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HomeMy Public PortalAbout1977_05_11 tedG 2106 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF LEESBURG TOWN COUNCIL AND PUBLIC HEARING ON ZM-16, MAY 11;, 1977 . A regular meeting of the Leesburg Town Council was held in the • Council Chambers, 10 West Loudoun Street, Leesburg, Virginia, on May 11 , 1977. The meeting was called to order by the Mayor at 7 : 33 P.M. , with Mr. Cole offering the prayer, and followed with the Sa- lute to the Flag. Present were: Mayor Mary Anne Newman, Council- members Charles E. Bange, Glen P. Cole, Stanley D. Herrell , Jr. , James A. Rock, C. Terry Titus and John W. Tolbert, Jr. ; also Town Manager John Niccolls, Assistant to the Manager Jeffrey H. Minor, Director of Engineering Andrew G. Shope and Town Attorney George M. Martin. The minutes of the regular meeting of April 27, 1977 were ap- proved as written. Mayor Newman said that, on February 9, 1977 , Council adopted a resolution granting the Westmoreland Davis Memorial Foundation a sewer tap for the Morven Park Equestrian Institute, with the Founda- tion in turn allowing the Town to go onto its property to locate a new water supply and necessary related facilities. Now it seems that there is a problem concerning this arrangement. She asked that a representative of the Foundation address this question. Mr. Edward Maurer, Resident Manager of Morven Park, said there is no difficulty except that there is some extra verbage in the agreement. The only thing they are asking is that, in the event the Town places a water system on the property of the Foundation and in the event the Foundation' s water system fails, they might be allowed to hook onto the Town' s supply. There was some question as to whether they would have to pay for this water in the event they do hook onto the Town' s supply, however, they do not wish to pursue this matter at this time. A draft agreement will be submitted to the Town Manager. Mayor Newman said this will be discussed more fully by the Council now that they have a better understanding of the situation. Public Hearing on Rezoning Application ZM-16, Wallace and 'Nalls , Trustees. • Mr. John A. Wallace, Jr. , one of the owners of the property, introduced Mr. Thomas W. Nails and Mr. Thomas I. Blankenship, also owners. Mr. Walter F. Murray, another owner, was not present. Mr. Wallace presented to the Clerk an Affidavit that the proper notice of this proposed rezoning had been posted on the property in accord- ance with the Zoning Ordinance. The Planning Commission unanimously recommends the proposed rezoning of this property. There are two old houses on the property which are beyond repair and should be torn down. The lot on the front is currently zoned B-2 - a high commer- cial use, and is _currently being maintained by one of the neighbors with a garden. The property requested for rezoning is in the back and is grown up in weeds and tall grass. They feel that the use to which they want to put the property is a logical use - they want to build office buildings - a townhouse style (something like the Rock Spring townhouses ) , with approximately 2, 000 square feet in each. There would be adequate parking provided and it is felt that this would be very compatible with the existing neighborhood. All of Edwards Ferry Road is zoned B-2, the County parking lot is on one side and the Exeter Square townhouses on the other. There should be no architectural problems involved. Mayor Newman asked what ' would be used as an entrance. Mr. Wallace said the ingress and egress would be from Edwards Ferry Road. Mr. Murray and Mr. Nalls both live within a block and a_half of the property .and he and Mr. Nails own the Barrister Building - they do not feel that they would be degrad- ing the property. They are anxious to get started on the project as soon as possible and asked for consideration by the Council. Mayor Newman read into the record letters received from Robert E. ' and Mary R. Mack and Edith L. and William T. Howell, all residents and property owners in the Exeter Square Subdivision and opposed to commercial zoning for this property abutting their residential neighborhood. Mrs. Frances Crider, a resident of 35 N. Harrison Street, ob- jected to the rezoning of this property and suggested that perhaps the "Jack-in-the-Box" property now for sale on East Loudoun Street might be used for an office building - it is already zoned coumier- 211 MINUTES OF MAY 11, 1977 MEETING: tial: There is parking on/one side of the Exeter Square townhouses now and North Harrison Street parking is difficult too. Since Slack Lane has been made one-way, traffic has increased on Harrison Street. There are numerous places in Leesburg for rent at this time and she did not feel that this rezoning is needed at this time. Mr. Lloyd Paxton, also a homeowner in Exeter Square; felt : .'. '. there is enough vacant space in town already zoned for commercial use. Mr. Ken Goins, also a resident of Exeter Square, objected to the rezoning for similar reasons . Mr. Jewett Phillips, a resident of Slack Lane, also objected for the same reasons given in the Macks-' letter. Miss Patsy Tavenner said that she believed there were storm drains running under this property. Mayor Newman said. she has looked into the records today and there is a large storm drain off to the side of this property - there would be no problem with run-off from the proposed parking area. Mr. Crider said he has a problem with storm drains 'now if there is heavy rainfall. He also asked Mr. Bange if he has a traffic prob- T lem through his property. Mr. Bange said he does not, however, he may put up a chain in the future, which would blockthe through traffic from Market Street to Edwards Ferry Road at this location. He was more concerned with getting the two old houses removed from this property. Mr. Crider was concerned about the speed of cars on Harrison Street and asked that something be done to protect the children on this street. Mayor Newman said it is not the intention of Council to make a decision on this rezoning tonight. The public hearing was declared closed at 7 : 57 P.M. 77-0-5 - Ordinance - Adding a new chapter to the Town Code establish- ing a revised personnel system for the officers and employees of the Town of Leesburg. On motion of Mr. Bange, seconded by Mr. Cole, the following ordinance was proposed: ORDAINED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg, Virginia, as follows : SECTION I. In accordance with Section 15. 1-7. 1 of the Code of Virginia, as amended, there is hereby .adopted a document entitled "Town of Leesburg Personnel Manual" (hereinafter referred to as "Rules") , containing twelve articles which shall be added as a new chapter to the Town Code. (The complete text Of the "Rules ', as submitted to Council March 14, 1977, is available in the office of the Clerk of Council) . SECTION II. The resolution adopting the Town of Leesburg ' Personnel Manual , dated June 30, 1974, is hereby repealed. SECTION III. A copy of Article 21 of these rules which es- tablishes a Grievance Procedure shall be forwarded to the Virginia Director of Personnel for approval in accordance with Section 15. 1-7 . 1 of the Code of Virginia. SECTION IV. Severability. Should any section, sub-section, sentence, clause or phrase of these rules be declared invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such decisions shall not affect the validity of these rules in their entirety or of any part thereof, other than that so declared Co be invalid. The Town Council of Leesburg, Virginia, hereby declares that it would have adopted these rules and each section;Lsub-section, sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, sub-sections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared , invalid. cpi LI 4:4 MINUTES OF MAY 11 , 1977 MEETING. SECTION V. An emergency is declared and this ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its pas- sage. Mr; Niccolls said this' completely replaces'. part of the 'old Manual. Mayor Newman said it is' much more comprehensive than the present manual. Mr. Titus asked if this document intends to create addi- tional staff in the next fiscal year. Mr. Niccolls said "Abso- lutely not. " The ordinance was then adopted by a vote of 5 to 2 : Aye: Councilmembers Bange, Cole, Herrell, Tolbert and Mayor Newman. - - - - — - Nay: Councilmembers Rock and' Titus. Ordinance granting franchise to for telephone service, etc. On motion of Mr. Bange, seconded by Mr. Cole, an ordinance granting a franchise to , its succes- sors and assigns, to use the streets and other public places of the Town of Leesburg, Virginia, for its_poles,. . wires, . conduits, cables and fixtures was proposed. After considerable discussion with Mr. James Griffith, local C & P Telephone Company manager, this proposed ordinancewas- defeated by a vote of 4to 3 -and will go back to Workshop for further discussion: Aye: Councilmembers Herrell , Tolbert and Mayor Newman. Nay: Councilmembers Bange, Cole, Rock and Titus. 77-78 - Resolution - Authorizing an agreement for the purchase of electricity and electric services from the Virginia Electric and Power Company. On motion of Mr. Herrell , seconded by Mr. Cole, the following resolution was proposed and adopted by a vote of 6 to 1 : RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg, Virginia, as follows: 'The Manager is authorized and directed to execute the stand- ard "Agreement for the Purchase of Electricity and Electric Services by Municipalities and Counties of the Commonwealth of Virginia from Virginia Electric and Power Company" for the period from July 1, 1976 to June 30, 1979. Aye: Councilmembers Bange, Cole, Herrell, Rock, Tolbert and Mayor Newman. Nay: Councilmember Titus. 77-79 - Resolution -. Authorizing purchase of 23 fire hydrants. On motion of Mr. Bange, seconded by Mr. Tolbert, the following resolution was proposed: RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg, Virginia, as follows : - The Town Manager is authorized to purchase 23 Waterous fire hydrants for a total purchase price of $12, 884. 83. Mr, Titus inquired as to the cost of installation. Mr. Niccolls said this will be done "in house" and he will provide a cost esti- mate for the next Workshop. The resolution was unanimously adopted: Aye: Councilmembers Bange, Cole, Herrell , Rock, Titus, Tolbert and Mayor Newman. Nay: None. • 77-80 - Resolution - Authorizing Yount, Hyde & Co. to conduct annual audit. ;On motion of Mr. Bange, 'seconded by Mr. Herrell, the following, resolution was proposed and -unanimously adopted: 213 MINUTES OF MAY 11 , 1977 MEETING; RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg; Virginia, as follows : Yount, Hyde and Company, certified public accountants, is hereby authorized to conduct the annual audit for the Town of Leesburg at a cost not to exceed Five Thousand Dollars ($5, 000) unless the scope of the audit extends beyond nor- mal circumstances , and twenty-five (25) copies of the final report shall be delivered to the Town by October 31, 1977. Aye: Councilmembers Bange, Cole, Herrell , Rock, Titus, Tolbert and Mayor Newman. Nay: ' None. 77-81 - Resolution - Appropriation for utility relocation in Loudoun -Street. • On motion of Mr. Bange, seconded by Mr. Titus, the following resolution was proposed: RESOLVED by the C9uncil of the Town of Leesburg, Virginia, as follows : SECTION I. An appropriation of $10, 364. 53 is hereby made to Account Number 10300. 819, Utility Relocations. 4-4 SECTION II. This appropriated amount, when paid to Hercules Construction Corporation, will represent full payment for the relocation of the water main in Loudoun Street required for the Phase III Storm Drainage Improvements. After a thorough explanation of the charges for this work by Mr. Shope, the resolution was unanimously adopted: Aye: Councilmembers Bange, Cole, Herrell, Rock, Titus, Tolbert and Mary Anne Newman. Nay: None. Mr. Niccolls reported that the bee-keeping problem on North King Street has been referred to Mr. Martin for evaluation of what steps can be taken legally, either by the property owners involved or by the Town, and he will be advising Council at a later date. Mr. Minor said the proposed fence was not erected by Mr. Whitmore. Mayor Newman said that, at the Workshop session on May 4th, Mr. Titus volunteered and agreed to serve as a member of the Air- port Advisory Committee - he will , therefore, be the Councilmanic member to this committee. Mayor Newman also said there will be a budget workshop meeting on Monday night, May 16th at 7 : 30 P.M. Mr. Rock reported that NVPDC has recommended favorable action on the Town' s request for Step I money for wastewater treatment fa- cilities, however, this was with extended comment. The Commission recommended additional consideration of land treatment of sewage ef- fluent rather than dumping treated effluent into the Potomac tribu- taries. A representative of NVPDC will be glad to discuss this with the Council. Mr. Rock pointed out that this comment will be appended to other A-95 reviews for Step II and III money. He also said that, 111 if the State Health Department and the Water Control Board get behind this, the Town will have to change its program. He suggested that Council had "better keep an eye on it. " Mr. Rollins has been apprised of this and will be on the watch for it. Mr. Niccolls said a copy of this review has been received from NVPDC, after his request for it. A letter has been written to Johnson and Williams, asking that they prepare a written response by May 30th and be prepared to come and explain the implications of this to Council. There was discussion concerning this report and its recommendations , with Mr. Rock point- ing out that the program the Town is proposing is recommended only for the interim period and is to be completely re-evaluated in 1980. Therefore, the Town should be aware that there is a possibility of a "potential hang-up. " 214 MINUTES OF MAY 11 , 1977 MEETING. Mr. Titus had received complaints from Mr. Joe Grehan con- cerning lots grown up with weeds - one being the lot between Madi- son Court and the ABC Store - the other the lot between M & G Motors and King Gong Electronics. - Mr. Titus and Mayor Newman had both talked with Mr. Reg Gheen of First &Merchants Bank concerning brick sidewalks in the area of the Bank and .Armfield, Harrison and Thomas . Mr. Gheen said they would be glad to participate in the cost of these brick sidewalks. Mr. Titus had received numerous calls regarding the height of the new elevated water tank - there are rumors that it has been in- creased since the plans were approved by Council. Mr. Niccolls said he would give a report on this at the next workshop - it will have to be researched since the plans were approved before either he or Mr. Shope became employed by the town. Mr. Shope said the tank is 480 feet. Mayor Newman was under the impression 'that the' new elevated tank is full. Mr. Niccolls said it is nearly full - the hospital tank is full and the altitude valve is functioning properly. Mr. Shope said it has 900, 000 gallons of water in it and any time there is excess water it goes to that tank. Mr. Niccolls further explained that, until the automation system is functioning - (bids will be re- ceived soon) , it will have to be ,done manually - it will not be optimized until that time. Mr. Herrell suggested that perhaps the Zoning Administrator might work on the proposed Zoning Ordinance and rework it some so that the Council might not have to spend so much time on it, par- ticularly in view of the fact that Council will be working on the Budget right now. Mr. Rock suggested possibly retaining a pro- fessional zoning consultant, . however, Mr. Herrell felt that-Mr. Forbes should go over it first. Mr. Niccolls said Mr. Forbes and he have gone over this page by page, however, no-one has looked at each property individually. Mayor Newman suggested that, after they finish the Budget, they might try one mor session and if they then feel they are getting nowhere they can look into some other action - meantime, Mr. Forbes can take another look at it. Mr. Titus was disturbed that there are people with knowledge of the ordinance in its present form - he felt that it is dangerous for this document to be in the hands of the public before it is ' in a final form - it is a very preliminary document. Mr. Bange requested that the Mayor contact the sponsors of the Piedmont Environmental Council meeting recently held in Charlottesville, and at which meeting Mr. Niccolls was a speaker, to see if any record, either by tape or minutes, was kept. This was with regard to an article in the newspaper last week in which Mr. Niccolls was quoted in such a manner that some members of Council were very much upset. Mr. Bange felt that the article might have been blown out of propor- tion and misinterpreted. He felt that this should be settled, one way or the other. - -• • Mr. Rock had an item of new business to propose to Council - and, as background 'to his proposed resolution, he had the following re- marks:. "A discussion we had last week regarding the story in the Piedmont-Virginian about the Town Manager s speech Co the Piedmont Environmental . Council has caused me to do a great deal of thinking over the past week, and I think that what I say here now is really a culmination ofwhat' s been going through my mind for the past six or eight months; and I think that many of you know that, I have spoken to you individually and collectively. Some of this was re- flected in my letter to the Council when .I was out of town, unable to be here and the Mayor read it in the record, so, in this sense, what the Piedmont story reported of the Manager' s speech pretty well sums up what I believe personally. the Manager has felt toward the Council for some time, that is, a body more concerned with pot- holes than with policy and planning. Thus , little policy and plan- ning come to the Council any longer except for the final sanction or appropriation. It is self-fulfilling. Council ' s role is being de- fined for it. 215 MINUTES OF MAY 11 , 1977 MEETING. "So both policy-planning and potholes, however, in my mind, are a part of local government. Ladies and gentlemen, that is local government. A person who purports to be in the management field, but has no interest in the pothole aspects of running a town, does not belong in local government. This level of government exists to provide various specific services to people in the community - sewer, water, streets , police, schools, sidewalks, etc. In my_mind, the people should determine what they want a town to do or to be. They decide this by electing a few people to work out a rough set of priorities to provide needed services. Since the elected role is merely a part-time thing, towns tum .to professionals - one or more full-time people to keep track of what goes on - ever-growing events that keep closing in on the town. As they become more complex, you hire .more specialized people. On the other hand, you may start with a manager and build out from there, or you may hire specialized people and eventually hire a manager to coordinate them. In any case, the manager' s role, to me, is to provide alternatives for the Council . Thus, a manager is a kind of full-time consultant. That is the spirit of the Charter as I read it. "I have seen many struggles between legislatures and executive branches and I 've been involved in a few personally. These are as old as representative government, but the legislature has got to re- tain the final power - it' s the thing that' s closest to the people, —i especially when the executive or the administrative head is an ap • - pointed person. Communities are for the people living in them. Over time, elected officials will reflect the community, or they will be voted out of office. We have seen this happen in many areas, including right here. "It is , at best, presumptuous to suggest that town councils are threats to the community regardless of the "spirit of the meeting. ' The alternative is , according to this view, for the manager to as- . sume completely the .policy and planning role to preserve and protect the long run interests of the community. • I cannot accept this and I have said this - and parenthetically I do not believe the people of the community will accept it. The benevolent strong man making policy and planning the future needs of the town while defining the role of the elected council into one of mere concern with pot- holes or wondering who will be next is unsuitable. Perhaps other members of the council feel differently : fine, I don' t argue that, but I want to precipitate it. Other members may not want the policy and planning responsibility. That' s what interested me to run - that s fine if they don' t, I don' t argue that. I will offer you shortly the chance to make the choice - to be a fisherman or a bait cutter - a doer or a doee. You can rationalize away any friction of the past 6 to 8 months. You can say the PEC speech was an academic exercise and had nothing to do with the town. I don' t think you would believe that any more than I would. But maybe you would - but you ought to decide. It' s time we told this town what kind of Council the Council members want to have. I also want to end the question of what the Council will do or is going to do. To do this I'm going to offer the following motion and, the reason I went through all of this is so that there is no misunderstanding - _I wantcthis thing precipi- tated and, of all people in the room, Mr.. .Niccolls .will understand this immediately when he hears it. He deserves an answer and we've got'to cut the friction. " Resolution proposed to terminate the services 'of John Niccolls as Manager. On motion of Mr. Rock, seconded by Mr. Titus, the 'following resolution was proposed : RESOLVED by. the Council of the Town of Leesburg, Virginia, as follows : SECTION I. The services of John Niccolls• as Town Manager are hereby terminated arid such termination shall be effec- tive upon passage of this resolution.• , • SECTION II. The Mayor shall appoint 'a. Committee of the Council to undertake a search for a person to fill the vacated position of Town Manager. ' 216 MINUTES OF MAY 11 , 1977 MEETING. SECTION III. Until the position of Town Manager is filled, the Assistant to the Town Manager shall be appointed Acting Manager at a salary of $1 , 500 per month. • SECTION IV. The Mayor is hereby directed to consult with the Acting Manager on a day-to-day basis as may be neces- sary to his needs. Mr. Bange objected to considering this tonight in light of the fact that he has, just prior to this resolution, asked for an investiga- tion to back this up. This resolution will, therefore, go to the workshop for consideration. On motion of Mayor Newman, seconded by Mr. Rock, Council voted unanimously to go into executive session at 9 : 05 P.M. to discuss land acquisition and personnel matters : Aye: Councilmembers Bange, Cole, Herrell , Rock, Titus, Tolbert and Mayor Newman. Nay: None. On motion of Mr. Rock, seconded by Mr. Cole, Council voted unani- mously to reconvene at 10: 02 P.M. Aye: Councilmembers Bange, Cole, Herrell, Rock, Titus, Tolbert and Mayor Newman. Nay: None. • 77-82 - Resolution - Authorizing an .offer to Joseph A. Francis, et ux,' for an easement required for construction of storm drainage improvements and authorizing the Town Attorney to institute condemnation proceed- . ings in the event the offer is refused. On motion of Mr. Cole, seconded by Mr. Herrell, the following resolution was proposed and adopted by a vote of 6 to 1 abstention: RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg, Virginia, i as follows : SECTION I. Joseph A. Francis, et ux, are hereby offered the sum of $3, 000. 00 cash for the storm drain easement de- scribed on the plat hereafter, referred to on condition that the title to the lands affected are free and clear of all defects, liens or conditions which could inhibit the use of the area for the purposes intended; the easement will be conveyed according to the plat and description prepared by Bengtson-DeBell , Inc. , Consulting Engineers, by a good and proper deed with the usual warranties of title; the closing of the transaction-shall be within thirty days after written acceptance of this offer and the Francis shall pay the grantor tax. - SECTION II. In the event this offer is not accepted in writing within five days from receipt, the council hereby declares that an essential public necessity exists for the acquisition of the easement by condemnation and right of early entry and does hereby authorize the town attorney to file the requisite petition for condemnation and early entry on behalf of the Town of Leesburg and the costs therefor are appropriated from the storm drainage construction fund. Aye: Councilmembers Cole, Herrell, Rock, Titus, Tolbert and Mayor Newman. Nay: None. ' Abstention: Councilmember Bange. On motion of Mr. Herrell , seconded by Mr. Rock, the meeting was adjourned at 10: 04 P.M. I0Mayor - gz � ��Ck o t e Council