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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-21-191 1 Minutes of the Pulaski Town Council Work Session held at 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, May 21, 2019 in the Council Chambers of the Town Municipal Building at 42 First Street, N.W. In attendance were: Mayor: Councilmen Present: Councilmen Absent: Administration: Legal Counsel: Press: David L. Clark, presiding G. Tyler Clontz; Brooks R. Dawson; Lane R. Penn; James A. Radcliffe Gregory C. East; Joseph K. Goodman Shawn M. Utt, Town Manager Nichole L. Hair, Deputy Town Manager Spencer A. Rygas, Town Attorney Melinda Williams, Southwest Times Staff: Chief Robbie Kiser, P.F.D. Jessica McKinney, Technical Assistant Leslie Parmelee, Senior Center Assistant Lt. Mike Parmelee, P.P.D. Bill Pedigo, Town Engineer David Quesenberry, Clerk of Council Rebecca Reece, Finance Director Chief Gary Roche, P.P.D. Others Present: Rev. Terrie Sternberg Catherine Van Noy 1. Call to Order. The meeting was called to order at 4:58 p.m. by Mayor Clark. 2. Roll Call. Following the call to order, the roll was taken. Present were: Mayor Clark, Mr. Clontz, Mr. Dawson, Mr. Penn, and Mr. Radcliffe. Absent were Mr. East and Mr. Goodman. Given that a majority of Council members were in attendance, a quorum was present for the conduct of business. 3. Modification of the Agenda. No modifications were made to the agenda. 4. Guests and Visitors. Mayor Clark welcomed all persons to the meeting and thanked them for attending. 5. Walking Tour to 85/87/89 W. Main St, and 94 W. Main St. Council then took a recess starting at 5:00 p.m. to do a walking tour of 85/87/89 West Main Street and 94 West Main Street, Mr. Luke Allison and Mr. Steve Critchfield took Council through the store fronts showing the development of the first floors of the structures for business use and the second floors for residential apartments. Following the tours and a brief discussion on the financial aspect of the projects, Council returned to chambers and reconvened at 5:44 p.m. The next item considered was the Consent Agenda. Page 1 of 7/May 21, 2019 6. Consent Agenda. a. April 16, 2019, Council Work Session Minutes b. April 30, 2019, Budget Meeting Minutes c. May 14, 2019, Budget Meeting Minutes Mayor Clark said he would entertain a motion for approval of all three sets of minutes with a correction to the minutes of April 30, 2019. Mr. Radcliffe moved to accept all three sets of minutes as written. The motion was seconded by Mr. Dawson and approved on unanimous voice vote of Council Council next heard from Mrs. Catherine Van Noy regarding the Local Foods, Local Places Program 7. Public Hearings. There were no public hearings scheduled on the agenda. 8. Presentations. a. Local Foods, Local Places Program, Catherine Van Noy & Nichole Hair Mrs. Van Noy told Council that the Local Foods, Local Places Program was a federal grant opportunity offered by EPA, in conjunction with other federal agencies. The grant sought ways by which food related initiatives could catalyze community development (e.g. job creation) and design practices through the intersection of food and community. The grant was a technical assistance grant with a highly competitive application process. An application had been submitted highlighting food related programing in Downtown Pulaski consisting of the Marketplace, the Community Garden /YMCA feeding program and the potential for offering food opportunities through the Calfee Training School Project. The open-ended nature of the application discussed what the program would look like for the Town, relative to these three centers, regarding coordination of programming and connections for physical planning. Mrs. Van Noy said the output of the grant would be an action plan. A steering committee had been developed prior to the application and had conducted discussions with a multi -agency committee led by the EPA. There would be a two day workshop starting on June 17th with a community tour by the steering committee who would visit the three sites to discuss with site representatives their visions for their facility and how it would fit into the premise of the grant. The following day, the steering committee would meet to develop an action plan based on the findings and conversations from the tour. In concluding her presentation, Mrs. Van Noy invited Council and members of the community to participate in developing something for the future for these three sites and encouraging local food access in Pulaski. Regarding funding, she noted that the federal agencies and their representatives would assist the town in connecting with future funding opportunities. As an LFLP community, Mrs. Van Noy said the Town would receive bonus points on its applications. She viewed the grant as an investment that would open doors for the Town. Council was asked to spread the word and contact her with the names of possible participants and interested parties. Mr. Utt suggested that Council members be invited to participate in some part of the process. Mr. Dawson asked if the goal was to allow the Town to say it had completed the process making future grant funding more likely. Mrs. Van Noy replied yes and that she had already identified other funding sources. Mr. Utt added that looking from the day care perspective, Calfee School needed a commercial kitchen. He suggested that funds from this grant or others could fund a kitchen for that location. There being no further questions, Mrs. Van Noy concluded her presentation. With the conclusion of discussion, Council next heard from Mrs. Van Noy concerning the Pulaski Arts & Cultural Collaborative. Page 2 of 7/May 21, 2019 9. Public Operations. a. Pulaski Arts & Cultural Collaborative (PACC), Catherine Van Noy Mrs. Van Noy said that the Community Foundation of the New River Valley, a funding agency that provided grants to entities in the NRV, had offered a technical assistance grant for a non-profit accelerator project. The Foundation had secured funding to hire Spark Mill, a non-profit consultation firm, to bring their model of non-profit acceleration to the New River Valley. Mrs. Van Noy conducted a review, under the auspices of Pulaski on Main, of arts and culture in the Downtown. She felt there was a disconnect within the Fine Arts community which presented an opportunity to move that community in a more coordinated manner. She submitted an application which was accepted and later attended, along with representatives of the Town's Fine Arts organizations, a two day workshop. One conclusion from the workshop was that there was a lack of awareness in the region of Pulaski's cultural and art opportunities in Downtown. The question was asked how the five cultural/arts organizations in the Downtown could be brought together to work as a team and support each other. The five organizations involved were: the New River Valley Regional Theater, the Fine Arts Center, the Pulaski Theater, the Adair Theater, and the Ratcliff Transportation Museum. What came out of the discussion between the five organizations during the workshop, was a process of regular meetings to foster understanding between the groups. In addition, to helping members of each organization become more familiar with the other, future areas of cross promotion and collaboration were identified. A "passport" was under development that would serve as an incentive for patrons to visit the other organizations. When the "passport" was filled, the visitor would receive some sort of prize. Ms. Van Noy complemented the efforts of Ms. McKinney (Pulaski Theater) on the initial design and development of the passport. In addition, Pulaski on Main purchased an ad in the Visitor's Guide to promote arts and culture which featured all five organizations. As part of their collaboration, the five Downtown arts and cultural organizations participated in the Fine Arts Center's Scholastic Arts Award gathering. Members from each group spoke to students about their organizations and emphasized the importance and economic impact of the arts. Concerning future activities, Mrs. Van Noy noted that the group would be: setting a calendar for meetings; finishing the "passport; and planning a Virginia Tourism Corporation tour of Downtown. She encouraged Council to support the activities of the fine arts community through participation, attendance and following their activities on Facebook. Mrs. Van Noy then concluded her remarks. Mayor Clark thanked Mrs. Van Noy for her presentation. Council next considered the contract revision for Pulaski on Main. b. Pulaski on Main Contract Revision Mr. Utt, referring to the draft revised contract in the packet, noted that the only major change to the contract was the monthly amount. The original contract had a $1,600 payment up front with $38,400 divided between 12 monthly payments. Under the revision, the $1,600 was incorporated into the monthly payments raising the monthly payment to approximately $3,300 from $3,200. Some language was also changed from Pulaski on Main's preparing an annual work plan to maintaining an annual work plan. Since the original contract was a 12 month contract and there were delays with the revised contract, Mr. Utt recommended that the revised contract be ratified effective back to April 2019, for a twelve month period at the same annual cost to the Town. Mr. Clontz moved to approve the Pulaski on Main contract revision as stated. The motion was seconded by Mr. Dawson and approved on the following roll call vote: Page 3 of 7/May 21, 2019 Lane R. Penn -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Absent Brooks R. Dawson -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye Gregory C. East -Absent James A. Radcliffe -Aye Next item considered by Council were the Goals for the Community Development Department. c. Goals for Community Development Department Ms. Hair referred to the draft goals in the packet. She said she had encouraged staff to come up with goals that could help the organization be more efficient and effective in the way it operated and interacted with the public. While some goals were not as measurable, others had dates and strategies for accomplishing the goal. She emphasized that a document of this type was a "living document" which would have achieved goals removed and new goals added as time progressed. Ms. Hair said the document was presented in draft format and she hoped it was on the right path that Council desired. If not, she asked for feedback to make sure Council's goals were met and that forward movement would continue. Mr. Utt referenced Mr. Goodman's memo which expressed a concern that there was too much traveling to training opportunities. He said he personally wanted to invest in the staff through education and that he would reach otit to Mr. Goodman when he returned. Ms. Hair added that a lot of the training was mandated under the certifications held from the state. Both she and Mr. Sanders held certifications for zoning which had to be maintained over a three year period. The same was true for the Building Department and Code Enforcement Officer which were required to have continuing education opportunities. Ms. Hair said they tried to avail themselves of local training opportunities, but sometimes it was just not possible. Mr. Utt said that Town -wide for this current fiscal year, just over $34,000 was budgeted for travel type conference expenses which included the Police Department's travel for Temporary Detention Orders (TDO). Expenses for this fiscal year were approximately $24,000-$25,000 which was well under budget. Mr. Radcliffe stated that if employees were expected to be certified for the Town, they had to have the education. Ms. Hair told Council if they had any questions or suggestions to please contact her. The next item was a presentation and request on behalf of the Alliance for Better Childcare. 10. Finance. a. Alliance for Better Childcare Request, Terrie Sternberg Rev. Terrie Sternberg addressed Council on the Alliance for Better Childcare. Following a meeting with an official of the Alliance, Rev. Sternberg learned that 27% of children in Pulaski County arrived at kindergarten or public school not ready or prepared to learn. Referring to her packet, she noted that children who were not prepared to learn were subject to higher and higher risk for negative outcomes. The Alliance for Better Childcare, in addition to looking for ways to increase the accessibility and affordability of child care, sought to look at compensation for teachers because of the turnover, lack of professionalism and professional development among those teachers who teach children. The quality of teachers required improvement, with teachers needing to see themselves as professionals as well as to possess more credentialing. Currently teachers had limited vision and little motivation to improve credentialing because of what was involved. The area she continued had 26 to 28 teachers at Building Bridges and at the YMCA. These two centers were the intended recipients of the Pulaski Early Education Reward for Credentials (PERC) Page 4 of 7/May 21, 2019 program. Based on a model program from Giles County, PERC would be funded by donations. The goal of the program would be to give financial incentives to help child care workers with professional development. To give these teachers rewards based on their credentials would cost $41,000. Rev. Sternberg mentioned that all funds raised by the program went to the teachers as pay. The program itself would be a two year pilot program. After reviewing contributions from the County and Department of Social Services, she requested that the Town, for this year and hopefully next year, match the County's contribution ($2,500) for the program. The fiscal agent of the program would be the Community Foundation of the New River Valley which had made great strides in advancing child care in the New River Valley. The amount of funding to each teacher would depend upon their credentials. Rev. Sternberg said the existence of this program would hopefully provide an incentive for child care workers to improve their credentials. She noted that 34 other states had similar programs and that higher educational requirements in some states for child care workers reached the baccalaureate level. The pay for child care workers in Pulaski County she added was $8.50 an hour. Rev. Sternberg noted the importance of early child care education in the development of children and its impact as a cost benefit to the community in general. Mr. Radcliffe expressed his support for the program. Mr. Utt said expenses of this kind were what the contingency fund was for. He felt that $2,500 could be easily provided for the request if Council wished to contribute. Mr. Dawson asked if there were any concerns with the program being engaged for just those two centers. Rev. Sternberg replied that the intent of the program was to try to get the biggest impact, since these children were at full time centers. Given that 66% of children had both parents working, there was a great need for children to be in all -day childcare. These long duration centers were where teachers of the highest quality were needed. Centers participating in the program had to commit to paying their employees more. However, program participation would also bring greater involvement by Virginia Quality which would bring more mentoring, guiding and teaching of the teachers themselves to enhance their teaching ability. Presently the two childcare centers were rated a "2" on a scale of ""5", which she noted was not very good. The program presently was being done as a pilot project because of the state legislature's and the governor's growing emphasis that workforce development relied on early childhood development. Mr. Dawson asked if the program was one year or two. Rev. Sternberg replied that it was a two year program, but that appeals were being made for one fiscal year because two fiscal years could not be budgeted during one year. After a review of other donations, Rev. Sternberg concluded her presentation. Mr. Radcliffe said he did not have a problem in donating $3,000. Following a brief discussion, Mr. Clontz moved that $3,000 be taken from Contingency for the Alliance for Better Child Care request. The motion was seconded by Mr. Radcliffe and approved on the following roll call vote: Lane R. Penn -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Absent Brooks R. Dawson -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye Gregory C. East -Absent James A. Radcliffe -Aye Council next considered the request from NRCC's ACCE program. b. New River Community College ACCE Program Mayor Clark said that the Town appropriated money for the ACCE program some eighteen months ago. Mr. Penn asked if the appropriation would have to done again. Mr. Utt explained that since the earlier appropriation was not spent, it automatically went back to the reserves. The community college had asked the Town to re -appropriate the funds out of reserves again, contingent upon the County Page 5 of 7/May 21, 2019 getting administrators for the program. The County had approached the NRCC Education Foundation to act for the County, which Mr. Utt concluded, was the way he thought things would end up. Mr. Utt said the $50,000 was originally approved to come out of reserves and that Council could consider approving $25,000 per fiscal year or a one-time appropriation of $50,000. He said he told the community college not to expect this appropriation on an annual basis, describing the Town contribution as a "spark plug" or "jump starter." It was not something that the Town could afford to do on a regular basis nor should it since education was not a core service of the Town. After a brief discussion on how best to appropriate the funding, Mr. Radcliffe moved that Council appropriate $50,000 for the NRCC ACCE program from unrestricted reserves. Mr. Penn seconded the motion which was approved on the following roll call vote: Lane R. Penn -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Absent Brooks R. Dawson -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye Gregory C. East -Absent James A. Radcliffe -Aye Council then moved on to the Round Table Discussions. 11. Legislative. No items were considered under this section. 12. Public Utilities No issues were scheduled for consideration. 13. Safety. There were no safety issues on the agenda. 14. Human Resources. There were no agenda items scheduled for consideration. 15. Round Table Discussion. Mayor Clark asked if Council members had any comments. Mr. Penn, Mr. Dawson and Mr. Clontz said they had no comment. Mr. Radcliffe said that now the narcotics task force was in place, he really wanted to concentrate on abandoned houses as much as possible since the two problems (narcotics and abandoned houses) went hand in hand. He added he really wanted to concentrate on getting these structures down. Ms. Hair informed him that Ms. Hodge, the Code Compliance Officer, had a case in court the next day. The goal she said was to have the structure torn down either by the judge mandating that the Town perform the demolition, with a lien then to be filed on the property, or that the property owner take it down. There being no further comments, Council moved on to the Closed Session. 16. Closed Session Mayor Clark requested a motion for Council to go into Closed Session for two items as follows: one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 (A) 1 a personnel matter concerning the Town Manager's evaluation; and, one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 (A) 7 consultation with legal counsel regarding actual or probable litigation concerning a zoning application. Page 6 of 7/May 21, 2019 Mr. Clontz moved to enter Closed Session for the referenced items. The motion was seconded by Mr. Dawson and approved on the following roll call vote: Lane R. Penn -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Absent Brooks R. Dawson -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye Gregory C. East -Absent James A. Radcliffe -Aye Council entered Closed Session at 6:35 p.m. and returned from Closed Session at 7:14 p.m. Mayor Clark asked for a certification motion that the Council discussed only those two items for which they went into Closed Session: one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 (A) 1 a personnel matter concerning the Town Manager's evaluation; and, one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 (A) 7 consultation with legal counsel regarding actual or probable litigation regarding a zoning application. Mr. Dawson made the certification motion which was seconded by Mr. Clontz and approved on the following roll call vote: Lane R. Penn -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Absent Brooks R. Dawson -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye Gregory C. East -Absent James A. Radcliffe -Aye 17. Future Meetings and Adjournment Mayor Clark reminded Council of the upcoming meeting on June 4th at 7:00 p.m. and the cancellation of the work session for June 18th. There being no further business, Mr. Dawson moved to adjourn. The motion was seconded by Mr. Radcliffe and approved by unanimous voice e of Council at 7:16 p.m. 1 ATTEST: David N. Quesenberry Clerk of Council 1 App Mayor Page 7 of 7/May 21, 2019 Clark