1998-07-06 - Laserfiche WebLink

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237 Ms, Barbara Rich, Madison Avenue, expressed concern with remarks reportedly made by Ms. Richards as mentioned by Mr. King. Ms. Rich said that Ms. Richards called her from her vacation to explain her comments, but Ms. Rich said she remains troubled by them. Mr. Eugene Williams, Ridge Street, said that a very sensitive issue is being discussed. Mr. Williams said that the implication of Ms. Daugherty's comments about the Housing Authority ranking is that getting federal dollars is more important than people's welfare. Mr. Williams said that race relations should be the number one agenda item for this administration. Ms. Leah Puryear, Kerry Lane, said that the democratic party courts the African-American vote, but then does not represent them. Ms. Puryear said she and the greater African-American community feel personally affronted by Ms. Richards' statement. Ms. Karen Waters, 499 Seymour Road, asked people in the audience to stand in support of the statement read by Mr. King, and a large number stood. Ms. Waters asked what Council is going to do about the matter. Mr. Waldo Jaquith, 100 South Street West, said that he has approached the Library about the lack of a copy of Alice in Wonderland in the Library, but they still do not have a copy. Mr. Kevin Lynch, 609 Locust Avenue, expressed support for appointing Maurice Cox to the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). Mr. Lynch said that transportation is an important issue for the City and regional transportation needs are putting a strain on City neighborhoods. Mr. Lynch said that Mr. Cox is the only Council Member willing to challenge the status quo, and Mr. Cox has always pushed Council to be more open in its decision making. Ms. Mary MacNeil, 710 Ridge Street, said that she feels that the issues that have been addressed at the meeting are good reasons why people don't vote. Ms. MacNeil said that the largest vote getter in Council elections is not getting recognized which she feels displays an arrogance of power. Ms. MacNeil said she feels the democratic party needs to do something to change the situation. Ms. MacNeiI supported Mr. Cox's appointment to the MPO. As there were no further spealcers, the public heating was dosed. Ms. Daugherty said that Ms. Richards' statement has been reported out of context, and she read the full statement that was made by Ms. Richards. "Charlottesville has a weak mayor form of government~ It's the city manager, not the mayor, who runs the city. We don't have a professional or long-term mayor because it's largely a symbolic role. It's someone who comes from the community, who looks like the community, and in that way, different groups are represented. The city has accepted the rotating mayorship because in that way the mayor takes on different personalities at different times and that is the way it should be." At the August 3, 1998 Council meeting, the minutes of this meeting were amended, at the request of Ms. Richards, to include the following statement: Charlottesville [~ice l~,[ayor Meredith Richards' comments from a televised interview last, Wednesday were quoted incompletely and inaccurately in a news story Tuesday. According to a transcript from WVIR-TV, Richards said: "I think there has been some discussion in the community about the process of choosing a mayor and the vice mayor. It's a process that the community has opted for in preference to an elected mayor, which implies that we have a strong mayor form of government, which we do not. ",4 mayor's position is largely ceremonial. The mayor sets the agenda for each meeting and conducts the meeting, but the mayor doesn't run the city, the city manager runs the city. And so it is a symbolic role, it's someone who comes from the community, who looks like the community, and because we rotate every year it gives many different personalities to the mayorship ... and I think that is actually a plus."