1993-05-03 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mr. Toscano questioned what the implications would be for traffic if the site identified for possible future parking were developed and stated that he felt it was important to find ways to keep the traffic out of the adjacent neighborhood. Ms. Slaughter noted that the impact of the additional parking which will be available in the garage on Water Street is unknown at this time and may relieve some of the parking demand in the area. Mr. Vandever raised the issue of including residential units in the building and Ms. Bonnie Smith, Chair of CIDA, stated that in her professional role as a banker she did not think demand existed for condominiums downtown and therefore felt it was hard to justify making residential units a requirement, especially since financing may not be available for this purpose at the present time. Mr. Toscano stated that he felt Council needed to look at the demand five or ten years in the future as well as at the present time. Responding to a question from Ms. Slaughter, Mr. Rotgin stated that the design submitted for the building had been merely conceptual and Mr. Bob Gray, of Shank and Gray Architects, a partner in the R.E. Lee/Great Eastern Management Group, added that he felt the building should be modest in scale, with efforts made to limits monumentality and increase the amount of glass. Referring to the recommendation for an ongoing committee for the project, Ms. Slaughter suggested that feedback be requested on the process used by the Michie Design Committee to see what was successful and unsuccessful about the process. Support was expressed for including a design committee as part of the option. Th~ meeting ~res~deKt was adjourned. COUNCIL CHAMBER - May 3, 1993 Council met in regular session on this date with the following members present: Ms. Daugherty, Rev. Edwards, Ms. Slaughter, Mr. Toscano. Absent: Mr. Vandever. Ms. Slaughter announced that Mr. Vandever was out of town and unable to attend the meeting. PUBLIC Ms. Virginia DeCker, President of the League of Women Voters, commended the Council and staff for providing opportunities for public input on the FY 93-94 budget and suggested that Council publish in the local media a summary of comments and suggestions from the public with appropriate responses from Council. Ms. Decker stated that the League felt this would be important in order to distinguish between misinformation, ideas that are current practices, and new ideas that might be worth investigating. Ms. Decker also presented Council with a study and recommendations by the League regarding City and Albemarle boards and commissions.