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HomeMy WebLinkAbout4/14/2025 - City Council - Minutes - Regular CITY COUNCIL MINUTES Monday, April 14, 2025 at 6:30 PM Work Session, 6:00 PM Council Chambers Conference Room, City Hall, 114 North Broad Street, Salem, Virginia 24153 Regular Session, 6:30 PM, City Hall, 114 North Broad Street, Salem, Virginia 24153 WORK SESSION 1. Call to Order A work session of the Council of the City of Salem, Virginia, was held in the Council Chambers Conference Room, City Hall, 114 N. Broad Street, Salem, Virginia, on April 14, 2025, at 6:00 p.m., there being present the following members of said Council to wit: Renée Ferris Turk, Mayor; Anne Marie Green, Vice-Mayor; Council members; Byron Randolph Foley, H. Hunter Holliday, and John Saunders; with Renée Ferris Turk, Mayor, presiding; together with Chris Dorsey, City Manager; Rob Light, Assistant City Manager and Clerk of Council; Rosemarie B. Jordan, Director of Finance; Tammy Todd, Assistant Director of Finance; Tommy Miller, Director of Economic Development; Crystal Williams, Assistant to the City Manager; and Laura Lea Harris, Deputy Clerk of Council; and the following business was transacted; Mayor Turk reported that this date, place, and time had been set in order for the Council to hold a work session; and 2. New Business A. Discussion Items 1) Economic Development Update - Tommy Miller, Director of Economic Development Tommy Miller, Director of Economic Development, presented an update on Economic Development for the City of Salem. He provided a copy of an outline for Council's use. Mr. Miller summarized the status of progress that has been made on the City's Strategic Plan initiatives. He also shared details, updating Council on existing businesses in Salem. Mr. Miller shared an overview of real estate within Salem. Discussion was held regarding entrepreneurial support and grant initiatives. Council requested additional information on the Community Business Launch Grant. 3. Adjournment There being no further business, Mayor Turk adjourned the meeting at 6:28 p.m. REGULAR SESSION 1. Call to Order A regular meeting of the Council of the City of Salem, Virginia, was called to order at 6:30 p.m., there being present the following members to wit: Renée Ferris Turk, Mayor; Anne Marie Green, Vice-Mayor; Councilmembers: Byron Randolph Foley, H. Hunter Holliday, and John Saunders; with Renée Ferris Turk, Mayor, presiding together with Chris Dorsey, City Manager; Rob Light, Assistant City Manager and Clerk of Council; Rosemarie B. Jordan, Director of Finance; Tammy Todd, Assistant Director of Finance; Chuck Van Allman, Director of Community Development; Mike Stevens, Director of Communications; and Jim Guynn, City Attorney. 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Bid Opening, Awards, Recognitions There were none this evening. 4. Consent Agenda A. Citizen Comments Comments from the public, limited to five minutes, on matters not already having a public hearing at the same meeting. Karita Knisely, 115 Union Street, addressed Council in support of Salem's purchase and preservation of Preston Place, focusing on the historic value of the property. John Breen, 142 Bogey Lane, expressed concerns related to the final plats for the Simms property. He focused his attention on the accessibility of the proffers and violations of Code. He requested that Council utilize a provided plat review when approving plats; assure that the Simms plats and all plats be corrected to include any proffers; at Council's pleasure, grant 10 minutes to detail Simms violations; and invoke Salem Code 106-522.1 to bring the Simms Development into compliance. Stella Reinhard, 213 N. Broad Street, noted that she felt there were some specifics missing from the Comprehensive Plan revision. She requested that citizens be able to speak longer than five minutes on evenings when there were not many speakers and a short meeting. Ms. Reinhard also spoke in support of the City's purchase of the Preston Place property and shared ideas with Council for future utilization of this property. Whitney Leeson, 212 N. Broad Street, spoke in support of the acquisition and development of the Preston Place property by the City of Salem. She shared a vision for a natural garden and walking trail on this property. B. Minutes Consider acceptance of the March 24, 2025, Work Session and Regular Meeting minutes. The minutes were approved as written. 5. Old Business There was no Old Business this evening. 6. New Business A. Roanoke Regional Airport Commission Consider approval of the Roanoke Regional Airport commission budget for the Fiscal Year 2025-2026. Mike Stewart, Executive Director of the Roanoke Regional Airport Commission, presented the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 budget on behalf of the Commission. He noted that Dale Guidry, Salem appointee to the Commission, and David Jeavons, Director of Finance, were with him this evening. He indicated that no funds were being requested from Salem. Mr. Steward shared that the Commission adopted this budget at its March 25, 2025, meeting and that it was approved the following week by the City of Roanoke and Roanoke County. He noted a total operating revenue projected of $15,939,000 with $14.468 million in expenses, producing a net operating income of $1.47 million. Mr. Stewart also noted that no deficit is anticipated in either the Operating Budget or the list of capital expenses that were included in the Council packet. No appropriations are requested or anticipated. The Commission is requesting formal approval of the Operating Budget and Capital Expenditure List. On the capital sheet, Mr. Stewart highlighted ren ovation of Taxiway Bravo, design work for Runway 6-24, and the design of a terminal improvement project. Other items of note were the completion of the parking lot project, Phase III of the fencing project, a couple of vehicle replacements, and upgrades to the IT system. He spoke of the funding being utilized for these projects as well. Mayor Turk asked Mr. Stewart to comment on new flights that had been added. Mr. Stewart shared information on new flights to larger hubs of Charlotte, Atlanta, Chicago, and Washington Dulles. He also noted Allegiant to several hubs in Florida and that they had Virginia's Blue Ridge doing some marketing in that area. Council thanked Mr. Stewart, Mr. Jeavons, and Mr. Guidry for being with them this evening. Randy Foley motioned to approve the Roanoke Regional Airport Commission budget for the Fiscal Year 2025-2026. Hunter Holliday seconded the motion. Ayes: John Saunders, Hunter Holliday, Randy Foley, Anne Marie Green, Renee Turk Nays: None Abstaining: None B. Annual Presentation of Budget by City Manager In accordance with Section 4.6(b) of the Charter of the City of Salem, Virginia, City Manager Dorsey will present the FY 2026 budget to City Council. City Manager, Chris Dorsey, presented the highlights of the proposed Fiscal Year 2026 Annual Budget to City Council. City Manager Dorsey shared an overview of both the General Fund Revenue and Expenditure budgets by category. He gave a summary of the General Fund Budget, including Capital Funds, and shared highlights of the General Fund Budget by department. Councilman Holliday asked if there would be a paving schedule posted on the website. Mr. Van Allman responded affirmatively that this schedule is on the website and noted that it would be reflective of the general time that work would be done on a specific street and may not be exact. Mr. Dorsey noted that the Budget Work Sessions are scheduled for Tuesday, April 22nd, Wednesday, April 23rd, and Friday April 25th of next week and that Council would be reviewing the Budget in depth. The department heads will be in attendance to go through the line items. Mr. Dorsey thanked Ms. Jordan, Ms. Todd, and the Finance staff for putting this information together. Councilman Foley noted that there was an item discussed in the Work Session relating to Economic Development that they would need to address in the Budget Work Sessions. Councilman Holliday asked for information on the status of replacing the water meters. Mr. Dorsey responded that a private contractor had been hired to go out and do that work and that he would get an update for Council. Mayor Turk noted that this was the introduction of the budget this evening and that no action would be taken tonight. She thanked staff for their hard work. C. Salem Band Boosters Consider request from the Salem Band Boosters for a donation ($541.10) equal to the amount of admissions tax paid in connection with the annual Blue Ridge Regional High School Band Competition held on September 21, 2024, at the Salem Stadium. Randy Foley motioned to donate $541.10 to the Salem Band Boosters as requested. Anne Marie Green seconded the motion. Ayes: John Saunders, Hunter Holliday, Randy Foley, Anne Marie Green, Renee Turk Nays: None Abstaining: None D. Appropriation of Funds Appropriate grant funds awarded by Virginia Tourism Corporation. Ms. Jordan shared for the benefit of the public that the City had been awarded a $10,000 marketing grant from Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC). This grant will be utilized for marketing the Living History Weekend in June which will highlight Andrew Lewis. A local match is required and has been included in the current year budget; therefore, no additional funds will be needed other than what has been received in revenue. Council is requested to appropriate the $10,000 in grant revenue to the account listed in the Council Report and increase the budget for the grant expenditures. Anne Marie Green motioned to appropriate the $10,000 in grant revenue to the account listed in the Council Report and increase the budget for the grant expenditures by $10,000. John Saunders seconded the motion. Ayes: John Saunders, Hunter Holliday, Randy Foley, Anne Marie Green, Renee Turk Nays: None Abstaining: None E. Appropriation of Funds Appropriate grant funds awarded by the Roanoke Foodshed Network. Ms. Jordan explained that the City has been awarded a $2,500 grant through the Healthy Food Access Leadership Team of the Roanoke Foodshed Network. The funds will be used for a Junior Farmer Program at the Salem Farmer's Market, which will provide an educational activity booklet for children and their families in conjunction with nutritional education offered by the Cooperative Extension Service. These booklets will be distributed through the backpack summer program. As an added incentive to participate in the program, those attending will be provided with $5 worth of tokens to spend on fruits and vegetables each market day. Council is asked to appropriate the $2,500 in grant revenue and increase the budget for the grant expenditure account. Randy Foley motioned to appropriate $2,500 in grant revenue and increase the budget for the expenditure as specified in the Council report. Hunter Holliday seconded the motion. Ayes: John Saunders, Hunter Holliday, Randy Foley, Anne Marie Green, Renee Turk Nays: None Abstaining: None F. Transfer Funding for Projects Request to move two sewer projects from the Water Capital Fund to the Sewer Capital Fund. Ms. Jordan noted that in the past, the City has always maintained a single capital fund for water and sewer multi-year projects. For financial reporting and tracking purposes, water and sewer projects need to be separated into a Water Capital Projects Fund and a Sewer Capital Projects Fund. Two sewer projects, Roanoke River Upper Sewer Rehab and Wiley Court Sewer Improvements, were in Fund 50. Council is being asked to move these to the new Fund 56 for the Sewer Capital Fund. This is going to facilitate financial tracking and make reading the financial reports clearer as these items will be viewable by line item. Council is being asked to move $7,375,000 out of the Water Capital Fund and reappropriate those funds. They have already been approved by Council in the past. The request is just to move them to the new sewer fund. Hunter Holliday motioned to move $7,375,000 out of the Water Capital Fund and reappropriate as specified in the Council Report. Randy Foley seconded the motion. Ayes: John Saunders, Hunter Holliday, Randy Foley, Anne Marie Green, Renee Turk Nays: None Abstaining: None G. Personal Property Tax Relief Act (PPTRA) Request to adopt a resolution setting the allocation percentage for personal property tax relief for the 2025 tax year Ms. Jordan explained that this is an annual resolution that is adopted by City Council. In 1998, the Personal Property Tax Relief Act was established as a statewide program. The amount that the City receives each year is a fixed amount. The City's allocation of those funds is $2,588,707. Each year, the percentage has to be calculated that allows the City to provide taxpayers tax relief for personal use vehicles. Vehicles valued at $1,000 and below will receive 100% of tax relief. Those that are $20,000 to $1,000 receive the calculated percentage, and those that are above $20,000 do not receive relief. Based on the calculation, Council is requested to adopt a tax relief percentage of 44%. Randy Foley motioned to adopt Resolution 1493 setting the allocation percentage for personal property tax relief for the 2025 tax year. John Saunders seconded the motion. Ayes: John Saunders, Hunter Holliday, Randy Foley, Anne Marie Green, Renee Turk Nays: None Abstaining: None H. Boards and Commission Consider appointments to various boards and commissions. Randy Foley motioned to reappoint Teresa Sizemore for a two -year term ending April 26, 2027, to the Personnel Board. Anne Marie Green seconded the motion. Ayes: John Saunders, Hunter Holliday, Randy Foley, Anne Marie Green, Renee Turk Nays: None Abstaining: None 7. Adjournment Mayor Turk welcomed Cody Sexton, Assistant Town Manager in Vinton, and his State and Local Government class from Roanoke College. Mayor Turk also announced that the Division III Men's Volleyball Championship will be held in Salem at the end of the month. She encouraged citizens to watch for a number of activities coming up. The meeting was adjourned at 7:28 p.m. Submitted by: Approved by: H. Robert Light Renée Ferris Turk Clerk of Council Mayor