Laserfiche WebLink
3 <br />and costs the state millions of dollars for prosecution and incarceration enforcing <br />prohibition. He passed signatures to the mayor supporting a referendum on the issue. <br /> <br /> Mr. Jim Rounseueu , 1113 Monticello Rd., said he has been involved in numerous <br />meetings regarding the Belmont B ridge competition and is here to support pursuing the <br />grant. There i s little risk to the City, and it i s imperative that we do this correctly . <br />Proceeding with the contr act the City has for the bridge is pulling the trigger too quickly. <br />A study will leave a better lasting legacy. <br /> <br /> Mr. Brevy Cannon, 710 Ridge St., said taking design competition ideas to the <br />next step of fleshed out designs that can be implemented is the real gap. He asked <br />Council to support the grant application. The deadline is March 1 st , and this is a n annual <br />grant. There is no downside. <br /> <br /> <br />COUNCIL RESPONSES TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC <br /> <br /> Ms. Szakos asked staff to advise Council as to what i s possible for Mr. Finazzo’s <br />request. She said to Dr. Chowdhry , the Human Rights C ommission is intended to <br />address many types of discrimination, not just one race. She said t o Ms. Donahue, <br />Council has discovered that it i s actually illegal in Virginia for cities to use non -lethal <br />contraceptives. She asked if the human e society could tackle that issue state -wide. She <br />said she has some sympathy for the issue of decriminalizing marijuana, and agrees that <br />the health issues are not as severe. The s ame Dillon rule that keeps the City from using <br />birth control on deer will keep us from adopting a local ordinance on marijuana, but she <br />wants to research the possibilities. She requested add ing the bridge discussion to Other <br />Business. <br /> <br /> Ms. Galvin thanked everyone for speaki ng and seconded Ms. Szakos ’ request <br />regarding Mr. Fina zzo. She also than ked Dr. Chow d h ry for his comments. She said the <br />first step for the war on drugs is to re consider the severity of sentencing. It is not <br />necessary now, and it has backfired. It i s mor e of an addiction problem and should be <br />treated as such. She said she is i nterested in examining what we as a locality can do to <br />support state level initiatives to revisit our sentencing. She was excited by how many <br />people have emerged in support of urba n design in the bridge project . There is a lot going <br />on at the same time, between a s chool comp etition , a public comp etition , and now a <br />grant. Council should tease this out in more detail for the public later on. We are as a <br />City very committed to that g ateway and the area near several of our public housing sites , <br />which are in walking distance. <br /> <br /> Ms. Smith said she would like to know our options for the decriminalization of <br />marijuana , which is a v itally important issue, given how much it i s destroying liv es by <br />sending people to jail. She said she w ould like to know more about the Belmont Bridge <br />grant and agreed that it should be discussed further during Other Business . She t hanked <br />members of the community who have supported the process. <br />