Coraggio Consulting Manassas City Council 4/27/2026 Date: Monday, April 27, 2026 Place: Manassas City Council, Virginia Length: 2h 17m (video) Official meeting video (Wistia / RegionalWebTV): https://fast.wistia.net/embed/iframe/0pifkyqxxc Machine transcript (speech-to-text) produced by Coraggio Consulting. Not an official county record. Names and numbers may be misspelled; check the video at the timestamp before quoting. Speech-to-text: whisper.cpp, model large-v3-turbo. Produced 2026-10-17. Timestamps are [HH:MM:SS] into the meeting video. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [00:00:07] Good evening and welcome to the Manassas City Council meeting of April 27, 2026. Mr. Smith, please call the roll. Mayor Davis Younger. Present. Vice Mayor Wolfe. Here. Council Member Ellis. Here. Council Member Smith. Here. Council Member Acina. [00:00:23] Here. Council Member Vasquez Luna. Present. Council Member Hudson. Here. The quorum is present. Thank you very much. If you're able to please stand with us for the invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance. Dear God, we thank you for another opportunity to gather together to provide governance for the residents of the city of Manassas. [00:00:42] We ask for your continued protection of our staff, our council, and especially our men and women in uniform and first responders who put their lives on the line each and every day for us. Please continue to be with those who are mourning the recent loss of loved ones and that they find the strength to go on. [00:01:01] Thank you for protecting everyone who was in attendance at the White House Correspondence Center and that no one was seriously injured and there was no loss of life. Please continue to bring peace to our country as well as our community every day. For all these things, we remain thankful. [00:01:18] Amen. At this time, we welcome Tenderfoot Scout, Mr. T.J. McKay of Troop 670. He attends Parkside Middle School and attends his scout meetings at Grace United Methodist Church right here in the city of Manassas. And he is going to lead us in our Pledge of [00:01:36] Allegiance tonight. TJ, take it away. Very much, TJ. Great job. Hey, I'd like to welcome everyone again to our council meeting. So good to see we have electeds here. We have our Commissioner of [00:02:15] the Revenue in the back there, Tim Demaria. Hello, sir. We have school board member Suzanne Seberg is also here. Good to see you as well. I don't see any other electeds in the audience. So always good to see um you guys come out and we get to look out at smiling faces looking back at us and love to see a full house always um we have a full agenda tonight with a few proclamations a public hearing for our budget bid well we did have a bid opening more on that later as well as a closed session um thank you all for coming out tonight and making a special effort to be here in person [00:02:50] it's always a pleasure um to see you and those who are joining us um on social media tv or Otherwise, we welcome you to the meeting as well council members. It's always good to be with you again And thank you for consistently showing up for this community and so next on the agenda. We'll move forward We have council time and I'll start with vice mayor mark wolf. Thank you, madam mayor So one of the responsibilities of the vice mayor is ensuring that the rest of the council is taken care of so [00:03:37] To be very honest, it takes many years to come to fruition. But if it works, then it works well. It can be a game changer for our community. So as a part of that, they have pretty neat swag. And we all know politicians want swag, right? [00:03:53] So we had a ribbon cutting afterwards, and I had some of my council members feeling very upset that they did not get to share in the swag. I didn't get swag, so, and then you put it in a Walmart bag. I've got various sizes in here. [00:04:13] I need medium. Okay, that's good. Love it. Thank you. That just means you're five times as smart Thank you. I want to talk about what we're doing tonight later, which is the budget and what just happened with Dominion and electric bills first off the electric bill that you the Increase from Dominion is something that took every member of this council and every member of our staff by absolute surprise [00:04:51] And it is one of those things that we have absolutely zero control over. I will assure you that as we go through the budget process, every member of this council is pained by having to increase rates or taxes. But sometimes it's necessary to continue to provide the services that make Manassas a great community. [00:05:13] So as we go through the public discussion tonight, we're going to listen to you and respect you. We appreciate the feedback, but we may not agree. And that's part of the political process. That's part of what makes this country great. Please understand that, and it's not personal in any way, shape, or form, but we are all up here, regardless of party, committed to making Manassas a wonderful place to live, work, and play, and that's what we're going to do. [00:05:42] So thank you very much. Okay, thank you, Councilwoman Therese Gotellis. Thank you, Mayor. Yes, welcome, everyone, and love the costumes. They're just exquisite. They are absolutely beautiful. [00:05:59] And I'm happy you all are here today. They look very heavy. Are they heavy? Yeah. We have such a wonderful community with all the cultures and different festivals coming up. I just want to do a quick plug for the Great Manassas Campout that's coming this weekend, May 2nd to 3rd, at Liberia House and Grounds, about a mile from here, at the beginning of Historic Preservation Week, which is really great, because Liberia House is a very historic home with a lot of stories. [00:06:34] And we'll have some people over there telling stories and then pitching tents and staying in the outdoors, enjoying nature, and learning more about the city of Manassas. So if you want to sign up, it's being sponsored by Friends of the Manassas Bee Festival. Go on manassasbeefestival.com. [00:06:51] We still have some room. I also attended the Nexus 234 unveiling with Vice Mayor Wolf and also Councilman Osina, who we were involved on committees with this, this great project at the Innovation District. [00:07:11] I was on the marketing and committee, the marketing committee and branding committee. And it was a long process. I think Ole Miss was two years actually, with people in the city of Manassas also contributing our businesses and some organizations. [00:07:26] So Nexus 234, you're gonna hear a lot about that. Their slogan is, Next Happens Here, which includes Prince William County, Manassas City, and George Mason University. I attended the library, our library system, had a spring fair, and I went over there just to set up a stand for the city of Manassas to talk about some of the events coming up and just greet the families that were there to learn about things happening in the spring. [00:07:57] Farmer's Market, attended the Farmer's Market, had a stand also talking about the events that are happening in the city, and it was packed. It was great to see. We had music. The vendors were busy. And our Farmer's Market is Thursdays in the morning at the Harris Pavilion, and then also on Saturday morning across from our Baldwin school. [00:08:20] And what's great about the farmer's market, you see businesses that start there, that grow, and they thrive, and then many of them will open like a brick-and-mortar building. So it's a great way for businesses to get started and test out their products and also learn about the business if they're really starting out. [00:08:39] So I do want to thank all of our vendors and also the staff that keep that farmer's market going. It is really a great treasure for our city. That's it. Thank you. Thank you. Councilman Smith. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Thank you, Vice Mayor Wolfe, for the T-shirt and the information about Nexus 234. [00:08:58] That is an exciting project that's going forward. I'm looking forward to that. I also thank you, though, for the comments, the facts you laid out about this very serious matter with regard to the unfortunate surprise increase in our electric rates. [00:09:17] I know sometimes the facts don't always intersect well with some of the narratives there, but your explanation is there and it should be for the record. It should be noted. In view of that, I won't get into some of the other things that I've been involved in as a council because I don't want to distract from the seriousness or give an indication that I'm enjoying this job any better and ignoring the increase. [00:09:44] Our hearts are with you on that increase. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Thank you. Councilman Osino. Thank you, Mayor. I, too, shall be short. If you follow me on Facebook, You've seen many of the things I've been engaged with along the way. [00:10:00] And if you're not, look for me, Tom O'Sena, Manassas City Council on Facebook, and you'll see a variety of different things that I, along with my fellow counselors or the mayor or various other groups have been going to, and no point in reiterating them. Except I did want to say one thing. [00:10:18] At the last meeting we had, I mentioned that I was starting my neighborhood walk and talk this year, And I had the pleasure in earlier this month to walk the Weems neighborhood along with Dr. Zella Jones, who's the vice chair of the Manasseh City School Board. [00:10:39] We had a good opportunity to meet with residents, many of who had children. And so it was good to be able to answer some questions. We had a, both of us ended up with a list of things to look into, which we, Matt knows on the city side. [00:10:57] Where is he? I already got, and I'm sure Dr. Newman on the school side has received the ones that Dr. Jones gave. But I did want to do a shout-out to her for accompanying me on that in April. And we'll be continuing to do that in May, June, and July along the way and other times. [00:11:18] Thank you, Mayor. Thank you. Councilman Sonia Vasquez-Luna. Thank you, Madam Mayor. It's great to see Full House. Welcome. We're happy that you're here and I'm looking forward to hearing the conversations and the feedback. [00:11:37] First, I want to welcome our Commonwealth Attorney. It's a great that you're here. I do get information on how many cases and things that you're doing, but I'm glad that you got a chance to stop by, so I appreciate it. [00:11:53] I want to thank our chief and the department. They've been working on CALEA, and we're going to hear about that today, which I think is great. It's a long process, and sometimes the community work on that, too, so I just want to make sure that you know about that. [00:12:13] We always hear about the schools, which is exciting. For the bike, if you are here for the Bike to Work Day Proclamation, I will be joining. It is exciting. We have 22 miles of dedicated bike facilities, seven miles of lanes, and 15 miles of shared use path. [00:12:36] So this next month in May, not only we celebrate the Bike to Work Day, which is May 15, but you can also get a chance to review. They have made a new bike map. So I hope that you get a chance to look it up online, or you can stop by City Hall and grab a copy. [00:12:56] It is so exciting to see how we continue to develop and make it better for you right here in our beautiful city. I'm looking forward for the proclamation for that expo. Our artisans and all different countries come together. [00:13:14] So congratulations, Maria Elena. It's a lot of work and putting the community together. Welcome everybody that is here for that. I, you know, I'm happy that I get to join you for that proclamation as well. And we also want to make sure that we welcome everybody that's here for the Preservation Month. [00:13:36] I have a few notes. Earth Day was great. Thank you for the staff and some volunteers that were out and working. There is also a lot of people that clean our streets and volunteer, and they might don't say much but i'm really thankful that they help us keep our beautiful our city beautiful our birthday was amazing so thanks to the schools the staff and everybody that work the trees that were donated if you haven't had a chance to stop by the nelson park it's going through a few renovations it's already all the work that staff has done it makes it look [00:14:15] a lot better. So I got to enjoy it. Thank you Councilwoman Ashley for allowing me to join you as you read the proclamation and I was able to read it in Spanish. I think that moment is going to leave and many of the kids, especially the ones that want a reclamation, is going to live with them forever. It was very special. I want to remind you if you have a business in the city, of brick and mortar business we have the business appreciation month coming up in [00:14:48] next month i believe is uh day six uh let me make sure uh may the seven at our community uh center so i just want to make sure that you know that you get one ticket but you have to sign up for that i'm looking forward in seeing you there may 7 from 8 a.m to 10 a.m this is all about networking about learning and it's there is a great panel for you and now there's more activities when it comes to the um bike to uh bike month uh the month of may uh so please know [00:15:24] saturday may the 8th you have adult learn to ride class so if you would like to write learn how to ride a bike you can do that just go to our website uh the pit stop is gonna be at the Manassas VRE from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. on May 15. There is also a short group ride if you want to ride and join. It's coming from the Boys and Girls Club. And May 16 will be the Biker O'Dell for Kids at Jeannie Dean Park, so you can also join that. Summer is almost here with the great [00:15:58] weather. We also have our 2026 Summer Sound. I don't know if you prefer the Sunday events. It's Saturday. We also have two Fridays as well. One of my favorites is Acoustic Tuesday, and it's going to start on May the 5th, and I think we call it Cinco de Mayo. So come to Harry's Pavilion and enjoy great music. Start beginning in El Cinco de Mayo, so May the 5th. All the time it's at [00:16:30] seven o'clock. So again, I want to echo what our vice mayor said. First, I didn't know you had other duties as assigned, but I appreciate the share. But I do want to say when it comes to the process, we all have different questions. We all have different priorities and come together to make difficult decisions. I appreciate every email, every conversation, whatever we have that we But we have to hear you and we get to understand, we do, you know, we live here. [00:17:05] We understand the impact. For me, you know, it's very important not only to hear, but for you to have the information right away. I, you know, I believe that last year we had a drop in 200% on our utilities, and we had had in that part of the electricity that is increasing. [00:17:28] All I can say is that we will provide you the information. If we could change it, we would. One of the ones that worry me a lot all the time is the EOSAPI for the, the EOSAPI. This time it's not the one, but I just want to make sure that you understand, you know, the, you know, we do, you know, I do get to hear from you, and I don't make the decision until I'm here, and I continue to read and get feedback. [00:17:55] And when it comes down to making the decision, for me, it's what's best for Manassas as a whole. What's best not only for tomorrow, but setting up each fund and everything that we need to do for years to come. [00:18:12] And with that, I'm going to take a moment of privilege to say a couple of words in Spanish. Familia, gracias por venir. Este es su casa. Me alegra cuando los veo. uh qué bonito ver que celebramos nuestras raíces nuestras culturas así es que para mí como concejal pues es un honor poder recibirles voy a estar abajo para la proclamación pero sean bienvenidos y ya sean cosas buenas y bonitas como ahora o cualquier complaint o cualquier cosa que ustedes tengan que quieran arreglar estoy a sus servicios y qué bonito verles [00:18:47] muchas gracias. Councilwoman Hudson. Thank you Madam Mayor. Good evening everyone. Thank you for joining us today. Just a quick few items. The Northern Virginia Regional Commission met last week and has been working with the Virginia Institute of Government to host several thoughtful conversations across a bunch of topics that impact Northern Virginia. [00:19:09] Last Thursday, very timely with the discussion today, the group held a brainstorm focused on energy policy and distribution and what the role of regionally elected officials can and should be. It was clear that there was a desire for more education, for more connection with the energy providers and you know just more direct access between residents and those providers to provide information so more on that to come in the coming years I guess as the NVRC is developing what their goals are next I want to commend the Habitat for Humanity for hosting a [00:19:44] really nice event yesterday honoring a family who after 20 years has just paid off the house that they helped restore with Habitat for Humanity that was really exciting. And to add to that, the next recipient of a home from Habitat for Humanity attended the event and listening to these two women have a conversation and give each other inspiration about how to go through the process and homeownership and just taking, you know, the lessons that you can learn from Habitat for Humanity and taking them with you through life. [00:20:16] So it was really a special event. And then lastly, another plug for the Parks Master Plan update. There will be another meeting tomorrow, April 28th at 6 o'clock at the Boys and Girls Club. If you have not already participated in one of these meetings, they each have a different topic of discussion. [00:20:35] Tomorrow's is athletics and sports, so discussing the facilities around those in the city. And then next Wednesday, May 6th, they'll be at the Manassas Museum talking about history and education. So if you're not interested in attending a meeting, you can go online. [00:20:52] simply google city of manassas parks city of manassas parks master plan update and you will find the page that has the survey where you can provide feedback on how our parks are and how you'd like them to be over the next 10 years um so thank you madam mayor that's all i have thank you thank you very much um i don't have too much to add but um again thank you councilman hudson for doing the proclamation for arbor day and sorry i missed that um this year but i was at the nexus 234 event with the other council members as well um and i want to thank everyone who does take time to participate and attend the virtual midday with the mayor and city manager [00:21:32] those are some very informative sessions and it's virtual from 12 to 1 every other friday if you can take a moment to log in and just join us it is very informal but it is such a good way to find out what's going on and to get it from kind of the people that sort of know what's going on in the city um firsthand and um we really do have a good time you just introduce yourself to and you get to share events that are going on in your lives as well if you wish to share um so we do have a wonderful time doing that the next one is on the 8th with another special guest so um please you know attend if you can i know and i try to set it up during lunchtime to make it easier [00:22:12] for people to get online and do it so um you can eat your lunch and talk with us and get answers to your many questions that you might have regarding city events um this week we are wrapping up sexual assault awareness month i am opening up a symposium down in princeton county um on the 29th we have the work session on the 29th and then we have the volunteer reception and council members and all of those folks who participate and work so diligently on our boards committees and commissions we come together once a year and just to say thank you for all of your support and your hard work because without you we can't do what we [00:22:50] do to make this city run so well and we just want to show our appreciation to all who sign up and their extra time to do that because you don't have to do that but it's because of your dedication that we're able to we want to be able able to say thank you for that so um the national day of prayer if anybody's interested in attending that's on the 7th I go I think I've gone every year that I've been on council and as mayor I read a proclamation that's at seven o'clock at the fairgrounds if anyone is interested in coming out for that and then the mayor's pick at the market the first one for the year will be on the ninth at the at the farmer's market where I pick out I help a vendor sell their product for half an [00:23:29] hour and they get a certificate for being the mayor's pick of the week so that's always a fun time and I do that I think every I think twice a month so this one will be on the 9th I want to take a moment to wish all the moms a happy Mother's Day we will not see you again until after that so enjoy your Mother's Day to all the moms want to be moms moms however it looks for you pet mom however you are all loved and very appreciated and thank you all for what you do and Madam Commonwealth attorney I apologize oh you were sitting right in front of me that's why I missed you to do the introduction you know how it works you look over people that are right in front of you so do thank you for being here tonight and I know we'll hear from you after city manager so thank you for [00:24:09] being with us tonight so I'll turn it over to mr. city manager thank you thank you madam mayor as the vice mayor and members of council have discussed the city was notified by Dominion power that there would be an adjustment to our fuel adjustment rate to the city and all of the members of the Virginia Municipal Electric Association with the increase being $24 per thousand kilowatt hours with the increase taking effect on our May electric bills. This will result in an increase of about $35 for a typical townhome and $50 for an average single-family home. Residents can continue to use our Manassas [00:24:46] Connect app or that portion of the website to submit concerns about code violations, street or utility issues, or many other areas of concerns for the city to investigate. And use of the Manassas Connect app will allow you to track any progress on your issue. [00:25:03] We would like to thank all of our residents who worked at the voting precincts to allow the special election to proceed without issue, and also like the residents and our staff who participated in Earth Day's cleanup at the community center. Our stormwater engineering division is hosting an open house to discuss the proposed pond and stream improvements projects for Point of Woods and Flat Branch on Thursday, April 30th at 6 p.m. in our Public Works building located at 8500 Public Works Drive. [00:25:35] The Manassas Police Department is also hosting an elder care resource fair on Saturday, May 2nd from 9 a.m. to 1230 p.m. at the Manassas Community Center. And as always, please visit our website for information about all of the programs that are occurring at our community center. [00:25:52] That's all I have, Madam Mayor. Thank you. any questions for city manager okay if not we'll move forward in our agenda item one is presentations item 1.1 is a presentation from the office of the commonwealth attorney and our commonwealth attorney amy ashworth is here um for prince wim county and cities of manassas and manassas park you have a full plate so welcome ma'am thank you for being here thank you for having me i appreciate it try [00:26:25] to set a timer because I understand I was asked to speak for 10 minutes and I'm bringing on a presentation that I gave to the county in their budget seasons and that was over an hour so I didn't want to thank you I wanted to shorten it thank you very much the right okay so this presentation i did in december of 2025 and just as an overview of who the office is that i am [00:27:01] elected to we are 61 prosecutors 28 administrative staff that includes paralegals secretaries and we have 17 victim witness case managers and advocates our mission as public service is to vigorously enforce our laws, pursue the truth, and deal openly and honestly with the communities, law enforcement agencies, victims, and witnesses. And that is a photograph that we take every year [00:27:37] during Domestic Violence Awareness Month. We all wear purple and go out and have our picture taken. But essentially what we are responsible for prosecuting the criminal cases brought by the various police departments. I think Manassas City is our second largest. Prince William County is obviously our largest with, I think, over 700 sworn officers. We also have Virginia State Police, all of the town felonies, Manassas Park felonies. Then you have Park Rangers, George Mason, [00:28:15] and a whole collection of other law enforcement officers that bring charges. The courthouse runs about 23 criminal dockets per day in juvenile court, general district court, circuit court. We're responsible for providing discovery to the defense, interviewing witnesses, preparing cases for trial. Most of the trials in circuit court are jury trials, now that jury sentencing was gotten rid of by the General Assembly a couple years ago. Sentencing hearings, probation revocations. [00:28:52] We also advise all of the police departments on their investigations. We're available 24 hours, seven days a week. And we represent the Commonwealth in all sorts of civil matters, such as substantial risk petitions, expungements, license restorations. [00:29:12] So it's about a 110-page manual of Commonwealth attorney duties that they give you after you get elected, which It's not just prosecuting. So we stay busy. I pulled this quote from Justice Robert Jackson. [00:29:28] If you've seen Netflix recently, the Nuremberg Trials, he is the attorney that acts as prosecutor in that case. And he talks about how important the role of a prosecutor is. It's very easy when people say, you know, just lock them up and throw away the key. [00:29:46] But that's not what anybody wants in a prosecutor. You want somebody who is honest and pursuing the truth and doing that in an ethical manner. So that's why I include Justice Jackson's quote. Back when I took office in 2019, I had taken over an office that had not grown as it should have with the county. [00:30:12] We had 29 attorneys for the second largest jurisdiction in Virginia. And I went to the board at that time, and I asked for an increase, and I picked a number out of the clear blue based on what I thought would work for us. [00:30:32] So I asked for taking us up for a total of 44 attorneys. I was able to work with the county and slowly increase to that amount over three years. At the same time, when I was elected, I became a member of the Virginia Association of Commonwealth Attorneys. [00:30:52] That is the 120 electeds from across the state that hold this position. Before I ever stepped foot in that organization, they had been lobbying for years for the General Assembly to pay for more prosecutors across the state. [00:31:08] And so in 2023, we got the General Assembly to pay for a statewide time study of all prosecutors' offices. They had us filling out questionnaires, keeping track of our time, submitting that for weeks to the National Center for State Courts, and they produced a report which gave us official staffing standards. [00:31:36] So it was no longer my gut driving the number of prosecutors that we needed, but actual data. And it is based on the number of cases coming in that the police departments bring. and the number of and the type of cases because obviously a homicide is going to take a lot more time than an assault and battery. Where we stood back in December when I gave my outline to the [00:32:05] county we had 61 prosecutors so from 2019 when I started to 2026 we've gone from 29 to 61 but as and then the time study gives us a new number each year so in September of 2025 the time study was saying we needed 71 prosecutors. [00:32:28] We had eight paralegals, we needed 18. We had 20 administrative staff, we needed 36. And they give you no guidance on victim witness. So when I went to the board, I asked for those 10 additional positions, 10 additional paralegal positions, 16 administrative positions. [00:32:51] And again, there's no guidance for victim witness, we asked for five. Witness is a program created by the code in each particular jurisdiction. Some of them are under the police department. Ours happens to fall under the Office of the Commonwealth Attorney, and they currently have 16 full-time employees, one part-time. Their primary responsibility is to make immediate contact of a victim or a victim's family when there's a crime. They start introducing [00:33:26] themselves explain the process because the court system is very scary for people who aren't regularly in it. If you've ever gotten a speeding ticket or something minor, even something like that can cause fear. So you imagine if your family is involved in a homicide or serious sexual assault, your child's been abused, you're going to have a lot of questions. And our victim witness case managers do a great job making contact, making sure you're aware of the court dates, act as a liaison with your prosecutor and the police to keep you updated. And that also encourages [00:34:04] participation in the court criminal system, which is invaluable. Our biggest need, obviously, this year was for administrative staff. It's very inefficient to have attorneys doing administrative stuff but because we didn't have as many administrators as we needed it and the unavoidable outcome was if you had attorneys doing this work the question came like how are you getting the work done if you don't have [00:34:37] enough staff now we rely on a very robust intern and law clerk program we also paid what I called overtime what the county called operational need pay for administrative staff and we used our case management system to improve efficiency so out of our funding requests this year the county did give us seven administrative staff or paralegals they gave us four attorney positions out of the ten that I had asked for and then they budgeted a [00:35:15] hundred and ten thousand for the Axon digital management system. Axon is who provides your body-worn cameras for your police. They have the lion's share of the market. When the county adopted body-worn cameras around 2017, the prosecutors were given free accounts. Those no longer were free. Axon was pushing us to upgrade [00:35:48] And because the police department was renegotiating their contract, we kind of attached to them and we'll have the Axon evidence system for all of the digital information that is collected by the police department, which is called discovery. [00:36:08] And it's vitally important that our office have a way to manage that efficiently because our court system is tending to dismiss charges if something is not provided or provided in a timely matter, which can be catastrophic for people. [00:36:28] We are working on creating a behavioral health docket, which will deal with a lot of the mental health issues that keep coming up repetitively in the criminal justice system. So we're moving that forward. [00:36:45] And I don't know if you were keeping up with the news, but last year we had some real groundbreaking cases, including a 50-year-old rape case, stranger rape case. a woman was raped in a gas station parking lot 50 years ago. There was DNA taken, but there wasn't a way to match it to anybody. We not only matched it to someone, but he was an identical twin, and usually that's the end of the game. You can't tell between the two, but we found a lab that [00:37:17] could, and we were the first. Prince William County was the first place ever to utilize identical twin DNA expert testimony to specify one twin over another and it passed legal challenge we'll see if the court of appeals holds it up but that's how we were able to get that conviction and it was amazing if you think about all the court cases going on and the length of that case so on that I will wrap up and I'm happy to answer any questions but before I get to your questions [00:37:53] I want to say, Madam Mayor, it has been an absolute pleasure serving with you. I appreciate all the good work you've done for Manassas City, and you will certainly be missed when you leave office. Thank you. I love that note you're leaving on. Thank you so much for that. [00:38:10] Council members, any questions? I saw Mr. Smith's hand first. Thank you so much for that information. Obviously, your biggest need was well displayed here. it seems to be in staffing and the Axon you mentioned out there is that that situation it's the only program there where's the status now yeah so Axon collects all of the digital [00:38:43] evidence and our free account lets us store everything that they create which is your body worn cameras but there are tons of videos that come from non-body wore cameras photographs cell phones and so they were essentially going to charge us to hold that we looked into other options that were maybe cheaper but it is so difficult to manage the amount of information [00:39:17] coming in from all the different sources to have it in a different different platforms which we kind of do now it's just it's just been taking so much time and there's been times where things have been missed and our our judges are not the standard is is pretty well close to perfection if we don't produce it they're getting rid of charges what's the next step or what's the [00:39:50] strategy to correct that? So Axon developed a program called Axon Justice that manages all of that discovery in one place. And there are competitors. We are looking at two competitors with that. But Axon controls access to evidence.com, which is where the police kind of dump all of they're relevant. [00:40:25] - Is it a matter of you having to seek funding from the jurisdiction? - Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's not free. It's about $110,000 a year. - I'm sorry, $110,000 a year, yeah, a year. [00:40:40] - That took me down the street I wanted to go, so go ahead, I'm done. - Any other questions? Mr. Osina. - So following up on Councilman Smith's line of questionings here, the Manassas body camera, From their officers, I take it you're able to access them, or does it go through Axon as well? [00:41:09] It does go through Axon. Same thing from Manassas Park? Same thing from Manassas Park, and I think the sheriff as well. I think Dumfries, pretty much everyone is on it. The only one that doesn't have it is Virginia State Police. [00:41:24] They just have dashcams. They never went to the body-worn cameras. What's a starting salary for an attorney in your office? $95,000. And for a paralegal? $63,000. [00:41:42] And for an administrative assistant? $55,000. Taking a graph, and we'll just roughly say 100%, and I'm not going to hold you to exact percentages adding up and so forth, because as you pointed out, you do the National Park of Police, for instance, and towns and so forth. [00:42:06] But how would you break up the workload in your department among the three big jurisdictions, Prince William County, Manassas, Manassas Park? I would have no way of doing that. Whatsoever? I'm not. You could look at, so we do have information on the total filings, which are probably around 38,000 cases coming into the system. [00:42:34] I'm sure your police department could provide you with the amount of cases that they bring, and that would give you a percentage. Okay. And then I would imagine that when a case comes after a police officer has done the investigation and it's turned over to your department, that you have a criteria for determining whether you're going to file charges, pursue it, I'll say. [00:43:08] I'm using layperson's terms, so forgive me for that. Are there any particular type of cases that, after the investigation is made by a police department, turned over to you, that you generally do not pursue? [00:43:26] There's no, we don't have any, like, list of charges we don't pursue. I mean, if it's, we all take the same oath to uphold the law. And so if the legislature passes a law that says things are illegal, we pursue them. [00:43:46] If the police department brings the charges. Very good. Thank you very much. Any other questions or comments for a commonwealth attorney? Okay. Again, thank you so much for being here. Appreciate it. My pleasure. Thank you so much. [00:44:02] Have a good night. All right. Next on the agenda is item 1.2, the CALEA presentation. City Manager Burke is going to set that up for us. Yes, ma'am. Continuing with the appreciation to the Commonwealth Attorney's Office, the city does hold our police department in deep regard, and we are always excited when reaccreditation and recognition for reaccreditation occurs. [00:44:26] This evening, Maya Mitchell, the CLEA's Communications and Organizational Development Manager, will be here to, again, recognize the reaccreditation of our city department. Ms. Mitchell served as the Mid-Atlantic Regional Program Manager previously and assisted our police department through the accreditation process. [00:44:50] And at CALEA's March 2026 conference, they did present Chief Keene with the Bittner Award, which is, again, recognition for our reaccreditation. And Ms. Mitchell is here tonight to formally present the Bittner Award to the chief. [00:45:08] our police department thank you for that introduction and thank you for having me tonight thank you Khalia is happy to present this award to Chief King originally executive director Craig Hartley jr. he regrets he wasn't able to be here he's had a family emergency so he asked me to represent him he actually told me be best to send someone that looks better than him so here I am I've also just want to give you a little information about Khalia for those who don't know know, CALEA stands for the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement [00:45:44] Agencies. We are a non-profit organization that accredits public safety agencies internationally. So we have clients in the United States, Canada, Barbados and Mexico. The process is voluntary. An agency comes to us and they want us to review them under the best practices for public safety and we do that. So an agency that comes to CALEA to do that, they are really want to be professional and have excellence and we just commend the city of Manassas for being accredited since 2001 they've been accredited and I've been a resident [00:46:20] here in Manassas since 2001 so it's especially meaningful for me to be part of this presentation for Chief King. We also have Kalia's previous executive director Sylvester Darcy Jr. here today who is sitting over there he doing his tenure he became very acquainted with Chief King and he's here to support and congratulate him tonight. In March, the commission awarded Chief King with the Egon Bittner Award, and the Bittner Award is given to chief executive officers who have been in leadership for 15 [00:46:56] continuous years. Egon Bittner was a CALEA commissioner from 1981 to 1988, and he contributed to the early development of CALEA, and so we presented that award to Chief King in Tucson at our March conference. [00:47:14] And as you know, he began his career here at Manassas in 1989 and rose through the ranks and was appointed chief of police in 2010. And additionally, he serves as the assistant city manager. But as everyone knows, there's years of service, it's just not numbers on the calendar. [00:47:30] It's long nights, long days, decisions, commitments. And throughout his career, he's championed professional excellence, innovation, and community-focused policing. strengthening trust and transparency with the citizens of manassas and he's also supported calia by participating in the executive director's regional advisory ceo committee that has helped shape the direction of calia chief keen i asked you to join me for this presentation so on behalf of executive director craig hartley and the board of commissioners it is my honor to present to you [00:48:09] the Egon Bittner Award that represents 15 continuous years of leadership for CLEA accredited agency. Congratulations thank you for taking the time I'd be remiss if I didn't recognize the retired chief from Greensboro Mr. [00:48:37] Sylvester Daltrey and retired executive director of CLEA thank you sir for being here what a true honor for you taking time out of your evening to be here support me thank you Maya same with you taking this evening mayor council while this is in my name very much appreciated you don't get here without support of an elected body that has changed over the years but everyone who has ever sat on that dies has always supported FLEA you don't get it without support of our community our community has always understood the importance of accreditation [00:49:15] and those high standards and more importantly without your staff specifically the office of professional standards lieutenant lehman if you will stand please and mason rigs that's our office of professional standards that oversees clea i push them hard they know the high standards thank you very much for your commitment and seeing my vision through and of course all the assistant chiefs over the 16 years of being chief and pushing for clea so thank you to everyone our community our staff and our elected body for the support you don't reach this milestone without [00:49:51] great people behind you and pushing you to be the best you can be so thank you very much [00:49:59] can i get a picture with maya please great so beautiful so miss maya you said you are a resident [00:51:41] of manassas is that the city of man oh okay good thank you yes you're welcome back all right yes i was gonna say wait a minute now all right glad to hear that thank you so much for being here and for presenting that to us thank you so much yes vice mayor yeah madam mayor if i might um let me take the opportunity i think it's particularly appropriate as we're discussing budgets uh the clea accreditation the police department that has earned is one of those things um good government costs more than bad government and there are up front costs that we bear as a community uh to [00:52:20] enable the police department to receive the CLIA certification and it goes to payroll and staff and how we do business and everything that the men in blue do and women thank you and there are other departments across this country of the world that do things cheaper easier faster quicker way and they are not as professional and they are not as good and they do not provide the level of services to the community that our department does and I can tell you as [00:52:51] As one of the people, again, that sits up on this dais, my fear is always getting that phone call or that email at 3 in the morning with something horrific happening. And I have the absolute unquestioned confidence of this department and the people in it that that's not going to happen. [00:53:10] And they keep us safe. And it's an investment in our community. It's an investment in our people. And it is very, very well worth it. and as the chief and all the officers know maintaining clea certification is not an option for this community in this in this council so thank you all very very much for what you've done appreciate it thank you vice mayor any other comments yes thank you um we'll move forward then in the agenda for item 1.3 monasas city public schools school presentation from hayden elementary [00:53:44] school good evening madam mayor vice mayor wolf other members of the council and mr burke Tonight you will hear from Dr. Laura Goldzung as she shares highlights of the outstanding work taking place at Hayden Elementary School. [00:54:00] Dr. Goldzung is a principal whose leadership is rooted in service, presence, and unwavering commitment to students and staff. Known for her willingness to do whatever is needed to support her school community, she fosters a culture where people feel valued, supported, and empowered to succeed. [00:54:22] She has served our school division in a variety of leadership roles, bringing both experience and vision to each position. Please join me in welcoming Dr. Laura Goldzung, proud principal of Hayden Elementary School. [00:54:39] - Good evening, and thank you. And thank you, Ms. Seberg, for that introduction. Good evening, Madam Mayor, Vice Mayor Wolf, other members of the city council, and Mr. Burke. [00:54:58] It is truly an honor for me to stand here and tell you about the great things that are happening at Hayden Elementary. I am joined tonight by my partner in leadership, our assistant principal, Mrs. Natalie Short. And this year marks the completion of our third year serving together as the administrative team at Hayden. [00:55:20] And we are proud to serve a school community of approximately 600 students and 93 dedicated staff members. And each day, we approach this work with energy, enthusiasm and a deep commitment to our students our families and our community tonight i'm excited to share good news and updates from the hayden elementary and highlight how our students and staff continue to grow and thrive this is our new mural photograph of our new mural and we are [00:55:57] centered around the question of where will your wings take you this message reflects who we are at Hayden and what we believe about our students. At Hayden, we are committed to providing students with the tools, the experience, the passions, and the skills that they need to build a bright future full of opportunities. As Hawks, we take great pride in equipping our students for success academically, socially, and emotionally, and our role is to help them discover what [00:56:30] they are capable of and to give them the confidence they need to soar. Our work at Hayden is grounded in a clear set of core values, which serve as the foundation for how we organize ourselves around serving our community. [00:56:50] First is teaming. We engage the right people at the right time to ensure that all essential voices are at the table. And through intentional collaboration, we coordinate efforts across teams to maintain alignment and avoid competing agendas, keeping students at the center of our decisions. We build the capacity of teachers and leaders at every level to strengthen our entire organization. But most importantly, all of that work is centered on shared goals. We align our efforts towards common objectives that [00:57:27] drive student achievement and organizational success. These values guide our daily work and ensure consistency and purpose across our school one clear measure of effectiveness of our programming is an increase in student achievement over the last three years we have seen growth in all measured areas including reading mathematics and reductions in chronic absenteeism these outcomes reflect the daily intentional instructional work happening in [00:58:03] classrooms throughout the building. We begin SOL testing later this week, Thursday and Friday, first up, just a few days, and we do so with confidence. We are confident that the strategies, instructional practices, and collective efforts of our teaching teams will continue to be reflected positively in our student data. At Hayden, we intentionally focus on building communities for learning. Students regularly work together to solve [00:58:39] problems, to write stories, to make scientific observations and engage in discussions about the importance of learning lessons from the past. These experiences strengthen both academic understanding and social skills. [00:58:56] We use Kagan cooperative learning structures to intentionally promote student discourse and discussion. This emphasis on oral language development is critical as it serves for a precursor to to strong literacy skills. [00:59:13] Through collaboration and conversation, students learn not just content, but how to listen, how to explain their thinking, and how to learn from one another. In April, we were thrilled to present Pirates Past Noon. [00:59:32] And that was a Magic Treehouse adventure. I'm sure, I'm hoping that everybody here had an opportunity either with their children or as themselves to read a Magic Treehouse book. And this was based on the third Magic Treehouse book. This was our fourth grade drama club and it was the culminating project. [00:59:51] It was a project-based learning opportunity that was intentionally aligned to our Title I Parent Engagement Program, fourth grade literacy standards and language development goals. The central message of this production is that reading is the real treasure. [01:00:09] Students performed in the evening for parents and community members and then again during a school-wide assembly on Friday and that allowed the entire school to share in the experience. And this performance highlighted the joy, connection, and camaraderie that the performing arts bring to our school community. [01:00:30] Another way we bring learning to life is through project-based learning. And these experiences are student interest-driven and emphasize research, editing, revision, critical thinking, and the creation of a public product to synthesize their learning. [01:00:48] We thank members of the council who were able to attend our innovation night this past week, Thursday night, where we showcased projects from kindergarten through fourth grade. The photos on this slide highlight our fourth grade National Monuments Project. [01:01:05] That's supported by a grant from the National Park Service. We work with Ranger Jen. She's our partner. She partners with the students and teachers to teach them about the National Monuments. They send charter buses and take our kids downtown to the National Mall. She It gives them a tour, a guided tour, and they talk about not just the importance of the people but of the architecture and the purpose and the reason why as a country these stand important to us. [01:01:40] The kids then come back to school and they design monuments for famous Virginians. They are then printed. They do that on a CAD program and then they are printed using our 3D printers. This is a powerful example for how history and creativity, technology, and student voice can come together. [01:02:02] At Hayden Elementary, our mission is rooted in working for all students with energy and optimism. And for us, that means doing the right work through high-quality, aligned, standards-based instruction for all students by name and need. [01:02:25] We promise our community that we will give our best every day. We believe deeply in our students and our teachers. And we truly believe that all students can and will learn when we bring our professional knowledge and passion for teaching and learning to our work. [01:02:43] We endeavor to do that with a smile on our face and compassion in our heart. So in closing, I just want to thank you for the time this evening and for allowing us to share the good news from Hayden Elementary School. [01:02:58] We are grateful for your continued support, your partnership, and the vital role that we play together for the success of our students and our staff. We are proud to serve as Hayden Elementary and always proud to be a Hawk. [01:03:15] Thank you very much. Thank you, Dr. Dixon. Very good. Thank you so much for that wonderful presentation. Councilmembers, any questions or comments for Dr. Goldzone? Ms. Ellis. Thank you for that excellent presentation. [01:03:34] The project-based learning, I love to hear that the kids are going out and actually experiencing learning outside of those classrooms. When they took the bus for the Monument Project, what was the name of that organization? It's the National Park Service. [01:03:51] The National Park Service. They have an education sort of branch or program, and we have, with Amanda Klein, who is our fourth grade sort of social studies lead, She has written and been receiving that grant since, I want to say, 2019. [01:04:07] It was definitely pre-COVID. And we go every year. And Ranger Jen comes, and they get the National Park Pass, and they learn all about the national parks, and then they get the charter buses. And, you know, that's so exciting. That is. To ride the charter bus. This year it snowed. [01:04:23] It was that, like, freak spring snow. So it's an annual grant? Yes, it is. We do have to reapply it. Through the NPS. Thank you. You're very welcome. Thank you, Ms. Elson. Ms. Vasquez-Luna. Thank you, Madam Mayor, and thank you for the report. My favorite chart, I think it was page four, where you talk about the changes on the SOLs, and good luck to all the students as they get into that, and thank you to all the staff that got them ready for that. [01:04:51] I think through the last few years, we have been working on the chronic absenteeism in all the schools, and I just want to congratulate you for the big drop, especially if you compare 2020 to 2023 to now. So my only ask, after, you know, seeing the great progress, my only ask, have you seen a big decline on the number of enrolled students? [01:05:16] Or is there anything that keeps you up at night when it comes to the school? Which night? Because different things keep me up. We have seen a slight drop in enrollment in kindergarten this year. We're watching that number. What keeps me up at night? [01:05:32] I just want to make sure that students, that we're serving the whole student, right? I know that literacy is a human right and that literacy is what is going to compel our students to become active members of our community and to give back and to be able to be productive and happy and to be able to really guide their own dreams and make those opportunities happen for themselves. [01:06:02] are a lot of barriers to literacy development that are social emotional that have to do with the community that and so what we need to do is we need to make sure that while we are keeping academic achievement that is that is my role right we all here have a role in developing these young citizens in our community and my role is to make sure that they have the very best education that they can but I can't ignore that there are other variables so you know we just make sure that we are looking at the whole child [01:06:36] and meeting that child's needs by name thank you any other questions mr. Sina so I agree that as has been mentioned before it's important I think for you to not only because you do track it and your task with working on this your your SOL pass rates and your chronic absenteeism rates there, and it's good that they are going in the direction that you want. [01:07:10] There's still work to be done along the way here. What kinds of things are you finding that are working to help with the SOL rates, with the absenteeism decline, and what remains to be done? [01:07:31] And, I mean, it's clear you want higher percentages. Absolutely. What kinds of things are the next steps as far as you're concerned to continue this momentum? So it's a great question because it kind of lines me up for what I'm excited about for a school year, 26, 27. [01:07:52] It's hard to believe I'm saying that out loud. Chronic absenteeism is kids who want to come to school, right? Especially, so when kids are in kindergarten, first and second grade, absenteeism is really a matter of us working with families to educate them on the importance of attendance. [01:08:10] Because a kindergartner can't get themselves up and bring them to school. We start to get kids who are second, third, and fourth grade who really advocate for themselves, right? Like they can get up and they can get to the bus. But kids come to school when they feel valued, when they feel connected, when they feel belonging. [01:08:30] And belonging is something that is created in our encore classes. It is created in our classrooms when they are struggling, if they still feel supported. They feel safe to take those academic risks. They have friends. [01:08:48] They feel safe. All of those things, that is what contributes to the decline in chronic absenteeism. Come to school. Be a part of something. And come back. What's working is putting into place our, you know, high-quality instructional materials. [01:09:12] You'll see that all over our budget documents and the Virginia Literacy Act. And we put into place using, you know, aligning with the science of reading with the state-approved resources. We are going into the third year of our adoption of that resource. [01:09:32] And it's a resource, but it's also making sure that the methodologies and the strategies that we use to teach children are aligned to that need. That's working. What do we need to do? What work do we still need to do? We need to build the capacity of young teachers, of people who are, thank goodness, deciding that they want to be teachers and entering the profession. [01:09:54] We have a lot of career switchers. We have people who have the will to be teachers and who are developing the skills. and so what's next is that we continue you know and in my graphic where it's teaming right it's doing the right work with the right people it is collaborating working together to make sure that we're all on the same page about what the kids need to be able to know and do and then we need to build our collective capacity as leaders and teachers to meet the needs of the kids that are right in front of us so I'm excited to get on to the work because Manassas City Public [01:10:31] schools has a lot of plans in place to support those people who really want to be in our classrooms which makes kids feel belong which makes kids come to school right it's all connected thank you so much miss Gong thank you thank you for having me for being here appreciate it okay next on the agenda we have a few proclamations the first one up is item 1.4 proclamation for back to workday Mr. Arcieri and whoever else you deem I don't know if anybody else is here, Sonia Vasquez-Luna is going to come down with me for that. [01:11:28] The proclamation, whereas Bike to Work Day began in 1956 and has grown into a spread event in an effort to get commuters to try bicycling to work as a healthy and safe alternative to driving along. [01:11:55] And whereas biking commuting benefits the national capital region, including the city of Manassas by improving air quality, reducing noise, and encouraging energy conservation, and whereas bicycling commuting benefits the National Capital Region including the City of Manassas by enhancing the quality of life for its residents and by creating healthy and vibrant communities, and whereas bicycling commuting benefits both employees and employers through better health and fitness, lower cost, and reduce parking spaces. [01:12:35] And whereas Bike to Work Day support the City of Manassas Comprehensive Plan Mobility Division, which seeks to provide a sustainable multimodal transportation system through the city. And whereas in June 2023, the City of Manassas was awarded the Bronze Level Bicycle Friendly Community Award by the League of American Bicyclists and whereas the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board proclaimed Friday, May 15, 2026 as the Bike to Work Day throughout the Washington Metropolitan Region [01:13:13] and whereas the City of Manassas is celebrating Bike Month with numbers of events throughout the month of May. Now, therefore, our mayor, Michelle Davis-Younger, mayor of the city of Manassas, Virginia, and on behalf of Manassas City Council, hereby proclaim Friday, May 15, 2026, as Bike to Work Day in the city of Manassas, and encourage all citizens to participate on May 15 by visiting www.biketoworkmetrodc.org [01:13:48] and also to use and explore a city-growing bicycle network throughout the year. Thank you. There's a lot of pressure for me to ride a bicycle in the chambers, which I will not be doing this evening. [01:14:06] Yeah, the chief said he didn't want to have to have me taken out on a stretcher. And for those of you, just to reemphasize what Councilmember Vasquez Luna said during her Councilmember remarks, I have notes from our actual transportation planner who has me well prepared. For adults, Saturday, May 9th, the city, in partnership with WABA, the Washington Area Bicyclists Association, and Prince William County is holding an adult, for me, learn to ride class. [01:14:31] That will be at the county complex court, five-county complex court in the county from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. And then for our kids, the Manassas City Police Department is graciously hosting on May 16th at Jenny Dean Park, a bike rodeo for children, bring your own bike and helmet. [01:14:47] You can go on to the city's website, manassasva.gov slash bike month, learn about all of the efforts to build out our pedestrian network, see our new bike map, and even register for these classes, including bike to work day on May 15th. How many folks would like to see Mr. Arcieri show up on a unicycle next time for this proclamation? [01:15:25] Unicycle to work day, Matt? That's right. Aye. So next on the agenda is item 1.5, the proclamation for the law expo. Folks, if you want to come on up, everybody, Maria, and your whole group there. [01:15:51] And I'm going to read the proclamation in English, and Councilwoman Vasquez Luna is going to read it in Spanish. [01:16:14] And ready? The proclamation reads, Whereas continued immigration and population growth have resulted in 18,345 Latin Americans living in the city of Manassas, constituting more than 42% of the city of Manassas' population. [01:16:35] And whereas astoundingly diverse within its own ranks, Latin American artisans contribute to the great diversity of this nation of nations, that is America, and to the diverse and inclusive community of the city of Manassas, preserving the rich legacy of their native cultures while embracing the best values and traditions of the United States of America. [01:16:58] And whereas through their multifaceted skills, traditions of hard work, creative entrepreneurship, and artisan crafts, this vital segment of our community has contributed to the art, prosperity, and economic well-being of the city of Manassas. [01:17:15] And whereas through their unquenchable respect and honor for the arts, high-quality craftsmanship, and persistent drive for excellence, Latin American artisans have demonstrated outstanding individual and group achievements as entrepreneurs, businesses, and community leaders. [01:17:34] And whereas the contribution of folkloric groups such as Racis Escultorianas, I'm doing good, Estebanas Perianas de Virginia, Flor de Café, and Alma y Folclore represents a powerful expression of unity in promoting and preserving Latin American culture through dance tradition and artistic heritage. [01:17:58] And whereas this community has hosted the Latin American Expo, where Latin American artisans from the city of Manassas and abroad have gathered to share teach and promote their artwork culture and community on the third sunday of may each year with great success participation and attendance now therefore be it resolved that i michelle davis younger mayor of the city of manassas and on behalf of the manassas city council do hereby proclaim the third sunday in may of 2026 as latin american artisan day in the city [01:18:34] of manassas and call upon the residents of the city to observe this occasion by recognizing the contributions of latin american artisans to our society in general and to the city of manassas in particular thank you so much and congratulations congratulations and welcome it's uh the seven years so we're happy that you're here so i'll read in spanish proclamación considerando que [01:19:08] el continuo crecimiento poblacional y la inmigración ha dado como resultado que 18,345 latinoamericanos residan en la ciudad de Manassas, constituyendo más de 42% de su población, considerando que notablemente diversa en su propia composición, la comunidad de artesanos latinoamericanos contribuye a la gran diversidad de estas naciones de naciones que es Estados Unidos, así como a la comunidad inclusiva y diversa de la ciudad de Manassas, [01:19:47] preservando el rico legado de sus culturas originarias mientras adoptan los mejores valores y considerando que a través de sus múltiples habilidades, tradiciones de trabajo arduo, espíritu emprendedor, creativo y oficios artesanales in this important sector of our community have contributed to the art, the prosperity, the economic well-being of the city of Manassas and considering that through their incredible respect and honor for the arts, the high quality of their work and their constant search of excellence, the Latin American artisans [01:20:26] have demonstrated achievements both individuals as colective, jako emprendedores empresarios y líderes comunitarios considerando que el valioso aporte de sus grupos folclóricos raíces ecuatorianas estampas peruanas de virginia flor de café y alma y folklore representan una poderosa expresión de unidad en la promoción y la preservación de la cultura latinoamericana a través de la danza la tradición y el patrimonio artístico considerando [01:21:01] que esta comunidad ha organizado la Latin American Expo, donde artesanos latinoamericanos de la ciudad de Manassas y del extranjero se han reunido para compartir, enseñar y promover su arte, cultura y comunidad el tercer domingo de mayo de cada año, con gran éxito, participación y asistencia. Por lo tanto, Michelle Davis Young, la alcaldesa de la ciudad de Manassas in virginia proclama el tercer domingo de mayo del 2026 como el día del artesano latinoamericano [01:21:38] en la ciudad de manazas e invito a los residentes de la ciudad a conmemorar esta ocasión reconociendo las contribuciones de los artesanos latinoamericanos en nuestra sociedad y en general y a la ciudad My deepest thank you for this proclamation. [01:22:10] Thank you, Mrs. Mayor. Thank you, Sonia. Thank you, councils. But I will be dancing because today is a very special day. Today, we are not only celebrating the Latin Artisan Day. We are also honoring a person who has been present, supportive, and truly committed to our community. [01:22:34] Mayor Michelle Davis. On behalf of LAR Expo, the Circulo Cultural Latino-Americano and all the artisans, entrepreneurs and family we represent, I want to express our deepest gratitude. [01:23:09] Your leadership is not only seen in your role, it is felt in your presence, in your kindness and in your sincere support to our community. You have been there, supporting, believing, and working with us in this journey that today has become a meaningful cultural platform. [01:23:33] Thank you for helping us build a bridge between culture and community. Thank you for valuing our roots, and thank you for understanding that when we support an artisan, we are preserving history, identity, and legacy. [01:23:52] This plague is more than a recognition. It's a symbol of respect, gratitude, and appreciation for a community that truly feels your support. Your legacy is already part of our story, and it will continue to inspire everything we are building together. [01:24:15] Thank you so much, Mrs. Michelle Davis. [01:24:19] Please just only I want to invite everybody to join us on May 17th at the Harris Pavilion. [01:26:26] It's going to be our seventh Latin American Artisan Expo. I hope you can join us and you can see we want to share a bit of our culture with you. Thank you so much. So now we have the Teresa Coates Ellis is going to come down and do the item 1.6 for Preservation Month. [01:26:55] Members of the HRB and ARB are here as well. Come on down front. [01:27:11] Stand up here. HRB. Is anyone here from HRB? Christine Collins. [01:27:27] Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll give you one to take care of them. Yeah, she's on the HRB. Yeah, Historic Resource Board. Okay. Welcome, everyone. This is the proclamation for Historic Preservation Month. [01:27:46] First, I want to introduce who's here. We have Marcy Settle, who's the chair of our Architectural Review Board, ARB we have Colin here he is Colin Turner he is helping with the efforts to save old Bennett school that's dear to many of our necessity residents and we have Myra Buchanan-Brent who is also with the architectural review board thank you for coming proclamation whereas in 1973 the National Trust for Historic [01:28:24] preservation created preservation week which was later extended into preservation month to spotlight grassroot preservation efforts around the country and to serve as a showcase for local communities to honor their past and help build their future whereas in recognition of the city's rich historic heritage the manassas city council established the historic resources board and the architectural review board to advise and assist in efforts to identify preserve protect and promote historic and [01:29:03] cultural resources and the history of manassas and whereas the historic resource board and the architectural review board recommend that the manassas city council to proclaim may 2026 as historic preservation month and whereas the manassas museum and the historic resource board responsible for the management of city-owned properties including Liberia House and Grounds, Annenberg Manor, the Southern Railway Depot, Cannon Branch [01:29:39] Fort, Mayfield Fort, Manassas Industrial School, the Jenny Dean Memorial, Old Town Hall, and the Hopkins Candy Factory. Whereas the Architectural Review Board assists and advises the City Council, the Planning Commission, and other city departments agencies and property owners in matters involving historically significant sites and reviews and approves proposed architecture and design of historic structures in the historic overlay district and whereas the [01:30:16] city of Manassas historic site sparks joy inspires wonder and connects members of our community to our shared history our places that make us who we are and and deserve to be celebrated and protected. [01:30:32] And whereas we are celebrating the 250th anniversary of our country in the city of Manassas, Virginia this year, and experiences such as the Great Manassas Campout, May 2nd to 3rd, an official Virginia 250 event, ongoing tours of historic Liberia house and grounds, shows, classes, and events at the art factory, celebrate America's festivities on July 4th historic downtown educational displays rotating at the Manassas Museum reflection time at the Jenny Dean Memorial cleanups at Mayfield and Cannon Branch [01:31:08] forts and special events at Annenberg Manor are planned during historic preservation month in May 2026 now therefore our mayor Michelle Davis Younger the city of Manassas Virginia and on behalf of the Manassas City council meeting and regular session this 27th day of april 2026 hereby proclaim the month of may [01:31:33] 2026 as historic preservation month it's all together here thank you all so much again for [01:32:43] being here for the allowing us those moments for the proclamation and for surprising me ms vasquez thank you so much for the thoughtfulness it's really really appreciated um moving forward in our agenda we are ready for public comment time at this time we welcome residents and community members who wish to speak about services policies and affairs of the city of manassas anyone who has not requested additional time four days prior to this meeting from the city manager we have a timer and your comments will be limited to three minutes we appreciate the time you have taken to be here a reminder that council does not engage in back and forth conversation with speakers during [01:33:22] this time the lack of an immediate response to your comments should not be taken as a lack of interest or concern as we do have staff present taking notes and we will respond to your concern in a timely manner when you approach the podium please give us your name and we would appreciate if you would state if you are a city resident and you may provide your address if you so desire it is not required we ask that you please be respectful when presenting your comments to not only council members but to those residents and community members who are also present with that I have the sign-up sheet and there are no names on it but we will not miss anyone if you are here and wish to address council at [01:34:00] this time for public comment portion of the agenda please come forward good evening madam mayor council I'm Diane Lane Manassas City resident and I just wanted to take a moment to recognize the parks and rec team they were everywhere this weekend. Annenberg for the opening. They were at the volunteer reception at Liberia House and then at the Art Factory. All events were well done, well organized, and really just a joy to go to. [01:34:37] So I just wanted to recognize Keisha and her team for a job well done. Thank you. Thank you. Anyone else wish to address council? Good evening. Good evening. My name is Colin Turner, Manassas City resident I just wanted to say thank you and I appreciate the city recognize recognizing preservation month in a city like Manassas preservation isn't separate from planning it's part of how we make decisions in the past few months there's been a lot of attention on the old Bennett school and the judicial campus planning expansion project as people have dug in it's clear this isn't [01:35:17] a simple issue and it touches on site history past investment and coordination between the city county and manassas park the building dates back to 1908 and sits on a documented site with civil war burials it's also been found eligible for the national register by the virginia department of historic resources and there have been prior studies looking at reuse not just demolition this context is important moving forward there's been strong public response to the petition that has now passed over 950 signatures including many prince william county [01:35:53] residents I also want to share a quick update supervisor Gordy from Prince William County has expressed willingness to help bring together a broader community conversation specifically about the old Bennett School so stay tuned for more information to come I want to thank Councilmember Ocina for encouraging these conversations at the state level and Councilmember Teresa Coates Ellis for being part of the discussions with Supervisor Gordy and being extremely helpful throughout as this continues I've also heard from several supervisors that public comment within the county is an important part of the process. The Board of Supervisors meeting on May 12th is one of the next opportunities [01:36:30] for residents to speak directly to the county ahead of the next inter-jurisdictional discussion, which will be on May 13th. I'd encourage anyone that's passionate about preservation to speak up at this upcoming Board of Supervisors meeting. Thank you for your time. Thank you, Colin. Anyone else? Give me a minute, Mr. Blackman. First, I want to say is I understand you have a very difficult [01:37:08] job especially now doing budget very difficult and you get pulled in many directions and being a resident and homeowner here you know i see my taxes and utilities going up every year and last meeting my wife stood up here and read many different projects and acquisitions that the city made in the last couple years and that's mainly why her and i have gotten more involved [01:37:40] been here just about every meeting and you know I don't know how much it's been you know I how much is spent but it's been quite a bit and what you tell us is you're doing this as an investment in the future but what about now you know I see my taxes and my utilities going up and you know yeah are there it just seems like you're not and we need more now but anyways another thing is you know you [01:38:18] You gave a nice big tax break to Micron, who made $37 billion last year, a nice $8.5 billion profit. And so you gave them an extra $50 million tax break. [01:38:34] And now we get surprised with Dominion adding to us, and that's going up. On top of all the other increases that need to be taken, I see my utility bill going up probably 30% now. And I understand it takes a lot of money to maintain the infrastructure of our city and the residents and the businesses have to take care of it. [01:38:59] But, you know, when do we get a break? You know, we had to add to the utilities, replenish the funds for the utilities last year. That went up. It's going up again. [01:39:16] Some of these purchases that were made were with found money. Well, some of that found money could have gone into taking care of our utilities or our rainy day fund, whatever it could be. I know there's a limit we can have. I'm just asking to give us a break. [01:39:33] I know you're going to vote, and you've worked really hard, but you could give us a little more of a break on our taxes. I see you lowered it to two cents on the rates, but try and do it a little more for us. [01:39:53] When the economy is bad, we have to tighten our belts and make tough financial decisions. The city needs to tighten its belts, too. I mean, we spent a lot of money. And, you know, give us a break. So, you know, you said these purchases are going to do our future, but what about now? [01:40:15] And you see my wife is not here for the first time in two years. She wasn't able to make it. So with that, I would like to ask our Heavenly Father to bless this council and the city staff with the wisdom and humility to consider the residents of this city when carrying out their duties as public servants with the city. [01:40:36] We ask through our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. Thank you. Amen. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Kladniak. Anyone else? Good evening. I'm Angelica Zagatelis. [01:40:51] I'm a resident of the city of Manassas, and I live off of Hornwood. And I just want to say thank you so much. Angelica, can you speak into the microphone? Just want to make sure we can hear you. Thank you. Okay. Can you hear me now? Yes. Thank you. So I just want to say thank you for the information about the electric rates and how they're going up and how it's not really your responsibility i'm actually here to talk about the tax assessment rate or the real estate rate and i have a handout that i want to give to you guys can i get that bring that up to you to the clerk in here so you know i noticed that there [01:41:31] is a decrease in the tax and the real estate tax rate by two cents but our valuations have jumped by about 10 for the for the city and so and the decrease is only about 1.6 of that of that decrease so what you're seeing on that form there is that if the current rate is adopted at the dollar 24 rate it will still be our highest tax amount so far and over the past five years so if we bring it down to dollar and i'm suggesting i don't know if it could be done but if it's brought down to [01:42:08] the dollar 15 amount rates which is the last column to the right that would maintain our our tax rate from the 2025 or 2026 year so if we have any say as constituents here in the city i would really appreciate it and as well as everybody else here probably to see our tax bill at least stay [01:42:31] the same while our valuations are going up thank you for time thank you anyone else hello mayor and council and for calgary monasa city resident i just have a few things this evening um obviously every budget year i say please do not raise our taxes and i know that you're working really hard but i echo some of the comments here that some of the decisions that have been made [01:43:06] um along the way here have put you at a disadvantage when you're making these decisions and now would be a really good time to reassess some of those decisions if possible we have purchased quite a lot along the way and some of those plans have not gone as we wanted them to go or as you have wanted them to go so if there would be an opportunity to sort of go back to the drawing board on some of those plans now would be a great time to sort of take advantage of that and help the residents i speak specifically regarding the landing at cannon branch it looks [01:43:42] like there's a public hearing bless you on may 6th but it doesn't really talk about what that is and so i'm wondering if some of the things that were supposed to happen the parameters in the checklist that were supposed to happen if those are sort of in the works clearly i haven't been able to stay on top of that as much as i would love to so i'm just encouraging you that if there's an opportunity to sort of look at that make a different decision i think that'd be great when you're talking about assessments you know you are taxing us on income that we have not [01:44:17] received bottom line it's a strategy it's you know we can argue it you know how I feel about taxation so if we're going to tax people fairly though in our assessments keep rising and our taxes keep rising and there's no break for us no matter how much we change our priorities with what we're doing in the city then what is the benefit of encouraging increased growth with data centers and businesses and other things if we are not seeing the benefit at the taxpayer level we're not seeing that diversity in our tax funding because it [01:44:56] still seems like the overall burden comes right back to the homeowner or renter so I'm just asking you to kind of use this time to see if there's any other strategies that can be implemented this year and I think that it would really do a lot of good for the morale in our community if there was some kind of innovative problem-solving that happened this year I think it would be really important as far as my other statements I would just say I have been encouraged by the work with GMBL but I didn't see very many of you at opening [01:45:31] day and so I just want to ensure that the partnership with GMBL stays strong and that we are taking care of our ball fields I have noticed being at some of ball games recently that we have our park sign up because the city is taking care of the baseball fields now under their park portfolio but it doesn't seem like the maintenance has shifted from maybe the other stakeholders in that process so i would ask that you continue [01:45:58] to be mindful about how that's working thank you so much anyone else thank you good evening i'm I'm Helen Zaretha, 15-year resident here in the city of Manassas. [01:46:19] Last year, I believe it was in June, this council decided to give themselves a raise, actually double their salary. As you heard from Dominion, they are doubling, they are raising the rates on the utilities, and this is why I asked you last year to hold off on that raise. [01:46:39] We do not know, we did not know then what was going to happen now. My understanding, that rate is going to take effect in July. I would suggest you all that voted for this to donate that part of the salary back to a nonprofit that can help with the higher utility bills, housing, taxes, whatever it may be. [01:47:04] That is my suggestion to you. People are out here suffering. I see it every day. I just got back from serving 150 families in a community with food. A lot of them are asking, how are we going to pay our bills? [01:47:23] I ask you from the bottom of my heart to rethink what you're going to do with that salary that you gave yourself and donate it back to the people that need it back for their utilities, their rent, the taxes are going up. Thank you. [01:47:38] Thank you, Ms. Rita. Anyone else? My name is Lori Balta. I live on Sandy Court. I've been the resident of the city of Manassas since 2005. [01:47:57] I've lived through the Micron Pond issue where we had hydrogen sulfide from when the pond flipped. You remember, Mark, we had the meeting in our circle. The planning at that time for the sewage and UOSA was not ready. How many years did that take it to get fixed? [01:48:15] We're now increasing our residents in the city. That's going to increase our utilities again. What's that supposed to be for people like me who moved to the city, whose utility bill for the month of January kept her heat at 69 instead of 75, burned my heat. [01:48:37] My utility bill was $750. That's the highest that it's been in the 21 years that we've lived there. $650 in February, $650 in March. My husband's about to retire. I'm getting close, too. [01:48:53] We're going to be forced to move my home, the assessment on my home. There's no way I could sell it. I can't afford to put new windows in. We've been watching. We've been doing it. You're going to make the people that pay the taxes in this move because they can no longer afford to live here and pay. [01:49:14] We were planning on retiring in the city of Manassas. We're not going to be able to do it if our rent goes up. My mortgage went from when we refinanced, it's gone up $400 a month. If I'm paying additional $400 a month, I'm about to lose $4,000 a month when my husband retires. [01:49:31] How am I supposed to do that? And we're going to pay for affordable housing. We're going to pay those extra fees and utilities. Did the city pan for this when they let the the data centers who you told me a couple years ago that there were no more data Centers being built in the city right behind me there were not how many more was that planned for or was it planned in the Beginning to send it back to the residents as those things evolved think about that your residents are not going to be able to Pay for the other people that can't afford housing here when you lose them then what's going to happen to the city rethink [01:50:02] the process. Thank you. Thank you. Anyone else? I'm Mary. I live off of Thornwood. I have lived in Manassas my entire life and I've lived in the city of Manassas since 2009. I was one of the lucky ones who got to buy my house at the bottom of the market. All right. I got a really great deal. Now it's worth over two times what I bought it at. Wonderful. And if I want to move, I don't want to move. I want to live here. I love my home. I have spent 10 years fixing my home up. I'm about [01:50:41] to have to sell it because everything here is going up and up and up. I don't want roommates. I'm 46 years old. Why do I need people to move in and help me pay for bills all of a sudden? Our salaries have not gone up like our tax assessments are the assessments on our homes. [01:50:58] I never agreed saying I could pay a tax on a $550,000 house. I never said that I could do that. It's also not fair not to sound like a little kid, but why is it a real estate tax? Why isn't it a per human tax. You got a house over here that has six people in it. I got mine over here. Why am I paying the same amount as them? It's not fair. It's not right. And the assessments for taxes need to be done differently. I say we abolish the real estate tax. Everybody, why are we paying you guys for what we own, right? I think we all are in agreement with taxes are taking more of our money [01:51:35] every single day. We get a raise. It's gone. It's gone. You guys have taken my complete entire raise. It's just, we need to rethink what we're doing. We're not going to be able to spend money in the businesses because we don't have money in our pockets. We can't go out and buy new properties and new cars, but here you guys are living it up. I wish I could do that. I wish I could buy a second property and make some money off of it, but we can't. And something needs to change. If you want the old school residents that have been here for years and years we deserve to keep our homes at a [01:52:12] rate that is you know average rate across not northern virginia maybe just virginia i mean you guys like i said the house is more than double we can't afford it please think of another way to get money from us thank you anyone else wishes to come forward okay seeing none we will move forward to, sorry, my iPad jumped, item three on the agenda, consent agenda, I'll call Vice Mayor Wolfe for that motion. [01:52:44] Thank you, Madam Mayor. Second. We have the motion by Vice Mayor Wolfe, seconded by Councilwoman Vasquez-Luna, to approve our consent agenda. Any discussion? Hearing and seeing none, Mr. Smith, please call the roll. [01:53:02] Vice Mayor Wolfe? Yes. Councilmember Vasquez-Luna? Yes. Councilmember Ellis? Councilmember Smith? Councilmember Osina? Yes. Councilmember Hudson? Yes. Motion carried. Okay, thank you for that, and that moves us forward to item four on the agenda. [01:53:18] the public hearings we have a sign-up sheet so i don't have anyone signed up but if we won't miss anyone if you wish to speak up when we open up the public hearing um i'll go over the procedures for public hearings i'll read the newspaper add certification then staff will present the issue for consideration and the council has the opportunity to ask questions and then i will open the public hearing for public comments we will make sure not miss not to miss anyone who wishes to speak regarding a public hearing item and then the public hearing is then closed or continued in action is scheduled to be taken by the council at the next regularly scheduled council [01:53:53] meeting so with that i will read the newspaper advertisement certification which reads as the mayor i certify that newspaper advertisements for the public hearings listed on tonight's agenda were published in conformance with the requirements of general law and city ordinances as the mayor i further certify that an affidavit of publication is before me which is signed by an authorized representative of the prince william times newspaper which states that the advertisements appeared on the required dates and with that we'll move forward item 4.1 is a public hearing approving a three-year lease renewal between the city manassas and greater manassas volunteer [01:54:31] rescue squad for property located at 93 22 center street manassas also known as hutton hall and authorizing the mayor to execute the lease on behalf of the city and chief mills good evening Madam Mayor, members of the council, City Manager Burke. [01:54:58] That resolution is to allow the Greater Manassas Rescue Squad to continue to utilize Hutton Hall. They utilize it as part of fundraising for their organization. They host various events, wedding receptions, other types of gatherings. [01:55:19] And it's very beneficial to allow that to happen because they do in turn take those funds and support the fire and rescue system. They assist in purchasing some of our updated EMS equipment, and they continue to support us in many ways. [01:55:42] So I would recommend that we allow that. This resolution did add in language that if for some reason the city reached a point when they were going to utilize that property for some other means uh it added language that we provide uh notification to the manassas rescue squad because they do book uh events in advance and then that way they know to stop booking okay thank you chief any questions for chief [01:56:17] mills on this item okay and not the oh yes i'm sorry mr cena so just just as a follow-up to what you just say uh what what is the the time um limit on the on this this notice is it a year what so this is a three-year lease if the city uh no i'm sorry for giving notice i believe it's 120 days thank you that's all i need thank you thank you miss vasquez uh thank you madam mayor i like it [01:56:50] but i wanted to ask uh why will it go from five to just three years because the the prior one was five years. So I understand, you know, to me, I always like shorter terms, but I just wanted to ask why. If you'll allow me, part of the reason to decrease the time is that recognizing that the county is starting to look at improvements in that area. We wanted to make sure that if there was a need for use of this property by the county, we would be able to then assess it in a shorter [01:57:29] time period in the previous five years any other quick questions hey the public [01:57:36] hearing is now open I think that was some language that should have been [01:58:10] changed that wasn't because it did I believe that's a typo in there it should have said three years that that is what the agreement was well I request that we get it terrified because particularly if we change it from one year to a lower year um can we do it on the on the site now i mean if we vote on it with some proposal at three if it's in the motion for three years we can vote on it okay go ahead amelia come come to the microphone [01:58:49] state that it is for a three-year term and the resolution that will come before you does uh back up that three-year term so we'll have next right that's next so we'll correct it in the wash yes thank you just wanted to point it out any other questions comments okay the public hearing is now open if there's anyone there's no one signed up but if there's anyone here that wishes to address this item please come forward [01:59:29] you have the motion by vice mayor will second by councilman Smith to close the public hearing and schedule this item for future council meeting any discussion hearing and seeing none mr. Smith please call the roll vice mayor wolf yes councilmember Smith yes councilmember Ellis councilmember of Sina yes councilmember Vasquez Luna yes councilmember Hudson yes thank you very much thank you chief Mills for being here for that item 4.2 the public hearing for the proposed fiscal year 2027 real property tax increase Diane is [02:00:03] here to help us with that thank you and good evening madam mayor members of Council tonight we're going to have a series of three separate public hearings on items related to the fiscal year 2027 budget which is set to begin on July 1st the first item is up for a public hearing is on the real property tax increase we're required to hold a public hearing because the tax bill will increase while the rate is proposed to decrease from $1.26 to $1.24 due to [02:00:40] appreciation the tax bills will have an increase in them the second public hearing will be on the real and personal property tax rates along with the utility rates and the third public hearing will be on the annual operating budget and the five-year CIP and I stand ready to answer any questions on one individually three or come back up every time one by one because public hearing so thank you any questions from council members on this item not the public hearing is now open on this item if there's anyone present who wishes to [02:01:18] speak about this item please come forward at this time okay it's 4.2 hello mayor and council win for Calgary Manassas City resident I just want to put on record for this public hearing that I my comments from my public comment time stand and I hope that this council will reassess some of the tools at their disposal to hear what the residents are saying with regards to the [02:01:54] tax burden that they feel and they have felt for many years from the city and I hope that you will take the next few days to reduce the impact thank you thank you anyone else wishes to come from the same thing I want to reiterate what I said before you know we spent a lot of money over the last few years and costs are going up find a way to [02:02:28] ease the burden on the residents here you had several people come up and say people I've never seen here before which was great there are ways to ease the burden you can lower the tax rate a little more there are things on your wish list you you've got a grand wish list you've been Spending and spending and spending, everyone knows. [02:02:52] Maybe we just have to take care of the city and make sure it's running properly and maybe move the wish list to a time when all of these properties that we purchased come to fruition. [02:03:08] You say they're for our future. Put your wish list out to when now these things start showing us what they're for. But maybe we should just tighten our belt and do what you can. Everybody's having problems with money now. [02:03:23] give us a break thank you mr. primary anyone else on item 4.2 not I'll entertain a motion motion motion by vice mayor will second by councilman Vasquez Luna to close the public hearing for the proposed fiscal year 2027 real property tax increase any discussion hearing and seeing none mr. Smith please call the roll vice mayor yes councilmember Vasquez Luna yes council member Ellis council member Smith yes council member Osina yes council member [02:04:01] Hudson yes all right thank you so much item 4.3 public hearing for the proposed fiscal year 2027 real property tax rate increases in personal property tax rates and sewer water and electric utility rates Ms. Bergeron thank you again this public hearing is on the rates that are used to establish the budget for FY 2027 the real estate tax rate is proposed to decrease by two cents to a dollar twenty four of note in the personal property tax rates the there is [02:04:40] proposed an increase in the computer peripherals assessed on data centers moving from moving to four dollars and fifty cents and there are also increases as we've discussed in the utility rates water sewer and electric um and three percent in sewer ten and a half in electric 25 in water and a dollar 50 in the storm water rates and i stand ready to answer any questions thank you miss bergeron any questions on this item council okay public hearing is now open for this item if anyone wishes to address council on [02:05:14] item 4.3 please come forward at this time council lynn varkal green monasas city resident and once again i just want to reiterate that i'm against the increases i do understand that the utility rates tend to be trickled down to us but i do believe some of the decisions that the council is making with regards to data centers and other projects are having an effect on us and i also think that we have to think about the infrastructure with regards to our utility services as you all [02:05:48] very well know and so i would hope there would be a more pragmatic approach to those expenses as are coming down the pipeline and we these are not a surprise to us but it is a surprise to many residents how our Manassas City utilities work in conjunction with Dominion and so I've had many people reach out to me asking for that relationship to be explained I know you try to do a good job but the reality is some of these increases were coming down the pike since March and it seems like they just came to us maybe the final number just came to us but I think you were aware because I was aware that the utility rates were going to [02:06:24] increase since March and I believe last year we had a presentation with regards to increasing our utilities and what needed to happen for long-term planning so I would just continue to ask that we find ways to mitigate the burden on our residents while maximizing our infrastructure and the success of our utility thank you thank you anyone else who wishes to address this item 4.3 Madam Mayor, move to close item 4.3 of the public hearing. [02:06:54] Second. We have a motion by Vice Mayor Wolfe, seconded by Councilwoman Vasquez-Luna to close the public hearing on this item 4.3. Any discussion? Hearing and seeing none, Mr. Smith, please call the roll. Vice Mayor Wolfe. Yes. Councilmember Vasquez-Luna. Yes. [02:07:10] Councilmember Ellis. Councilmember Smith. Yes. Councilmember Osina. Yes. Councilmember Hudson. Yes. Motion carried. Okay. item 4.4 the public hearing for proposed fiscal year 2027 annual operating budget and five-year capital improvement program Ms. Bergeron hi thank you again what she said basically this third public hearing is on the fiscal year 2027 annual operating budget and the five-year capital improvement program and I stand ready to answer any questions thank you any questions from Ms. [02:07:42] Bergeron okay public hearing is now open don't have anyone signed up but if anyone's here to wishes to address this item please come forward at this time Thank you Mayor and Council Lynn Porcal Green Manassas City resident I think that with the operating budget I think our residents don't understand that now is the time for them to prepare you with their input on the projects that they may disagree with and I would ask that you continue to work with the community before you pass this budget to ensure that there's you know buy-in where [02:08:20] possible I think that that's one thing that you know I have worked on since became involved as a resident and as a council member that the public engagement process is somewhat broken when it comes to the operating priorities of this council for the city and i think you see that when it comes to the public hearing time and most of our residents do not understand what this particular public hearing is for so i ask that you do your due diligence and ensure that these are also the shared priorities of our residents thank you thank you is there anyone else who wishes to address i just wanted to say that i don't feel that the city [02:09:00] residents with an ad in the newspaper I don't get the New York Times there are many residents in the city that don't see it so your notification of this public hearing came as a fluke to me because I saw something on Facebook by notifying all your residents when you send us our bill for our utilities a notification for this public hearing with that of those intents would help inform the citizens on what they're getting into that's neglectful that's deceitful because I've never seen the Prince William County Times come to my door free something I have to purchase to see to hope and see I see it what Lynn has said consistent throughout you're [02:09:37] not taking care of the residents that are existing here by notifying of your choices and by the choices you're choosing for thank you anyone else we should come forward madam mayor move to close item 4.4 the public hearing on the operating budget motion by vice mayor will second by councilman Vasquez Luna to close the public hearing on item 4.4 proposed fiscal year 2027 annual operating budget and five-year capital improvement program any discussion hearing and seeing none mr. Smith please call the roll vice mayor Wolfe yes councilmember Vasquez Luna yes councilmember Ellis [02:10:17] councilmember Smith yes councilmember Osina yes councilmember Hudson yes motion carried all right thank you that moves us forward in the agenda to new business and that's going to help me get through this one um the next line up on the agenda is the receipt of bids in response to requests for franchise proposals but we did not receive any bids for the proposed franchise so honor members of the council staff recommends as no bid has been made in pursuant to 15-2-2103 of the code of virginia that a motion would be ordered for council to re-advertise for future bids at a later council meeting so you just need a motion [02:10:56] to re-advertise okay yes your honor may i make the motion that we re-advertise uh the bid second we have the motion by councilman vasquez luna seconded by councilwoman hudson to re-advertise for the proposed franchise bids to come in at a later date any discussion hearing and seeing on Mr. Smith, please call the roll. Council Member Vasquez Luna. Yes. Council Member Hudson. Vice Mayor Wolf. Yes. Council Member Ellis. Council Member Smith. Yes. Council Member Osina. Yes. The motion carries. All right. Thank you. Thank you, Matt. That moves us forward to item six, authorizing [02:11:36] our closed meeting. I'll call on Amelia for that motion. I apologize, Mayor and Council. It took me a moment. We've now reached a point in the agenda to authorize a closed meeting, which is [02:12:08] resolution 2026-921 authorizing a closed meeting of City Council for the proposed appointment of members to boards committees and Commission I recommend for your passage this evening resolution 2026-921 authorizing City Council to have a closed meeting for consideration of appointments to boards committees and commissions. Madam Mayor? Yes, sir. Madam Mayor, I move the adoption of Resolution [02:12:44] 2026-921. Second. We have the motion by Councilman Tom Osina, seconded by Councilwoman Ashley Hudson to approve Resolution 2026-921, authorizing a closed meeting. Any discussion? Hearing and seeing none, Mr. Smith, please call the roll. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Thank you so much for that. [02:13:13] We'll be back. Freedom of Information Act requires a certification by city council that such closed meeting that you've just held was conducted in the manner required by law. [02:13:31] The city council of Manassas must certify that to the best of each of your knowledge, only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements under the Freedom of Information Act, and only such public business matters as were identified in the motion by which the closed meeting was convened were heard, discussed, or considered in the meeting by the city council. [02:13:52] recommend for your adoption resolution number our 2026 922 certification of the closed meeting in the motion by councilman those seen a second by councilman Vasquez Luna to approve resolution number our 2026 922 certifying our closed meeting any discussion hearing and seeing none mr. [02:14:15] Smith please call the roll councilmember El Sina yes the council member Vasquez Luna yes vice mayor yes councilmember Ellis Council Member Smith? Yes. Council Member Hudson? Yes. The motion carries. All right. Thank you so much. Mr. Osina. Thank you, Mayor. I move Resolution R-2026-926 to make the following appointments to the City's Boards, Committees, and Commissions. [02:14:42] reappoint spencer williams to the beautification committee as a regular member for term beginning july 1 2026 and ending june 30th 2030 reappoint jenny wu to the beautification committee as a regular member for a term beginning july 1 2026 and ending june 30th 2030 reappoint courtney tolson to the utility commission as a regular member for term beginning july 1 2026 and ending June 30, 2030. Reappoint Marianne Walters to the Solid Waste Committee as a regular member for term [02:15:16] beginning July 1, 2026 and ending June 30, 2030. Reappoint Robert Fox to the Local Board of Building Code Appeals as a regular member for a term beginning July 1, 2026 and ending June 30, 2030. Reappoint Pamela Sebesky to the Joint Recreation Center Advisory Board as a regular member for a term beginning july 1 2026 and ending june 30th 2030 appoint pamela cebesky to the social services uh committee as a regular member for a term beginning july april 27th [02:15:53] 2026 and ending june 30th 2028 and appoint meg carroll to the parks and recreation committee as a regular member for a term beginning april 27 2026 and ending june 30 20 30. second we have the motion by councilman osina seconded by councilman vasquez lunar to approve resolution number r 2026-926 approving the appointments as mr osina read any discussion hearing and seeing yes madam mayor yes sir mr smith um i'll support the motion um with all protections that haven't [02:16:33] been in closed session provides and so that the record would note those comments um they were that there were comments made in closed session but otherwise we'll support the motion okay thank you sir any other discussion point mr smith please call the roll council member osina yes council member vasquez luna yes vice mayor wolf yes council member ellis council member smith yes council member hudson yes the motion carries thank you so much is there anything else to come before the council for the good of the residents if not we are adjourned thank you ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Coraggio Consulting · aguyonx.com