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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2008_10_27 Council Work Session October 27, 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, Director of Public Works Tom Mason, Director of Finance Norm Butts, Director of Planning and Zoning Susan Berry Hill, Director of Plan Review Bill Ackman, Deputy Director of Planning and Zoning Brian Boucher, Senior Management Analyst Bob Berkey, and Management Specialist/Deputy Clerk of Council Debi Parry AGENDA ITEMS 1. Work Session Items for Discussion: a. Stantec/ESI Presentation Bill Ackman introduced Phil Deleon of Stantec and Vice Chairman of the Engineers & Surveyors Institute (ESI) Board of Directors. Phil Deleon stated he represents the ESI Board and the private sector. He stated ESI is a public/private partnership between the Town of leesburg and engineering consultants to improve the quality of plans and to make review easier for the Town and the staff. He stated the services are provided on a pay as you go method, with the majority of the cost covered by the applicant. Further, he introduced Dr. Terry Ryan of ESI to provide an overview of ESI. Dr. Terry Ryan stated ESI exists only in Northern Virginia and provides a peer review process through a public/private partnership to ensure the plans are complete before being provided to staff. He stated ESI has worked with staff to ensure manuals are as clearly written as possible. He stated ESI has provided over 13 hundred hours of education programs. Further, he stated leesburg operates on a pay as you go process where the Town pays a set fee and the developer pays a fee based on the size or quality of the plan submitted. Mr. Deleon stated Council has heard stories from the development community that the Town's process takes too long. He stated ESI and staff have worked hard to develop a priority review process. He stated initial plans are reviewed for quality and sent back to the developer for changes if they do not meet the Town's criteria. He stated this has frequently saved an extra submission for the developers. He stated it may cost the developer a week or two for review and changes; however, they have not been impacted to the extent they have claimed. Further, he stated he has enjoyed working with the Town. Council Member Wright stated if you are not a member then you do not have to go through the process. He stated members of the development community have commented that if they need to move their application faster they get an unaffiliated person. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 2 Mr. Deleon stated it is a benefit to be a member of ESI; however, with the new priority review process, if you are not a member you can submit plans to go through the Town process, but you do not get ESI screening to determine if your plans are in conformance with the Town's criteria. Council Member Wright stated the Town is averaging three to four submissions which is similar to Prince William County, who no longer use ESI. He questioned why the Town does not seem to be as effective as Fairfax County. Mr. Deleon stated Fairfax County is somewhat of an anomaly as they require their reviewers to stay strictly to the review process, they have a shorter review time to get comments back and they also have more staff. He stated the submissions to Prince William County decreased when they partnered with ESI; however, their number of submissions have increased to four since they ended the partnership. He stated loudoun County and the Town of leesburg are both around three submissions. Mr. Ackman stated another difference is that counties do not review water and sewer or road networks. He stated the water and sewer items are reviewed by the local water board and the road networks are reviewed by VDOT. Dr. Ryan stated Fairfax County also utilizes a Designated Plan Examiner (DPE) program. He stated State law does not allow the Town to use a DPE program, but ESI is looking into a quasi DPE process that may help to reduce the number of submissions further. Council Member Wright asked if state law also precludes the Town from utilizing an expedited review process. Dr. Ryan stated the State law allows expedited review in population bands; however, there has been discussion of allowing expedited review across the State. Council Member Wright stated Council regularly receives questions from the development community about why the process takes so long; however, staff has indicated that the quality of the plans they receive are poor. He asked if ESI reviews the plans prior to staff and asked the value of the partnership with ESI when staff is still saying they are receiving poor quality plans. Dr. Ryan stated ESI's review focuses on completeness and pride themselves on not releasing a plan until it is ready for technical review. He stated this does not include regulatory review. He stated quite often when reviewing plans they will notice blatant regulatory errors and will inform the private sector of the errors. Further, he stated through this completeness review, ESI is able to glean information about what is failing in terms of looking at the comments or what the plans are having trouble communicating and put that information back into the ESI classes. Council Member Butler asked the cost to the Town for this partnership. Mr. Ackman stated the cost is $15,000 per year. Council Member Reid asked when the current contract with ESI will expire. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 3 Mr. Ackman stated the contract will expire at the end of the year. Mr. Wells stated the Town extended the contract for a six month period, rather than renewing the contract for a multi-year period as part of the overall analysis of the development process. He stated in a sense the Town is in an extension mode, while we assess whether or not this is appropriate and beneficial to the development community. Council Member Reid stated as part of the evaluation, he would like to see an analysis of the Town's Development Activity Report outlining which of those applications were reviewed by ESI. He stated he would also like to see a comparison to a comparable town or city that is experiencing a large amount of development such as Manassas, so we are not comparing ourselves to counties. Further, he asked if Council would support adding a request to the Legislative Agenda to allow the Town to be eligible for expedited review. b. Wage Drive/Dominion Power Mayor Umstattd stated there was an article in the Loudoun Extra section of the Washington Post indicating that Dominion Virginia Power (Dominion) has purchased a home on Wage Drive. She stated Congressman Wolf has sent a letter to the Governor asking him to intervene and find a solution that would be suitable to all parties. She stated she and staff met with Dominion and expressed dismay that despite their promise to keep the Town informed, they did not do so until it was clear to the neighbors that this house had been sold. She stated she also discussed with them the need to keep the grass cut on the property. Further, she stated since that meeting the neighbors have been emailing Governor Kaine, Congressman Wolf, Senator Herring, Senator Holtzman Vogel and Delegate May. Council Member Dunn stated he sent an email to Mayor Umstattd and Mr. Wells regarding information he received from the State Board of Architectural Review Conference discussing the use of State and local funds used to underground utilities. He stated he also shared information with Council Member Reid regarding view shed ordinances. Ms. Irby stated she has researched the order Dominion entered with respect to the transmission line and that order supersedes any zoning ordinance requirements we may have. She stated they would be required to obtain a permit from the Town to construct a substation. She stated she assumes they will need a permit from the Town to demolish the house and staff is sending them a letter to that affect. She stated the order is silent with respect to access points for the line. She stated the pole is to be placed in the VDOT right-of-way and the lot will be used for access. Further, she stated she is working with the Zoning Department to send letters. Vice Mayor Hammier stated she would appreciate a closed session discussion regarding how the Town has been represented by outside counsel on this issue. She stated it is her understanding that there may have been serious gaps in how the Town was represented and perhaps there may be an opportunity for restitution that would help us move forward with legal action. Ms. Irby stated a closed session could be scheduled at Council's convenience. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Paqe 4 Council Member Martinez stated he shares the feelings of the majority of Council that Dominion is a challenge and we need to continue being David versus Goliath. He stated hopefully we will be able to protect our Town instead of being overrun by Dominion. Council Member Wright asked if the State has given Dominion Power the license to do anything they want, however they want, in Leesburg as long as it relates to the transmission line. Ms. Irby stated the Town has no power with respect to the transmission lines; however, we do have some power with respect to a substation and the order is silent on access lots. She stated we are limited in what we can do and she does not want to hold out some type of hope that we will be able to do much; however, Dominion, not withstanding the trust issues we have with them, does have a public relations problem and does want to try and work with the Town. Council Member Wright thanked Mayor Umstattd for her proactive letter to the Governor regarding this issue. He stated letters should be sent, signed by Council as a whole, to our State legislators indicating that this process is rapidly getting out of control. He stated Dominion wantonly and knowingly negotiated for the purchase of a number of properties and finally got one. He stated they have been acting in bad faith and that information needs to get to the State legislators and citizens in the community need to beware. Further, he stated we do not have a lot of information or power; however, the power we have needs to be used to the fullest extent. Mayor Umstattd stated she wanted to make it clear to the neighborhood in the letter she sent to the Governor that the full Council is concerned and it would be nice to send a letter with signatures from all members of Council. Vice Mayor Hammier stated we should be doing everything possible to talk to the State Corporation Commission (SCC) because the Governor has already determined who serves on the SCC and they are making the decision. Mayor Umstattd stated we have a broken system. She stated it is a system that is a toy for Dominion to play with and she does not think the State regulatory system cares about Wage Drive. She stated the Governor has appointed a former Dominion spokesperson to the SCC, which is not a good sign. She stated she will try to tone down her original letter and send it out to the legislators and Governor. Further, she stated Council should thank Congressman Wolf for his involvement. Council Member Dunn suggested that Dominion should share the cost of the drainage solution for Wage Drive. Mayor Umstattd stated one of the items that came up in talking to the residents of Wage Drive was that some people thought if they were going to be stuck with the pole perhaps Dominion would be willing to dedicate the lot to the Town as a park. She stated she urged Dominion to find if that is the opinion of the majority of residents and if so the Town would like an endowment for any such park so that we have maintenance costs covered and tax payer funds are not used. She stated she urged Dominion to meet with all of the neighbors and they assured her that Council would be invited to all neighborhood meetings. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Paqe 5 Further, she stated she made it clear to them that they promised to keep Council apprised and the fact that they did not do so in purchasing the house made it really impossible for Council to trust them in the future. Council Member Butler stated legally there is not a whole lot we can do for Wage Drive, but perhaps if we are vocal enough then perhaps next time we can push the legislature for some kind of a change so this kind of thing does not happen to other citizens in the future. Council Member Reid stated as one who fought to keep this project off the W&OD Trail before election to Council, he never thought he would see Dominion put a pole on Wage Drive. He applauded Mayor Umstattd's efforts stating her idea for an endowment for a park is a good one. He stated we also have to remember Dominion is going to scar Route 7 with poles in the commercial district and the property owners there are very upset as well. He asked if this came as a surprise and if the Town was provided with information as to where the poles would be placed when the Modified D route was approved last year by the SCC. Mr. Wells stated at the time the route was approved it was approved as a corridor without the specific locations of the poles identified. He stated we did not know exactly where the poles would go, but we did know that a pole would be located in this general area. He stated there were other options as to where this pole could have been placed including the church property, but Dominion was unwilling to pay the price for that acquisition. Mayor Umstattd stated Dominion was not required by the SCC to specify where it would be placing its poles. She stated they still do not know where all the poles will go. Council Member Reid asked if there was any opportunity when this all came out in the summer of 2006 to try and work with the Hearing Examiner to work out this alignment. Mayor Umstattd stated the Town did that consistently. Council Member Reid stated we fought for the E-7 alignment under the advice of our former Town Attorney. Mayor Umstattd stated she believes Senator Mark Herring met with the Hearing Examiner and tried to persuade him not to put the lines in this area. She stated Delegate May was sensitive to Leesburg's concerns and worked hard on our behalf for undergrounding lines in this area. Council Member Reid asked if the Town has information regarding the Route 7 property owners or the residents of Stratford and Evergreen Meadows. Ms. Irby stated it is her understanding that most of the property owners have had at least one meeting with Dominion and have not had much success. Tom Mason stated staff convened a meeting with the East Market Street property owners located between the Route 7/15 Bypass and the corporate limits. He stated staff shared information and learned in that meeting where the Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 6 poles will be located. He stated that is one of the critical entryways into Leesburg and we do not want to have it lined with the 120 foot tall towers. He stated Dominion has met with the property owners individually; however, they have been insensitive to the local conditions. Council Member Reid stated this was not their preferred alignment; however, the residents concerned about their view shed won out. He stated in his opinion placing power lines in rural areas is not a problem, but the SCC wanted to put them right through Leesburg and right through Wage Drive. He stated he will sign the letter and will support efforts by residents and property owners to minimize the damage. Mr. Mason stated staff continues to work with the property owners. He stated there is an existing wooden pole on Route 7 that is in the same location that Dominion wants to place towers which has created a problem regarding placement of those lines which include power, cable and communication. Further, he stated Dominion is replacing one of the towers along the Potomac River near the Water Treatment Plant with a different structure to carry more lines and staff is meeting with them tomorrow regarding their desire for a substation location, perhaps at the Water Treatment Plant site. Mayor Umstattd asked that a letter be placed on the agenda for a vote tomorrow night. c. Tents as Accessory Uses - Hamburg Doner Brian Boucher stated the issue has come up to allow a tent over the winter months at a restaurant location downtown. He provided his interpretation of the Zoning Ordinance indicating this use goes too far given what has traditionally been done here. He stated Council could initiate a Zoning Ordinance amendment and allow staff to draft an ordinance with certain controls so the tents do not appear at every restaurant in Town. Council Member Dunn asked the definition of a tent. Mr. Boucher stated a tent is a temporary structure that can be bolted, but usually uses stakes. He stated tents are typically not intended to be permanent structures. Council Member Dunn asked if a tent does not have walls, what would be considered a permanent structure. He asked what materials would be considered as typical for a tent. Mr. Boucher stated tents typically are made of materials that are easily collapsible. He stated what makes a structure is how permanent it is intended to be. If a structure is permanently affixed to the ground then it requires a building permit. He stated tents do not require a building permit because they are temporary and are not usually made to fight the elements, especially in the winter. He stated in the ordinance there are tents in some places, but it very well defined and they are allowed for short periods. Further, he stated the ordinance does allow canopies, which is a new issue that has occurred at daycares. He stated canopies can be considered a tent too. Council Member Dunn provided various photographs taken around Town in Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 7 the H-l and H-2 Districts of various structures inquiring as to whether they would be classified as a tent. He stated it seems Hamburg Doner, with having to seek approval for the deck and now a tent, may need a different business model. He stated he wonders if the Town should go forward with supporting a tent in the Historic District; however, there should be consistency in Town and there are already tents in the Historic District and various definitions of tents. Mr. Boucher stated the once case in which he has allowed a tent is for the special events at the Birkby House. He stated that call was made a long time ago and at that time it was decided that tents are typical in the special events business. He stated tents are not typical for a lot of other businesses, particularly restaurants. Further, he stated in the case of Hamburg Doner and restaurants, tents do not quite work. Council Member Dunn stated he and Council Member Butler were on the Planning Commission during the discussion of special events and tents. He stated we have a business that should have considered a different business model or location, yet there are numerous examples of tents in some form or another that we've allowed in the H-l and H-2 Districts. Vice Mayor Hammier stated she is open to collectively making this as business friendly as possible and questioned how best to get there with Hamburg Doner. She stated she does not agree that we are going to open the flood gates and that so many restaurants will want a tent. She stated she would support exploring a Zoning Ordinance amendment and getting that process started and ensuring the process is as painless as possible. Further, she stated a number of jurisdictions around the State lease space to restaurants to facilitate outdoor dining, she stated it is important to look at how we can help the Economic Development Commission (EDC) achieve one of its top goals to attract restaurants. Council Member Wright stated the EDC would like Council to do something to allow this and make a Zoning Ordinance change; however, they also said in the future the Town should review each instance on a case by case basis. He stated if we institute a Zoning Ordinance amendment it must be equally applied to everyone. He stated we need to narrowly define it and cannot go forward on a case by case basis. Mr. Boucher stated the ordinance would have to be crafted to layout certain conditions that if met, would automatically allow the tent. Council Member Wright stated he still has a question as to whether or not the Fire Marshal or Health Department would even allow a tent use here. Mr. Boucher stated if Hamburg Doner were to erect a tent, the Fire Marshal would most likely want to inspect and comment on it. Council Member Wright expressed concern that the Town will invest time and effort into this process only to discover that it will not work. He stated Council Member Dunn has provided examples of other possibilities that would require an approval process, which may make more sense. He stated another option would be to place heaters on the deck. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Paqe 8 Council Member Butler concurred with Council Member Wright's comments. He stated there are other solutions that can go through the normal approval process. Further, he expressed concern that the tents would be popping up across the Town. Council Member Reid stated at first we are told that a case by case approval basis would not work, but then we get information that it would. He stated we have a restaurant that is wildly successful and has done more to revitalize the downtown than any money we could spend on parades or floats or festivals. He stated we should have a Zoning Ordinance that would allow anyone to erect a tent, canopy or Chuppah on a seasonal basis. He stated we could institute a permitting process that would require review by the Fire Marshal and health department. Further, he stated we have several places in Town where we have canopies or tents and we have a business here that wants to erect a tent. He stated he would not support the Board of Architectural Review option because that would involve a permanent structure. Further, he stated he does not believe that all of the restaurants will want to erect a tent just because the Town changes the rules. Council Member Dunn stated in the discussion of the special events ordinance he was supportive of more flexible terms for our events, allowing more events to occur more often. He stated putting in a partial wall, cover and anchorage may provide a solution. Further, he asked if the Zoning Ordinance discusses anchors. Mr. Boucher stated that would fall under common sense and common usage. Vice Mayor Hammier stated she would support moving forward and finding a solution. Council Member Dunn stated we have guidelines in place and this will not fit those guidelines. He stated if we are going to work outside those guidelines, then we have to leave it to staff to work with Hamburg Doner to erect a tent with permanent anchorage and asked if that is the result staff is leaning towards. Mr. Boucher stated in cases where uses are not clearly spelled out, he feels it is better for Council to speak and provide their consensus. Council Member Dunn stated he would support allowing businesses to choose between a permanent structure with a soft roof or complying with the existing special events ordinance. He stated he is concerned that we always make an exceptions and eventually our exceptions become the norm. Mayor Umstattd stated Hamburg Doner had a white tent up this weekend. She stated she would support allowing them to have a tent all winter long if it is dark green. Council Member Martinez stated Hamburg Doner is unique and tucked away on Harrison Street. He stated he supports working with them and doing what we can to help them be successful. He stated he does not have a problem with their desire to have a tent. He stated if would be different if we were working with a major restaurant in Town; however, Hamburg Doner is a unique establishment in a Town owned building and we should accommodate them. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Paqe 9 Mayor Umstattd stated she would anticipate Lightfoot requesting a tent for their outdoor area and she would not have a problem with that. She stated if she were an outsider looking at this situation and could use common sense she would question the difference between the Birkby House tent and the tent requested by Hamburg Doner. She stated they are looking for a way to extend their dining season without incurring a lot of cost. She stated she would be more concerned with the appearance of the tent then whether or not they can have one. Further, she stated she would support allowing a change that would allow staff to feel they can make this decision legally and not be forced to make exceptions. Council Member Dunn stated it is easier to write guidelines regarding how we are acting whether than act to the guidelines. Further, he stated if we feel the current special events ordinances do not fit how we would like to administer our need for tents, then we should change the guidelines. Council Member Wright stated he feels there is a valid solution for them to work with their business model without amending the ordinance. He stated staff needs to contact Loudoun County to see if they would allow a tent in this location before we move forward with the process. Further, he stated the best thing is for government to get out of the way and allow them to come up with a creative solution that will allow them to move forward within the ordinance. Council Member Dunn stated we just created this ordinance in April and there was nothing there prior to that. He concurred with Council Member Wright that government should get out of the way of business and he supported more flexible terms in the special events ordinance during the approval process. Council Member Butler asked what the Town's response to this situation would have been before the special event ordinance was in place. Mr. Boucher stated the answer would have been the same. He stated the special events ordinance addresses grand openings and special sales. He stated it allows tents for those purposes for three days three times a year. Council Member Butler stated the special events ordinance has nothing to do with this issue. He stated he does not support moving forward with this. Mr. Wells stated staff will speak with Loudoun County prior to bringing the ordinance initiation back to Council for review. He stated when this issue first came forward a number of suggestions were made to the owners that would have avoided this ordinance and provided them with a setting in which to conduct their business. Further, he stated it is their choice as to how they want to operate. Mayor Umstattd stated it is her understanding that the other solutions would have cost them more money. Town Council Work Session of October 27.2008 Page 10 d. HCA Broadlands Medical Center Mayor Umstattd stated Vice Mayor Hammier and Council Member Martinez had asked about including this item on the agenda, potentially for a vote tomorrow night on a resolution of support for INOVA's position on the Broadlands Medical Center application. Council Member Dunn stated his view is that is a County issue, not a Town issue. He stated all the Town can do is give an opinion; however, this is not an issue we should be taking up as the Town Council. Vice Mayor Hammier stated the background information provided by staff was helpful and she appreciates the petitioners who came forward and spoke at the last meeting. She stated she would support not bringing this issue up for a formal discussion or vote as this is a County rezoning issue. Council Member Wright stated he has spoken with representatives from INOVA and would like to meet with them offline to get more factual information. He concurred with Council Member Dunn and Vice Mayor Hammier. He stated this is not the appropriate forum for us to opine on a zoning issue as we do not have all of the facts and we will not have all of the facts because it is not our jurisdiction. Council Member Butler concurred with Council Member Dunn's comments. Council Member Reid stated he concurs this is not something the Town needs to get into; however, he does support a second hospital at Broadlands or Route 50. He stated he feels that INOVA can still expand at the Cornwall Campus and he would like a report from INOVA on how they plan to address the traffic issues. Mayor Umstattd stated she shares some of the concerns raised by the doctors at the last Council Meeting that the county would be better served by a hospital on Route 50; however, it seems there will not be a vote on this item tomorrow evening. She thanked the INOVA representatives for attending the meeting. e. Budget Update - Community Agency Funding Mr. Wells stated in anticipation of the upcoming budget process, staff would like to reaffirm Council's direction on the community agency funding. He stated staff has identified what would be included in the proposed budget specifically following the Council's guidelines. Council Member Wright verified the fire and rescue funding numbers were based on last year's funding number and calculated with the consumer price index. Further, he asked what the consumer price index is for this year. Mr. Berkey stated the consumer price index for this year is five percent. Council Member Butler stated he does not support these funding levels as they are pathetically small and only account for .046 percent of the entire budget. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 11 Council Member Martinez stated Council Member Reid and he are glad to hear that as they do not support the guidelines either. Council Member Reid asked the current balance in the Uran Fund. Mr. Berkey during the budget process it was estimated there was $392,000 left in the Uran Fund. Council Member Reid stated not much is being used for the coming year. Mr. Berkey stated the estimated $392,000 balance is being revised to $560,000 because the Police Department did not spend as much as they thought on the CAD/RMS system. Council Member Reid stated he appreciates Council Member Martinez noting that they have fought a losing battle over the last two years to help social service agencies since Mr. Uran gave his money for that purpose and he is glad to see Council Member Butler stepping in. He stated what unnerves him is when people come to the Council pleading for money and are told that these are the guidelines. He stated he was particularly disturbed with the situation with Bluemont Concert Series last year where the Town ended up giving Bluemont more money. He stated staff needs to tell these agencies that this is how it is going to be. He stated does not like the situation with the social services; however, he will support it as long as it provides an exit strategy for our Loudoun Convention and Visitors Association (LCVA) funding. Further, he asked if the funding for the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) comes from Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) funds. Mr. Berkey stated the funding comes out of the General fund, but as a guideline it is a percentage of the TOT funds. Council Member Reid stated he attended a SBDC seminar the other day and we have no idea what they are doing for the Town of Leesburg businesses specifica Ily. Council Member Wright verified the Uran Funding was given to the Town for various things, not just for community agencies. Mr. Berkey stated in 2008 $150,000 was used originally for the Police Department's CAD/RMS system and in 2009 we will use $390,000 for the CAD/RMS system also. He stated $100,000 was used for the Loudoun Museum upgrades. Council Member Wright stated with the trend of what the Town is using it for in other areas, including police positions, we may have a fair amount of needs to maintain the levels of service Mr. Uran thought were important when he donated the money to the Town. Mr. Berkey stated we have options to use the money for other opportunities and may do that. Council Member Wright stated the Council developed this plan to make the process more predictable and to get us out of the business that we should not be in. He stated this message was relayed clearly to the Loudoun County Board Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 12 of Services that we would not be continuing to fund social services as that is not something we should be doing at our level of government. He stated the barometer the County has to use is how much money they will save by supporting the community agencies versus doing it themselves. He stated as a Council we do not need to donate taxpayer money to charity for social services; however, as a citizen if I have the means I have a responsibility as an individual to contribute to these organizations. He stated the per capita rate is laughable; however, we have set this false expectation that we will fund social services when it is not our job as a Town to fund social services. Further, he issued a challenge to Council and everyone who has means to pick a charity and make a donation, but do not do it on behalf of other individuals. Council Member Reid stated Mr. Uran donated this money, it is not tax dollars, for this purpose. He stated he is fine with an exit strategy; however, last year there were certain Council Members who increased the funding for Bluemont Concert Series. He stated the Uran Funds have been used for other items; however, he hopes to see discipline from Council with regards to business and tourism agencies because this year they are scheduled to receive no funding and they will be begging for more money. Mayor Umstattd stated Council Member Butler is very passionate about his position which is admirable. She stated because one of our primary methods of funding is real estate taxes, when we raise taxes to support the truly indigent we drive those barely hanging on into the ranks of the truly indigent. She stated it is very frustrating to be in a system of government where your primary source of funding is real estate or personal property tax versus income tax because no matter where you set the tax rate it hurts the working poor more than the wealthy. She stated this Council has never had the votes to raise the tax rate to support the truly indigent. Further, she stated from time to time the Town has received complaints from taxpayers who are offended that we think we know better than them to which charities their money should go. Council Member Dunn stated it seems in 2007 there were funds given above what was expected and asked for information regarding the amount the organizations should have received based on the guidelines. f. VDOT /Battlefield/Rt. 7 Diamond Interchange Mr. Wells stated staff worked with representatives of VDOT to discuss the process to implement Council's direction for a diamond interchange at Route 7 and Battlefield Parkway so staff can work forward with the different property owners to bring their applications forward. He stated the response from VDOT was that we would need to fund and conduct an interchange study to demonstrate the diamond interchange can work from their perspective. He stated Mr. Mason met today with representatives from VDOT regarding what scope of work would need to be followed. Further, he stated there is a second option in lieu of the administrative process, which may not conclude in our lifetime, and asked Mr. Mason to address this option. Mr. Mason stated at the conclusion of this morning's meeting we are back to reworking the numbers that have been reworked several times. He stated if we use the process of Landmark who just went through a similar process for their quadrant it took more than a year and the cost of doing a full blown study as Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Paqe 13 required by the Federal Government would be $400,000. He stated Council may want to consider other options at this time. Vice Mayor Hammier stated she would not want to spend $400,000 on an administrative solution and that this be added to the legislative agenda. She suggested beginning a letter writing campaign similar to what is being done with another important issue. Further, she stated it is unconscionable that we would spend this level of money and we need to go directly to the Governor. Council Member Wright concurred with Vice Mayor Hammier. He stated staff has been trying to work in good faith with VDOT and VDOT has not been working in good faith. He stated the only option is to go to the Governor and Secretary of Transportation. He stated the other issue is that we have applications with potential economic development impacts that we cannot review until this issue is resolved. Mayor Umstattd concurred with Vice Mayor Hammier's comments. Council Member Reid asked if there is any study indicating that one of these quadrants is needed for a partial cloverleaf. Mr. Mason stated the Landmark study was based on their quadrant. He stated VDOT has indicated that the quadrants in the north east and south west may need a loop because they will carry higher traffic volumes. Council Member Reid stated he is surprised the quadrant near the outlet mall does not need the loop rather than the quadrant on the opposite side. Further, he asked that this be added to the legislative agenda. Council Member Dunn stated he agrees with what has been said. Further, he stated the Governor's new directive to cut State spending allows us to fall into equal line by reducing our money on studies for interchanges and let us who will use the interchange choose what we would like to have. Mr. Mason stated if we send a letter to the Secretary of Transportation he will ask his staff about this and his staff will tell him that as Route 7 is part of the Federal Highway System, and the limitations imposed on Virginia by the Federal Highway Administration triggers this process so even if they wanted to they could not get approval to construct the true diamond if they wanted to. Further, he stated we are trying to work this out with VDOT, but they have the process set up and they want us to follow it. Council Member Dunn stated a gentleman spoke to the Planning Commission last year indicating his businesses will be dramatically impacted by the cloverleaf interchange. Mr. Wells stated a motion can be placed on Council's next agenda to add this to the Legislative Agenda and staff will draft letters to our State and Federal representatives. Council Member Reid asked if it is possible that right of way can be reserved for a loop in the outlet mall quadrant. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 14 Mr. Mason stated the preliminary information VDOT has indicates that a loop will probably not be required in the northwest quadrant near the outlet mall. g. Strategic Plan Update Mr. Wells stated it may not be appropriate to have a discussion of this tonight as the information came out late. He stated staff has provided notes from the September 3rd planning session and a draft summary map. He asked that Council review this information and discuss it at their next work session. He stated there was some discussion regarding a revised meeting format of three times per month and stated staff provided a preliminary schedule of the November meetings to show what this might look like. He stated the idea behind this would be a work session, a legislative meeting and a public hearing night. Council Member Wright expressed his concern with the meeting format is the need of distance between the work session and the meeting to allow staff more time to prepare materials for the meeting. Mr. Wells stated if we try this in November, he would not advise changing meeting dates; however, moving forward he would request that Council put a day between the work session and regular session to allow staff to give Council a better response back. Council Member Butler stated this sounds like two different things. He stated one would be to put a day between the meeting dates and the other would be to condense four meetings into three. Further, he stated based on the way the meetings work we do not have a lot of set up costs and he is not sure how this would be more efficient. He stated we either stop doing some stuff or we have three longer meetings. Council Member Reid stated he would hope the petitioners and awards could be at one of the meetings. h. H-2 Guidelines Susan Berry Hill stated staff was asked to provide options for Council to consider on how to approach the review of the H-2 District Guidelines. She stated the options range from eliminating the guidelines, shrinking the width of the boundaries, simplifying the guidelines, expanding the list of exemptions or allowing administrative review of certain applications such as signs. She stated this simply provides a starting point and staff will move forward with the option or combination of options Council desires. She also provided suggestions for processing a review of the guidelines and suggesting beginning by soliciting input from stakeholders. Vice Mayor Hammier stated she would support sending the topic to the Planning Commission to let them review and provide a recommendation. Council Member Martinez concurred. He stated the other option is to do nothing. Ted Kalreiss, Planning Commission Chair, stated he has spoken with members of the Planning Commission and Board of Architectural Review; however, his comments do not represent all members of both bodies. He stated over the Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 15 past year we have discussed perceived concerns about the H-2 District including that it adds additional regulation, we receive unanticipated results from the H-2 District such as the Suzuki dealership or Commerce Bank, conflicts with the Zoning Ordinance, added cost to projects and the guidelines may be irrelevant because of the form based code. He suggested that the corridor not be eliminated or shrunk for the sake of shrinking it. He asked that Council establish a steering committee stating there is value in simplifying the guidelines and allowing for administrative review in some cases. Teresa Minchew, Board of Architectural Review Chair, thanked Council for the opportunity to present this information to Council. Council Member Martinez stated Mr. Kalreiss discussed breaking the H-2 Corridor into segments and asked if he would also include widths. He stated Mr. Kalreiss also addressed vested development and asked if he would consider potential redevelopment. Mr. Kalreiss stated each corridor and its width should be considered. Council Member Dunn stated he asked staff to check on the possibility of allowing the Planning Commission to review the H-2 Corridor and was told that would not be a problem. He stated the nature of the BAR is to preserve a historic area, which is very detailed; however the H-2 guidelines are generic in nature. He stated in walking around the downtown he noted areas where the downtown is crumbling and needs attention, which is the scope of the BAR. He stated he would like to see the BAR get back to directing their attention to preserving the downtown. Further, he suggested allowing the Planning Commission to take over review of the H-2 while this process is underway. He stated the easy way out is to do nothing; however, that is not an option. Ms. Minchew stated many jurisdictions approach their review of H-2 corridors in different ways. She cautioned Council against rushing to change without identifying and solving the problem. She stated there can be conflicts with allowing Planning Commission to review your land use and architecture at the same time and this would have to be carefully structured. Mayor Umstattd stated that might go with Vice Mayor Hammier's suggestion that we allow the Planning Commission to come forth with a recommendation for Council. Council Member Dunn asked how long it would take to transfer the approval process for the H-2 District to the Planning Commission. Ms. Berry Hill it would require an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance, which would take two months. Council Member Dunn stated this is not something we are rushing into. He stated there does not need to be a gap in the review process we now have. Vice Mayor Hammier expressed her support for allowing the Planning Commission to establish a review committee to discuss the H-2 and provide a recommendation to Council. She stated at that point we would take time at a work session to review the results and make a decision. Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Paqe 16 Council Member Wright thanked Mr. Kalreiss and Ms. Minchew for attending tonight's meeting. He stated he was out sick during the last Planning Commission meeting, but made a point of calling in sick and watching the meeting on television. He stated he saw Mr. Kalreiss' discussion and felt that he latched on to something. He stated he was reminded of what Council did in initiating a number of BAR changes feeling that was the right thing only to have the business community ask that the changes not move forward. He stated it is appropriate to empower the Planning Commission and BAR to form a steering committee, involve the business community, go through and answer each of the questions and bring back the results. Council Member Butler asked what percentage of cases that come forward to the BAR are in the H-2 District versus the H-l District. Ms. Minchew stated the number of H-2 applications right now is very small. Council Member Reid stated in 2007 there were 59 cases in the Old and Historic District and 44 in the H-2 District. Ms. Minchew stated many of those were sign applications and with the proper modifications to the guidelines, the BAR would be supportive of moving to administrative review. She stated she is sure that some structures in the Old and Historic District are crumbling; however, she does not feel that the BAR's attention to the H-2 is preventing them from attending to the H-1. She stated many of the issues in the H-l bother her as well; however, they are directly related to enforcement issues. Council Member Butler stated he would like those types of facts on the table because it is not entirely clear to him what problems we are trying to solve and it is also not clear how we will move forward until we see the new guidelines in the next two months. Council Member Reid stated review of the materials businesses have to submit for BAR approval takes more time for staff than if the businesses met with staff and had administrative approval. He provided several examples of sign applications where the signs are not visible from the street. He stated he does not support a separate committee reviewing this. He suggested giving direction to the Planning Commission, in concert with the BAR to consider cutting the H-2 District boundaries in half, allow administrative approval for all signs, no stipulate no proffered H-l or H-2 BAR review and develop streetscapes. He stated he does not support the idea of a second BAR. He stated he would hope Council would give direction to the Planning Commission to do this and allow the BAR to focus on the H-l and minimize the number of applicants who have to come before the BAR whose properties are not visible from the corridors. Council Member Dunn stated we have a lot of things in play here and at some point we need to start. He stated the goal is to preserve the Historic District. He stated if it is not being preserved then perhaps the H-l and H-2 applications are taking time away from the BAR and their ability to enforce. He stated not just enforcing, but providing assistance to property owners through a business improvement district that we need to implement to offer fac;ade grants and tax Town Council Work Session of October 27. 2008 Page 17 credits, Form Based Code on the plate. Further, he stated if we wait for the H-l guidelines and the Form Based Code we will still find ourselves doing nothing or very little. Vice Mayor Hammier stated it is becoming counterproductive in that we are preaching on a whole bunch of soapbox issues when we are trying to move forward with action to delegate authority to a committee to come back with a recommendation so we can move forward on it. Council Member Dunn stated we had a presentation today that addressed a myriad of issues in the Town and asked that we send this forward to the Planning Commission to consider the Planning Commission review of the H-2 versus the BAR. He stated we have a lot of work ahead of us, but we have to start there. Mr. Kalreiss stated the Planning Commission does have a number of heavy items on their agenda for the next couple of months. He asked that this process be started at the first of the year. Council Member Martinez stated he would like to see this move forward with a recommendation that Planning Commission and the BAR form a steering committee to review this issue with stakeholders. Ms. Minchew asked that the BAR and Planning Commission be allowed to complete review of the H-l guidelines first. He encouraged Council not to rush forward and cut the district in half. She stated a number of the more vibrant communities are expanding their corridor districts, creating streetscape designs and making it easier for businesses to know what to do. Mayor Umstattd thanked Ms. Minchew and Mr. Kalreiss for their efforts. i. Flag Design Council Member Dunn asked that this item be removed from the agenda. Council Member Butler asked if Council is going to act on the flag at some point as it is an open item. Mayor Umstattd stated any Council Member could bring it up at any point in the future. j. Town Code Update Ms. Irby stated she has not received comments from Council on the Town Code update and asked that any changes be given to her in the next week or two. She stated there will be another opportunity to review. Adjournment On a motion by Council Member Martinez, seconded by Council Member Wright, the meeting was adjourned at 10: 19 p.m. 2008_tcwsmin 1027