Do you stand for a moment of silence and please remain standing?
For the Pledge of Allegiance to our flag.
Pledge of Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the
Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
The Vice Mayor will be participating remotely in today's meeting, and Ms. Hassek, please read the resolution.
Resolution approving participation through electronic communication means by Vice Mayor Thomas in the August 6, 2026 Norfolk City Council meeting due to a personal matter.
Adopt the resolution. Mr. Clanton.
Hi.
Mrs. Doyle.
Hi.
Mrs. Johnson.
Hi.
Mr. McGee.
Aye.
Mr. Page.
Aye.
Mr. Smeagol.
Aye.
Dr. Alexander.
Aye.
Clerk, please read.
Call the roll.
Mr. Clanton.
Present.
Mrs. Doyle.
Here.
Mrs. Johnson.
Here.
Mr. McGee.
Here.
Mr. Page.
Here.
Mr. Smeagol.
Here.
Mr. Thomas.
Here.
Dr. Alexander.
Here.
Good evening and welcome to the Norfolk City Council.
So, meeting tonight will take up a regular agenda item to address the council.
You should have registers to speak with the clerk prior to 3 p.m.
When your name is called, please come to the podium, state your name, home address,
and limit your comments to three minutes.
Before we begin, Madam Clerk, will you please read the speaker's rules governing tonight's
meeting?
City Council rules permit each speaker three minutes to speak tonight.
As you approach the council, you will notice a timer on the lectern.
At the beginning of the three minutes, the green light will activate.
Two and a half minutes into your remarks, you will notice a yellow light
indicating that you have 30 seconds to finish your comments.
At the end of three minutes, you will see a red light, hear a beep,
we ask that you conclude your comments at that time.
All comments should be made in a manner that respects the seriousness of the forum
and should not be made in a profane, disruptive, sarcastic, or demeaning fashion.
All remarks should be directed to the City Council as a body rather than any particular
member of Council, staff, or the audience.
Comments should be germane to the item.
A speaker who fails to comply with the basic rules of decorum will be deemed out of order
and not allowed to conclude his or her comments.
Thank you.
Have several speakers.
Mr. James Ferrell?
Mr. Mayor?
Good evening.
Mr. Mayor.
Council.
Six-way Redgate Avenue.
My name is Jim Thewer.
I've had children in public schools from oh four to sixteen.
And the budget for the schools has grown every year,
and performance has gotten worse every year.
On gradeschools.org, I checked it today.
We have no middle school rated better than three out of ten.
No high school rated better than four out of ten.
And that's not a function of physical plans.
That's a function of operations.
The enrollment in public schools has declined 27 percent from 06 to 25.
Physical plant was not adjusted in tandem with that reduction.
The schools in their April report expect the enrollment to decline further through 28-29.
But the school board has been dilatory in adjusting its physical plant to reflect the population that it has.
But now they want to be rewarded for their effectiveness with more money.
That's not the answer.
The answer is to demand proper management of the funds that they are already provided.
Similarly, the city needs to spend smarter.
It doesn't need to raise taxes to get more money to take this item off the budget
and then spend that money on something else.
The city needs proper management of its resources.
abuses. A general sales tax falls predominantly on the residents, not the visitors. And we
are already sufficiently taxed. Thank you very much.
Melissa Corrigan.
Melissa will be followed by Grayson Player.
Good evening.
I stand before you today because I survived the dredges of our society through foster
care and countless abuses because of public school. My refuge was school. Education
was the only thing that gave me an escape and an opportunity.
Playing political and financial games with our children's education,
using taxpayer funds like a shell game,
moving back and forth between education and general funds,
obscuring the tracks to taxpayers footing the bill,
and then daring to come back to us with your handout for more
is a real-time demonstration of ineptitude
and a lack of vision embodied in the City Council
and the Associated School Board.
You come to us asking for educational facility funds and we have an educational facility at home.
In 2023, the surplus at the end of the school year was $13 million due to staffing shortages.
Rodney Jordan proposed, I was in the room, a bonus to every teacher who worked under those conditions.
I watched every other school board member vote against that proposal.
Then the money was turned over to the city.
Then the city bought a mall, a mall that we still own,
a mall that is only 27 years old, made to last a century or more, and you want more money from us.
The city of Norfolk owns more commercial property than any surrounding city, most of it revenue-generating.
Could you present a report to the people of Norfolk on why raising taxes and not using the facilities we already own,
the funds we already generate, is a better solution for our children?
Neither mismanagement of facilities nor finances is an acceptable excuse,
just as losing a million dollars of her money to a Nigerian scammer is not an acceptable loss.
And if you cannot use the facilities for education, as I understand zoning and other considerations may prohibit it,
the funds generated by whatever is put in that place should be funneled into education.
You bought it and you should use it for the children whose educational fund it came out of.
Nobody, and I mean not a single person that has to drive 16 blocks out of the way when
tide water floods or has to ride a bus to work, has asked for a mixed use development
anchored by a luxury military-themed hotel.
Not everybody that lives on that side of Lafayette.
Not when our schools have enrollment falling off the cliff, failing test scores, and
don't even bear full accreditation.
If any private citizen ran their affairs like this city, we'd be bankrupt, foreclosed,
and condemned.
But, I suspect, it's the same reason there aren't safe sidewalks in the neighborhood
I live in, in the Norview area, among other race-based decisions that impact the daily
quality of life for the residents of Norfolk who are not wealthy, white, or developers.
At the end of the day, a lack of vision, integrity, and honor is toxic to local governance.
Hundreds of Norfolk residents woke up yesterday figuring out how to get to work because
their cars are totaled due to floodwaters, and you come with your hand out.
Almost 40,000 Norfolk residents live under the federal poverty limit, 25% a full quarter
of the children who live here live under the poverty limit, and you come with your hand
out.
Your job is to be the hand up.
Thank you.
Grayson?
Good evening, council, mayor.
My name is Grayson Player.
I graduated from Norview High School with honors in 2023, and I just really don't
understand how the school can put in an entire new football field and have a
military recruiting officer in the cafeteria every day and not all the
students have Chromebooks to do their homework. What message does that send to
the students? That our worth is only in military and athletics, that our
education doesn't matter, is that the mad message the city of Norfolk wants
to send to the kids of the future? My experience in both Maury High School and
Norview High School were similar in many aspects. Underfunded programs I
wanted to take part into having the military or sports shoved down my
throw. Honestly, I don't blame the teachers for not trying either. As previously mentioned,
the budget allowed for them to get a pay raise for the extra work they were doing to
make up for the 40% loss of teacher hires in 2023. However, the city of Norfolk chose
to allocate that to other places. I blame the people in charge, who made the decision
for me and hundreds of other students that our education didn't matter, that we belonged
in athletics and the military, and that's all they were good for. Teachers like
Noah Wren, who was my senior year English teacher, would have to go out of their way
to print full books for each student to read in English class from his own printer paper
due to them not being able provided by the school, while a new football field was being
installed at the same time. That was the dedication these teachers gave to their students
while the money they deserved was thrown towards MacArthur Mall. This whole speech
is to say, give money to our future. The kids in our schools right now are
going to be in your place one day. Do you want to help their future or the future of
our city? This isn't a matter of a one percent sales tax. This is a matter of
covering up a mishandling of educational funds for children in our city and
taking more money from the people's pockets. It is your job to represent the
people, uphold your oath, and listen to the people in front of you. As a resident
of Norfolk, I would highly appreciate some explanation as to why exactly you
need more money from our pockets when you already took money from my
future. Thank you. Thank you. Vicky Manugo Greco followed by James Parker.
Hello Vicky, how are you?
Good evening Mayor Alexander, City Council members, City Manager Roberts and staff, and all other
stakeholders of Norfolk Public Schools here tonight. My name is Vicky Manugo Greco. My address
is 1433 Brunswick. I'm an NPS grad, former NPS special educator, and school board advisory
committee member, co-parent to three young adult NPS alum and an NPS volunteer
surrogate parent for special education students. So I'm all in and I fully
support Resolution R1 to be placed on the ballot. Since the aftermath of the
great recession and through the upheaval of the pandemic and the
ongoing trials of two presidential administrations that have set out to
divest from public education, I've been giving back locally as a public
school advocate and grassroots coalition by pushing for greater and
and sustainable investments by our city government
in our public school system for nearly the past 15 years.
Starting with when I helped to co-found Norfolk Games,
growing and investing in Norfolk schools,
a city-wide coalition made up of parents, educators,
business owners, community leaders, and neighbors
that envisioned a vibrant Norfolk,
our mid-sized waterfront city,
with an enviable location on the central East Coast,
awful tidying and title and flash flooding combos
like this past Tuesday, not withstanding.
A city noted for thriving businesses,
is outstanding cultural and recreational opportunities,
well-regarded institutions of higher learning,
and highly desirable neighborhoods,
anchored by excellent public schools across the city,
a city with a skilled, well-prepared workforce
and superior quality of life.
Gain spread the good news that public education
is vital to the strength of our city and our economy.
We called on our government leaders
to prioritize public ed as an invaluable investment
to our shared futures.
We pushed for greater and dedicated and sustainable funding streams for NPS.
We sent each other emails over these past 15 years, bemoaning the deficient school maintenance budget,
especially for our schools that are the heart and community centers of under-resourced neighborhoods.
We worked on various school committees to promote equitable educational facilities and budget planning.
From our advocacy efforts with city leaders, we got a 4-cent real estate tax increase in 2014,
which still needs to be looked at, needs to be reevaluated as to whether this investment
strategy provided adequate revenue dedicated to address school construction and renovations
and deferred school building maintenance and technology.
And now, as we're potentially asking more folks again to consider paying one cent tax
for each retail dollar spent, this I know.
I'm for this measure, which could only come up before voters to consider as early
is Friday, September 18th, the early voting start date.
I'll end with this.
We in the realtors and employers constantly hear the one question when a family or business
looks at Norfolk as a place to call home.
How good are the schools?
Let's come together as Norfolk as a city we're proud to call home because of our
public school system.
Schools in demand are not just consumers of tax dollars, but producers of dollars.
Thank you.
James Parker is followed by Philip Hawkins.
Good evening, City Council.
My name is James Parker.
I'm the President of the Education Association of Norfolk.
I'm also a resident of Norfolk, a teacher serving the students here in the city.
I'm here tonight in support of this referendum to raise local sales tax to provide additional funding for our public schools.
This investment is critical to ensure that our students have the resources, opportunities, and support they need to succeed.
Our schools are the foundation of our communities.
When we invest in public education, we invest in our children, our neighborhoods, and the
future of Norfolk.
Providing our schools with funding they need allows us to better have students prepare
for skills, knowledge, and experience necessary for the future.
Supporting this referendum is a commitment to our students, our educators, and our
entire community.
Strong schools create stronger communities, and investing in education is an investment
and the benefit of us all.
I strongly encourage our neighbors
to support this referendum.
Our students deserve every opportunity to succeed
and they cannot reach their full potential
without the resources and support they need.
Students cannot grow unless we provide them
with the tools they need to thrive.
Let us come together as community
and ensure that our students have the support,
resources and opportunities they deserve.
Thank you.
Philip Hawkins is followed by Patrick Barry that
he
Good evening, Mayor Alexander, City Manager Roberts, members of council. I'm Philip Hawkins, Jr.
I am a resident of the City of Norfolk. I reside at 3597 Mississippi Avenue. I'm a proud product
of Norfolk Public Schools as well. I'm a graduate of Norfolk State University. I hold
degrees there in business and in education. I am a proud educator of 29 years. This will
be my 29th year serving Norfolk public schools and I am the proud assistant principal of PB
Young Senior Elementary School as well as a civic leader in the neighborhood of Ingleside.
Tonight I'm speaking as an individual but of course we are all connected. It is so
important that we do find streams of funding for our schools. We know this
has been an ongoing problem in our city. Not only this year or just five years
ago, this has been decades in the making. I served at a school that is
underserved that has not had the proper maintenance over decades. You know, the
flood waters affected our school, you know, it hit us all and we're
addressing that now and we're preparing our schools for opening. We're excited about that.
However, we need more support. While I see that the Council has arrived at proposing
a referendum to raise taxes, I'm kind of mixed about that outcome because I feel that the
work that has already been done speaks to other alternatives that I would ask that
the council, as well as the school board. The school board has already done their work.
I was serving on the school facilities committee last year. And we know that schools are in
the process of being closed and consolidated. They're doing what was requested to save the
city money. Now, the committee last year, the report was delivered publicly that we
would like to see those funds from those schools closed, reinvested in Norfolk public
schools that are already on the table.
So I would ask respectfully that the council consider those funds at average school costs
to run about $1.4 million.
And that's a small school.
My school is considered a small school.
But we have three schools closed in June.
We're closing five this year at the end of next year.
So that's a lot of money that's still on the table that the citizens would like
our leaders to consider those funding streams. Also, there were streams of funding considered
or promised for the casino, which is in the process of being completed, that they would
be earmarked for Norfolk public schools. I would like to see those options considered
again as the referendum goes forth. So I do support the referendum, give it back to
the citizens, and let them decide if they say no, that's no. If they say yes,
Yes, but let's look at the other options as well.
Thank you so much.
Thank you, Phillip.
Patrick Berry,
followed by Carl Poole.
Good evening, Mayor Alexander.
Good evening.
And members of the Norfolk City Council.
I'm Patrick Berry, and I serve as the Vice President of the Education Association of
Norfolk, representing the educators and school employees who work every day in
our public schools.
schools. I am here tonight in support of Resolution R01 to place a proposed 1% sales tax referendum
before the voters of the City of Norfolk. This vote tonight is not about raising taxes.
It's an investment. An investment in our children, our workforce, our neighborhoods, and Norfolk's
future. Every day educators and students walk into buildings that were never designed
to meet the needs of a 21st century education.
We ask our students to dream big,
while too many of them learn in aging facilities
that require significant repairs and modernization.
Our educators do extraordinary work,
but they cannot fix leaky roofs, outdated infrastructure,
or buildings that have reached the end
of their useful lives.
This referendum would create a dedicated funding source
for school construction and major renovation,
State law also limits these funds to capital projects.
They cannot be used for any other purpose.
Norfolk is not alone in considering this opportunity.
Following action by the General Assembly this year,
communities across the Commonwealth are asking their residents
whether they want to make this investment in public education.
This is more, much more than about buildings.
It is about the students who learn in them,
the educators who teach in them,
and the neighborhoods that are strengthened by them.
As educators, we know that school facilities matter.
They influence student learning, staff morale,
recruitment, retention, and the pride people have
in their neighborhood schools.
One of the reasons I support this referendum
is because a sales tax spreads the responsibility broadly.
I don't live in Norfolk, but I work here.
I shop here, and I gladly contribute
to the community through the purchases I make.
visitors, commuters, and shoppers like me all help share in this investment rather
than placing the burden solely on Norfolk house homeowners. Tonight I urge you to
vote to place this referendum on the November ballot and trust the people of
Norfolk to make this decision. Thank you for your time and for your
commitment to Norfolk students. Thank you. Carl Poole.
Good evening Mayor
Alexander. Good evening City Council. My name is Carl Poole and I'm an
I'm speaking tonight in full support of Resolution R1 to put a 1% sales tax referendum on the ballot.
I'm confident that the people of Norfolk will vote for it.
We see the condition of our school facilities.
We know that these funds are urgently needed.
Not only to replace schools like Morey High School,
but for the school boards to advance a broader plan to construct and modernize additional schools over the next decade.
given voters the chance to approve this dedicated funding stream for capital
projects is a vital step forward but also want to bring a strategic perspective
on how these upcoming capital improvements overlap with our city's
values and long-term commitments. Back in July of 2020 our school board reached
a consensus that several schools several Norfolk schools named after
Confederate officers should be renamed. During these discussions one board
member rightly pointed out that the most practical and fiscally responsible time to handle this
major renaming with all the costs associated with new signage, athletic branding and facilities
updates is when the school is already undergoing a major overhaul or reconstruction or replacement.
That former school board member now serves on this council. When the school was being
rebuilt to receive a ground-up transformation. Those updates naturally integrate into an
overall capital budget rather than requiring separate standalone expenses down the road.
As we talked tonight about generating revenue specifically for dedicated to major construction
and school modernization, we are creating those exact conditions for that timeline
to align. Now, I know that official decisions regarding school names rest directly with
the school board. But I'm taking this conversation to them as well. But as the body that allocates
major capital funding shapes our city's financial priorities and collaborates closely with the
school division, City Council plays a critical leadership role in ensuring that our investments
deliver both a structural excellence and a community alignment. By advancing this
referendum, you're not just funding bricks and mortar. You're giving our city the resources
to build modern, welcoming schools that reflect the values of our community for generations
to come. I urge this council to pass Resolution R1 unanimously tonight, and I look forward
to seeing all the voters support our schools on the ballot box. Thank you.
Thank you.
Madam Clerk, please call the roll.
I'll read the resolution first.
Read the resolution.
The resolution initiating a referendum election pursuant to Virginia Code section 58.1 draft
635.1 on the question of whether the city shall add an additional local general retail
sales tax not to exceed 1% to provide revenue solely for capital projects for the new construction
or major renovation of schools serving this city. Adopt the resolution. Mr. Clanton.
Aye.
Mrs. Doyle.
Aye.
Mr. Johnson.
Aye.
Mr. McGee.
Aye.
Mr. Page.
Aye.
Mr. Smeagol.
Aye.
Mr. Thomas.
Dr. Alexander.
I do want to recognize our superintendent, Dr. Jeff Rose, and members of the school
board for being here.