HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-16-18Minutes of the Town Council Work Session held at 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, January 16, 2018 in the Council
Chambers of the Town Municipal Building at 42 First Street, N.W.
In attendance were:
Mayor: Mayor Robert N. Glenn, presiding
Following roll call, Mayor Glenn requested a motion for the following additions to the agenda: (1) move
item 12a. "Code Enforcement Update" to Item 7a "Presentations"; (2) add "Ladder Truck Grant" to new
Item 12a; and, (3) under Item 15 "Closed Session", add three items; one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a
(1) regarding employment contract review; one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a (3) regarding Ridge
Avenue properties; and one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a (5) regarding `Project Plank 2".
The motion was made by Mr. Penn, seconded by Mr. Goodman and approved on the following roll call
vote:
Mr. Radcliffe
Councilmen Present:
David L. Clark; Gregory C. East; Joseph K. Goodman;
Goodman
-Aye
H.M. Kidd; Lane R. Penn; James A. Radcliffe
-Aye
Administration:
Shawn M. Utt, Town Manager
-Aye
Mr. Clark
Nichole L. Hair, Deputy Town Manager
Mr.
Legal Counsel
Spencer A. Rygas, Town Attorney
Press:
Melinda Williams Southwest Times
Mike Williams, Pulaski County Patriot
Staff:
Dave Hart, Director, Parks & Facilities
Carla Hodge, Code Compliance Officer
Chief Robbie Kiser, P.F.D.
Lt. Jill Neice, P.P.D
Bill Pedigo, Town Engineer
David N. Quesenberry, Clerk of Council
Rebecca Reece, Finance Director
Others Present
Chief Gary Roche, P.P.D
Clark Payne
Mayor Glenn called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
Following roll call, Mayor Glenn requested a motion for the following additions to the agenda: (1) move
item 12a. "Code Enforcement Update" to Item 7a "Presentations"; (2) add "Ladder Truck Grant" to new
Item 12a; and, (3) under Item 15 "Closed Session", add three items; one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a
(1) regarding employment contract review; one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a (3) regarding Ridge
Avenue properties; and one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a (5) regarding `Project Plank 2".
The motion was made by Mr. Penn, seconded by Mr. Goodman and approved on the following roll call
vote:
Mr. Radcliffe
-Aye
Mr.
Goodman
-Aye
Mr. East
-Aye
Mr.
Kidd
-Aye
Mr. Clark
-Aye
Mr.
Penn
-Aye
Mayor Glenn then welcomed guests and visitors to the meeting.
Council then moved to the Consent Agenda (Item 5). Mayor Glenn called for a motion concerning the
minutes of the work session of December 19, 2017. Mr. Kidd moved that Council adopt the minutes of
Tuesday, December 19, 2017 as written. The motion was seconded by Mr. East and approved by the
unanimous voice vote of the Council.
There being no public hearing, Mayor Glenn moved to Item 7a under "Presentations" an update on code
enforcement given by Ms. Carla Hodge, Code Compliance Officer.
Page 1 of 10/January 16, 2018
Ms. Hodge presented a Power Point presentation to Council showing some of the properties she had
encountered in her enforcement efforts and others where she had taken owners to court for abatement.
Ms. Hair said Ms. Hodge's caseload over the past six months resulted in 434 cases in different actions.
She added that during the past six months there were 707 cases total with Ms. Hodge involved in 50% of
the overall caseload.
Mayor Glenn complemented Ms. Hodge on doing a great job and felt the compliance position was more
than necessary and a good investment on the part of the community. He told Ms. Hodge that she had the
full support of the Council and that it was past time to clean up the town to present a good image to
persons entering the community.
Mr. East asked about the response from the courts. Ms. Hodge replied that she got a very good
response especially from the General District Court judges. Mr. East then asked about the time frame for
going through a court setting. Ms. Hodge said the process was about four months.
Mr. East then inquired about the Volkswagen vans on Route 11. Ms. Hair responded said the matter was
handled under zoning. She informed Council that she had, as of the previous Thursday, sent out a
zoning violation notice and had received a reply that the site development plan was moving forward and
would be at the Town offices in 30 days. The owner she added did receive an approval for setbacks from
the Board of Zoning Appeals to allow the buildings, so it appears he intends to develop the property.
Mayor Glenn felt Mr. East's concern with the courts was important and felt as staff established a track
record, the courts would be more receptive to the Town's efforts. He added that he was pleased how the
courts had been working with the Town and Ms. Hodge, because he felt it was important for the courts to
see the matter from the Town's perspective. Mayor Glenn commended the staff and asked for comments
from Council.
Mr. Radcliffe said that in the summer, he would like to discuss the possibility of Code Compliance having
access to inmate labor for a day or two per week. He also thanked staff for their work.
Mayor Glenn then moved to the next item on the agenda "Resolution 2018-05, Fair Housing
Certification". (Item 8a).
Mr. Utt noted that the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) with Kersey Bottom and the
Downtown required a different action each year, one of which may be a resolution or a brochure for the
project area, among other activities. He recommended this year that Council adopt the draft resolution as
part of the Town's CDBG contract.
Mayor Glenn opened the floor to entertain a motion from Council to adopt Resolution 2018-05. Mr. Penn
made the motion which was seconded by Mr. Clark and approved on the following roll call vote:
Mr.
Radcliffe
-Aye
Mr.
Goodman
-Aye
Mr.
East
-Aye
Mr.
Kidd
-Aye
Mr.
Clark
-Aye
Mr.
Penn
-Aye
Next item of business was the draft Budget Calendar for FY 19. (Item 9a.).
Mr. Utt said the budget review process had already begun internally with Department Heads getting their
budget forms for submission in early February. The first budget work session was scheduled for March
13th and one would follow every Tuesday until budget completion. He noted there were three extra days
built into the schedule if needed. If Council was accepting of the draft, Mr. Utt requested that Council
formally adopt the budget schedule as presented, subject to change if needed.
Page 2 of 10/January 16, 2018
Mr. Clark moved that the budget calendar be adopted for Fiscal Year 19 as presented. The motion was
seconded by Mr. East and approved on the following roll call vote:
Mr. Radcliffe -Aye Mr. Goodman -Aye
Mr. East -Aye Mr. Kidd -Aye
Mr. Clark -Aye Mr. Penn -Aye
Council moved to the next item of business involving a draft policy for the Public -Private Education
Facilities & Infrastructure Act of 2002. (Item 10a.).
Mr. Utt noted that the packet had guidelines that were discussed at the last Council meeting. He
reviewed the legislation's provision for public-private partnerships that could prove potentially useful with
respect to the Gatewood RFP, 67 and 69 West Main Street RFP, and 72 East Main Street. He added the
act could also prove useful in helping provide financing for the public safety facility. While he did not
know for certain if the act could be used, he noted that it could not be used if it was not adopted. He then
asked Council for their comments, remarking that the draft document was based on a similar document
from Middlesex County.
Mayor Glenn asked if the document was a '`boilerplate" document or was it the Town's. Mr. Utt said the
document was not prepared from scratch, but was prepared from the model guidelines distributed at the
last Council meeting.
Mayor Glenn then asked if the document were adopted could it be easily amended if needed. Mr. Utt felt
that it could by another Council resolution.
Mr. Goodman questioned the review fees feeling they were "pretty steep" numbers. Mr. Utt noted there
was a $5,000 review fee for unsolicited proposals and $10,000 if the Town elects to proceed with the
project. The funds could go to paying an engineering firm for review of the proposal. Since the bid was
unsolicited, he said, the Town should not pay the extra cost.
Mayor Glenn noted that the Town would refund any portion of the fees paid in excess of costs so there
would be a credit back to the person making the request. Mr. Goodman asked what if the cost went over
the review fees for an unsolicited bid. Mr. Utt replied that if the Town had the cost estimate and there was
an overage, then it would be mentioned in open conversation to the developer that they would be
responsible for costs in excess of the original estimate. Mr. Utt also highlighted in the document a
provision requiring the proposer to pay excess costs to the Town. He reminded Council that these
provisions were for unsolicited proposals not proposals submitted under an RFP (e.g. Gatewood).
Mr. Goodman asked if the cost would include staff time. Mr. Utt said it could if the time was documented.
Mr. Goodman replied that both "hard" and "soft" costs should be covered.
Mayor Glenn felt the fees were not unreasonable based on his experience at the airport. He opined this
provision protected the community, especially from any financial losses should the venture fail. Mr.
Goodman clarified that he did not say the numbers were too high, but felt all costs should be covered
with the fees acting as an escrow account.
Mayor Glenn asked about the timeliness of the staff in informing an applicant that additional fees were
required. Mr. Utt responded that if the Town received an unsolicited proposal, the Town would go to a
professional firm, get some prices and inform the applicant of the costs. The choice to proceed would fall
on the applicant. Given the involvement of the applicant, Mr. Utt felt there should not be any surprises.
Mayor Glenn advised that staff should quickly contact the applicant if costs begin adding up.
Page 3 of 10/January 16, 2018
Mayor Glenn then opened the floor for a motion on the public-private partnership document. Mr. Utt said
that the motion would be to direct staff to create a resolution incorporating the Town document. Mr. Clark
moved to direct staff to perform the necessary actions to place the Public -Private Educational Facilities
and Infrastructure Act of 2002 and the Public -Private Transportation Act of 1995 into the Town Code with
the corrections on Page 2, changing from "County" to "Town". Mr. Goodman seconded the motion which
was approved on the following roll call vote:
Mr. Radcliffe -Aye Mr. Goodman -Aye
Mr. East -Aye Mr. Kidd -Aye
Mr. Clark -Aye Mr. Penn -Aye
Next item of business was the charter amendment relating to the Vice -Mayor. (Item 10b.).
Mr. Utt informed the Council that since the last meeting he had been in contact with Delegate Rush
asking if a charter amendment could be pushed through this session of the General Assembly. The reply
was that if it was an "ultimate emergency" he might be able to push it through, but he recommended that
it be put before the 2019 General Assembly after further study by the Town.
Mr. Utt also discussed with Delegate Rush the possibility of the Assembly moving Town elections,
stressing the Town only wanted the amendment. He told Council that Delegate Rush could introduce
legislation but that the bill would go into committee with unknown results. Delegate Rush said he had no
concerns over the request for clarification.
Mr. Rygas advised that the section involving the Vice -Mayor seemed ambiguous. He advised that the
appointment of the Vice -Mayor should be aligned with the Mayoral timing and leave it at that. He did not
foresee a challenge one way or the other to a change. He recommended that it be changed back to the
former way.
Mayor Glenn asked if action was needed by Council. Mr. Utt said it was not. Mr. Goodman suggested the
Council rules should be updated since the rules define the Vice -Mayor election in July. He remained
cautious on a charter change due to previous problems in Richmond and that it should only be done in
the event when a Charter change was really needed.
Mr. Rygas agreed, noting that looking at the interpretation that it did not make sense that the Vice -Mayor
would be elected off -cycle. In the context of the entire section the person would be appointed Vice -Mayor
at the same time as the Mayor for a two year term. A common sense interpretation would lend to
appointment the old way. He said that Council should appoint the Vice -Mayor again in July.
There being no further comments, Council then considered Item 11 a. "Grants for Galvanized Water
Lines."
Mr. Utt noted that Mr. Radcliffe had asked that this item be added to the agenda. He reviewed the
success of the County PSA in getting funding for water line replacement usually for galvanized pipes.
The County informed Mr. Utt that the pipes replaced happened to be galvanized and there was no
special grant for galvanized pipe involved.
The Health Department, he continued, had an annual grant application process that the Town could
apply for. The first step would be a formal PER document identifying the problem areas in the Town. To
start, Mr. Utt suggested putting together a planning grant application to the Health Department for a
Town -wide assessment to prioritize water line replacements, which would be due in March. If Council
was agreeable, the documents could be presented to them at the February work session for their review.
Page 4 of 10/January 16, 2018
Mr. Radcliffe commented that in the past few days, the Public Works crew had worked around the clock,
receiving some 60 calls for waterline repairs. He agreed with Mr. Utt that problem areas needed to be
identified and the pipe replaced.
Mr. Goodman asked if lead lines had been identified. Mr. Pedigo said the Town had passed the
monitoring tests for lead which were conducted continuously. Mr. Goodman said those pipes should be
replaced as well to prevent another issue. Mr. East asked if there was a logical way to identify problem
areas. Mr. Pedigo said that indicators were number of breaks, number of service calls, low pressure, and
low flow among others. Mr. East then asked if there was a way to quantify or rate the problems. Mr.
Pedigo said the water model would assist with that.
Mr. Goodman asked if the water lines had been "scoped". Mr. Pedigo said the Town did sewer lines,
but had not done water lines due to the difficulties involved. (e.g. sterilization) He added that he felt the
main lines were pretty good.
Following discussion, Mayor Glenn asked Mr. Utt to get the necessary information for the Council for the
next work session.
Next Item on the agenda was a grant for a ladder truck (Item 12a.)
Mr. Utt discussed the Fire Department's application for a grant for a new aerial/ladder truck, and briefly
reviewed the past application from 2016. Regarding a resubmission for a new ladder truck grant, he
anticipated that the cost of the truck was $1,000,000, which a required matching grant of $50,000. The
deadline was early February, before the next Council meeting, and he asked if Council was still
supportive of authorizing another application for a ladder truck grant. If Council wished to proceed he
said, an authorization was needed for the staff to apply for the Assistance to Firefighters Grant for the
aerial truck with the understanding there would be a 5% match required for up to $50,000.
Chief Kiser said the department received some pointers regarding their grant application from the last
time. In addition, at that time vehicles were not a priority, but this year they are a higher priority. He also
said that they learned that the department did not do enough fund raising. Presently, he added, the
department had three fund raisers in progress to be listed in the grant.
Mayor Glenn asked if the grant would give all the needed attachments to the truck. Chief Kiser replied
that it would for the most part but not as much for the equipment which the department would fund.
Mayor Glenn asked for clarification if there would be a platform on the top of the ladder. Chief Kiser
replied that the platform was on the truck.
Mr. Radcliffe asked if there was a place large enough to park the vehicle. Chief Kiser responded that the
truck would fit in the current garage both height -wise and lengthwise, since the measurements of the
building were taken before the truck specifications were done. Mr. Utt and Chief Kiser said the new
curbing and concrete poured were designed to accommodate the new truck.
Following the discussion, Mr. Goodman moved to authorize Town staff to apply for the Assistance to
Firefighters Grant with the aerial fire truck with the understanding that there would be a five percent (5%)
match up to $50,000. The motion was seconded by Mr. Kidd and approved on the following roll call vote:
Mr. Radcliffe -Aye Mr. Goodman -Aye
Mr. East -Aye Mr. Kidd -Aye
Mr. Clark -Aye Mr. Penn -Aye
Council then began consideration of Human Resource issues starting with a "Proposed Tier System for
Town Personnel". (Item 13a.)
Page 5 of 10/January 16, 2018
Mr. Utt reviewed the proposed tier system set up internally to allow lower scale employees to move up
within their job category. Since some positions have little turnover, lower scale employees seeking
advancement usually end up leaving the Town. Mr. Utt said that the tier system would allow those
employee to have an attainable goal to move up within their job category. He requested that Council
allow him to look at all positions since he estimated that 2/3rds of the employees could benefit from such
an arrangement which would exclude management level staff.
The advantages of the program he continued would be that employees would seek to better themselves
to the benefit of the Town. Costs that might result could be incorporated into the current budget. Costs
might be possibly in the $30,000-$40,000 range that could be offset by employee data from the salary
study. He noted that there had been some retirements and attrition which would reduce that cost to
perhaps $20,000-$25,000.
The benefits he felt, outweighed the costs. While he did not expect the Council to take action
immediately, he requested a dialogue with Council to gauge where they stood to have a final
recommendation to move forward at the February 6th Council meeting. Mr. Utt said he did not want to
keep employees waiting too long but felt there were opportunities for the Town to retain more employees
in all departments.
Mr. East remarked that regarding the CDL, there was currently no incentive to get it. Mr. Utt said a CDL
was required to be an operator, so a laborer could not become an operator without the CDL. Mr. East
then asked who would be responsible for identifying each of these levels and constituting what would
be a Level 1, 2 or 3. He felt it was important to understand the process to ensure that many employees
would not end up automatically at a Level 3 and lose the meaning of the step.
Mr. Utt felt the job descriptions would help with that issue in addition to working the with Department
Heads to define what would be a Level 1, Level 2, or Level 3. The expectations would be different for
each department because department duties vary. Discussion then ensued concerning common
elements for jobs such as longevity, additional responsibilities, and certifications. Chief Roche
suggested one thing that would be universal across departments would be to have a good
performance evaluation or a tie in to disciplinary action.
Mr. East felt that overall he felt some of the job descriptions were lacking. Mr. Utt said that part of the
Compensation Study was new job descriptions and that the Town should continue revising what it has. If
the tier system was adopted there would be positions, for example of Account Clerk I, II and III with job
descriptions. Mr. Utt suggested that longevity might be a criteria for moving to another level after a given
period of time.
Mr. Goodman suggested looking at current Level II positions and dividing the duties to a lower and
higher end expectation, perhaps focusing on Level II duties to prepare an employee to move up from
that level. He felt the longevity clause would be required to address the issue of persons with
insufficient experience (i.e. one year service) from moving quickly up the tier in case of an opening.
Mr. Utt felt that the point was valid that a person, for example a Laborer I, could move up once criteria
for the next tier were met. Other positions had tiers, he added, and the proposed system would take
this and expand it Town -wide.
Mayor Glenn asked if there were any more comments. Mr. Goodman stated he thought it was a good
idea whose time was due and would help employees work their way up the salary scale even if a higher
position was not open. Mr. East asked how realistic was it to have the issue ready for Council action by
February 6th. Mr. Utt replied that the job description templates were available and it would be a matter of
figuring what the trigger would be (for the next level). Mr. Goodman felt that two weeks was not enough
time. He felt that a February presentation concerning a proposal for Council to formally instruct what the
Page 6 of 10/January 16, 2018
minimum expectations were for levels I, II and III would be acceptable. Then in a month, have
Department Heads report back with their results. Mr. Utt felt that descriptions could be prepared by the
February meeting.
Mr. Goodman suggested, in light of his and Mr. East's concerns over the work involved, that staff come
back to Council in February with the expectations and on March 6th return with the job descriptions,
giving staff a month for evaluation of the job descriptions.
Mayor Glenn asked if Council was in agreement. There being no comment he felt Mr. Utt had direction to
proceed.
Next item under consideration was the "Policy on Smoking in Town Owned Vehicles" (Item 13b.).
Mr. Utt noted that there had been much previous discussion on smoking. He referred Council to the
packet insert regarding other localities policies on smoking noting that many localities did not have a
policy. Mr. Utt then reviewed Council's previous action concerning smoking in general noting that in 2010
that Council had prohibited tobacco use in Town buildings and smoking within 25 feet of public
entrances, exits, or windows of Town buildings (Ordinance 2010-13). He added that the Town Attorney's
suggestion was that vehicles and open areas also be included in the ban, but that no further action was
taken on the issue.
Mr. Goodman added that regarding smoking at outdoor activities, the thought at that time was that
Council was not sure outdoor smoking could be regulated and if so, how it would be done.
Regarding vehicles, he continued there were too many questions to answer. Given that smoking was
present in several departments, the Town Manager at that time was instructed to come back with a
proposal but did not submit one.
Mr. Utt reviewed some of the discussions of the Human Resources Committee regarding smoking in
various departments. Mr. Penn asked if there had been any real problem. Mr. Utt replied that there had
been employees in the past allergic to cigarette smoke which could have been an issue. He raised the
possibility that new vehicles would be smoke free past a certain age or to have some cars available to
smokers and non-smokers. Mr. Penn asked what if an employee were caught smoking. Mr. Utt said that
would be part of the discussion in general and ventured that the Town's disciplinary policy might come
into play. Mr. Penn said that he felt that a policy would create a "nightmare". Mr. Utt acknowledged that it
might. Mr. Penn ventured that was why some localities took no action regarding smoking. Mr. Utt replied
that he did not ask for disciplinary action from other localities.
Mr. East opined that given the rates of smoking (15% smoking vs. 85% smoking), how would it be
addressed if an employee were out at night and had to sit in a vehicle with a smoker or stand out in the
cold. Mr. Radcliffe added that there should be no smoking period in Town vehicles.
Mr. Clark noted that his employer had implemented a non-smoking policy over a three year period and
initiated a smoking cessation policy for its employees. Violation of the policy resulted in termination.
Discussion continued on ways to address the issue including smokers having to pay towards their health
insurance; difficulty in proving a person smoked and difficulty in using the age of a vehicle for regulation
of smoking. Mr. Rygas cautioned in an extreme case if a non-smoker who rode with a smoker developed
a problem, they could join the Town in an action claiming that the condition resulted from smoking in the
vehicle. There might be a liability issue he concluded, if there were more than one person in the vehicle.
Mr. Goodman highlighted the problem if a non-smoker was assigned to a vehicle that had been smoked
in, then alternate transportation would have to be assigned. Exposure he said could result in a grievance
filed against the Town. He favored no smoking in Town vehicles, with an exemption for Public Works that
Page 7 of 10/January 16, 2018
included an opportunity for phasing out smoking. Another issue was the expense of cleaning a vehicle of
a smoker for a non-smoker.
Chief Roche said he had one employee, a smoker grandfathered in since 2001. This employee drove an
assigned vehicle. He felt if there were an exemption for Public Works there should be an exemption for
this person too.
Following additional discussion, Mayor Glenn said he favored a "slow motion" plan to allow employees
currently smoking to continue in the vehicles they are in, but others must abide by the new rules. Mr. Utt
proposed that the policy be phased in like the reduction in surplus time accrued. Mr. Goodman requested
that staff prepare a draft proposal with a multiyear approach.
Mayor Glenn asked for staff to prepare a proposal for a February session.
Council then moved to Item 13c "Take Home Vehicle Policy"
Mr. Utt reviewed data gathered on take home vehicles. He reviewed the number of take home vehicles
(39); the breakdown by department of take home vehicles ( 29 in P.D.; 6 in Engineering/Public Works; 2
in Administration and 2 in the Fire Department), and data collected regarding vehicles. The only
department having a written policy in place he said was the Police Department. In 2017, Mr. Utt, under a
pilot program, allowed 4 employees located outside the 15.38 mile radius to take home a vehicle for
research purposes.
Various reasons for allowing employees to take home a vehicle were listed in the packet with the most
prominent being: 24 hr. callout where immediate response is required; and, vehicles equipped with
specialized equipment related to a specific response need. Fleet data was compiled and reviewed with
Council regarding average miles, maintenance costs, fuel costs, mileage for one-way trip to work and
mileage to work for a round trip. According to the data, Mr. Utt said that increasing the radius form
15.38 miles to a 45 minute response time added 989.79 miles and cost $360.03 more than vehicles
within the radius. In addition, he mentioned the memo from Chief Roche concerning the reasons that
take home vehicles were beneficial to the town and the Police Department.
Mr. Utt said additional research might be needed. The 45 minute response time approach would result in
an increase of $14,000 out of a $15 million budget, less than one-tenth of one percent. He felt the benefit
outweighed the cost but the issue should be looked at in greater depth to determine the cost of the 15.38
mile radius to the 45 minute response time from the Town limits. The response time approach he felt
would be simpler to allow determination for whether an employee qualified for a vehicle.
Mr. Penn said his main concern was misuse of the vehicle. He added that when he worked for PSA he
saw Town cars all over the County with some used to drop off and pickup children at school. Chief
Roche interjected that that practice was not an issue. At one time he added it was, but the policy was
changed several years ago.
Mayor Glenn felt Council needed to look at the Police Department's vehicle policy and use the
Department's standards in a Town -wide vehicle policy.
Mr. Goodman said the public was inquiring as to why vehicles were in a certain location and how much it
cost. He felt the spreadsheet data was invalid. Discussion then ensued on the actual cost of a vehicle
being driven to and from a certain location in addition to vehicle wear, maintenance costs, etc. Mr. Utt
suggested that for certain employees outside the radius, if a vehicle were taken away and a pay raise
given, those employees would be dissatisfied. He added that use of a vehicle was a good benefit. Mr.
Penn agreed that an assigned vehicle resulted in much savings for an employee.
Page 8 of 10/January 16, 2018
Mr. East said that he felt the numbers did not reflect the true cost. Whatever decision was made he
added, needed to be based on real numbers. Mr. Clark noted that companies that paid a per diem rate
as opposed to having employee assigned a vehicle, ended up 50% ahead in having company vehicles.
After further discussion regarding costs, Mr. Utt suggested that staff could do further cost research
using different methods. Mr. Goodman suggested adding a column to the spreadsheet that gave the
miles per year and cost per year for driving a vehicle home.
Council then moved to the next item on the agenda "Roundtable Discussion" (Item 14).
Mr. Radcliffe said that the last two weeks had been hectic for the Town and that he appreciated the work
of the first responders.
Mr. East asked if there was a way to focus on short-term wins. He said that several citizens had
approached him regarding appearances and wondered if there could be baskets on Main Street. Mr.
Clark replied that was an ongoing discussion and that the goal was to have uniform plantings reflecting
the Town branding so that it all Town plantings would be easily identified. However it would be about a
two year process.
Mr. Clark said that something as simple as lights in the park had changed the temperament of the Town
which proved that small victories meant much to residents. He thanked Mr. East and all persons involved
with the effort.
Mr. Goodman thanked Mr. East for leading the effort for the lights and agreed that the Town should look
for little wins and short term accomplishments.
Mr. Kidd said that he had had only one person mention the take home vehicles. He also mentioned the
positive remarks about the things that had changed in the Town and urged that the Town move forward.
Mr. Penn had no comment.
Mayor Glenn asked that staff prepare a resolution honoring the PCHS Drama Club's State
Championship.
Mr. Rygas mentioned that the new general manager of the Yankees had expressed very positive
sentiments regarding the light display in the park at the Rotary meeting.
Mayor Glenn also said that at some point in the future, the Plant Manager at James Hardie wished to
speak to the Council.
There being no further discussion, Mayor Glenn called for a motion to enter Closed Session for: (1) one
item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a (1) Discussion, consideration, or interviews of prospective candidates
for employment; assignment, appointment, promotion, performance, demotion, salaries, disciplining, or
resignation of specific public officers, appointees, or employees of any public body regarding
employment contract review; (2) one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a (3): Discussion or consideration
of the acquisition of real property for a public purpose, or of the disposition of publicly held real property,
where discussion in an open meeting would adversely affect the bargaining position or negotiating
strategy of the public body concerning Ridge Avenue properties; and, (3) one item under Va. Code 2.2-
3711 a (5): Discussion concerning a prospective business or industry or the expansion of an existing
business or industry where no previous announcement has been made of the business' or industry's
interest in locating or expanding its facilities in the community regarding a prospective industry "Project
Plank 2".
Page 9 of 10/January 16, 2018
1
I
1
Mr. Goodman made the motion to enter Closed Session. The motion was seconded by Mr. Clark and
approved on the following Roll Call vote:
Mr. Radcliffe -Aye
Mr. East -Aye
Mr. Clark -Aye
Council entered Closed Session at 6:55 p.m.
Council returned from Closed Session at 8:05 p.m.
Mr. Goodman -Aye
Mr. Kidd -Aye
Mr. Penn -Aye
Mayor Glenn called for a motion that Council discussed only those issues for which it went into Closed
Session under Va. Code 2.2-3711 a (1), (3) and (5). The motion was made by Mr. Clark, seconded by
Mr. Goodman and approved on the following roll call vote:
Mr. Radcliffe -Aye Mr. Goodman -Aye
Mr. East -Aye Mr. Kidd -Aye
Mr. Clark -Aye Mr. Penn -Aye
Mayor Glenn said there was one action to take. Mr. Goodman moved to authorize staff to do all acts
necessary to acquire two parcels adjacent to the Town's Ridge Ave. water tank from Shiloh Partnership
for $2,000 per lot for a total of $4,000 subject to review and approval of the Town Attorney.
The motion was seconded by Mr. Clark and approved on the following roll call vote:
Mr. Radcliffe -Aye Mr. Goodman -Aye
Mr. East -Aye Mr. Kidd -Aye
Mr. Clark -Aye Mr. Penn -Aye
Following a review of future meeting dates, Mr. Goodman moved for adjournment. His motion was
seconded by Mr. Kidd and approved by unanimous voice vote at 8:15 p.m.
Approved: G --"'-
Robe . Glenn
Mayor
ATTEST:
,
/, I . , -
David N. Quesenberry-
Clerk of Council
Page 10 of 10/January 16, 2018