CHARLOTTESVILLE CITY COUNCIL BUDGET WORK SESSION March 17, 2022 at 6:00 PM Electronic/virtual meeting Call to Order/Roll Call The Charlottesville City Council met in an electronic meeting on Thursday, March 17, 2022, in accordance with a local ordinance amended and re-enacted on March 7, 2022, to ensure continuity of government and prevent the spread of disease during the coronavirus State of Emergency. Mayor Lloyd Snook called the meeting to order and Clerk of Council Kyna Thomas called the roll, noting the following councilors present: Sena Magill, Brian Pinkston, Lloyd Snook and Juandiego Wade. The meeting recessed at 6:04 p.m. to address technical difficulties and reconvened at 6:08 p.m. Councilor Payne joined the meeting at 6:04 p.m. Vice Mayor Wade shared a disclosure statement acknowledging that he and his wife are active in several charitable causes either as members of the governing boards or as volunteers. The volunteer work is done as a part of a group and they do not receive compensation or stipend, and they have no financial stake in the outcome of Council’s decision. He was advised by the City Attorney that he has no prohibitive personal interest in the Council’s consideration for Vibrant Community Fund decisions and he is not required to disqualify himself from participating in Council’s decisions on the applications. WORK SESSION Krisy Hammill, Senior Budget and Management Analyst, introduced the discussion on outside and non-profit agencies. She began the discussion with a visual presentation of the Proposed FY2023 Operating and Capital Improvement Budget for contractual agencies in the following categories: • Public safety and Justice • Transportation • Education and Arts • Children Youth and Family • Workforce • Organizational Memberships Misty Graves, Department of Human Services Interim Director, acknowledged and thanked members of the Vibrant Community Fund (VCF) workgroup. Hunter Smith, Human Services Planner and lead for the VCF process presented a summary of the FY2023 process. Regarding the VCF, the FY23 process continued to develop on previous years’ adjustments and changes. Equity continued to be a focus area for all applicants and questions about how organizations are working toward equity were part of the application process as well as other key points: - Development of a Start Up opportunity - Setting aside funds to provide technical support and/or capacity building for new start up applicants - Albemarle County continues to operate an independent process for funding local nonprofits Six broad funding priority areas for the Vibrant Community Fund: - Education/Youth - Jobs/Wages - Community/Public Safety - Affordable Housing - Health - Equity Applications were ranked by importance in addressing priority areas and by application quality. The composition of the review team was intentionally diverse and consisted of a blend of consumers, citizens with grant management experience, city staff, and people with non-profit experience. Orientations were held for applicants as well as for review panel members. The process included consideration for the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr. Smith shared a chart of the Funding Matrix and information about ongoing efforts and future considerations: • Continue to develop the start-up process for new organizations • Develop a more robust scoring process for equity-driven applications • Capacity-building funds: designed to support start up organizations • Revisit Measurement and Solutions Workgroup Staff answered questions for Council about how the VCF informs overall budget development and specific award decisions. Councilors asked for comparison between city and county funding processes. As a former VCF workgroup member, Vice Mayor Wade added input on items taken into consideration when evaluating applications. Public Comment Mayor Snook opened the floor for comments from the public: Shelby Edwards, Executive Director of PHAR (Public Housing Association of Residents) requested funding for the PHAR Internship Program and redevelopment efforts. She spoke in support of the Legal Aid Justice Center application. Nancy Carpenter spoke about funding for CSRAP (Charlottesville Supplemental Rental Assistance Program) and requested an increase in housing voucher amounts. She asked for a plan from Council on the use of future American Rescue Plan funds for affordable housing. Angela Ciolfi, Executive Director of the Legal Aid Justice Center (LAJC) asked for full funding of PHAR's request and restoration of funding for LAJC legal services. Andrew Shelton, city resident, requested rent relief funding for the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center (JSAAHC). Lisa Torres, city resident, requested rent relief funding for the JSAAHC. - Mayor Snook requested a staff report to explain the "Equity Agreement" referenced for the JSAAHC. - Interim City Manager Michael Rogers advised that staff is working on a report inclusive of other lease, rental, and property agreements. - Ms. Hammill advised that the referenced "Equity Package" refers to the Council Strategic Initiatives Fund which addressed multiple equity issues beginning in 2017. Dr. Andrea Douglas, Executive Director of the JSAAHC, advised that the Jefferson School in 2017 received City funds from an Equity Package in two lump sums, the first $450,000 and the second $500,000. Those funds went directly into escrow to support and secure refinancing of the Jefferson School City Center. She advised that to the extent that the Jefferson School is an anchor tenant of the City Center, and that the City is the second anchor tenant of the City Center, the JSAAHC has not been able to benefit from the City’s funding with the exception of rent. She stated that she intended to speak with the former city manager last year to create a plan for requesting funding, and on the day that they were to meet, the city manager announced his resignation. Funding ends in November 2022. She stated that the original funding was considered one-time “with the notion that this would be ongoing funding, given the kind of funding that other organizations like [JSAAHC] receive from the City and have done for a number of years.” Cheri Lewis, board member for the JSAAHC, spoke about programs at the JSAAHC and requested funding in the general budget and VCF. Telethia Carr, city resident, spoke in support of funding for Charlottesville Low Income Housing Coalition and PHAR. Allexis Cooper, PHAR Internship Graduate and Assistant requested funding for PHAR. Tim Wallace, Director of Development at the LAJC requested funding for PHAR. He commented about the decision-making process and scoring matrix for VCF. Elizabeth Murtaugh, Public Defender for the City of Charlottesville and County of Albemarle provided additional information regarding her request for funding to supplement payment to staff in her office. Andrew Pennock, city resident, spoke in support of the Meadowcreek multi-use trail in the Greenbrier neighborhood to address a variety of accessibility opportunities. Following further discussion from Council, Ms. Hammill and Mr. Rogers summarized items for follow-up and reviewed the remaining budget discussion timeline and topics. The meeting adjourned at 7:58 p.m. BY Order of City Council BY Kyna Thomas, Clerk of Council