Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout5/11/2020 - City Council - Minutes - RegularCi ty Counci l Meeti ng M INUTES Monday, May 11, 2020, 7:30 P M Council Chambers, City Hall, 114 North Broad Street, 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 7:30 p.m., there being present all the members to wit: Byron Randolph Foley, Mayor, J ane W. J ohnson, Vice-Mayor, C ouncil members: William D. J ones (participated remotely); J ames A. Martin, and J ohn E. Saunders (participated remotely); with Byron Randolph Foley, Mayor, presiding; together with J ames E. Taliaferro, II, City Manager (participated remotely); Rosemarie B. J ordan, Director of Finance (participated remotely); Mike Stevens, C ommunications Director (participated remotely); J udy L. Hough, Deputy City C lerk (participated remotely); Crystal L. Williams, Assistant to the City Manager (participated remotely); and C lark Ruhland, C ommunications Specialist. C ouncil members William J ones and J ohn Saunders read remote participation statements into the record. J ohn Saunders stated "in accordance with Section 2.2-3708.2 1(A) of the Code of the C ommonwealth of Virginia and the Remote Participation Policy of the C ity of Salem, I hereby request to participate remotely due a medical condition identified by the C enters for Disease C ontrol as a risk related to the C O VID-19 Pandemic. He noted that he was participating from his home in Salem at 104 Eagle Drive" J ane J ohnson moved to accept the remote participation of Mr. Saunders. J ames Martin seconded the motion. Ayes: Martin, J ohnson, Foley William J ones stated "in accordance with Section 2.2-3708.2 1(A) of the Code of the C ommonwealth of Virginia and the Remote Participation Policy of the C ity of Salem, I hereby request to participate remotely due a medical condition identified by the C enters for Disease C ontrol as a risk related to the C O VID-19 Pandemic. He noted that he was participating from his home in Salem at 602 Highfield Road." J ane J ohnson moved to accept the remote participation of Mr. J ones. J ames Martin seconded the motion. Ayes: Martin, J ohnson, Foley 2.Pledge of Allegiance 3.Bid Openings, Awards, Recognitions 4.C onsent Agenda A.Minutes Consider acceptance of the minutes from the April 13, 2020, regular meeting. Accepted as presented B.F inancial Report Consider the acceptance of the Statement of Revenues and Expenditures for the nine months ending March 2020. Mr. J ones noted the financial report submitted looks good. He asked Mrs. J ordan if she has any idea about the trend for April. She noted that at this point they do not know. T hey know that the tax payments have been slow coming in for April. Some have paid on time but most have not. We are expecting to see a decline, but with the other measures they have put in place, they do not think that we will see April upside down. She believes it will look a little skimpy, but it should not be too bad due to the cut in discretionary spending. Mr. Martin noted looking at the revenues for this year versus last year, and also thinking about the C ivic Center, he has a concern. Obviously with shows being canceled, how do we change our approach here. Do we have a plan for the rest of the year? Do we have plans for the building, adjusting schedules for the workforce and/or maybe sharing those resources with other departments? Mr. Taliaferro noted that the Civic C enter staff has been doing maintenance, painting, etc. and in addition to this, they have taken over some of the maintenance from the Street Department at the parks and at one point they were talking about taking over East Hill Cemetery doing the mowing, etc. Mr. Saunders noted with regards to the Financial Report he has noticed the Civic C enter has gone over budget multiple times throughout the year, and they are way over budget currently. He sincerely hopes we have a plan in place or a business plan of some type in light of the news today about the cancellation of the Salem Fair for this year. He noted that the Fair is a significant portion of their budget. He asked Mr. Taliaferro to have a plan in place that Council can see before they get to the budget work sessions. Mr. Taliaferro noted that he was in agreement with Mr. Saunders. Received 5.Old Business 6.New Business A.Amendment to City Code Consider ordinance on first reading amending Chapter 2 Administration, Article II, Sections 2-36 and 2-56 pertaining to regular meetings of C ity Council. Mr. Taliaferro noted a couple months ago Council discussed options for public participation at C ouncil meetings. In particular, a comment period for citizens, and the request was that each month there be a comment period for citizens. Further, we had talked about changing the start time for the regular meeting from 7:30 to 6:30 and having a work session at the beginning of the meeting and wrapping up by 7:10 or so. T his would allow a 15 minute window for citizens to comment once a month. T he ordinance before C ouncil this evening changes two sections of the C ode. Section 2-36 would change the meeting time from 7:30 to 6:30 p.m. and Section 2- 56 redefines the order of the agenda. Under Item #2 public comments have been added. On the meetings that we do not have a public comment section, we could either have a full work session or if there were no items for the work session, then C ouncil could proceed with the regular meeting at 6:30. Mr. Martin noted he thought this is a good idea for the public to be able to speak at a public forum. He asked when would we roll out the process to the public for them to be able to apply to speak at a meeting. Mr. Taliaferro noted if Council chooses to move forward this evening, it will require a second reading at the last meeting in May and so we can begin receiving comments in J une. Vice Mayor J ohnson noted she also thinks this is a great idea that we will be adding this to our regular meetings. Even though she will not be a part, she feels this is the right thing to do. Mayor Foley noted in light of how the meetings could play out whether it is a work session or a regular meeting, should the sequence of Items # 2 and # 3 be changed around so the Pledge of Allegiance will be first. Mrs. J ohnson noted she did not catch this, but she agrees this is a good point. Mr. Taliaferro noted we can make that change, and Council can amend the motion. Mrs. J ohnson noted that she would amend her motion to switch Item #2 and Item #3 in Section 2-56. J ane J ohnson motioned to adopt an ordinance on first reading amending C hapter 2 Administration, Article II, Sections 2-36 and 2-56 of the C ode of the C ity of Salem pertaining to regular meetings of City C ouncil with the amendment to reverse the order of Items #2 and 3 in Section 2-56. J ames Martin seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ohnson, J ones, Martin, Saunders B.Resolution of Support - I -81 I nterchange Lighting Consider the adoption of Resolution 1377 in support of Interstate 81 lighting at major interchanges in Virginia's Blue Ridge. Mr. Taliaferro noted Virginia's Blue Ridge (VBR) has brought forward a resolution of support for the participating localities to ask VD O T to add lighting to the interstate interchanges in this area. T his would be Exits 137, 140, 141, 143, 146, and 150. T he idea is that the improved lighting would get more people off the interstate and have them stop in the area. It is really a safety thing for people who are traveling at night as a well lit area is more inviting than a dark area. So this resolution asks VD O T to look into adding the lighting. Mr. Martin noted to clarify, this resolution is in support of VBR working with VD O T to find the money to do the lighting at these interchanges. Is that correct? Mr. Taliaferro noted that this was correct. Mayor Foley noted with the widening of Interstate 81 starting, should we make them aware of this with regards to logistics so they are prepared to do this once the funding is in place. Mr. Taliaferro noted that we can pass this along to them and make sure that they are aware of this as they are moving forward. William J ones motioned to adopt Resolution 1377 in support of Interstate 81 lighting at major interchanges in Virginia's Blue Ridge. J ohn Saunders seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ohnson, J ones, Martin, Saunders C .Appropriation of F unds Consider request to appropriate donation from Deggeller Attractions. Audit - Finance C ommittee Mr. J ones noted the A udit Finance Committee met this evening to discuss this request. Each year Deggeller Attractions donates approximately $10,000 to the C ity for a community impact project. T his year, $3,700 will be used to help pay for handrail improvements at the football stadium and $6,300 will be used to purchase special clothing for the police officers who work the Salem Fair. T he donation allows the C ity to purchase needed items that are not included in the current budget. T he Committee reviewed the request and recommends appropriating the $10,000 donation to be used for handrail improvements at the football stadium and to purchase special clothing for the police officers who work the Salem Fair. Mr. J ones noted that this is the revenue from last year's fair. Mayor Foley asked in light of the news today about the cancellation of the Salem Fair, he asked if all of the funds should go towards the handrails at the stadium. He noted it will be another year for the fair so why would we spend money on the purchase of clothing for officers for the fair. Vice Mayor J ohnson noted that she agreed. Mr. Martin noted that Mr. J ones asked about the cost of the handrail project at the Audit Finance meeting. He asked Mr. J ones if he would be agreeable to having the entire amount of the donation go towards the handrail project or some other physical improvement at the stadium. Mr. J ones noted that he did not have a problem with this. He said he was not sure if the money could be rolled over to the following year. He noted that would probably be a question for Mrs. J ordan or Mr. Taliaferro. Mr. Saunders noted that the police officers clothing for the fair have to be continously purchased over time. So this will be an initial purchase, and then we have to find ways to replace the uniforms that we purchased as officers leave or as other officers come. So this is a recurring expense. He is not against the handrail improvements or finding something else to use the money for. If we could roll the money over, it probably definitely would help. Mrs. J ordan noted that based on the discussions she has had with the police chief the money for the uniforms is actually not specifically for uniforms for the Salem Fair or special equipment. T hese are considered alternate uniforms. As she told Mr. Martin and Mr. J ones earlier, this is actually money to purchase uniforms that match the bike patrol officers so they are actually hot weather uniforms which are not just for the fair. T hey can be used for any events that are held where the officers have to be outside in hotter weather. She asked Mr. Taliaferro if that was his understanding based on the discussions with Chief Crawley. Mr. Taliaferro noted that was his understanding, and he thought C hief C rawley may have already ordered the uniforms. Mayor Foley noted if that is the case, then he is okay with the original motion. William J ones motioned to appropriate the $10,000 donation from Deggeller Attractions to be used for handrail improvements at the football stadium and to purchase special clothing for police officers to be used for the Salem Fair and other events. J ames Martin seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ohnson, J ones, Martin, Saunders D.Appropriation of F unds Consider request to appropriate budget for the Technology Firepower Appliance lease and transfer lease payment budget to the Debt Service Fund. Audit - Finance Committee Mr. J ones noted the Audit Finance C ommittee also discussed this request. In J uly 2019, the C ity entered into a five-year lease for two new firepower appliances needed to refresh the C ity’s firewall infrastructure. D ue to criteria identified in the lease, it must be recorded in the general ledger as a capital lease. Per Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, this requires several budget entries to ensure proper reporting of the capital lease. Staff requests Council to approve the breakdown of budget amendments submitted to appropriate the capital lease according to accounting standards and to transfer the necessary lease payment budget to the debt service fund in F Y2020. T he C ommittee reviewed the request and recommends appropriating the budget amendments submitted for the capital lease. William J ones motioned to approve the budget amendments submitted to appropriate the capital lease according to accounting standards and to transfer the necessary lease payment budget to the debt service fund in FY2020. J ames Martin seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ohnson, J ones, Martin, Saunders E.Appropriation of F unds Consider request to accept and appropriate C A RES Act funding. Audit - Finance Committee Mr. J ones noted the Audit Finance C ommittee also discussed this request this evening. T he C ity has received C A RES Act funding in the amount of $41,567.39 to cover EMS costs related to the pandemic. T he Fire Department has incurred additional costs for overtime, part-time salaries and EMS supplies that will be covered by these funds. Any funds not spent by D ecember 31, 2020, must be returned. T he $41,567.39 in stimulus funds will be used to cover costs related to the pandemic that were not included in the operating budget. T he C ommittee reviewed the request and recommends appropriating the C A RES Act funding in the amount of $41,567.39 to cover EMS costs related to the C O VID-19 pandemic. Mayor Foley asked what this money could be used for. For instance, if the EMS has to make a run, and it is a C O VID-19 patient, is this an acceptable use? O r is it applicable to internal items such as equipment, supplies, etc? Ms. J ordan noted that is it is related to supplies purchased specifically for C O VID -19 such as additional masks, P PE, face shields, gowns, drugs or pharmaceutical, overtime, etc. T here was further discussion regarding the C A RES Act funding. William J ones motioned to approve appropriating the C A RES Act funding in the amount of $41,567.39 to cover EMS costs related to the C O VID-19 pandemic. J ames Martin seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ohnson, J ones, Martin, Saunders F.Boards and Commissions Consider appointments to various boards and commissions. Mr. Martin asked Vice Mayor J ohnson if her term was also coming up for reappointment on the Transportation Planning Organization (T PO) Policy Board, and she noted that this was correct that is is listed further down the list on the letter submitted. She would assume and that Council would want to wait and see who ends up being on the next C ouncil before making a decision about her position on this board. Mr. Martin noted that he and Mayor Foley are alternates on this Board so he was not sure if one of them would move into Mrs. J ohnson's position as a regular member. Mayor Foley noted that he agrees with Vice Mayor J ohnson that we should wait until the new C ouncil member(s) before making this decision. Mayor Foley noted the other vacancies on the boards and commissions. J ane J ohnson motioned to reappoint Nathan Routt to the Board of Appeals (USBC Building Code) for a five-year term ending May 11, 2025; to reappoint Bill J ones as a member and Byron R. Foley and J ames Martin as alternates to the Roanoke Valley Transportation Planning Organization (T PO) Policy Board for three-year terms ending J une 30, 2023; and to reappoint Melinda Payne and Benjamin Tripp as members and J ames E. Taliaferro, II and C harles E. VanAllman, J r. as alternates to the Transportation Technical Committee (T T C) for three-year terms ending J une 30, 2023. J ames Martin seconded the motion. Ayes: Foley, J ohnson, J ones, Martin, Saunders 7.C losed Session 8.Adjournment Mr. J ones noted he has had some emails and phone calls concerning interest and late payments for personal property and real estate taxes. He is aware our ordinance specifies how we handle the interest and late payments. He would like to have staff take a look at this and see what the alternatives might be in these circumstances. Mr. Taliaferro noted that staff would look into this. Mr. Yost noted there has been a lot of discussion regarding this topic. He noted that Section 58.1-3916 of the C ode of Virginia allows C ity Councils to do a lot of things. One of those things is change the due date of the tangible personal property and real estate taxes. We have already taken this action under this section. Both of those taxes are now due on J une 30th of this year as C ouncil is well aware. Also part of this code section allows the governing bodies of localities to set penalties and interest for late payments. Salem C ity Council at some point set penalties and interest as this is already in our code book. We instituted a 10% late penalty for a late payment and then interest begins to accrue at the rate of 10% of both the principal amount and the penalty for each late payment. Technically from a legal perspective, we cannot waive penalities and interest; however, C ouncil can set the rates. If they wanted to, they could set the rate for penalty at 0% and the rate for interest at 0%. He noted that he has done some research, and he is aware that several jurisdictions have gone ahead and set the penalty at 0% and the interest at 0% subject to the penalty being reinstated at a later time. He further discussed penalties and interest for personal property and real estate taxes. He noted that it would not be very difficult to do an ordinance as he has discussed, if this is the route that Council would like to go. Further, we have several meetings before the end of J une if we want to move forward with this. Mayor Foley and Council thanked Mr. Yost for this information. He asked Mr. Taliaferro if staff could look into this and get back to Council with a recommendation. Mr. Taliaferro noted staff would look into this further. T he meeting was adjourned at 8:11 p.m.