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140 infrastructure. She said it would be helpful to have an evaluation to really see where our areas of greatest need are and direct resources to those. Mr. Caravati also thanked the Committee and Mr. Lynch. He said he does not see too much in the action section regarding the no poverty vision. He said we should take a more in-depth look at what poverty is and how to address it (i.e. single mothers). He said we should take a more strategic approach. Referring to the statement about high quality mixed use developments, he said some economic development might not be compatible in neighborhoods. Regarding the urban forestry program, he said we should take a more global look at forestry first. He said he is a fan of economic development issues and having the flexibility to have money to invest in opportunities that pay us. He said we may want to think about voluntary annexation to achieve what we need. Mr. Schilling said his concerns were covered by other Councilors. Dr. Brown said that the public has commented about their concern about the pace and scale of development, and we should make sure we help residents participate in the process. Ms. Hamilton said she heard interest expressed by the public for consolidation at a candidates forum, but noted that school consolidation is not on the list. Mr. Lynch said he appreciates the comments made, and noted that the Strategic Plan is a work in progress. He said we should try to have a goal of cutting poverty in half or eliminating generational poverty rather than saying no poverty. He said he is hesitant to say explore reversion because the City is in a much better position financially than we were when it was previously explored. He said the issue of how to present it to the County is key. He said that consolidation of the police departments might work best for employees. REPORT : SOCIAL SERVICES ADVISORY BOARD ANNUAL REPORT Ms. Cindy Fredrick, Chair of the Social Services Advisory Board, presented the Board’s Annual Report. Ms. Fredrick said that areas of notable progress include a decline in foster care caseloads, more positive outcomes for foster care prevention, and the VIEW Program of Welfare-to-Work. She said challenges facing the Department include: continue support for the foster care prevention team to reduce the necessity for and cost of placing children in foster care; support an adequate staffing level to meet all program mandates and provide adequate quality services to citizens; provide adequate office space to accommodate staff and client’s needs for confidential communication; and continue funding for the local match for the General Relief and Free Day care programs. Ms. Fredrick said that the number of refugee families has increased from eleven to 52 in the first half of this year. Ms. Fredrick said the City is lucky to have a talented leader and staff in Social Services. Referring to the decline in foster care, Mr. Schilling asked if this is a trend with other localities or is specific to Charlottesville. Mr. Robert Cox, Director of Social Services, said there is no statewide trend of decline, and most growing communities are seeing an increase. Mr. Lynch noted that we were higher than most localities regarding foster care caseloads. Responding to a question from Dr. Brown, Mr. Cox said that in some ways the Welfare-to-Work program has been pretty successful and has been funded well by the State. He said Congress has reauthorized the same legislation but has made changes which increased the work requirements and reduced exemptions. He said the State anticipates up to 30% more cost with no new resources with the possible exception of child care services.