City Council will meet Tuesday, Feb. 20, in a business session at 7 p.m. The session is 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.
During the business session, City Council is scheduled to vote on a policy change designed to entice new customers to use natural gas as a primary source of heating. Under the new policy, if approved as part of a revised ordinance for gas connections, Danville Utilities would install up to 300 feet of service line at no cost. An additional 50 feet will be installed if a customer has a second qualifying gas appliance.
The current policy limits free installation to 100 feet from the main line at the street, with the customer responsible for the remaining distance to the building or meter location.
Danville Utilities supplies natural gas service to approximately 14,000 customers within the city limits and Pittsylvania County. In the past five years, approximately 2,500 residential customers have moved away from natural gas as their primary source of heating.
City Council also is scheduled to vote on several other matters Tuesday night:
- a budget amendment to appropriate $12.5 million in bond proceeds for various capital improvement projects, which include electric substation and transformer upgrades and school projects. A public hearing will be held prior to the vote.
- a grant from the Danville Regional Foundation that would be used by Parks and Recreation to send 12 people, including staff and several City Council members, to visit two cities that have thriving riverfront parks. The trip will take the group to 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. A public hearing will be held prior to the vote.
- a priority list for economic development projects to serve as the basis for receipt of federal funds.
In addition to these votes, City Council will hold a first reading on the appropriation of $635,969 in insurance proceeds from flood damage that occurred to the hydroelectric generator station at the Pinnacles complex. The money would be used to repair and replace damaged components of the generator.
The generator was installed at Talbott Dam in 1990 to provide additional generation from the facility. In September 2015, excessive rains resulted in flooding that damaged or destroyed the generator and supporting infrastructure. After engineering analysis and negotiations with the insurance provider, a settlement was reached that will allow the City to complete the restoration and repairs needed. It is expected to take about 12 months to complete the restoration.
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 this matter Tuesday. The earliest vote that can take place will be the March 6 City Council meeting.
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.
