409 S. Main Street

City of Harrisonburg

Harrisonburg, VA 22801

Meeting Minutes - Final

City Council

Tuesday, March 10, 2026

7:00 PM

Council Chambers

Roll Call

5 -

Present:

Mayor Deanna R. Reed, Vice-Mayor Dany Fleming, Council Member Laura Dent,

Council Member Nasser Alsaadun and Council Member Monica Robinson

Also Present:

City Manager Ande Banks, City Attorney Chris Brown, City Clerk Pam Ulmer, Chief

Matthew Tobia and Police Chief Joseph Tucker

Moment of Silence

Mayor Reed offered a moment of silence

Pledge of Allegiance

Mayor Reed led the Pledge of Allegiance

Special Recognition

Proclamation recognizing March 2026 as Youth Art Month

4.a.

Mayor Reed read the proclamation recognizing March, 2026 as Youth Art Month, to

Eva Camunas, art teacher at Spotswood Elementary.

4.b.

Consider approving remote participation.

Chris Brown, City Attorney, stated that Council Member Dent would like to attend the

meeting via virtual platform as she is ill. This requires the approval of Council.

motion was made by Vice Mayor Fleming, seconded by Council Member Alsaadun, to

approve the remote participation. The motion carried with a unanimous voice vote.

Consent Agenda (any item placed on the consent agenda shall be removed and

taken up as a separate matter, if so requested by any member of Council, otherwise all

items will be voted on with one (1) motion)

motion was made by Council Member Robinson, seconded by Vice-Mayor Fleming, to

approve the Consent Agenda.

follows:

The motion carried with a recorded roll call vote taken as

5 -

Yes:

Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Fleming, Council Member Dent, Council Member

Alsaadun and Council Member Robinson

No:

5.a.

5.b.

5.c.

Consider a request from Todd B. Stone to rezone a portion of 2600 and 2580 South

Main Street

This rezoning request was approved on second reading

Proposed Amendments to Ordinance Section 15-2-24- Fowl, Chickens and Other

Domestic Birds

These ordinance amendments were approved on second reading

Minutes from the February 24, 2026 City Council meeting

These minutes were approved on the consent agenda

Public Hearings

Consider the Disposal of Public Property Located at 301 S. Main Street

6.a.

Chris Brown, city attorney, presented a request to approve the sale of city owned real

estate located at 301 S. Main Street (Quilt Museum). He presented the sales contract

for review and noted some of the historical preservation required by the purchaser

(preservation to the footprint of the property, the front porch, exterior wood detailing,

interior fire places, original radiators etc.)

At 7:07 pm Mayor Reed closed the regular session and called the first public hearing

to order. A notice appeared in the Daily News-Record on Monday, March 2, 2026.

Annie McDonald and John Buller, 360 Ott Street, purchasers, reviewed their purpose

of purchasing the house and hopes to be a part of the artistic hub in the downtown

area.

Rita Peters, 7586 Stoney Lick Road, Mt. Crawford, spoke on the cash offer made to

purchase this property that was not accepted.

Panayotis “Poti” Giannakouros, spoke against the approval of this item.

At 7:16 p.m., Mayor Reed closed the public hearing and the regular session

reconvened.

Discussion took place regarding the acceptance of this contract, how it supports

residents and small businesses of the city, and how the proposed purpose of the

property fits with the vision of downtown.

A motion was made by Council Member Robinson, seconded by Council Member Dent, that

this item be approved. The motion carried with a recorded roll call vote taken as follows:

5 -

Yes:

Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Fleming, Council Member Dent, Council Member

Alsaadun and Council Member Robinson

No:

Regular Items

7.a.

Consider a request from The Edge Realty Partners LLC for variances from the

Subdivision Ordinance related to street design standards for an undeveloped portion

of Franklin Street located between parcels addressed as 625 and 630 Franklin Street

Adam Fletcher, director of Community Development, presented a request for a

subdivision variance at property located at 625 and 630 Franklin Street and 765 E

Market Street. He reviewed the property, the history of the rezoning of this property,

and the requested variance to the vertical curvature of the street.

He stated staff and Planning Commission (5-0) recommended approval with the

condition as presented.

A motion was made by Council Member Robinson, seconded by Council Member Dent, the

variance request be approved with conditions as presented.

recorded roll call vote taken as follows:

The motion carried with a

5 -

Yes:

Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Fleming, Council Member Dent, Council Member

Alsaadun and Council Member Robinson

No:

Presentation on the State of the Schools

7.b.

Tim Howley, chair of HCPS School Board, shared information on the school system in the

city.

Dr. Michael Richards, superintendent, presented the state of the schools in the city. He

reviewed the following:

Vital relationships

Potential student population increase

SOL Scores

Stats 101

Context of SOL's and HCPS

Funding disadvantages

HCEP - Growth and opportunity

HCPS Focus: Authentic Student Success

Rich Learning Opportunities

Focus on literacy

Meeting basic needs

Developing community partnerships

Recruiting and retaining talent

Discussion took place on numerous topics, including the potential of needing additional

schools in the future and the associated impact on resources, disparity in outcomes for

different groups of students and how those students are served, how to best assess

academic progress, staffing levels, and parent engagement strategies.

This Presentation was received and filed.

7.c.

Consider adopting a Resolution ratifying a Real Estate Contract between the City and

7-11, Inc.

Chris Brown, city attorney, presented a resolution ratifying a real estate contract to

purchase real estate located on N. Mason Street that connects to the current Fire

Station 4. He stated this parcel would allow for the extension and flexibility of the

construction/renovation of Fire Station 4.

motion was made by Council Member Robinson, seconded by Vice-Mayor Fleming, to

adopt the resolution as presented.

as follows:

The motion carried with a recorded roll call vote taken

5 -

Yes:

Mayor Reed, Vice-Mayor Fleming, Council Member Dent, Council Member

Alsaadun and Council Member Robinson

No:

7.d.

Consider adopting a resolution terminating the Declaration of Local Emergency dated

January 24, 2026.

Chris Brown, city attorney, presented an ordinance to terminate the Declaration of

Local Emergency made on January 27, 2026.

motion was made by Vice-Mayor Fleming, seconded by Council Member Robinson, the

ordinance be approved as presented.

taken as follows:

The motion carried with a recorded roll call vote

5 -

Yes:

Vice-Mayor Fleming, Council Member Dent, Council Member Alsaadun, Council

Member Robinson and Mayor Reed

No:

Other Matters

8.a. Comments from the public, limited to five minutes, on matters not on the regular

agenda. (Name and address are required)

The following spoke against the use of the Automated License Plate Recognition

system contracted through Flock Safety in Harrisonburg:

Noah Etka, 85 Campbell St.

Leah Heller, 85 Campbell St.

Rachel Bernstein,

Ethan Morris, 210 Ohio Ave

Isaac Andreas, 1140 Parkway Drive

Linda Plitt-Donaldson, 1135 Sumter Court

Holly Stravers, 1522 Hillside Ave.

Molly Skidmore, 967 Central Ave.

David Shenk, 1531 College Ave.

Greta Kreider, 1018 College Ave.

Jacob Hess, 215 Monte Vista Drive

Alexandria Loginov, 525 N. Willow St.

Jason Hostetter 700 Ott St.

Heidi Jablonski, 60 Broad St.

Nathan Coffman, 852 Hillside Ave.

Chloe Williamson, 742 Madison St.

Giles Eanes, 451 E Gay St.

Jacob Sider Jost - 971 Summit Ave.

Allie Haverty, 631 E. Rock St.

Sara Kurtz, 606 E. Rock St.

Ben Bailey 508 E. Wolfe St

Austin Showalter, 601 Franklin St

Lori Lichti 1220 Old Windmill Cir.

Glenda Leonard,

Theresa Hinkley,

Kate Nelson,

Cameron Biller,

Luke Anderson, 1300 Greystone St

Public Comments received for items not on the agenda

Recess

Mayor Reed had to leave unexpectedly and called a recess at 9:40 pm

Meeting reconvened at 9:45pm with Vice Mayor Fleming in control.

8.a. Comments from the public, limited to five minutes, on matters not on the regular

agenda. (Name and address are required)

The following spoke against the use of the Automated License Plate Recognition

system contracted through Flock Safety in Harrisonburg: (continued)

Erin Kiser,

Hanna Whitmer,

Stan Bottcher, 295 Hill St.

Ben Wise, 209 5th St.

Jenna,

resident of Old town,

Sam, student

Tom Domonoske, 461 Lee Avenue, thanked the city for the solar panels installed at

the Turner Pavilion; spoke on civic engagement;

Panayotis “Poti” Giannakouros, spoke on a recent presentation at VMRC on Urban

Renewal; FOIA requests;

8.b. City Council and Staff

Council Member Dent spoke on the recent VA250 dinner, International Women's Day;

and the upcoming NLC Congressional City Conference

Council Member Robinson spoke on the recent VMRC presentation and International

Women's Day.

Vice Mayor Fleming spoke on the recent VA250 dinner, a recent Student Government

Forum; a meeting he had with Chief Tucker and residents of the city on Flock

Cameras; a recent General Assembly bill that did not get approved; and the

upcoming NLC Congressional City Conference;

Adjournment

At 10:16 p.m., there being no further business and on motion adopted, the meeting

was adjourned.

________________________

CITY CLERK

________________________

MAYOR