Continued Budget Work

This past Monday, City Council continued its work of finding ways to reduce expenditures in the required effort to balance the City's FY2010 budget. As everyone knows, we are experiencing a severe economic contraction that is affecting government, businesses and non-profits, as well as families trying to make ends meet. Tough decisions have to be made, ones that are not fun but required.

As one member of City Council, and as I look through the line items that as a whole make up the entirety of the budget, it is important to me that as we reduce services and eliminate programs, we make an effort to do as little harm to as few people as possible. But there is no doubt, and I fully recognize and understand this, that any reductions or eliminations will negatively impact some citizens. We all wish that the economy was robust and expanding, but as we face the reality of the seriousness of the situation, there is no escaping the fact that we are significantly short in our revenue. Additionally, I believe that it is imperative and responsible for the City to do anything and everything we can to provide the school system additional funds to continue progress that is being made to improve our schools and to avoid unnecessary teacher layoffs.

I hope that anyone with suggestions or other input will contact me via this blog, my email or cell phone. I welcome it. Tough decisions will be made, and there will be unpopular reductions or cuts. These are unavoidable.

But now is the time for City Council to step up, make the tough decisions that have to be made, and show that in times of crisis, leaders can and will step forward and work to carry the City forward. I will do my best to be a part of the team that must work to help continue much of the progress we have made.

The 17th House District

This past Saturday, Del. William Fralin announced that he will not be a candidate for re-election to the Virginia House of Delegates this upcoming election. And as one might expect, jockeying for position began in earnest almost immediately. There are a lot of good folks out there who are considering runs for this seat, including many of my fellow Democratic colleagues.

I continue to be asked about my interest in running for Del. Fralin's seat, so I thought it appropriate to post on my blog to be clear in response to the inquiries: I will not be a candidate for the nomination of my party for the 17th House district.

I am flattered by the encouragement that I have received. It's humbling to have people suggest that I could do a good job representing the 17th in Richmond, but now is simply not the right time for me personally or professionally.

First, Brooke and I, within the next three weeks, are expecting our first child. I want to be around as much as possible to experience and get used to fatherhood and the many wonderful things it will bring to my life. And I want to continue to spend as much time with my wife as she will allow! Undertaking what will certainly be a challenging campaign is something I am not willing to take time to do right now.

The second reason I will not be a candidate is because I feel a responsibility to the citizens that elected me to Roanoke City Council to help as we work through what can be described as nothing less than a fiscal crisis. We are in the midst of trying to figure out how to balance the City's budget while avoiding harm to our schools and other major services. Personally, and I only apply this to me, I am not ready to turn from this task and believe that I have a responsibility to continue working hard on the many issues affecting our citizens. We have a bright future ahead of us, and again, the time necessary on the campaign trail is more than I am willing to commit at this time and in the midst of preparing the City's FY2010 budget.

I certainly wish whomever decides to enter the race the very best of luck and will look forward to hearing issues that affect our City and region discussed during this campaign season.

Support Local Businesses and Jobs

Today, Vice-Mayor Sherman Lea and I introduced the resolution that follows. The purpose of this resolution isto encourage residents and employees of the City of Roanoke and Roanoke Valley, during these troubled economic times, to support local businesses as much as possible. By supporting local businesses, we not only have the opportunity to create new jobs but, particularly in our current recession, we can retain existing jobs.

IN THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ROANOKE, VIRGINIA

The 2nd day of March, 2009.

A RESOLUTION encouraging the residents and employees of the City of Roanoke, Virginia, when purchasing goods or services, to take into account the importance of using city or regional businesses whenever possible.

WHEREAS, the residents and employees of the City of Roanoke, in the course of daily life, purchase necessary and essential goods and services from outside businesses and vendors.
WHEREAS, contracting with local businesses will demonstrate confidence in the strengths and capabilities of the region’s business infrastructure and send a positive message to companies that will locate and grow here.

WHEREAS, many existing businesses located in the City of Roanoke and Roanoke Valley have unique capabilities, are award-winning and recognized leaders in their fields.

WHEREAS, the local purchase of goods and services is a great investment for the community because more money stays with local businesses and in the local economy.

WHEREAS, using local businesses and vendors to provide for the needs of the residents and employees of the City of Roanoke will help to create new jobs, retain existing jobs, and strengthen the local economy.

WHEREAS, people are more likely to invest in or move to the community if we preserve the culture embodied in our unique local businesses.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Roanoke that:

Council adopts this resolution as a means to encourage residents and employees of the City of Roanoke and the Roanoke Valley to seek goods and services from local businesses that provide jobs to city and regional residents, whenever possible.

The City Clerk is directed to forward an attested copy of this resolution in electronic form to all City employees.

ATTEST:


City Clerk

Commentary from Roanoke Times

The following is Commentary that appeared in today's Roanoke Times:

Roanoke City Public Schools are a reflection on our city and a fair measure of our priorities. I consider the perceived lack of quality in our schools to be one of the greatest hindrances to economic development in the city. I use the word "perceived" because I am convinced that we have good schools and teachers and they are getting better. Progress is being made to improve the quality of Roanoke's schools (Community College Access Program, New Honors Program in middle schools, and many others), but we can't ignore that our schools are ranked near the bottom among our peers in the commonwealth. To make matters worse, this year we face an unprecedented financial shortfall that could seriously impact our progress in the school system.

As elected officials, government administrators, business leaders and community residents, our priorities for the city should include creating an environment that encourages entrepreneurship and produces good jobs. Obtaining these goals requires a high-quality education system. While we can provide the very best services to our adult residents, enjoy wonderful capital amenities and a high quality of recreational life, there will always be a ceiling on how strong we can be as a community if we find it acceptable to have barely 51 percent of our students graduate from high school on time. This will be what we are known for and will have a direct and negative financial impact on the city for generations to come.

This is going to be a tough year financially for everyone and, with an expected $15 million budget shortfall, our schools will not be exempt. As with any enterprise that runs on a budget, the Roanoke school board and city council have tough decisions to make. These decisions pale in comparison, however, to the thought of having to halt, and maybe reverse, the progress we have made in improving the quality of our city schools. The troubled economy and loss of 10 percent of the resources that go to our schools could result in school closures and classroom size expansion, which means children may find themselves getting less attention and instruction than needed. I worry about the devastating effect this may have on our most vulnerable students and their families.

During times of shrinking budgets, we are forced to take a hard look at our expenditures. A byproduct of this examination is that we will have an opportunity to identify areas of unnecessary spending, such as programs that are underused or outdated, and generally make government function more efficiently for citizens. And certainly, like other areas of government, our schools will and must find some areas to reduce expenses. But a $15 million budget shortfall cannot be recovered by cuts to superfluous spending; rather, this shortage will require tremendous gouges to our system -- cuts that are far deeper than our students should have to endure.

A top-quality education is the one, common way for people to improve their lives, positively change their circumstances and continue to push forward the limits of innovation and accomplishment. With the many challenges we face throughout our community, this is the gift we can give to Roanoke's children, all of whom deserve a chance and all of whom need an education for the success of their individual and our collective futures.

Unfortunately, perception and politics are a part of the reality we face. But the future of our schools, the quality of education afforded our children and our priorities must transcend perception and politics. These are our schools. Their success will determine the long-term economic future of our city, which includes the jobs that we have for our residents. These issues affect children from all socio-economic households, regardless of whether these effects are immediate or arise in the future. If we are not willing to stand up for our schools, then it is my belief that we are misguided in where our priorities should be.

This is about leadership and whether Roanoke City Council is willing to do whatever necessary to support the city schools and the tough decisions they face. We should be ready to roll up our sleeves, get down in the trenches and work alongside the school board to try to figure out a way, as hard and painful as it will be, to protect our schools as much as possible. It is not any student's fault that we are in troubled economic times and financial hardship. It is not their fault that state revenues are down. It would sadden me deeply if we are not willing to try our best to make the coming school years as stable and smooth as possible.

Community Input Budget Meetings

Many thanks to City staff for their hard work in scheduling two community input budget meetings to be held at the beginning of March. These meetings will offer residents the chance to learn how the budget process works, where scarce resources may or may not be allocated and other information that contributes to the very tough decisions that will have to be made during the current budgetary crisis.

The second purpose of these two community meetings, and the main reason I think these meetings are so important, is that while each department within city government is being asked to label programs high priority, medium priority and low priority, taxpaying citizens ought to have the opportunity to tell City staff their priorities in this tough fiscal time. We need to make sure that we acknowledge that sometimes staff might consider something low priority while citizens consider that very same thing a high priority. Open communication and a transparent process are vital .

The two community meetings will be held on:

Tuesday, March 3
Virginia Western Community College
6:30PM

Thursday, March 12
Roanoke Civic Center
6:30PM

I strongly encourage all those interested in providing input and understanding budgetary requirements, and those leaders throughout our neighborhoods, to come to one or both of the community meetings.

Hope to see you there!

Who should City Council Appoint?

City Council must appoint someone to fill out the remainder of the term for the seat being vacated by Alvin Nash. I would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions... any feedback, positive or negative, is welcome and appreciated.

Who should serve until July 2010??

Resignation of Alvin Nash

As has been widely reported, Alvin Nash has announced his resignation from Roanoke City Council. In my mind, Mr. Nash made the right decision for himself and for the City. We face an unprecedented fiscal crisis in Roanoke (as at every level of government) and need to have all members focused on the budget, the impact it will have on our schools and City services, and fully prepared for the difficult decisions ahead.

Fifteen years ago, Mr. Nash founded Blue Ridge Housing Development Corporation, and it holds a special place in his heart. As Blue Ridge struggles, Mr. Nash made the decision to return to his employment there and to work to try to save the troubled organization. Additionally, there has been lots of attention focused on the HUD repayment matter, and it had become a distraction to Alvin and his ability to focus on City Council decisions.

I wish Alvin the very best in his return to Blue Ridge and respect his decision.