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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2008_10_14 Council Work Session October 14, 2008 Council Chambers, 25 West Market Street, 7:30 p.m. Mayor Umstattd presiding. Council Members Present: David Butler, Thomas Dunn, II, Katie Sheldon Hammier, Marty Martinez, Ken Reid, Kevin Wright and Mayor Kristen Umstattd Council Members Absent: None Staff Present: Town Manager John Wells, Town Attorney Jeanette Irby, Deputy Town Manager Kaj Dentler, Chief of Police Joe Price, Director of Public Works Tom Mason, Director of Finance Norm Butts, Director of Planning and Zoning Susan Berry Hill, Deputy Director of Planning and Zoning Brian Boucher, Assistant Director for Capital Projects Management Tom Brandon, Plan Review Section Chief Lee Phillips, Police Captain Jeff VanGilder, Transportation Engineer Calvin Grow, Senior Engineer Anne Geiger, Planner Chris Murphy, and Management Specialist/Deputy Clerk of Council Debi Parry AGENDA ITEMS 1. Questions on Tuesday Agenda Items Council Meeting of October 15, 2008 There was no Council discussion of the following items: a. Public Hearing Follow-up - Market Square at Potomac Station b. 2009 Legislative Agenda c. Capital Projects . Authorizing a Design Contract Change for the S. King Street Trail . Authorizing Easement Condemnation if Offer is Not Accepted for N. King Street Drainage . Approving the Third Amended Sales Contract for the Rehau Property d. NVRC Bylaws e. Amending Resolution 2008-146 f. SRTC Crosswalk Signs Recommendation g. Dodona Manor Veteran's Day Program 2. Work Session Items for Discussion a. FY 2010 Town Budget Overview by Staff and Town Financial Advisor John Wells stated four years ago a similar briefing was provided to Council as a snapshot of what the General Fund financial picture looked like, including issues we were facing and necessary fiscal policy recommendations to guide our financial planning. He stated staff felt an update of this Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 2 information would be beneficial to kick-off the upcoming budget discussions and introduced David Rose, who has been the Town's financial planner for many years. David Rose, Davenport & Company, stated the Town has a strong credit rating and is less vulnerable than 90% of its neighbors. He stated what they have seen is that bond insurance, which is used to prop up local credit ratings has either been knocked out all together or downgraded. He stated thankfully the Town does not need bond insurance to be competitive in the bond market. He stated it is important to insure that the Town continues to be in this position by providing full disclosure, including opportunities and things to be wary of. Further, he stated the only thing that is keeping the Town from being a AAA rated locality is the population. He stated one exception to this is Charlottesville, VA, because of the university anchor. Mr. Rose provided historical information regarding the Town's credit rating. He commented on the projected trend for assessed value which has fallen from fiscal year 2007 to 2009 and stated he is projecting a 10 percent drop again for fiscal year 2010; although it is still early. He provided historical information on revenues versus expenditures. He stated despite the downturn in the economy the Town will be able to implement its Capital Improvements Program and be in a better place five to six years from now. He stated each year that Mr. Wells has been with the Town, the revenues have exceeded the expenditures and debt service; however, the unaudited numbers for Fiscal Year 2008 are showing a modest shortfall. Further, he discussed the growth of the undesignated fund balance and revenue stabilization fund. Mr. Rose compared the Town's real estate tax rate, debt ratios, and per capita income to other comparable sized Towns in Northern Virginia stating Leesburg is in a strong fiscal position. He outlined the current debt versus proposed debt and Leesburg's position for borrowing future funds. Further, He stated in his opinion Leesburg has excellent management and is in a much better financial situation than when he gave his last presentation four years ago. Council Member Dunn stated he is encouraged by the fact that we now know where we are and through competent and aggressive actions by Council we can get even farther. Vice Mayor Hammier thanked Mr. Wells, Mr. Rose and Mr. Butts for this report. She stated it would be useful to summarize the talking points surrounding our strengths as it relates to our credit rating. She stated it would also be useful as we are looking at investments that will help us in the future such as downtown improvements. She stated there is a lot that goes into our strong credit rating and asked that Mr. Rose provide information regarding factors that go in to keeping our rating strong. Council Member Martinez expressed concern that some people may not have a total grasp of the terms used in the report and what is trying to be expressed and asked that the language be easier for the public to understand. Mr. Rose stated he could look into adding a glossary to the report. Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 3 Council Member Wright thanked staff and Mr. Rose for his report. He stated it is important to remember when looking at the report that it may look okay to incur new debt; however, there is a four year lag in the effects. He asked if there is a best management practice on debt policies stating it seems the policy on debt versus assessed value policy may be high. Mr. Rose stated the debt versus assessed value policy is not high. He stated on a national basis there is a great deal of wealth here relative to cities and towns throughout Virginia and the nation. Mr. Rose stated the Town has become so strong that they are well underneath the goal. Council Member Wright asked if we need to look at the assessed value policy to bring it down or just know that our real governing policy is the debt versus expenditures. Mr. Wells stated when the Town meets with the rating agencies they do not look at anyone ratio, rather they look at the whole story of where you are regionally and where you have been. He stated it is not bad to reassess the ratios from time to time; however, it would not be necessarily meaningful to move the ratios at this time. Council Member Butler stated it would be helpful to add a page of assumptions to the documents. Council Member Reid stated the report indicates that we could have a $1.4 million deficit, which is what Mr. Wells quoted in his email. Further, he stated he believes Mr. Wells will attempt to reduce the budget by four percent. Mr. Wells stated hearing this information and working through the facts may help to see the slowing national economy's effect on Leesburg and take proactive steps. He stated he indicated to all department directors that they will need to assess any vacancies to see if they are still needed and waiting three months to fill any vacancies to build savings. He stated each department director was also asked to look at their operating and capital expenses to propose a four percent reduction in the current year budget. Further, he stated the goal is to take proactive steps to help in the current year and next year. Council Member Reid stated he is not a fan of across the board cuts. He stated some departments need additional staff while some are underperforming. He stated his concern that the Town has been living off the surpluses in past years. Further, he asked if the shortfall could be higher. He stated we just found out tonight that we do not have the transportation planner vacancy filled; however, we spent $200,000 to have the transportation model done. Further, he asked if our money is safe given the issues with Wachovia. Mr. Butts stated we do not know what tomorrow brings; however, staff is comfortable that our money is as safe as it can be given the circumstances. He stated Wachovia is in the process of being purchased by Wells Fargo which is a well capitalized bank. He stated with respect to our other cash, the local Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Paqe 4 government investment pool is run by the State Treasurer's office and they are doing a good job. He stated the Town also has funds invested in various treasuries. He stated the bond funds are in a Snap Fund run by the State Treasurer's Office. Further, he stated staff is monitoring the Town's funds on a daily basis to ensure they are as safe as they can be. Council Member Reid asked how the Town would retrieve its funds if something were to happen to Wells Fargo. Mr. Butts stated the situation changes on a daily basis. He stated the Federal Government was talking about insuring all deposits in 2009; however, he doesn't know if that was put into effect. Further, he stated we are fully collateralized. Mr. Rose stated there is a Public Securities Act which requires that all banks collateralize public money in a separate "lock box" and not blend it with the general assets of the bank. Council Member Reid stated this is something that we need to monitor in the future. Mayor Umstattd asked verified our bank services are bid on a competitive basis. She stated that she is proud of Mr. Wells, Mr. Butts and Mr. Rose for making the Town solvent in difficult times. She stated she fully supports Mr. Wells' basic policy to assess all vacancies and look at cross- training possibilities so employees are not laid off. Further, she stated she supports keeping the real estate tax rate at its current level. Council Member Dunn stated a few Council Members have discussed doing projections; however, being in the financial business he is hesitant to have accounting look out too far with projections. Vice Mayor Hammier asked for an updated briefing on the competitive procurement process for our banking services. Mr. Butts stated we are in the third year of a five year contract with Wachovia for banking services. He stated it was competitively bid with Request for Proposals and staff met with the top three firms before the contract was awarded. Vice Mayor Hammier asked if the Town had looked into subprime mortgages and things Wachovia was investing in. She stated we have learned a lot and we need to determine what those lessons are and how it's going to impact our decisions moving forward. Council Member Reid stated Ms. Marconi, who lives at Union and Wirt Streets and is concerned about the condemnation for the King Street Drainage Project is here and asked if discussion of this could be allowed now. Council Member Wright stated that item is up for discussion and vote tomorrow and he had not anticipated a discussion tonight. Mayor Umstattd asked Mr. Butts to continue with his presentation. Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 5 Mr. Butts provided a worst case scenario estimate of the tax year 2009 assessed evaluation which shows a residential property decline of 15 percent and a commercial increase of two percent. He stated the best case scenario shows the residential property declining by 10 percent and the commercial property increasing five percent. He stated staff will not have the exact figures until the end of this year or beginning of next year. He stated staff has also calculated the effective tax rate to bring in the same revenue as last year which shows a worst case scenario of 20.7 cents and best case scenario of 19.7 cents. Further, he stated staff has looked at the value of a penny on the tax rate over the last 10 years. Council Member Wright stated it would be helpful to also see the average tax bill in real dollars and average tax bill in 1998 dollars to show how the average tax payer's bill was impacted versus the impact if inflation was held steady. Mr. Butts stated staff will provide those calculations to Council. He provided revenue estimates with a worst case scenario if the tax rate remains at 18 cents. He stated this scenario shows tax revenue will be down 10.6 percent. He stated staff anticipates the Town will take in $1 million less revenue in fiscal year 2010 than this fiscal year. Council Member Martinez stated the state revenues are falling and verified that was included in the calculations based on what is known. He asked how the Town will be impacted by the County budget. Mr. Wells stated the County budget is being put together at this time. He stated the Town will be monitoring the Federal, State and County revenues. Further, he stated this is snapshot completed several days ago; however, the Governor has now introduced additional budget cuts and staff has not had time to fully assess that impact. Mr. Butts provided an estimate of the FY 2010 general fund summary and undesignated fund balance with both the worst and best case scenarios. He stated it will be difficult to get through 2009 and put together the 2010 budget; further, if things do not improve, 2011 could be difficult as well. Council Member Dunn stated it look like the approach here is dealing with the tax rate and not looking at cutting expenditures. Mr. Butts stated we are assuming we can hold an expenditure increase for salary increases, fringe benefit increases and materials and supplies. He stated in the past we have never held expenditures to a three percent level. Further, he stated we are only focusing on the real estate tax bill because that is what Council tends to focus on with the impact to the homeowners and also because real estate taxes are over 25 percent of our revenue. Mr. Wells stated this does not represent the full range of how we will approach the budget. He stated staff will look at each program, service and position. He stated there is a number of "what if" scenarios staff could present, but this is one aspect of the snapshot. Further, he stated staff may Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 6 need to look beyond the three percent; however, this shows what the Town will be looking at with that limited increase. Council Member Dunn stated Leesburg's residents and staff are tough and tough times pass, but tough people do not. He stated we can get through this but it will require a tighter belt. He stated the quick way to deal with the financial problems is to add to the tax rate; however, he requested that be the last consideration. Vice Mayor Hammier asked what the equalized tax rate would be. Mr. Wells stated the equalized rate would be between 20.7 and 19.7 cents. Vice Mayor Hammier stated she believes Mr. Wells is looking at a four percent reduction at the staff level which equates to $1.9 million, which cuts into this deficit. Mr. Wells stated the four percent reduction is for the current year. He stated some of those reductions could carry into next year. He stated he does not want to accept reductions that will save the Town a dollar this year but cost two dollars next year. He stated the reductions are designed to deal with the current year situation of trying to reduce what could be a gap of $1.4 million. He stated for next year we could be looking beyond the four percent to programmatic issues as Council Member Reid suggested. Further, he stated his goal is that while we may be losing positions we should not be talking about reducing existing staff. Vice Mayor Hammier stated we will need a continuation of this discussion to look at how we are monitoring the health of our economic sectors. She stated statements were made tonight relative to the wealth of Leesburg; however, that is based on the assumption that we are willing to continue to tax at a certain level and reaffirm the key services that citizens want to sustain. She stated even in these tough times we are continuing to invest in our future and what we want this town to be, most notably our downtown and our quality of life such as working proactively with George Mason University. Further, she stated we need to get the private sector involved in helping to fund those types of initiatives; however, there is a silver lining here and we need to work as a team to make some things happen. Council Member Martinez verified future commercial development was included in the data presented and asked if it was a conservative estimate. Mr. Wells stated the estimates are very conservative. He stated during the last budget cycle staff highlighted several reasons for optimism and all of those projects are either under construction or open. He stated while they are not performing at the level that everyone hoped they would be, but they do present an opportunity for the future. He stated when we are looking for our next credit rating upgrade and going to the bond market they will be looking at what we do over the next budget or two. He stated we have won the first half and if we can continue working as a team we will have a good story to tell at the end of the day. Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 7 Council Member Martinez stated times are tough and we all talk about government's role; however, we have to consider that we cannot back off of providing quality of life services to our citizens. He stated he thinks about times such as the Great Depression when government has had to step in and we as a local government cannot be afraid to step in and take on that role if needed. He stated Council needs to provide Mr. Wells with guidance on where we want to set the tax rate; however, he does not feel comfortable meddling in departments and what they are doing. Council Member Wright thanked staff for both reports. He stated despite the economic times the good news is that we have good management from this Council, previous Councils, our Town Manager and financial staff in being proactive and conservative over the past several years and have clear management policies for our reserves. He stated he was struck as the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors were discussing their last budget there was an hour and a half debate regarding use of their reserves because they do not have clear policies. He stated we need to keep in mind if we are maintaining a level of service and hinging that primarily on available reserve, we need to understand where the money is coming from in subsequent years. He stated we need to continue focusing on a tax rate that does not exceed the equalized tax rate and stated he personally believes we need to focus on maintaining the current rate. He stated there was a point when the assessments were going up and the Town grew expenses without focusing on the tax bill. He stated we have now made the wise decision to focus on the tax bill; however, if you look at that trend of the tax bill versus inflation we have not quite synced back up. He stated we need to review the CIP and bond debt to make sure the CIP is realistic and feasible. He stated the important lesson learned is that we need to consider how long we are going to continue to grow the amount of money we are spending on debt. Further, he stated we have been reviewing the budget to look at services while providing guidance to Mr. Wells who has delivered solid budgets and we are looking for him to do that again. Council Member Butler thanked staff for their presentation. He stated this is scary and we all talk about things that we want; however, when he looks at the numbers it is not going to happen the way we all would like. He stated looking at the best case scenario of running a $4.6 million deficit does not appear to be prudent and would triple our deficit over the last two years, which he would not support. He stated if you add that with Mr. Wells' concerns about staff and our dream of keeping an 18 cent tax rate they do not all add up. He stated he would be comfortable with an equalized tax rate because the actual tax rate is not as meaningful to people as what is happening to their average tax bill. Further, he stated that is where we need to start otherwise we will be running a huge deficit or cutting in places where we do not want to. Council Member Reid asked what is ABC distribution and why does it not appear in the next year's budget. Mr. Wells stated the State took the ABC Distribution and Wine Tax funds away from localities last year. Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Paae 8 Council Member Reid concurred with Council Member Wright stating he would not support a tax rate above 18 cents. He stated this is a wonderful opportunity for the Town to find where to prioritize. He concurred with Council Member Martinez's suggestion that Council provide Mr. Wells with a direction on a tax rate and have him balance the budget; however, Loudoun County is laying off people, the State is laying off people and while he does not like the idea of layoffs he may even have to cut a position in his business. He stated this Town has been very generous with merit increases; however, there are areas such as Police and Parks and Recreation that he does not want to cut. He stated a low tax rate, a lean Town government and less regulation will bring opportunity and businesses to this Town. He stated he would like to see the Town spend more on CIP projects because that is an investment in the future, such as the Downtown Improvement Association requests, and he would like to see more money put into bricks and mortar than into maintaining employment for people. Further, he stated this is not scary, it is an opportunity. Council Member Dunn asked what portion of the budget covers personnel costs. Mr. Wells stated in the General Fund personnel costs make up 55 to 65 percent of the budget. b. Public Safety Update Chief Joe Price provided an overview of the public safety status in the Town, comparing January through August 2008 to the same time period in 2007. He provided information on the recent thefts from autos and regional gang trends in the region. Council Member Dunn asked how the ratio of occurrence of crimes in Leesburg equates to the occurrences in Loudoun County, the State and National Levels. Chief Price stated Loudoun's numbers will be lower than Leesburg because of population densities; however, if we were to compare just eastern Loudoun to Leesburg the ratio would be higher. Vice Mayor Hammier stated the statistics are useful for comparison purposes; however, it would be helpful to look at trends in Town or pinpointing neighborhoods and coming up with conclusions regarding where crime is happening, why and how we can prevent it. Chief Price stated the Department is lacking in fine crime analysis because of workload. He stated looking at the most serious Group A crimes there has been a decrease of 7.6 percent over the last year; however, there has been an increase of five burglaries. He stated over the past several months the Department has been investigating 139 cases of larceny from vehicles and in 77 percent of the cases the vehicles were unlocked and would most likely would not have been entered if they had been locked. He stated 32 were locked and were opened with force. He provided Council with a copy of the notice that officers have been placing in unlocked vehicles, before securing the vehicle, to remind citizens to lock their vehicle doors. Further, he stated one citizen did complain; however, he stated the Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Paqe 9 Commonwealth's Attorney spoke in support of the Town's efforts. Council Member Reid asked if the.note is visible in the vehicle. Chief Price stated the note is placed on the driver's seat and the vehicle is then secured. He stated there have been two distinct operations in the Town. He stated the first operation were all juvenile's conducting a game called "Car Hop" in which they stole for sport and communicated via social networks on the computer and text messaging. He stated in many cases the property was discarded and the department is in the process of identifying and returning the property to its owners. Council Member Martinez asked if the juveniles were operating in their own neighborhood. Chief Price stated that was not the case. He stated 25 juveniles between the ages of 12 and 16 were arrested. He stated the juveniles lived in areas across the Town and came from all spectrum of economic backgrounds. Vice Mayor Hammier asked if this information was shared with the schools. Chief Price stated the information is being shared with the schools through the School Resource Officers (SROs). He stated the second level were independent thieves that stole items to sell for profit to fund their lifestyle. He stated there was a gang element to it as they were not stealing as gang members, but were stealing to fund their gang activities. He stated seven adults have been charged and 20 cases have been closed. He stated in this case the cars were locked and unlocked. Further, he stated these cases on both levels came to a successful close because of community relationships. He stated the initial information on the car hoppers came through an SRO. Vice Mayor Hammier stated earlier when she asked for this type of crime analysis she was told that there was no staff to perform the analysis; however, how does the response to that relate to this instance. Chief Price stated if you look at the broad spectrum of analysis there needs to be dedicated people to perform the analysis on a continuous and consistent basis. He stated the Class A analysis would be part of another briefing in another forum as there are ongoing investigations. He stated the prowler case has taken significant analytical work; however, it required temporarily taking people from their normal duties to focus on this case. Vice Mayor Hammier stated in this case were there are conclusions such as lock your car doors, we need to find the conclusions in the other cases and get the information out into the community. Council Member Dunn stated it seems half of the vehicle larceny cases are unsolved. Chief Price stated right now there is a 58 percent closure rate and that may become higher, but that is unknown based on the vagueness of the Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 10 information from some of the juveniles regarding on the particular vehicles they targeted. Vice Mayor Hammier asked if there will be any restitution made to the victims. Chief Price stated the department has significant amounts of stolen property that will be returned to the owners as it can be identified. He stated the property that cannot be identified will be placed out for indentified by the victims. He stated the judges may require some form of restitution and there is also the State Victim's Compensation Fund. Council Member Dunn verified the information in the juvenile case has been shared with other organizations. Chief Price provided information on regional gang trends stating we are now seeing significant trends across the region stating MS-13 has become a more structured and includes members of varying ethnicities. He stated the gang activity and violence seems to be more focused on wiping out the competition. He stated there are some representatives in Leesburg; however, we have not seen the violence there have been in other areas. Chief Price discussed the methods used to communicate crime information to the community including Reverse 911, the Silent Partner Program and the online crime log. Further, he outlined two new systems including the Alert Loudoun/Leesburg notification system, which citizens can subscribe to on the front page of the Town's website and Crime Reports which provides citizens the ability to search various crimes and pinpoint where there were committed on a map and the ability to sign up for crime alerts. Vice Mayor Hammier asked if there are any systems that post the perpetrator's photo once the crime is solved. Chief Price stated we do not have that capability yet. He stated Crime Reports does allow residents to pinpoint sex offenders with names, photos and addresses. He stated this program does cost the Department $100 per month, but is free to the citizens. Mayor Umstattd stated there are three Council Members who are in favor of deferring the remaining agenda items to tomorrow night. Council Member Reid clarified his earlier comment stating he does not want to see a cut in Police resources. He stated he is a bit of a skeptic about the SROs and whether a blue or brown uniform would make that much of a difference unless the Sheriff rotates his officers frequently. He asked regarding the two murders in Town why one case was handled by the Sheriff's Department. Chief Price stated the first homicide was in January. He stated in June 2007 the Town completely rebuilt its Criminal Investigation Section and brought in a retired special agent from the FBI to head up this section and hired a number of new investigators and crime scene personnel. He stated the Department was in the midst of developing their skills at that time and Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 11 the Town has a standing agreement with the Sheriff's Department that they will handle cases such as a homicide when the Town does not have the capacity to handle the case. Further, he stated between January and July our detective section continued to mature, gain skill and gain confidence in each other and the criminal investigators are better now than any team we have had in this department. Council Member Reid stated he understands from his sources that they may have found the individual responsible in the prowler cases and said that he was told that the Sheriff's Department did some surveillance in Leesburg separate from what our Police Department was doing. Chief Price stated this is an active investigation so he cannot go into detail; however, the efforts of the Sheriff's Department and Leesburg Police Department were coordinated. He stated he does not have information to indicate that a person in custody is responsible for those cases. Council Member Reid stated during the budget session he asked about the narcotics crimes and it seems there were 202 in Leesburg and the Sheriff's Department indicated they were involved in 42 in the Town. He stated the Sheriff's Department is actually involved in drug buys and similar activities. He asked if the Town is working with the Sheriff's Department in the drug buys and undercover activities. Chief Price stated the Leesburg Police Department does not have the capacity to conduct drug buys; however, all efforts are coordinated between the Police and Sheriff's Departments. Council Member Reid asked the turnover rates and if Officers are working a lot of overtime. Chief Price stated there are currently no sworn officer vacancies. He stated one officer suffered a severe brain incident that required extensive surgery and that position is covered under the disability insurance program. Further, he stated there have been discussions regarding the possibility of over hiring for that position; however, that will not occur now. c. Town Code Update This item was deferred to the October 27 Work Session d. H-2 Guidelines This item was deferred to the October 27 Work Session e. Sycolin Road Interchange Funding This item was deferred to the October 27 Work Session f. Valley View Avenue Update Lee Phillips stated staff is currently reviewing the Valley View subdivision construction drawings. He stated he met with residents who had concerns regarding the removal of the barricade, the grading work in front of Mr. Belote's front yard and various issues concerning speeding and site distance. He recommended that Council ask the Standing Residential Traffic Committee to review the speeding concerns. He stated he believes the grading issues have been worked out with the developer and he is willing to consider moving Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 12 construction above Mr. Belote's driveway to avoid a swale in his yard. Further, he stated citizens are concerned about cut through traffic once the barricade is removed; however, the regulations require that the streets connect. Council Member Dunn stated there are also challenges with the alignment of the road and the location of easements. He stated the intersection of Valley View Avenue and Davis Avenue is challenging and given the possibility of increased cut through traffic he would like the barricade kept in place unless there are plans to improve this intersection. Vice Mayor Hammier stated she would like to hear from Mr. Belote. Robert Belote, 709 Valley View Avenue, expressed concern with the potential for cut through traffic and a dangerous situation at the intersection of Valley View and Davis Avenues if the barricade is removed. He stated he is glad that the grading situation in front of his home has been resolved. Further, he stated perhaps the barricade could be removed if the Town were to increase the width of Valley View Avenue. Sue Weaver, 715 Valley View Avenue, concurred with Mr. Belote's comments. She expressed concern with the additional traffic from the new subdivision and the removal of the barricade. Council Member Martinez stated he is looking forward to discussing the issue with Mr. Belote and Ms. Weaver. Council Member Wright verified this is a by-right development. He asked how far the frontage improvements extend. Mr. Phillips stated there will be 23 feet of asphalt and a two foot gutter section extending to the corner of Valley View and Davis Avenues. Council Member Wright verified a Council action would be required to keep the barricade in place. He requested a detailed report from staff regarding the impacts of opening the street. He stated his concern is we continue to have issues with the removal of barricades so we need to find what the answer is and get the answer in place. He stated he does not believe that the answer is to keep the barricades up permanently if we are also requiring the developer to improve a half section of the road. Further, he stated he would like information from the Public Works staff regarding how the Town can make Davis Avenue safer. Mr. Phillips verified Council would support referring this item to the Standing Residential Traffic Committee. Council Member Wright stated if the long term solution is to take the barricades down, then we need to also look at how we are going to keep the street residential, such as no through truck traffic and other traffic calming measures to deter cut through traffic. Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 13 Council Member Butler asked what improvements are needed beyond what the developer is providing to ensure the ultimate road section is installed before the barricade comes down. Mr. Phillips stated this section of Valley View Avenue needs to be widened to 32 feet and another curb and gutter section would need to be installed on Mr. Belote's side of the road to match the section on the other side of the barricade. Council Member Butler verified those improvements are not currently in the Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Further, he supported the recommendation to refer the speeding issue to the Standing Residential Traffic Committee. Council Member Reid thanked Mr. and Ms. Belote for hosting Council Member Dunn and himself to talk about their concerns and thanked Ms. Weaver for attending tonight. He stated he is glad the drainage issue has been resolved. Further, he asked if the drainage issue was related to Overland Relief requirements. Mr. Philips stated when he spoke with the developer it was mentioned that by moving the inlet from the lower portion of Mr. Belote's front yard to the upper portion, it would eliminate the need for the deep swale. Council Member Reid asked if our transportation model could be used to investigate the transportation concerns if the barricade were removed. Calvin Grow stated the streets would have to be added to the model, but it could predict the cut-through traffic. He stated the traffic engineers for the Valley View Subdivision conducted their own traffic study which predicted 260 cut-through trips. Council Member Reid verified that does not include the trips from the development. He suggested that staff run the model to look at the potential traffic impacts of removing the barricade t~ this portion of Valley View Avenue and the intersection with Davis Avenue and bring that information to the Standing Residential Traffic Committee. Mr. Grow stated our former transportation planner was the only staff member trained on how to use the model. Council Member Reid stated the best long term solution to get the traffic off of Davis and Lee Avenues is to get the congestion off of the Leesburg Bypass. He stated it is a shame we do not have the money to add lanes to Route 7 as there is a significant amount of traffic cutting through Davis Avenue to avoid the congestion problem. Further, he stated he looks forward to a discussion on this issue at the Standing Residential Traffic Committee Meeti ng. Mayor Umstattd stated the speeding issue should go to the SRTC. She stated she believes if the barricade is removed there will be substantial cut through traffic putting more traffic on Davis Avenue. She stated even if the narrower section of Valley View Avenue is widened there will still be concerns Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 14 with the cut through traffic making it dangerous for people to pull out of their driveways. Further, she stated she would support Council action to keep the barricade up at this time. Mr. Phillips stated he will provide an update after meeting with the SRTC and discussing the first submission comments with the developer. 3. For Information Only October 27-28, 2008: a. Authorizing offers to acquire easement for Edwards Ferry Road at Colonial Square Capital Improvement Project b. SBDC Update c. Authorizing Downtown Street Light Enhancement Grant Application d. Strategic Plan Update e. AADP Committee f. Future Plans for Cangiano Tract g. Community Agency Grant Funding 4. Closed Session - Legal Briefings a. RehaulBattlefield Parkway b. Police Department Claim c. Water Rate Case On a motion by Mayor Umstattd, seconded by Vice Mayor Hammier, the following motion was proposed: MOTION Pursuant to Section 2.2-3711(A)(7) and 2.2-3711(A)(3) of the Code of Virginia, I move that the Leesburg Town Council convene in a closed meeting to receive updates on legal matters pertaining to a police department claim and water rate litigation and a real estate matter. The motion was approved by the following vote: Aye: Hammier, Butler, Dunn, Martinez, Reid, Wright and Mayor Umstattd Nay: None Vote: 7-0 Council convened in closed session at 7:32 p.m. Council reconvened in open session at 8:05 p.m. On a motion by Mayor Umstattd, seconded by Council Member Martinez, the folloWing motion was proposed: MOTION In accordance with Section 2.2-3712 of the Code of Virginia, I move that Council certify that to the best of each member's knowledge, only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act and such public business matters as were identified in the motion by which the closed meeting was convened were heard, discussed or considered in the meeting by Council Town Council Work Session of October 14, 2008 Page 15 The motion was approved by the following vote: Aye: Hammier, Butler, Dunn, Martinez, Wright and Mayor Umstattd Nay: None Vote: 6-0-1 (Reid absent) Adjournment On a motion by Council Member Wright, seconded by Vice Mayor Hammier, the meeting was adjourned at 11:57 p.m. 2008_tcwsminl014