Loading...
08-06-2002 Continued Meeting., :. 90QN Lr1 'r~~ ~ ~V CONTINUED MEETING OF THE. ISLE OF WIGHT: COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS HELD THE SIXTH DAY OF AUGUST IN THE YEAR TWO THOUSAND AND TWO r 1 _ PRESENT: Robert C. Claud, Sr., Chairman Richard K. MacManus, Vice Chairman Stan D. Clark Phillip A. Bradshaw Henry H. Bradby Also Attending: H. Woodrow Crook, Jr., County Attorney W. Douglas Casket', County Administrator Donald T. Robertson, Assistant County. Administrator/Director of .Human Resources . Carey H. Mills, Recording Secretary Chairman Claud called the continued meeting to order at 12:30 p.m. ~ for the purpose of discussing the proposed Transportation Referendum and issues involving the High Growth Coalition. // Chairman Claud reported a professional company has been hired to manage the Transportation .Referendum campaign and $600,000 of the anticipated $1.5 million has already been pledged. He noted all funds raised would come from private s©urces and a list would be made available of all contributors. He stated polling efforts would be initiated to identify problem areas andany major concerns.. He stated letters have been sent to various County civic groups and organizations requesting a portion of time be set ~ aside during their programs in August, September and October to explain the Referendum. He stated a coordinator has been appointed to work in conjunction with emergency service and police. He stated a committee that is being formed in the County would be assisting in educational efforts. and would be active in working with the overall Steering Committee to implement the campaign within the County. He stated Constance. Rhodes, Executive Director, Chamber of Commerce, is working with him to coordinate County activities. He expressed the. need for volunteers and requested his respective Board members pass on any proposed names to either him or Mrs. Rhodes. He stated he feels .very strongly that the Referendum is not only important to the County but, the entire region, as well. Supervisor MacManus inquired about the timeframe for Route 460, Chairman. Claud stated that while all six (6) projects in .the Transportation Referendum are. considered to be a priority, not all projects could begin at the same .time because of environmental impact and other 1 eoa~ 21 ~r.:1.d~ studies that must be accomplished. He stated a study has already begun on the Route 460 project and, while. there has been no timetable that anticipates when these studies are. expected to be complete, all work on each project would be going on concurrently. Supervisor Bradshaw inquired about the design and layout of Route 460. Chairman Claud stated the location of Route 460 will not be known until the studies are completed. Chairman Claud stated. all six (6) projects are critical to the County as it is a part of the Hampton Roads region. He stated businesses interested in locating in the County consider its proximity to ports in Norfolk and Portsmouth. He stated there is no doubt the State should have taken the initiative to fund these projects and there are a number of representatives in the General .Assembly who have taken the no-tax pledge who are not going to increase taxes to see that roads are built in Hampton Roads.. He stated air. quality is an issue, as well as quality of life, .and a good transportation network adds to the quality of life in the County. He stated the County and the. Town of Smithfield are spending funds to entice tourists and a good transportation network is vital to that endeavor. He stated there are funds allocated to each of the six (6) projects and the $.O1 sales tax will last until the projects are paid for/or thirty-five (35) years, whichever comes first. He stated the estimated cost to .the average family is $100 per year and the commuter in the Hampton Roads area will pay approximately $490 a year in lost time and, gasoline cost. He stated there needed to be a majority vote in all twelve (12) regions in order for the Referendum to pass. He stated Governor Warner has been a strong supporter of the Referendum and, n~ northern Virginia, the Mayors and Chairs Caucus endorsed, a resolution. in support of the Referendum at its last meeting. Supervisor Bradby inquired if Chairman Claud was aware of any opposition to the Transportation Referendum. Chairman Claud responded there are anti-tax groups in the Hampton Roads region coming forward in opposition to the Referendum. . Supervisor Bradshaw stated a State tax group is also uniting with the anti-referendum group in Hampton Roads. Supervisor Clark inquired how VDOT plays into the scenario after the taxing is done and, how after this region collects the funds, is it ensured that the normal allocation of transportation funds from Federal and State governments .come back to our area. He stated he did not know how, when there is no longer a need .because. the County has funded projects itself, the County would still get the money from the State to do the same projects because the County has already funded them. 2 soon 21 ~~.:-1~5 Chairman Claud stated legislation was passed by a majority in the General Assembly that specifically states this Referendum can not have any affect on the amount of Federal or State funding coming into. this locality for roads. He noted that .none of the six (6) projects in the Referendum are in the Six-Year Transportation Plan. He stated there are still many other .projects which need to be done to reduce congestion in Hampton Roads. Supervisor Bradshaw inquired if the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission (HRPDC) would oversee the entire construction of these projects or would it be interrelated with VDOT. Chairman Claud stated according to the Bill, the HRPDC has the authority to contract with VDOT and other consultants to follow through on these projects. Supervisor Clark inquired what would happen if there was another economic downturn and the 1% sales tax did not cover what had to be paid on the debt obligation. Chairman Claud stated when the revenue stream -was .estimated, recessions were taken into account. He stated not only did the HRPDC look at it, but also the State Secretary of Finance and outside consultants who were ultra-conservative. Supervisor Bradshaw. inquired how the County could be assured that the Route 460 project would not be the .last project. Chairman Claud stated each locality would have a representative on the HRPDC and the process would be monitored. // Chairman Claud stated the County has been a member of .the High Growth Coalition since its conception in 1998. He stated the Coalition held a meeting on June 27, 2002 in Richmond which looked at where the Coalition had been, where it is today and where it :wants to go. He stated being a part of the Coalition has been good for the County. He. stated the mission of the Coalition is to strengthen local government's authority, to. control its destiny and to have adequate funding to help pay for it. He stated some of the issues important to the Coalition were impact fees,. adequate public facilities and vested rights, although the Coalition has not had success with those issues. He stated one advantage to being a part of the Coalition is that as Bills come up in the General Assembly a representative of the Coalition in the form of a lobbyist could have input on these Bills. He stated the Coalition is expanding its interest into other growth issues and a meeting has been scheduled on August 14, .2002 with the Secretary of Commerce and Trade, the Secretary of Transportation, Secretary of Natural 3 ~, 804K 21 •r~:`1~~6 Resources and five (5) other representatives of the Coalition, of which he is one (1), to discuss some of the agenda items of the Coalition. He stated he believes the Coalition is beginning to gain respect in the .General Assembly. He .stated the Coalition is considering the creation of an Executive Committee which will consist of three (3) to five (5) people who could be contacted to rapidly react to legislation during the General Assembly with two (2) or three (3) who would .have the authority to act if there was not sufficient time to poll Board members. He stated them will be efforts to expand the membership base, as well as trying to get more active involvement from all of the current members. He stated he believes the Coalition has a future and is building relationships in the General Assembly and he also believes it is to the County's advantage to remain a member of the Coalition. Jonathan W. Hartley, .Director of Planning and Zoning, stated that some of the legislation relating to land use stems .from an issue .that is occurring in just one (1) jurisdiction. He .stated there is always confusion about what the enabling legislation allows and it is a challenge each year as there are items which are carried over and new legislation being introduced. He briefed the Board on legislation dated June 27, 2002 that was approved. // Chairman Claud distributed a copy of a letter received yesterday from the three (3) Secretaries in the Warner Administration who will be present at the meeting on August 16, 2002 highlighting the items to be discussed.. // Chairman Claud suggested the Board may wish to adopt a resolution at the Board's September 5, 2002 meeting supporting the Transportation Referendum even though the Board previously did, by motion, support the Referendum. // Supervisor MacManus requested Mr. Hartley update the Board on the Zoning Ordinance status. Mr. Hartley stated the Board should anticipate receiving copies of the districts the Planning Commission has been working on. He stated the Planning Commission is now working on .specific standards to address specific uses, followed by discussions on development standards. He stated .three (3) of the village districts would be going to public hearing at the Planning Commission meeting next week and forwarded to the Board in September, .2002. He stated a community meeting was held on the Carrollton community design and surveys are being collected at this time. 4 .. ,~ i~ II g~10~ ~~ %M~'~~7 Supervisor Bradshaw stated he previously requested he be notified of any community meetings, .although he has not been advised of any meetings to date. Mr. Hartley offered to have staff prepare a calendar. of community meetings for distribution to the entire Board. Supervisor MacManus inquired if Mr. Hartley still intended to provide a draft Zoning Ordinance to the Board in September, 2002. Mr. Hartley advised staff is behind schedule one (1) month and he anticipates providing the Board with a draft Zoning Ordinance in October, . 2002. He stated his objective is still to complete the process by the end of 2002. // At 1:45 p.m., Chairman Claud moved the Board adjourn its work session. The motion was adopted unanimously (5-0). ~~~~ .Robert C. Claud,. Sr., Chairman