City Councilwill meet Tuesday, Feb. 6, in a business session at 7 p.m., followed by a work session. Both sessions are open to the public.
The business session will be held in the Council Chambers on the fourth floor of the Municipal Building, which is located at 427 Patton St.
The work session will be held on the same floor, but across the hall in the Council Conference Room. In work sessions, Council reviews non-routine matters that will be voted upon in future business meetings.
During the business session, City Council is scheduled to vote on whether to approve changes to the sign code that address the number and size of signs permitted one buildings located in the Central Business Commercial and Tobacco Warehouse Commercial zones.
The amendments, if approved, would create identical regulations for both zones, with wall signs being permitted for each establishment on the premises based on allowable square footage. The Planning Commission voted unanimously earlier this month to recommend approval.
A public hearing will be held prior to the vote.
City Council also is scheduled to vote on a resolution that requests the Virginia Department of Transportation add the recent widening of South Boston Road to the city’s street inventory and be approved for maintenance payments. The widening project added an additional lane between Airport Drive and Rudder Road.
This change needs to be included in the overall mileage used for payment calculations. It is estimated that the City will receive approximately $14,000 annually in additional maintenance reimbursement payments based on this change and Fiscal Year 2018 payment rates.
In addition to these votes, City Council will hold a first reading on the appropriation of a grant from the Danville Regional Foundation that would be used by Parks and Recreation staff to visit two cities that have thriving riverfront parks. Staff will be planning a trip to visit riverfront parks in both Chattanooga, Tenn., and Louisville, Ky., in order to see how strategically placed and designed downtown parks can serve as catalysts for not only recreation, but also economic development and tourism. Chattanooga and Louisville were chosen based on their recognition as being home to two of the top riverfront parks in the country.
City Council also will hold a first reading to appropriate $12.5 million in bond proceeds for various capital improvement projects, which include electric substation and transformer upgrades and school projects.
A first reading is an introductory step required by City code before certain matters can be voted upon by City Council. This step serves to provide public notice of pending action. Council cannot vote on these two matters Tuesday. The earliest vote that can take place will be the Feb. 20 City Council meeting.
During the work session, City Council will discuss the following matters:
- data center tax rates.
- a priority list for economic development projects to serve as the basis for receipt of federal funds.
- connection fees for gas line service.
City Council also will hold a closed meeting during the work session as allowed by state law to discuss a prospective business or industry and to discuss acquisition of real property or disposition of publicly held real property.
River City TV, the city’s government access channel, will air the business session. Watch it live on cable (Comcast channel 10 and Gamewood channel 122) or streaming on the River City TV Facebook page.
River City TV does not air work sessions, but they are open to the public.