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The Virginia Beach City Council meeting began with routine opening procedures, including an invocation, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a roll call, which noted the absence of Council Members Beluchcci and Jackson Green. The council unanimously certified a previous closed session with a 9-0 vote. The main portion of the meeting focused on the consent agenda, which was preceded by a public comment from resident Bencat Ellispu. Mr. Ellispu spoke in strong opposition to a proposed pay increase for council members (agenda item H1), calling it politically 'tonedeaf' in light of recent 50% property tax increases for residents. Vice Mayor Wilson presented the eight-item consent agenda. The first item, the controversial ordinance for a council pay increase, was deferred indefinitely and referred to the Process Improvement Steering Committee. The remaining seven items were approved unanimously in a single 9-0 vote. Key approvals included allocating over $45.5 million in school reversion funds to Virginia Beach City Public Schools for their operating and capital improvement budgets, authorizing property acquisition for the Ray Shore Drive Pedestrian Improvements Project, and approving a fundraising agreement with the Virginia Gentleman Foundation for Rudy Park. The council also accepted over $2.1 million in VDOT funds for the North Great Neck Road Bridge Rehabilitation. The meeting concluded swiftly after the consent agenda vote, with no appointments, old business, or new business discussed before adjournment.
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Council
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one. Welcome all. I'm going to call this meeting to order. And if we can kindly stand if you are able for the invocation. Okay.
0:11Heavenly Father, you are always with us and beside us. Be with us this evening as we consider the affairs of our great city. Give us the patience to listen, the wisdom to decide, and the strength to act. Amen.
0:28And at this point, do we have a moment of silence for all of those who have paid the ultimate price to keep us such a safe city and nation.
0:45Thank you. Pledge of Allegiance.
0:48I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
1:01Thank you.
1:06Okay, madame clerk, do we have a roll call?
1:09Yes, your honor. All present, excluding Council Member Beluchcci and Jackson Green.
1:13Okay. Could we have a motion for the certification of the close session? So moved.
1:18Second.
1:24The vote is open.
1:35Vice Mayor Wilson, would you like to do a verbal vote?
1:38Excuse me.
1:40Would you like to do a verbal vote?
1:42Yes, please.
1:43Thank you.
1:47By a vote of 8 to zero, you have you certified a close I'm sorry 9 to zero.
1:52You certified to close session in accordance with the motion to recess.
1:55Okay. Thank you. At this point, uh we do have a speaker, so I will read the script. Uh I want to remind everyone that the city council speaker policy that allows certain representatives of groups to speak for 10 minutes applies only to planning items. All other speakers, whether speaking individually or on behalf of a group, will have up to three minutes to speak on any single item. Speakers are reminded that
2:24comments during the formal session of the meeting must be limited to the subject of the item that is being considered by council at the time you are called. For the items placed on the consent agenda, a speaker will have up to three minutes to address any single item. If a speaker wishes to address multiple consent agenda items, the speaker will have a cumulative total of six minutes to address those items.
2:51Again, the speaker must limit his or her comments to the subject matter of the items they have signed up to address.
2:58And finally, I call upon all speakers and all persons in the chamber to be civil in their discussions and the quorum. Whatever views you hold and wish to express, the city council wants to hear from you and to ensure that all viewpoints and all persons are respected. The best way to do this is all for all of us to strive for civility and respect.
3:23We have one speaker um Bencat Ellispu and he is speaking on H1.
3:33Welcome. Thank you.
3:40Uh, I'm here to strongly oppose the proposed pay hike for the city council members. It's wrong on policy and it's tonedeaf politically. Members who feel quote unquote they need more money should quit the council and find something else to do. For goodness sake, it is public service, not a career. By the way, you knew what the pay was when you ran for the seat in the city council. It's also politically quite
4:02tonedeaf. The taxpayers had their property taxes go up by 50% over the last 5 years and as a reward you want to nearly double your pay. This is really adding insult to injury. I hope you will do the right thing and vote against this proposal or pull pull the proposal back.
4:19I can state very clearly that if I'm on the city council right now, I'll vote against this pay pay increase and speak up against this. Thank you.
4:26Thank you.
4:28Call the speaker, sir.
4:29Okay. If you would kindly do the honors Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Um, all items are on consent. So, under uh resolutions and ordinances, uh number one, we are going to be deferring this indefinitely, and we're going to be referring it to the process improvement uh steering committee. And that's the ordinance to provide the cost of living increases to the salaries of the mayor and members of the city council and
4:55direct the city manager to include funds in the FY2027-28 operating budget requested by Vice Mayor Wilson and council members Hutchinson and Schulman. Number two is the ordinance to approve $45,559,193 from the 2425 school reversion funds to the Virginia Beach City Public Schools FY 202526 operate operating and capital improvement program the CIP uh requested by Mayor Dyer and Vice Mayor Wilson.
5:28Number three is the ordinance to authorize acquisition of property in fe simple and the acquisition of temporary and permanent easements either by agreement or condemnation ray shore drive pedestrian improvements project CIP 10083.001.
5:49Number four is the ordinance to authorize the city manager to execute a lease and cooperative agreement for up to five years with the senior resource center at 912 Princess Anne Road.
6:04Number five is a resolution to adopt the FY2627's focus action plan and direct the city manager to take the the steps necessary to implement the plan and to provide the city council and the public with periodic updates and semianual performance reports with the exception of 2-17 page nine. And we're going to be deleting on that page the words ITA Number six is the resolution to approve
6:36the amendment to the resort advisory commission bylaws. Number seven is the ordinance and to authorize the city manager to execute a fundraising agreement with the Virginia gentleman Foundation Inc. Ray Capital fundraising campaign for Rudy Park. And number eight is the ordinance to accept and appropriate an additional $2,198,300 from the Virginia Department of Transportation VOTE to the FY2526
7:05public works operating budget for CIP672 North Great Neck Road Bridge Rehabilitation Bridge Enhancements. We move to approve.
7:17Second. Okay. Any comments?
7:21Okay. The votes open.
7:26No.
7:28By a vote of 9 to zero to approve the consent agenda as read by Vice Mayor Wilson.
7:33Okay. Thank you. Uh at this point we have any announcement about appointments.
7:39No appointments.
7:40No appointments.
7:41Okay. Uh do we have any old business?
7:45Any new business? Okay. We are ajourned.
7:48Thank you.