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HomeMy WebLinkAbout4/12/2021 - City Council - Minutes - RegularAPPROVED MINUTES CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION April 12, 2021 A work session of the Council of the City of Salem, Virginia, was held in Parlor A of the Salem Civic Center, 1001 Roanoke Boulevard, Salem, Virginia, on April 12, 2021, at 5:00 p.m., there being present the following members of said Council, to wit: Renee F. Turk, James W. Wallace, III, Byron Randolph Foley, John Saunders, and William D. Jones; with Renee F. Turk, Mayor, presiding; together with James E. Taliaferro, II, City Manager; Rob Light, Assistant City Manager and Clerk of Council; Rosemarie B. Jordan, Director of Finance; Chuck Van Allman, Director of Community Development; Crystal Williams, Assistant to the City Manager; Laura Lea Harris, Deputy Clerk of Council; John Shaner, Director of Parks and Recreation; John Hull, Executive Director of Roanoke Regional Partnership; Ben Tripp, City Planner; and Jenna Kinder, CEO of Mount Regis 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 WHEREAS, Mr. Hull who shared a brief sketch of his background and qualifications for the job and an overview of the Roanoke Regional Partnership’s projects and accomplishments over the past year; and WHEREAS, Mr. Taliaferro and Mr. Shaner reviewed the Tiers for the James I. Moyer Sports Complex Capital project and Council reached consensus that they would like staff to move forward with plans to be drawn up to include all three tiers; and WHEREAS, Mr. Tripp gave background on the history of the special exception permit involved with the lease for Mount Regis and discussed potential changes to zoning code; he also discussed the zoning code pertaining to the use of office space in the downtown area; and WHEREAS, a discussion was held on reporting by Boards and Commissions to Council; Mayor Turk stated we could continue this discussion; and There being no further business to come before the Council, the work session was adjourned at 6:21 p.m. ____________________________________ Mayor _____________________________________ Clerk of Council Ci ty Counci l Meeti ng M INUTES Monday, April 12, 2021, 6:30 P M Community Room, Salem Civic Center, 1001 Roanoke Boulevard, Salem, Virginia 24153 1.C all 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: Renee F. Turk, Mayor; J ames W. Wallace, III, Vice-Mayor; Council members: Byron Randolph Foley, William D. J ones, and J ohn Saunders; with Renee F. Turk, Mayor, presiding together with J ames E. Taliaferro, II, City Manager; Rob Light, Assistant C ity Manager and C lerk of C ouncil; Rosemarie B. J ordan, Director of Finance; C huck Van Allman, Directory of Community Development; Mike Stevens, Director of C ommunications; and J im Guynn, C ity Attorney. 2.Pledge of Allegiance 3.Bid Openings, Awards, Recognitions 4.C onsent Agenda A.Citizen Comments Comments from the public, limited to five minutes, on matters not on the regular meeting agenda. T he following have signed up to speak at this meeting: Eddie Hite, 122 Par Drive, Salem Mr. Hite stated that he was retired from 34 1/2 years of service with the Fire Department. He expressed concern that the C ity of Salem would take steps to remain competitive with other localities for public service pay scales. Mayor Turk thanked Mr. Hite for coming and remarked that Council would take his remarks into consideration. B.Minutes Consider the acceptance of the minutes for the March 18, 2021 work session/retreat and the March 22, 2021 regular meeting. T he March 18, 2021 Work Session/Retreat and the March 22, 2021 Regular Meeting minutes were approved as written. 5.Old Business 6.New Business A.P resentation of Salem School Div ision B udget Receive presentation from the C hairman of the Salem School Board regarding the 2021-2022 budget pursuant to Section 8.5 of the 1968 Charter of the City of Salem, as amended. Mr. David Preston, C hairman of the Salem C ity School's School Board, distributed copies of the Salem C ity School Division's Budget and presented the 2021-2022 Budget to C ouncil. Mr. Preston thanked the C ity of Salem for their support and noted that only approximately 21% of students have chosen to continue working totally online this year and commented on the the continuity of learning that the Salem City School Division has been able to provide in the middle of extremely challenging times this year. Mr. Preston presented the proposed budget developed following the 2021 General Assembly for Fiscal Year 2022 for the Salem C ity School Division consisting of the school funding budget in the amount of $45,575,440, which presents a gap considering the $45,071,629 of current budgeted revenues. T he Grant Fund in the amount of $2,775,671 and the Cafeteria Fund Budget in the amount of $1,838,119 for a total budget of $50,189,230 was unanimously approved by T he School Board on March 23, 2021. T he Fiscal Year 22 Budget is $1,639,338 or 3.4% above the current year for Fiscal Year 21 adopted of $48,665,898 due primarily to an increase in state revenue to assist in providing raises for all employees. He provided specific details on the local impact of implementing a 5% raise for all employees. At this time, the budget presented is unbalanced with a request for increased local appropriation of $442,278. He outlined specific budget highlights and charts that were included as attachments in budget for reference purposes. On behalf of the Salem C ity School Board, the students, and employees Mr. Preston thanked C ouncil for the local funding and the value placed on the education of our youth. By law, a balanced budget must be presented to Council by May 1. He also thanked Ms. Hall, Ms. J ordan, Dr. Seibert, and the School Division employees for their collaboration and hard work with T he Board in developing this budget and for all they will do to manage the rapidly changing economic outlook and other harsh realities created by the C O VID- 19 Pandemic. He opened the floor for any questions. Mr. Wallace asked if there is a place marker for the anticipated Federal funding that will be dispersed in the next year or so. Dr. Alan Seibert, 1234 Pickwick Lane, responded that the funds are coming in three major groups that each have specific requirements. T he School Board worked closely with C ouncil and the first batch was used partly for Chromebooks. T he application has just been submitted to the State for the second batch. T his batch is to be used for "learning loss", especially for those students that are behind due to interruptions. T hey anticipate robust summer school programs and investing in staffing for next school year. T he allocations and rules for the newest batch of funds, which should be the largest, have not been received yet. T hey anticipate using some of this funding in HVA C and mechanical systems as well as safeguarding the future C apital reserve. Mayor Turk thanked Mr. Preston and the School Board for their presentation and stated that C ouncil would take all this information into consideration. B.Appropriation of F unds Consider request to appropriate grant funds received from the Virginia Office of the Attorney General. Audit - Finance C ommittee J ames Wallace motioned to increase the budget for state grant revenue and Police Department state grant expenditures by $900. Randy Foley seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ones, Saunders, Turk, Wallace C .Appropriation of F unds Consider request to accept and appropriate grant funds from Virginia Department of Emergency Management for the Next Generation 911 Project. Audit - Finance Committee J ames Wallace motioned to accept the $378,493 grant from Virginia Department of Emergency Management, appropriating $378,493 in State Grant Revenue account and appropriating $378,493 in Next Generation 911 account for the purposes stated above. William J ones seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ones, Saunders, Turk, Wallace D.P rofessional Auto Office B uilding Consider setting bond for erosion and sediment control for Professional Auto Office Building. Audit - Finance Committee J ames Wallace motioned to bond project in the amount of $4,719.00 for a time frame for completion set at twelve (12) months. J ohn Saunders seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ones, Saunders, Turk, Wallace Mr. Foley shared for the benefit of the public that this is for the property located at 711 Kesler Mill Road. E.Blue Ridge Tire E SC P lan Consider setting erosion and sediment control bond for Blue Ridge Tire ESC Plan. Audit - Finance Committee J ames Wallace motioned to bond project in the amount of $4,774.00 for a time frame for completion set at twelve (12) months. William J ones seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ones, Saunders, Turk, Wallace Mr. Foley shared for the benefit of the public that this is for the property located at 1103 South C olorado Street. Mr. J ones requested clarification as to what was being done at the property. Mr. Van Allman shared details on the work that was being done for erosion and sediment control measures and landscaping. F.Downtown Sewer Rehabilitation P roject Consider request to exceed 25 percent procurement limit. Audit - Finance Committee J ames Wallace motioned to authorize execution of a change order on an existing contract between the C ity of Salem and Portland Utilities C onstruction, Inc. necessary for work to complete the Downtown Sewer Rehabilitation project. Such authorization is required of the local governing body by State C ode and the City’s procurement procedures when cumulative modifications to a fixed-fee contract exceed the greater of 25% of the contract amount or $10,000. Staff recommends C ouncil allow for this increase in order to address a significant inflow issue. Randy Foley seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ones, Saunders, Turk, Wallace Mr. Wallace and Mr. Saunders stated that there is a small probability that this procedure could fail and further measures would have to be taken. He also pointed out that the location of this work is on West Riverside Drive. G.Boards and Commissions Consider appointments to various boards and commissions. Randy Foley motioned to nominate Michael "C hris" Vaught as regular member to replace Roland Braelith for the remainder of a five-year term ending J anuary 1, 2023. William J ones seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ones, Saunders, Turk, Wallace Mr. Foley asked for clarification on whether this is a Board that has to be Court appointed. Mayor Turk noted that there are a number of vacancies available for Boards and Commissions and listed those. She encouraged citizens to become involved. 7.Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 6:57 p.m.