And please remain standing for the Pledge of Allegiance to our flag. I pledge allegiance. To the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you sir. Thank you. Back to you. Please, Mr. Clarke, please call the roll. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Here. Mrs. Johnson. Here, Mr. McGee. Here. Mr. page here. Mr. Nagel here. Mr. Thomas here. Doctor Alexander. Here. The motion is to dispense with the reading of the minutes of our previous meeting, Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi, Mrs. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi, Mr. Page. Hi, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr.. Thomas. Doctor. Alexander. Hi. Mr. Clark, please read the resolution certifying the closed meeting. Of a resolution certifying a closed meeting of the Council of the City of Norfolk in accordance with the provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. Adopt the resolution, Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi, Mrs. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi, Mr. Page. Hi, Mr. Siegel. Hi, Mr. Thomas. Hi, doctor. Alexander. Hi. Good evening, and welcome to the Norfolk City Council meeting. Tonight we will begin with public comments on consent and regular agenda items, followed by an invitation to bid then public hearings following public hearings. We will take up regular agenda items. The consent agenda, which will be voted on in a block. Then new business to address the council. You should have registered to speak with the clerk prior to 3 p.m.. When your name is called, please come to the podium. State your name, your home address and please limit your comments to three minutes. Before we begin, Mr. Clerk, will you please read the rules governing tonight's meeting? Certainly. City Council rules permit each speaker three minutes in total to speak on any and or all consent and agenda docket items at each monthly meeting. If in advance of tonight's meeting, you've registered with the clerk to comment on a public hearing matter, you will have three minutes as an opportunity to also comment on that matter As you approach the council, you'll notice a timer on the lectern. At the beginning of your three minutes. The green light will activate. 2.5 minutes into your remarks, you'll notice a yellow light indicating if 30s to finish your comments at the end of three minutes, you'll see a red light and hear a beep. We ask that you conclude your comments at that time. While speakers have an opportunity to address council on docket matters. All comments should be made in a manner that respects the seriousness of the forum and should not be made in a profane, disrupted, sarcastic or demeaning fashion. All remarks shall be directed to the City Council as a body, rather than to any particular member of city council staff or the audience. Comments on an agenda item should be germane to that item. A speaker who fails to comply with the basic rules of decorum will be deemed out of order and not allowed to conclude his or her comments. And as a reminder, no sign. placard, poster or like material which may be carried by hand. Shall be permitted in the city council chamber or adjoining areas. Thank you, Mr. Clerk. The first person to speak is Monet Johnson on C3 and R 14. Welcome. And she will be followed by Barret Hicks. So what am I speaking on? Yes, this is on C3 and R 14 that you signed up to speak. Okay. So for C3 one I hope you're all okay and so are all of your families and that this is just a protective measure. However, reading this made me feel the need to emphasize that everyone is deserving of accessible and effective city Council meetings, not just the members of Council, making it easier for you all to participate remotely. While the opportunity to speak on new business has been cut down to once a month, and the amount of time people can speak on their issues is getting more and more restrictive. It feels a bit out of touch, and I understand that you all have to make these meetings and that they can be time consuming, but they're even more so for the people who have to take off work, acquire childcare, transportation and work past their own accessibility concerns to be here. I'm not saying that this step towards accessibility is a bad thing. I'm saying that the citizens are just as deserving of having ample time, opportunities, and means of having their voices heard and considered in these meetings as the people they elect to do so, and that nobody likes feeling silenced for hour 14. While the city is willing to make changes to the charter and other aspects, they seem hesitant to make changes that would give them more decision making power when it comes to housing affordability. And while preserve local control of land use decisions, including promoting affordable, inclusive and mixed income housing with supporting infrastructure for infill and redevelopment. Sounds great. Preserve and increase, not synonyms. And with the current state of affairs, citizens need local officials who have the power to protect them now more than ever. The state should be accountable to the way that they tie localities hands behind their backs, and seldom have to face frustrated Constituents and localities should not be able to cite the Dillon rule when their constituents need help the most. Additionally, I'm very interested to see when the priority of restorative justice practices will make its way to the agenda. Considering the advocacy for local governments to establish a local excise tax on the sale of vaping products, and the eventual sale of cannabis products, and the current funding priorities of the police and sheriff's departments. Increased camera surveillance and the elephant of the room that is the lack of citizens review board, because you alls relationship with the citizens that will be and have been the most penalized, oppressed and surveilled may very well need some restoration if they aren't considered moving forward. In summary, please take the opportunity to tell the Commonwealth that you need power to do the necessary things that are just and equitable for your citizens, and then please do what's just and equitable for your citizens. Thank you. Thank you. Barrett. Hicks. Barrett. Hicks. Tiara. Lassiter. Tierra. Lassiter. Veronica montoya. Good evening. Good evening. So my name is Veronica montoya. Um, I live in 1008 Hillside Avenue in Norfolk, Virginia. So I'm just here tonight because, um, I do respect last year's decision that it wasn't approved for my conditional permit for the car wash. One of the things was, uh, landscaping, which I wasn't really understanding what it was. So, uh, we have tried to keep the place as clean as possible, but I'm just asking you to be a little considerate, because, um, I'm right. Of Little Creek and Chesapeake. That's always busy. It's a really busy road. You may know already. So some things are just beyond our control. Although we try to keep it as clean as possible. There's a lot of people there just throwing trash before we got the place. Actually, it was a place for people to live there, honestly. So we cleaned it up. We tried to keep it up and, um, I believe that's all I really wanted to say. Just to be a little considerate. I'm not trying to disrespect or nothing. I just want to, you know, um, say that, and that's all. Our whole page. But I'm just going to say that. And, um, I just want to thank you, and that's it. All right, Mr. Smigel, please don't move. Yeah. Veronica. Mr. Smigel has a beer. Oh, sorry. Do you own the whole gas station? Actually, no, I do not. The problem isn't with the part where you want to do the carwash. The part is the problem of the owner of the whole property, and they're not cutting the grass. So in front of the sign on. And this is the same one on Military Highway, the same issue. This is why we asked for delay. Is the owner of the property is not maintaining the property at all? The landscaping, the cutting, the grass. So if you go by there anytime in the summertime, the grass is a foot or taller. And so we're asking for the property owner and it does impact you wanting to open up to basically give us a promise that they're going to maintain the landscaping. So they're yeah, that's why it was delayed. Okay. So you're not technically responsible for that. We are. But if that if it takes us doing it, we don't mind doing it at all. So we but we need the property. I don't know if the property owner has been engaged or engaged us after it was delayed, but maybe that's something that we can connect with and point that out for them, to show them that that's what we're asking for with it. And we did some send someone to clean up leaves and we fix the gate. We try to, like I said, we try to keep it up. But we didn't cut much of the yard in the front because we weren't really aware. And I was gonna say that we only sublet one part of it, but if it impacts the whole thing, then we don't mind doing it at all. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Lassiter. Tierra Lassiter, I see you have arrived. Called you early, but we're glad you made it. Our 14. Right? Yes. Our 14. Hey, how y'all doing? So good evening. Council. Um, preserve local control of land use decisions, including promoting affordable, inclusive and mixed income housing with supporting infrastructure for infill and redevelopment. While the city is willing to make changes to the charter and other aspects, they seem hesitant to make a change that will give them more decision making power. When it comes to housing affordability, preserve and increase are not synonyms. And with the current state of affairs, citizens need local officials who have the power to protect them now more than ever, especially regarding these rent evictions. So the state should be accountable for the way that they tie localities hands behind their backs and seldom have to face frustrated constituents. I know y'all know, that these rental evictions have been going on in several different apartment complexes around Norfolk, Virginia. Every day we are losing more and more of our affordability, so it would be great if the city could actually do more on our behalf to stop these rental evictions, because y'all know the minimum wage has not increased as of yet, so we don't really have the physical money to be able to afford the better housing at this time. But we have developers or outside owners who have come and brought out certain apartment buildings, and they do these extensive renovations that leave us unable to be able to afford housing. Once renovations are done, and without the increase of minimum wage, the affordability is just not feasible. The everyday working citizen just literally cannot afford to live in Norfolk at this current time. So, um, if you make changes to the charter, I hope that that would be on your list. Thank you. Thank you. Hayden Johnson will speak if there are questions. Aiden Johnson is here just to answer questions. Would you like to speak or just ask questions? Aiden Johnson. would you like to speak or just please come. Good evening. Mayor, vice mayor and council members. My name is Alden Johnson, and my home address is 2410 Corona Avenue. And I am requesting a conditional use permit for 2410 Corona Avenue. I'd like to share a bit of information about me and my family. I attended Norfolk Catholic High School, played football, and ran track. I am a former Air Force NCO and had approximately 25 people under my direction. After serving honorably in the Air Force, I worked at State Farm Insurance for 35 years. While there, I was promoted to Automation and Procedure Specialist with responsibility for natural disaster operations. I manage the setup of buildings which, depending on the size of the operation, were often the size of a Sam's Club. I coordinated the setup of communications and computer systems, supplies and logistics to support operations of up to 170 or more people. My responsibilities also included project management, technical training and support staff supervision. My family has had a presence in the Broad Park, Lindenwood and Cottage Heights communities for nearly 100 years. My grandparents home in 2014 were among the first homes built in the area. My mother, Odessa Johnson, taught at Lindenwood Elementary. My parents were active in the Civic League. They helped petition for sidewalks in the area. My grandparents and uncle, who served honorably in the Marines, are buried less than half a mile away in Calvary Cemetery. We are part of the area's rich history. The late tennis great Arthur Ashe once played at Berard Park. My uncle, Doctor Robert Johnson, was his first tennis coach. When Doctor King gave his I have a dream speech. My parents allowed some of the travelers going to hear him speak to stay at our home. One reason for requesting the conditional use permit is to honor this legacy of giving refuge to travelers. I spend a significant amount of time in Norfolk. Two of my doctors are in this area. I have lifelong friends in this area. My parents are buried here. Most of my family lives on the East Coast. When the streetlights were not working, I contacted Dominion Energy. When dogs roamed the neighborhood and roosters crowed at 4 a.m., seven days a week when old asphalt was removed, causing clouds of dirt covering the windows of cars, which caused reduced visibility and possible respiratory problems for children and elderly residents. I initiated service requests when I noticed a trash fire with flames and thick smoke. I called the fire department. I have significantly more concern for our neighbors than anyone who has spoken against this project, and demonstrated I am an engaged stakeholder. There will be times when the hosting schedule is blocked for weeks because I will be staying there. I do not want constant occupancy and we have a plan in place for betting guests. Our target demographic will be traveling professionals, nurses, doctors, business people, professors and folks welcoming their loved ones back from military deployments. At this time, if you have any questions or concerns, I'd like to take the opportunity to answer them. Thank you for coming. Very welcome. Keenan. Baskerville. Keenan will be followed by Jasmine. Hello, everyone. How are you all doing today? I am Keenan Baskerville I love Norfolk. In downtown East. I believe one of the last times that I was here, I mentioned how we could utilize our ledger, our legislative requests to help protect citizens from predatory practices like rent evictions in Norfolk. Y'all know that most recently, Pelham Place residents have become victims to this very same practice. The new buyer is utilizing loopholes and historic designation to justify terminating leases in the name of renovations and preservation, just to jack up the prices and make it harder for these residents to come back. So my question for you all is why isn't there any mention of legislation or a request to provide additional projections to renters? You made it very clear last time that your hands were currently tied. Uh, but now it seems that you all are choosing to keep them tied. Why is that? Pelham Place is not the only spot in Norfolk with dealing with rent evictions. You have Talbot Park and you have a. I didn't bring my extra notes with the additional place, but rent evictions are something that is not new to Norfolk. So for those reasons, I request that you make an adjustment to create an additional in addition to your 2026 legislative request to include additional protections for renters, specifically those who may be dealing with rent evictions throughout the city. Thank you, thank you. Jasmine. Buyers followed by carpooling. Jasmine, followed by carpool. Good evening. I'm Jasmin Byers. Um, so when we talk about our 14 and the future of Norfolk under the 2050 plan, what stands out to me is not just what the plan says, but what power the city actually has to carry it out. One of the core ideas in our 14 is that Norfolk wants to maintain control over its land use decisions, and guide development in a way that supports mixed income, accessible and accessible housing. That intention matters, but intentions don't always match the reality our residents live in. Right now, the city doesn't have the level of authority. It truly needs to respond to the housing crisis in a meaningful way. And while some parts of our charter are open to modification, the section that could strengthen the city's role in housing affordability seems to be treated differently. That leaves a gap between the city, between what the city wants to promote and what can actually enforce. From my work in the community, I see residents every day who are struggling under policy shaped by decisions made outside of Norfolk. The people who suffer the most are the ones who have the least control, yet they are the first to feel the consequences when the city can't intervene. That's why it's important today. To be honest. If Norfolk is going to plan for the next 25 years, then we need to talk about increasing the city's ability to act, not just maintaining the limited power it currently has, because maintaining the status quo won't protect families who are already at the edge. Growth without stronger tools won't fix the communities won't fix what the communities are facing right now. So as we adopt this plan, my act is simple. Let's make sure Norfolk is not just a city with good ideas on paper, but a city with the authority to turn those ideas into protection for the people who live here. Let's push the flexibility and the decision making power needed to address affordability, stabilize neighbors, and respond to the realities of residents who wake up every day. If we want a future that truly works for everyone, then the city needs the ability to make decisions that match the urgency of what our communities are going through. Anything less leaves people behind while the plan moves for it. Thank you, thank you. Carl Poole. City council address. Mr. Roberts, members of the council. Good evening. My name is Carl Poole and I live at 9424 Peachtree Street, Norfolk. I appreciate the opportunity to speak tonight about the city's 2026 legislative priorities, especially around education. Norfolk's priorities rightly include support for K-12 funding, school construction and student mental health and equity programs. These are critically important investments for our students and for our community. But there is an opportunity to make these priorities more specific and impactful at the state level. Students who face the highest barriers, those from low income families, English learners and students with disabilities still do not receive funding and support they need. These translate directly to crowded classrooms, insufficient support staff, outdated materials and limited access to mental health and learning resources. The city's legislative priorities could be strengthened by explicitly advocating for the state to one increase per student funding for students from high poverty families, to expand resources and instructional supports for English learners. Three. Restore and grow the funding for students with disabilities. Ensuring equitable access to high quality education and for include accountability and reporting measures to ensure new funding reaches the students who need it most. Right now, Norfolk's priorities call for increased school funding and construction. In general terms, these are essential, but without specifying support for high need students. The city risk missing an opportunity to advocate for those most at risk of falling behind. By making these priorities explicit. Norfolk can strengthen its voice in Richmond and ensure that every child, regardless of income, language and ability, has the resources to thrive. I urge the Council to clarify Norfolk's 2026 educational priorities to include targeted support for students facing the highest barriers. Doing so will make a tangible difference in the lives of our students and in the future of our community. Once again, thank thank you all for your attention and for your leadership in supporting Norfolk's children. Mr. bull. I b1. The next item is the receipt of bids pursuant to an invitation to bid and notice a public hearing scheduled this day pursuant to state law. Public notice having been inserted in the local press by the City Clerk to accept bids for a long term easement for a term of 40 years, and temporary construction easements for a term of six months over the City of Norfolk property, in conjunction with the construction, installation and maintenance of a communications duct bank, subject to certain terms and conditions. Thank you, Mr. Bull. How many bids have been received? We received one bid, sir. Please read the bid and market for identification. Of a bid from Verizon. And it said on behalf of Verizon LLC. Please accept this message as Verizon's formal bid in response to the invitation for bid referenced above, which is the invitation for bid of a temporary construction easement in the long term. Easement. Easement over City of Norfolk property located at 140 Park Avenue in the City of Norfolk, in conjunction with the construction, installation and maintenance of a communications data bank. Verizon stands ready, willing and able to perform, comply and abide in accordance with the terms and conditions of all requirements as set out and associated with this invitation for bid for temporary construction easement and long term easement over the City of Norfolk property. And I'll mark this as Verizon 12 five dated and received. Mr. Bull. Are there any additional bids offered? If there are no additional bids offered, I declare the bidding close. Is there any member of the public who wishes to be heard on this matter? If there is no member of the public who wishes to be heard on this matter, I declare the public hearing close. Is there a recommendation from city staff regarding the bid received from revising Virginia? Thank you. Mayor. Staff recommends that the bid by Verizon Virginia be reviewed by city staff, and a recommendation be made to City Council at your December 16th, 2025 meeting. Thank you. Is there a motion to continue this matter to the next meeting of the Norfolk City Council on December 16th, 2025, to receive the recommendation of the city staff and to consider the bid that has been received. I so. Move. I second the motion. Thank you. Is there a further discussion? If not, I will ask the clerk to call the roll. Motion is to continue this item to December 16th, 2025. Mr. Clanton. Mr. Clanton. All right. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi. Mrs. Johnson. Hi, Mr. McGee. Hi, Mr. Page. Hi, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr.. Thomas. Hi, doctor. Alexander. Hi, Mr.. Clark. pH one. Public. Yes. Mr.. Mr.. I don't know if you had people that wanted to speak about an immigration question. On new business and whether we wanted to address that now or wait until the end of the meeting. Mr. Bull. Thank you. I see Police Chief Talbot here as well. Mr. chief, please. And Mr. Pascoe and Mr. Roberts, if you want to make any comments on a false claim that was made against the Norfolk Police. And before we get into the agenda, Mr.. Talbot. Chief Talbot or Mr. Roberts or Mr.. Mayor, if you don't mind, I'll just make a brief statement. It was brought to city administration and the police department's attention sometime last week that a member of the armed forces, a naval sailor locally, had made a complaint to his command that he had suffered a traffic stop that he viewed as an illegal traffic stop in Norfolk by Norfolk police officer. He further made a complaint that as part of that traffic stop, um, Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel or Ice agent joined in that traffic stop, um it's hard to get identification from the sailor. Uh, he relayed this complaint to his his chain of command. Someone in that chain of command that identified himself as a chief, a non-commissioned officer in the Navy, then posted a lengthy video on social media describing the incident second hand. That video was then reposted by other people. Um, that when that was finally brought to my attention and the police chief's attention, we investigated it immediately and in consultation with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, NCIS, which is the law enforcement arm of the Navy. We have been told by naval law enforcement officials that the entire matter is fictitious. It was all made up. It was repeated, not knowing, perhaps, that it was made up. But we've been assured that none of what was stated or repeated or posted a video was true. We have fielded a number of calls complaints. I believe people have signed up to speak about it tonight. But as the exhaustive investigation has pointed out, the entire matter was falsified. So Chief Talbot can answer any more specific questions than that. Chief, welcome. Thank you so much. The city manager covered all the the pertinent details as far as the evolution of the story. As he said, it was complete fiction. Not only was it complete fiction, we knew prior to the investigation that it was extremely unlikely it would have been several policy violations. We don't function that way. It's inconsistent with our values. And in fact, we did, despite the fact that we didn't believe any of it. We checked to see where every single police officer was during the time that the incident claimed to have happened, which is no small feat in a department the size of virus there. There was not a police officer there, there was not a supervisor there. And we simply don't engage in the conduct that was alleged. I'm happy to answer any additional questions if if you have them. Thank you. Thank you and thank thank you. And all the men and women of Norfolk Police Department for all you do to keep us safe. Thank you sir. Mr. Fisher, would you like to add anything, sir. That the mayor had mentioned to me that he wanted to do this earlier? Because if people had signed up with a misunderstanding that there was something to redress, we didn't want to waste anybody's time and have them sitting here through a meeting. Of course. You're welcome. We're happy to see you. But, um, I believe that, um, if you had complaint, then it is not based in any fact. So we would not be offended if you left. But you, of course, are welcome. Thank you, Mr. Clark. CH one public Hearing one is scheduled to stay pursuant to state law on the application of the City Planning Commission to repeal the general plan, entitled plan for 2030 and to adopt the plan, entitled NFPA 2050, as the Comprehensive Plan for the City of Norfolk and by A50 vote, Planning Commission recommends approval. Thank you. We have Keenan Baskerville, followed by Tiara Lassiter. If you wish to speak, please come in this order Keenan Baskerville, Tiara Lassiter, Monet Johnson, Jasmine Byers, and carpool. If you wish to speak on page one, please come in that order. Hello again. Before I get started, I just wanted to say the third apartment complex that I know of that has suffered from rent evictions are, uh, the Lafayette Towers. Uh, but I'm here to request a more comprehensive plan for Norfolk 2050. Uh, especially in regards to education in ch one, in section F, there is an attached staff report from the October City Planning Commission meeting, uh, that states the public school impacts can be found in the Celebrating our Community pillar. After reading and rereading the goals provided in the official draft plan, I can confidently say that FF one nor the draft plan clearly states its intention for Norfolk Public Schools, or even its facilities for that matter. Norfolk 2050 aims to make Norfolk a more competitive choice among the places to live within our ever changing economic region. It is no secret that Norfolk is struggling to maintain and and grow its population, not only because of housing concerns and economic opportunity, but also due to the lack of outstanding educational output and planning provided by Norfolk. We are. We were originally projected to see an increase in population during the 2030 plan, if you all remember. In fact, the 2030 plan had an entire chapter dedicated to supporting lifelong learning. When my mother moved my sister and I from Norfolk to Chesapeake 20 years ago, she told me that above all else, the dominating factor for which we left was education for her children. And now my sister and I both live in Norfolk. She's a teacher for Virginia Beach, and she has come to the exact same conclusion. That is because Norfolk Public Schools doesn't have the facilities or the plan in place to take care of her student, my nephew, that she will enroll him into a different school to to a different school district to ensure his future. I believe that many adults with school age children are leaving today for that very same reason. Using this rationale, I propose that in order to ensure Norfolk's prosperity and development well into 2050 and beyond, we should adopt a more specified action plan for Norfolk Public Schools. Areas of focus should be long range planning for hiring and keeping credentialed teachers and giving them higher pay. Additionally, I suggest that you all consider beginning a community school initiative for Norfolk Community Schools, provide comprehensive community development and resources through community led, data driven decision making. Much like Norfolk 2050, it makes schools a full service center of learning for all ages and I mean all ages. Community schools in Norfolk could help school buildings be used to their full potential. Thank you for your time. Good evening, Council Norfolk. 2020 2050 plan. This plan sounds promising, but it does not show the how. Norfolk 2050 uses strong language about equity, but it lacks clear, measurable steps, timelines or accountability to make those promises actually real. The plan centres development development equity, not community equity. There's a lot of focus on land growth and opportunity zones, but not enough on keeping long time residents safely and affordably housed in the neighborhoods they already built. Without concrete protections, the plan risks continuing Norfolk's long history of displacement. Black and low income communities have been pushed out before, and terms like de concentrate poverty continue to raise red flags, especially while rental evictions and rent heights are happening right now within the city. Norfolk has been on the top Evicting Cities list since 2016 and still remains in the top ten. To this day, affordability is mentioned but not explained. The plan doesn't say how affordability will be enforced, which programs will bridge rent gaps, which nonprofit partners will be chosen, or what metrics will track these progresses? Residents feel decisions are being made around them, not with them. We are not included. Community engagement must include the people most impacted black residents, elders, long term tenants, not just industry stakeholders or developers. Equity only becomes real through enforceable housing protections. The city must repair this plan with policies that guarantee anti displacement safeguards, require affordable housing units and new developments. Protection from sudden rent spikes and preservation of existing affordable homes and apartments. Norfolk cannot afford another plan that sounds good but leaves the most vulnerable behind. In this place and street homeless, adopting the plan is a step forward, but only if council commits to measurable protections that ensure long term residents can stay, grow and thrive in Norfolk that they've helped build over time. I'm a long term resident of Norfolk, and I don't like the idea that I feel like I'm being priced out of a city I've lived in my whole life. I don't like the fact that I've attained higher education and still cannot afford current rent prices. I don't like how everything has went up except for our pay. I don't like how this board is limited on what it can do and how it can protect everyday citizens like me. So I hope that y'all consider revising and relooking this plan, because 25 years is a long time to come. Even though you guys won't be here, we still will. Thank you. Good morning. Johnson. Followed by Jasmine and then Carl. Good evening Council. While we know there was a committee that developed this plan, we know that you all are the ones to enforce it. And so there are a few things that I feel like are important to mention. Seeing as this is the public hearing, namely that while the plan is great in theory, we will need execution that goes against all of Norfolk's lived history because without concrete protections, the plan risks continuing Norfolk's history of displacement. We've just heard some of the folks with the most to risk black folks, minority folks, low income communities, they've been pushed out before. They've seen this. And we'll protect you. We've got your back. Doesn't necessarily get us as far as it did before, because it didn't get them very far at all. Additionally, we still have no concrete definition of what affordable housing means, nor any legal guardrails for new developments to follow. This is especially important because while affordable housing may mean keeping a roof over your head without sacrificing food in the fridge, to me, to others, it may mean enough to cover my mortgage or development costs and keep food in my fridge, regardless of what it means for you. And I think that we think about these plans and we talk about how far they are from right now. For context, I'm 29, 25 years ago, I was four and 25 years. I'll be, what, 54? I can't even imagine myself being 54. But I know some people here have experienced that and y'all look great. But the important part is that these plans need to be executed in the ways that they are intended. I know some of the folks on this committee. I know what they intended for the citizens, what they intended for me. One of the people that's still going to be here, and I want to actually see those things. I don't want to have to leave and go to Portsmouth again. I can't even get into Lisa's. It really doesn't make any sense for me to have to leave this locality that has raised my grandmother, that raised me during the summers that I actually surprisingly come to care about. Even though there's no soft serve ice cream. And so, in short, the plan looks good. But they always say man plans. God laughs. But there's no room for joking with this one. So please take it very seriously and do what's right for the people. Thank you. Thank you. Jasmine. Good evening. So transitioning from the 2030 plan to the new 2050 plan is an important step toward shaping Norfolk's future. The emphasis on growth equity is encouraging. But when talking about growth equity, I ask that we consider the community, the community. Um, when we talk about development, we cannot separate land from the people who live on it. Growth should not mean displacement. Growth should not mean repairs and beautification only for luxury markets. Growth should not prioritize land value over the actual lives and stability of Norfolk residents. If NFPA 2050 is going to guide us through mid-century, then the equity within this plan must be tangible, not aspirational. That means zoning that prevents displacement, affordable housing requirements for new development, rent stability and protections, and anti displacement safeguards for long term residents. So I want to ask directly, will the city commit to preserving the affordable housing we currently have? Will new high density zones require affordable units instead of only luxury options. Will this plan include real protections for the residents most vulnerable to eviction, including low income families and elderly neighbors? FK 2050 should not be a blueprint for development alone. It must be a blueprint for housing stability, fairness and belonging. And for that to happen, we need transparency around how this plan is implemented. Accountability built into the process and community oversight so residents can track progress and hold leadership to the standards of equity. This plan promises growth for the sake of the land. Value is not equity growth that protects the people who built this city. That's what true equity equity looks like. Thank you. Thank you. Carl. Once again. Good evening. I'll keep it short. I want to speak about the Norfolk 2050 goal regarding school facilities, specifically the idea that we should align facilities with projected populations and provide community benefit rather than leaving empty buildings. I agree we shouldn't have empty schools, but meeting the needs of Norfolk students must be more than just keeping buildings in use. Our schools are the heart of our community to truly serve our students and our families and attract future residents. We must reinvest in the quality of our learning environments. That means safe, accessible, well-maintained schools equipped with the resources that teachers and students need. It also means ensuring that schools remain hubs for community life, not just another empty building repurposed for other uses As Norfolk plans for the future, the city must center investments on students, educators and the broader community, not just efficiency and consolidation. If we do this, our schools will continue to be places where learning and community connection flourish for decades to come. Thank you. Thank you. Mr. ball. Please call the. Roll. I have an ordinance to repeal the general plan entitled plan of 2030 and to adopt the plan entitled an FK 2050, as the Comprehensive Plan for the City of Norfolk, dispensed with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice in a dot with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi. Mrs. Johnson. Hi, Mr. Magee. I want to thank staff for all of your work over the last couple of years to put this plan together. I also see a number of our friends from Planning Commission here. Thank you for being here. But most importantly, thank you for your work and your leadership on this. I vote on. Mr. Page. Like my colleague. I'd like to thank the staff for their hard work and with my expectations of what I believe needs to be done for equity to exist. You guys did it. You would probably lose your jobs. So I'm voting no because I think we need a plan that includes, uh, some different things for us. So I'm voting no. Thank you, Mr. Smigel. Yeah. Thank you again to staff and all the public that volunteered and showed up to the meetings to give their feedback on this. There was probably much more public feedback opportunity than in the 2030 plan. So I appreciate that there was a lot of voice in that. This plan also looks a lot different than the 2030 plan. I had a lot of questions that Bobby and his staff answered very early on, particularly if you go to the 2030 plan. There was a chapter that had individual neighborhoods in it that had highlights of what was going to happen in those neighborhoods. That is not in this plan. It's a little bit different. It's looking at the bigger picture. Um, and there was some examples of what could be done in some neighborhoods. Uh, one thing to note on this plan. And Bobby, you can nod your head yes on this is it can be adjusted, amended, changed, uh, as much as we want to, um, it's a working document. So this is the first part of that. And if there's, uh, for example, the Housing Commission is probably going to come out with some recommendations that will need to be added into that plan, including possibly the definition of affordable. Um, and in that so we did make adjustments to the plan 2030 over the years. And so this there is an opportunity for continued adjustments on that. Um, so I appreciate once again the work you're doing I vote I. Thank you, Mr. Thomas. Hi, doctor. Alexander. Page two. Public hearing to schedule this day pursuant to state law on the application of McAllister Toasting Towing, LLC, to rezone properties located at 902 Southampton Avenue and a 1.22 acre portion of 151 Riverview Avenue from downtown Fort Norfolk district to Conditional Industrial Waterfront District and by A50 vote, Planning Commission recommends approval. Thank you. Mr. Beeman is here to answer any questions. Rob Beeman is here to answer any questions. He'll stand by and to speak is Catherine Kilduff. Thank you. Mayor, vice mayor, Council members. My name is Katherine Kilduff and my address is 537 Pembroke Avenue, Norfolk, Virginia. Um, I moved to get in 1985 when I was six, and then I moved to again again in 2014, almost a little over ten years ago. And we moved from California and we came back because of family. I had little kids and a job, and we loved Ghent because the downtown library had play areas for my kids. I could take Amtrak to DC to go to a main office of my organization. And then four years ago, we bought my parents house, which was a big commitment in light of sea level rise. When I lived in California, I never thought I would live so close to the water. One of the amazing parts about being here again is Fort Norfolk. Um, the Elizabeth River trail can take you to Chelsea Bake House, a playground at Plum Point Park, um Harbor's Edge, where my parents lived, a retirement community. The lofts at French Street that have an amazing walkway where you can see the naval hospital at Portsmouth, and it's gorgeous. Um, the problem with this project is that conditional rezoning is unnecessary. Downtown Fort Norfolk land this parcel in particular, it allows an office building. That's what the applicant wants. Conditional rezoning could be appropriate where the applicant voluntarily agrees to conditions addressing community concerns, or to fit with a neighborhood and a comprehensive plan. Here, the comprehensive plan is for it to be downtown Fort Norfolk to have public access to the waterfront. The reason that this application fell short is because there was no public meeting. There was no discussion with a neighborhood league. So there was no community input into the proffers associated with this conditional rezoning. Um, it's inconsistent with the Urban Land Institute's findings that have recommended more public access to the Elizabeth River in Port Norfolk. Those reports were in 2002, 2014 that were done for the city. It's inconsistent with Norfolk 2050 and it page 189. It says River review coastline River line projects for the appropriateness of adding shoreline waterfront access in the form of promenades, piers, parks or other public spaces. The reason I know that this wasn't done is because there were inaccuracies at the Planning Commission. At first, the staff said, it's not waterfront. They said it's a small parcel. They said there's no city property, even though access to this parcel is dependent on a right of way over city property. Um, back to the changes since 1985. There used to be abandoned warehouses up to. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Mr. Beeman. Would you like to answer any questions before we proceed with the vote? You're good. Thank you. Sir. Thanks for being here, Mr. Bull. I have an ordinance to rezone properties located at 902 Southampton Avenue and a 1.22 acre portion of 151 Riverview Avenue from downtown Fort Norfolk district to conditional industrial waterfront District. Dispensed with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and adopt with the effective dates. Mr. Clanton. All right. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi. Mrs. Johnson. Hi, Mr. McGee. Hi. Mr. Paige. Hi, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr.. Thomas. Doctor. Alexander. Hi. Clerk. Page three. Public hearing. Three schedule this day, pursuant to state law on the application of East Beach Square, LLC to rezone properties located at 95, 23 and 9527 22nd Bay Street from residential Coastal district to conditional regional commercial district and by A50 vote, Planning Commission recommends approval of an ordinance to rezone properties located at 95, 23 and 9527 22nd Bay Street from residential coastal district to conditional regional commercial district dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi, Mrs. Johnson. Hi, Mr. McGee. Hi, Mr. Page. Hi, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr.. Thomas. Doctor Alexander. Hi. Before the public hearing for scheduled this day pursuant to state law on the application of Brian Grace to rezone property located at 1917 East Oceanview Avenue from residential coastal district to conditional community commercial district, and the motion will be to withdraw this matter, sir. Without objection. Mr. Clanton. Mrs. Doyle. The I is to withdraw, correct? Yes. Yes. Mrs. Johnson, is that a I am. I yes, sir. Mr. Magee. I Mr. page a. Mr. smigel. I. Mr.. Thomas. Hi, doctor. Alexander. Hi, Mr. clerk. See you. One through five. Will. Be concerted and one block unless otherwise noted. Okay, sir. Approve the consent agenda and dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinances twice. And adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Mrs. Doyle. I. Mrs. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi, Mr. Paige. Hi. Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr.. Thomas. Doctor. Alexander. Hi, Mr.. Clark. R1 R1 is an ordinance granting the United States of America by and through the Department of the Navy. Long term access with a 20 year term across City of Norfolk property located on Hampton Boulevard, and all conjunction with installation of borings and monitoring wells to evaluate the soil and groundwater quality, subject to certain terms and conditions dispensed with. The charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and dot with the effective date. Mr. Clanton, Mrs. Doyle. Aye. Mrs. Johnson. Aye. Mr. McGee. Aye. Mr. page. Aye. Mr. Smigel. Aye. Mr.. Thomas. Doctor. Alexander. Hi. R2, R2 is an ordinance granting a conditional use permit to authorize the operation of a car wash named Ocean Hand Car Wash on property located at 7900 Chesapeake Boulevard and by a vote of five zero. Planning Commission recommended approval. Mr. mayor? Yes, Mr. Smigel? Mr. Hahn, did we have the opportunity to reach out to the property owner? About R-2 and R-3. The staff contacted the applicants to notify them of the concerns with the landscaping. It is to note. Of the two applications that were significant issues on the site prior to them getting to this point, we've had to have them do repairs to dumpster enclosures, other landscaping and remove unapproved uses on the sites. So staff has done a significant portion of reviewing the site to make sure it's up to up to standards, and we'll continue to keep an eye on the two sites. Mr.. I just want to make sure because the the applicants are here, but they're not the owners of the property. And normally, sometimes the owners of the property will come along with this to be supportive of the applicants. And they're we're not having the opportunity to share our concerns directly with them. So is there a way that I mean, I think Councilman Page myself, Councilman McGee, we would be more than happy if we can get the applicant the owner's contact information to go sit down with them and share our concerns with them so that we can allow the applicants to move forward. Um, it isn't their responsibility, but they're going to be on that property. And I don't want them to be be held accountable for the actions later with it. Um, if their, their landlords are not being good stewards in our city. So I feel for them. And it was I appreciate that the applicant's here, but I think we need we have some things we need to address with both of those properties. Yeah, I would be more than are you willing to continue this until next week? Our R2 and R3. And in that time period, you and I can go meet with them or and figure it out. It's the same owner. Correct. Both properties of the shelves? No, sir. I believe there are two different property owners. Two different properties. Oh, okay. Well, we'll. Have double the. Time then. Yeah. Mr. Todd, do you know anything that's time sensitive on these two applications? I'm not that I'm aware from the applicants, but they have not shared that information on me. Okay, sir. Mr. bull. R2, the motion is to continue to our next meeting. Okay. The motion is to continue. R2 to December 16th, 2025. Mr. Clanton. Mrs. Doyle. Hi. Mrs.. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi. Mr.. Paige. Hi. Mr. Smigel. Hi. Mr.. Thomas. Hi. Doctor Alexander. Hi, Mr. Clark. Are three, and there will be a motion to continue our three until December the 16th, 2025. So the motion is to continue our three to December 16th, 2025. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi. Mrs. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi. Mr. Page. Hi, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr.. Thomas. Hi, doctor. Alexander. Hi, Mr. Clark. Our for our fourth indoor and is granted conditional use permit to authorize the operation of a restaurant with extended hours named America's Best Wings, hero and Pizza property located at 201 East Berkeley avenue and by a vote of five zero. Planning Commission recommends approval. Mr. bull, do you know the hours or Mr.. The new hours that are being proposed? Um 6 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week. Thank you. Dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you. With the amendment. That was just the hours that were posted. Mr.. It's a copy. Um, to authorize the, um, best wings and gyro pizza. Um, it does not include the, uh, sale of alcohol. Okay. And the hours of operation going to be. I didn't hear that far. I'm sorry. Oh. I'm sorry. 6 a.m. to midnight. Okay. All right. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Okay. Mrs. Johnson. No. Mr. McGee. No. Mr. Page. No. Mr.. Smigel. No. Mr.. Thomas. No. Doctor. Alexander. No. Motion fails. Mr. Clark. Our 5 or. 5 is an ordinance granting a conditional use permit to authorize a short term rental unit, a vacation rental property located at 2410 Corona Avenue and by three two vote. The planning Commission recommends denial. Mr. Johnson. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Mr. Johnson, let me begin by saying thank you for your service to the entire world. I appreciate your your service. Um, I am aware of your family's history. Um, the home, your family's contribution to the community of the Linwood Borough Park, Cottage Heights communities for over 100 years. Um, I also would like to thank you for your families, rich history and investment in the Baroque park community. However, it is my job as councilperson for the Lindenwood Baroque Park and Cottage Heights communities to protect, prepare and grow each one of those communities. And my concern with your requests are, is that your family being away and having the proper management for your family's rich history home deeply concerns me. Um. I am again aware of your investment and how much you do love Baroque Park and the city. My colleagues here on Council Team Norfolk. We're doing much work in the Linwood Baroque Park, Cottage Heights to prepare for its growth. And once we get to that time, then maybe reconsideration can be considered for a short term rental in the Broad Park, um, community. So thank you, sir, for your consideration of requesting the cup. Mr. Bull. Dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. I was going to say I, but I would just like to let my colleagues know that I did meet with the applicant, and the applicant did provide to me his form of management that would be managing that location. And my understanding also that the city did write a letter in support of this. So with those things there I will be voting on. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Okay. Mrs. Johnson. No. Mr. McGee. No. Mr. page. All right. Mr. Smigel. Yeah, I just want to make sure. Moving forward. We've had this conversation before. On short term rentals that if we have a part of the city or neighborhood specifically, that short term rentals are not desired. Is it being communicated to the applicants before they go through the process that it's most likely not going to make it through to council? That is, was this applicant told that? And I'm not trying to put you on the spot, but was this applicant told that in Ward three the there's in most neighborhoods in Ward three that short term rentals have been denied. You can yell from back there, Bobby. No, sir. Yeah. Bobby. Yep. Bobby, you now have been requested to come up. We do recommend to the applicants to ensure that they speak with the council members in their ward, so that they have the information. Sometimes we will tell them that there are troubles for obtaining short term rentals in certain areas. There aren't many that were applied for on the section of broad Part. One similar to it was in the Lindenwood area, so it was across the street. So we'd recommend we always recommended the applicants to speak to the council members. Okay. I just want to make sure because when we did our short term rental, um, study group, one of the things that came out from short term rental operators is the very lengthy process they had to go through for Cup and then only to come before us and it gets denied. I know it was denied at planning, um, which should have been a sign that it probably wouldn't make it through. Um, but I just we've got to do something different. Um, we're taking people's money. We're, um, putting them through a lengthy process and then just deny it's a risk on anybody who applies. But these are not corporate people. They don't have the money that's extra to spend when they go through this. They're technically small businesses, and we need to understand that as a council and making sure, you know, moving forward that that's there. Um, you know, my colleague council has made it adamant that these are not welcome in Ward three. So I want to I'm going to uphold that and vote no. But I really am bothered by this continuation of applicants coming before us. And we're just denying denying that they have much more success. If you come to Ocean View, um, the civic leagues, there tend to be a little bit more in favor. But, um, there are other parts of the city where the neighborhoods are are very sensitive, and I understand why these are not desired. I just don't want people to go through this anymore. Um, there needs to be some way to say in the very beginning, stop. Don't just don't move forward and waste your time. So thank. You. Mr. Thomas. Doctor Alexander. R6. R6 is an ordinance amending the FY 2026 Annual Appropriations Ordinance Number 49 966, so as to accept an appropriate donated funds from friends of the Norfolk Public Library in the amount of not to exceed $23,000 from the Norfolk Public Library to support various projects if and when received, and amending the FY 2026 budget to add the same. Dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you. Mrs. Doyle. Hi, Mrs. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi. Mr. Page. Hi. Mr. Smigel. Hi. Mr. Thomas. Hi. Doctor Alexander. R-7. R7 is the resolution update, approving an update to the Airport master plan for the Norfolk International Airport. Adopt the resolution. Mr. Clinton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi. Mrs. Johnson. Hi, Mr. Magee. Hi, Mr. Page. All right, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr.. Thomas. Doctor Alexander. All right. All right. All right is an ordinance amending and re ordaining section one of the FY 2026, Annual Appropriations Ordinance Number 49 966, in its entirety, so as to re appropriate and carry forward unspent funds from FY 2025 not to exceed the amount of $135,790, and authorizing the expenditure of set amount to fund the necessary operational expenses in FY 2026 for the Norfolk Department of Public Health, so as to offset the FY 2025 liabilities and to meet the operational needs in FY 2026, and amending the FY 2026 annual budget. Consistent with these changes dispensed with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi. Mrs. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi, Mr.. Page. Hi, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr. Thomas. Doctor Alexander. A 9 or. 9 is an ordinance to amend re ordains section 24 258 of the Norfolk City Code, 1979, regarding the requirement for new food established businesses. Authority of the Commissioner so as to remove the meal tax bond requirement. Dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. What about I. I think this is a good example of how we're trying to make it easier to do business with Norfolk. And I want to thank my colleague, Jeremy McGee, who is very instrumental in making this happen. But we all think it's very good for businesses doing work here in the city. So I vote I thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Johnson. Hi, Mr.. McGee. Hi, Mr. Page. Hi, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr. Thomas. Hi. Doctor Alexander, 10 or 10 is an ordinance to ordain chapter 24, article four, The Norfolk City Code, 1979, regarding real estate taxes so as to add one new subsection 24 dash 2 or 3.2 regarding tax abatement program for renovation of mixed use properties. Dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi, Mrs. Johnson. Hi, Mr. McGee. Hi, Mr. Page. Hi, Mr. Smiggle, Mr. Thomas. Doctor Alexander. You're 11. Our weapons and ordinance authorizing the purchase of a certain portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia's Norfolk State University property located at 804 Park Avenue, to be dedicated as the public right of way for the sum of $3,200. Authorizing the purchase of the temporary construction easement for the sum of $200, and authorizing the expenditure of the sum of up to $3,400 from funds heretofore appropriated for the purchase of the property and the easement. Dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice, and adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi, Mrs. Johnson. Hi, Mr. McGee. Hi, Mr.. Page. Hi, Mr. Smigel. Hi, Mr.. Thomas. Doctor. Alexandra. Hi. Our 12 or 12 is an ordinance granting two additional full days of holiday leave to all city employees on December 26th, 2025, in January 2nd, 2026. Dispense with the charter requirement for reading the ordinance twice and adopt with the effective date. Mr. Clanton. Thank you, Mrs. Doyle. Hi, Mrs. Johnson. Um, to the employees of the city of of Norfolk, um, on behalf of the city council. And I'm speaking for my colleagues this evening. This is the first opportunity I get. Um, we would just like to say thank you for your dedication and hard work. We we can't pay you, um, the money that you may be so deserving, but this time out gives you an opportunity to spend more time with your family and your friends. So please enjoy. And again, thank you, especially on behalf of these two right here, the mayor. He always works with council. So thank you, sir, and Mr. Manager and my colleagues. I thank you, Mr. Magee. Hi, Mr. Page. I vote I. Also. I'd like to thank Mr. Johnson for always looking out for the employees and move the council to consider putting some things in place to where this is automatically taken care of. God forbid Miss Johnson decides not to be on council one day. Who's going to take care of our city employees? Me? Okay, so Tommy Smith said. I'm not going anywhere. That we would consider doing something to where Mr. Johnson and the rest of us don't have to go through this process where it's already implemented on holidays that fall. Uh, this way. I don't do it. Is that now, sir? That's it. I see it, but what do you say? Tell him that Mr. Johnson. Is. Not going anywhere. She's not going nowhere. She gonna stay for a while? Yeah. Okay, Mr. Smith? Yeah. I just want to make sure the amendment that the city manager has to work those two days in there. That's me. I tell you, I work. On all this. Thank you, Mr. Thomas. Hi, doctor. Alexander. Hi. Our 13 or 13 is a resolution appointing and reappointing 29 members to five commissions, four boards and two committees for certain terms. Adopt the resolution, Mr. Clanton. Mrs. Doyle. Hi. Mrs.. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi. Mr. page. Hi, Mr. smigel. Hi, Mr. Thomas. Hi. Doctor Alexander. Hi. Our 14 or. 14 is a resolution supporting the 2026 legislative priorities for the city of Norfolk. Adopt the resolution, Mr. Clanton. Mrs. Doyle. Thank you sir. Thank you ma'am. Mrs. Johnson. Hi. Mr. McGee. Hi. Mr. Page. I say I would consideration for some additions. Thank you, sir. Mr. Smigel. Yeah. I just wanted to make sure to thank you for all the speakers that came down. That brought up some very valid points. I do want to make sure that everybody knows at the very bottom of the legislative package. It does say that when we vote on this, that we endorse the legislative packages of multiple organizations, including the Virginia municipal League in Virginia for cities as well as Norfolk Public schools, that includes many of the items that were brought up in the speeches. So I've learned over the years with our legislative package that we can't include everything. There are some things we probably need to address or some language in here that I think has been repetitive that we might want to update. Um, but we do we do support that. And so when our lobbyists are in Richmond, they look at all of those legislative packages and we make sure that they're representing us with our local delegation and others and making sure that those are there. There is a lot of talk this year about housing, including rent, eviction, and I believe that there's some legislation that's going to be proposed as part of that, that is addressed in the organizations that we are part of, um, as well. So I know VML has addressed at Virginia First City as well. So we'll be continuing to watch that. And once again, I believe we can make amendments to this. Or if there's something that comes up, we can, um, ask Brian Pennington to make sure he gives us updates regularly in the city manager on what's going on so that we can stay in touch with that. So I vote I. And Mister Spiegel, um, Mister Bull, also, in case you don't know, um, Brian Pendleton, if you would stand, please, sir. Um, and I and Team Norfolk in October, we were at the state capitol. Um, speaking before the Virginia Housing Committee on Eviction Mitigation on behalf of our citizens here in Norfolk. That is also included in our legislative packet. So we are in Richmond speaking on your behalf, addressing your concerns. We have our legislative dinner that will have with all of our local delegates. And we actually we draw delegates from other cities in which we will address these items as well. Great. So, Thomas. Hi. Doctor. Alexander. Hi. Thank you. You have another. That's all I have. We're going to move very expeditiously with new business. Uh, Susan Tusk is followed by Calvin Williams in that order. I'm going to. Okay. All right. And thank you, assistant manager, for going. He's going to have the people call me from the Okay. All right. I won't get my house built. Okay. Get on. All right. All right. Okay. Can I give this to you? To give to Ellen? Thank you. Sir. Okay. I'm ready. Are you ready? Um. Merry Christmas. Like you said as mayor. City council. Um, please note the 13 pages I just gave you. I'm not going to read them to you. You're all beautiful people. I'm sure you can read it. Nice timeline here. I'm appalled at the lack of ethics and some of the people in the police operations. Captain Dixon does not know what he's doing. And Sergeant Kevin Barnes, their sexist, racist picks in the second precinct. Captain Barnes. So, Miss Matthews, let's not do that, okay? Okay. Captain Barnes, um, in the second, um, precinct. I'm sorry. Um, a permitted warrant was issued by Honorable Magistrate Hannah Lindgren on December 30th, 2025. You'll see that in your packet. And I talked to Sergeant Armstrong. He said there's no such thing. Yes, there is. And I talked to her. So Clark Hanson said she was served it, but she doesn't know which Clark had it. So we've got to change the way we do things in the state courts, which is not your issue, but your cops are the issue. Carl Hay, the executive secretary of the Supreme Court of Virginia, a writ of mandamus is to file to the Supreme Court when egregious due process rights are violated by criminals. Cops, clerks and the Commonwealth do not alter records, do not hide discovery because malicious and do not maliciously prosecute victims. My house will be rebuilt. I was going to live down in Grandy, but you know, I have so much to do here. I might even, um, do a cast. The thing with the advocate for people to help the Guardian items. People need a voice. Old people, disabled people. All of us need a voice. Uh, Mister Rogers, I appreciate the deputy city manager telling me he's going to have the people call me. Because when I call, they don't call back. Okay? I do have a master's degree. I live at 82, 14 Andrew Lane. I'm sorry it's taking me so long. I almost died twice. Uh, merry Christmas to all of you and Mary, miss, you'll understand that, right? Mr.. Um, Pisco, you know, it says a man. Mandamus is what people can file when they're screwed over in the courts. You go up to and you write to the Supreme Court, look it up and just. I'm letting you know people have rights. Nobody is better than anybody else. Black lives matter, disabled rights, seniors, people like me, I matter, you all matter. So thank you. I know you've missed my big fat mouth. I miss you, though. You're really a good mayor. I do, and I like the way you speak. Thank you. John? Yes. Jones. Yes. Abigail. We've got a woman in charge. Thank you. Kelvin. Kelvin Williams, followed by Sheena Thompson, in that order. Did you make sure the chief of police. Thank you. Good evening, mayor. Good city council members. My name is Calvin Williams. I'm the executive rector of my two K Foundation. And as many of y'all know, we work inside the Saint Paul's area, uh, for many years, focusing on, uh, disparities of violence prevention from a health lens. Our duty is the work. Uh, excuse me, Greg says. Uh, well, while we work, can we discover something that's very alarming that there's three convenience stores inside the Saint Paul, Saint Paul, uh, quadrants that for some reason have been for the last decade been operating as a public nuisance without any accountability. These locations are tiny, giant shopping going Watergate that have been the site of multiple violent incidents, including seven homicides, numerous shootings and stabbings and ongoing disorders. For ten years, the community has been fixed under these conditions. And this was get serious and respectfully, no disrespect to the councilman. I actually applaud y'all. We watch what y'all have done with the the downtown night downtown nightclub life in the nightclub district downtown, where we applaud that the speed and the clarity and the commitment to protect the residents and the visitors were Evident, so it's difficult as to and difficult for the residents of Saint Paul's to understand why the same urgency has been applied to the stores at Saint Paul's with families, seniors and children must walk past this environment every single day. These stores hide behind the phrase food desert, but but they are not serving the community or the people. They are harming them. They profit from the lack of access to food, and contribute to the fear and the violence that keep real business from even coming in. Truly, we believe that a lot of a lot of the business that will come help the community, and that's to give nutrients to the community. It's not coming in for the fear of the violence inside the community. And we actually believe that If we get rid of the hotspots that's in hotspots in the community, that will get addressed in some ways. If not, just get rid of em first, that somehow y'all can get together and and form some policies. We've seen what y'all can do with the nightclub. It's a safer Norfolk because the nightclubs are gone away, and we'll bleed to be a safer Saint Paul. If we get rid of the hotspots. We have other business decided area to ask to work out their business. And nothing ever happened. But I don't know what's the definition of public nuisance inside Norfolk? The city council public nuisance is. But we know of at least seven homicides in the last ten years, been in these three stores, and there's other stores that work inside this community and operate in this community that have no, no violence at all. Thank you. Sir. Your time is up. Thank you. Thank you. Sheena Thompson. Followed by Sarah Harrington. Hi. Good afternoon, Mr. Mayor. Members of the city council. My name is Sheena Thompson. I am the executive director, assistant of my two K foundational organization that works daily in the Saint Paul's community, and we address the root cause of violence and health disparities that fuel it through our research and our presence and on the ground, we've done we've uncovered something deeply alarming, something that has been overlooked for far too long. For the past decade, three convenience stores in the Saint Paul Quadrant have operated under public safety. Um, tiny giant shop and go. Watergate. I'm going to detour and go to personal experience of me and my child in the shop and go number four, and I had to kick my way out their back door because guns were drawn like the wild, wild West. Across these three locations, they've had 15 incidents, um, violent incidents in eight homicides. Um, they're not isolated incidents. These are patterns. Patterns that have been triggered. Um, for immediate action, if they happen anywhere else in the city. And that is very concerning. We do applaud the city council's, um, swift action with the nightclub safety and the area. However, the Saint Paul's area community deserves the same swiftness, the same, um, security. The walk up at the teeny giant us. Since that has been placed, someone has been killed at that. The, um, Watergate has a fishbowl design where community members believe that makes, um, the people shopping very visible and contribute to the most recent shootings. Meanwhile, just a few blocks away, Tobacco Place has operated for years without violence, without alcohol, without any and without chaos. That proves something important that violence is not inevitable, but it is a result of managed choices and absence of accountability. So today, I am asking the city to take a serious look at these three stores, considering where they meet the threshold of public nuisance because the families of the Saint Paul's community deserve protection, safety, urgency and the same enforcement standards that families all over the city deserve. They should not have to choose between eating and staying alive. Thank you. Thank you. Sarah Harrington, followed by William. Speidel. Hello, I'm Sarah Harrington. My address is 816 West 42nd Street in Highland Park. Um, I am a founder of a micro school in Norfolk, Virginia. I'm also an owner of a bike shop in Norfolk. And I'm speaking about, um, the Granby Street bike lanes. Um, personally, super grateful for those lanes. Um, if you've ever ridden a bicycle down Granby Street right now while the lanes are being built, and before then, it's terrifying. I mean, I just drove a school bus down Granby Street today, going the speed limit 30mph and just car after car after car after car passing me. Um, even just driving in a car is terrifying. So to be a cyclist riding on the side of the road, um, and having all of these cars whiz by you, not to mention somebody goes by you, and then there's another car back behind them and slam it on there. It's it's it's terrifying. I mean, um, in Highland Park, we've had a couple of fatalities this year. People getting hit by cars. It's just cars are dangerous. Cars are dangerous. And we need these infrastructures in place to keep commuters safe. Have places for people to walk safely, bike safely, to get around safely. Because when it comes down to it, it's really not going to impact driving very much. Because 26th Street, 27th Street, those bike lanes have been put into place, and I don't ever see any traffic jams on 26 and 27th Street. So having those bike lanes there. Thank you so much for approving that. I think I have a lot of cyclists here tonight. If you guys don't mind standing up and like, you know, there's a lot of people here that ride bikes. And so we're just really grateful that those lanes have been put into place. And thanks for passing that and approving it. Thank you. Good evening, I'm Wil Speidel. I live at 111 Blake Road. I'm just four houses off of Granby Street. Uh, the mile and a half corridor between the bridge and Ward's Corner is lined with private residences, five assisted living and senior housing facilities, five churches, three schools, a synagogue, medical clinics, a funeral home, preschool programs, and a former hospital that's soon to be an after school summer camp program for local youth. For those of us who live in this corridor, the lane reduction project was never about bike lanes, although the grant that is funding it is. This has always been about slowing traffic and making our community safer. When this was first proposed ten years ago, no one would have imagined it would become the longest public input traffic project in the city's history. Since that time, police have responded to roughly 300 traffic accidents, including 11 fatalities in this corridor. Each new serious crash brought more frustration to the phrase, we need to take this time to do this and make sure that we get it right. So even though this project is still under construction, I wanted to highlight already some visible improvements that we've seen. Drivers turning onto Granby from side streets now have better visibility and safer sightlines. Emergency vehicles can pull into the bike lane to stop keeping our first responders safe and out of active traffic. Slower traffic on Granby Street means slower speeds when cars are turning into my neighborhood side street. The bike lanes get cyclists off of the sidewalks, reducing conflicts with residents who are pulling out of driveways and side streets. The bike lane is an added safety buffer from traffic, making the sidewalks safer for pedestrians. But most importantly. Three days after the construction started, a northbound car lost control at Beverley, an area where there have been three previous fatalities. The bike lane gave the driver enough space to swerve and miss a power pole by less than a foot. The car crashed into a neighboring fence and deflected back into the empty bike lane, instead of landing up in someone's yard where one had been previously. In conclusion, while many might want to focus on bike lanes, I want to acknowledge the hundreds of people and the thousands of comments that came from the public. For those who fought for these safety speed reductions in the corridor. Whether you were an early advocate or someone who came around over time, this has been a long, difficult effort and I am deeply grateful to the people of Bike Norfolk, to the community leaders, to other supporters who may be here tonight, and especially to city staff who are was sitting in the back. I want to say you all did get this right. Thank you for taking the time and for listening. You may have already saved a life and construction isn't even finished. Thank you, thank you. Parrot. Parrot Hicks. Is buried. Here. What about Clayton, Ty Clayton? Yes. Clayton's followed by Denise Jones. Johnson. Good evening. Members of council. My name is Clayton Tye. I'm a resident of Newport News, and I'm here tonight to speak about the incident that Chief Talbot had brought up. And while I appreciate his assurances that the event didn't happen, I still have a few concerns. Um, at first, uh, wavy TV ten reported that the police department immediately denied that the event took place and then retracted that and said that they were investigating and then following. Um, following that. Wavy also said that the Navy, in a first wouldn't release the information of the chief, um, to their reporters, which was strange to them. So I also thought it was strange. So I went to Norfolk's website under Open Data Incidence Log, and I found a stop on November 17th outside of the Wawa on the 8400 block of Hampton Boulevard. Um, on the day alleged that it took place in the location that it was alleged to take place with no time included. So I filed a FOIA request with the city. I haven't heard back yet, but I asked for the incident and the dashboard video of that incident and tried to put this to rest. Um, I do know that there are over 25 flock. Surveillance cameras surrounding the Norfolk Naval Base, and Norfolk has been found through an investigative investigation. Norfolk PD has been found to share flock license plate reader data with Ice. One query from between April 9th and April 16th by a Norfolk police officer queried 80,472 nationwide devices and the justification field says Ice enforcement and removal operations. And that was the justification field. So the state of Virginia state law changed in the beginning of June and has since cut off nationwide sharing. However, um, that chief and members of this community have every right to feel like they're being surveilled, um, against their will. And that data is just being shared with everybody and anybody. So that's why I'm bringing this up tonight. Um, I hope that, uh, you can look into that incident on Norfolk's own website to try to get to the bottom of it before I can thank you for your time. Denise Jones. Johnson. Denise will be followed by D Xavier Wilkins. You first, Miss Johnson, then Mr. Wilkins is going to come. Here for you. Good evening, mayor and council. I'm Denise Johnson Jones, 1816 Bracey Street. Excuse me. I'm here to ask the city of maybe, just maybe once in a while, someone on this council other than Councilman John Page will make themselves visible for the people of your city, especially at Bruce Jones love ministry. Councilman Paige has attended teens with a purpose. Just say no to drugs. North Street crowd events at events and all these others. And I know he's been there because I've been there. He has recently got into his book because he helped five up five passengers by riding the bus with Miss Johnson. Councilman Johnson riding the bus. He helped these passenger decided they wanted to be operators, and they are now five full time operators for HRT. So I'm asking that, you know, you make yourself visible. Uh, Clayton. Councillor Clayton, I think it's how you pronounce his name. Clayton has been out to the monument, but at Bruce Jones love monument, he's been out there 15 years. I know he's been out there 15 years because I've only missed 27 Sundays. For him being out there every Sunday. He gives out tents, clothes, food and everything. Last Sunday we paid 334. Homeless and hungry people. We gave them tents, coats, long johns, coats. All these things are given out. Councilman Paige is always there. There's nobody else from the council that shows up to help out. We are all volunteers. Most of the donations. 83% of the donations come from organizations in Virginia Beach and Chesapeake, not from Norfolk. We are right there at church in Bremerton. Every Sunday we've been there 15 years, 15 years. And like I said, I know he's been there because I've only missed 27 Sundays myself in 15 years. So I'm just asking that, you know, you'll come together and you just come out and just let them know that you care. You know, we are all volunteers. Last Sunday on the 30th, we rented tents, tables, chairs and tablecloths so the homeless could eat, sit down and eat like there was a Thanksgiving dinner. We did that on our own. Nobody donated. We did it all. Bruce Jones loved me. I'm just asking if you just show your face. Jon Page's counseling page is out there all the time. He comes out there and serve all the time. And like I said, he rides the bus, comes out there and serve. And because he he's visible, he's able to help. And I'm just asking. Just show your face. That's all I ask. Thank you baby. You're welcome. Good evening. Council members. Mayor and the city of Norfolk. My name is Dustin Xavier Wilkins, 435 Virginia Avenue, Norfolk, Virginia, and professionally known as Chosen Bookends. I am currently a resident here in Norfolk. I also have residents in Arlington, Virginia, and I am here to make certain that no one is above the law. Not wealthy, not law enforcement authorities or any celebrity or public figure. No one is above the law. The law was made for the people by the people, which. This is a famous quote made by former United States President Abraham Lincoln during his Gettysburg Address. This meant that this that the laws ideally should serve the people and originate from the people us and with our consent. Laws are made for human benefit and should be just and fair to serve the common good, embodying the principle of consent of the governed. Despite of this, the Norfolk Police Department being filled with various men and women who diligently put their lives on the line daily to enforce the law and to protect and enforce the law. Sorry, I repeated that. And others who are assigned different tasks to fulfill the operations of the police department. There are also many who do the opposite and prefer to be corrupt in MPD. This has been evident for years, decades even before I was born. The ones who are to protect everyone regardless of race, gender, financial status, sexual orientation, mental health characteristics, religion, age, with or without criminal record, prominence or fame are at times the ones that many of us need to be protected from. If a human is or has been a victim of a crime, or someone who needs to be protected by the law, then our police department should set aside personal opinions to do what is right. However, I and many others have experienced injustice, discrimination, reputational damages or subject to a denial of justice. When we are in the right and become a victim of a crime, regardless of how popular or famous someone is right is right and wrong is wrong. And Norfolk Police Department needs to treat all crimes. Whether or not the crime is an economic crime, a robbery, a murderer, internal corruption or a sexual predator. North Police Department Detectives Division displayed what many will probably view as selective discrimination, bias based policing, abuse of discretion and or perverting the course of justice. To make matters worse, reporting this to the Norfolk Police Department's Office of Professional Standards failed to investigate and follow up with investigation, leaving me personally to feel unprotected and less than a human. I finally received proof after more than a decade, that a certain largely famous entertainer in our area from Hampton Roads had made a false complaint to the master's office against me. That is my time. Your time? Thank you. Ophelia Whatley. Lee is followed by Steve Bagley. Greetings all. I am Ophelia Whatley. I reside at 566 Stuart. Circle. Norfolk. I invite all those who are here in support of global, verifiable nuclear disarmament to say thank you. Coming around is the city's appeal for the International Campaign to Abolish nuclear weapons. I can. It is a resolution that has been passed by hundreds of cities, local and regional bodies around the world. Asking their governments to join the treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. T p n w. It is the first treaty designed to facilitate global verifiable nuclear disarmament. In 2017, I can won the Nobel Peace Prize for its part in bringing the treaty to fruition. And today, over half of U.N. member states have either signed or verified the treaty to its designated participants. Signers of ICAN Cities Appeal include the city councils of Washington, D.C., and Paris, both capitals of nuclear armed states, as well as those of Berlin, Rome, Amsterdam and capitals of nations with nuclear weapons on their soil. Other U.S. signers include Salt Lake City, Des Moines, Anchorage, Denver, Los Angeles, and New York City. You may think that nuclear war is outside of the scope of the city's concern, but be assured that Norfolk is high on Russia's nuclear targeting list and soon to be high on China's, as well as it grows its intercontinental ballistic missiles program at breakneck speed. We are surrounded by high Value targets. I'm hoping that we're able to make sure that Norfolk does everything it can. It can to assure safety not only for our residents, but to be part of what is happening globally. Keep us safe. Thank you. You follow. You follow. You follow. Sahara. You follow him. You follow Steve. Steve didn't say, hey. I'm Steve. I live. In. Lambert's. Point, 27th in Bowden's. Ferry. And as sure as. Human. Beings. Are fallible. Nuclear deterrence. The theory on which ride is the future of humankind, sooner or later will fail. When it does, say, on a second or fourth Tuesday evening of the month at about this time, and a single Russian missile plant's warheads within moments at the ballistic missile submarine infrastructure in Norfolk, Portsmouth and Newport News. The good people of Hampton Roads, who are at Ground Zero will be instantly vaporized, along with everything else, by fireballs hotter than the sun. Shock waves moving faster than the speed of sound will flatten everything another mile out. Mowing people down or hurling them into the air. Bursting lungs and eardrums. Sucking up bodies and spitting them out. Buildings will disintegrate. Bridges collapse, cranes topple over, and 18 wheelers become airborne. The heat will ignite everything flammable. Several miles out in every direction. Curtains, paper, wooden fences, people's clothing and dry leaves will explode into flame and combined with exploding gas lines and chemical storage tanks, as well as pilot lights on stoves, furnaces and water heaters acting like torches to set fire to everything not already burning. Collapsed buildings will become giant ovens as people everywhere burn alive, the nuclear fireballs will rise up, forming iconic mushroom cloud shapes composed of incinerated people and civilizations, debris turning red, brown, and then orange. Cars and people will be sucked into the center of the burning infernos. The mushroom capsule stretched 20 miles across and then spew radioactive fallout back down onto the Earth and its people. Hurricane force winds will then turn the hundreds of fires into thousands of fires, and the millions of fires, until much of Hampton Roads, in about 8 or 9 minutes, becomes a mesocyclone of fire. Hundreds of thousands of people will die, with hundreds of thousands of more horribly burned and irradiated to die within a week or a month. There'll be no electricity, no phone service, no 911. Asphalt streets will turn to liquid, water, stations won't pump, and medical help will be almost nonexistent. In our 2017 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, ICANN's executive director Beatrice Finn said the story of nuclear weapons will have an ending and it is up to us what that ending will be. Will it be the end of nuclear weapons, or will it be the end of us? One of these things will happen. If we'd rather see the end of nuclear weapons passing, the I can cities appeal would add Norfolk's voice to hundreds of millions around the world who would rather live in a nuclear weapons free world. Mr. mayor, we urge you to put the city's appeal on the council agenda and bring it to a vote. We are happy to help in any way. And as we approach Christmas, we remember Jesus, who came unarmed amid the arsenals of empire, bearing only God's relentless love for humankind. And he invites us to do likewise. Thank you. See, here is followed by Lamont Waltz. Peace and blessings with you, Council. And good evening. I'm here tonight because our community is hurting. The vandalism of Masjid Al Qaida on Kali was not just property damage. It was a hateful, bigoted act meant to intimidate an entire faith community. And so far, we have not heard a clear public condemnation from this council. Silence and moments like this is not neutrality. It sends a message, one that we, the Muslim neighbors, hear loud and clear. For years, many in our city's Muslim and faith based communities have watched Islamophobia rise while our elected officials have remained largely silent. When hate is not confronted, it grows. When discriminatory rhetoric goes unchallenged, especially when it comes from people in positions of power. It gives permission. It creates a climate where some believe they can target Muslims without any consequences. And here we are. This vandalism is not an isolated incident. It is the predictable result of a climate we have failed to address as a community. Too often it seems acceptable to speak to and about Muslims in ways that would never be tolerated towards any other group. That double standard is dangerous. It sends the message that our safety, our dignity and our belonging are negotiable. I'm here to tell you that they are not. This city has a responsibility, not just legally, but morally, to ensure that every resident, every congregation, every community feels protected. Tonight we are asking the the council for two clear commitments. Firstly, this council issue a public written condemnation of the hateful vandalism on Madhura. On Kali. Not a vague statement. Not a quiet acknowledgement. A clear, unequivocal condemnation of the Islamophobia and bigotry of the attack. Secondly, we ask that the Council provide an explicit assurance to all faith based communities that acts like this will be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. No hesitations, no exceptions. Your words matter, Council members. Your leadership matters. And right now, our city needs you to lead, to show that hate has no home here. Not in words, not in actions, and not in silence. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Norfolk Police Department for all they've done since the vandalism occurred. Thank you. Good evening. Members of Council. Doctor Alexander Lamont, Waltz two, 901 Lafayette Boulevard. First, I'd like to thank Mr. Mercer for those wonderful words you just spoke. So Sister Sara just spoke about the vandalism that happened at Masjid Al Shura on Sunday evening at about 930, somebody painted graffiti crosses all around the building, which is going to cost that community a couple thousand dollars to repair the damage. Now I can speak about Islamophobia. Likes to hear Mercer just did, but I'm not going to speak about Islamophobia. I'm going to speak about the desecration of a house of worship. It doesn't matter whether it was a muslim mosque or a Jewish synagogue, or a Catholic church or a Baptist church. It was a house of worship, a place where people go to feel safe, to commune with their leader in God and their faith. When something like this happens, it makes people scared to go to these places to commune with their gods. So we're asking that the city make a statement condemning what happened at Masada. Sure. We're asking that the city stand with the faith communities you know, and condemn this. An act like this. These are the lowest, vilest, bigoted haters, hateful people that would do something like this to a house of worship. Um, I can't express, like, you know, the feelings that I like. You know, I have for this. I would like council to do something about this. To come up with a way. I'm not a smart person, so I don't know. This is why I elected you to figure these things out. But I think that council needs to find a way to make these faith communities feel safe. Like, you know, in, you know, when we go to like, you know, these places. I would like to thank Councilman page and like say thank Councilwoman Doyle for getting back to me when I reached out to you. And I thank you for your concerns. Thank you. And I ask that you stand with us. I ask that everybody stand like you know who he is and what we're saying. I ask the city council. To stand with us, if you will. Thank you. Councilman page. Thank you everyone. Thank you. Lamont. Sally Goodes. Sally Goodes is followed by Fred Petite. We follow Sally. Good evening. I'm Mary Alexander and council. I'm Sally goodes. I live at 9419 Selby Place. I'm here tonight to speak about two topics of concern. The first related to the fear of the immigrant community and the requests of the Norfolk police and sheriff not enter into cooperative agreements with either the or CBP. The second, I mean, CPB, the second is to voice my concern for the safety of our Muslim brothers and sisters who are part of the community of the Mashhad following the vandalized, vandalizing and desecration there this past Sunday. Last week, I emailed Police Chief Talbert and requested an investigation about the TikTok video account of an alleged cooperation between Norfolk PD and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. I appreciate hearing tonight from Chief Talbot and about the investigation. I also appreciate hearing back from Councilman Smigel and also from Delegate Glass. While it has been reported that the investigation revealed the story was fabricated and did not occur, what is troubling is that the account in the video was so very believable, given what has already happened in the larger Hampton Roads community and our country. Again, not speaking specifically about this incident, but we recently saw Ice, target and chase a car, a brown young man on our highway so aggressively that the young man jumped from the car in fear and was struck and killed by a motorist. The immigrant community is living in great fear. They're staying home and keeping children home from school, and they do not know whether or not to trust the police. I ask that the city ensure that our ensure our community, the police will not use our city resources to help Ice or the Customs Border Protection, and to not help them enforce federal immigration law. Since April 2025, the sea this Customs and Border Protection folks have deported 50 migrant cruise workers from the Philippines from the Carnival Cruise Line that was docked right here in Norfolk and, according to my sources, has often not afforded them due process. The city benefits from this cruise line and bear some responsibility to look into this. I request to date the City of Norfolk commit to not cooperate with Ice for CBP beyond what is specifically required by federal law, and that the city police and other entities not enter into 287 agreements, detainers, or other contractual arrangements. Please also do not permit Norfolk Police officers to be part of joint task forces that cooperate with Ice. In 2019, we advocated strongly for Sheriff Barron to end his agreement to house Ice detainees, and we were relieved when he did not renew that agreement. The narrative hate demonizing of other immigrants has is harming all of us. It is this vitriol and hate speech that led to the hatred of led to the acts of vandalism, such as we saw Sunday night at Masjid Ashura. As a Quaker, I hold the members of our community in the light. I stand in support of the Muslim community and ask that we do all we can to protect their civil and human rights. There is a direct connection between the dehumanization of Muslims and the hate shown here on Sunday. I appreciate the investigations taking place and ask that the police investigate this hate crime. Thank you. Fred is followed by Mohammad Brahui. Thank you. I'll be brief. I think I speak more to these folks than I do to you. The Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia joins you in solidarity in asking for. Relief in this vandalism against your mosque. I speak on behalf of Bishop Haynes and in respectful proxy for old Joe Greene. Esteemed alumni of this community that would stand with you as well. If his soul was walking with us, we express our solidarity. South. Solidarity with your mosque. We condemn the acts of psychological violence against your people. The hate and intimidation perpetrated against our brothers and sisters at Al Sharif. Acts of exclusion and denial of America's religious pluralism are acts that deny the very truth of our national identity and degrade the quality of our community life. We entreat the Council and all city agencies to repudiate this regressive religious discrimination, and we stand alongside our Muslim friends and striving for justice and peace among all people, and respecting the dignity of every human being. I thank you for your time. Thank you. Mr. mayor. Mr. Vice Mayor, Council members and neighbors. I apologize for giving you my back. I can't put a motion on the table. Maybe I can make a suggestion to change the podium. So that way we face both entity. So. But my name is Mohammad Ravi. I reside in Talbot Road, Norfolk, and I like everybody else. I was, um. My heart sank when I heard that the shura was vandalized. And by the way, the message of Shura literally means that the message was a decision. Or the mosque or a decision are taken like this through consultations. That's what the name Means so. It's not just because it is a place of worship, but also because, um, um, it represents who we are as citizens of Norfolk. I know families who I care about them, who attend that mosque. I know, um, a community who they deeply give more than they take. So when an act like this happens, we have to come together and we have to condemn it. And the statement by the city council is will be the appropriate thing to to do. One of the things I have always loved about the city, and I have been here for 25 years, it's diversity. It's diversity is the vaccine is the immunization that we take against bigotry and against hatred and because racism. So as Muslims, our doors and our hearts are always open. Anybody have a question? And I know some of you. They visited the Islamic Center, uh, before. Have any question, please have any concern. Come to see us anytime. Okay. Our faith teaches us compassion. Mercy. But it teaches us justice. So the police chief is here. We rely on his investigation. We have full faith in his team that it could be a kid who knows who is the perpetrator. But the point is that every process has a beginning and has an end. Except bigotry, hatred and racism. They all must end where they start. Right there should not give them a chance to flourish. So I urge you to all issue a statement condemning what happened. Thank you for allowing us to speak and thank you for standing with the Muslim community. Thank you. Mr.. Rashid. Rashid. Good evening, honorable Mayor Alexander and members of Norfolk City Council. I wish to mention, in addition to what has been said about Masjid Ashura. And as you know, Islamophobia is on the rise. And for the last of my address, I forgot. Sorry. I live at 912 Tipton Street, Norfolk, Virginia, 23513. Um, as you know, uh, Islamophobia is on, has been on the rise for some time, and this administration has made things much worse than they were before. uh, a few years ago, right here in the city of Norfolk. A friend of mine and I, it was time for our our evening prayer. And we were attending a, a a college graduation, and we found a quiet place to perform our prayers. And while we were praying, we had nothing with us except the program officer stood behind us and watched us while we were, while we were praying, and while we were down upon our face, just as Jesus Christ did in Matthew 2639, he unbuckled his arm. You could hear him loosening the strap on his weapon. And my friend became very, um, uh, fearful. And I kind of glanced at him and we continued our prayer. When we finished, uh, he asked, are we finished? And I said, yes, sir, we are. So he said, okay, get back to the program. So that was just a thing that happened here. A number of kids, young girls while riding school, buses that wear scarves, and sometimes the kids pull their scarves. And across the country, a number of Muslim kids have been attacked. One Afghan girl was even stabbed with the pencil by another 12 year old, and she remained in hospital for for 3 or 4 days in Houston, Texas. A girl was violently attacked in the middle school just for wearing a hijab. San Francisco, also a kid, a 12 year old in Connecticut, was charged with a hate crime for beating up two twin girls. Um, also, just last week, a Somali couple went into a store, and, um, they, they would call all kinds of names because they were wearing their Muslim attire and they called them The the N-word and the the person that was filming it decided to show it on, um, um, Facebook, on social media. And the young lady that called these names has raised they have raised more than two years of salary for her for, for doing these kinds of hate crimes. And, um, as you, as you, as, you know, um, well, that's that's the end of my, uh, I wish this end here. Thank you. Tiffany Robinson. Thank you. Tiffany Robinson, 1519 Vine Street, Norfolk, Virginia. I'm happy that the, um, police chief is here. My name is Tiffany Robinson. And what happened to me in Norfolk is not a misunderstanding or a single error. It is a political failure, a symptomatic failure, and a public safety crisis that exposes deep structural problems across Norfolk Police, APS, Sentara and Norfolk court system. On October 2022, I was given a simple summons. I was never arrested. I was signed. I signed the summons and I went home. But Norfolk Police falsely coded the encounter as an arrest. Their own foyer response states, which I have here. The false entry becomes the arrest action that is noted as a criminal summons with a deposition of clear by arrest. That false entry became a government created lie. One I never had a chance to see, challenge or correct in that lie. Spread it silently through apps, through hospitals, through courts and through every system connected to my livelihood and my license as a caregiver. Months later, when I appeared in court as the summons required, I was ambushed. I was taken into custody. Right there in the courtroom. No trial date, no due process, no opportunity to defend myself. The judge used my appearance as a trial. Rely entirely on the false arrest label in the Norfolk system. I was prosecuted based on a digital fiction, but it didn't stop there. Apps used the same false information to justify ambushing me again, this time by filing for guardianship over a vulnerable adult who was already under my legal care. I was the durable power of attorney. Legally appointed, legally documented, and actively caring for him. Yet apps bypassed me completely and filed a guardianship petition using the same false police data, Violating my legal authority and undermining the rights of the very person I was entrusted to protect. That guardianship action set off a chain of events that contribute to his suffering and death, and nobody in the city stopped it, even when they knew I held power and had standing. This false arrest entry was not an eternal mistake. It became a weapon. Norfolk Police wrote it in the foyer. Adult Protective Services was notified by the case by a patrol officer. Not because of evidence, not because of abuse, and because of the false computer code. The false code damaged my reputation, destroyed my business opportunity, and allow APS, Sentara and Court actors to treat me as a criminal when there is no arrest and no conviction. This is a government defamation under the Virginia law. It is defamation per se, because it directly harmed my occupational and my professional standing. And when I tried to obtain the records that expose how this happened, the city withheld almost everything I will be releasing recordings of the APS director admitting she is the policy maker here in the city of Norfolk. I will be releasing these recordings tonight. Elizabeth. Elizabeth. Elizabeth. Yes. Elizabeth will. Be followed. By Annie. Overton. Good evening. My name is Elizabeth, and I am an American citizen of Puerto Rican descent. I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, and I moved here to Virginia nine years ago. I am married to Sergeant first class, Army veteran who served this nation for 22 years and is now retired as a Brown woman. In today's climate, I wake up each day unsure of how I people or or people who look like me will be judged before we even speak. Some days it just feels like we're living in a real life version of Hunger Games. No Americans should have to live with that kind of fear. I am the oldest of four. My sisters and brothers, we are of every shade. I have a sister, dark chocolate. My brother is blonde, blue eyes and me and the smallest, we are brown. We share the same mom and same dad. Puerto Rican families look like the whole world and we don't see color as a divider. My cousin can look like you. My mom can look like you. My Theo can look like you. But outside, people often judge us before they even know us. Recently, this fear has grown because of what we're witnessing from Ice in our community. I have seen people who are not resisting are thrown through the ground and treated as they are violent criminals. We were told Ice was only targeting those people with serious crimes. But this is not what we are seeing. Many families have reported that people are being stopped simply because of how they look, how they speak, or where they live, many being U.S. citizens. This is profiling discrimination that is tearing families apart. We all want safety, but there is a difference between enforcing the law and overstepping it. When people are taken without proper investigation or due process, whole neighborhoods become afraid to go to work, go to school, go to the store, even go to the doctor. Communities are feeling hunted instead of being protected. Let me be clear. Immigrants, document or undocumented, are some of the hardest working people in this country. They take care of their families here and back home. They work long hours, pay taxes, contribute to our culture, and keep our economy moving. Puerto Ricans have served this country with pride for generations. My family has a long history of military Services. We are teachers, business owners, nurses, doctors, public servants and even volunteers whenever we are needed. We show up for this country every single day. So when Americans and citizens like me feel unsafe because of our skin colors, it is a sign that something is deeply wrong. The land of the free. We say let Americans stand for unity, not division. Let America stand for hope and not negativity. Let Americans stand for fairness and not injustice. Let Americans stand for freedom and not fear. When we started this meeting today, we started with the Pledge of Allegiance. And the last sentence says, with liberty and justice for all. It says, for all means, everyone. We're all human. Good evening everyone. I'm Annie Overton. I actually live in Suffolk. I do business here in Norfolk. Um, I didn't prepare anything formal because I think it's important that you feel what's on my heart. And I have a two year old son raising him. And the. The world that we're in right now is breaking my heart. Whether that video that happened, allegedly not who knows in Norfolk is true or not. The fact that that exists, the ability to create something like that exists is terrifying. And I'm a white woman, okay? I have privilege that other people do not have. And it is absolutely terrifying to me that we have gone through 2020 and we're now in 2025, in dealing with this same kind of issue. Nobody deserves the hate that is completely engulfing our cities across the country right now. I, I can feel pretty confident in saying that a majority of the folks that are behind me right now would stand if I asked them if they were for due process. Would you guys stand if you're in favor of due process? Okay, great. Thank you. I would imagine a majority of you are to due process is a foundation of our country and we need to do better. We need for y'all to to deny working with Ice. We need to protect our immigrant families. We need to protect people who are different, that look different than us, and who work the hard harder than any of us do. We can't even imagine. We cannot even imagine y'all sitting up here, a majority of the people behind me. We cannot imagine the hardships that come from leaving your home country, going somewhere where you don't speak the language, and and then not even being able to leave to go to the grocery store. I have nothing further but do better. Rob Bracknell. Lisa below. Yes. Welcome. Good evening, I'm Lisa. I live at 1720 Blair Avenue in Norfolk, and I wanted to share a specific case that I'm familiar with personally of how Ice has affected, um, Hispanic families, children specifically. And it involves HCD. So I became acquainted with a teenager and her father, who was brought from Belize to get treatment at HK, which has a relationship with Belize, the nephrology department. The relationship with Belize and offers consulting. So they were at the Ronald McDonald House. Um, the teenager has end stage kidney disease. The father is approved as a donor. So they came here for dialysis treatment and, um, to plan for, um, the transplant surgery at VCU. So, you know, when you do that, you get a medical visa. Um, the Department of Homeland Security provides the visa with HKD, and there for six months, you can only be under treatment or a caregiver. You can't work with the medical visa. That's all you can do. But these processes can take a long time. When your visa is up, you you apply for a renewal. Well, once Trump came in they don't they don't have personnel. They're not renewing them. So that means they're continued to stay here to get their dialysis and still waiting for a date. These bureaucracies, the hospitals can take a long time. Um, they've been here a year and a half, and it has worked out. They have gotten their their transplant. However, in the meantime, they and other people at Ronald McDonald House getting treatment at CHP live in fear because they're Hispanic and they're walking around with expired visa, you know, an expired visa. Um, I have also heard stories of children being taken out of CHC. I don't know the specifics of it. They may have been local children here being treated that are undocumented, but the community doesn't know what happened to them. So what I'm here for, is there something that the city can do that can keep them out of our hospitals, our urgent care? I mean, parents are afraid to let their children go to school. They're afraid to get medical care. They're afraid to be out on the street someplace where they could be picked up. So. Hospitals. Ronald McDonald house urgent care. Is there a way for you to to protect them or prevent that kind of, you know, harassment? That's what I wanted to ask. Thank you. Thank you. Laura rose. Hello. My name is Laura. I live at 381 Cherry Street, um. Here. In Norfolk. Um, a. Recent social media post that you guys are all now aware of levied the accusation that our local police department was conducting ride alongs with Ice agents in Norfolk. Um, recent immigration cases created have created an atmosphere of fear within our community, leading to an immediate, terrified response from community members after it was alleged that MPD was cooperating with Ice without a public disclosure of a 287 agreement. While the validity of that report has been called into question, it has raised several valid fears and concerns among members of our community. First, as a team member for Southampton Roads, indivisible, seeking clarity on the situation for our member newsletter. After it happened so that we were able to update people in our community about whether or not the accusation was true. We were unable to contact a member of the MPD Public Affairs office to get clarity or any comments on the situation. What is the process for members of our community to contact MPD about these concerns, so that we are able to share them with our community members that participate in these groups? Because after a full day of more than ten members of our Norfolk steering committee, I still haven't gotten a response, both showing up in person online and making calls over the phone. I believe, Mr. Roberts, you were who I spoke to over the year. You didn't speak with me. Oh, was it. Not spoken. With me? Um, the it was someone from the city manager's office that I spoke with over the phone that said that we would get a follow up call for our community newsletter, and we heard from no one. Uh, still to this point, which is why we continued to come here tonight. Um, second is the very real fears of public safety and humane treatment of Norfolk residents on October 20th. In October of 2025, Jose Castro Riviera, a 24 year old Honduran man, was fatally struck by a vehicle on Interstate 264, in Norfolk, Virginia, while attempting to flee from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in January of 2025. A man posing as an Ice agent just hours away from here in North Carolina, brutally kidnapped and raped a young woman in North Carolina. Speaking to the police and reporters after the incident, the woman stated that she was fearful to call the police because she was not sure if anyone would help her. She believed at the time of. She believed at the time of her assault that she was being assaulted by a federal agent. My questions for Norfolk City Council and for the Norfolk Police and Sheriff's Department is, will MPD defend citizens of Norfolk from assault and use of excessive force by federal agents? And will MPD publicly commit to not cooperate with Ice operations in our community community without a warrant or a subpoena? Gerald. Gabe. Harold. Gabe. Harold. Followed by Harry. Julian. Hello, Councilman. I know you might have missed me. I was up in New York making a movie. Um, so ironically, that is where. Uh. Oh. Before I do that, I should say my address right now. My address is 521 Boissevain Avenue, apartment 28 B in Norfolk, Virginia. That's going to be my address for just a couple more weeks until I'm rent evicted from my house. So I was up in New York where, uh, light. Well, development is based, by the way, that's the company who bought Pelham Place. Um, rent is pretty high up there. It's about $60,000 a month in, uh, in the off season, to the point that I thought I had Zillow on by not rent $60,000 a month. Uh, and we have people from up there coming down here and buying our property and buying so many properties that they can then look to other property and say, well, at least it's not that high. Well, the one that they're saying is at least it's not that high. Is surprise also owned by them? Artificial inflation. Um, and I'm talking about a few things tonight, and, and it all kind of goes together. I'm seeing as I'm listening to everybody talk, and I know we're all tired, and I know that we're all worn out, but it's really important that this gets said. It ties into the ice situation that happened recently. I don't know if if you all are familiar with how good AI has gotten. Artificial intelligence has gotten really, really, really good. There was a time where people said, you can tell by looking at the hands and blah, blah, blah. Well, we're well past that. And my question is, why is it less believable that that video that was posted on TikTok was created by AI, then that it actually did happen here. Why is that less believable that a computer model made that up? It's more believable that it did happen here because it's happening everywhere. And we know that Ice says, yeah, well, they'll accept military ID will Ice says a lot of things. Ice doesn't tell the truth. So as a citizen of Norfolk who was born in DePaul hospital, which is now demolished and owned by the people who own the Barry Robinson Center, who have children run out in the street, I ask, where is rent ready? I've emailed them. I haven't gotten a response. And what's the deal with the non renewals with with tenants, residents of Norfolk and non renewals for people on visa programs. People who are seeking medical care. And in the words of The Lorax by Doctor Seuss, they say, unless you care a whole awful lot, something, nothing will change. It's just not. Will caring. A lot of people here care. We see that we've spent the last two and a half, three hours James Cameron length time seeing the people who care. We need something done and we need it done now. And that's non-negotiable. Good evening, I'm Ari Julien. My pronouns are Zamir and I live at 400 Burley Avenue. Just, uh, Chesapeake. Norfolk, Virginia. Um, I've only been a citizen of Norfolk for Three months now. Um, I done a lot of research trying to learn about, um, the city of Norfolk. There is a couple of things that concern me. One of the concerns is public safety. There was 414 calls from 20 to 20 to 2024 about police complaints. Um, and with that being said, I've listened to the stories tonight. I'm a volunteer. I volunteer at least 3 to 5 days a week. And I'm feeding people I know housing is just as important. I'm not, um, deflecting that. But, um, you can't live without food. And that's where I chose to volunteer. My time and kids are being left at school because their parents are being picked up for non-criminal Offenses. Um. People are afraid to come to our food pantry for food that's free. Free because they're scared to be seen out in public. It's a real thing. I don't know anything about the the about what? The police was here speaking about earlier. I don't know anything about the high speed chase. I do not use social media. What I can say is I am on the buses in city of Norfolk. I am at your food pantries. I am sitting up at night crying, wondering if this child is going to have parents to come home to, like it's real and I can't do anything. Y'all can do something. I'm one person and sitting at home crying as a white woman that you guys see. I'm not a white woman, but I know that's what the people see of me. It just hurts. I want to see more. I want to see more for Ariana Mitchell. I want to see more for George Floyd. I want to see more for Breonna Taylor. I want to see more for my. Puerto Rican family. My daughter is Puerto Rican. I have another daughter. She's 13. She came to me and asked me, um, if she held her eyes open. More like this. Does she look more white passing? She's Filipino and she's scared. She's an American citizen and I don't have the answers, so I'm asking you all to have the answers. I'm asking y'all to fix this. I hope y'all have a great night.