canopy Solar in our community. >> Is that something that the resource hub can help guide business? >> Oh, that's a good question. Um, towards

228
01:05:04.960 --> 01:05:20.319
>> Yes. I mean, I think that's something that if a commercial entity was interested in that, we could at least help them get some of the answers that they needed and like find some resources. Um and

229
01:05:20.319 --> 01:05:37.119
um yeah, I don't maybe in the future we'll do a commercial solariz or something. >> Yeah, I will say the two other opportunities um uh LEAP runs a solarized campaign each year and this year >> which is open right now >> and this year one of the um models that

230
01:05:37.119 --> 01:05:52.160
they're offering and really helping um households with is um a lease type of arrangement versus an owner financed arrangement. And then the Virginia General Assembly also passed uh allowance for balcony solar, which is never going to offset a whole household,

231
01:05:52.160 --> 01:06:07.680
but it is going to be like another opportunity for people who are interested to bring some small like literally off their balcony or um some other uh lower lower technology systems. [clears throat] So, they're all

232
01:06:07.680 --> 01:06:22.000
tools in the toolbox. More solar everywhere as fast as we can. >> That's good. Okay, great. Um thank you so much. Last call for questions, comments, >> and just as a quick followup because googling it, there were one bill for a

233
01:06:22.000 --> 01:06:38.640
grant program for um parking lot canopy solar and another bill to allow localities to require it for a parking lot above a certain size. Both those haven't passed, but maybe there's an opportunity for our legislative packet to advocate for them. >> There's a little momentum there. >> Great.

234
01:06:38.640 --> 01:07:00.480
>> That's great. >> All right. Well, thank you all. >> Thank you. Thanks. >> I got to call the next one. Um, and then our next presentation is about our human rights ordinance revisions. Mr. Neer, >> good evening everybody. Thank you for

235
01:07:00.480 --> 01:07:16.000
another opportunity to speak to you this evening. Um, tonight I'm talking about uh ordinance revisions, which we've done a number of over the years. Um, this collection of ordinance revisions is a little bit more limited than the ones that we've done in the past. I think

236
01:07:16.000 --> 01:07:31.440
we're at the stage of refining the ordinance at this point. So, uh, tonight is just an opportunity for you to review the ordinance amendments that are proposed by the commission and ask any questions. We'll come back at a later meeting if you choose to adopt those and

237
01:07:31.440 --> 01:07:46.480
put them on the action items or consent agenda. So, um, just very briefly, this is kind of the 30,000 foot view of the changes that we're making. Uh, so first of all, um, the commission adopted them on April

238
01:07:46.480 --> 01:08:03.280
16th. Um, and the main things here are looking at some of the revisions to membership requirements, something that we work closely with city attorney's office on revising. Um, uh, the up updated wording and terms in certain spots. We just wanted to make it a little bit more cohesive because we had

239
01:08:03.280 --> 01:08:20.239
some conflicting terms in certain spots. Um, talking about uh protocols for u complainant response or I'm sorry, non-response. Um, we were having some some delays in being able to finish cases for that. And so we'll we'll talk a little bit about those changes. Um,

240
01:08:20.239 --> 01:08:35.759
and then when we render a finding of no reasonable cause, we just updated the procedure for a complainant to fi file a request for appeal. and uh also talked a little bit about delegation of decision-making and contractual services for housing cases specifically when

241
01:08:35.759 --> 01:08:52.239
we're outside of the fair housing um uh what do we call it fair housing assistance program uh work share with the federal government which we are currently so trying to figure out what we can do around contractual services when we are not in that uh particular arrangement and then also just adding a

242
01:08:52.239 --> 01:09:07.839
conflict of interest clause for commissioner participation in public hearings. So, I'm going to go through these really quickly. Um, and then if you have questions, just let me know. If you look in the agenda packet, there is a copy of the draft ordinance that's colorcoded. Um, new things are

243
01:09:07.839 --> 01:09:24.480
underlined in green. Things that we're proposing for removal are strike through in red. So, that makes it a little easier to find. Okay. So, bless you. Uh the first one here uh section T-432 is where we changed the uh language around

244
01:09:24.480 --> 01:09:41.600
what uh what criteria council should be looking at to to select members of the commission. Um and what what we're doing here is trying to make sure that the language there coincides with state and federal law and doesn't present any exclusionary language that might get us

245
01:09:41.600 --> 01:09:58.159
in in any trouble. Um it unusually that that language had been in there since 2013 and only now are we kind of realizing oh we probably need to update that. So um that's one change. We're also seeing that reflected in uh in our rules and procedures for the commission which are sort of their bylaws. We've

246
01:09:58.159 --> 01:10:14.159
removed that same language from there as well. Um this section um talks about uh the individual assistance that we provide. The really simple change here is that we added the word inquiries into that language because a lot of what

247
01:10:14.159 --> 01:10:29.840
comes in, the vast majority of what comes into the office is not a complaint of discrimination, but rather somebody inquiring whether something is a complaint or something that we cover and we often do a referral or provide some other guidance there. So, that's just a very small language change. Um, here is

248
01:10:29.840 --> 01:10:45.280
where we get into the uh CL complainant and uh respondent nonresponse issue. So, trying to summarize this in a in a in a quick way. Um, the idea is that when we're in the middle of an investigation

249
01:10:45.280 --> 01:11:02.000
or trying to uh get bring people together for mediation, if the complainant doesn't respond to the office's uh requests for information or requests for a next step for 30 days, we send a notice that says, "Hey, we haven't heard from you in 30 days.

250
01:11:02.000 --> 01:11:18.400
please respond to us within the next 30 days after receiving this notice so that we can know what to do with your case. The problem was we would have people we'd send a notice out. Somebody would respond and we go, "Okay, we'll keep it open." And then they wouldn't respond for another 30 days. We'd send another notice and they say, "I was still here.

251
01:11:18.400 --> 01:11:34.640
I'm still here. Keep it going." We we'd wait another 30 days, then no response. So, we'd have this in ongoing cycle of 30-day um no response. And so what we're saying now is that if we send a 30-day notice that says, "Hey, we haven't heard from you. Please respond within the next

252
01:11:34.640 --> 01:11:51.199
30 days." If another 30-day period goes with no response, we'll be we'll administratively close your case just so that we don't have all these cases just sitting there not moving forward and and remaining open and sort of tying up our our resources. So that's what that is.

253
01:11:51.199 --> 01:12:07.920
We also changed wording in there that says it's not just a non-response to the investigator, it's also a non-response to anybody within the office. And that that goes for um respondent non-response where we won't close a case for respondent non-response, but we will say we're going to move on without you.

254
01:12:07.920 --> 01:12:24.320
Right? So um that's the difference between complainant and respondent in that situation. But any case, that's that. And this is going to pop up in two other spots in the ordinance. So when we get to it, I'm just going to breeze right by it because it's the exact same amendment because this one applies to employment, the other one to housing,

255
01:12:24.320 --> 01:12:38.800
and then the third to public accommodation, credit, and private education. So moving on from that, this piece is changing language here. Um, we had some discrepancy in language about insufficient versus no reasonable cause.

256
01:12:38.800 --> 01:12:55.840
Um, we've adopted everything within the ordinance or adapted everything within the ordinance to say no reasonable cause, which is the language used in federal statute. So, we wanted to mirror that because obviously we still have to maintain substantial equivalence to federal fair housing law if we're ever to enter into a fair housing assistance

257
01:12:55.840 --> 01:13:12.640
program agreement and that took a long time to get. So, we don't want to lose that. Um, in addition, just adding a little bit of clarification around how a um a complainant can request a public hearing or an appeal uh by the commission for a finding of no

258
01:13:12.640 --> 01:13:29.199
reasonable cause that I I determine. Um, and that was just to say that the old language said that they would contact the commission, but there's not really a direct route for a complaintant to contact the commission other than showing up at a meeting. Um, and so it's more they contact the office. were the point of contact for the public in

259
01:13:29.199 --> 01:13:44.560
general especially for things revolving around a complaint and then we would relay that information to the commission in a timely fashion so that the appeal could go forward. So that's that piece. Um again this is another one that falls into all three uh of or I'm sorry all

260
01:13:44.560 --> 01:14:00.560
three sections in the ordinance uh pertaining to all five protected activities. So this one will show up again. We'll breeze over it when we get there because it's the same. Um, next thing here, looking at it real quick. Um, okay. So, this is around

261
01:14:00.560 --> 01:14:17.199
decisionmaking authority when it comes to housing discrimination complaints. So, the history here is that, uh, for substantial equivalence to federal fair housing law, HUD said you have to centralize all of your decision making that pertains to complaints within the

262
01:14:17.199 --> 01:14:32.080
office of human rights, you can't externalize, contract anything out, right? The only the only exception to that would be um mediation. We didn't have a a real clear definition on that because that wasn't part of uh what's considered in federal law. So um what

263
01:14:32.080 --> 01:14:48.320
we're saying in this particular piece is that um we would still be able to outsource decision-making authority. Say there was an absence of staff or something like that for housing discrimination complaints in the situation in which we're not entered

264
01:14:48.320 --> 01:15:04.480
into a fair housing program uh agreement. So, if we were into the fair housing assistance program agreement, we'd follow the rule that yes, we'd centralize all our decision-m authority there. But while we're not, we should be able to outsource because it makes it makes things more efficient. So, if some

265
01:15:04.480 --> 01:15:19.360
if we don't have any staff, we need to be able to outsource the decision-m for example. Um, so that's that's a provision just to make sure that we have continuity of service uh regardless of the situation we may find ourselves in um staffing wise. So there there'll be

266
01:15:19.360 --> 01:15:35.679
another follow-up um amendment that relates to this in a little bit. It might be the next one. No, it's not the next one. This is the same nonresponse clause that you saw in the employment one just catered towards housing in this compl in this place. Um here this is the

267
01:15:35.679 --> 01:15:53.440
same thing about uh how we um handle the complaintants request for public appeal. So that's same thing as it was in employment. Here it is in housing. And here we get back to decision-making authority and contracting of services when we're not part of a FAP agreement.

268
01:15:53.440 --> 01:16:10.719
So in this case, um, we subdivided the section into two pieces that outlines what we can do if we are in a fair housing assistance program and what we can do if we're not. Um, and basically it just means we can we can contract things like informal dialogue, mediation, consiliation, investigation,

269
01:16:10.719 --> 01:16:27.679
or cause finding, which is when we make a determination whether discrimination occurred on a case. when we are not in a FAP agreement, right? We could not do all of that when we are in a FAP agreement. Only mediation was included for contracted services in that. So any in any case, it's just an efficiency

270
01:16:27.679 --> 01:16:43.840
thing. It allows us to do more with less um when we're not in that agreement. If we are in the agreement, it all goes back under our under our own house. Okay, getting so close. Here is the same thing about 30-day non-response, but for public accommodation credit, private

271
01:16:43.840 --> 01:16:59.840
education. We'll keep going. Next, here we go again on the uh wording around how does a complainant file an appeal. Again, nothing fancy there. Same thing as in the other two sections. Moving on. And here we are into something new. So,

272
01:16:59.840 --> 01:17:15.600
the these next two things pertain to the commission specifically. Um this one is just to make sure that um if if uh commissioners are engaged in a public hearing of discrimination. Um it's just to make sure that we assess for conflict

273
01:17:15.600 --> 01:17:31.760
of interest before they engage. So if for example a commissioner has some relationship to either respondent or complainant, they should recuse themselves from participating in that hearing. Okay? So that's just we didn't have that in there before. It makes sense. It's obvious. It's it's it's part

274
01:17:31.760 --> 01:17:48.640
of law in the state. Let's drop it in here so we make sure we've paying attention to that when we get to public hearings. This last little piece here, uh again changing that insufficient uh cause to no reasonable cause language again there. And also we added again the

275
01:17:48.640 --> 01:18:03.360
the the language around how do people file for a public hearing on an appeal of a finding of no reasonable cause. And I think that was it. So, any questions on all those pretty dry presentations? Sorry about that, but we did it pretty

276
01:18:03.360 --> 01:18:19.760
quickly. So, questions, >> Michael? >> Um, thank you for the update. >> Yep. Sure. >> And important even though it's dry, but um but I would say >> I don't really have any questions. To me, all the changes seemed pretty

277
01:18:19.760 --> 01:18:38.719
straightforward and um I agree with that framework of kind of specifying how to do things if we're not in an FAP agreement given that for at least the next few years it's very likely we won't be unfortunately. Um so no real

278
01:18:38.719 --> 01:18:54.880
questions really. You know, I'm I'm supportive of all the changes you outlined and don't h have any issues with any of them. [snorts] >> Okay. I have no questions, John. >> All make sense to me. >> Yeah, the ordinances all make sense. I wondered, you mentioned about the

279
01:18:54.880 --> 01:19:10.880
referrals or questions. That's what's coming in the most. Are you tracking what the most asked are and is there somewhere to funnel that like how does that work? >> Yeah, absolutely. So, and and this is kind of going back to the last month's presentation in the annual report. If

280
01:19:10.880 --> 01:19:26.960
you look at you can we track all the um the referrals uh with regard to where we're sending things like to what agency to like how many did we send to that agency and this agency. So that's in the the the annual report but in addition to

281
01:19:26.960 --> 01:19:41.840
that um the other component to take a look at in that report is around navigation and advocacy. So it's another classification that we use when we have something come in. It's not a complaint. It's not a non-jurisdictional uh allegation of discrimination, but it's

282
01:19:41.840 --> 01:19:59.040
somebody looking for some sort of service that we don't provide, but they need help accessing the service somewhere else. And how do we guide them there as efficiently as possible? So, um if you look in there, that information is there. I can tell you that the the

283
01:19:59.040 --> 01:20:14.880
overwhelming thing that people ask about is housing navigation. And I define that quite broadly, um from anywhere from like how do I find housing? And we try not to handle that because that's a whole ball of wax in of itself. But um it also encompasses things like I can't

284
01:20:14.880 --> 01:20:30.239
have this dialogue with my landlord and I've got this conflict. It's not discriminatory, but I don't know how to talk to them. Can you help me? And we try to outsource those things, but there's really not very many resources for that to happen, especially if it's not say like a lawsuit that that that is

285
01:20:30.239 --> 01:20:45.760
winnable in court. and just having somebody talk to the landlord to resolve a conflict. We get involved in that sometimes on a limited basis usually when we say we can see the clear path um and we can do it quickly, but you can really get bogged down in that work. So

286
01:20:45.760 --> 01:21:00.159
you'll see in the report that we've tried to narrow that navigation and advocacy down as much as possible because you can spend all your time doing that stuff. >> So there's kind of a gap for mediation with landlords >> there. There is to a degree. Yeah. At one point, Pedmont Housing Alliance had

287
01:21:00.159 --> 01:21:16.480
a landlord um mediation person on staff in their housing hub. I don't think that they that since that person left, I don't think they've renewed that. Um and they may do a little bit of that engagement, but mostly what they're doing, as I understand it, is they're helping people find housing, maybe pay a

288
01:21:16.480 --> 01:21:32.800
deposit or uh first month's rent or something like that, but not sort of negotiating conflicts. So, sometimes I'll work with Pedmont Housing Alliance on stuff like that as well. if like a if the tenant comes to us and they've been really great about that, but there's not really an external resource for that

289
01:21:32.800 --> 01:21:49.600
negotiation that I'm aware of for us to just refer someone to. >> Yeah. Yeah. So, it's it's just to think put put it in your thinking cap because that's that's an important thing as housing is just incredibly difficult to navigate especially if you don't have much money. >> Right. >> And then this is such an ignorant

290
01:21:49.600 --> 01:22:06.880
question, forgive me. the if you have a repeat I don't know how to say it like repeat offender or there's someone that or some organization or some agency that you're continually hearing getting complaints or going down these paths of process with

291
01:22:06.880 --> 01:22:23.600
>> how how do you manage that where does that go >> that's a yeah so that's something I'm thinking about a lot actually um and I I'll be careful here because that stuff's confidential and sensitive especially if we have cases open that are in progress. What I would say is

292
01:22:23.600 --> 01:22:40.880
some folks we hear about as respondents multiple times. Some of them are amazing in that they come to the table and resolve and and that for those I'm not really concerned because stuff comes up all the time. People's perceptions of something feels

293
01:22:40.880 --> 01:22:57.520
off. They they report to us. They have grounds for a complaint. Then we go, "Oh, we mediate. We talk it out. Things are good again." And they both reconcile. Right? That's great. Happy to happy to receive more complaints like that about the same respondent. Um, in other cases, I have more concerns where

294
01:22:57.520 --> 01:23:14.239
I am seeing recurring problems with a respondent. Um, and sometimes they're willing to come to the table, sometimes they aren't. There's inconsistent responses and it points to other systemic challenges within that respondent's um, sort of customer

295
01:23:14.239 --> 01:23:29.920
service or some some sort of thing like that. I'm not going to again I'm not going to say too many details because I'll get myself in a mess here. But um what I would like to do is probably for some of those maybe draft a bit of a memo uh to city manager to say hey what

296
01:23:29.920 --> 01:23:46.400
would you think about us approaching this a little bit differently especially if it's somebody um that we that we that is well known and takes a lot of um uh or does a lot of things for our community that we want supported. So things like that I >> guess some sort of threshold and then yeah

297
01:23:46.400 --> 01:24:02.239
>> what is that threshold? I don't know. I think I'm at it at a certain point and how I then go kind of glean through the data to find um the systemic issues that are outside of the complaint is the next thing and I got to I'm thinking about how to do that um once we get our policy and impact analyst in I may have the

298
01:24:02.239 --> 01:24:18.159
intern do a little bit of that but it's complicated and it's going to take time to to sort through the data but we also kind of know intuitively and can go back through the cases that we know have had trouble and and maybe pull out some things quickly. So yes, stay tuned because that that is an issue and I want to think about that.

299
01:24:18.159 --> 01:24:33.520
>> Thank you. >> Yeah, >> great. Thanks. I just have one question which is you mentioned um complainants who don't respond after 30 days, they get a reminder. Is there any commonality in why there's they're not responding? >> Oh boy. Yeah, I think there's

300
01:24:33.520 --> 01:24:48.560
commonality. Let me think about this. >> Or systemic cause. Well, so let's yeah, let me turn the eye in inward for a second and say, well, what what's wrong with our process? Sometimes I look at that and say, is our process too

301
01:24:48.560 --> 01:25:05.440
complicated? Is it are we not exploring all avenues? And I would say that yes, it's complicated. It sort of is complicated by nature once we get to investigation. Unfortunately, I would say at the intake process um through alternative dispute resolution, we we're

302
01:25:05.440 --> 01:25:20.400
constantly reaching out and trying to make things work because that's the opportunity moment really is at that beginning stage when people are still willing to have a dialogue. Once we get into investigation, it just becomes adversarial. Just that's just kind of the nature of that process. Um, and I

303
01:25:20.400 --> 01:25:37.199
think that sometimes that gets intimidating for people or confusing for people. And so we will try to follow up as much as we can, but there becomes a certain point where you go, you either got to kind of come with us or we're going to have to let you go because we've got, you know, 10 other cases that

304
01:25:37.199 --> 01:25:52.080
we're trying to work on at the same time. So that's kind of where um, yeah, but I think it's just I think it's a challenging process. I think it's I think people bring a degree of stress and trauma into the process inherently and investigation unfortunately is a

305
01:25:52.080 --> 01:26:09.040
triggering process because we have to revisit the same thing that brought you in in the first place and so I think that that becomes hard and again people are not only experiencing what they experienced uh in terms of what they filed the complaint about they may be experiencing other challenges that makes

306
01:26:09.040 --> 01:26:26.080
it hard for them to even make time for that process. So that's why I focus a lot on alternative dispute resolution and try to really encourage it. We can't make anybody do that, but it's an opportunity that once it kind of slips through their fingers, it's hard to get back because it it just the it kind of

307
01:26:26.080 --> 01:26:42.000
snowballs in terms of people's unwillingness to work together if we go too deep. >> Okay. >> Yeah. But right, >> no, it's something to always look at like what are the barriers within our process? >> Yeah, I I appreciate the fact that your first instinct is to think is it something we're doing? So >> totally we're always at this we're

308
01:26:42.000 --> 01:26:56.480
always having those meetings and internally about like can we tweak this, can we tweak that? So it's it's an ongoing process to make it better. But >> Okay, great. Thank you so much. >> Yeah, and we'll be working on you guys can maybe let uh the clerk know what um

309
01:26:56.480 --> 01:27:12.320
you want to do with this ordinance if you want to put it on action item or consent agenda for the future. I think the next meeting is the 20th of July. No, July. I'm saying October. Where am I? >> July. Um, and we'll work on the preamble piece because I know there's a whole preamble that goes along with it that

310
01:27:12.320 --> 01:27:27.920
you kind of attach to it once you formally pass it. That's in review right now. So, um, yeah, let us know and we'll be ready to do it. >> All right. Great. Thank you so much. >> And we did it. 5:24. [laughter] >> All right. And on that note about time, uh, do we have a motion to go in close meeting?

311
01:27:27.920 --> 01:27:43.760
>> Yes. [clears throat] Pursuant to section 2.2-3712 2-3712 of the Virginia code. I move that that the city council close this open meeting and convene in a closed session as authorized by the Virginia Freedom Information Act as follows. One, pursuant to Virginia Code

312
01:27:43.760 --> 01:28:00.800
section 2.2-3711A1 for discussion and consideration of prospective candidates to be appointed to the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority Board. Two, pursuant to Virginia Code section 2.2-3711A7 2-3711A7 for consultation with legal counsel

313
01:28:00.800 --> 01:28:17.199
pertaining to actual or probable litigation where such consultation or briefing and open meeting would adversely affect the negotiating or litigating posture of the public body specifically a matter involving a former city employee and Columbia Gas of Virginia versus city of Charlottesville.

314
01:28:17.199 --> 01:28:32.639
Three, pursuant to Virginia Code section 2.2-3711A88 2-3711A88 for consultation with legal counsel employed or retained by a public body regarding specific legal matters requiring the provision of legal advice by such council, specifically state and

315
01:28:32.639 --> 01:28:48.239
local regulations pertaining to the preservation of historic properties, including the Wartland Street Historic District. >> That's my motion. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Uh would you like us to vote a voice vote or

316
01:28:48.239 --> 01:29:03.639
>> Okay. Um, all in favor? I >> Yes. >> All right. Um, the motion passes. We're now in a closed meeting. We will return around 6:30. For anyone joining by Zoom, there is a separate link for the 6:30 meeting.

Part: 2

1
00:10:00.160 --> 00:10:19.040
Uh, good evening folks. Um, I'm I move that this council certified by certify by a recorded vote that to the best of each council member's knowledge only public business matters lawfully exempted from the open meeting requirements for the Virginia Freedom

2
00:10:19.040 --> 00:10:37.000
Information Act and identified in the motion convening the closed session were heard, discussed, or considered in the closed session. >> Is there a second? >> Second. >> Are we all logged in to vote? >> Yes. All right. Please go ahead. >> I'll initiate the vote.

3
00:10:40.240 --> 00:11:05.040
>> Figure out how to get back to it. >> I can mark it for you, too. >> Oh, that's just voice. I'm I'm a yes. >> Okay. >> All right. All right. And the motion passes four to nothing. Um just as a

4
00:11:05.040 --> 00:11:22.480
brief recap, um Mayor Wade is out of town uh this week, so that's why I'm up here. Hello. Um during close session, we uh voted to appoint uh Bridget Moss to the ATL's position on the CRA board.

5
00:11:22.480 --> 00:11:37.760
>> You would have a motion, >> right? We um discussed that. I will entertain a motion on >> I would point Bridget Moss to the C. Is there a second? >> Second. >> All right. All in favor? >> Yes. >> Yes. >> Yes. >> All right. The motion passes.

6
00:11:37.760 --> 00:11:53.200
>> Welcome, Bridget. >> Can we Can you talk a little louder? >> Test test. >> All right. Sorry about that. Thanks. Thanks for letting me know. Um and uh now we will begin our business meeting

7
00:11:53.200 --> 00:12:25.040
with a moment of silence. All right. Thanks everyone. Um, are there any announcements this side? >> No. >> Any announcements, Michael? Um, okay. Thanks. I just have a couple. Um, I wanted to note that uh there's no

8
00:12:25.040 --> 00:12:40.880
Monday meeting the first Monday of July, but there will be. Our next council meeting is July 20th. Um, but several other meetings are going on in July. So, just check in with the city calendar to see what's going on. Um, also July is uh

9
00:12:40.880 --> 00:12:57.200
the next installment of the ebike voucher program application period. So, every quarter you can apply. So check that out on Seville Connect to uh find out more information about the vouchers and uh how to apply and what information you need to submit. And then um thirdly,

10
00:12:57.200 --> 00:13:12.000
it's always nice to recognize the success of products of our Charlottesville school system. So I'd like to congratulate uh Jaylen Brunson, Walker and Beford Middle School student, and his New York Knicks on their NBA championship over the weekend. Um

11
00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:29.360
thanks. Last call for announcements. All right, wonderful. Um, we'll now move on to community matters. There are um some pre-registered speakers and then there's going to be uh sorry, there's seven pre-registered um and then some

12
00:13:29.360 --> 00:13:45.519
folks on the wait list that will take up that eighth spot and then eight additional uh slots for speakers on community matters. Um each speaker will have up to three minutes to speak on topics that are not listed as public hearings. So if your item is coming later in the agenda as a public hearing,

13
00:13:45.519 --> 00:14:02.720
please save your comments for that. If it's not, then please you are welcome to speak now. Um I will um just remind everyone that it is a threeminut limit and that goes across the board for everybody. Um and they'll your time will be noted um on the screens. Um I will

14
00:14:02.720 --> 00:14:24.800
now open the floor to pre-registered speakers. Is um Heidi Berto available? Thank you. Good evening, counselors. My name is Heidi Divia Bertu. We know you are very busy with many issues and projects. Um

15
00:14:24.800 --> 00:14:39.600
you have before you um handouts that we gave you. Um yet we would like to remind you of the sustained efforts of the Court Square Enslavement Memorial Group to restore the slate plaque to zero Park Street that honored the site a slave

16
00:14:39.600 --> 00:14:56.800
auction block. Originally placed in 1962 by council, it was removed in 2002 by council. We ask you to restore it now in 2026. An action well within your power. We urge you to make an exception rather

17
00:14:56.800 --> 00:15:12.959
than to make us wait for the formation of the arts council. Please know that we are encouraged that you are creating a process that will expedite requests such as ours. In January, uh, Deputy City Manager Freeze suggested that as an

18
00:15:12.959 --> 00:15:28.320
alternative to waiting another two years for the creation of the arts commission that this group could ask the city council to vote. Therefore, per Mr. freeze. Would you please vote yes to remove this project along? Now, we are

19
00:15:28.320 --> 00:15:45.279
encouraged by your recent vote. Uh, and I quote, "On Monday, May 18th, Charlottesville City Council unanimously endorsed the potential use of city parks for swords and plowshares project, which is also about public spaces where Charlottesville's history has been made,

20
00:15:45.279 --> 00:16:00.959
covered up, and remembered. The plowshares project is a very involved initiative with extensive community engagement. Replacing the slack the slate his historical marker also enjoys community endorsement. But in contrast

21
00:16:00.959 --> 00:16:17.600
to the plowshares undertaking, it is a very simple endeavor and made more simple by your affirmation. Mayor Wade's most recent request of our group was to get approval from UVA Descendants of Enslaved Communities, the Jefferson School, and Swords into

22
00:16:17.600 --> 00:16:34.720
Plowshares, which was delivered to you by Jessica Harris, director of UVA Descendants by email on April 20th. On March 3rd, 2025, while unveil while unveiling the historic signage titled Enslavement at Court Square, councelor

23
00:16:34.720 --> 00:16:49.680
Snook emphasized the importance of our history and economy for the coming decade of revolution tourism. Councelor Flecher recently shared her concern over the atrocity, which was the half ccentury auctioning away thousands

24
00:16:49.680 --> 00:17:04.799
of local captives to distant and brutal misery. The restoration of the auction block plaque will will provide a healing of this historic eraser and will inform the revolution tourists arriving in July 2026.

25
00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:25.600
The reading of this proposal will will be continued by mike Henrietta. Um unfortunately he's number eight on the wait list except I think he's been moved up. So thank you for listening. >> Thanks very much. Um, next we have uh Laura Sargoni.

26
00:17:25.600 --> 00:17:45.280
Thank you. >> U, my name is Laura Sergani and I'm a community member. I'm sure the council is getting used to seeing me at this point and I genuinely wish that I was coming to you again under better circumstances. Uh 10 days ago, I was sharing a potluck dinner with housed and unhoused friends

27
00:17:45.280 --> 00:18:01.440
to discuss the immediate and ongoing needs of our neighbors camping along the Ravana Trail. Among them was my camping friend Tony, who I've known and worked with for about a year. Tony was telling us that he would like to attend this meeting tonight to express his frustration about how the

28
00:18:01.440 --> 00:18:19.120
city has treated him. Sadly, Tony could not make it to this meeting because he passed away last week. I do not think that I could do justice in representing all of his experiences or thoughts, but I can tell you that I believe this city has failed him and that it is failing a lot of people.

29
00:18:19.120 --> 00:18:34.480
People like us, people with children and families and friends and stories of struggle, people who are our neighbors. I want to believe that this city is capable of building a community of care instead of perpetuating systems of harm.

30
00:18:34.480 --> 00:18:49.200
And because I want to believe that, I'm going to share the things that we talked about at that potluck, including Tony's suggestions for how we could improve the conditions for our most vulnerable community members. In collaboration with housing and unhoused neighbors, we assert that the city should take the following actions

31
00:18:49.200 --> 00:19:06.640
for the well-being of our community. Portable toilets and access to clean water for drinking and bathing. Understand the city has been discussions about this, but there's been enough discussion there needs to be movement. With the increasing heat of summer and potential spread of diseases, this is a major risk to health and safety every day that passes. Dumpsters and trash

32
00:19:06.640 --> 00:19:22.400
cans. With 50 to 100 people now living along the Ravana trail, they need their own rolling trash cans and dumpsters for disposal of trash. Like any neighborhood, they are a neighborhood just like yours. The city previously placed a dumpster at the free bridge location, which demonstrates they can do this. You've already done it. If the

33
00:19:22.400 --> 00:19:38.160
city is concerned about the concentration of campers in an area, then the city should increase the number of camping areas available with access to resources instead of policing. No force displacement period. The low barrier shelter project should go forward with input from the unhoused

34
00:19:38.160 --> 00:19:53.039
community and it should show serve as transitional housing with more permanent affordable housing being created providing ongoing services that help people stay sheltered. And the city needs to prevent housing discrimination and barriers to shelter such as screening for drug use or previous

35
00:19:53.039 --> 00:20:09.200
incarceration. Human rights mean housing. Housing is a human right. Moreover, the city should take UVA to task for its discrimination against unhoused patients, turning them back out into the streets directly after medical procedures rather than giving them shelter to recover. This is disgraceful and I know people that this has happened

36
00:20:09.200 --> 00:20:24.960
to that I'm working with right now. The city also needs to acknowledge the role that policing has played in creating and exacerbating homelessness and stop targeting harassment of unhoused neighbors. With unnecessary arrests for petty infractions, the community requires care, not cops. And lastly, the

37
00:20:24.960 --> 00:20:40.320
city needs to acknowledge how corporate development has displaced residents from once affordable neighborhoods and fueled homelessness. The city needs to stand up to developers and put a moratorum on these greedfueled projects that hollow out our community. Thank you. With Tony not able to be here tonight, I feel I

38
00:20:40.320 --> 00:21:07.679
owe it to him to remind us all that it is our responsibility and our job, every one of us, to create that community of care. >> Thank you. Thank you. >> Uh Lwick Cutner. >> Hi. Uh my name is Kutna. I live uh on

39
00:21:07.679 --> 00:21:26.080
Water Street and work on the mall. Uh when I came to Charlottesville in 1981, the downtown mall was a disaster and nobody came downtown. There were traffic problems, homeless problems, property values uh were down. Property selling

40
00:21:26.080 --> 00:21:40.640
between 20 and $40,000 about a third of them. one building the city foreclosed for the city. The owners um were not willing to take taxes, walked away and the city took over the

41
00:21:40.640 --> 00:21:58.159
property and uh offered the property for free if somebody would build. Um one of the reasons of the difficult downtown was Water Street and Market Street were one-way street. Uh which made maneuvering downtown difficult. So why

42
00:21:58.159 --> 00:22:14.400
do we want to go and repeat past mistakes? How easily traffic flows critical is that success of downtown Charlottesville? I think there is a group that perceives its dangerous downtown.

43
00:22:14.400 --> 00:22:32.000
But the questions is do we have statistics of how many bikers are actually riding downtown every day? Uh do we have statistics of how many accidents have uh there been? Exactly where are these accidents

44
00:22:32.000 --> 00:22:49.840
occurring and what is causing these accidents? Um, I would be extremely surprised to learn that a two-way uh water street is the heart of the problem. And uh our mayor writes uh

45
00:22:49.840 --> 00:23:05.840
uh scootered downtown. I have never seen that he was scared. Um I ride my scooter uh all the time. Uh and I never have felt uh unsafe. I rode

46
00:23:05.840 --> 00:23:22.559
my bicycle in New York for 20 years. That was a little more different. Uh uh in fact the drivers of cars here extremely careful and uh I hope that you can spend time out in the street and see

47
00:23:22.559 --> 00:23:39.440
what it is. If there's a bicycle going up Water Street, the car stays behind and never even pass them and are extremely uh successful. So, I think uh changing Water Street into a one-way uh street could be have disastrous effects

48
00:23:39.440 --> 00:23:58.400
and may hold us back. And as we just heard, maybe taxes go down and we can't afford to support homeless people. Thank you. >> Thank you very much. Uh Joan Fenton. >> I'm Joan Fenton. I have property and uh

49
00:23:58.400 --> 00:24:15.600
business downtown. In 1996, the Office of Economic Development put together a committee of business owners, property owners, city staff, department heads, two members of council to find out what would help downtown because it was not

50
00:24:15.600 --> 00:24:32.400
thriving. This is 30 years ago. And the major thing that we asked for was to make Water Street two ways. And it was successful. It had a big impact on downtown. It impacted visibility. It increased traffic and it worked

51
00:24:32.400 --> 00:24:48.559
and they did their due diligence. They looked at how to do it, what the impact would be before they do it. And I believe that this proposal, you have not done your due diligence. V. has not looked at the impact this would have on South Street. You're going to send all

52
00:24:48.559 --> 00:25:04.240
that traffic onto South Street. And when you try to turn left onto Second Street, what's going to happen? It's going to back up. already. When they try to make a delivery on South Street and a truck stops, you can't get through. When the train comes through, you can't get

53
00:25:04.240 --> 00:25:19.520
through. If you're going to do something like this, you need to know what the impact's going to do before you do it, and you should at least take the time to find out what it is. Your traffic department has not looked at this, and your department of economic development

54
00:25:19.520 --> 00:25:36.240
has not looked at the economic impact. And I think both of those are failures. And I think for you to take this action without understanding the consequence is a failure of you to do your duty. And I really feel that

55
00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:53.120
the city often makes mistakes because they don't take the time to find out what's going to happen afterwards. And I think you need to pause, find out what's going on, and if you really think this is a good idea, then close Water Street in one direction for a month and see

56
00:25:53.120 --> 00:26:08.720
what the impact is. And go stand there and watch the traffic back up and watch on camera and see what happens at rush hour when nobody can get through. And drive with somebody who's a tourist or somebody trying to find their way downtown when they're lost and can't

57
00:26:08.720 --> 00:26:22.960
find their way down here. and think about the economic impact because if you want to fund all those things that she's asking for that you should fund then you need the money that you get from downtown. So please think twice before you go ahead and do this without knowing

58
00:26:22.960 --> 00:26:48.880
the consequence. Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh Green, >> good evening. My name is Gre Aenbach. Um, I am also here tonight to urge you not to move the star study proposal forward. So, this year we're celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Charlottesville downtown mall. This is a

59
00:26:48.880 --> 00:27:04.640
huge milestone, a major triumph. Um, but I encourage you to remember history. Um, during the urban renewal area, over 200 pedestrian malls were built across America, but 89% of them failed. The ones that survived, like ours, did so

60
00:27:04.640 --> 00:27:22.320
because of a delicate ecosystem built on accessible parking, intuitive traffic flow, and clear wayfinding. Altering Water Street disrupts the primary artery that keeps this ecosystem alive. From an economic development standpoint, the decision is highly concerning. Um, a

61
00:27:22.320 --> 00:27:37.679
significant portion of our downtown retail, fine dining, and vibrant art spaces rely heavily on uh baby boomers, older population, and tourists. These individuals directly fuel our local economy. By upending established traffic

62
00:27:37.679 --> 00:27:53.760
patterns, you aren't just creating a minor inconvenience. You're creating a cognitive barrier. When navigating downtown becomes confusing, stressful, or unpredictable. The patrons won't adapt. they will simply pivot to places like Stonefield or Fifth Street Station where drive where parking and driving

63
00:27:53.760 --> 00:28:08.799
are frictionless. We cannot afford to alienate customers keeping our local businesses solvent. Furthermore, this proposal highlights a deeper, more systemic issue. If you speak to business owners, operators, and workers who make the downtown mall thrive, you will hear

64
00:28:08.799 --> 00:28:26.000
a consistent heartbreaking refrain. They feel the city rarely supports their success. Whether it's infrastructure maintenance, safety concerns, or parking management, our business community constantly feels like they're fighting against city hall instead of partnering with them. A one-way conversion on Water Street

65
00:28:26.000 --> 00:28:40.880
against the vocal warnings of the people whose livelihood depends on it only deepens that divide. It sends a message that experimentation matters more than local economic survival. For 50 years, the downtown mall has been a crown jewel of Charlottesville, but

66
00:28:40.880 --> 00:28:56.799
its continued success is not guaranteed. It requires intentional, supportive stewardship. Let's celebrate this historic anniversary and not pass anything that might trigger a decline in the pedestrian district. Thank you very much.

67
00:28:56.799 --> 00:29:15.200
Thank you. Um Blair Williamson, >> Michael Kaplan would move up to that that >> Oh, I see. Yeah. Sorry, I was putting him at the end. >> I think she's reclaimed it. >> Um no, I'm I'm sorry. There's um Hold for a second. You'll go next. Um, is Michael Kaplan here?

68
00:29:15.200 --> 00:29:32.159
>> Sorry about that. It's my first time calling these. >> Thank you. >> My name is Michael Kaplan. I'm a member of the community and I too am here to urge you to not vote tonight on whether or not to make Water Street one way until you have more of the data essential to a knowing and well-informed

69
00:29:32.159 --> 00:29:48.159
decision and and can confirm that this actually solves a problem rather than merely moving the problem to another intersection. Bicycle safety and uh pedestrian safety are important goals for downtown. Pedestrian safety, smooth flow of traffic is important to

70
00:29:48.159 --> 00:30:03.919
downtown. The VOTE proposal before council defines a strategy that is focused on Ridge Street and the Water Street intersection. At the most recent VOTE meeting with the public, VOTE staff said at that meeting that they crafted

71
00:30:03.919 --> 00:30:20.880
the plan without considering the impact of the plan on West First, West Second, South Street, or Second Street East. That means at this time it is impossible to know whether the plan solves the problem or merely moves the problem a few blocks down the street. It's

72
00:30:20.880 --> 00:30:35.919
entirely possible that the plan will create more problems than it claims to fix. It's possible the plan will impair traffic flow, bicycle safety, and the downtown economy. Uh, it's is it it's possible it will create as many problems as it claims to

73
00:30:35.919 --> 00:30:51.279
fix. As you've heard from other people that Water Street was one way once before and it had a very bad impact on the downtown economy and that the downtown merchants urged city government to come to their rescue and city government did and they made it two-way

74
00:30:51.279 --> 00:31:06.880
again. And as rear just said, our downtown pedestrian mall survived while most of the pedestrian malls across America failed. It's a very delicate balance and we urge you to evaluate the data from that last time we had one way experience to see whether one way

75
00:31:06.880 --> 00:31:23.760
actually is in the best interest of our community. Uh the downtown economy generates over 10% of city revenue and it remains a fragile economy. It's the the downtown economy should not be stymied by reduced vehicle access when other bike and traffic flow options

76
00:31:23.760 --> 00:31:40.640
exist as such as bike lanes, shared lanes, signage, and lights. The plan before you lacks sufficient demonstration that it will improve downtown traffic and bike safety. In the name of good urban planning, I urge you to postpone any vote until you have been

77
00:31:40.640 --> 00:31:58.399
provided the data that shows the plan's full impact throughout the downtown region. Thanks. >> Thank you very much, Miss Williamson. Thank you for your patience. >> Hello. Thank you for allowing us to speak tonight. I'm Blair Williamson. and

78
00:31:58.399 --> 00:32:15.600
I do have a business on the downtown mall, but my real job is I'm president of SL Williamson Company, which is a heavy highway asphalt paving company, and I've been there for 34 years. So, I do have some experience in in the construction traffic um world. Um,

79
00:32:15.600 --> 00:32:31.200
you know, increasing bicycle, pedestrian, andor vehicle safety is always good a good reason for transportation improvements. It's in our community's best interest to continue to look for projects that improve safety, traffic congestion, and other design needs and issues. This project is

80
00:32:31.200 --> 00:32:47.679
well-intentioned, but fails at the basic level of looking at this intersection from a master planning perspective as there are multiple failures that will be that will be a result of this incomplete design. There needs to be a strategic plan for the roadways in the city and not a whack-a-ole implementation. I

81
00:32:47.679 --> 00:33:04.480
realize that only one project can be built at a time given money constraints, but the parts need to add up to the whole. Um, we have we have to know where we're going. At the last public presentation meeting of this project, I asked if the plan would be further vetted for design issues if it were to

82
00:33:04.480 --> 00:33:20.640
proceed. And Sandy Shackleford, who's the project manager for VOTE, said it would not change in design, but the plans would be developed for construction. At present, this plan puts all of the eastbound traffic from Water Street intending for Water Street onto South Street. This street is not

83
00:33:20.640 --> 00:33:37.440
designed to carry this load. In addition, it dumps all of the traffic at the terminus to cross either cross the railroad to Garrett or get in line with the vehicles entering and exiting the parking garage on water. This parking garage always is already congested from people coming in and out at that

84
00:33:37.440 --> 00:33:52.799
intersection. This project is designed as a bicycle safety improvement plan and assume and assumes makes assumptions that everything that is good for bicycles is good for pedestrians and vehicles. We also have the important consideration of the downtown mall and the tourist, residential and business

85
00:33:52.799 --> 00:34:08.399
communities that depend on good access to the mall. At present, there is virtually no wayinding in finding the mall is often only achieved by driving across it by accident. Also, the two Water Street parking lots in the future, Deubberry or Hotel, whatever we're going to call it, will eventually be

86
00:34:08.399 --> 00:34:23.440
developed, and this odd system of one-way roads will not help these businesses. Please do not give people another reason not to come downtown. Also, um Don uh Franco, who's a engineer with Ratabush and Gale, who has decades

87
00:34:23.440 --> 00:34:39.839
also decades of experience, sent you guys an email at 5:00 today. You may not have seen it because you were probably in another meeting. I brought copies for you. Um, but he has um really good insight as to how this could

88
00:34:39.839 --> 00:34:54.800
be improved and again to we all agree that the intersection needs to be improved, but it needs to be thoughtful and we need to know how all of this works together. Thank you. I'm going to leave these copies for you guys if that's all right. Thank >> Yeah.

89
00:34:54.800 --> 00:35:21.839
>> Thank you very much. Um, Susan Kutner. My name is Susan Cutner and for the past 14 years I have both lived and worked on the downtown mall. So I am intimately familiar with all of the issues that face downtown Charlottesville. I also happen to be a very avid biker who rides

90
00:35:21.839 --> 00:35:37.359
both for pleasure and to run errands. So, I appreciate and am grateful to the city that they are bike friendly and that they are concerned about bike safety and I hope that in the future more people will begin riding their bicycles. Having said that, I believe

91
00:35:37.359 --> 00:35:53.839
that the bicycle community should not be the driving force behind how traffic moves downtown. We are a passionate community, but we are also a very small minority community. And as bikers, it is our responsibility to adapt to the needs

92
00:35:53.839 --> 00:36:10.480
of downtown Charlottesville, not the other way around. Who is the majority of the people that we should be paying attention to? It is people like me who live and work downtown, some of whom may be bikers, but the majority of who are vehicle owners. It is the people who are

93
00:36:10.480 --> 00:36:26.960
delivering goods and services to both the residents and the downtown businesses. They are most assuredly not bikers and it is the tourists and the guests who come to visit downtown Charlottesville, few of whom I would guess are bikers. It

94
00:36:26.960 --> 00:36:44.160
is the convenience and needs of these three groups that we should be have foremost in our minds as we decide what traffic pattern should be. Because if we do not have an economically vital downtown, then the same thing that has happened to most pedestrian malls across

95
00:36:44.160 --> 00:36:59.760
the United States will happen to us. We will end up bankrupt. I can tell you from personal daily experience that a two-way street on water is not your problem. Water Street is not crazy busy. I cross it every

96
00:36:59.760 --> 00:37:16.800
single day, multiple times a day. I have never had a problem there. If I were to identify an issue that causes traffic problems downtown, I would point to the short turn lanes that exist on Water and Ridge McIntyre. There is a turn lane and there are two street options, South

97
00:37:16.800 --> 00:37:32.000
Street and Water Street to turn onto, but I have often had to wait two or three lights to even make a turn because the lanes that provide that are provided there offer a short window of opportunity. So what that means is that

98
00:37:32.000 --> 00:37:47.280
cars turning onto Water Street are oftent times mixed in with the cars going straight because they can't even get to the turn lane. And the cars going straight are interrupted by the people trying to get to the turn lanes. That is what is creating a lot of friction and

99
00:37:47.280 --> 00:38:03.839
frustration in that particular intersection. So I would strongly recommend that whoever is in charge of traffic movement in this city take the time to go down there yourself. spend an hour in different locations at different times of day. Use your own two eyes and

100
00:38:03.839 --> 00:38:21.040
get out from behind your computers and behind the maps that you're looking at and see what the problem is. Talk to the downtown residents. Talk to the downtown businesses. I'm pretty sure that you will find that the majority of those people will tell you that having a

101
00:38:21.040 --> 00:38:41.280
one-way street on water will create a bigger problem than what exists right now. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Um, that is the end of pre-registered speakers. Um, is there anyone in the audience right now who

102
00:38:41.280 --> 00:39:00.400
would like to speak as well? We'll start over here, Miss Tyrie. >> Hello. So, the writing is pretty small, so let me take my time. My name is Terry Tyrie and today I'm here as the president of Charlottesville Community Resilience

103
00:39:00.400 --> 00:39:17.680
Center or CCRC. Our mission is to strengthen individuals facing housing in security and related crisis by providing coordinated support services, resource navigation, emergency referrals, and community-based education that builds resilience and long-term

104
00:39:17.680 --> 00:39:33.839
stability. Although we are a young organization, we are proud of the impact we have already made in just a few short months. In January, we launched our community prayer board workshop, creating a space for reflection and healing. In February, we hosted a

105
00:39:33.839 --> 00:39:49.520
healthy hearts, healthy habits, educational wellness focused event, and a taste and thrive, which brought community members together around healthy food, conversation, and resource sharing. In March, we facilitated a community listening session at Crescent

106
00:39:49.520 --> 00:40:05.520
Halls to hear directly from residents about their needs and priorities and co-hosted a hot chocolate social that fostered community connection. April, we were pretty busy. CCRC organized the community resilience egg hunt at um

107
00:40:05.520 --> 00:40:22.720
JMRL, bringing families together for a free family celebration. We also participated in the Great Mother Festival and partnered with the TomTom Foundation for Glitter and Golds event highlighting community engagement, creativity, and resilience.

108
00:40:22.720 --> 00:40:39.680
In May, we launched our dirty word poetry program creating a safe space for storytelling, healing, self-expression, and community dialogue through the arts. This month in June, we will pro we are proud to be tableabling at the Black Business Expo where we'll connect with

109
00:40:39.680 --> 00:40:56.560
residents, entrepreneurs, community leaders while sharing information about our programs and services. In July, we are excited to introduce the resilient families empowerment program. This initiative is designed to support families and parents caregivers through

110
00:40:56.560 --> 00:41:14.480
traumainformed parenting education, school readiness support and workforce development resources and emotional wellness tools. However, I would be remiss if I did not raise the concern that many emerging grassroot organizations face. Despite securing

111
00:41:14.480 --> 00:41:31.200
funding and demonstrating a clear community need, finding an accessible and affordable venue for our resilient families empowerment program proved extremely difficult. We spent weeks reaching out, making calls, and seeking partnerships. And ultimately, the lack

112
00:41:31.200 --> 00:41:46.400
of available space forced us to reduce the number of families that we could serve. This is not just a CCRC issue. It highlights a broader challenge of gatekeeping and organizational silos that cannot unintentionally limit

113
00:41:46.400 --> 00:42:03.920
community impact. So we know there are many under utilized community spaces throughout Shawsville and we encourage you all to seek guidance on this issue. Thank you. >> Thank you very much. >> Uh anyone from the middle here would like to add anything?

114
00:42:03.920 --> 00:42:24.640
Anyone from this side? Yes, sir. And please um state your name and address. >> Thought it was. >> No, please go ahead. >> Anyway, uh Mike Henry here. I'm continuing where Heidi Beru left off with our Court Square Memorial

115
00:42:24.640 --> 00:42:40.480
Enslavement Project request. The city uh historic preservation officer Jeffrey Wernern has confirmed at the November 2025 historic resource committee meeting that the auction block has been found and is secured. Surely the restoration

116
00:42:40.480 --> 00:42:56.319
auction block sign should already be in place before this fact is widely announced. For 24 years, our group members have worked with HRC, our HRC, city managers, parks, planning,

117
00:42:56.319 --> 00:43:13.200
and city council. Please see the timeline record we provided. We know there is no city 20 2026 budget for this project. However, our group has raised funds to pay for the slate marker. Also important would be for city council to

118
00:43:13.200 --> 00:43:30.319
please direct HRC to meet with our group and our leaders as soon as possible to finalize the plaques rewarding and installation. We ask you, Mr. Sanders, to schedule this vote for the 20 26th July council meeting. We hope you all

119
00:43:30.319 --> 00:43:46.480
agree that now is the time to reinstall the long missing slave auction block marker. A new book, The Queen's Silence, traces the extent to which British monarchs and members of the royal family invested in and defended the transatlantic trade in African captives

120
00:43:46.480 --> 00:44:03.760
and the expansion of colonial slavery. Please see the research insert which shows how under Queen Anne's leadership, the South Seas crown colony was a central player in the transporting and in of enslaved captives on Royal Navy

121
00:44:03.760 --> 00:44:19.280
vessels and branding the Queen's crown onto the backs of at least 64,000 people. By 1702, this corporation poured vast sums into royal pockets.

122
00:44:19.280 --> 00:44:35.440
The cruel history is foundational to the naming of the Ravana River and as well as Alamaro County. When Elizabeth II was asked to simply acknowledge how enslavement dividends continue even today, hers was a failure of leadership,

123
00:44:35.440 --> 00:44:53.040
she kept silent. We believe the city council can break the auction block silence now. We ask you to expedite this project. This would go a long way towards healing and painful wounds of the erased and forgotten people who built this town.

124
00:44:53.040 --> 00:45:07.839
This will bring important transformational awareness to our community. Thank you. >> Thank you very much. Anyone from over here? Anyone in the room at all would like to

125
00:45:07.839 --> 00:45:25.200
We have a couple spots left. >> All right. That is the end of community matters. That was our final speaker. There will be another opportunity for public comment at the end of the meeting. Um, thank you all for uh your input. If you would like to stick around for the rest of the meeting and agenda

126
00:45:25.200 --> 00:45:55.280
items, please do so. If you would like to exit now, I'll give us a beat before moving on so you've got time to do that. All right. Thank you, Miss Thomas. Can you please read the consent agenda? >> Yes. Um, consent agenda number three, minutes. We have the 2025 general

127
00:45:55.280 --> 00:46:12.960
election abstract of votes, April 8th, work session, May 13th work session, and June 10th work session. Number four, resolution to appropriate $356,85 in additional funds to the streets and sidewalks division operating budget.

128
00:46:12.960 --> 00:46:30.079
Second reading. Five. Resolution to appropriate Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services Victims of Crime Grant Crime Act Grant Award FY26 $123,600. Second reading. Six. A resolution to appropriate

129
00:46:30.079 --> 00:46:44.960
Virginia Department of Social Services Family Assistance Management Grant in the amount of $20,000. Second reading seven, an ordinance to amend and reordain chapter 31 utilities of the Code of the City of Charlottesville 1990

130
00:46:44.960 --> 00:47:04.560
as amended to establish a connection fee for new gas services. Second reading eight, a resolution to appropriate $2,76,696 in additional funding from the Virginia Office of Children's Services to support at risk children and families, second

131
00:47:04.560 --> 00:47:24.000
reading. Number nine, resolution to return 1,848,424 to the general fund and appropriate an additional transfer of $423,546 to the Children's Services Act fund. Second reading 10. Resolution

132
00:47:24.000 --> 00:47:41.280
appropriating funding from the Federal Transit Administration and Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation supporting multiple Charlottesville area transit capital projects. 16,846,224. Second reading. 11. Resolution

133
00:47:41.280 --> 00:47:58.720
considering a critical slope special exception for 2010 Metobrook Road. 12. Resolution considering a critical slope special exception for the botanical gardens of the Piedmont. 13. Resolution authorizing execution of

134
00:47:58.720 --> 00:48:14.000
an agreement to maintain storm water management facilities. Is that SWM? Sorry, I didn't catch that. Um, for the botanical garden project resolution number 14, resolution to

135
00:48:14.000 --> 00:48:32.720
approve addendum to a lease with the botanical garden of the Piedmont. 15, resolution to appropriate $52,981.60 from the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development Virginia Homeless Solutions Program. And this one

136
00:48:32.720 --> 00:48:49.200
is requesting um waiver of the second reading with a four fifths vote. >> Thank you. Um is there a motion to adopt the consent agenda with the authorization for one reading for number 15? >> So there second I guess I move. I move. Yes.

137
00:48:49.200 --> 00:49:06.400
>> Do we have a second? >> Do we need to pull that item out specifically or? >> No. >> So long as it's included in the motion, you should be fine. >> Okay. >> Is there a second? Second. >> Okay. >> Thank you. Um, >> initiate the Oh, do you have

138
00:49:06.400 --> 00:49:26.960
>> Nope. Just everyone vote, please. Thank you. >> Hold on. Okay. All right. And that motion passes uh four to nothing to adopt the consent agenda. And now we will move on to the

139
00:49:26.960 --> 00:49:44.160
city manager report. Mr. Mr. Sanders, is there a report from the city manager's office? >> Yes. Uh, first up is James Walker with the Office of Police Civilian Oversight, and then I'll have a few comments afterwards. >> Thank you, Mr. Walker. >> Good evening, U. Vice Mayor Asherin,

140
00:49:44.160 --> 00:50:00.559
members of council, and Mr. City Manager. Um, I am James Walker. I am the acting director of the police civilian oversight board um on the staff side, and we have our eight member board that are representatives of the community. So, we we work together. I was just um with the chair and vice chair this

141
00:50:00.559 --> 00:50:16.960
morning doing some planning, kind of reestablishing our second half of 2026. But tonight, what I'm bringing to you is um an overview of the 2025 annual report for the board and the office. Um it looks correct up here. I saw on the city council agenda it was like kind of pink.

142
00:50:16.960 --> 00:50:33.599
I don't know why, but we'll hopefully have a a good version posted on the PCO website for sure. Um yeah, but it looks it looks good here. So, uh, I apologize if the the, you know, darkness around my eyes. Last time I was here with you, we were talking about, um, changes to the

143
00:50:33.599 --> 00:50:50.800
PCOB ordinance and I had a we had a a little girl 3 days later. So, um, we are less than a month into our second child and so, congratulations. >> That out. Thank you. >> Um, so just to just to begin, this covers calendar year 2025. So, I know

144
00:50:50.800 --> 00:51:06.640
the city operates on the fiscal year, but for the board's purposes, just sticking with the calendar works for them. So, the first section of the report just kind of gives the overview about the office, about the board itself, how it relates to each other. There are very um

145
00:51:06.640 --> 00:51:21.920
there there are photos of all the different members that have been on the board throughout 2025. There's actually, I think you'll see 10 individuals on that page because there's been quite a bit of transition. Um there is also a recognition page of former director Anz Gonzalez uh who departed back in August

146
00:51:21.920 --> 00:51:38.880
of 2025 and went out to um the Bay Area Rapid Transit uh system in California as their independent police auditor for their transit system. And so uh there was just a recognition of her in there as well as our former chair Alola um who had been handed the chair for the first

147
00:51:38.880 --> 00:51:56.640
part of 2025 passed off from Bill Mendes before that. Um so Bill kind of completed his term back in 2024 2025 that turnover in January and then Mr. Pola took over uh for the first couple months before he had left the board. So since that time um Dr. Frasier has

148
00:51:56.640 --> 00:52:11.040
become the current chair of the board. That was in late 2025, Dr. Jeffrey Frascher and he remains the chair today. Um we we had welcomed quite a few uh new members to the board in early 2025, but then several new members uh replaced

149
00:52:11.040 --> 00:52:29.119
some of those slots in late 2025. And so today we we still have all eight members uh four of which are fairly new, two of which are kind of new and two of which are have been around quite a while. Um so it's a good representation of kind of different perspectives. So, as as we

150
00:52:29.119 --> 00:52:44.000
spoke about last time, the ordinance recommended changes currently being reviewed by city attorney's office. Um, that might change some of the aspects of the powers and duties of the board, but the focus in the past as well as in the in the future is to provide the greatest

151
00:52:44.000 --> 00:52:59.680
level of oversight of the police that this city can provide. It is meant to be objective and civilianled. That was the intent and the goal of this board and this office is to provide more of that, not less, with these changes. And so, uh, we established some of the foundations of that back in September of

152
00:52:59.680 --> 00:53:14.800
2025. City council graciously met with the board and we kind of did a first run pass of the ordinance and cleaned up some of the uh smaller item ticket items in there as well as moved some some ordering around preparing for this second set that came to you more

153
00:53:14.800 --> 00:53:32.079
recently. Um so the a lot of the duties center around the concept of reviewing police department uh policies, practices, procedures as well as what is happening in terms of complaints being filed with the office of internal affairs. Uh a lot of that is still remaining and the goal is to carry that

154
00:53:32.079 --> 00:53:48.559
work forward more in depth going forward. So the second section just talks a little bit about the community and the state of oversight. So the community is is constantly changing and we've heard some of that tonight with perspectives from

155
00:53:48.559 --> 00:54:04.079
30 years ago about the community and versus today. And so the needs of the community are always changing. It is the intent and focus of this board. It was in 2025 as well as it is now to get out in the community more. Um myself and some of our members were down at the

156
00:54:04.079 --> 00:54:19.359
river with uh the police department walking around talking to individuals the other last week and our goal is to be out more not only with the police department talking um sideby side with them just in some ways following up after they've had a conversation for us to have a conversation about hey uh what

157
00:54:19.359 --> 00:54:34.880
has been your experience with police how do you feel about them being in this area and talking to you uh but also on our own at events and um in public areas that that we've been connecting and so one of the things that I wanted to highlight is that the landscape of oversight has been changing drastically

158
00:54:34.880 --> 00:54:50.720
across the country. One interesting aspect that I came to learn is that there are actually more oversight entities across the country than there were last time I reported to you uh in the 2024 annual report. But one of the emphasis uh pieces that Nicole National

159
00:54:50.720 --> 00:55:06.720
um association of oversight entities, one of the things they emphasized was that a lot of the oversight entities that are being created have have less powers and less duties than than in the past. And so there is a continual struggle um a churn in what what

160
00:55:06.720 --> 00:55:21.680
oversight entities are meant to do, what they what their powers and duties are, what their access is. And that is happening nationwide. Um and also there's been some changes at the federal level that have affected locality. So you're seeing that that change that churn. We are not the only one that does

161
00:55:21.680 --> 00:55:38.160
that and 2025 certainly was a year of transition. The goal being sustainability going forward. Um public confidence in policing has declined and this was according to Gallup and Pew Research. So there's wider racial gaps. There is lower confidence in policing and those changes affect this community

162
00:55:38.160 --> 00:55:54.319
as well as many others. So those are just some of the the overviews. police police department oversight. Uh this is kind of the core uh bread and butter of the PCOB. One of the things I like to emphasize is that the PCOB has more access to police

163
00:55:54.319 --> 00:56:11.520
records and police meetings, police um actions than any other oversight entity in Virginia. That is a definitive statement. Um I have direct access to body warn camera footage. I had direct access at the time to the flock camera system um to be able to audit these

164
00:56:11.520 --> 00:56:28.079
systems to sample data in them to understand how they're being used by the department um and to audit the use of them to check them against policies. And so these are things that can be brought through this office to the board to review and understand. So there was at least 16 internal affairs interviews

165
00:56:28.079 --> 00:56:44.319
that were monitored as part of complaints across eight cases. Now there were about 32 cases but typically with one person in the office I try to pick ones that are going to speak to a variety of topics or um more critical topics. Also um participation in

166
00:56:44.319 --> 00:57:00.799
multiple use of force panels. So this is a panel where every time the department uses force whether that's physical hands-on or the deployment of a weapon doesn't necessarily need to be used but taken out of the holster um pointed at someone that taser that kind of thing. All of those go through a review review

167
00:57:00.799 --> 00:57:16.480
process and the PCOB as part of that review process provides input from a civilian perspective. Also, the license plate readers, those are no longer currently in use, but for much of 20125 they were. And we were auditing that system, looking at the data and the

168
00:57:16.480 --> 00:57:33.680
usage of that system, providing feedback um both to the police department and attending those community meetings to answer questions from our end of the perspective that the police department was holding. And so we learned a lot about that, but also um understood a lot of those community concerns and heard a

169
00:57:33.680 --> 00:57:50.160
lot of that as well. And so one of the big changes that had occurred midway through that pilot was the restriction of access to other police departments in the state of Virginia. So by the second half of that pilot, the only people who could access that system were CPD officers and I guess myself because the

170
00:57:50.160 --> 00:58:05.440
only person who was not a CPD officer who could get in was myself. Uh but that was for the auditing and data purposes. So also there was a couple policies that the board looked at throughout the year. The limited English profici proficiency and how resources are provided to those who do not speak English as their first

171
00:58:05.440 --> 00:58:19.839
language or their their primary language. The use of force policy and the early intervention system which the department is currently starting to deploy and build out which is identifying officers that may be at risk for a variety of factors. Um, it could

172
00:58:19.839 --> 00:58:36.799
be not necessarily negative or or issues, but like if there's been a couple of severe cases related to having to use force, all those could have been, you know, within compliance within policy, but maybe that officer needs some additional attention um and a check-in. And so that early intervention

173
00:58:36.799 --> 00:58:52.240
system, that's something we used to use in education, trying to uh frontr run any issues that may arise before they do. And so the board has been part of shaping that policy and and having those conversations. This was just a quick fact sheet just

174
00:58:52.240 --> 00:59:09.359
about the numbers. Um the the PCOB's office budget is about 300,000. Now you'll see the next number over. Um a lot of that isn't being used because currently the the office is slated for two individuals, but we currently just have myself in the office um as the

175
00:59:09.359 --> 00:59:26.000
acting director. And so there's a a big portion of that budget that is a salary that's not being used. Um, but also one of the things I like to emphasize about this is that we represent the budgeted amount is a little bit over 1% of the police department's budget. The actual probably used amount

176
00:59:26.000 --> 00:59:42.160
year-toear is probably less than 1% of the police department's budget. I like to give the figure that it represents about two officers for per year is what the PCO costs. And so as a ratio of value, um that is one of the things I like to point out and our goal is to

177
00:59:42.160 --> 00:59:58.240
produce as much for that value as we can. And so there were 32 internal affairs cases in 2025. 12 of those actually came through the PCOB. So 12 cases um were either a call or through our online portal, someone coming to the

178
00:59:58.240 --> 01:00:13.760
door and then referred to internal affairs and monitored. Um, and that's a process where I'm having a conversation with that complainant, guiding them through the process of internal affairs, making sure they're being contacted and and followed up with. And of those 32

179
01:00:13.760 --> 01:00:29.359
cases, there were 65 allegations um across a variety of officers. So, most most cases are a single officer, some are four officers, and so it kind of skews, but I have that more detailed data published on our website. Um, and the median time to close a case is about

180
01:00:29.359 --> 01:00:45.200
34 days. And this is an important figure because it speaks to some of the recommended changes in the ordinance where the chief of police has 45 days from the moment the complaint is received to the moment that discipline is is given out. Yes. >> I'm so sorry to interrupt your flow. Um

181
01:00:45.200 --> 01:01:03.040
but the So you had 32 cases with 65 allegations meaning some of those incidents were multiple officers were >> or it could be one officer with multiple allegations. >> Ah okay. Um, okay. So, my Yeah, my question was

182
01:01:03.040 --> 01:01:19.200
was going to be are there any officers that were involved in multiple of the cases? >> Yes, that that is that does happen and that kind of data I didn't put um as expansively into the report this year because one of the goals is to move some

183
01:01:19.200 --> 01:01:36.640
of that online where it lives all the time that people can access all the time and is updated regularly. So, kind of like a data dashboard. Um, and so yes, I mean that that is true. There's officers that you'll see routinely through there, but that could also mean that sometimes they're they're an unfounded result as a

184
01:01:36.640 --> 01:01:52.640
result, but then other cases are sustained. So yes, that could represent the same officer multiple times. 32 cases is just like 32 complaints could include multiple officers, could include multiple allegations. >> Okay, thank you. >> Sorry. Any other questions up to that

185
01:01:52.640 --> 01:02:07.839
point? I'm >> No, thank you. >> I know I'm I go fast. That's all right. >> I want to use your time wisely. >> I appreciate it. We appreciate it. >> So, you're thinking about like the 34 day time to close a case, that means there are 11 days until in average the chief has to make a disciplinary

186
01:02:07.839 --> 01:02:24.400
decision. So, thinking back to some of those um ordinance recommendations, on average, the board would have 11 days to collectively get together. Actually, it wouldn't we wouldn't be able to do it collectively. They would have to do it just like 221s occur, two at a time or

187
01:02:24.400 --> 01:02:40.720
one at a time to review the case and then meet in a public form. So actually schedule a date, publicly announce it and then provide that um a vote of findings or determinations based on that case. So the feasibility of of being

188
01:02:40.720 --> 01:02:56.240
able to do that is part of why that recommended change was let's move that process to hey the chief's already given out discipline. Let's review the the sufficiency of that discipline, the discipline policy after the fact rather than trying to fit in that 11 days a

189
01:02:56.240 --> 01:03:12.000
case review of eight board members with all very different schedules part of which includes a public meeting that has to have public notice and and there is a challenge there. Um and that kind of represents it policy ordinance and governance reform.

190
01:03:12.000 --> 01:03:28.559
So this is I I hit on this a couple times already. the the council approved those changes of the ordinance that we talked about in September. Actually, in November is when it went into effect. And so since that time, we continued working on the ordinance and

191
01:03:28.559 --> 01:03:44.400
making additional proposals, the ones that were presented more recently to you. And part of that original process was formally establishing the office as a separate entity than the board. So, a lot of the original issues with the ordinance was it didn't clarify what does the office do, what does the board

192
01:03:44.400 --> 01:03:59.760
do, how do we relate to one another, um what is each responsible for. Uh, ever since my time here and especially since acting director, I view my role as supporting the board in fulfilling its functions. I support the board through providing the internal access and

193
01:03:59.760 --> 01:04:15.280
understanding of the department um of the systems of being able to prepare research data and information for them and to serve their needs in having those coordination of public meetings as well as the work that we do week to week. Um like I said that the chair and the vice

194
01:04:15.280 --> 01:04:32.079
chair meet with me every week. We were meeting the office this morning. So, we're planning, we're working, we're scheduling um additional follow-up events, trying to include all the board members into our work. And so, one of the other big things um is that the the

195
01:04:32.079 --> 01:04:48.400
original ordinance had the independent council power vested with the board. Um that was just a functional thing that made more sense to fall with the office as a city employee. And I, you know, I'm happy to to let you know today that we do have independent counsel and they are able to provide a second lens on things

196
01:04:48.400 --> 01:05:04.960
like the ordinance provisions um as well as the way that we go about handling FOYA public meetings and these kind of considerations which are challenging. And then finally, you know, the goal is to work towards that concept of a monitor, audit and review framework of oversight. So again, moving more from

197
01:05:04.960 --> 01:05:21.200
the independent investigation to monitor, be aware of what's going on with the department and the community audit, making sure we're looking at the data, the systems, the practices, the policies, and the review framework, providing a civilian-led um accountability, transparency, and

198
01:05:21.200 --> 01:05:37.520
commentary on what the police activity is. And so that's kind of where we're moving. Part four is the community Yeah, part four is community engagement and outreach. Uh 2025 was a very exciting year. It started off with one of the most unique uh opportunities that I've

199
01:05:37.520 --> 01:05:54.079
ever had which was that we hosted a session as well as CPD but PCOB did separately with the presidential precinct. They brought in we had probably about eight gentlemen from much of the Middle Eastern countries. It was uh Jordan, Morocco, United Arab

200
01:05:54.079 --> 01:06:10.880
Emirates. Um I believe I'm trying to remember some of the others. Um but what they were were all various um leaders in policing accountability. Um so like their version of internal affairs in their countries. And so many of them are

201
01:06:10.880 --> 01:06:25.839
very very different structures. But we had a very interesting and open dialogue with them through translators about um some of the the ways that policing looks here and accountability looks here versus in their countries. They asked many questions. We uh we had many

202
01:06:25.839 --> 01:06:40.960
questions of them as well. And it was just a very interesting conversation and uh we hope we can do that again because that was very cool and they all had gifts for all of us. So that was that was interesting as well. Um and then also we had the town hall this last year

203
01:06:40.960 --> 01:06:56.720
as well in 2025. It was the end of April and at that town hall Inz Gonzalez had led that effort and got over 50 community members to attend. Um I believe some of you were there as well and it was a good time to hear the community. It was it was raw. It was

204
01:06:56.720 --> 01:07:13.599
truthful. It was honest. But um it gave a great opportunity for some of those members of the community who were part of this originally to come give their voice and and lend their thoughts to the board as a whole. Um and we have that captured through we partnered with a with UVA and kind of capture that in a

205
01:07:13.599 --> 01:07:28.559
summary report. And so that's something we have and have published as well. And then also we've had various um interactions with Nicole. I I mentioned them before. Um I I'm on one of their committees and I Inz was on one as well. She probably still is through her new

206
01:07:28.559 --> 01:07:44.240
role. But mediation center, we've also done some training and work with the mediation center of Charlottesville. And NAACP I just mentioned is uh one of our members is the vice president, Mr. Dillard. And so he invites us regularly to their meetings to go over and and

207
01:07:44.240 --> 01:08:00.480
answer questions, speak to them. Um and he just kind of helps provide that link between the NAACP and the board. And then lastly, we definitely strengthen the office's response to media. Um any media entities that that reach out, I always try to provide a very clear and

208
01:08:00.480 --> 01:08:15.359
open response to them about what's going on, what we're working on, answers to questions. Um we've had many media come to our meetings over the past well 2025 and and more recently as well. Um and so we welcome that and I've got to know some of them and and have dialogue with

209
01:08:15.359 --> 01:08:31.120
them about where the board is going. So that's all been very good. professional development and peer engagement. Uh this is part five. So there's a lot of professional development that I do that's more targeted at understanding policing, internal investigations, those types of

210
01:08:31.120 --> 01:08:47.279
things. But the board itself uh has focused more on oversight in general. What are the various models of oversight and how do you deploy oversight in the locality? Um one of the things that we're working towards now uh going off of 2025 is doing ride alongs. So really

211
01:08:47.279 --> 01:09:04.319
trying to have a full perspective of the community side as well as the police side because the goal is objectivity and making decisions about the police actions and and how they are served in the community. So there's another uh Nicole has a lot of different groups as well as their investigators forum. So

212
01:09:04.319 --> 01:09:19.120
that was a routine thing that we would join. And there is a collective of oversight entities in Virginia. Um there's a couple cities that have an oversight entity. we meet on a regular basis, discuss different issues and challenges among them. So, uh I always

213
01:09:19.120 --> 01:09:34.400
look forward to those as well. And then finally, part six, off office operations and city collaboration. Um there, as you know, there's been a lot of transition in 2025. The goal through this year is is sustainability and consistency. That

214
01:09:34.400 --> 01:09:50.319
is my effort. That is my intention. Um, and I come from a background in more of like the operations area with IT and education. So, you know, that's how I'm always minded. Um, and some of our newest board members are very similarly minded. So, the goal

215
01:09:50.319 --> 01:10:08.000
through 2026 is to build on 2025 and not call it a year of transition, but a year of growth and sustainability. Um we've stabilized a lot of the core systems, the way that we're doing things, the way that we are publishing things and we've also introduced um at the end of 2025 we

216
01:10:08.000 --> 01:10:22.560
were discussing hey let's actually create a work plan for 2026. The board approved that and are now carrying that forward and we've been meeting about kind of doing a mid-year check-in on that as well. So a lot of the work and the struggle and the challenge of 2025 definitely built some of the the

217
01:10:22.560 --> 01:10:39.120
groundwork for 2026 as we move forward. So, um, it has been a a very exciting and interesting year. There has been a lot of change, but there's also been a lot of growth. And so, I'm happy to report that to you. And as we work towards going forward in 2026, um, we

218
01:10:39.120 --> 01:10:55.360
want to bring a lot more back to the council of the success and the work of the PCOB, how it's connecting to the community, and how it's um, shaping and shaping the police department in ways that it needs to change and reinforcing the ways that it's already being successful. So, thank you and I

219
01:10:55.360 --> 01:11:10.560
appreciate your time. >> Any questions? >> Great. Thank you. Any questions? >> One's a pet, two zoo. Best of luck. >> Yes, the our two-year-old is more work than the than the baby. So, thank you. >> No questions.

220
01:11:10.560 --> 01:11:25.280
>> Any questions? >> Um, just obviously a huge focus this year will be as you highlighted the move potentially to the monitor, audit, and review framework. Beyond that, what are some of the other things you're looking

221
01:11:25.280 --> 01:11:42.480
to accomplish this year? Or >> Sure, are you looking to replicate the town hall? And just one example, I I would say that one of the big things is case review. So, um, one of the things that we've been working on this spring is developing a case scoring

222
01:11:42.480 --> 01:11:57.440
manual and case scoring process. It actually has a a process that describes how a case is reviewed by the board and then how it is scored according to a standardized process. So the goal of that is moving forward we've done a mock case. It was a real case that came

223
01:11:57.440 --> 01:12:14.320
through the PCOB but going forward is to be able to do routine cases or topical sets of cases let's say on courtesy as an example and look at maybe three cases related to that. um and then be able to score them each indiv each board member independently and provide a a final kind

224
01:12:14.320 --> 01:12:30.719
of determination outcome recommendation from that scoring. So it's meant to be a very public transparent process. So that's kind of the meat and potatoes of of oversight. Now on the the outreach side our goal has been uh to connect directly more directly with small groups

225
01:12:30.719 --> 01:12:48.080
uh organizations individuals and so what we have is a communications and outreach plan. We have a directory. I think it has about 150 entries on it of various groups, entities, individuals. We many of our board members have already started making those connections. We're trying to build relationships, not just

226
01:12:48.080 --> 01:13:04.719
uh quick touch points. And so through those relationships, we're asking very simple questions like what has been your experience with policing? And we're starting to try to build a a metric around trust. Um what is your feelings of trust in the police? Do you feel like they're helping or harming? in what ways

227
01:13:04.719 --> 01:13:18.880
do you feel like they're helping or harming? What would you like to see different? Um, and so through that, we're able to then create and provide resources and recommendations to the police department that are actionable and effective and and actually based on community data. So, I would say there's

228
01:13:18.880 --> 01:13:35.840
the background work of of the the actual oversight of cases and systems, but then there's also truly the community outreach that's focused on listening to the community and bringing that data back to inform our work. Sorry. Um that that's that would be the focus and I hope I can bring some products to you

229
01:13:35.840 --> 01:13:51.120
actually I will bring some products to you uh later in 2026 that that demonstrate that. >> Thank you. >> Yep. >> Um my question is what happens after the investigation? It goes back to the police. You they have those 11 days to

230
01:13:51.120 --> 01:14:07.679
make a determination without revealing any personnel concerns. Can you tell us some of the results of the investigations in however vaguely you need to be? >> Yeah. So, so one of the things that and and I haven't done it um my goal is to

231
01:14:07.679 --> 01:14:25.040
get some of that up um pretty soon here, but in 2024, you know, I had a conversation with the chief and he had released to us the disciplinary outcomes not of this each specific case but of by month. So saying like okay these were the disciplines given out in January,

232
01:14:25.040 --> 01:14:41.440
February, March, August. What we're able to do is then actually pair those up with um some of the allegations and just see trends of what types of allegations are coming in, which ones are sustained based on the investigation and then what kinds of discipline are being paired

233
01:14:41.440 --> 01:14:56.800
with those allegations. So that's enough of a connection to to say, hey, this type of discipline is not consistent or is not substantial enough or it is maybe uh to match this allegation and the the

234
01:14:56.800 --> 01:15:12.880
severity of this type of complaint. And so being able to kind of track that process from start to finish, it is a lot of confidential information behind the scenes, but the board has access to that through various controlled settings. And then being able to transition that into a public item that

235
01:15:12.880 --> 01:15:29.280
can come out, a recommendation that that is a challenge like that process from behind the scenes to the public eye is hard and it requires a lot of consideration of FOYA and public meeting rules, many of the things that you deal with as well. Um, and so that is something that requires that that

236
01:15:29.280 --> 01:15:46.159
foundational work to be done with the legal departments, with the policy, with the, you know, all the things that govern how we go about doing these. and we're trying to make sure that we're doing it correctly. But 2024 had that data and 2025's data is going to be posted on our website. So the goal is to

237
01:15:46.159 --> 01:16:01.920
get that so it's more live and like in the moment real time. Um when cases are closed, was there a discipline, you know, it might be delayed by a little bit to keep the confidentiality, but that's a that's something the chief has given to us. Um and we publish it to the

238
01:16:01.920 --> 01:16:18.080
extent that we can through because it's it's his record. So that's what we attempt to do that transparency piece. >> I appreciate that. Thanks. Anyone else? >> Thank you, James. >> I I just want to comment that as one who had tried for many years to get an

239
01:16:18.080 --> 01:16:35.280
ordinance crafted that would really make a difference. It sounds like the ordinance we have now finally arrived at is likely a to be implemented to be implemented successfully and to be implemented in such a way that we can fulfill the

240
01:16:35.280 --> 01:16:52.000
purposes for which we created the PCOB in the first place. And I can say that my for myself as well as the board um it is 100% our mission to see that the statement you just made be successfully carried out and to prove that to the council to city manager and to the

241
01:16:52.000 --> 01:17:07.920
community um as well as to the police department in the sense of it ultimately helps them as well. >> Yeah. >> So thank you. >> Thank you James. Uh other James has a item as well. Uh good evening, Vice Mayor Ashin, members of the council.

242
01:17:07.920 --> 01:17:24.960
Just uh a brief uh more in the way of an announcement uh recognizing that back in 2021, the general assembly passed a uh law uh banning food establishments from using styrofoam in uh and uh that law goes into effect for all food

243
01:17:24.960 --> 01:17:41.120
establishments uh effective July 1. city is going to be putting up a website uh here shortly that explains how that will work and uh provide resources uh in terms of information and process for uh for those for restaurants within the

244
01:17:41.120 --> 01:17:57.120
community. So again, just for awareness. >> Okay, great. Thank you. >> And then I have a series of other things that I wanted to share as well. Um because we don't have a council meeting actually will be after I think I don't remember um another meeting. Uh, just

245
01:17:57.120 --> 01:18:12.960
wanted to remind the public and because this plays on loop and that the public gets to watch it as well. July 3rd, downtown mall, 50th anniversary party. Uh, 10 a.m. there'll be walking tours. They'll be going on all day. 400 p.m. there is a birthday party at Central Place. It's free to the public. Ice

246
01:18:12.960 --> 01:18:29.360
cream, face painting, and live music from Seville Band. At 5:30, uh, Fridays after 5, we'll feature Baba Seth at the Ting Pavilion. At 8:30, there is a lantern parade. Uh Greer has promised me a very good time walking up and down the mall with folks in lanterns in the dark

247
01:18:29.360 --> 01:18:46.560
uh with the LB brass band playing. And at nine o'clock we have a 50th light show at the Code Building. So that's an open to the public. Come one, come all. It's for everyone. Uh also on the 4th of July, the Seville Spectacular Fireworks Show in Carter Mountain will happen 900

248
01:18:46.560 --> 01:19:03.120
p.m.ish. Chris. Yeah. Um my message uh recorded a message with Dan Shudy at CBS 19 and basically said find your spot. So find your spot to take in the fireworks compliments of City County University CBS 19 and a host of other sponsors. Uh

249
01:19:03.120 --> 01:19:18.640
and then this is the America's 250th celebration. So there are all kinds of activities going on at Montichello and other places all over the region will continue. So uh the message is stay in town. There are plenty of things to do. Find other things to do instead of traveling. Right.

250
01:19:18.640 --> 01:19:34.880
All right. Now, last thing is homelessness update. Uh, as I promised, I'll continue to give an update on this hot button issue that we have in our community. I just want to share some things that have been happening. Uh, just so that folks are appreciative of the notion that we are not sitting idle on this issue. Uh, Assistant City

251
01:19:34.880 --> 01:19:50.080
Manager Roman and DHS Director Misty Graves participated in a meeting last week with Patchum Partners uh to continue to explore opening an emergency overnight shelter as soon as possible. We hope that we can get that done. We're not confident that we're going to be able to. Uh the city has arranged for

252
01:19:50.080 --> 01:20:05.120
the placement of Port John handwashing station in a dumpster at Zero East High. We expect the placement of that this week. Uh we have continued to try to work with business owners in the area, but they have uh not been open to the idea of supporting an effort to put additional items in that general area.

253
01:20:05.120 --> 01:20:21.199
So that poses a continued issue. Um, we remain in contact with the Blue Ridge Health District regarding conditions and health concerns at both Ravana encampment areas and we'll continue to prioritize what is safe and to push for changes that lead to um safety for

254
01:20:21.199 --> 01:20:36.880
everyone involved for those who are there as well as those who pass through the area. Tomorrow I'm meeting with support works. Uh these are the folks behind Vista 29 in the crossings and the goal is to discuss their ability to participate in the service provision in a bigger way than they currently are.

255
01:20:36.880 --> 01:20:51.840
they've expressed an interest and openness to that. So, we hope to engage. Uh, assistant city manager Roman is going to be attending a community conversation with the continuum. That's the B organized uh effort later on this week. I have a meeting with Michelle

256
01:20:51.840 --> 01:21:07.760
Carver. She's formerly with the US inter agency council on homelessness. She currently serves on the Brack Board of Directors and is local uh and has expressed an interest in helping us understand some of the facets of addressing such a complicated issue. So, I'll be meeting with her later this

257
01:21:07.760 --> 01:21:23.440
week. And I just want to remind everyone that we continue to focus on a comprehensive approach to address this long-standing issue in our community. We are working to set a new standard and manage expectations, as I mentioned, to council in October of 2023. This is not a fleeting issue for me.

258
01:21:23.440 --> 01:21:40.000
It's something that we continue to focus on and we're looking for a way for us to make a difference for the long haul. So, that is my report. >> Okay. Follow up on that. Uh, >> please, >> Mr. Mr. Sanders, as I recall, I think it was May 13th when we had the meeting

259
01:21:40.000 --> 01:21:56.480
with the three agencies and there was discussion of hopefully getting a plan within 30 days. >> They asked for six months and I gave them three months. So, end of August for the plan that we discussed, >> operating plan for holiday drive.

260
01:21:56.480 --> 01:22:13.199
>> Right. Okay. I was maybe I was wishfully thinking that we would get a >> I'm still hoping it'll be faster than the end of August, but uh end of August is what we ultimately agreed. >> Thank you. >> Uh I'll share that that plan is more of what does Holiday Drive actually feel

261
01:22:13.199 --> 01:22:29.679
like when somebody walks in the door. That's the plan that they're trying to arrive at. In addition to that, we've engaged um additional uh experts in the field of looking at spaces, architects and others to try to help us see are there ways to adjust what we anticipate the cost to be to see if we can get that

262
01:22:29.679 --> 01:22:45.199
down. So that is happening right now as well. How I also say that in the last couple of weeks I've talked to a number of people who are on the boards of those various agencies and a number of them have said to me in some fashion or

263
01:22:45.199 --> 01:23:01.440
another, I don't know whether we're all going to be able to get on the same page. Can't you guys at the city just say this is the way it's going to be and let's see if we can see who wants to come rally around that flag? >> That's what we're doing. Okay.

264
01:23:01.440 --> 01:23:17.120
>> That's what it that's sadly that's what it feels like. >> Yeah. >> But that's what we're doing. >> And you know, obviously recently there was a death in the encampment and you know, we don't know everything that happened there. We do know from the reporting

265
01:23:17.120 --> 01:23:32.159
that um you know, was initially reported after um a smell was indicated, a potential sign that the individual had been passed away for some time there. Um obviously the conditions are conducive

266
01:23:32.159 --> 01:23:50.159
to that kind of tragedy happening. Um and people remain in a floodway as we approach tropical storm season, flash flood season. Are there any timelines or approach for the city assessing what are

267
01:23:50.159 --> 01:24:05.679
conditions that are so dangerous in terms of fire risk or health and human safety that um death is a real eminent risk given those conditions. Okay. So, we're working through those um looking at each issue

268
01:24:05.679 --> 01:24:21.920
one by one. Uh checking uh what are the legal parameters for enforcement, what is available to us in the way to enforce as well as what we are limited in being able to enforce. Um there's no set timeline at this moment that I'm prepared to announce. Um but I have made

269
01:24:21.920 --> 01:24:37.040
it clear that we are not going to accept the individuals who are currently closest to the river remaining in that posture. Um so we're working through that process. The goal was that we would hope to get some support out of one of the adjacent business owners to allow us

270
01:24:37.040 --> 01:24:53.360
to set equipment and things up in that space, but we have yet to find anyone willing to do that. That hampers our ability because we can't roll those things in ourselves. We can't get >> And I do want to clarify, there's several businesses along that route. >> Correct. >> One of them has offered to help. the

271
01:24:53.360 --> 01:25:10.239
other the Ravana River Company has been helpful uh and has been very open to supporting, but they're on the wrong side of the bridge is the issue. It's not their fault that they're at the wrong side. We're trying to find a way to access on the other side of the bridge where the actual tents are

272
01:25:10.239 --> 01:25:26.159
physically located next to the bridge and that is one of our limiting factors. Uh one approach that we will ultimately end up having to take is that we are we are going to have to disturb the encampment. Folks have asked us not to do that. I I don't think that that's tolerable.

273
01:25:26.159 --> 01:25:41.760
>> Well, and I know everyone is is in agreement on this point. It would just, you know, highlight the gravity of, you know, someone having just died there and, you know, we don't know what happened, but, you know, I think the conditions there are not compassion.

274
01:25:41.760 --> 01:26:01.280
>> I would offer I wish everyone were agreeable. Um, and you know, I pray and hope there won't be further deaths. >> I agree. Okay, thank you. Um, and I appreciate everyone who's working towards that. Um,

275
01:26:01.280 --> 01:26:16.639
we will now move on to our action items. Uh, beginning with the Do I read this or do you read this? Okay. Ordinance to amend and reordain city code chapter 31 utilities to establish new utility rates and service fees for city gas, water,

276
01:26:16.639 --> 01:26:32.480
and sanitary sewer. This is the second reading. >> Hi. Good evening, madame vice mayor, members of council. I'm Chris Cullin and the city's director of finance. And as you just summarized, this agenda item is the second reading of an ordinance to amend and reordain the city code to update new utility fees and service

277
01:26:32.480 --> 01:26:49.199
rates for the city's water, wastewater, natural gas, and storm water utilities for FY27. At your last meeting, uh you received a presentation from city staff and on this item and held the required public hearing. Uh during the discussion of this item, uh it was clear that the

278
01:26:49.199 --> 01:27:05.360
consensus of council was not to have the utilities department renew the one-year contract with BP for carbon offsets. We have not signed that document. Uh staff recommends that the $300,000 that was going to be used to fund the BP contract

279
01:27:05.360 --> 01:27:21.840
instead be used to explore responsible locally based alternatives to mitigate the gas utilities carbon emissions. to this recommendation uh will not require uh a change to the proposed gas rates. Have any other answer any other questions you might have?

280
01:27:21.840 --> 01:27:37.600
>> We'll start down here. >> Uh just because I got a specific media inquiry about this. Um could you walk through the reasons because last council meeting when there was a consensus not to move forward with the offsets to BP, there's indication maybe we would need

281
01:27:37.600 --> 01:27:53.360
some additional ordinance or vote. Could you walk through why that is not needed tonight? I don't know if that makes sense, but >> on the contract. >> Um, John, John, can you speak to the ability to continue to collect the money that

282
01:27:53.360 --> 01:28:09.840
would have been used for carbon offset that we're not going to use for BP specifically? >> We're still using the money toward a very much the same goal. We're meeting the goal in a different way than uh than through buying the offsets, but that's completely permissible.

283
01:28:09.840 --> 01:28:25.679
So the initial concern was that we might be we might be collecting funds with no intended purpose. >> So that's the clarifying item is that it is just a redirected purpose. >> That's helpful and clarify just a specific media inquiry about it. I got

284
01:28:25.679 --> 01:28:41.040
>> ultimately the same purpose just a different way of getting at correct. Um, I think the only other question is at this time, and it's fine if the answer is there's not, um, is there like a timeline for when it would be

285
01:28:41.040 --> 01:28:56.320
determined the alternative uses of that $300,000. I think it's totally understand that this is a fluid new situation. Yeah, the the direction that's being given to the office of sustainability is to coordinate with C3 specifically as one

286
01:28:56.320 --> 01:29:11.600
of the external organizations, but maybe others uh to develop a list because that ultimately is what we had agreed that we would make sure would happen if you all had renewed BP for another year that that same action was going to be requested of them. We have not set a

287
01:29:11.600 --> 01:29:27.199
date and time yet for when that would be delivered because they've been working on the climate action report. So, we'll be able to shift into that next. I think that is completely understandable and reasonable. Um but that's it for me. >> Anyone down here? >> Can you just for again for the second

288
01:29:27.199 --> 01:29:42.080
reading time um tell folks how if they need support with their utility bill, how they go about doing that? >> Uh please call the utility billing office at 970-3211 or reach out to them via email. Um and

289
01:29:42.080 --> 01:29:59.440
the sooner my my advice to them um is please reach out sooner rather than later. I think a lot of folks hope it'll go away. It'll get better, but you know folks continue to consume utilities on a daily basis and just dig themselves further

290
01:29:59.440 --> 01:30:16.800
into that into that deficit situation. And so the sooner folks reach out, uh, the sooner that, uh, our folks can work with them to come up with alternative payment arrangements, any assistance they might be due, and if there are any leaks involved, what their options are. So, um, my advice is sooner rather than

291
01:30:16.800 --> 01:30:32.159
later. >> Thank you. >> And the rebate programs for, um, insulation and >> those are open year round at at any time. >> Okay, great. Um,

292
01:30:32.159 --> 01:30:49.760
if there are no other questions, uh, is there a motion? >> Hold on. >> I would move approval of the ordinance to amend and reordain city code chapter 31 to

293
01:30:49.760 --> 01:31:08.400
establish new utility rates and service fees for city gas, water, and sanitary sewer. >> Second. >> All right. If there's no further There's no further discussion. We can go ahead and vote. >> Are you a yes?

294
01:31:08.400 --> 01:31:25.440
>> I'm a yes. I I don't know why I can't get back to it. >> Yeah. >> Uh actually a question not related to the vote, >> but um does the $300,000 does that come back in front of us or is that just

295
01:31:25.440 --> 01:31:43.840
inside the office? We'll bring to you a list of the the local actions. I I would want your endorsement of of how we would do that. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> That motion passed four to zero. >> Thank you very much, Miss Thomas. Uh next is uh item number 17, a resolution

296
01:31:43.840 --> 01:31:59.760
approving amended grant agreement for the Charlottesville supplemental rental assistance program. Meline Mesler will be presenting. Thank you. >> Good evening, counselors. I'm Maline Metsler, housing senior planner with Neighborhood Development Services, and

297
01:31:59.760 --> 01:32:16.480
I'm presenting, as Councelor Ashin mentioned, a resolution to extend the ETH amended grant agreement for the Charlottesville Supplemental Rental Assistance Program, or CISREP, through September 30th, 2026. CISREP provides assistance to extremely low and lowincome households earning

298
01:32:16.480 --> 01:32:32.960
below 60% of area median income and supports uh approximately 68 households annually. Over the past eight months, the city has conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the program as part of our commitment to transparency and effective administration. And this extension is

299
01:32:32.960 --> 01:32:49.360
needed because the evaluation produced substantial findings that require careful policy and operational development before they can be incorporated into the next annual grant agreement. The evaluation examined participant and referral partner experiences, program design, and

300
01:32:49.360 --> 01:33:04.480
administrative processes, and identified recommended updates in areas such as eligibility and prioritization policies, expectations around program tenure and transition planning, um, improvements to administrative procedures and data

301
01:33:04.480 --> 01:33:21.520
systems as well. The extension provides city staff, CRA, and stakeholders the time necessary to translate these findings into well-developed recommendations. To summarize progress, the evaluation has completed its first uh the first of five the first five of eight phases

302
01:33:21.520 --> 01:33:35.920
including establishing goals and evaluation questions uh developing and conducting interviews with um staff data collection, analyzing service coverage, equity impacts and operational performance and reviewing preliminary

303
01:33:35.920 --> 01:33:51.840
findings with CRA referral partners and stakeholders um and internal departments. Together, these steps provide a clear picture of the program strengths and opportunities for improvement. Work now underway focuses on developing actionable recommendations. The work the

304
01:33:51.840 --> 01:34:09.280
remaining phases include refining policy and operational options with CRA stakeholders and city leadership, preparing the full eval finalizing the full evaluation report and council briefing materials, and presenting a revised grant agreement um with all of you, which uh we plan to do in

305
01:34:09.280 --> 01:34:25.520
September. During this extension period, city staff will continue engagement with referral partners and program participants through meetings, surveys, and recommend or and feedback sessions. Refine and prioritize recommended updates, develop revised policies related to program

306
01:34:25.520 --> 01:34:41.920
eligibility, program tenure, transition planning, and administrative procedures, and assess improvements to data systems and communication processes to strengthen oversight and customer service. There's no additional financial impact associated with this action. CISRAP is supported through annual uh

307
01:34:41.920 --> 01:34:56.560
capital improvement program allocations and current funds are sufficient to maintain rental assistance through the extension period. That's in part because we delayed the start of the agreement last year. So, it has not been a full

308
01:34:56.560 --> 01:35:14.639
year since the um the current agreement was in place. City staff recommends that uh council adopt the attached resolution extending the time for performance under the eth amendment to the FY26 CISRAP grant agreement through September 30th, 2026. And I'm here to answer any

309
01:35:14.639 --> 01:35:30.719
questions you may have at this time. Thank you so much. Any questions from over here? Um so will we get the evaluation report in September as well or when do we get >> a final report will be available in September although drafts of that um

310
01:35:30.719 --> 01:35:46.159
should make their way if not to all of you um to some of you through some of the committees that do exist before then. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Great. Michael, >> would it be in September that city

311
01:35:46.159 --> 01:36:01.760
council would make any decisions about changing the CISRAP program? >> Uh the idea would be that uh there would be some changes that would be made though the goal would be to have vetted some of those so they would hopefully

312
01:36:01.760 --> 01:36:17.600
not be a big surprise be when they would come to you at that point. >> Um makes sense. I think what's in front of us tonight makes sense and um definitely look forward to September in the fall um

313
01:36:17.600 --> 01:36:33.199
because I think there's a number of changes that could be made to cap that ultimately would mean more workingclass and poor families would be able to have housing. So I think there's um definitely opportunities for improvement I'm

314
01:36:33.199 --> 01:36:49.040
interested to see in September. >> Yeah. And I mean I I think some of the important feedback from the evaluation was that it is a really important benefit that people really really value in this community. Um of course it's always challenging to determine how how

315
01:36:49.040 --> 01:37:04.800
could we make it go further uh especially if we're trying to work with limited resources. >> Thank you. >> Great. Um thank you so much. Um if there's no more questions uh is there a motion?

316
01:37:04.800 --> 01:37:21.280
I make a motion to adopt the attached resolution extending the time to for performance under the eth amendment to the grant agreement for the fiscal year 26 SISRAP through September 30th and that CR is authorized to use eligible and applicate carry forward fiscal year

317
01:37:21.280 --> 01:37:47.600
26RAP undrawn funds in amount not to exceed 545,73120. >> Is there a second? >> Second. >> All right. If there's no further discussion, we can vote and the motion passes four to nothing.

318
01:37:47.600 --> 01:38:04.719
And then we have them presenting again for the uh resolution allocating 575,000 in housing operations and support FY27 grant funding. This is the first of two readings, so we'll hear the presentation. Thank you. >> Great. Thank you. Um, and again, I'm here to present the Charlottesville

319
01:38:04.719 --> 01:38:21.840
Affordable Housing Fund Committee, um, the CAF Committee's recommendation for the FY27 grant awards for the housing operations and program support or HOPS grant program, and to request your approval um, of the proposed allocations. These were also um,

320
01:38:21.840 --> 01:38:38.159
presented back in one of the April budget meetings. Uh, but this would be the formal adoption. so we can go ahead and uh get all of those applicants their exciting award letters and grant agreements. Uh the HOPS grant program is a key part of the city's overall affordable housing strategy. It provides

321
01:38:38.159 --> 01:38:54.560
operational support to nonprofit partners who deliver essential housing related services. This ranges from homelessness response and eviction prevention to transitional housing and long-term stabilization. Beginning in FY24, these housing specific requests were moved out of the vibrant community

322
01:38:54.560 --> 01:39:10.000
funds and into this dedicated process, which is funded through the city's capital improvement program allocations into the Charlottesville affordable housing fund. A notice of funding availability was issued in August 2025

323
01:39:10.000 --> 01:39:25.280
that announced $575,000 was available in HOPS funding for FY27. 14 completed applications were received and um requests total just under $1.4 million. With requests far exceeding available

324
01:39:25.280 --> 01:39:41.119
funds, the committee focused on programs that showed the strongest alignment with city priorities, demonstrated organizational capacity, and delivered meaningful impact for underserved residents. The goal was to support a broad range of critical services while making thoughtful and sometimes

325
01:39:41.119 --> 01:39:56.400
difficult decisions about how to distribute limited resources. To evaluate applications, the committee used a comprehensive scoring rubric. Um, this looked at the strength of the proposed program, the use of local data to demonstrate need, the applicant's

326
01:39:56.400 --> 01:40:11.040
understanding of the population that they serve, the use of best practices, and how outcomes would be tracked and measured. Organizational capacity and financial stability were also key considerations including budget visibility, feasibility, and the ability

327
01:40:11.040 --> 01:40:27.199
to leverage outsour outside funds. The scoring process also reviewed how programs engage underserved communities, the structure and representation of staff leadership, and how participants are involved in shaping and evaluating services. Collaboration with other

328
01:40:27.199 --> 01:40:44.400
providers and how well programs fit within the broader network of housing and homelessness services were also important factors. Together, these criteria helped ensure that the recommended programs are high quality, well aligned with the city goals, and positioned to meet the needs of the community. Final application scores

329
01:40:44.400 --> 01:41:00.480
ranged from 70 to 101 points. Based on those scores, the committee grouped applications into four tiers and applied consistent award percentages within each tier. Overall, the recommended FY27 HOPS awards support 13 programs across a wide

330
01:41:00.480 --> 01:41:17.040
range of housing related services and funding is allocated as follows. Approximately 224,000 supports day shelter operations, coordinated entry and housing access services at the Haven. About 123,000 supports home ownership readiness, financial coaching,

331
01:41:17.040 --> 01:41:32.400
and resident services through Habitat for Humanity and Pedmont Housing Alliance. Roughly 74,000 supports permanent supportive housing and long-term stabilization through support works and community services housing. About 54,000 supports emergency shelter

332
01:41:32.400 --> 01:41:49.199
and case management through PCH. Just under 43,000 supports pre-construction services that help low-income homeowners prepare for future home repair projects through AHIP. Approximately 35,000 supports transitional housing programs serving families, refugees, and women in

333
01:41:49.199 --> 01:42:04.400
recovery through MAC, the International Rescue Committee, and Georgia's Friends. And about 22,000 supports eviction prevention and legal advocacy through the Legal Aid Justice Center. These funding categories reflect a broad range of services needed to support

334
01:42:04.400 --> 01:42:19.119
residents from homelessness response to stabilization and prevention to pathways into long-term affordable housing. The committee's process ensures that each funded program plays a distinct role and contributes to a coordinated effective system of services. All recommended

335
01:42:19.119 --> 01:42:35.040
expenditures fall within the FY27 CIP allocations for calf and no additional financial impact is associated with this action. These recommended support recommendations support essential nonprofit partners whose work advantes advances the city's affordable housing

336
01:42:35.040 --> 01:42:52.159
goals and strengthens housing stability for residents with the greatest needs. City staff recommends that city council adopt the attached resolution approving the FY27 HOPS grant program funding recommendations and authorized allocation of calf funds to the 13 programs I've outlined. And once again,

337
01:42:52.159 --> 01:43:06.239
thank you for your time and I'm happy to answer any questions. >> All right, any questions, Michael? >> Um, no questions really. Um, I guess just

338
01:43:06.239 --> 01:43:22.480
it's it's not the um committee's fault at all, but looking at it, you know, I wonder given where you know, conversations have been going with um homelessness in the community and the kind of responses we're looking at in

339
01:43:22.480 --> 01:43:41.199
terms of low barrier shelters, you know, is this reflecting where the city is at in terms of where we want to Um, I'm not sure it does. You know, maybe there would be a little bit more emphasis on case management or, you

340
01:43:41.199 --> 01:43:56.800
know, patchum running those kind of services to kind of better prepare us for where we want to go with holiday drive either long-term or, you know, in a more immediate interim level, utilizing it in some way. Um,

341
01:43:56.800 --> 01:44:15.840
just that was that was the only thought I had looking through it. Anything else? Anything else? All right. This side. Well, the the concern that I I have had

342
01:44:15.840 --> 01:44:32.639
and I had sent Miss Bethler an email about tipping her off about about my concern that was going to raise this issue, but something I've mentioned before. Uh, and I wonder if you could comment on whether it's a a concern that we ought to be having about this

343
01:44:32.639 --> 01:44:48.880
particular allocation for the the hops money is that we are we're putting money into these programs based on what they have asked us for, what they think we want. And I

344
01:44:48.880 --> 01:45:04.639
don't know whether we have said to them with any greater specificity what we want or whether I guess my question would be whether having received these these different applications was there ever a point where anybody sat there and

345
01:45:04.639 --> 01:45:20.880
said okay we've got two or three people all vying for money for the same basic function. Can't we see how they work together to make sure that we're not leaving people out that we're dealing with all of the that we're making money

346
01:45:20.880 --> 01:45:36.880
available or assistance available to all of the people who may have a need in this area and not merely to one or two area not one or two constituencies. I'm thinking in particular uh of there are a number of different agencies not just through hops but through other other

347
01:45:36.880 --> 01:45:54.639
funding sources as well that deal with re-entry from prison uh or prison or jail and we have uh one particular request here for for that kind of service uh for for women in particular. Uh we have a

348
01:45:54.639 --> 01:46:12.719
couple of different requests. Uh if you look at funding sources ranging from the jail through some of nonprofits like you know Uhuru Foundation and and things like that, a number of folks who who work in that in that space or at least

349
01:46:12.719 --> 01:46:29.600
are close to that space. And I wonder whether there is anybody in the the regular course of things in the way that that we handle all of this if there's anybody who sits there and says, you know, here's a hole. We don't

350
01:46:29.600 --> 01:46:46.159
we've got somebody working here and here, but nobody working here. And I just wonder whether there is something we ought to be doing or a way we ought to be organizing the way in which we solicit requests uh or applications for

351
01:46:46.159 --> 01:47:02.880
the funds. If there's some way that that we can be spending some some energy and some thought on how we make sure we're covering all of the folks who ought to be getting those services. >> Sure. Yeah. I think that touches on a bit of what councelor Payne said too as

352
01:47:02.880 --> 01:47:19.679
far as you know would we want to be more prescriptive in the future about these are the specific services we really know there's a need for and that is certainly direction I think the committee would be happy to take from you all if if you wanted to give it

353
01:47:19.679 --> 01:47:35.040
>> and your point about >> in the se in your sequence of how you do your be useful >> I think that would um I mean it would be coming up shortly with the NOA being released this summer. Um but the the hops program itself usually the

354
01:47:35.040 --> 01:47:52.480
application um is open in October or November. So it would be yeah sometimes sometime between then we would want to be able to give some feedback to applicants with that direction. Um, and also to your point about like the duplication of efforts, that's certainly

355
01:47:52.480 --> 01:48:09.440
an observation that comes up when reviewing the applications, especially if you're looking at a two-s sentence summary of each of them. Um, often digging in deeper into the applications, it can become a little more clear, oh, like they're really serving this specific population and it it doesn't

356
01:48:09.440 --> 01:48:24.639
have a lot of overlap with this organization over here. Um, but that's part of part of the due diligence that the committee does. It's also um helpful that we have Taylor Harvey Ryan who's our grants manager on that committee as well as Misty Graves. Um she's also on

357
01:48:24.639 --> 01:48:40.239
the committee and they both have some oversight some other some other uh like ideas about what these organizations are doing in the in the community besides um my more narrow view which is really about Hops and Cath and that helps bring some awareness as well and sometimes we do go

358
01:48:40.239 --> 01:48:56.159
back and ask the applicants to to specify. I think it wasn't as much this year. Um I want to say it was last funding cycle. It was in particular it seemed there was a high number of applications that were doing something around eviction prevention and that was

359
01:48:56.159 --> 01:49:12.000
a big question of wait the city is also putting a lot of money into that. So is there a duplication? Um, and we found that there wasn't so much, but it did kind of raise a question of, oh, is is there maybe a a bigger need that is being unmet since we're seeing so many

360
01:49:12.000 --> 01:49:28.880
of the same organizations asking for funding for that specific need? So, um, I don't know. I think that's that's part of the process when you're having the government funding a bunch of nonprofits rather than having one central service

361
01:49:28.880 --> 01:49:46.480
provider. Um I I don't think that's the direction that we necessarily want to go in, but um I'm not I think if we could help nonprofits collaborate together there there could be, you know, a desire for that, but I would want to hear from hear from those service providers before

362
01:49:46.480 --> 01:50:00.159
I speak for them. >> Yeah. Okay. >> That's my >> Yeah. I just have one question which was is this g the gap the 1.3 1.39 and 575,000 is that

363
01:50:00.159 --> 01:50:17.600
>> an average gap of asked funding? >> Yeah, it's pretty typical and I can look back over the years and see you know exact figures but there it's it is always the ask the amount requested is always uh more than double what we have available >> and that's every funding source.

364
01:50:17.600 --> 01:50:34.639
>> Yeah. Right. Thank you. >> Um great. So, is there agreement to carry the item to the July 20th meeting for a second? >> Sure. >> Uh, reading and vote. >> Yes. >> Okay. >> And I'll just offer Thank you, Meline. Um, but I'll offer perspective on the

365
01:50:34.639 --> 01:50:49.920
questions that have come up in regards to um prioritizing, strategizing, um, directing to certain areas. the work session that we just had on investing in community, your strategic

366
01:50:49.920 --> 01:51:06.800
uh planning sessions or retreats are those moments. That's what we'll have to make sure that we call out. I'll I'll be a little more conscious of calling out the opportunity for you to help direct where you want money to go by

367
01:51:06.800 --> 01:51:22.320
prioritizing is the moment that we're looking for. We need that clarity from you >> as a majority because it's great to hear from one person about this priority and this person about that priority, but I jokingly share with you all, give me

368
01:51:22.320 --> 01:51:39.440
three because that's a majority of this body. So, I need three people to land in the same place suggesting that re-entry is a hot topic for us. We want to focus some energy there and then I can give Meline the clarity that she needs to then inform the process to bring you

369
01:51:39.440 --> 01:51:56.800
that result. So just keep that in mind as we go forward in those different meetings when we're in a strategy moment and I'll make sure to call them out more specifically that those are the moments that I'm looking for the feedback that then becomes the direction that informs

370
01:51:56.800 --> 01:52:11.119
our process and then hopefully we'll bring you the results you're looking for. when it comes to um speaking to nonprofits about should they be doing this, should they be merging and all, we don't see that as

371
01:52:11.119 --> 01:52:27.440
staff perspective as their place. Um if you want us to uh speak on that, that would be more in a non-public setting because we're not looking to be partial in in that particular moment. I think you as a body

372
01:52:27.440 --> 01:52:42.800
that is putting out funding can state that you have a priority that collaboration be funded so we can give points for that or if you're looking for um uh direction that you want to give to us that no more than two organizations

373
01:52:42.800 --> 01:52:58.719
doing the same thing should be funded in any specific round. You can give that kind of clarity for us. That would be very helpful if we had some some language like that to then put in front of the committee that's reviewing the packets and then can more or less filter

374
01:52:58.719 --> 01:53:14.400
using those parameters. >> So we need to do some of our before we ask that do maybe some research on how does that actually affect nonprofits. Have people done that in the

375
01:53:14.400 --> 01:53:31.920
past? How has consolidation been >> um either pushed for or um uh been incentivized in some way? >> It's usually driven either by the organizations concluding that on their own that we can't cut it on our own or

376
01:53:31.920 --> 01:53:48.719
funders drive that conversation. That's really where it comes from. >> So we would want to make sure we're doing something effective, not just vibes based sounds good, >> right? >> Yeah. I mean, you don't want to be fleeting in where you're going. You want to make sure that you're targeting certain things. I think to councelor Payne's point of are we hearing that

377
01:53:48.719 --> 01:54:05.119
list of where we're funding, he didn't really hear homelessness. I get that. That's a fair question with the issue that we face today. Um, but if that is a priority that you want to then be able to tie to the results that you get in the next report, we have to hear that from you.

378
01:54:05.119 --> 01:54:21.599
>> And I I know we're not going to resolve it tonight and I don't expect to discuss it tonight in in depth. Um but would just throw out for you know the upcoming one. I'd be particularly interested with you know investments in homelessness

379
01:54:21.599 --> 01:54:38.960
targeted towards one no matter what holiday drive. One of the biggest challenges will be funding case managers and staffing for it. So looking at investments in that direction and then if we do anything in the interim the biggest challenge will also be funding

380
01:54:38.960 --> 01:54:56.960
case managers and who would staff any interim solution. So really gearing it towards that because even some of our homelessness investments in this round aren't really answering that specific question. >> Right. >> All right. Thank you very much. Thank you

381
01:54:56.960 --> 01:55:12.639
>> and congratulations on your new role. >> Thank you. she was promoted um to senior housing planner of those words. Yeah. >> I thanked her today for carrying this load by herself in in a lot of ways and

382
01:55:12.639 --> 01:55:30.080
thank Kelly as well for what she's done to help even though we're losing Kelly later this month. >> Thank you. Um up next we have a resolution endorsing West Main and Ridge smart scale application. Mr. Duncan >> sharp dress city engineer like it.

383
01:55:30.080 --> 01:55:46.320
Uh thank you councilors. Uh my name is Brennan Duncan. I'm the city engineer. Um I'm here tonight. I've got actually got two items here. So this one and the other one uh the next one are are very similar. Um but we're we're to the point in this project um that we are looking for a resolution of support. So quick

384
01:55:46.320 --> 01:56:02.639
background here. We started this process way back in 2024. Um and it's gone through several iterations of data collection, public engagement. Um, we came to you in March and it has not changed that much since then. We had we

385
01:56:02.639 --> 01:56:18.800
held one more public meeting since March with the downtown business owners to listen to their concerns and see what we could do to either, you know, tweak it as part of this or look at how, you know, we could incorporate that if and when we got funding later on. So, that's that's kind of a quick background of

386
01:56:18.800 --> 01:56:34.639
where we're at. Um, but the the study and purpose of this was really four-fold. Prove safety for all users. So, we're not just looking at cars, we're not just looking at bikes, we're not just looking at pedestrians, but really everyone who is using this um the main, you know, West Main and Ridge

387
01:56:34.639 --> 01:56:51.280
intersection is one of the I would call it the intersection in Charlottesville. It, you know, connects our biggest east west and north south corridors. Um, so this is really, you know, really where we're trying to invest some effort here to rethink how this could work for

388
01:56:51.280 --> 01:57:06.639
everybody. So with that, we're trying to improve traffic flow um and the ease of use for all the users, maintain the the pedestal that the statue was on there at one point uh just so we can reuse it at some for whatever may come available. Um

389
01:57:06.639 --> 01:57:21.520
and then develop you know a competitive smart scale application and really there's two parts of that. So it has to show a benefit of congestion um there and also it has to be cost competitive. So, we looked at, you know, roundabouts and other things that could be done at

390
01:57:21.520 --> 01:57:39.119
this intersection, but really the the cost for that just kind of blows up um and we wouldn't be able to put in a competitive uh application. So, here's that timeline I was talking about. So, November 2024, we started with the data collection. 2025 and

391
01:57:39.119 --> 01:57:55.360
March, uh we had public survey. Uh 20 April, uh existing conditions findings were published. August of last year, we did our first publicformational meeting and survey on the three alternatives. January of this year, another public

392
01:57:55.360 --> 01:58:11.440
information meeting, feedback collection on our proposed alternative. Uh, April was when we came to you all or sorry, March we came to you all. April was when we had the the meeting with the downtown business association.

393
01:58:11.440 --> 01:58:28.719
Uh so here is kind of I know it's probably hard to see but this is the the preferred alternative. Um we are showing one weighing of Water Street with a a pair for the wa oneway of South Street. Uh there's a cycle track or a two-way uh bike facility on Water Street. Um this

394
01:58:28.719 --> 01:58:43.679
goes up to Fourth Street which you know we're in the process right now. Utilities is starting uh large utility project on West Main Street. It's going to take several years. So, we're going to be studying West Main Street and hope to be able to continue this facility

395
01:58:43.679 --> 01:58:58.960
further to the west. Um, we've, you know, looked at had our consultants look at multiple versions of this, every almost every iteration I can think of, um, to come up to this kind of preferred concept, uh, to try and address all of

396
01:58:58.960 --> 01:59:15.199
the needs uh, through this intersection. So, the project benefits right now, we've got a five leg intersection. Uh, this will create one-way pair. It decreases delays. We're reducing turning movement conflicts, improve pedestrian

397
01:59:15.199 --> 01:59:31.760
safety. We're enlarging the spaces for waiting, uh, leading pedestrian intervals, uh, sufficient crosswalk time at all the controlled crossings, enhanced accessibility for pedestrians and cyclists, expanded protected bikeway, improved right turn visibility,

398
01:59:31.760 --> 01:59:47.760
and then improved wayfinding signage. this could that's kind of italicized there that we can possibly even do a lot of that before this we would get the funding for this but the study just kind of identified where we could do some of those things so the next steps so right now we're

399
01:59:47.760 --> 02:00:04.560
here this June to August so the smart scale application window is open we need city council endorsement uh of the project before we can you know submit for it uh if and when we get that support from you tonight uh it will move we'll do our application. It'll move

400
02:00:04.560 --> 02:00:20.960
forward in September through January of this year's smart scale applications are assessed by VOTE. By spring of next year, we'll know kind of if we were successful in that bid, it will put it on the six-year plan and then that funding for this project will become

401
02:00:20.960 --> 02:00:38.320
available in like 2020 or 2033. Um, as I mentioned, the 2027, 28, 29, we'll be working on that utility project down West Main Street. So once that's complete or kind of during that process, we'll be starting a new study process

402
02:00:38.320 --> 02:00:53.440
for West Main Street to kind of tie into this project. So that hopefully, you know, we'll be right around the same time, maybe a couple years difference um between when we get this funding and when we would be able to implement something further down West Main Street.

403
02:00:53.440 --> 02:01:10.400
So with that, um I'm here for any questions that you all had to answer anything that came out of the public comment. Um, we do have the recommended motion there if you want to move forward with this. >> All right. Thank you very much. Uh, we'll start over here.

404
02:01:10.400 --> 02:01:29.920
>> Sure. So, um, obviously we've gotten a lot of engagement on this. Um, and I'll fully admit, you know, my bias is, you know, when there's a situation where change is going to slow down or interfere with vehicular traffic, um, you know, my bias is

405
02:01:29.920 --> 02:01:44.719
towards that's okay and, you know, people will adjust and that will be beneficial to pedestrians, bikers, um, and generally be able to work out. Um, but I mean, I think some of the questions raised, you know, are worth

406
02:01:44.719 --> 02:02:02.080
engaging with. Um, so I'll just read from a little bit of what we were given today from VOTE directly that we did not collect traffic data at the intersection of South and Second Street Southeast or uh West Water Street

407
02:02:02.080 --> 02:02:18.480
and Second Street Southeast where the one-way portion of West Water Street would end. The study was scoped to consider solutions to the intersection of Ridge, West Main, West Water Street. And so that was outside of the initial traffic collection plan. We have received several comments that there would be issues with traffic on South

408
02:02:18.480 --> 02:02:37.920
Street getting backed up when the train is running on the track south of the South Second Street Southeast intersection. Sorry. The city expressed willingness to remove on street parking and install left turn lane on the last block of South Street to prevent the train acting as a

409
02:02:37.920 --> 02:02:54.480
barrier. And I also heard a suggestion last night that it may just require installing signage. The discussion I had with the city is that if the project is funded, additional traffic data would need to be collected to determine the appropriate mitigation strategy, but they believed it wasn't required at this time. And again, that's from Sandy

410
02:02:54.480 --> 02:03:10.719
Shackleford at VOTE. And so the question from that is there are elements of this that were not in the scope in terms of assessing impacts and there was also an identified need for additional traffic data as well as an analyzing what the

411
02:03:10.719 --> 02:03:27.119
mitigation strategies would be. Where in the process would those things be done? >> So yeah, that's a good question. Um so again 2033 would when we when funding becomes available for this. So we're talking you know five six years out. Um

412
02:03:27.119 --> 02:03:43.520
at that time we would kind of engage a new engineer. We'd look at the new existing conditions. Uh it's possible in the next six years that new buildings could get in built that traffic patterns in the area could change. You know we could have some traffic apocalypse like

413
02:03:43.520 --> 02:03:59.440
you know uh I don't know COVID or something like that where traffic volumes like completely disappear or flying cars or whatever else I don't know. Um but at that time we would kind of look at the existing conditions um look at what we can do. I I think a lot

414
02:03:59.440 --> 02:04:15.440
of the reason that we didn't look at those areas specifically is the volumes are low enough that even if they increase way lower than a lot of other intersections in the city. Um there's currently about 2500 vehicles on South

415
02:04:15.440 --> 02:04:31.920
Street. There's about 6,000 vehicles a day uh on on Water Street. So even if we took those eastbound traveling people on Water Street and put them over onto South Street, we're still going to be well below any kind of

416
02:04:31.920 --> 02:04:49.119
capacity threshold. So um there we're not denying there may be some things that we need to consider with trains and that kind of stuff. We just feel like it's something that can be overcome with engineering stuff that's not, you know, it's not going to stop or prohibit us

417
02:04:49.119 --> 02:05:05.760
from doing this project. It's not it's not a red flag, I guess, for us that uh it's not something that could be overcome. >> Mhm. And I guess relate well I think one of the big things that could change which I hope changes is you know in the next 1015 years the surface parking lots

418
02:05:05.760 --> 02:05:22.080
there could be developed into some sort of mixeduse development with residential and commercial which would obviously kind of transform traffic patterns. Um and I hope we see that happen. I think it's very possible we could see that happen. I assume that is not something that's entered into kind of thinking

419
02:05:22.080 --> 02:05:38.239
through what that may look like. So, the in the traffic study that was done, I mean, they they ballooned that. It's a very conservative study in my opinion. Um, like I said, there's about 6,000 vehicles a day that are shown on Water Street now. They they took that up to

420
02:05:38.239 --> 02:05:55.280
nearly 11,000 to almost doubling it. Um, and looking at the those traffic volumes, and they still work. They still, you know, we still get congestion benefits and everything else from this project. Mhm. And so, you know, you kind of already outlined this, but construction itself wouldn't begin until

421
02:05:55.280 --> 02:06:10.960
at least 2033. >> There's always the possibility we could accelerate that funding, but right now, the six-year plan would be us getting that funding in 2033. >> Mhm. And again, if

422
02:06:10.960 --> 02:06:26.320
thinking through the additional traffic studies as well as any mitigation that may be needed, you said that would begin that would be evaluated in around 2033 before construction begins. >> Yeah, we would definitely So, this is what we're presenting tonight is a

423
02:06:26.320 --> 02:06:41.040
conceptual plan. In in engineer speak, it's we call it like a 30% design. It's probably not even that, more like 15% design. Um, so we're we've done enough to kind of look for where those red flags are going to be, make sure things

424
02:06:41.040 --> 02:06:58.239
will work, but we're going to move forward and look at it in more detail once the fun. So, one of the benefits of this program is all this funding is state and federal. So, there's no city funds right now that are going into this. So when 2033 rolls around, we take

425
02:06:58.239 --> 02:07:14.639
the money. We uh enlist an engineering firm to kind of design this with these parameters that are in this study uh and look at you know what needs to be tweaked, what needs to what works, what doesn't work, and uh move forward from

426
02:07:14.639 --> 02:07:30.639
there. So there will likely be a 12 to 18month kind of design period once that money is released to us before any type of construction would occur. >> And one of the other things we've received emails about I mean quite

427
02:07:30.639 --> 02:07:47.199
frankly I have no idea how to evaluate what claims are accurate or not. Um, but a concern is, you know, this could have some interference on the ability for delivery drivers to drop off things to the downtown mall or drop off supplies to businesses there. Um, is that

428
02:07:47.199 --> 02:08:03.920
something that's just kind of outside the scope of work of the analysis that you would do? >> No, we're we're looking at that. Um, I mean, we're not taking away any parking at this point. We're not taking away any access to the mall crossings at this point. So, I don't really see how that would I mean, a delivery driver might

429
02:08:03.920 --> 02:08:19.360
have to come from a different direction, but the actual stopping to do deliveries would be much the same as it is today. >> I think that is it for me now. Thank you. >> Can I ask a clarifying question?

430
02:08:19.360 --> 02:08:35.599
>> Sure. >> This endorsement is not a commitment to making the change. Is that correct? We can always pull back our application if we decide that something has changed and we don't want to move forward with

431
02:08:35.599 --> 02:08:50.719
it. >> Okay. And the question in regards to additional development plans that come to pass get factored in could be a basis for why that changes >> could be. >> Okay. It could also be an opportunity

432
02:08:50.719 --> 02:09:06.880
that we have a plan in place and if one of those developments happens that we can ask them to do a portion of that as part of their development >> from a timing standpoint. Yes. I always like to spend other people's money. >> Okay. Just want to make sure I was understanding what I need to be

433
02:09:06.880 --> 02:09:20.320
understanding. >> Thanks. >> Okay. Um, kind of along the lines of that, I know when you had come to BPAC, we looked at some other recommendations for the two-way bike track and some concerns

434
02:09:20.320 --> 02:09:37.920
about how that flows. So, if this may be too in the weeds, let's pretend we win based on this iteration, this 30%. and we make it happen and we find that there was some unintended consequence

435
02:09:37.920 --> 02:09:55.280
that happens from it. Who who builds it? Does V do build the project out and then we pay for changes to it or does it h how does that how would that work? >> So this is again this is kind of I'll look forward it more as a framework than a full fully fleshed out design. So

436
02:09:55.280 --> 02:10:12.480
there are aspects of this that we have to hit. So, we we have to do the congestion mitigation uh because we've got that in our proposal. We have to do the bike pad improvements because we have that in our proposal. Now, which side of the roadway those go on, what exactly they look like, all that can is

437
02:10:12.480 --> 02:10:27.679
kind of up for change. Um we just have to make sure that we're hitting kind of those cre key scoring criteria so that we don't have to if we change it too much then it has to go back and get rescored and that's where we could like lose funding. But as long as we're still

438
02:10:27.679 --> 02:10:44.880
hitting those key factors that we're trying to accomplish with this design, we can make those tweaks once we get to that 2033 when we get the money and start kind of fleshing out that design a little more >> and that money is going to but that money goes to VOTE to do the building or

439
02:10:44.880 --> 02:10:59.840
we hire >> No, we so yeah we the the intention with with this would be that we would use our own um contracts with you know basically we're only getting the money from VOTE from this >> unless Unless, you know, we asked them to do the design. But right now, we're

440
02:10:59.840 --> 02:11:15.360
the intent of this is that the city would be enlisting engineers to do this full design, come up with the plans. We would bid it. Our project managers would kind of oversee the project from start to finish. VOTE's involvement from kind of this point forward would only be a

441
02:11:15.360 --> 02:11:30.480
financial. >> Thank you. >> Yep. So my question I guess more than anything else is what exactly is the problem that this is meant to solve.

442
02:11:30.480 --> 02:11:48.800
So a lot of it is is access for multi modes. Um you know we've got we're we're trying to create some north south east west kind of bike corridors. I mean, if you think of it as you've got highways that are exclusively all for for

443
02:11:48.800 --> 02:12:04.400
vehicles. We don't allow pedestrians. We don't allow bikes on a highway on one end and we've got the pedestrian mall on the other where it's intended fully for kind of pedestrians and outside of emergency work or whatever. We try and keep vehicles out of it. Um we're trying to create some of these corridors that

444
02:12:04.400 --> 02:12:21.599
are kind of more focused on bicycle infrastructure so that we can you know get some multi modes throughout our city and and increase that. So um we've got plans right now or we're planning to expand down West Main Street further

445
02:12:21.599 --> 02:12:38.880
down Water Street. Uh right now we have the trail that picks up uh just on the other side of the Belmont Bridge and connects you all the way down to to Meat Avenue, Meat Park. Um so we're we're trying to kind of make that kind of cross city connection um you know for

446
02:12:38.880 --> 02:12:55.639
for cyclists and and pedestrians uh throughout the city. So for for most of the people who go through that intersection, they would think that a problem at that intersection was

447
02:12:55.679 --> 02:13:12.560
basically rush hour vehicular traffic things backing up in some cases backing up to uh to the interstate. This will not solve that problem. So this does get us congest some congestion

448
02:13:12.560 --> 02:13:26.159
mitigation. So >> I've looked at the numbers on your on the figures in here and maybe I'm not understanding them but I don't see that the I mean the numbers seem to increase

449
02:13:26.159 --> 02:13:43.280
if maybe 5% 10% over the next 50 years 30 years >> for the overall traffic volumes. I just looking at individual numbers, you know, for Yeah. If there are 500 going this way right now, there may get to be about 600

450
02:13:43.280 --> 02:13:59.199
>> 20 years from now, >> right? >> So, so we're going to get traffic growth. So, what we're really looking at is not does it get worse from today till 2035 or 2045 or 2055 because if traffic if we get more people in the city, we

451
02:13:59.199 --> 02:14:14.800
have more cars, that's going to get worse anyway. What we're really looking at is the if we kept the existing condition for the next 20 years and had the traffic growth comparing that to what it would be with this

452
02:14:14.800 --> 02:14:32.800
improvement 20 years from now. >> Okay. And maybe I'm not maybe I didn't find the right figure for that, but I look at the the fig figure 20 is the no build design uh year peak in 206. So 30 years down

453
02:14:32.800 --> 02:14:47.920
the road compared to existing peak volumes and that's up about 10 to 15%. the you're talking the future no build >> right >> compared to >> right now compared figure 20 and to

454
02:14:47.920 --> 02:15:06.400
figure two okay and I didn't see may maybe I'm misunderstanding the figures but I also saw 2045 interim year peak volumes is that assuming that the project gets built in figure 19

455
02:15:06.400 --> 02:15:22.960
>> correct figure 19 would be A yes, that would be if this project got built. So those those are the two diagrams that you would kind of be comparing if you're looking at a 2045 build for existing conditions versus the proposed conditions. >> Okay. And so

456
02:15:22.960 --> 02:15:39.599
but but if if we're not building anything, we're getting the the the comparable data would be the 206 no build design. >> Correct. There's very little difference between those three gra between the numbers on those three charts. >> Yeah.

457
02:15:39.599 --> 02:15:55.679
>> So, this is not a traffic congestion issue that this is fixing. >> It's mostly the the safety factors, the the pedestrian enhancements, the bike enhancements, and we're not making like we're still we're accomplishing all that

458
02:15:55.679 --> 02:16:10.639
without making the vehicular traffic worse than it would already be. So there can still be the same car throughput while having a safer pedestrian bike and pedestrian facility. >> It's it is slightly le it's you're right it's not a lot less but it is slightly

459
02:16:10.639 --> 02:16:27.360
less. So we will still score points in the in the VOTE system by reducing the congestion. >> Okay. So >> and that's also making a lot of assumptions. It is m yes all the models are based the models are not based on a Parisian style

460
02:16:27.360 --> 02:16:45.599
>> city engineering plan where you actively build enough bike facilities that people mode shift. These are based on American >> right >> you know so we can also decide which policy do we want to go down. Is there is there is there anything in what we have here that attempts to estimate what

461
02:16:45.599 --> 02:17:01.599
the effect would be on the number of bike trips >> 30 years from now or is that just too much an imponderable question? >> Yeah, I I don't think the the consultants looked at that as part of this. >> Frankly, I would think anything that

462
02:17:01.599 --> 02:17:17.120
they would come up with would be like a Ouija board at that point. >> Well, maybe not quite a Ouija board. they they would be looking at other jurisdictions that you know have done this type of thing. Um but you know nationwide like we're we are on kind of the >> the front edge of this like I know a lot

463
02:17:17.120 --> 02:17:33.519
of a lot of our bike advocates ask for more and more but we're doing a lot like we're we're kind of doing a lot more than you know Joe Q city in in America right now when it comes to this. So there aren't a whole lot of other cities, you know, for us to and a lot of

464
02:17:33.519 --> 02:17:49.840
them are only doing this in the last 15 or 20 years. So, you know, when we're trying to project out 30 years, you know, it's it's hard to do that because we don't know all the effects of that. So, one of the effects, one of the main

465
02:17:49.840 --> 02:18:05.280
ways I guess that you're going to get some of the effects that you want is by uh making it so that we treat Water Street and South Street as effectively two sides of the same street.

466
02:18:05.280 --> 02:18:23.120
>> Correct. >> Wouldn't it be easier to leave Water Street as is dead end South Street? so that it doesn't come into the fiveway intersection at all. And then if you want to send uh if you

467
02:18:23.120 --> 02:18:38.000
want to make that purely a bike ped route, you could do so. And then you don't have any you don't have any issues. I mean, you could have South Street accessible by a turn off of Second Street or something like that, but the point is it wouldn't be getting

468
02:18:38.000 --> 02:18:54.559
into the fiveway intersection. Uh, and that would allow the concerns that the folks on the on the mall have for not being able to find the mall. Somebody's on South Street isn't going to logically find the mall. And I can

469
02:18:54.559 --> 02:19:11.040
tell you from 30, 40 years ago, that was an actual serious problem. >> I would believe that 30, 40 years ago, but almost everyone has a cell phone and and maps on their phone right now. I mean, I we've had the the crossings closed now for a couple months while

470
02:19:11.040 --> 02:19:26.000
we're redoing the the the you know, the the mall crossings for the vehicles, and I was down there last weekend of last Friday in May, and it's as busy as I've ever seen it. You know, surprise, surprise, people can still find it even though those crossings are are not

471
02:19:26.000 --> 02:19:42.399
active currently. Um, but again, I think we should do more on the wayfinding. We, you know, I look at Winchester and Boulder, Colorado and other cities who have successful pedestrian malls. A lot of them have, you know, big gateway entrances onto the mall. We don't. Maybe

472
02:19:42.399 --> 02:19:57.200
that's something we should look at doing. You know, that to get people as they're driving down the street to realize, hey, this is this is an entrance to pedestrian mall. So, I think there's we can accomplish both. Like it's it's not a they don't have to be mutually exclusive. And to the point, I

473
02:19:57.200 --> 02:20:13.920
guess with South Street, it's it's room really is what like we've got on street parking because several of those old houses, businesses that are in there now either don't have driveways or, you know, don't have sufficient driveways in there. >> The Midway Manor bus stop. >> We Yeah, we've got our bus stop in there

474
02:20:13.920 --> 02:20:30.399
now for Midway Manor. Um there's just not enough width to get everything we need on South Street. uh from a multimodal standpoint, you know, if we tried to do it as a bike kind of corridor there, either we'd have to remove parking or, you know, well, we'd

475
02:20:30.399 --> 02:20:46.800
just have to remove parking. Like, you know, you and you can't get two-way traffic and have a bike corridor in there and have parking. Like, we'd be taking property. What the thing that's in our favor on Water Street is it is really wide. the the right of way that we have on Water Street compared to most

476
02:20:46.800 --> 02:21:05.200
of our other streets uh gives us the opportunity to do something like this. Well, I I think that the concern the concerns of the folks on the mall not only have some historical

477
02:21:05.200 --> 02:21:20.720
justification but have some present justification because I you know one of the points that I've tried to make in my years of advoc advocacy for the mall is that it is the reason why it has continued to be successful is because

478
02:21:20.720 --> 02:21:37.439
the city has a continued to invest in it year after year after year which many people who who who put in malls wound up not investing further uh whether it's in our case building the Omni or subsidizing the building of the Omni or

479
02:21:37.439 --> 02:21:53.040
the the pavilion or all the other things that have happened ever since. So it's the investment of money we put into it. It's also I I agree with the people who spoke earlier who said that in 1996 when when it was made more visible and more

480
02:21:53.040 --> 02:22:08.479
and easier to find uh that that made a significant difference. I think right now as I look at the mall uh even assuming 3 weeks from now that all that the crossovers are all fine and everything is is back to normal. still a

481
02:22:08.479 --> 02:22:24.160
lot of vacancies down there and it is not a I think it's holding on but I wouldn't say it's truly healthy at the moment. Uh the only good news out of all of this is that whatever we talk about tonight isn't going to happen for at

482
02:22:24.160 --> 02:22:41.359
least seven years and maybe in the next seven years we'll figure something out. But uh I'm I'm concerned about that. I'm also concerned that uh one of the one of the constraints I remember we ran into this uh on the MO when I was on the MO 5

483
02:22:41.359 --> 02:22:58.560
years ago uh was trying to figure out when we could expand the scope of a project or of a of a study of a project. And one of the things that we were told as we were looking at that point at the intersection of Preston and 10th

484
02:22:58.560 --> 02:23:13.359
Street and Grady and and so on was that we wanted to extend the area that could be subject to the traffic improvements by a couple of blocks down Preston Avenue. And we're told no, you can't do that. Once you've you've set the

485
02:23:13.359 --> 02:23:30.240
footprint, the footprint has to stay. And so if we're going to put this in, let's put in a bigger footprint. Let's put in a footprint that goes down to to the Second Street parking garage. >> It does. >> Well, that's not what any of these maps

486
02:23:30.240 --> 02:23:46.399
that I see indicate. Uh if that's the case, then great. But >> yeah, I mean, we're we're proposing improvements all the way down to the garage there on Water Street. So from from Second Street all the way up um across to Fourth Street on the the west

487
02:23:46.399 --> 02:24:04.000
side and then you know 150 200 feet kind of the north and south. >> I think the concern people raise is is it not going evaluating the relevant intersections and then not going down um South Street far enough. >> I mean it takes it the full length of

488
02:24:04.000 --> 02:24:19.840
South Street. So, you know, if we're going to do any changes, that's that's kind of already in that overall kind of project area. >> Mhm. I >> mean, I I have no idea what the future holds for those parking lots, although

489
02:24:19.840 --> 02:24:36.240
looking at it, certainly within the lifespan of the the kinds of drawings you've got here, it would certainly seem highly likely that that they will be very large buildings in the meantime with a lot of people either working or living there. a lot of people therefore presumably

490
02:24:36.240 --> 02:24:53.200
trying to get there. Uh I I I'm I think that the fears that the folks on the mall have uh about the health of the mall are are legitimate fears. And I don't think that uh the

491
02:24:53.200 --> 02:25:10.080
notion that maybe we'll get a few more folks on bikes coming down there is going to solve their problem particularly in the next next 10 years or maybe in the next 30 years. I I I don't I can't predict what the future would hold that far out. But I

492
02:25:10.080 --> 02:25:24.720
I I've got real concerns that I don't think that this A I I don't know what it's actually going to serve. B, I know it's not going to serve what most people perceive to be the problem there.

493
02:25:24.720 --> 02:25:46.439
Uh, and C, I don't think it's well thought out in terms of what the demands are going to be on that road network over the next 10 to 15 years. >> Any other comments? Um

494
02:25:46.720 --> 02:26:05.040
people raise this in public comment and I think um demonstration projects. He mentioned the the temporary shutdown of the um u cross-sections on the downtown mall which inadvertently has been like a case study of how that may play out. um

495
02:26:05.040 --> 02:26:19.840
you know there's a lot of fear around the change and I understand that because you know local business owners are not necessarily you know um you know the the the richest people in the world and they have a lot of money and time invested in their businesses. So it's a very em

496
02:26:19.840 --> 02:26:35.520
emotional personal thing. All of which is to say, is is it practic practical or possible for the city to do a demonstration project making it one way on a temporary basis and just seeing this is what it looks like and kind of

497
02:26:35.520 --> 02:26:51.040
removing some of that fear of the unknown or is that just not realistic? >> No, I think that's 100% realistic. If that's something that council wants us to do, you can give that direction to Sam and he'll direct us to to make it happen. So, um, it's it, you know,

498
02:26:51.040 --> 02:27:07.520
depending on the the length of time that it would take, you know, to do like, you know, we could do it pretty quick and simple if we're just doing, you know, a couple weeks or a month to test it out. If it's, you know, six month or a year, the cost of the materials, we might be

499
02:27:07.520 --> 02:27:24.160
asking for some funding to do it. But, um, I think there's definitely a possibility to do something like that. And I I'll say I mean we it like you said with the the mall crossings I mean we inadvertently tested one way on Water Street for almost a year for the Belmont Bridge. So you know it was one way

500
02:27:24.160 --> 02:27:41.200
already for a significant portion of time. >> I know that's kind of a little bit further down but effectively it was >> a one-way roadway at that point. >> Of course the the part that was one way it was not the part we're talking about here. No, but but the people who would

501
02:27:41.200 --> 02:27:56.720
normally travel eastbound on Water Street no longer could. Like the vast majority of people who travel continue down Water Street towards the the transit center and they would have to to make that right on on Second Street and

502
02:27:56.720 --> 02:28:12.160
head back over to Garrett, you know, if they were making. >> Yeah, I I don't know how many people that is, but >> I can tell you if you want. at least according to the the counts that they did. Maybe

503
02:28:12.160 --> 02:28:29.520
actually no, they didn't count that one. So I I can get that number for you later if you're interested. >> Well, I have no idea how practical or easy it is, but I do think it would be interesting to have a demonstration project. Um, you know, even if it's just period for few weeks, month or so to be

504
02:28:29.520 --> 02:28:44.640
able to see it. And I think that would take away some of the fear and if it turns out maybe it is a you know traffic disaster we would see a no at that point. But if it is um a very unreasonable or cumbersome thing then

505
02:28:44.640 --> 02:29:00.000
you know I don't think there's a need to like make it top priority or anything in the city. Um but again I think I think a lot of it just comes from the fear of you know what if. >> I think that's a very astute

506
02:29:00.000 --> 02:29:15.920
observation. There's a fear and there's a what if. And I think also you saying that we can't predict the future. There's certain things obviously we can't predict but we can shape and build the future that we want more decisively. If we hedge

507
02:29:15.920 --> 02:29:31.840
I don't want to hedge. I don't want to hedge on our commitment to designing and engineering a city that makes better multimmoal plans, builds safer streets, and facilitates better land use choices. Every study that you can find pretty much shows that when you um

508
02:29:31.840 --> 02:29:48.000
pedestrianize, when you reduce car speeds, when you do road diets, when you see multi-lane streets that were then turned into slower streets, um revenue increased for all of the shops

509
02:29:48.000 --> 02:30:03.600
on those streets. So there is an amount that we do know that what if has been taken out of the equation because we might be on the forefront a little bit but we are not inventing any wheels here. >> Correct. >> Um uh in America or abroad. There are

510
02:30:03.600 --> 02:30:20.560
plenty of case studies for these types of projects that we can look to that we can see that our VOTE teams know about that our internal teams know about. Um, so there's not a lot of I don't knows for something like this in

511
02:30:20.560 --> 02:30:35.920
general. Um, cars whizzing by don't spend money. Uh, people lolly gagging, people who live nearby. Uh, those folks are the ones spending money and those who can find easy parking. And there's nothing easier to park than a bike or

512
02:30:35.920 --> 02:30:54.000
being a pedestrian. Um, so we get to build the future that we want. we get to set these policies. Um, we had a demonstration project as you mentioned when the Belmont Bridge was underway and uh, Water Street was closed. We had a more recent demonstration project when

513
02:30:54.000 --> 02:31:09.520
was it like a transformer exploded and Water Street was completely shut down for a period of time. >> A pole was hit. >> Yeah. Right. The pole was hit. Um, and that had to be and and as someone ex >> Are you equating that as a success? I'm talking about it being a demonstration

514
02:31:09.520 --> 02:31:25.200
project of that street being interrupted >> and that worked. >> I don't know if you spent any time down there on it, but it was lovely to exist in that space without and I I do bike as I make no secret about um

515
02:31:25.200 --> 02:31:41.359
often up water street. most of the traffic goes up Water Street anyway. And the amount of times I've had to we had a public commenter earlier today say both that um Water Street is not very busy and um

516
02:31:41.359 --> 02:31:57.760
>> and the added traffic on South Street from Water Street would Yeah. >> Yes. Thank you. Those things are are not quite reconcilable. And while it is relatively a quietish street, um so it's going to be less of an effect than um

517
02:31:57.760 --> 02:32:14.800
you know if we did this to um 250, which I know we can't, but um uh even though it is a quiet street, I as a bicyclist who uses that street to get here sometimes and uses it almost daily um

518
02:32:14.800 --> 02:32:32.560
for whatever meetings I have downtown, um have to yell at cars frequently who are pulling out without looking, who are rolling through stops, who are um verging into traffic, again without looking, and probably more frequently

519
02:32:32.560 --> 02:32:48.479
than even on West Main Street. And so creating a safer space for bicyclists is both safer and more useful. There's a um urban planner and uh

520
02:32:48.479 --> 02:33:05.920
a urbanist, a city planner and an urbanist. If you've spent any time in the city planning space, you'll recognize his name. Um Brent Toadorian who has a famous quote that says you can't justify a bridge by the number of people swimming across a river. Meaning what you have now is not

521
02:33:05.920 --> 02:33:21.680
necessarily the model you use for what you want or what you can do. They didn't see, oh, a lot of people are swimming across the English Channel. Let's build a tunnel. I mean, a lot of people were trying to take boats, but um there's there's a you build what you want to

522
02:33:21.680 --> 02:33:36.560
see. We get to build the future that we want. And the future that I want that I've made no secret about since I started being in the public eye is one that is more multimodal. um which doesn't mean we are forcing

523
02:33:36.560 --> 02:33:52.960
bikes and pedestrianism on people, but it means that there's more options for more people so that you don't have to be car dependent. We also had a mention in our public comments earlier about baby boomers who are going to age out of driving and needing to create a safe way

524
02:33:52.960 --> 02:34:10.240
for them to get around for apartment buildings to go in so people can live closer to the community where they want to be. More people does not necessitate more cars if we do it right. And by inducing demand, which works for cars as

525
02:34:10.240 --> 02:34:27.760
demonstrated by ev every road is a demonstration project on that front. Induced demand works across modes as well. We can induce demand for different choices by making different policies. Um the uh

526
02:34:27.760 --> 02:34:43.680
I I appreciate you maybe without realizing it suggesting we turn South Street into a woundf. Um I would like a wounderf. It's a Dutch term for a slow street with um traffic calming chicanees with planters with road furniture with

527
02:34:43.680 --> 02:35:00.160
um a style that automatically by design reduces car speeds. So, it is more of a shared street for everyone who needs to use it. Um, that is something that I would love to see an actual demonstration project somewhere in the city. I know we've

528
02:35:00.160 --> 02:35:15.280
talked about that before. Um, but I really appreciate your comments about wayfinding and addressing those concerns in a way that doesn't involve um, uh, cars. We can add signage. We can add

529
02:35:15.280 --> 02:35:32.000
entrances. Um, you know, I've sent around pictures of uh in during our Chapel Hill trip, we got a tour of their alleys that they had made, cutthroughs between really long blocks, and they in order to make them welcoming, they put

530
02:35:32.000 --> 02:35:47.680
in archways that titled each alley. That is placemaking. That is defining areas and spaces in a way that is built for people, not for vehicles. Um, so I think that's something we have to keep in mind is what is our unit of governance? It's

531
02:35:47.680 --> 02:36:03.840
a person and making sure we have space for people to exist to get around safely is not the vehicle. Um, so I think we can address being able to find the mall in ways that are outside of the scope of this project. We should

532
02:36:03.840 --> 02:36:20.560
do that sort of stuff anyway. Um, and again, that doesn't have to wait for for six, eight years. Um, and then, you know, I've I've heard the mall is dying my whole life. Um, >> I didn't say it was dying. I said it's fragile. >> No. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. I appreciate

533
02:36:20.560 --> 02:36:39.280
that. We hear that bandied about quite frequently. Um, I've been hearing that my whole life. Um, I remember when there was the the two-waying um of the previous one-way streets. And how this differs from that is um

534
02:36:39.280 --> 02:36:56.080
is is the we are we have the ability to to make policy choices with more information and with a different goal in mind. We cannot keep building space to fit cars in a land constrained

535
02:36:56.080 --> 02:37:13.439
locality. So what can we do differently is actually facing the truth of what's in front of us. Is our land constrained uh uh borders that get eaten up every time a certain local partner in some things um entity uh purchases land. Uh

536
02:37:13.439 --> 02:37:28.720
we can build we can build up we can build infill. We can reduce the space that we give to cars uh so that a we can build the community within our city limits. We can reduce um traffic. we can reduce emissions, we can get people

537
02:37:28.720 --> 02:37:44.720
where they need to go faster, more safely, and we don't become a parking lot for the county. Um, that involves regional partnerships outside of the scope of this project, park and rides, more expanded transit network, that sort of thing. But this is a piece of that. This is part of building that future

538
02:37:44.720 --> 02:38:02.640
that we want. And we've seen Water Street one way recently. We um should keep in mind the um the benefits of increasing

539
02:38:02.640 --> 02:38:19.520
bike access also improves car drivers experiences. If you are the 10th in line for a red light, you're going to be 10th in line. If five of those people make another choice, now you're closer. So even though you are not choosing a bike lane or a bike lifestyle, your life has

540
02:38:19.520 --> 02:38:35.200
still improved. and traffic congestion has been reduced. This is part of that. This doesn't fix it as one project, but it is part of a network we should be working towards enthusiastically. Um I mentioned Paris before. I know people say we're not Paris. That is a policy

541
02:38:35.200 --> 02:38:51.439
choice. We can make similar decisions and we could get there sooner. They have radically transformed their network in the last 10 and a 10 15 years. That's not 50 years. four times the density of population. >> Again, a policy choice.

542
02:38:51.439 --> 02:39:08.080
>> You want 48,000 per square mile. >> It's a policy choice. >> Okay? >> So, if there's people living in the two parking lots that are in the area we're talking about, they have access to proximity. Proximity means they don't have to get

543
02:39:08.080 --> 02:39:24.160
in a car every time they need something. That's what density buys. Well, in terms of process, let's say we approve what's in front of us tonight. Um, likely at the earliest, construction

544
02:39:24.160 --> 02:39:40.240
would begin in 2033. So, a gap of 7 years, potentially longer than that, and maybe we don't even get awarded funding. Um so in that interim you know maybe there's still utility for a demonstration project even if we approve

545
02:39:40.240 --> 02:39:55.439
it tonight because in that gap of the seven years you know from VOTE you know they acknowledge themselves additional traffic data would need to be collected to determine appropriate mitigation strategies. Maybe that helps us just get a head start on being able to do that

546
02:39:55.439 --> 02:40:11.280
and see um you know collect data on how it plays out and also see on some of the surrounding intersections does that create a need for new mitigation to improve safety there if the flow changes in some way. Um so that just seems like

547
02:40:11.280 --> 02:40:27.760
a reasonable potential um process. >> So are you suggesting that even if we pass this tonight we still should do a demonstration project in the meantime? I think it I think there could be utility there because it would help us collect the data and we know from what VOTE said

548
02:40:27.760 --> 02:40:43.120
there's going to be again that need for mitigation. Um and the gap is just going to be so many years. >> Well and I think what's useful about that uh potentially is the bulk of the expense of the this project is the Ridge McIntyre intersection portion. >> Correct.

549
02:40:43.120 --> 02:41:01.600
>> And the water street portion is um something that's going to be definitely less intense infrastructure wise. there's not going to need to be earth movement. It's um >> it's more of a restriping. >> It's essentially a restriping and maybe a curb input. So, um so that is

550
02:41:01.600 --> 02:41:18.800
something we could do before and then even harden before and have it >> I don't know that we could harden it just because the improvements that are needed at the intersection are kind of tied to this. So, >> so maybe not all the way up there. Not at least not we so we could to your

551
02:41:18.800 --> 02:41:35.120
point we could do a demonstration project >> just to take away the vehicles. >> It would be more difficult to make it a true kind of bike way and have all the infrastructure that we need for the bikes up at the intersection. But we could at least model the vehicular part

552
02:41:35.120 --> 02:41:50.960
of this, >> you know, in in real time and say either it works or it doesn't work or or find out where the, you know, where are those pinch points that we need to >> if we're open to be flexible about it. Some of the concerns from like we understand the business community's

553
02:41:50.960 --> 02:42:06.640
concerns. We have heard that. We also want the downtown wall to succeed beyond whatever level it's ever achieved. That should go without question. That is a pride and joy of the city. It is a gem. It is the central hub and the central placemaking feature of Charlottesville.

554
02:42:06.640 --> 02:42:23.439
Um, I've been in cities that are very similar to Charlottesville and they don't have something like that and you feel truly like where do I go? What is this? There's no base. There's no home base and the the downtown mall is the the mothership of of of the city. Um, so

555
02:42:23.439 --> 02:42:38.640
of course we want to protect that, but if if we can do a demonstration project in the meantime and address some concerns also from the bike ped community with the interactions at the intersections or the bus stop or the um

556
02:42:38.640 --> 02:42:54.399
the larger intersection at the top, that's also valuable. I think all of that is made possible by the fact that we do vote yes on this tonight. And >> because of the scale of the smart scale timeline, it does take so long that you

557
02:42:54.399 --> 02:43:11.479
know losing this opportunity sets us back several several years. >> And recognizing, you know, if council voted in the affirmative tonight, you know, it's likely at least a seven-year process that also still has uncertainty in terms of funding awards. Um

558
02:43:11.840 --> 02:43:28.080
what what if anything would be needed to indicate you know our desire to have at some point between you know now and the next seven years before construction would begin a demonstration project. Would that be needed

559
02:43:28.080 --> 02:43:44.000
incorporated in the vote tonight? Would that need to be a vote at a later date? Would that just be an indication from council of a general, you know, goal? Let let me offer on behalf of your concerned public

560
02:43:44.000 --> 02:44:01.680
that I would say that you um make that an addition to this endorsement that you make that as a request because if you're taking that as a vote if you were to pass the authorization to submit this basically

561
02:44:01.680 --> 02:44:16.960
the endorsement and you want a demonstration project that is your way tonight to say to your public that and we want a demonstration just so that we can see that has to be scoped, budgeted, and brought back to you for approval anyway because there's no money sitting

562
02:44:16.960 --> 02:44:33.200
waiting for that use. Uh, and then we can make sure that we put together the right approach to doing a project like that. I have many thoughts as he knows I do. >> So, a it's a strong request, but we can't condition because we don't know about money and that sort of thing.

563
02:44:33.200 --> 02:44:48.720
>> Well, I mean, I think you can because we know that we can pay for it. I just think you just to me what I'm saying to you is you've heard opposition to this if you're going to endorse it then at least make the endorsement also conditioned on the idea of a

564
02:44:48.720 --> 02:45:04.560
demonstration so that at least people will get will recognize that we are going to prioritize getting a demonstration project. >> I would like to point out we have heard opposition to it. We've also heard a lot of support for it. >> Correct. >> A lot of support. um especially when it in January when it first came up and

565
02:45:04.560 --> 02:45:22.000
then we added an additional >> um public meeting to to reach out to even more folks. So >> we we've heard both sides throughout the the last six months. >> Yep. Express the support for the demonstration as a part of this action.

566
02:45:22.000 --> 02:45:38.000
I think that is that's ultimately what I'm suggesting to you. >> Okay. Well, in that case, you know, I would move a resolution endorsing West Main and Rich Smartcale application um including as part of that that at some point between

567
02:45:38.000 --> 02:45:53.120
now and construction, you know, >> a city sponsored demonstration >> that there be a city sponsored demonstration. I don't know if that is clear enough to give direction, but >> to me at least. >> Do you have a second?

568
02:45:53.120 --> 02:46:27.200
>> Second. Um, all right. Let's pull up our voting pages. >> All right. The project passes 3 to one with the bonus note. >> Thank you. >> And I got next item. >> Yeah. Remy, if you can put up the presentation

569
02:46:27.200 --> 02:46:51.359
again. All right. So, the second one, uh, this one is is not in the city. This is a MO, uh, request, but it's the same thing. They're asking for resolution of approval for what they are submitting. Um, so what they're submitting is Veric

570
02:46:51.359 --> 02:47:07.920
Road and 250 off onoff ramps. Um, so this is extending the onoff ramp to connect Leonard Sandridge to Barracks Road along 250. Uh, constructing a second left turn lane at the Barracks Road northbound exit. constructing

571
02:47:07.920 --> 02:47:23.760
sidewalk on the south side of barracks under the bridge and connecting that new sidewalk on the north and south sides of barracks via the two uh via two median refuge crosswalks uh on either side of that. Um, this addresses corridor

572
02:47:23.760 --> 02:47:40.640
statewide significance being 29 north and 250, improving capacity need on regional networks, improvements to support the urban development area in the county, improvements to address the Vtrans specified safety need. Um,

573
02:47:40.640 --> 02:47:56.640
so this is kind of where that is. Um, so this is Leonard Sandridge on the left hand side of the page here. uh as that as you come off of that onto 250 right now you merge into the the three lanes uh or the two lanes that are there uh

574
02:47:56.640 --> 02:48:12.800
and then immediately you know you've got about a third of a mile right now of condensed lane and then it gets back into the the turn lane to get onto barracks. So it's just really connecting that so it'll be one kind of off-ramp onramp for that. today they experience

575
02:48:12.800 --> 02:48:28.720
backups regularly coming off of Barracks Road, you know, into those through lanes on 250. So, they're just trying to mitigate that that safety need there on on 250. Uh so, this is coming coming to the off-ramp here and then really uh at

576
02:48:28.720 --> 02:48:45.279
the the intersection as it comes off. Right now, there are two lanes. There's a a right turn lane and a left turn lane. Uh this is putting in a second left turn lane as there's a predominant movement going that way. uh and the right turns can kind of turn right on red right now. So, it does add right now

577
02:48:45.279 --> 02:49:03.040
there's no pedestrian crossings uh in this area and actually the sidewalk stops kind of on the south side, southeast side as you're approaching from the city portion. Um so, this connects that kind of through and under the Barracks Road 250 bypass uh and

578
02:49:03.040 --> 02:49:18.960
allows you to connect back over into the the other lane or other side. So similarly they're looking for the endorsement by city council here the of their thing same timeline uh September uh for the applications and then spring

579
02:49:18.960 --> 02:49:37.000
next year for uh whether they' find out if they were successful in there. So similar motion here moving to city council approve the attached resolution of support for the Charlottville Admiral MO smart scale 2026 application.

580
02:49:37.359 --> 02:49:54.479
>> All right. Um any questions? We'll start over here this time. me. >> Um, how does this improvement impact the Rabana Trail?

581
02:49:54.479 --> 02:50:11.600
>> I don't know that it would because the the RTF uh crosses Well, I guess you you would you would be able to come off of the RTF right now. It kind of crosses Barracks Road um in the city portion. So, if you were trying to get

582
02:50:11.600 --> 02:50:28.160
or trying to get from that northwest portion of Abmarl of this intersection, you know, over right now, you don't really have a way to do that. Um, this would make that connection from that neighborhood up in Bennington and Ricky Drive and all that kind of stuff over into the city

583
02:50:28.160 --> 02:50:43.840
>> with the sidewalk build >> with the sidewalk and and those pedestrian crossings. >> Okay, that's good for me. Where where is the Roman trail in that area? I don't >> It's just off the screen to the east

584
02:50:43.840 --> 02:51:00.640
here. It comes down Cedars Court, I believe. >> Uh and then there's a access that goes up into the ball field or whatever there um on UVA property >> by the bank. >> I just realized I know where the trail is in most of the places.

585
02:51:00.640 --> 02:51:16.240
If anyone would like to find out more about the entire trail, Loop Deville happens the last week of September. including this section. >> I have no questions. >> Michael, >> no. I mean, I assume that it was

586
02:51:16.240 --> 02:51:33.359
endorsed by the NO means >> yes. >> Um, that there generally weren't significant issues. The only questions I would really have would be to our two counselors who are NPO board members is if you're in your review there were um

587
02:51:33.359 --> 02:51:51.120
issues you saw with it. Um if not, you know, I'm fully ready to support it. >> Um I will say that so our our policy our our tech board um uh worked on this and and endorsed it and supported it and

588
02:51:51.120 --> 02:52:07.920
then came up to us and the MO as a whole did support this. Um but not without some concerns. um making sure that the uh pedestrian facility uh the shared use path, the bike and pedestrian facility was

589
02:52:07.920 --> 02:52:24.640
included as much as possible. Um the the pedestrian refuge islands were um I mean I still wish they were a little more navigable. Um uh where that was discussed. Um Jen, would you like to add anything else? >> No, I think I was

590
02:52:24.640 --> 02:52:41.520
>> Yeah, there were some concerns about UVA or was that the other extension? That was the other one. Yeah. Okay. >> Um, you know, we're generally um not stoked about um

591
02:52:41.520 --> 02:52:57.120
it's a weird it's a weird role to be in um when you're trying to push for bike pedestrian infrastructure on a board that is dedicated mostly to a car infrastructure project process. Um,

592
02:52:57.120 --> 02:53:13.680
so we we were happy to see the shared use path in there. Um, and uh and hope that that kind of bike and pedestrian facility is included more and more in BOT projects and with

593
02:53:13.680 --> 02:53:33.680
more and more enthusiasm. >> Was that helpful? >> Yes. >> Thanks. All right. Any other comments, questions? Okay. Um, is there a motion? >> I would move the resolution endorsing

594
02:53:33.680 --> 02:53:57.680
the submission of smart scale HB2 applications requesting transportation funding by localities as presented in the packet. >> Is there a second? >> Second. >> All right, let's go ahead and vote. All right, the motion passes 4 to

595
02:53:57.680 --> 02:54:13.439
nothing. Um, and now we have an opportunity for our final speaking moment for members of the public. Individuals may raise your hand to be recognized to speak. Each speaker will have up to three minutes. Um, please don't forget to state your name and place of residence. Is there anyone who

596
02:54:13.439 --> 02:54:33.439
wishes to speak? Yes, please. Good evening, uh, Vice Mayor and Council. My name is Rachel Flynn. Uh, longtime on and off resident of Belmont, but now I'm on again. Um, come back to the city and learning a lot about what you all are doing. I have no complaints.

597
02:54:33.439 --> 02:54:50.240
I have no asks. You're going to fall off your chairs. I actually want to thank you for what you do. I think you all are remarkable. I think you really work hard to consider what the people of Charlottesville want. I know that how challen challenging it is to uh meet so

598
02:54:50.240 --> 02:55:06.960
many demands from citizens. As a former municipal executive myself, I know what what you're up against. How you have to prepare for meetings like you obviously did tonight. Community meetings all the time, phone calls, emails, and clearly you all really do your homework and

599
02:55:06.960 --> 02:55:22.880
really pay attention. And I know it's not easy to make these difficult decisions. Whether it's land use, infrastructure like tonight, the unhoused that came up tonight, budget, taxes, these are really difficult decisions and you all do it very

600
02:55:22.880 --> 02:55:38.319
thoroughly with grace and I really appreciate it as a citizen. Um I know you don't always agree and that is tough, but God bless democracy, right? I also wanted to thank you for the work that city staff does. They're

601
02:55:38.319 --> 02:55:54.479
really remarkable. I uh came in um I don't know a month or two ago and was trying to talk to someone about land use and uh couldn't really find my way. So, I went to the city manager's office and a lovely woman named Terry Bentley

602
02:55:54.479 --> 02:56:10.720
walked me down the hall and uh told me, "Here's who you want to talk to." And she didn't need to do that. She could have said, "Go down there and press the doorbell," but she didn't. And it was very thoughtful. I called in for pothole repairs. They were repaired, wait for

603
02:56:10.720 --> 02:56:28.000
it, the next day. Nobody does that. I just haven't seen it. It's I couldn't believe it. Um, I went and talked to Missy Cesy because I wanted to know more about the development code, the comp plan, affordable housing ordinance, and she really took the time to explain it.

604
02:56:28.000 --> 02:56:43.920
I know that with the lawsuit it was complicated to a lot of people including me and she was able to tell me about it where I had to go. Patrick who always answers the phone customer service. I'm sorry I don't know his name but Patrick here always knows uh gets me to that

605
02:56:43.920 --> 02:56:58.800
right person. I mean people don't answer the phone anymore but your people do. It's really remarkable. I can't emphasize that enough. Mike Graph and utilities. He and I had a great discussion about sewers and he really helped me understand some things. Matt

606
02:56:58.800 --> 02:57:14.479
Alfley, uh, if you want to know what the zoning requirements are, the height, the number of units, the setbacks, the number of parking spaces, you name it, that guy will call you back. If you don't already answer the phone, he will get that email back to you. And he's so

607
02:57:14.479 --> 02:57:30.800
thorough and very patient. And then there's Joyce Patterson, who is just lovely. I think she's been here since the Civil War. Not sure. And she I call her all the time. I've been calling her for years and she'll walk me through something, tell me how to get to a

608
02:57:30.800 --> 02:57:46.880
property and figure out the assessment. Jeff Warner, historic preservation. Um I was trying to find some old drawings and he wasn't really sure, but his files are incredibly organized and he took the time to go through it. And then two days later, he called me back. He said, "You

609
02:57:46.880 --> 02:58:04.399
know, I I looked somewhere else and I I found what you were looking for." He didn't need to do that. And so, I I just really want to let you know what a good staff you have and how much I appreciate what you all are doing. I could use your help on um uh uh urban forestry. I'm not

610
02:58:04.399 --> 02:58:22.240
sure who handles that here. >> He's great, too. >> Steve G. >> I'm afraid I do have to cut you off in the interest of fairness, but can we count on you to come back at the next meeting and keep going? I'm done. I just hope I'm on Association of Reforestation. B I RF.

611
02:58:22.240 --> 02:58:38.880
>> Did you send an email? Did you send an email previously? >> Uh I I've sent them to um >> what's your name again? >> Rachel Flynn. Um I sent them to >> We can Mike Alfley. No, I didn't send an email for uh Reforest. >> No, we can I can make the connection for

612
02:58:38.880 --> 02:58:55.120
you tomorrow. >> Okay. What's his name? >> Steve Gings. He's our urban forester. Steve Gains. Okay, I can find him. >> Thanks. >> Great. Thank you all and thanks for what you do. I know this is not easy, but >> thank you. >> Appreciate it. >> Thank you so much. Um,

613
02:58:55.120 --> 02:59:08.920
any further business from anyone? >> All right. Motion to adjurnn. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Second. >> All in favor say yes. >> Yes. Thanks everybody.