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Norfolk Civic/Government issues

vdogg

By vdogg
in Norfolk

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Glassoul Whistle-Stop

Glassoul

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The Proposed Fiscal Year budget for Norfolk is online... saw in the paper today that the city may cut the real-estate tax to $1.13. I beliveve this budget was projected w/ a $1.17 tax rate.

http://www.norfolk.gov/budget/FY2008_Proposed.asp

Pilot said they were just going to raise other taxes to makeup the difference, including personal property.

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Sky06 Burg

Sky06

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Pilot said they were just going to raise other taxes to makeup the difference, including personal property.

That should be fine with most people. Personal property wouldn't hurt them nearly as much as real estate.

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  • 3 months later...
Norfolk4Life Whistle-Stop

Norfolk4Life

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Norfolk needs a new city manager. The current one has been here forever, and im sure she was good when she started, but she's starting to slip. The city manager runs the city, not the city council. the council make guidelines and sets goals and makes laws, but the manager makes all that happen outside the coucil walls. Recently the city demo'd a building built in the late 1800s to make way for a Hilton. The building was a historic building resistered and all. The catch to this Hilton plan is that the city has not finalized plans for the hotel. They demo'd a historic building for a hotel that isnt final yet. That is the manager's job. Another recent even is the new plan for Norfolk's Light rail. The line is supposed to run straight through the Kirn Memorial Library. First the library wouldnt need to be replaced if the city paid for upkeep in the first place. It is a great beautiful building and nothing that replaces it will match it. Second, the city wants to tear it down ASAP. They dont have a plac to store its content, though. All the irreplacable historic stuff in the local history room has not safe place. All the books. They talk about demo before they talk about where the stuff goes. Everything needs to be worked in order. This is all the managers job. The city is wasting money left and right and it all falls on her. Most people overlook her and she is appointed by the council, but she needs to be replaced.

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vdogg Megalopolis

vdogg

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Some clarification. This used to be it's own standalone thread. I merged it with this one. I have no problem with a topic like this so long as it's in the proper venue, and this thread is the proper venue. I really don't see anything wrong with this post. I may not agree, but I don't see anything inherently wrong.

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Norfolk4Life Whistle-Stop

Norfolk4Life

Posted
Posted

This sounds like a gripe you should pose to the City Council. This forum is for open discussion of issues relevant to growth and development, good and bad. This forum is not to single out a person and bash them if you do not agree with their comments, position or job performance.

This certainly has to do with growth and development. In order to grow and develop we need a capable person running the city. Without that projects fail and Norfolk goes downhill. I have no problems with the manager as a person. Shes a very nice lady, I've met her. She used to be a better manager. She's just lost her spark over time and now there are all kinds of problems and even more to come. We need a new one.

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spiker3 Hamlet

spiker3

Posted
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Norfolk needs a new city manager. The current one has been here forever, and im sure she was good when she started, but she's starting to slip. The city manager runs the city, not the city council. the council make guidelines and sets goals and makes laws, but the manager makes all that happen outside the coucil walls. Recently the city demo'd a building built in the late 1800s to make way for a Hilton. The building was a historic building resistered and all. The catch to this Hilton plan is that the city has not finalized plans for the hotel. They demo'd a historic building for a hotel that isnt final yet. That is the manager's job. Another recent even is the new plan for Norfolk's Light rail. The line is supposed to run straight through the Kirn Memorial Library. First the library wouldnt need to be replaced if the city paid for upkeep in the first place. It is a great beautiful building and nothing that replaces it will match it. Second, the city wants to tear it down ASAP. They dont have a plac to store its content, though. All the irreplacable historic stuff in the local history room has not safe place. All the books. They talk about demo before they talk about where the stuff goes. Everything needs to be worked in order. This is all the managers job. The city is wasting money left and right and it all falls on her. Most people overlook her and she is appointed by the council, but she needs to be replaced.

1) The Ikon building was not a national registered historical building. It's a part of downtown Norfolk's historic district, which as a whole is registered as a national historic site. Not the building itself.

2) The city's plans were finalized, RLJ is now backing out of the deal. The city owns the land and building, demolished to build a convention center and hotel, not only the hotel.

3) The city manager does not create, ordain, or reject budgets or appropriations for upkeep of civic buildings.

4) Simply because an announcement or press release hasn't been offered does not mean the city of Norfolk doesn't have their ducks in a row.

5) The city HAS to tear it down 'ASAP' to fit in with construction plans for the light rail line. This is not an example of trigger happy demolition, it's progress. Disagreeing with the demolition of specific buildings is an opinion, as is beauty of current or potential future buildings.

Quite obviously, i disagree with the statement. Regina Williams has done a phenomenal job in her position since 1999 (i would argue 8 years is hardly 'forever') in pushing and strengthening the revitalization of downtown Norfolk. While she didn't have a hand in key projects (MacArthur, NorVa) she's assisted in St Paul's Place, the Rotunda, Granby Tower, Dominion Enterprises, 150 Main, Harbor Heights, St Paul's Quandrant redesign, Residence Inn, Bristol at Ghent, 201 21st St, etc, etc, etc. Not to mention her work in Ward's Corner, Little Creek Rd (new Wal-Mart) WIlloughby and Ocean View. But to try throwing her out on a rail because RLJ business practices are laughable, or because Kirn Memorial Library stands in the way of a federally financed and approved (pending) project is ludicrious. While we might not agree with any developer glad handing and receiving compensation and benefits from city council, the idea of a new city manager, or even the implication that the current city manager is 'slipping' goes against the mountain of progress we've seen in Norfolk in the last 8 years.

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Padman Hamlet

Padman

Posted
Posted

People are starting to complain about the fact that things are not being "managed" as well as they might be, so the city manager becomes an obvious target. I have heard very good things about Regina, but that she needs help because there's just too much on her plate. She needs a strong assistant whom she can trust. No one is good at everything and managing all of the major capital projects at once might not be her forte. I say keep her for what she can do well and get her the help and staffing that she needs. If she doesn't delegate, then that's another matter entirely.

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  • 2 weeks later...
NorfolkGal Unincorporated Area

NorfolkGal

Posted
Posted

It is admirable that she is so determined to keep working, but there is a place and time for everything.

Her husband should come before her job. I think a leave of absence would be appropriate.

I agree...this is not a position that can be run from a hotel room. I don't want to sound insensitive, because I feel for her difficult situation, but I doubt she can keep her mind on things while her husband is so sick.

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Chesapeake Pirate Hamlet

Chesapeake Pirate

Posted
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Lot's of people have personal issues that affect their work. The need and responsibility to care for a loved one is certainly one of the most consuming. That being said, I trust in the city to know how to effectively manage day to day operations under these circumstances, in spite of the commentary that thought will likely inspire. And for those concerned about Mrs. Williams husband and her ability to care for him and manage Norfolk city governement operations from a hotel room in Baltimore, The Virginian-Pilot reports today that Mr. Williams has progressed and been transferred to Lake Taylor Hospital. He is expected to be treated there for a couple of months before being well enough to go home.

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NorfolkGal Unincorporated Area

NorfolkGal

Posted
Posted

Lot's of people have personal issues that affect their work. The need and responsibility to care for a loved one is certainly one of the most consuming. That being said, I trust in the city to know how to effectively manage day to day operations under these circumstances, in spite of the commentary that thought will likely inspire. And for those concerned about Mrs. Williams husband and her ability to care for him and manage Norfolk city governement operations from a hotel room in Baltimore, The Virginian-Pilot reports today that Mr. Williams has progressed and been transferred to Lake Taylor Hospital. He is expected to be treated there for a couple of months before being well enough to go home.

Wow - I didn't read that one today. That's good to know.

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  • 11 months later...
lil-bear Burg

lil-bear

Posted
Posted

Didn't an overwhelming percentage of Norfolk voters say yea in the referendum? Like 74%?

I think the "confusion" arguement is crap!

When I voted, I knew that by voting yes that we will get to elect our mayor instead of the mayor being chosen by the counsel.

Since the mayor had already been sitting on the counsel, how could a voter be "confused" that the elected mayor would still be on counsel?

<_<

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Case Unincorporated Area

Case

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Posted

This article misses a crucial historic fact. The mayor "at large" system, in which the mayor was not directly elected, was instituted to dilute black voting power and to prevent a black mayor. Therefore, I find it hard to construct an argument that the previous "at large" system should have been maintained to in fact protect black voting strength. The reduction in black council votes will likely (hopefully) be counter balanced by the intense pressure of a city wide mayoral election, but this question could be answered by simply removing the mayors vote from city council.

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  • 2 years later...

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