September 19, 2024: Charlottesville City Council learns how staff will put together the budget for FY26
Plus: UVA’s Office for Sustainability briefs a panel of the Board of Visitors
Before we begin marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, perhaps it would be instructive to learn more about Bacon’s Rebellion, an uprising against the Virginia colonial government that began in 1675. A year later on September 19, rebels set fire to Jamestown nearly destroying it. Charlottesville Community Engagement does not have the capacity to describe all of the details, but this does seem to be the kind of anniversary worth looking up. Here’s a history from the National Park Service.
I’m Sean Tubbs, and I don’t know much about biology either.
In today’s installment:
The Albemarle County Police Department and the Albemarle County Sherrif’s Office reach agreement formalizing who is responsible for temporary detention orders
The Buildings and Grounds Committee gets an update on sustainability efforts at the University of Virginia
Charlottesville City Council gets a close look at preparations for the budget for FY2026 and City Manager Sam Sanders says he does not want to raise taxes
First shout-out: Plant Virginia Natives
There are only a couple of days left of astronomical summer and that means it is be time for me to think about what I might like to plant in the new section of yard that I reclaimed this year after years of it being covered with invasives!
As I think ahead to next spring and what I need to do to get ready, I’m thinking about one resource that may help me develop a landscape more suitable to this area. I’m talking about Plant Virginia Natives!
Plant Virginia Natives is part of a partnership with ten regional campaigns for ten different ecosystems across Virginia, from the Northern Piedmont to the Eastern Shore. Take a look at the full map below for the campaign for native species where you are in the Commonwealth. For the Charlottesville area, download a free copy of the handbook: Piedmont Native Plants: A Guide for Landscapes and Gardens.
Albemarle’s public safety agencies agree to new working arrangement for detention orders
The Albemarle County Police Department and the Albemarle County Sheriff’s Office have reached an agreement on which entity is responsible for the transfer and oversight of individuals who are under some form of custody.
A previous agreement was severed on August 15 when the Sheriff’s Office decided it would no longer transport people under either temporary detention orders or emergency custody orders.
"The dissolution of the prior MOU has provided an opportunity for both the police department and sheriff's office to re-evaluate our roles, identify common ground, and strengthen our partnership. This new agreement will ensure that we continue to serve our community with greater efficiency and effectiveness," a press release from Monday quotes Colonel Sean Reeves, Chief of the Albemarle County Police Department.
In Virginia, an emergency custody order directs a law enforcement officer to take an individual into custody to a specific location to see if mental health treatment is required. Temporary detention orders are similar and have created personnel discussions all across the Commonwealth.
Here are some details of the memorandum of understanding from the release.
The Albemarle County Police Department (ACPD) will handle temporary detention orders (TDOs), post-conviction fingerprinting services, storage of evidence, and assist the Albemarle County Sheriff's Office (ACSO) with after hours oversight of the Virginia Criminal Information Network (VCIN) terminal.
ACSO will handle prisoner extraditions, data entries for court-generated documents, and courtroom warrant services.
ACSO will remain a resource for ACPD to utilize for search and rescue operations within Albemarle County. In cases where the sheriff is willing and able to assist the search and rescue effort, both agencies will engage in a unified command structure. ACPD's existing MOUs with the Blue Ridge Mountain Search and Rescue Group and the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) remain in effect.
On August 6, Supervisors agreed to a budget reallocation of $281,639 from a contingency fund to the police department to cover the cost of one new police officer to assist with such orders as well as the purchase of new equipment. Part of that funding also went to an incentive program for off-duty officers to perform this work outside of their regular hours. (view the reallocation details)
They also reallocated $24,512 that had been paid to the Sheriff’s Office to temporary detention orders to reflect that the ACPD would now conduct them.
For more information on temporary detention orders and emergency custody orders, visit the webpage of the National Alliance on Mental Illness - Blue Ridge Charlottesville for a set of frequently asked questions.
UVA Office of Sustainability briefs Board of Visitors’ panel
The University of Virginia is a partner with Albemarle and Charlottesville in regional efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a bid to slow an increase in the global mean temperature. Earlier this month, the people who operate UVA’s Office for Sustainability briefed the Buildings and Grounds Committee on the status of institutional goals
“In addition to the important roles of research, teaching, and engagement, universities also have significant environmental footprints if left unmitigated,” said Andrea Trimble, the director of the Office for Sustainability. “Our stewardship goals include targets for carbon emissions, nitrogen, water, and waste.”
UVA has the goal of being carbon neutral by 2020 and completely free of fossil fuels by 2050. Trimble said the strategy has been to increase energy efficiency and to decrease consumption.
“Even accounting for increased emissions from growth, we have reduced carbon emissions by over 44 percent since our baseline year of 2010,” Trimble said. “Last year we surpassed our ten year goal of reducing energy use per square foot over 500 buildings by at least 20 percent. We achieved 27 percent.”
Some of those buildings are under UVA’s Sustainable Labs program which seeks to reduce energy usage in scientific spaces. Trimble said this has saved $2.3 million in utility costs since 2021.
Trimble’s office has a leadership program with around 35 students who work as sustainability advocates, eco-leaders, and zero-waste ambassadors.
“The zero-waste ambassadors program empowers student leaders to actively contribute to UVA’s ambitious waste reduction goals,” said third-year student London Tuma. “Zero-waste ambassadors help expand and implement composting initiatives around grounds. The eco-leaders program, in partnership with Housing and Residence Life, focuses on fostering sustainability in residence halls by organizing sustainability focused events and supporting initiatives like the dorm-energy race.”
Another 20 students are hired by the Office for Sustainability, including Tuma. Some duties include working football and basketball games to coordinate recycling and other waste reduction efforts.
“Move in and move out are also important opportunities for waste reduction,” Tuma said. “Students help the Office for Sustainability with cardboard and other recycling during move-in. During move-out, the Hoos Re-Use helps divert gently used items from landfills and instead donates to Goodwill and the UVA Community Food Pantry.”
Ellie Cowan is a fourth-year student who has worked in the Office for Sustainability helping to coordinate efforts to explain the goals of the overall initiative through engagement programs.
“On a personal note, the Office for Sustainability has provided me with invaluable experience including managing volunteer events, recruiting passionate students, and teaching important lifelong sustainability habits,” Cowan said.
UVA has been working toward this moment for many years. The first story I wrote about their efforts was back in June 2007 for Charlottesville Tomorrow.
Sponsored message: Buy Local
Buying locally supports our neighbors and community members and makes a big impact for our local economy. Local businesses are more likely to reinvest in our community and their goods and services contribute to the unique character of our community.
Learn more about how you can support local business at ShowLocalLove.org and on social media:
Charlottesville budget staff brief Council on development of FY26 budget
In a city where many feel the municipal government has a strong role to play in solving community issues, staff is charged with finding ways to pay for all of the programs elected officials want to support.
On September 16, the five members of Charlottesville City Council got an early look at how various departments are getting ready for a fiscal year that won’t begin for over nine months.
“Staff is already working on the budget,” said Krisy Hammill, the city’s director of budget and performance management. (read the presentation)
The FY26 budget will build off a FY25 total budget of $251,948,630 that is a 10.29 percent increase over the FY24 budget. Part of the increases are related to collective bargaining as this is the first year in which some city employees are now unionized.
Departments seeking capital improvements must make their requests by October 4 and must make their proposals for new spending on November 1. City Manager Sam Sanders will hold a budget forum on December 12, shortly after the Planning Commission reviews a draft capital improvement program. Council will have a joint meeting with the School Board on December 19 and then again on February 10.
City Manager Sam Sanders will put together a draft budget to present to Council on March 4. Between now and then, departments will have the chance to explain how they are working toward meeting Council’s strategic goals. Council adopted a framework for those goals in September 2023.
“It’s important that over the next remaining years as we get through the five years that that’s reflective that each of our budget cycles should really do its best to attach to those,” Sanders said.
A key date along the way is January 30 which is when staff expect Council to settle on a real property tax rate they would be comfortable with for 2025.
“We would like for you to commit at that point, what, if any, increase in the tax rate you would like to advertise,” Hammill said. “That is not a decision date. That is just what would be the maximum. W e can always go down from what we advertise, but we can't go up once we advertise.”
For a historical sense of what that meeting might be like, take a look at the February 1, 2024 story I wrote with the title “Increased compensation for Charlottesville employees could mean tax rate increases in 2024.”
Before January 30, 2025, staff wanted to get a sense of what Council wants in the next budget.
“I think, through the course of several different meetings, we've heard several big ideas, big questions from you all that we intend to address in a more detailed way throughout the budget process,” Hammill said.
The first question to Council was when they will talk about the impact of those ideas on the city’s long-term financial health. There was no discussion of this.
A second question is how the city might support “large community events” that are part of the city’s quality of life. There was also no discussion of this.
A third question is when the city might see benefits from the contributions into the Charlottesville Affordable Housing Fund from developers who opted to pay a fee rather than build units guaranteed to be rented or sold below market.
“There [are] two projects that we have right now that are making payments in lieu for affordable housing contributions,” said James Freas, the deputy city manager for operations. “Those are the Verve and 2117 Ivy. The Verve is on the hook for $6.8 million. That will be delivered before issuance of the first certificate of occupancy.”
The Verve’s site plan was just approved by the Planning Commission and Freas said the payment will be made in 2026 or 2027.
The student housing building planned for 2117 Ivy Road will contribute $3.25 million and Freas said that site plan should be completed soon and their payment is also expected in 2026 or 2027. A third project at 2005 Jefferson Park Avenue has been delayed due to a change in ownership and Freas did not know when that payment might come in.
Another question related to how the stormwater utility fee is spent. Council voted 4-1 in February 2013 on an ordinance to create the fee as I wrote about at the time for Charlottesville Tomorrow.
“That overall program consists of three parts,” Freas said. “The capital improvement program, maintenance of the overall system, and then our regulatory compliance portion. That's the part where we make sure that development projects are consistent with our stormwater requirements.”
Freas said there will be a celebration from 10:30 a.m. to noon on September 24 on the completion of a streambank restoration for Schenks Branch in the Botanical Gardens of the Piedmont. More information here.
“It’s a great example of where those funds go, the type of project those funds go to,” Freas said.
A sixth question is how much the city should spend to implement the new zoning ordinance and to further advance the construction of subsidized housing.
“We're about eight months into implementation of the new zoning ordinance,” Freas said. “I think there's been a lot of lessons learned already around what that looks like on a day to day basis with a variety of different projects that are coming in through the door.”
Freas said he will have more details about what the Department of Neighborhood Development Service and the Office of Community Solutions might want or need in a few months.
The FY2026 budget will be put together in a different environment. Federal pandemic-relief funding is running out and staff currently does not expect as large a property assessment as previous years.
“We are not anticipating big numbers like we have seen,” Hammill said.
Assessments were up 5.61 percent in Charlottesville in 2024, as I reported in January.
The city is anticipating a surplus for FY24 and Council will learn more about that in November or December.
Sanders said the cost of collective bargaining will continue to be felt in the budget as the fourth of six bargaining units negotiate their contract and city schools present the results of their negotiations.
“The Teamsters contract is going to be the largest bargaining unit of the four we will have as as of FY 26 so that's going to come at a nice cost for us to absorb along with what we are going to be able to anticipate by the school sharing with us what their numbers are going to look like,” Sanders said.
The fourth bargaining unit covers employees in the Department of Public Works, Department of Public Utilities, Department of Parks and Recreation, Fire Department, and Office of Community Solutions. Read my story from March 20 for more information. Negotiations will begin in October.
Sanders said implementing the homelessness intervention strategy will also come with a high price tag and Council will see those recommendations in mid-October. He said beginning the budget cycle is crucial to communicate what could be another large budget increase next year.
“We're starting early because we have to,” Sanders said. “We can already see that the list is already building. It has a little, little more momentum than I might like it to have at this moment for the many things that we need to start considering.”
Sanders said he is still hopeful he can bring forward a budget that does not require a tax increase.
“I'll say that up front, that I never start there,” Sanders said. “I don't really like to end there either. But if I have to, it'll be at [Council’s] direction. And my goal will be to give you options so that we can figure those things out and try to avoid it being anything that is too significant for folks to be able to adjust to.”
Vice Mayor Brian Pinkston said he wanted staff to be “open-minded and flexible” in finding new revenue, using as one example the last minute decision to increase the personal property tax rate earlier this year. He suggested one possibility would be to increase the fee that residents pay for trash pick-up.
“If we’re subsidizing things, we’re subsidizing things, but let’s at least be thoughtful and own up to what we’re subsidizing versus not,” Pinkston said.
Sanders said staff will be coming back to Council on potential changes to trash service as well as changes to fees for parking.
“We put that as a list of analysis work to do, and before we get through the end of this year, you will hear those results and be able to have that information to take into consideration,” Sanders said.
Sanders said if Council is willing to change items like that, this is the time to do it rather than as the budget is ready for public review.
One change in this upcoming budget is a cap of $150,000 per program for organizations who seek resources through the Vibrant Community Fund. Nonprofits can apply for more than one program.
If there were five main stories told through Charlottesville Community Engagement, one of them would be on the development of the city’s budget. Keep reading to learn how this year turns out, and consider becoming a subscriber. If you want to read dozens of stories from the past four years, visit Information Charlottesville.
Reading material for #732
Planning Commission recommends approval of solar ordinance but suggests changes, Heather Michon, Fluvanna Review, September 18, 2024
Controversial donation dominates school board meeting, Heather Michon, Fluvanna Review, September 18, 2024
Since the pandemic, young adults have fueled the revival of small towns and rural areas, Hamilton Lombard, StatChat, Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia, September 19, 2024
How did we get to the end of #732?
Depends on who you are. If you’re reading this, you got to the end because it was produced for you and you felt it compelling enough to get to the end.
For me, all editions are done when all of the pieces are put together. I began putting this edition together yesterday, writing the UVA Sustainability piece before getting to work on the budget story about four hours ago. I rewrote the press release on the TDO story. And now I’m ready to publish!
In my continuing explanations of where the shout-outs come from, I’ll begin by saying the Buy Local spot is paid for by the sponsor at the introductory price of $25. That is a very low figure, a bargain, and I do hope to increase that in the near future.
The top shout-out came from a Patreon supporter who contributes $42 a month. There’s really no difference between the $25 a month and the $42 a month. I have sent that tier some of my music in the past before, but it’s really not much of a draw. Though, $42 a month brings in more revenue. If people want the music, I will make it available.
There are people looking for rate sheets and I don’t have one. After four years, I’m finally taking a look at the potential to use the audience to get revenue through shout-outs. I don’t want commercial advertising, per se, but I would hire a copy editor if I can come up with dedicated funding.
Two corrections in yesterday’s newsletters. Corrections are part of this business, but so is a continued hope to avoid them.
Another source of revenue is something I’ve been posting since April 2021. Ting will match the initial payment that someone makes through Substack. This can be at $5 a month, $50 a year, or $200 a year. The latter two make more sense, but different people want to pay at different rates and I respect that.
I respect Ting, too, and in exchange for the sponsorship I will once again say that and if you sign up for service and you are within Ting’s service area, enter the promo code COMMUNITY you’re going to get:
Free installation
A second month for free
A $75 gift card to the Downtown Mall
