7/11/2023 - Special - DRAFT
July 11, 2023
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Roanoke County Administration Center
5204 Bernard Drive
Roanoke, Virginia 24018
The Board of Supervisors of Roanoke County, Virginia met this day at the
Roanoke County Administration Center, this being the first regularly scheduled meeting
of the month of July 2023. Audio and video recordings of this meeting will be held on
file for a minimum of five (5) years in the office of the Clerk to the Board of Supervisors.
IN RE: OPENING CEREMONIES
Before the meeting was called to order, a moment of silence was
observed. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited by all present.
IN RE: CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Hooker called the meeting to order at 3:01 p.m. The roll call
was taken.
MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Martha B. Hooker; Supervisors Paul M. Mahoney,
Phil C. North, P. Jason Peters and David F. Radford
MEMBERS ABSENT: None
STAFF PRESENT: Richard L. Caywood, County Administrator; Rebecca
Owens, Deputy County Administrator; Doug Blount,
Assistant County Administrator; Peter S. Lubeck, County
Attorney; Amy Whittaker, Public Information Officer and
Deborah C. Jacks, Chief Deputy Clerk to the Board
IN RE: PROCLAMATIONS, RESOLUTIONS, RECOGNITIONS AND AWARDS
1. Resolution congratulating the Northside High School Boys
Basketball Team for winning the Virginia High School League
(VHL) Class 3 Championship (Martha B. Hooker, Chairman of the
Board of Supervisors)
Recognition was given; resolution was read b the Chief Deputy Clerk.
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RESOLUTION 07112301 CONGRATULATING THE NORTHSIDE
HIGH SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL TEAM FOR WINNING THE
VIRGINIA HIGH SCHOOL LEAGUE (VHSL) CLASS 3
CHAMPIONSHIP
WHEREAS, athletic competitions are an important and integral part of the team
curriculum at schools in Roanoke County; teaching cooperation, sportsmanship,
teamwork and athletic skill; and
WHEREAS, on March 10, 2023, the Northside Boys basketball team won the
class 3 State championship at the VCU Siegel Center in Richmond, Virginia after
defeating Hopewell, 58-52; and
WHEREAS, the Vikings led by as many as 17 points in the first half before the
Blue Devils came back and took a four-point lead in the fourth quarter. But the Vikings
made key plays down the stretch to get the victory, thanks to Lawrence Cole, Cy Hardy
and Mykell Harvey, who all scored in double figures, combining for 53 of the Vikings’ 58
points.
WHEREAS, the team represented their school and community with great
character, poise and sportsmanship. They are a true asset to Roanoke County; and
WHEREAS, the Vikings are coached under the dedicated leadership of Coach
th
Bill Pope and with the win, notched the 620 victory of his coaching career and was
named the Class 3 boys basketball coach of the year by the Virginia High School
League; and
WHEREAS, Senior Lawrence Cole and sophomore Cy Hardy made the Class 3
All-State first team.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Supervisors of
Roanoke County, Virginia does hereby extend its sincere congratulations to the
members of the NORTHSIDE HIGH SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL TEAM: Ja’Chan
Anthony, Lawrence Cole, Cy Hardy, Jayden Smith, Xavier Garrison, Nick Crawford, DJ
Via, Mykell Harvey, Michael Pankey, Kai Logan, Elijah Trigg, Jamareay Lavender, Javin
Gibson, Will Smith and Kavon Brown; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board of Supervisors extends its best
wishes to the members of the team, the coaches and the school in their future
endeavors.
On motion of Supervisor Hooker to adopt the resolution, seconded by Supervisor
North and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Mahoney, North, Radford, Hooker
NAYS: None
2. Recognition of Library Staff for receiving two awards from the
Virginia Public Library Directors Association (James Blanton,
Director of Library Services)
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Recognition was given.
IN RE: FIRST READING OF ORDINANCES
1. Ordinance accepting funds in the amount of $325,799 from the
Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) and
appropriating such funds for use by the Roanoke County Police
Department for eight new school resource officers (Michael
Poindexter, Chief of Police)
Chief Poindexter outlined the request for ordinance and provided a
PowerPoint presentation.
Supervisor North asked if the second grant expire June 30, 2023, with
Chief Poindexter responded in the affirmative stating it is a grant we will need to apply
for each year.
Supervisor Mahoney stated he felt it was important to let our citizens know
that these individuals will have specific certifications from the Commonwealth of
Virginia; we are not putting just anybody out there. We have trained, certified people to
protect the kids in the schools.
Supervisor hooker stated she heard Chief say some of these hired may be
retired and too long of a lapse and have to go back for training. Chief Poindexter stated
we have one former Roanoke County police detective that his certification has expired
and will need to be recertified
There was no further discussion.
Supervisor North’s motion to approve the first reading and set the second
reading for July 25, 2023, was seconded by Supervisor Radford and approved by the
following vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Mahoney, North, Radford Hooker
NAYS: None
IN RE: SECOND READING OF ORDINANCES
1. Ordinance accepting and appropriating $339,000 from the Virginia
Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) to the Roanoke
County Police Department for Law Enforcement Equipment
(Michael Poindexter, Chief of Police)
Chief Poindexter provided PowerPoint presentation. There was no
discussion.
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ORDINANCE 071123-2 ACCEPTING AND APPROPRIATING
FUNDS IN THE AMOUNT OF $339,000 FROM THE VIRGINIA
DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SERVICES (DCJS) TO
THE ROANOKE COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR LAW
ENFORCEMENT EQUIPMENT
WHEREAS, the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) has
awarded funding through a state appropriation of federal funds through the American
Rescue Plan Act ("ARPA") Law Enforcement and Technology Grant Program to the
Roanoke County Police Department through fiscal year 2024; and
WHEREAS, the funds may be used to purchase equipment to improve or
enhance the delivery of daily law enforcement services to the community and/or ensure
the safety of citizens and officers and decrease violent crime within our community; and
WHEREAS, the grant is awarded for a two (2) year period, July 1, 2022 through
June 30, 2024; and
WHEREAS, Section 18.04 of the Roanoke County Charter provides that funds be
appropriated by ordinance; and
WHEREAS, the first reading of this ordinance was held on June 27, 2023, and
the second reading was held on July 11, 2023.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Board of Supervisors of Roanoke
County, Virginia, as follows:
1. That the sum of $339,000, made available to the Roanoke County Police
Department by DCJS, is accepted.
2. That the sum of $339,000 is hereby appropriated to the County’s Grant
Fund for law enforcement equipment.
On motion of Supervisor North to adopt the ordinance, seconded by Supervisor
Radford and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Hooker, North, Radford, Mahoney
NAYS: None
2. Ordinance accepting and appropriating $170,680 in grant funding
from the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM)
and $88,140.30 from the Regional Center for Animal Care and
Protection for the purchase and installation of an emergency
generator at the Regional Center for Animal Care and Protection
Animal Shelter (Jessica Beemer, Assistant Director of Finance
and Management Services; Mike Warner, Interim Executive
Director; Regional Center for Animal Care and Protection)
Ms. Beemer outlined the request for the ordinance. There was no
discussion.
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ORDINANCE 071123-3 ACCEPTING AND APPROPRIATING
FUNDS IN THE AMOUNT OF $170,680 FROM THE VIRGINIA
DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT (VDEM) AND
$88,140.30 FROM THE REGIONAL CENTER FOR ANIMAL
CARE AND PROTECTION (RCACP) FOR THE PURCHASE AND
INSTALLATION OF AN EMERGENCY GENERATOR AT THE
RCACP ANIMAL SHELTER
WHEREAS, funding of $251,000 was awarded to Roanoke County on behalf of
the Regional Center for Animal Care and Protection (RCACP) for the purchase and
installation of an emergency generator at the RCACP, which amount includes a state
share of $170,680 (68%) and a local share of $80,320 (32%); and
WHEREAS, because the cost of this project totals $258,820.30, RCACP
approved capital funding at their meeting held on June 13, 2023, to cover the local
match of $80,320 and the additional $7,820.30 needed to complete the project for a
total RCACP contribution of $88,140.30; and
WHEREAS, the RCACP funds will be transferred to the County upon approval
and appropriation of the grant and all funds will be deposited in the Grant Fund; and
WHEREAS, after completion of the purchase, installation and grant reporting
requirements, the County will transfer the generator as a capital asset to RCACP; and
WHEREAS, Section 18.04 of the Roanoke County Charter provides that funds be
appropriated by ordinance; and
WHEREAS, the first reading of this ordinance was held on June 27, 2023, and
the second reading was held on July 11, 2023.
BE IT ORDAINED by the Board of Supervisors of Roanoke County, Virginia, as
follows:
1. That the sum of $170,680 awarded to Roanoke County on behalf of
RCACP, is accepted and hereby appropriated to the Grant Fund; and
2. That the sum of $88,140.30 from RCACP is accepted and hereby
appropriated to the Grant Fund, for the purchase and installation of an
emergency generator at RCACP facility.
3. That this ordinance shall take effect from and after the date of adoption.
On motion of Supervisor Peters to adopt the ordinance, seconded by Supervisor
Mahoney and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Hooker, North, Radford, Mahoney
NAYS: None
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3. Ordinance accepting $280,000 from the U.S. Department of
Transportation and appropriating such funds to the grant fund;
and accepting $18,333 from Botetourt County and appropriating
such funds to the grant fund; and accepting $4,434 from the Town
of Vinton and appropriating such funds to the grant fund; and
reallocating $47,233 from fiscal year 2023 Planning Department
operating funds to the grant fund and to develop a
Comprehensive Safety Action Plan for Roanoke County, Botetourt
County and the Town of Vinton as part of the safe streets and
roads for all discretionary grant program (Megan G. Cronise,
Assistant Director of Planning)
Ms. Cronise outlined the request for ordinance.
Supervisor Mahoney asked when we develop a plan and we identify a
variety of projects that would be implements from the plan, within the process, what is
the role of VDOT, for example, or our Police Department? Is it possible that we could
develop a plan to go in one direction by VDOT may want to go in another direction and
we don’t have the money either way? Ms. Cronise advised they are comprehensive
planners and they work with the Police Department, VDOT and their data to determine
what our highest safety impact areas are and where we need to focus. So, VDOT, the
Police and the community will be stakeholders. We have a process outlined with
consultant groups we have worked with in the past who initiate this plan and have a
variety of ways to obtain data and feedback. So that we can find all of the data available
that we need to focus on first, in terms of safety. We then develop a project for it,
submit it for funding and hope we are successful.
There was no further discussion.
ORDINANCE 071123-4 ACCEPTING $280,000 FROM THE U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND APPROPRIATING
SUCH FUNDS TO THE GRANT FUND; AND
ACCEPTING $18,333 FROM BOTETOURT COUNTY AND
APPROPRIATING SUCH FUNDS TO THE GRANT FUND; AND
ACCEPTING $4,434 FROM THE TOWN OF VINTON AND
APPROPRIATING SUCH FUNDS TO THE GRANT FUND; AND
REALLOCATING $47,233 FROM FISCAL YEAR 2023
PLANNING DEPARTMENT OPERATING FUNDS TO THE
GRANT FUND
TO DEVELOP A COMPREHENSIVE SAFETY ACTION PLAN
FOR ROANOKE COUNTY, BOTETOURT COUNTY AND THE
TOWN OF VINTON AS PART OF THE SAFE STREETS AND
ROADS FOR ALL DISCRETIONARY GRANT PROGRAM
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WHEREAS, the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors is committed to
advocating for and ensuring safe transportation facilities both in the County and in
the region; and
WHEREAS, an average of seven (7) deaths per year occurred on Roanoke
County roads between 2016 and 2020; and
WHEREAS, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law established the Safe Streets and
Roads for All Discretionary Grant Program to improve roadway safety by significantly
reducing or eliminating roadway fatalities and serious injuries through Safety Action
Plan development and implementation focused on all users; and
WHEREAS, a Comprehensive Safety Action Plan would provide a holistic, well-defined
strategy to prevent roadway fatalities and serious injuries, and would lead to further
opportunities for infrastructure funding; and
WHEREAS, the Safe Streets and Roads for All program encourages joint
applications that engage multiple jurisdictions in the same region to ensure
collaboration; and
WHEREAS, Roanoke County received $280,000 from the U.S. Department of
Transportation to develop a Comprehensive Safety Action Plan, which provides eighty
(80) percent of the project funding; and
WHEREAS, the twenty (20) percent local match is split according to locality
population; and
WHEREAS, Botetourt County is providing a local match of $18,333; and
WHEREAS, the Town of Vinton is providing a local match of $4,434; and
WHEREAS, Roanoke County is providing a local match of $47,233 available in
fiscal year 2023 Planning Department Operating funds; and
WHEREAS, Section 18.04 of the Roanoke County Charter provides that funds be
appropriated by ordinance; and
WHEREAS, the first reading of this ordinance was held on June 27, 2023, and
the second reading was held on July 11, 2023.
BE IT ORDAINED by the Board of Supervisors of Roanoke County, Virginia, as
follows:
1. That in order to develop a Comprehensive Safety Action Plan for
Roanoke County, Botetourt County, and the Town of Vinton through the
Safe Streets and Roads for All Discretionary Grant Program:
a. The sum of $280,000 from the U.S. Department of Transportation is
accepted and appropriated to the Grant Fund.
b. The sum of $18,333 from Botetourt County is accepted and
appropriated to the Grant Fund.
c. The sum of $4,434 from the Town of Vinton is accepted and
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appropriated to the Grant Fund.
d. The sum of $47,233 is reallocated from Fiscal Year 2023 Planning
Department Operating Funds to the Grant Fund.
2. That this ordinance shall take effect upon its adoption.
On motion of Supervisor North to adopt the ordinance, seconded by Supervisor
Radford and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Hooker, North, Radford, Mahoney
NAYS: None
IN RE: CONSENT AGENDA
RESOLUTION 071123-5 APPROVING AND CONCURRING IN
CERTAIN ITEMS SET FORTH ON THE BOARD OF
SUPERVISORS AGENDA FOR THIS DATE DESIGNATED AS
ITEM G- CONSENT AGENDA
BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Supervisors of Roanoke County, Virginia, as
follows:
That the certain section of the agenda of the Board of Supervisors for July 11,
2023, designated as Item G - Consent Agenda be, and hereby is, approved and
concurred in as to each item separately set forth in said section designated Items 1
through 4 inclusive, as follows:
1. Approval of minutes – April 11, 2023
2. Resolution requesting the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) to
accept Foxfield Court of Section 6 in the Windsor Hills Magisterial District into
the VDOT Secondary Road System
3. Ordinance approving easements and a memorandum of understanding with
the Western Virginia Water Authority for sanitary sewer improvement projects
at Starkey Park and C. Darrell Shell Park
4. Resolution accepting and approving recommended changes to the
Comprehensive Financial Policy
On motion of Supervisor Peters to adopt the resolution, seconded by Supervisor
Mahoney and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Hooker, North, Radford, Mahoney
NAYS: None
RESOLUTION 071123-5.a REQUESTING ACCEPTANCE OF
FOXFIELD COURT INTO THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF
TRANSPORTATION SECONDARY SYSTEM
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WHEREAS, the streets described on the attached Addition Form AM-4.3, fully
incorporated herein by reference, are shown on plats recorded in the Clerk's Office of
the Circuit Court of Roanoke County; and
WHEREAS, the representative for the Virginia Department of Transportation has
advised this Board that the street(s) meet the requirements established by the Virginia
Department of Transportation’s Subdivision Street Requirements; and
WHEREAS, the County and the Virginia Department of Transportation entered
into an agreement on March 9, 1999, for comprehensive stormwater detention, which
applies to this request for addition.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Supervisors of Roanoke
County, that
1) the Board requests the Virginia Department of Transportation to add the street(s)
described on the attached Additions Form AM-4.3 to the secondary system of state
highways, pursuant to §33.2-705, Code of Virginia, and the Department's
Subdivision Street Requirements, after receiving a copy of this resolution and all
outstanding fees and documents required of the developer, whichever occurs last in
time.
2) The Board guarantees a clear and unrestricted right-of-way, as described, and any
necessary easements for cuts, fills and drainage.
3) A certified copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Residency Administrator for the
Virginia Department of Transportation.
4) The Board hereby guarantees the performance of the street(s) requested herein to
become a part of the State maintained secondary system of state highways for a
period of one year from the date of the acceptance of the referenced streets by
VDOT into the secondary system of state highways. The Board will reimburse all
costs incurred by VDOT to repair faults in the referenced streets and related
drainage facilities associated with workmanship or materials as determined
exclusively by VDOT.
On motion of Supervisor Peters to adopt the resolution, seconded by Supervisor
Mahoney and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Hooker, North, Radford, Mahoney
NAYS: None
ORDINANCE 071123-5.b AUTHORIZING THE GRANTING OF
EASEMENTS AND A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
WITH THE WESTERN VIRGINIA WATER AUTHORITY FOR
SANITARY SEWER IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS AT STARKEY
PARK AND C. DARRELL SHELL PARK
WHEREAS, the Board owns three parcels in Roanoke County, in the Cave
Spring Magisterial District, which are occupied by a portion of the County’s Starkey Park
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North (identified as Roanoke County Tax Map Number 097.05-01-24.00-0000), Starkey
Park South (identified as Roanoke County Tax Map Number 097.01-02-11.00-0000),
and C. Darrell Shell Park (identified as Roanoke County Tax Map Number 087.18-03-
02.01-0000); and
WHEREAS, the Western Virginia Water Authority (WVWA) has existing sanitary
sewer lines in each of the above-mentioned properties; and
WHEREAS, the WVWA has requested new temporary construction and
permanent sanitary sewer easements on each of the above-mentioned properties for a
sanitary sewer improvement project; and
WHEREAS, at the request of County staff, the WVWA agreed to a Memorandum
of Understanding agreeing that the construction of the sanitary sewer improvement
project in the area near the lacrosse fields in Starkey Park South will be limited to
November 1, 2023 through March 1, 2024 in order to limit impacts to youth sports
programs in the Starkey Park South; and
WHEREAS, Section 18.04 of the Roanoke County Charter directs that the
acquisition and disposition of real estate be authorized only by ordinance; and
WHEREAS, a first reading of this ordinance was held on June 27, 2023 and the
second reading was held on July 11, 2023; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Board of Supervisors of the
County of Roanoke as follows:
1. That pursuant to the provision of Section 16.01 of the Roanoke County
Charter, the interest in real estate to be conveyed is hereby declared to be surplus, and
is hereby made available for conveyance to the Western Virginia Water Authority for
purposes of new temporary construction and permanent sanitary sewer easements.
2. That conveyance to the Western Virginia Water Authority of the new
temporary construction and permanent sanitary sewer easements as shown on the
exhibits titled “SEWER EASEMENT SKETCH - 097.05-01-24.00 COMMONWEALTH
DRIVE SEWER REPLACEMENT” dated March 27, 2023, “SEWER EASEMENT
SKETCH – 097.01-02-11.00 COMMONWEALTH DRIVE SEWER REPLACEMENT”
dated March 27, 2023, and “SEWER EASEMENT SKETCH – 087.18-03.02.01
COMMONWEALTH DRIVE SEWER REPLACEMENT” dated May 22, 2023, copies of
which are attached hereto as Exhibit A collectively, are hereby authorized and
approved.
3. That a Memorandum of Understanding to be entered into by the County
and the WVWA limiting the construction of the sanitary sewer improvement project in
the area near the lacrosse fields in Starkey Park South to November 1, 2023 through
March 1, 2024 is hereby authorized and approved.
4. That the County accepts and appropriates the payment of $1.00 as fair
market value compensation for each of these easements.
5. That the County Administrator, Deputy County Administrator, or Assistant
County Administrator, any of whom may act, is hereby authorized to execute such
documents and take such further actions as may be necessary to accomplish this
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conveyance, including but not limited to the deeds and the memorandum of
understanding, all of which shall be on a form approved by the County Attorney.
6. That this ordinance shall be effective on and from the date of its adoption.
On motion of Supervisor Peters to adopt the ordinance, seconded by Supervisor
Mahoney and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Hooker, North, Radford, Mahoney
NAYS: None
RESOLUTION 071123-5.c ACCEPTING AND APPROVING
RECOMMENDED CHANGES TO THE COMPREHENSIVE
FINANCIAL POLICY
WHEREAS, the County adopted a Comprehensive Financial Policy effective July
1, 2018; and
WHEREAS, the policy is to be reviewed and any changes recommended
annually.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Board of Supervisors of
Roanoke County, Virginia, as follows:
1. That language has been updated for the Schools from “Funds” to
“Categories” due to the recent change for approving their budget; and
2. That language has been changed from “Comprehensive Annual Financial
Report” to “Annual Comprehensive Financial Report” due to reporting
guideline changes required by the Government Finance Officers Association;
and
3. That language has been updated to reflect the newly adopted memorandum
of understanding between the County and School Boards; and
4. That formatting changes and additional detailed language has been added for
improved clarification; and
5. The effective date of the Comprehensive Financial Policy has been changed
from October 19, 2021 to July 11, 2023.
On motion of Supervisor North to adopt the resolution, seconded by Supervisor
Mahoney and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Hooker, North, Radford, Mahoney
NAYS: None
IN RE: REPORTS
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Supervisor Mahoney moved to receive and file the following reports. The
motion was seconded by Supervisor Radford and carried by the following recorded
vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Mahoney, North, Radford, Hooker
NAYS: None
1. Unappropriated, Board Contingency and Capital Reserves Report
2. Outstanding Debt Report
IN RE: REPORTS AND INQUIRIES OF BOARD MEMBERS
Supervisor Peters commented this past weekend, we had young kids
missing for a brief while in Vinton. He encouraged everyone to stay safe; know where
your kids are. Thankful that both of them were found safe. young kids went missing.
Stay safe and know where your kids are. He stated he is proud to be a Board member,
proud of the work the employees do.
Supervisor North advised it is great news from the Chief on SRO’s headed
in the right direction and pretty soon all will be satisfied when all the schools have
permanent assignments there. Today, he attended the Blue Ridge Series with the
Chamber; they had three topics that they talked about. First, they talked about was the
state of law enforcement; Sheriff Eric Orange participated in that discussion. There was
a lot of good representation from the community. A couple of things stood out, they
talked about regional communications that there definitely was a lot of that today. The
State Attorney General’s office has someone speak, Maggie Cleary, indicated that there
were 3-5% of the same offenders are committing 50% of the violent crimes according to
the Attorney General’s office. Operation Cease-Fire in 12 cities around Virginia is
addressing that and showing declines in 8 cities, which is good work by the Attorney
General’s office. Also, there was discussion on State arts and entertainment. The City
of Salem was mentioned as well as Roanoke Outside and someone from the museum.
There was good discussions on that topic. Next, there were five ((5) Economic
Development directors of specialists that took the podium and spoke. Megan Baker
with Roanoke County did an excellent job representing us. Also speaking were Mark
Nelson and Tommy Miller. A point was definitely made whenever we do any of the
locality, it impacts Economic Development everywhere. What stood out in his mind,
was where can you go in the State of Virginia and be 15 minutes from Vinton, or 15-20
minutes to Glenvar or Salem or Botetourt. This is why all are thinking regionally, not
everyone is living in one location; not everyone will everything at one location. It was a
great discussion with more in the future.
Supervisor Mahoney stated he wanted to repeat some of Supervisor
Peters comments about our County staff. A couple of weeks ago, a County drainage
crew was doing some work near where he lives and were doing a great job. They were
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slowed down because a lot of rain was occurring, but they had a culver around the road
that was largely filled with silt and leaves and all kinds of stud. He gave credit to Jeff
Altice, who did not send his crew in, but went into the culvert to clean it out. So, he
wanted to give a shout-out to Jeff and his crew and Butch Workman. They did a great
job.
Supervisor Radford stated he too wanted to talk about the issue on SRA
that we just heard, which is great news. It is critical to us specifically, which criticizes us
specifically, so we will see if they respond to what Chief Poindexter has done now. It
looks like he is going to turn it around, so kudos to Chief Poindexter for doing that. We
had a Bent Mountain Library reopening, the first he asked was to make sure it was
covered by insurance. So, the water pipes that we overhead are now underground so
hopefully we will not have a water problem there anymore. They also have a flow meter
so that if water is moving over the weekend, they will see it, and alarms will go off. The
Library looks absolutely terrific. General Services did a great job of putting that together
and Jim outfitted it very well; all brand-new books. There were 35-40 people there from
the Book Club, kids, family, Community Center; it was great. The crowd was energized;
they love that little community.
Supervisor Hooker advised there was a community meeting last night at
Glenvar regarding greenway possibilities from Green Hill Park to Montgomery County.
There was a robust crown, 30-40. She thanked the large number of staff members that
were there. They were interactive with citizens and we heard all of the positivity.
IN RE: WORK SESSION
1. Work session to discuss lot drainage recommendation with the
Board of Supervisors (Tarek Moneir, Director of Development
Services)
Mr. Moneir provided a PowerPoint presentation. He introduced several
from Homebuilders Association, Chris Burns, Sean Horne and Alexander Boone.
Supervisor Radford asked about the picture on page 6, he wants to make
sure his fellow Board members understand. When looking at the side of the house you
see the HVAC unit and you can see the ground right there is flat and then you can see
the stich over there. The building code requires us to be four to six (4-6) inches below
the floor level and then we have to slope away from the house one and a half to two
percent (1 ½ to 2%) in ten (10) feet. Supervisor Radford then ask who has the
responsibility of inspecting that with Morgan Yates, Building Commissioner, responded
the Office of Building Safety. So, for the Board to know, we have to do those slopes
away from the house. This is not typical of what we are doing today. This is a historical
picture.
David Henderson, County Engineer, went through several slides of the
presentation.
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Supervisor Mahoney asked with regard to page 8, how would that apply,
where I have a grandfathered development. “Existing developments will continue to use
the data that they used for County approval.” Mr. Henderson responded if the pre-
developed plan had a finished floor elevation, then we would still get it certified to that
elevation, assuming that a benchmark could be recovered on whatever data that
development is on. Supervisor Mahoney commented from his experience, he felt that
many of the citizen complaints came from where there was an existing development
that may have been approved 10-20 years ago, and you have a variety of vacant lots
and now you are gong back and trying to retrofit something that is not going to work.
Supervisor North asked to add to the same question. He knows of some
developments that were built by a developer, but like Supervisor Mahoney’s example, it
was three to four (3 to 4) lots that just sat there for twenty (20) years, then they were
sold to another building to build on. What happens then; does the clock get reset? Mr.
Henderson responded staff would propose that we would need a field survey for the plot
plan with enough information to know how that development fits in with what’s are them.
Regardless of the datum as long as we have enough information around so that we
know how it impacts. I know of at least one instance where we had a plot plan, but then
the actual house was built five feet higher than what the plot plan said it was going to be
built. As Tarek said, any requirements we come up with is not going to eliminate all
problems, but certainly, we want to have a reasonable approach that does the best we
can to decrease them.
Supervisor Mahoney commented his concern is suppose I have a field
survey and someone provides him with a finished floor elevation, and I'm out in the
middle; Morgan and his people are out in the middle of a piece of land that's all been
chewed up, and there's dirt everywhere, Morgan Yates, you're holding a plan that looks
great on a piece of paper, but you're standing outside. How do you know that that slab
of concrete meets what was said in the field survey or in the finished floor elevation?
Mr. Yates responded we are proposing that it's not county staff that verifies the finished
floor elevation meets what's on the plot plan. Mr. Henderson added that is later on in
the presentation, but we would have a surveyor come out and basically shoot it,
compare it and basically give us a certification statement that says, “This is the
elevation. Supervisor Mahoney stated if they did it wrong, they are to have to rip up the
foundation.
Supervisor Peters asked with regard to Edgefield, the rest of the area has
already been developed and now the water is going down to the folks behind him. He is
looking for a real-life understanding of this. What should the County have done different
to ensure that did not happen. Mr. Moneir responded that particular case in the Vinton
area has taken place because their engineer decided to change the elevation
themselves. We couldn't have changed that. If the plans came in, we reviewed the
plans, we gave the approval on a certain design, but when they went to the site, they
changed that on the site. We didn't know anything about that here during the review, but
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during the changing of the events, and the neighbors started to get more water, I sent
the engineer to the site, and then we started to investigate and we found out. We can
see it from the naked eye that it's really sloped not correctly, that that was one issue.
The other issue is that some of the ditches that were developed early on, long ago,
have diminished because of many reasons. Could be just because of the silt filtered in,
or the neighbors have changed it because they did not like it and that made the issue
more complicated, the water coming in from a new structure, from new buildings that
the contractor decided to raise or the engineer decided, told the contractor to raise the
elevations of the site, and also because the ditch is not there, so the water comes really,
the velocity coming in, it filled his basement. We brought up that issue to the owner, and
they have submitted plans that we looked at, reviewed, and they are in the process of
fixing that. I don't know if that fix will be permanent or not.
Supervisor Radford stated before we move on, let me add some
comments right here. We've got another picture here that's beside these. Give me the
date on this picture, and describe it so the board members will understand what we're
looking at right now. Mr. Moneir responded this shows that the two houses next to each
other, he believes, this is in Catawba area. You can see that, a little bit, elevations on
one, that the house on the right side is higher than the house on the left. That picture is
giving you the indication or the illusion that there is a ditch in the middle. There's not
really a ditch. It's a flat ditch. Supervisor Radford asked how old is it with Mr. Moneir
responding, this is fairly recent in the last two or three (2 or 3) years. Supervisor
Radford added we don't know if the street is sloping down, if the houses continue
dropping down. If they do, the house on the left, how would an FFE survey certification
help that situation when really, it's a mechanical situation? If the street's going
downward from right to left, how's that going to help? Mr. Moneir responded it will help
because the two homes built in two different times, and the street is built first.
Supervisor Radford inquired, “What if it's put in right? What if the survey is correct, the
FFE is correct and we have this situation?” Now what are you going to do? If this is
fairly current, what's going to adjust that? We went and spent the money with the
certification. It checks off. The surveyor says, "Okay. Yeah, it's good because we're
following the grade of the street." What's going to prevent this happening in the middle?
Mr. Moneir responded when development takes place, the street takes place first before
the plot plan came in. When the plot plans come in with the survey at the beginning, it's
probably the elevations of that house has changed in the design part. Not right now. I
mean, when we get plans, the site plan might have the finished floor elevations, but the
house is not. The house does not show the finished floor elevations on it, so sometimes,
the construction takes place while disconnected from the site, and with the grading of
the site taking place early on, two or three years ahead of time. If we don't have the
survey in of the existing condition and the finished floor elevation at the same time, then
we'll end up with something like that. Supervisor Radford stated he is trying to
determine if that's the builder, developer calls or the homeowners come in and fill in the
ditch, because we've had homeowners do that before, fill in ditches.
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Supervisor Peters stated what he cares about is that at the time of the
finished product that we have pictures, everything certified, that everything that was
presented to us was done properly, was done completely. We can't control what a
homeowner does a month after they move in. We can't control them. We can't go back
on their property and say, "You can't fill in that ditch. “I think that we need to make sure,
from the County side that we have checked all the boxes that we have put in place,
everything to keep the water away from the homes and keep it off your neighbor's
property. I see where David's going with that. But also, it looks at the fact that we can't
control somebody after the fact.
Mr. Moneir stated one of the things he probably omitted to mention is that
we came up with these recommendation as a common ground between the professional
engineers, the builders, and the staff, and we feel that this is not going to fix everything
that's out there today, but it will help us to be on better ground for the future
developments.
Supervisor Radford commented you're exactly right that the Home
Builders Association has worked in good faith with the engineers to try to figure out this.
I think this is one of the things that we're trying to police and provide consumer
protection at the highest level, without having to increase the cost. We haven't quite
figured out how to do that, but at this point, the home builders’ sort of agree that they've
got to do some type of certification. We even talked about builder certification, but with
builder certification, you don't have that arms-length transaction. You don't have that
where you have a third party come in. I think everything that David, that Tarek has been
working with, and Doug with the Home Builders Association has all been in good faith.
We really are, we're part of the National Home Builders Association. We have a code of
ethics. We want to provide the best housing for every community that we build in, and
we don't want stuff like that going on. I'm just trying to drill down and let everybody know
we have stuff in place. We have to enforce it. We have to figure out how to do it, but you
can walk around a yard on a slant and you can see, within 10 feet, you can see a 2%
grade. It's there. It's very obvious to the naked eye, so we're not asking our inspectors
to do something that's impossible. It can be done, but stuff like this, that picture up there
is somebody has done something either wrong or the homeowner did something in the
past. I don't know, but enough said. Go ahead. We're not going to have any problems
addressing this.
Supervisor Hooker asked if there a general consensus that we want them
to continue on? I'm looking for head nods. It was the consensus of the Board to move
forward.
The work session was held from 4:08 p.m. until 5:08 p.m.
IN RE: CLOSED MEETING
At 3:59 p.m., Supervisor Hooker moved to go into closed meeting
pursuant to the Code of Virginia Section 2.2-3711.A.5 - Discussion concerning the
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269
expansion of an existing businesses or industries where no previous announcement has
been made of the business' or industry's interest in locating or expanding its facilities in
the community, namely in the Hollins Magisterial District. The motion was seconded by
Supervisor North and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Mahoney, North, Radford, Hooker
NAYS: None
The closed session was held from 5:25 p.m. until 6:06 p.m.
IN RE: CERTIFICATION RESOLUTION
RESOLUTION 071123-6 CERTIFYING THE CLOSED MEETING
WAS HELD IN CONFORMITY WITH THE CODE OF VIRGINIA
WHEREAS, the Board of Supervisors of Roanoke County, Virginia has convened
a closed meeting on this date pursuant to an affirmative recorded vote and in
accordance with the provisions of The Virginia Freedom of Information Act; and
WHEREAS, Section 2.2-3712 of the Code of Virginia requires a certification by
the Board of Supervisors of Roanoke County, Virginia, that such closed meeting was
conducted in conformity with Virginia law.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Supervisors of
Roanoke County, Virginia, hereby certifies that, to the best of each member’s
knowledge:
1. Only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting
requirements by Virginia law were discussed in the closed meeting which this
certification resolution applies; and
2. Only such public business matters as were identified in the motion convening
the closed meeting were heard, discussed or considered by the Board of Supervisors of
Roanoke County, Virginia.
On motion of Supervisor Hooker to adopt the resolution, seconded by Supervisor
Mahoney and carried by the following recorded vote:
AYES: Supervisors Peters, Hooker, North, Radford, Mahoney
NAYS: None
At 6:07 p.m., Supervisor Hooker moved to return to open session and
adopt the certification resolution.
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IN RE: ADJOURNMENT
Chairman Hooker adjourned the meeting at 6:08 p.m.
Submitted by: Approved by:
________________________ ___________________________________
Deborah C. Jacks Martha B. Hooker
Chief Deputy Clerk to the Board Chairman