THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 30, 1996 TAG: 9610300411
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KAREN WEINTRAUB, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: 68 lines
The City Council plans to ask local legislators to lobby for more state money for public health, libraries and the Virginia Marine Science Museum.
Those are some of the items on the annual legislative wish list to be forwarded to the General Assembly.
The council also plans to repeat its regular request for an after-Labor Day start in the state's public schools, so the Oceanfront tourist industry doesn't lose a large chunk of its work force during the height of the season.
Mayor Meyera E. Oberndorf said the list would not be complete, however, until the council could hold a public hearing to solicit ideas from civic leaders about the city's needs in the 1997 legislative session.
The council has not scheduled the hearing, but will likely hold it in mid-to-late November.
There has been no public input to this point, and council members have not added any requests to the wish list compiled by the city's staff.
The council is expected to ask the General Assembly delegation to lobby for an annual $500,000 state grant for the Virginia Marine Science Museum. The state already offers Norfolk's Chrysler Museum an annual operating subsidy, Beach officials noted.
The city staff also suggested the council ask the delegation to simplify the process for closing streets. Now, the council has to appoint ``viewers'' to oversee the closure, hold a public hearing on the closure and make a formal decision to close the street. The staff suggested that viewers be appointed on an annual basis, rather than street by street, to avoid the need to make so many appointments.
Several council members, including Oberndorf, expressed concern about that change, saying they worried it would make it harder for the public to learn about street closures. City staff members said they would explore other ways of notifying the public about closures, besides the appointment of viewers.
The draft legislative package also recommends:
Changes to the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act enforcement process to bring it in line with other state environmental protection laws.
Changes to the city code to allow the Beach to put more emphasis on the aesthetics of road projects, specifically the proposed Southeastern Parkway and Greenbelt.
Shortening the process by which unsafe buildings are secured, repaired and demolished so that the city can move faster to address hazardous structures.
Studying the need and funding mechanisms for large convention centers across the state. The council has discussed the possibility of building a new convention center near the Oceanfront to attract more convention business.
Removing a state tax that is imposed exclusively on Virginia Beach. State law is written so that the tax - imposed on tax cases instituted by the city treasurer or by the School Board for collection of overdue book fees - only pertains to cities with populations of more than 300,000. The Beach is the only city in the state with that many people.
Filling in a loophole in the law that allows people to avoid convictions for drug running if they hire someone else to transport the drugs for them.
Altering the state code concerning property seized from illegal drug transactions to comply with federal law.
Changing the process by which condemnation proposals are reviewed. Now, the city and the owner of the land to be condemned each appoint two commissioners to review the process and they toss a coin to appoint the fifth commission member. City officials said they would like to see a more equitable process and suggested switching to a system employed by Fairfax County, in which average citizens serving jury duty in the local courts would be chosen to serve as commissioners.
KEYWORDS: GENERAL ASSEMBLY WISH LIST by CNB