[0:00] It's 4:45.

[0:03] Please call the roll.

[0:04] Ms. Felter?

[0:04] Here.

[0:05] Mr. Fowler?

[0:05] Here.

[0:06] Ms. Longane?

[0:07] Here. All right, we have a quorum. There is one item on the agenda to consider

[0:12] final action of an ordinance to authorize an economic impact study for Reignite

[0:17] Plan.

[0:20] I put this item on the agenda because

[0:23] I'm in favor of investing in Alexandria, improving Alexandria,

[0:30] but we're looking at borrowing $82 million to make this happen, and we will

[0:36] have some money

[0:38] to spend. I just want to know is it wise to do this amount for Reignite?

[0:44] So I would like to hear from my fellow colleagues to get your input. Ms.

[0:49] Felter, I think this impacts your area, and I would just like to know,

[0:55] is it worth the bang for the buck?

[1:00] So

[1:03] this afternoon I reviewed the documents that were given from the administration-

[1:09] Mm-hmm

[1:09] ... and the mayor did give a report summary to the council to kind of

[1:15] shorten and summarize things. Most of the

[1:20] items that they gave us I've seen already from different briefings and things

[1:26] that have been put out

[1:28] on the website. So I'm looking for a specific page.

[1:35] Now, what I've seen has been a marketing study.

[1:38] So I saw the marketing study, and

[1:42] looking at the current market analysis of the area.

[1:46] So that's what-

[1:48] Which is different from an economic impact study.

[1:50] Right, CSRS study.

[1:52] Yeah.

[1:53] So they kind of looked at

[1:57] those items.

[2:00] Oh, here we go.

[2:04] So I think the 82 million comes from, okay, 45 million city

[2:10] money using existing sales tax and debt service model, so that's in the Reignite

[2:15] FAQ.

[2:16] Okay.

[2:17] And then it says 30 million leveraged, so

[2:21] private, federal state matches because there's... I really like this FAQ.

[2:26] I think it actually helped me. Quite a few questions I had personally, when I

[2:32] looked through this, I was like, "Okay, this actually answered my question." So

[2:36] this kind of lines out some of the ways that we can leverage

[2:42] state and federal money. For example, with the drainage canal, different

[2:48] dollars and grants that can match

[2:52] with that-

[2:53] Now, you're using terminology that a lot of people may not understand when you're

[2:57] saying match and leverage.

[3:00] Yeah. So I think one of the biggest things that I want to make sure we do, and I

[3:05] think that it's smart to do, is getting the most bang for your buck.

[3:09] So when you can have a match, meaning the city puts up an amount of money, and then

[3:13] you have another outside source matching money, then you're able to get

[3:19] more-

[3:19] Which is usually a federal-

[3:21] Right

[3:21] ... state or federal agency.

[3:23] And so I think that's important, and

[3:29] so I think that explains kind of what a match is.

[3:31] But my question is: how is this going to be paid back?

[3:38] Right. What do we get out of it?

[3:40] And ideally, will the area where that's receiving this investment generate

[3:46] sufficient sales tax revenue to help pay for it?

[3:51] Can anyone answer that question for me? Mr. Smith, thank you.

[3:58] Daniel Smith, Director of Planning.

[4:01] Yeah, I just want to make sure that we're clear that the $45 million figure will be

[4:05] the proposed bond amount.

[4:06] Right.

[4:07] You had mentioned $82 million-

[4:08] When I say bond amount, that's money that the city is to borrow.

[4:12] That's correct. So a bond, a municipal bond, again, I know a lot of folks don't-

[4:16] Okay

[4:16] ... know the basics on this. I know that you do.

[4:19] But yeah, the future sales tax and projected revenue, you can borrow it upfront,

[4:24] and that gets paid back over time.

[4:26] Mm-hmm.

[4:26] Typically, it would be a conservative amount that you would borrow.

[4:28] So this amount, I believe, is based on existing revenue.

[4:32] So you wouldn't necessarily need to have a massive increase in revenue to pay this

[4:37] off. It would be, the mayor liked to talk about a car note.

[4:40] We currently had an existing bond that is going off the books.

[4:43] We're finishing up and paying it back.

[4:45] And so we'll continue to have that revenue, just like you continue to work at your

[4:48] job, and then we can now borrow against that future revenue to do a new bond.

[4:52] Okay.

[4:52] And these bonds, the call would say what it's for, and typically they're for

[4:58] infrastructure projects. More generally-

[5:01] Which will be capital money

[5:03] ... well, so yeah, and there's also $7 million in capital outlay.

[5:05] That's what you guys appropriate every year.

[5:08] The bond is what gets borrowed against future revenue.

[5:10] But I guess my question is,

[5:15] there's discussion to spend $82 million along Masonic Drive.

[5:19] After that type of money is spent, will income be generated

[5:26] from that particular area, or will other areas be required

[5:32] to pay for it?

[5:33] Well,

[5:35] the $30 million bond would be paid for under projections from existing revenue.

[5:39] So $30 million of that is what Councilman Felter was talking about, the leveraging

[5:42] part.

[5:43] Mm-hmm.

[5:43] But I do want to push back a little bit.

[5:46] We typically, when we propose an infrastructure project, when council asks for an

[5:49] infrastructure project, we don't look at that particular project having to itself

[5:53] generate enough revenue to pay for itself.

[5:55] Okay.

[5:55] We are getting revenue from sales tax and property taxes, and we're reinvesting

[5:59] that money into the community-

[6:00] Okay

[6:00] ... hopefully to improve the business environment, to improve the quality of life

[6:04] of our residents.

[6:05] And that's good.

[6:06] We don't have to have everything pay for itself, so to speak.

[6:09] The goal, of course, is to increase economic activity, which would, as you know and

[6:14] as you say, increase sales tax, increase property values.

[6:18] But that's not the primary goal. The primary goal is to create a better quality of

[6:22] life and a better sense of place in an area that the city has identified and done

[6:25] quite a bit of work identifying as where the administration wants to steer the next

[6:29] set of investments.

[6:30] Okay. Now my question is:

[6:34] will money be made if this type of money is spent on Masonic Drive?

[6:39] If it's successful, you would hope to see greater sales tax.

[6:44] Okay.

[6:45] Now, also, so we have the infrastructure part that we've already been talking

[6:48] about. That's with the city. The city, because of Article 7 in the constitution,

[6:52] finance rules, we can spend all day in capital outlay on improving our own assets.

[6:57] But the whole other component of Reignite would be partnering with the private

[7:01] sector, particularly Alexandria Mall, and maybe some healthcare assets along that

[7:04] corridor. And those particular partnering projects have to show that they would

[7:09] have a return on the investment or at least a commensurate value to the public in

[7:13] order for the city to justify those cooperative endeavor agreements.

[7:17] Okay.

[7:17] So in those particular cases, let's say we did a deal with the mall, and I

[7:23] included in the packet earlier today the due diligence questionnaire that was

[7:26] developed last summer, where there's some proposed terms in the MOU with the mall

[7:31] management, excuse me, the mall ownership group.

[7:33] In those situations, we would absolutely have to do these types of studies that

[7:37] you're talking about to ensure that there's a reportable benefit to the city, that

[7:42] it's not just a giveaway, that there is pro forma to make sure whatever business

[7:46] activity that they are doing in order to justify an incentive from the city

[7:51] will pencil out and make sense. And then, of course, also there'd be call backs if

[7:54] they don't meet those incentives, excuse me, they don't meet those requirements to

[7:57] get whatever that incentive would be, then the city could call back and sunset it.

[8:01] I want to point to the hotel development downtown as an example of a successful

[8:06] effort that this administration did years ago.

[8:08] So it's not like they're reinventing the wheel.

[8:12] But this is a typical way that you would partner with the public sector to do a

[8:16] public-private partnership in order to spend money on things we can spend money on,

[8:20] but also to leverage and push and spur the private sector to do more as well.

[8:25] Who would do the actual study?

[8:35] There's not going to be an actual study, so to speak.

[8:37] So let's say we're going through the analysis with the CA of the city, also the

[8:40] financial team for whatever private group, such as the Alexandria Mall.

[8:45] It would need to be accountants and auditors, I presume, but I think your concern

[8:51] is making sure that it's someone independent and someone unbiased that would

[8:54] perform that analysis.

[8:55] Yes.

[8:55] Yeah.

[8:56] That much is a lot.

[8:57] Sure. And I mean, the city, it's all over these documents about- You know, making

[9:02] sure that the assumptions are correct, and that market analysis justifies whatever

[9:06] kind of incentives the city would be putting in, that there'd be financial

[9:09] evaluation on the front end to make certain that the investment makes sense.

[9:14] Um, but I don't think the idea is that there would be this one giant economic

[9:18] impact study for the entire infrastructure program.

[9:21] You know, of course, we want to make sure that the infrastructure that we do spend

[9:24] money on has benefit cost analyses that make sense.

[9:27] We have our own way of prioritizing when we do roads, and when we do ditch closures

[9:31] and sidewalks. You know, there's never enough money for everything, so we have to

[9:34] pick and choose. And that's based on need, and then also based a lot of times on

[9:37] the emergency situations that will come up.

[9:40] Okay.

[9:40] Um, but if as far as the ordinance is contemplating some large, huge scale

[9:46] economic impact study that makes a bunch of assumptions about what may or may not

[9:50] happen later on with Reignite with the private sector partnering, that isn't

[9:52] something that typically would come early on like this.

[9:56] Uh, we-

[9:56] We wouldn't be able to necessarily predict what the private sector-

[9:59] Mr. Powers

[10:00] ... entities will come in.

[10:01] Go ahead.

[10:02] I was just going to say, I think

[10:05] we know what we can do on our end, and hopefully that spurs the private sector to

[10:09] buy into this project and invest in the area, but I think it's hard to predict the

[10:15] economic impact on that side-

[10:17] No, the-

[10:17] ... at this point.

[10:18] Right. So, like later on you could come back and see-

[10:20] Yeah

[10:20] ... and try to measure those things.

[10:22] Okay. Go ahead, Mr. Mayor.

[10:22] Mr. Powers.

[10:23] Anyway, I just think that the mayor's presented so much of this stuff already.

[10:28] We've looked at, uh, one of the things we have to do to really

[10:34] get an impact statement would be to define the projects we're going to do, and

[10:38] we're not even close to doing that.

[10:41] And I know that we're working on several different things, but in each of the

[10:45] things I've read, each contract, and each thing he's done over the time-

[10:49] Mm-hmm

[10:49] ... that he's been mayor, he's backed up all of this stuff every time with economic

[10:56] studies and so forth and so that it'll be...

[10:59] Uh, a lot of times the city borrows money to do things that are just in general for

[11:03] the people.

[11:04] Correct.

[11:04] Some of this will be that way. Some of it might be a business venture type thing-

[11:08] Mm-hmm

[11:09] ... that's going to produce revenue that'll, you know, get to both the business

[11:13] community and the city, but each one will stand on its own.

[11:17] And, uh, I don't think there's a way that we can do an economic impact on

[11:23] this Reignite project. You might be able to do it on different portions of it, but

[11:28] I don't see how you could possibly do it, who would be qualified to do it on the

[11:33] full-scale thing, because we don't even know what's all going to involve yet.

[11:36] I think that's really the key, the last thing you said about not knowing exactly,

[11:40] because we're going through the public input and scoping process still, the sort of

[11:43] due diligence phase. Um-

[11:45] But we can still-

[11:46] Sure

[11:46] ... pass an ordinance that mandates that an economic impact study be done on what

[11:50] we're proposing.

[11:52] Along the way?

[11:53] Yeah. Along the way.

[11:54] Well, everything has to come to us.

[11:56] Yeah.

[11:57] I mean, it has to come to us, I believe.

[11:59] Well, and then the bond certainly would have to come as well.

[12:02] Um, you know, some of these projects are funded in, some of the capital, and the

[12:07] playground project would be a good example.

[12:08] Those are the things the city's already doing.

[12:10] It is true, I mean, you can get someone to do an economic analysis of a road or of

[12:14] a park or a playground. I don't think that's really, um, the kind of thing that

[12:19] we're talking about or are being asked of.

[12:21] Um-

[12:22] I know

[12:22] ... I'm not going to weigh in about the ordinance itself.

[12:24] I think that's maybe better for legal.

[12:26] You, Ms. Powers.

[12:28] So right now, all of this is proposed with the bond and everything.

[12:33] It's not like we're just saying if we approve anything for Reignite, it's a

[12:38] blank check, whatever. Everything would still have to, every project would still

[12:41] come before us for approval.

[12:44] Mm-hmm.

[12:45] Um, my question-

[12:46] Any-

[12:46] Correct.

[12:47] Well, yeah, any partnering agreements, so any new CEAs have to be approved by the

[12:50] council.

[12:50] Right.

[12:50] The bond itself, of course, any budgetary expenditures.

[12:53] And I just want to note, um, you know, I think the proof is in the success of

[12:57] Spark. You know, we have a double A rating.

[13:00] You know, we have a really good borrowing capacity for the city, um, and the

[13:04] finances are healthy.

[13:06] I have a question.

[13:06] We got it back .

[13:08] Exactly. Yeah, we did get it back, right?

[13:10] So when-

[13:10] Paid the car

[13:10] ... if we would, um, require an economic study beyond what is

[13:16] already done, like with the market analysis and everything like that, what kind of

[13:21] cost is that? Like for that type of study-

[13:24] I don't know

[13:24] ... as you're thinking?

[13:25] I don't know. That's why I put this in a committee to discuss it.

[13:29] Does it, do we have any idea how much that would cost?

[13:32] Uh, no, sir, I do not. I mean-

[13:34] Because that would be-

[13:35] Was-

[13:35] ... my concern of, we can have a study of a study of a study.

[13:39] Is that the wisest use of money as well?

[13:41] Like, I think-

[13:43] The other concern would be delaying things, and we want this to have a big impact

[13:46] and move forward relatively quickly. Um, that's the whole idea.

[13:50] You know, the same idea with Spark is, and Fast Track as well, is getting a lot of

[13:53] projects moving at the same time to generate that, and I hate this word, but the

[13:57] synergy that you want to see, uh, you know, in that area.

[14:00] And I think the city's done quite a bit of work just to justify the case for that

[14:04] area between the recreational assets, healthcare assets, and now the center of the

[14:07] mall, which does need some-

[14:08] I, I'm sorry.

[14:09] No, no, no.

[14:10] I was going to say, I do want to speak on that, um, because at Masonic,

[14:16] that is kind of a connecting point of a lot of districts in the city.

[14:20] A lot of that area is actually District 2.

[14:23] That's right.

[14:23] Um, and we have the zoo, we have those sidewalks and benches.

[14:29] Uh, GATA did a lot of, um, impact in that area as well, um, throughout the years.

[14:36] And you've got all of the assets along there.

[14:41] Our zoo is world-class. I mean, I take my kids, anytime we go to a city, I go to

[14:46] the zoo to check it out. And I'm always leaving, I'm thinking, "The Alexandria Zoo

[14:49] is so much better than this." Um, but I think maximizing on that potential

[14:55] is smart to do. Um, and we have the children's

[15:01] museum, the Treehouse Downtown, which I personally feel like there have been a lot

[15:05] of improvements recently with the new director.

[15:08] I think,

[15:10] um, putting more money toward that to make it at the same level as the zoo,

[15:16] as far as a destination for school field trips, families to go there.

[15:21] I think

[15:23] that in this whole plan really kind of makes that area an appealing

[15:29] area because as a parent, you think, "Okay, if I'm going out to do something with

[15:34] my kids," you know, you want, they look for things.

[15:38] Understand.

[15:38] Depending on their age-

[15:39] Understand

[15:39] ... and, um, look for things like that.

[15:41] Understand.

[15:42] So I do, I am a fan of that part of it for sure.

[15:46] I think investing in that part, you don't want to see it go further down.

[15:49] I mean, I agree with you. I, I-

[15:50] Yeah

[15:50] ... don't doubt that we need investment. We also have brown water too.

[15:55] Right.

[15:55] But there's certain-

[15:57] You know?

[15:57] You know-

[15:58] It's like apples and oranges, but still, you know, we, that's a concern that we

[16:01] need to address. So-

[16:03] Well, utility fund is, enterprise fund is separate.

[16:07] Um-

[16:07] Understand. I mean, I know it's separate, but they go to the tax, to the citizen.

[16:10] They're like, "You're spending money here," but we have these other concerns and,

[16:15] you know, that, that's just my concern there.

[16:17] Okay. And-

[16:18] And-

[16:19] No, please go ahead.

[16:20] It should be noted that the administration is in support of this particular

[16:23] ordinance. We would have come and asked the council, uh, for this particular item

[16:28] later on in the process, as we note in the report that we provided, um, as a part

[16:32] of the confirmatory analysis that we would be doing.

[16:35] Okay.

[16:35] So, uh, we would be willing to go forward with the council as we go into this

[16:39] process to discuss how that outcome looks in regards to doing this analysis.

[16:44] All right. All right.

[16:45] I just think it's specific. It needs to be developed.

[16:48] Yes, that's right.

[16:48] Some kind of development.

[16:50] Yes, the city-

[16:51] Somebody could write it better too.

[16:52] Well, the city has a lot of ideas. We have some projects that are moving forward,

[16:55] like MPO-funded improvements on Masonic Drive.

[16:58] And then we have projects like Greenhurst Park, which is in some ways a blank

[17:02] canvas. And so we've gone through the effort of doing the mark-market analysis, um,

[17:06] engaging with the community of course is a big part of it, to see what people

[17:09] themselves think is needed in that area.

[17:12] Um, so yeah, we are at the proc- yeah, what's been said before.

[17:15] It's, we want to get the cart behind the horse. Yeah.

[17:18] I mean, it's like we're trying to get buy-in from them.

[17:20] Yep, that's right.

[17:21] So maybe it's a different way to look at it, but it is something the city funded.

[17:25] Yeah. And K.L., we had a great report about optimism among, you know, business

[17:28] owners along that corridor. So that's exactly what we're trying to-

[17:31] That's two different people

[17:31] ... generate.

[17:34] Talking to me about Greenhurst, and they had some ideas-

[17:36] Okay

[17:36] ... they wanted to present on Saturday.

[17:36] Yeah, and the infrastructure on the mall. Yeah.

[17:38] Councillor Mark.

[17:39] Yes, sir. I requested this to be on the agenda.

[17:43] I received this, uh, report from the mayor's office at 2:45, although we did apply,

[17:48] ask for this two weeks ago. Uh, question to you, Mr.

[17:51] Smith, uh, to maybe have answers from the administration.

[17:55] Before Alexandria concentrates this level of public investment in the Masonic Drive

[17:59] corridor, why shouldn't the city first conduct a comprehensive economic and

[18:04] infrastructure study of the entire city to determine which neighborhoods and

[18:10] corridors have the greatest needs, and where public dollars could Produce

[18:16] the greatest benefit. A follow-up on that is, can the administration provide

[18:22] data or analysis showing why Masonic Drive was selected ahead of

[18:29] the areas of Alexandria that residents-

[18:31] I can't replace how much of my data gets backed up

[18:33] Oh, goodness gracious. My bad.

[18:35] Excuse me.

[18:37] That residents, that many residents say that they experience disinvestment,

[18:43] deteriorating infrastructure, and limited economic development for 20

[18:49] years or more. I know the area is being done over in District 4, which is

[18:55] in this Felker's area, but I talk with people down through the area.

[18:59] Just want to make a comment, sir. Stanford, Bush, Dartmouth-

[19:04] Mm-hmm

[19:04] ... Princeton, Harvard, Yale,

[19:08] Rensselaer, and North City Park Boulevard adjacent to this and all are disrepair.

[19:13] So we're going to pretty up Masonic Drive and while those neighbors are driving

[19:17] across potholes.

[19:19] Right.

[19:20] Potholes that you want to beautify one part of the city. So following what Ms.

[19:25] Lombard has asked, I want to know how we chose Masonic Drive to invest in all this

[19:31] funding. And then if also that you did say we're getting ready to pay off a bond,

[19:35] would that be the utility bond for that DG Hunter power plant before we go into

[19:40] other investments and putting the citizens in another bond issue to break the city?

[19:45] No, sir. Utility bonds are paid for with utility rates.

[19:49] This would be a bond that's paid for the city in property taxes, are totally

[19:53] separate accounts in your budget.

[19:54] So no sales taxes, property taxes.

[19:56] I believe there's sales tax involved, too.

[19:58] That's a better question for finance, but it's absolutely not utility money.

[20:01] Okay.

[20:01] And to answer your question, why Masonic Drive?

[20:04] This is a report from May of 2026 from the spring.

[20:06] It literally says, "Why this corridor?" It was something we provided to you guys.

[20:10] I think the case is well justified about doing it on Masonic Drive from the retail,

[20:14] healthcare, and recreational assets.

[20:16] It touches on multiple districts, but that doesn't mean the city can't do multiple

[20:19] things at once. We are trying to improve roads.

[20:23] I live over a block off of Bush Avenue, and that's where I recreate is in the Ivy

[20:27] League neighborhood. So of course, I'm aware of the situation in that neighborhood

[20:31] as well, and then also other parts of the city that we are steering investment to.

[20:35] Frankly, District 3 gets quite a bit of the share of the city's

[20:41] investment to catch up and to make up for a long period of time, and things that

[20:46] were developed not at the same standard originally when they weren't even in the

[20:49] city.

[20:50] Neglect.

[20:50] So I think it's a fa-- Well, not necessarily neglect. It is a false choice.

[20:55] There is a comprehensive plan in place relative to the city's capital budget that

[20:59] the council-

[20:59] Right. Thank you

[20:59] ... does approve. And so there are a number of projects that are already outlined

[21:04] in the capital budget, that are on task to be completed or in progress to be

[21:10] completed. So there is a comprehensive look at where the needs are citywide, and

[21:14] this council has approved that budget.

[21:17] Okay. Well, with that being said, Mr.

[21:19] Caffrey, what objective criteria was used to select the Masonic Corridor for this

[21:24] level of investment? Because as you said, Mr.

[21:28] Smith, there are six District 3s, which is Ms. Perry's area.

[21:33] District 4 is, I just stated off the streets that I travel all over the city.

[21:37] And people ask me, why do we even suggested to spend this type of money on the

[21:43] Masonic Corridor when you have so many other things that are needed within the

[21:47] city? As he mentioned, Brown Road. That to me comes to this.

[21:52] Let me say this, and then you can see I answered your question as you said last

[21:56] night.

[21:57] That the citizens are concerned, so-

[22:05] Oh, is he scared to come and talk?

[22:07] Well, it's never too scary.

[22:09] But anyway,

[22:11] that is the point of, again, I received this report at 2:45.

[22:16] I done sat in front of my computer all day long when this was emailed to me.

[22:20] And it was sent to you all two weeks ago, the agenda went out.

[22:24] So last week, the agenda went out, we should have had this much more in time to go

[22:28] across and digest it. And Mr. Caffrey, I do understand and appreciate you're just

[22:33] the mayor's spokesperson, but as someone who's told me stuff, asking you questions

[22:37] because you're not a department head person per se.

[22:40] But anyway, citizens are concerned about the Masonic Drive corridor, the whole

[22:45] area, for doing this, why it was selected, why are we investing so much money.

[22:50] And then two, saying this, people are telling me this came from the GATA board that

[22:56] was revamped in the city's program.

[23:00] So you-

[23:00] But in saying that, Mr. Caffrey, please.

[23:03] Oh.

[23:03] I'm going to

[23:06] ask that whatever ruling be made, if it goes out of this committee to, I

[23:12] think it's item four, to seriously consider what's going on. As Mr.

[23:16] Smith said, maybe we should bring this ordinance back down the road.

[23:20] I'm just saying as one person talking to many people across the city of Alexandria,

[23:25] not just one district, but the entire city, there's different people not happy with

[23:31] this idea. So how it goes from this point on, I'm going to vote, we'll see how it

[23:35] goes. Thank you all.

[23:36] So-

[23:37] I got a question.

[23:38] So may I speak to that?

[23:40] So Councilman Green-

[23:41] Yes

[23:41] ... you're correct in regards to this having to do with GATA.

[23:47] As you know, I served two terms on GATA as your appointee when you were district

[23:50] councilman for District 3.

[23:52] Indeed.

[23:52] This is a part of the continuation of the SPARK plan that the city of Alexandria

[23:57] successfully undertook some number of years ago.

[24:00] There was concentration and focus on the other areas of the city, and so this

[24:05] CRA was one that kind of got neglected in that process, and so it's just to pick

[24:10] up. That's why it's called Reignite, because it is going to reignite a part of what

[24:15] was part of the SPARK plan and do this particular corridor that we are in right now

[24:19] along Masonic Drive. Part of, again, the explanation as to why this corridor was

[24:24] selected, if you look at the FAQs that have been placed on the transparency tab of

[24:28] the city's website, that information is there.

[24:31] It is the coming together of multiple council districts.

[24:34] That's right.

[24:35] It is at the heart of the city. The city has significant infrastructure in place

[24:39] along that corridor, from the zoo to recreational assets, to public safety assets,

[24:45] as well as it meets the medical needs of the city concentrated in that particular

[24:50] area. And it was the shopping hub for the city at one time.

[24:53] And so, as a part of the work that we have done in our due diligence internally and

[24:58] also with our external partners, ideally, this location impacts the vast majority

[25:04] of the citizenry of the city of Alexandria.

[25:07] It will have a ripple effect for those neighborhoods that are adjacent to this

[25:11] location and will also provide the, again, impetus for us to be able to go in and

[25:16] do some of the revitalization work or further revitalization work that we have been

[25:20] doing as an administration.

[25:21] I have a question. Good explanation.

[25:24] Yeah.

[25:24] Were other areas considered besides Masonic Drive?

[25:28] I think in regards to when we looked at this, yes, there were other hubs in other

[25:32] areas across the city that we looked at, and some of those have work that's already

[25:36] being done in them. But ideally with the components that this particular corridor

[25:40] provides, it was primarily the number one choice in regards to it.

[25:45] Number one choice.

[25:46] But it's not limited to just-

[25:47] Yes, it is not limited

[25:48] ... Masonic Drive.

[25:49] If you look at the recreational piece, that's part of Reignite.

[25:52] Right.

[25:52] We are doing work in parks all around the city, so that's one aspect of it, as well

[25:57] as some additional other work that will be done.

[25:59] All right. Are there any plans for downtown?

[26:02] Of course. Absolutely. Yeah.

[26:04] I'm just saying.

[26:05] So there are lots of plans for downtown.

[26:07] I'm just saying that given the fact that we got three projects going on downtown

[26:10] with the Allied Health building-

[26:13] Mm-hmm. Still to see in the pipeline

[26:15] ... and Global Impact, what they're doing.

[26:17] Right.

[26:17] So the city came to the table with $3 million for the LSUA Allied Health campus in

[26:23] downtown Alexandria, and the mayor awarded-

[26:25] And the state put in 40.

[26:27] Yes. But in order for us to get to the $40 million and get a number one ranking-

[26:31] Right

[26:31] ... the $3 million that the city put on the table in the very beginning of this

[26:34] process helped move that along. And of course, the work of Dr.

[26:37] Burrell at the time and his team at LSUA.

[26:40] Yeah, we just finished the comprehensive riverfront project. It looks great.

[26:45] On the books coming up in the next few years from the MPO, we're gonna see Jackson

[26:48] Street be overlaid. We're gonna see Sixth and Poesy finally get reconstructed.

[26:52] And we also got $2 million from the state, as you guys know, to start doing, we

[26:56] won't do everything, but to start redoing the downtown sidewalks.

[26:59] Okay.

[26:59] And that's just the infrastructure part.

[27:01] But absolutely, behind the scenes, the city is helping in as much as it's

[27:04] appropriate for its role in the public sector to coordinate, to midwife these

[27:09] deals. I think that some of what you just mentioned that happened, likely would've

[27:14] happened with some efforts behind the scenes.

[27:15] And as mentioned before, City Tower is coming online.

[27:18] There's work being done at the commercial building across the park, so there's a

[27:22] lot of other impetus from private investment in downtown as well, due to the work

[27:26] that the city's been putting in.

[27:28] Yeah. Not to mention the fence, of course.

[27:29] All right

[27:30] So hopefully

[27:33] if we do some work on Sonic Drive, it'll inspire more private investment to want

[27:37] to-

[27:38] Possibly

[27:39] ... do this area right here as well.

[27:42] Okay. Any additional questions?

[27:45] All right, this meeting is adjourned.

[27:47] Thank you. We're happy to continue to answer questions as they come up-

[27:50] All right

[27:50] ... and we move forward with the process. Thank you.

[27:51] All right. Now, Madam Clerk, before I bang the gavel, do we need to refer this

[27:55] matter?

[27:57] If you want to refer it, yes, but it's still going to go on the agenda.

[28:00] It can go without referral.

[28:02] Okay. All right.

[28:11] Thank you, guys.

[28:22] He's amazing.

[28:33] I'll read it tonight.

[28:35] You sure?

[28:37] No, I'll get it done tonight. Lizzie, turn your microphone on. Is it on?

[28:43] Oh.

[28:50] Here. I just turned it on.

[28:55] Sorry.

[28:59] I think he's-

[29:04] No.

[29:04] Let's see if

[29:20] that one works.

[29:21] How you been?

[29:24] I'm good.

[29:25] No, this one here. You good?

[29:28] Five to 21

[29:29] days.

[29:38] I'm good. Yeah.

[29:44] What have you been doing?

[29:45] Pretty good. How are you?

[29:47] Making it work.

[29:51] Looking all right.

[29:55] Yeah.

[29:58] Didn't do much of the week. Went to church and

[30:03] I went to... What do you call it?

[30:05] I, um-

[30:06] Well, I'll deal with that, so I guess-

[30:08] Thank you. Thank you.

[30:10] Here you go, Claire. Start

[30:12] that

[30:21] over. That

[30:23] was it.

[30:24] Uh-oh. Okay.

[30:24] All right.

[30:25] Shoot, you're right. You're on.

[30:27] I know you'll do it.

[30:28] If I send something to your email-

[30:30] Okay. Bye

[30:32] ... can you print it?

[30:33] Never mind. Huh?

[30:35] I was asking him, if I send something to your email, can you print it for Jules

[30:39] tonight?

[30:40] I have to print it on the printer.

[30:42] It's the... Okay.

[30:52] Good God.

[30:58] Stay a minute.

[30:59] Yeah, I know.

[31:00] Hey, Ash.

[31:07] All right.

[31:12] We're ready.

[31:13] Oh, we're good.

[31:22] The City of Alexandria City Council meeting is called to order at 5:00 PM,

[31:27] 5:15 exact. The Alexandria City Council meeting and council meetings are broadcast

[31:32] live and may be viewed live by the public on Optimum Cable Channel 4, and

[31:37] rebroadcast may be viewed on Optimum Cable Channel 4 and the City of Alexandria

[31:42] website. We have the invocation by

[31:46] Mr. Caffrey and the pledge by

[31:50] Councilman Johnson.

[31:57] Let us pray.

[32:00] Gracious God, our Father, we thank you for this opportunity to assemble in this

[32:04] great place. We ask that you be God in the midst of our time here together.

[32:08] Bless each one of these leaders and each citizen who has come to this place tonight

[32:13] to be heard. We ask that clear hearts and clear minds prevail, and bless this great

[32:19] city of Alexandria. In Christ Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

[32:22] Amen.

[32:24] Face the flag.

[32:25] I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the

[32:30] Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and

[32:36] justice for all.

[32:40] We have roll call. Mr. Johnson?

[32:43] Here.

[32:43] Ms. Felder?

[32:44] Here.

[32:44] Ms. Green?

[32:45] Present.

[32:46] Mr. Fowler?

[32:47] I'm here.

[32:47] Mr. Belard?

[32:48] Here.

[32:48] Mr. Largo?

[32:49] Here.

[32:49] Ms. Harris?

[32:50] Here.

[32:50] Director, you have the floor.

[32:52] We have the approval of minutes taken from a regular meeting held on September

[32:56] 22nd. I need a motion and a second.

[32:59] Moved.

[33:00] Public comments. What section of this written minutes you would like to make a

[33:03] comment on? If it's not in the written minutes, there will not be any comment or

[33:07] discussion. If you have any questions pertaining to any item on the agenda, please

[33:13] contact the administration before or after the meeting.

[33:17] All in favor?

[33:18] Aye.

[33:19] Any opposed? Motion carried. We have the same calendar.

[33:25] Number one, introduction of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to accept the low

[33:28] bid submitted for brass fitting. Number two, introduction of an ordinance

[33:33] authorizing the mayor to accept the low bid submitted for a 47-foot Shae height

[33:38] hydraulic digger decker truck, derrick truck.

[33:44] Number three, introduction of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to accept the low

[33:47] bid submitted for a 40-inch hydraulic drive submersible pump.

[33:53] Number four, introduction of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to accept the

[33:56] lowest proposal received for fresh impression cleaning crew for janitorial services

[34:01] for the Alexandria Zoological Park.

[34:04] I need a motion and a second.

[34:05] Moved.

[34:06] Motion by Councilman Fowler, second by Councilman Belard. Any items to committee?

[34:14] Any resolutions?

[34:15] G, resolution. Number five, resolution to co-sponsor Believe the Musical production

[34:21] in January 2027.

[34:23] Motion, please?

[34:24] Moved.

[34:25] Second?

[34:26] Second.

[34:27] Second.

[34:27] Second. Motion by Councilman Fowler, second by Councilwoman Felder.

[34:30] Public comments, discussion? All in favor?

[34:33] Aye.

[34:33] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[34:35] Number six, resolution authorizing advertisement for bids for this project and

[34:39] signage for public streets and other public properties 2026 through

[34:44] 2028.

[34:45] Motion, please?

[34:46] Moved.

[34:47] Second. Motion by Councilman Fowler, second by Councilman Belard.

[34:51] Public comments, discussion?

[34:53] Yes.

[34:53] Discussion, Councilman Green?

[34:55] I know we're going to spend $259,531.45.

[35:01] When will they determine the streets will be done?

[35:04] I'm saying citywide, but are there any particular areas, administration, that

[35:09] they're going to use?

[35:11] So this matter is just in reference to the advertisement for the bids.

[35:15] I know you have advertisement for the bids, but what areas will the advertised bids

[35:18] for, sir?

[35:19] So that information will be determined once we get the bid back.

[35:28] Okay. Thank you.

[35:30] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[35:33] H, ordinances for final adoption subject to public hearing.

[35:35] Number seven, to consider final adoption of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to

[35:39] accept the low bid submitted for turnout gear.

[35:42] A motion and a second?

[35:43] Moved.

[35:44] Second.

[35:45] Motion by Councilman Belard, second by Councilman Fowler.

[35:48] Public comments, discussion? All in favor?

[35:51] Aye.

[35:51] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[35:53] Number eight, to consider final adoption of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to

[35:56] accept the low bid for high mast lighting for the electric distribution department.

[36:00] A motion and a second.

[36:02] Moved.

[36:03] Motion by Councilman Johnson, second by Councilman Belard.

[36:06] Public comments, discussion? All in favor?

[36:09] Aye.

[36:10] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[36:11] Number nine, to consider final adoption of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to

[36:14] accept the low bid submitted for annual requirement contract, water, wastewater,

[36:20] natural gas, and general site-related systems.

[36:25] Moved.

[36:25] Motion, please?

[36:26] Second.

[36:27] Motion by Councilman Fowler, second by Councilman Belard.

[36:29] Public comments, discussion? All in favor?

[36:32] Aye.

[36:32] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[36:34] Number 10, to consider final adoption of an ordinance to authorize an

[36:40] economic impact study for Reignite Planning.

[36:44] Motion. Move. Moved by Councilman Malloy. Second?

[36:48] Second by Councilman Johnson.

[36:50] Move by-

[36:52] I'm better with that.

[36:54] Because I say your name so much. You're doing it. I'm just- Okay.

[36:58] Motion by Councilman Malloy, second by Councilman Johnson.

[37:02] By Sec-

[37:03] Lava Dame.

[37:04] Lava Dame.

[37:05] Second by Councilman Johnson.

[37:07] Do you have him, Ms. Emily?

[37:08] Yes.

[37:09] Thank you.

[37:09] No worries.

[37:10] We have comments by

[37:13] Mr. Davis.

[37:24] Randolph Davis, Sr.,

[37:26] citizen of Alexandria. I've got some questions regarding the Reignite, and

[37:32] people are asking me around the city that really doesn't understand how the

[37:37] taxpayers' dollars are being funded.

[37:40] As it was mentioned by Councilman Green, when you walk those areas

[37:47] along Halbert

[37:50] and those crests and areas along that area, and Van Street, when the corridors and

[37:56] the roads are bad, the houses are blighted.

[37:59] There's even some houses over there that are-

[38:02] Oh, yeah

[38:02] ... the electricity's being generated by

[38:06] generators. Some people have serious concerns about the brown water,

[38:13] and some people are carrying buckets of water because their water lines are broken,

[38:19] and it's a disaster on that side. And my concern is that

[38:25] how much was the council involved in deciding that

[38:31] the Reignite program, the continuation of Spark, should be put on

[38:36] Masonic, because I heard the mentioning of the potential of revenue from the

[38:41] hospital and the mall. And I understand the mall needs a lot of help, because I

[38:46] know the manager pretty well, but that's a process in itself.

[38:53] But the real question is, as Malcolm said, is why didn't we do the

[38:58] research before we started the project?

[39:02] I think we're doing the research.

[39:04] We're doing the research.

[39:05] No, before. The project is already started, Malcolm.

[39:08] Mm-hmm.

[39:09] We've already started working on parks.

[39:11] We've already put pickleball courts in, right? It's already started.

[39:16] No, people have not voted, people have not

[39:21] saw an amendment, people have not said anything about, "I want Reignite."

[39:27] People I'm talking to on every district said, "We did not see anything on

[39:33] an agenda or talk about our approving it, because that's not what I wanted." See,

[39:39] the thing I'm concerned about is that right now, with the crime rate and the things

[39:44] that are needed throughout our city, we needed to put the money in the places where

[39:49] we knew it would have an impact to affect our population decline and

[39:55] crime in our city.

[39:56] So Mr.

[39:57] Davis-

[39:58] Go ahead

[39:58] ... this is for the impact of the study.

[40:03] Right. And my question is related to that-

[40:06] Yes, sir

[40:06] ... is that

[40:08] I understand it's for the impact of the study, but I'm asking that before it even

[40:14] got to this point, President-

[40:17] Yes, sir

[40:18] ... how much information did the council have?

[40:21] How much voting power did y'all have before we moved forward on this process?

[40:27] Thank you, Mr. Davis.

[40:32] And we have Ms. Shamara?

[40:35] Shamira.

[40:35] Shamira. Did anyone ask their question?

[40:38] I don't see

[40:43] anyone.

[40:43] Oh, good afternoon. I'm Shamira, trying not to cough.

[40:48] So this is what Reignite means to me. This is what it stands for to me.

[40:53] Restoring every inadequate gentrified neighborhood impacting the economy.

[41:00] That's what Reignite stands for, it means to me.

[41:03] We need an ROI,

[41:05] return on investments. The projected 80 to 100 million is projected to be

[41:11] more than 80 to 100 million

[41:14] because projects like these have been put as priority one or P1 projects, versus

[41:21] our brown water issues, utility bills, and our roads and flooding issues.

[41:27] Let's not even talk about our homeless population.

[41:30] How can we build this type of project around a homeless population?

[41:33] That wouldn't be a good look for our economy.

[41:37] Reignite, along with Johnny Downs, along with Links on the Bayou, along with the

[41:42] Alexandria Zoo, excusing the ATRANS due to the low pay and high poverty rate, which

[41:48] is 27% here.

[41:51] You've already approved millions of money.

[41:55] Let's not approve any more because no major project should have been approved with

[42:00] the mayor,

[42:02] this being his last year, it shouldn't have been approved, period. Thank you.

[42:06] Thank you. Thank you.

[42:14] Mr. Roland, we have next. I don't know who we

[42:20] have. You can go.

[42:21] Jack Powell, Power to the People. Well, my first question would be, if Reignite has

[42:26] an $82 million investment, what measure per share is going into historical Black

[42:30] neighborhoods that require critical debt, drainage, street, and infrastructure

[42:33] fixes? And why is the primary visible investment that

[42:39] is currently a playground? My question is that if it's an $82 million project,

[42:45] say, investment, why the only investment that we see, and it's just not me asking,

[42:49] the whole community wants to know, why the only thing that we see given in our

[42:53] community is a slide? Is a slide that we feel like was used for granddaddy

[42:59] tokenism because our children was brought to it, and our children was-

[43:02] Mister

[43:03] ... was photo opticed out of it, so I'm wondering why-

[43:06] Mr. Lucious. Mister.

[43:08] Okay, okay.

[43:09] You stay on the study of the Reignite.

[43:12] Okay.

[43:17] And you make all your comments, as long as you make it about the study of the

[43:20] Reignite.

[43:20] But wouldn't it be with Reignite? Doesn't Reignite have everything to do with the

[43:24] why the playground got-

[43:26] But you were talking about the photo ops and different things like that.

[43:28] Well, if it's an optice, if it's not really the money being used for what the $82

[43:32] million for, okay, I got you.

[43:37] How will the study determine whether Reignite benefits Alexandria as a whole,

[43:40] including historical Black and low-income neighborhoods outside the Masonic

[43:46] Corridor? Given the local media, KALB, also reported mixed experience among

[43:50] corridor businesses, including some that are reporting declines, will the study

[43:54] explicitly capture the real-world experience of existing local shops, or will it

[43:58] only focus on projected future developments?

[44:01] What specific measurable results will cause the city to conclude that Reignite is

[44:05] not working? And will the full study be released publicly

[44:11] before additional taxpayer money is committed?

[44:16] Yeah.

[44:18] Yes.

[44:18] It's the purpose of it.

[44:20] So it's the purpose of the study is-

[44:21] The study, yes

[44:21] ... study. Okay.

[44:24] Thank you.

[44:25] That's all I got.

[44:26] Thank you.

[44:28] Discussion. Discussion? All in favor?

[44:30] Hold on, hold on. The reason why-

[44:32] I'm sorry

[44:32] ... the reason why I did this is to address those concerns there, is so that people

[44:36] will know

[44:39] what's happening with their money before it's spent and give them an idea to see

[44:43] what the return will be. So once the study's done, we'll see what's what, and

[44:49] we'll-

[44:50] Make the public know

[44:51] ... let the public know, then we'll address it, but we do have some pressing needs,

[44:55] and I get why folk are concerned because we do have pressing needs in the city of

[44:59] Alexandria.

[45:01] Opportunity, Shamira. I'm sorry.

[45:05] So that's why we're doing this, so I'm finished with that.

[45:08] Any more comments?

[45:10] Yeah. After talking in committee, I think it was good to kind of lay a few things

[45:14] out and discuss, and I think making sure that we do study things along the way,

[45:20] which is a requirement in their plan as well, I think that's a good thing.

[45:24] Yeah, because building a pickleball court, those are relatively inexpensive-

[45:30] Right

[45:30] ... as opposed to spending another over 80 plus million along the way, so.

[45:35] And people enjoy the courts.

[45:38] Do you want to-

[45:38] Yeah, but we still-

[45:38] ... respond now?

[45:39] Please, but one thing is before we do anything, it has to go in front of the

[45:43] people.

[45:44] Thank you.

[45:45] Well-

[45:45] If we do it, it has to go in front of the people.

[45:47] Well, this is why Malcolm-

[45:49] Yeah

[45:49] ... I'm sorry, Councilman Lava Dame-

[45:51] That's fine. I'm sorry

[45:52] ... suggests this study. Am I correct?

[45:54] Yeah. It's great. So this can't go before the people, and the people can know where

[45:57] the money's going.

[45:58] Right

[45:59] And I think it will in our process, as the projects are planned,

[46:05] things will come before us, and we'll be able to review them because it can't

[46:10] proceed unless this body approves it.

[46:12] Approves it.

[46:14] That's correct.

[46:16] All right.

[46:17] You good?

[46:18] Yeah.

[46:18] Okay. Any opposed? Motion carried.

[46:22] All right.

[46:23] Number 11, to consider finding an option of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to

[46:28] renew the existing contract with Yankee Holding, doing business as Yankee Clipper

[46:33] for landscape maintenance services for Jackson at MacArthur.

[46:37] Motion, please.

[46:38] Moved.

[46:38] Motion by Councilwoman Feltes.

[46:41] Second.

[46:41] Second by Councilman Vallort. Public comments? Discussion?

[46:45] Yes.

[46:45] I'm sorry, Mr. Green.

[46:48] Madam President,

[46:51] and the administration, and this is simple.

[46:55] Who do we have that goes behind these people to make sure they're doing what

[46:58] they're supposed to do with these contracts?

[47:01] And I'm going to get to where I'm going with this in just a second.

[47:04] Can anyone tell me the name of what department goes behind each one of these down

[47:08] the line that we're going to do?

[47:10] Okay.

[47:12] July the 28th, I'm just going to tell you why I'm going where I'm going.

[47:16] There was a renewed contract

[47:19] by us on the recommendation of the mayor.

[47:26] Complaints from KLV

[47:29] about a bedbug situation on the bus.

[47:33] And this is following on us to see who follows through on the contracts that we

[47:39] approve that they are being conducted properly.

[47:42] That's why I stopped on number 11, so we'll know the rest of the ones that are

[47:46] being approved, and they are being

[47:48] approved because of the mayor's

[47:54] administration. Because that was an urgent situation.

[47:57] The lady got on the bus at 9:00, said it was filthy.

[48:00] We voted to give these people this contract.

[48:03] Who follows up on the contracts that they are doing what they're supposed to do?

[48:08] And that's all I just wanted to say.

[48:10] I got a question.

[48:14] Okay, so I understand your question about who followed up on every contract, not

[48:19] that specifically.

[48:20] Yeah. That's why I stopped on number 11 to see on all the one, two, three, four,

[48:25] five, six that we have, just who follows up to make sure it's being done properly.

[48:30] Now, I don't want to get in the weeds on this, but

[48:34] that's kind of tricky when you say bedbugs because you cannot...

[48:41] We're not going to bring you up on this.

[48:43] I won't help you on that because that's your job.

[48:45] Just the professionals.

[48:46] Yeah. I'll let you get to that.

[48:48] Oh. No, I'm going to reference him.

[48:50] Yeah.

[48:51] I'm sorry, not to him, but to you, sir. But it was on KLV, it was the seventh.

[48:55] The city released a notification about it, that the bus was removed.

[48:59] And that's all I'm asking, ladies and gentlemen.

[49:02] If we approve this, who follows up to make sure each one of these contracts are

[49:06] properly vetted? Thank you.

[49:08] Madam President, if I may. So first to address the fact

[49:14] that the discussion about Atrans or any incident that happened on the bus is not

[49:18] germane-

[49:19] Correct

[49:19] ... to the agenda item. But as it relates to contracts and contract monitoring,

[49:25] contracts are monitored within the divisions or the departments whereby which those

[49:30] contracts are let. So it could be anyone from the division director to a

[49:35] superintendent of a various department, or to some designee within the finance

[49:39] division in order to do that. So for a specific contract, we would need to know

[49:43] what contract that is to determine who monitors that contract.

[49:46] To speak to Councilman Green's concern relative to the bus, again, with a

[49:52] situation such as that, there are a number of

[49:57] matters that you have to take into account with regard to that.

[50:00] Particularly, it is public transportation.

[50:03] Multiple individuals through the course of the day get on and off of that bus.

[50:07] And so once we were notified, unfortunately through KLV, we did pull that bus from

[50:13] service. We had it serviced and fumigated. We also had the entire fleet done so.

[50:18] We do maintain daily cleaning of all the buses, so that process would have

[50:24] not caught that had it been done during the course of the bus'

[50:29] running its route.

[50:32] Okay.

[50:33] I have a procedural question.

[50:38] If we want, even as the council, to address something that is not germane to the

[50:43] meeting, we're supposed to make a motion to add-

[50:47] Correct

[50:47] ... to the agenda by unanimous consent.

[50:49] Correct.

[50:50] So you bringing up the Atrans, while I am glad to hear this explanation,

[50:55] wasn't germane to our agenda. So if we expect the public to follow our

[51:01] procedures, we should also follow our procedures.

[51:04] Well, Ms. Felter.

[51:06] Feltes.

[51:07] What is-

[51:07] Feltes.

[51:08] Feltes. Excuse my pronunciation.

[51:09] That's

[51:11] okay.

[51:12] I brought it up because we're going to vote on the 11th.

[51:15] I have more votes, I have more items.

[51:17] And all I wanted to know was, and I did announce the Atrans situation, but all I

[51:23] wanted to know was who is responsible-

[51:27] Yeah

[51:27] ... for maintaining, following through on the contracts.

[51:29] When we vote for this stuff, people look at us saying we voted on it, but we are

[51:33] voting on the recommendation of the administration.

[51:35] Well, technically, we're voting on the lowest bidder.

[51:38] The administration recommends it, but because we legally have to go with the lowest

[51:42] bidder.

[51:42] We did. We do. But my question again, how everyone looked at it-

[51:46] The lowest responsive bidder.

[51:47] Lowest responsive bidder. So I understand that that was your question.

[51:49] I was just pointing out procedurally, you could have asked about the contract

[51:54] without bringing in something that wasn't germane to the topic.

[51:57] Well-

[51:57] Yes

[51:57] ... it's a contract that's done by the city, that was done by the city, approved by

[52:02] the city. KLV responded. That the citizens that the administration responded to,

[52:08] we're not going to get into all the affairs about this.

[52:09] Am I-

[52:10] I'm going to move right along.

[52:11] Thank you.

[52:11] I just asked the question, Ms. Lizzie, about why, when, and who does that.

[52:16] Thank you all.

[52:17] Thank you.

[52:17] Questions?

[52:19] Okay.

[52:20] Questions may come.

[52:22] One comment please.

[52:24] The questions may come. The questions may come.

[52:28] All in favor?

[52:29] Aye.

[52:29] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[52:32] Number 12, to consider finding an option of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to

[52:35] renew the existing contract with Yankee Holding, doing business as Yankee Clipper

[52:41] for landscape maintenance services for I-49 Greenbelt.

[52:47] Motion, please.

[52:48] Moved.

[52:48] Second?

[52:49] Second.

[52:50] Motion by Councilman Vallort, second by Councilwoman Feltes.

[52:53] To public comments, discussion?

[52:55] Can I have a comment?

[52:56] Okay.

[52:57] On these items, I think it's 5 of them, 5 or 6 of them, whatever it is, all of

[53:01] these are renewals of existing contracts by the year.

[53:06] So these folks have already done a year's worth of work.

[53:09] They're being renewed at a set price, which saves the city money, and I would think

[53:15] that over a year's time, if they weren't doing a proper job, we'd know about it.

[53:19] Mm-hmm.

[53:20] So I would think the superintendent and the folks in the bus department, or

[53:25] wherever, not bus department, wherever heads up that department, they would be the

[53:30] ones that monitor.

[53:31] I would hope so.

[53:32] I know that we've had problems with some of these people before, on some parks, and

[53:37] people complained, and we had to change-

[53:41] Change the services

[53:42] ... change this thing because they weren't keeping up their duty.

[53:45] Mm-hmm.

[53:46] Okay.

[53:46] All in favor?

[53:47] Aye.

[53:47] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[53:49] Number 13, to consider finding an option of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to

[53:53] renew the existing contract with Ted Fin, LLC for landscape maintenance services

[53:58] for Martin Park.

[53:59] Motion, please.

[54:00] Moved.

[54:01] Motion by Councilman Vallort, second by Councilman Fowler. Public comments?

[54:05] Discussion? All in favor?

[54:07] Aye.

[54:08] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[54:10] Number 14, to consider finding an option of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to

[54:13] renew the existing contract with Taylor Escape for landscape maintenance services

[54:18] for the community centers.

[54:20] Motion, please.

[54:20] Moved.

[54:21] Motion by Councilman Vallort, second by Councilman Fowler. Public comments?

[54:26] Discussion? All in favor?

[54:28] Aye.

[54:28] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[54:30] Number 15, to consider finding an option of an ordinance authorizing the mayor to

[54:33] accept a low bid submitted for chlorine handling truck with knuckle boom crane.

[54:38] The administration is requesting that this item be delayed by two weeks.

[54:42] So moved.

[54:43] Second to delay.

[54:45] Motion by Councilman Fowler, second by...

[54:48] Motion by Councilman Vallort, second by Councilman Fowler.

[54:53] All right. Public hearing, community development item number 16, a resolution-

[54:57] She can't speak on it because we haven't discussed it

[54:59] ... a resolution to hold a public hearing and taking action on the cost of

[55:03] demolition of 21 structures and other costs

[55:09] A motion to close out.

[55:12] A motion to open up.

[55:12] A motion to open up the-

[55:15] Second

[55:15] ... motion by Councilman Belloit, second by Councilman Johnson.

[55:21] Do we have anyone here that will be speaking on any of these structures that we

[55:26] have tonight?

[55:31] We did discuss this, Ms. Aaron.

[55:35] Look-

[55:35] We delayed it

[55:36] ... at the properties. I couldn't find

[55:39] them.

[55:39] Do we have anyone?

[55:41] Yes.

[55:42] Do we have anyone that's here that's going to-

[55:44] Someone called me and asked me whether the property

[55:49] was going to be on there, and I-

[55:49] Was the property on there?

[55:51] Said nothing, because I couldn't-

[55:54] It wasn't

[55:54] ... find the publication,

[55:57] so I had my team look for it, we couldn't find it.

[56:00] So wherever I was-

[56:01] We need to speak, so- Okay ... speaking out Okay, Mr. Lorenzo. Ms.

[56:06] Davis ... sign up to speak, even if it's not just for them.

[56:09] We would like, if it's okay with you, Mr.

[56:12] Jordana, to do all of them since we have no one here to speak on them,

[56:18] and since we have anyone to speak on them, just do-

[56:22] All of them

[56:23] ... all of them at once.

[56:24] And vote on them.

[56:27] If any other members don't object.

[56:29] Because what we're doing is basically just, these structures have already been torn

[56:33] down. We're just levying-

[56:35] Look at the cost

[56:36] ... the cost onto them.

[56:37] Assessing the cost of the property.

[56:39] Yes.

[56:40] Yeah.

[56:43] Basically-

[56:45] Committee. Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

[56:48] You?

[56:55] He's going to call them out.

[56:56] Okay.

[56:57] Right. Mr. Jordana, who was served, and who wasn't served?

[57:00] You need to sound it out.

[57:01] Yeah, he was going to call all the properties.

[57:03] Okay. Go right ahead.

[57:05] 205 14th Street, for the authority to file a lien in the amount of

[57:10] $16,854.41.

[57:16] 2213 Third Street, $10,802.22.

[57:24] 2626 Ninth Street,

[57:27] $9,500.23.

[57:32] 613 Broadway Avenue, $8,173.71.

[57:38] 1013 Chaney Street,

[57:41] $9,102.19. 2939

[57:46] Cypress Street, $9,602.71.

[57:52] 1028 Dallas Avenue, $5,662.71.

[57:58] 5006 Eddie Williams Avenue, $33,441.23.

[58:05] 1316 Holly Street, $8,064.71.

[58:11] 2030 Houston Street,

[58:13] $6,300.24.

[58:20] 2715 Jeannette Street, $11,204.24.

[58:27] 1527 11th Street, $10,074.04.

[58:33] 2809 Main Street, $19,085.34.

[58:40] 1947 Mason Street, $5,900.24.

[58:46] 3219 Monroe Street, $13,582.68.

[58:53] 2318 Orange Street, $26,882.11.

[58:59] 1817 Overton Street, $5,108.24.

[59:05] 1801 Princeton, $11,184.42.

[59:12] 1009 South Street, $9,779.74.

[59:19] 504 University Street, $9,256.24.

[59:26] And 412 Woodard Street, $5,275.24.

[59:31] Need a motion.

[59:32] A motion.

[59:33] Second.

[59:34] Moved by Councilman Fowler.

[59:35] Mr. Jordana?

[59:36] Yeah. All these parties have been properly notified, served and notified,

[59:42] with the exceptions of one that wasn't required for me to do any work on.

[59:48] I think it was one, two, three.

[59:51] Right?

[59:52] Yeah.

[59:52] It'd be number one-

[59:54] Number one, number four,

[59:59] number 15, number 16,

[1:00:04] and number 21.

[1:00:05] That's correct.

[1:00:06] 18.

[1:00:06] And what's those for?

[1:00:08] And number 18. Those did not require an absentee attorney.

[1:00:13] Okay. Are those required absentee attorney?

[1:00:16] Council, you want to turn down the bills?

[1:00:19] With motion by Councilman

[1:00:23] Fowler, and second by Councilman Belloit, a motion to

[1:00:29] go back into closing.

[1:00:32] Don't we vote on it?

[1:00:33] He had to take a vote. Oh, I'm sorry.

[1:00:35] We've got to vote.

[1:00:36] Any discussion?

[1:00:38] Public comments? All in favor?

[1:00:40] Aye.

[1:00:41] Any opposed? Motion carried.

[1:00:45] Move to close.

[1:00:48] Motion to close, and second. Motion by Councilman Fowler, second by Councilman

[1:00:53] Belloit. Motion to close.

[1:00:55] Move.

[1:00:55] Public comments? Discussion? All in favor?

[1:00:59] Aye.

[1:00:59] Any opposed? Motion carried.

City Council October 6 2026

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