November, 2001 - Volume 86, No. 3
ACCF Meets on Second Tuesday
To Pass Legislation Package
Not on
Election Day!
NOVEMBER GENERAL MEETING
7:30 pm, Tuesday, November 13th
Virginia Hospital Center
Hospital Conference Center
1701 N. George Mason Drive
In order to accommodate our members who will be working at the polls or
anxiously awaiting the outcome of the elections, we will hold our meeting
this month on the second Tuesday, instead of the first Tuesday as is our
custom! Here�s our agenda for November Meeting:
November General Meeting
- Reports and Special Recognition
- Resolution of Finance Committee
- Consideration of the Legislative Package
The principal task for this meeting will be to adopt our Legislative
Package for 2001-2002. Inside this issue of The Civic Voice, you�ll find
the basic format and rules we will use for this meeting as well as the draft
legislation package (see the attachment at the end of this email). Please
take the time to read these before arriving.
County Forum on Emergency Preparedness
The County has announced plans for a Community Forum on Emergency
Preparedness and Bioterrorism at 7 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 8, in the County
Board Room at 2100 Clarendon Blvd. The forum is open to the public and will
be broadcast live on the County�s Cable Channel (Channel 31). Residents
will be able to submit questions either prior to the program via e-mail to
publicaffairs@co.arlington.va.us via fax to 703-228-3295 or via the
County�s home page. The Federation�s Public Services Committee has prepared
a wide range of questions for this forum, which can be reviewed at our web
site at www.civfed.org. You can submit additional questions yourself (see
above) or pass them along to our committee via Tori Gorman at
tgorman223@hotmail.com. The Federation is keenly interested in County
emergency plans in order to help our members understand what citizens should
know and do in the event of another attack or something as simple as a
weather related emergency. Our members are encouraged to tune in or attend!
Airport Reopens � With New Routes, Rules
As everyone is aware, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is open
again � and that affects many of us. Since we were told new flight rules
are in effect, your Federation President contacted the Airport�s Noise
Liaison Office as well as talking with a visiting airline pilot to learn
about the new routes and rules. While many route options were considered,
the new Northern arrival and departure route follows a straight line
connecting the end of the runway to the West end of the 14th Street Bridge
and continues almost due-North over Rosslyn (crossing over the Wilson
School) and then skirts along the North side of the Potomac, along the
straight line route previously used in poor weather conditions. The main
difference now is that the pilots will leave the engines at the higher
thrust settings, rather than using reduced power for climbout. The
Federation will closely follow this issue for future changes.
A Multitude of Announcements
Arlington Veterans Day ObservanceOn Sunday, November 11th at 1:00 p.m., the local Posts of the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars will conduct a ceremony honoring our county�s servicemen and women and
celebrating the freedoms they have secured for us. If you have time to
attend, don�t miss this moving ceremony held at Arlington�s own memorial,
located in the triangle just East of the intersection of Washington, Wilson
and Clarendon Blvds. As we have in past years, the Federation will present
a wreath and express our appreciation to all our veterans.
Federation Extends Condolences
The Federation was saddened to hear that the father of Scott McGeary (prior
past president) passed away last month. Our thoughts and prayers are with
you and your family, Scott.
Arlington Public Schools to Conduct a Customer Survey
At the APS�s
request, the Univ. of Maryland Survey Research Center will be conducting a
satisfaction survey and will be contacting community members and parents via
telephone. You may receive a phone call during February or March, letting
you know that you�ve been selected to participate in the sample group.
Please spread the word about the survey and encourage your members to
participate. Questions can be directed to Lisa Stengle in the APS Office of
Planning and Evaluation at (703)-228-6010.
Parks Committee Off to a Busy Year
Judy Green, Co-chair of our Parks
Committee, advises that their next meeting will be held Thursday, November
15th, in the Fairlington Community Center, 3308 S. Stafford St. in Room 4 at
7:30 p.m.. If your organization has any Parks issues, please take the time
to attend!
Arlington Community Foundation Establishes Prompt Response Fund
With the
downturn in the economy and the shutdown of Ronald Reagan National Airport
for a period of time, business closures and layoffs continue to impact
residents and non-profit agencies alike. Some fiscal relief from State and
Federal disaster funds will be available in the future, but how soon funding
is forthcoming is problematic for those facing financial crises today.
Vicki Kirkbride, Executive Director of the Arlington Community Foundation,
reports that an anonymous donor has contributed funds to help establish the
Foundation�s �Prompt Response Fund� � targeted to assist Arlington�s
disaster relief and recovery efforts. Non-profit agencies can apply to the
fund at any time and grant requests are being fastracked (3-5 days) so
monies can reach agencies quickly. If you�d like to contribute to this
fund, contact Vicki Kirkbride at (703) 243-4785.
Film About Four-Mile Run A Hit
Randy Swart, the Federation�s past
president, has given a rave review to a film directed and produced by Falls
Church ecologist Dave Eckert. The film, Four Mile Run: Reviving an Urban
Stream was shown October 24th at the State Theater. Randy reports that the photography and narration in this four-part series (1/2 hour each) about the revival of a stream that runs across our county is superb and would make a great program for civic association meetings. For information, contact Dave Eckert at 703-532-0884 or send him a note at 109 W. Westmoreland Rd.,
Falls Church 22046.
Special Rules For Considering The Legislative Package At November Meeting
After approving the agenda for the meeting, delegates will need to agree
on how to handle the legislation package, the addenda and motions from
individual members. The planned procedures are described below.
The Main Package -- The main part of the Legislation package consists of
those measures that the Federation�s Legislation Committee has voted
unanimously to include (or retained from past years) in the package. If the
special rules are adopted for the meeting, we will take a single vote to
accept or reject this package as a whole. If the �vote to accept� fails, we
will consider each section separately.
Addenda Items -- During their deliberations, there were items that the
Legislation Committee failed to achieve unanimous agreement on. Those
measures that were supported by a majority of the committee members will be
presented as topics to be voted on separately by the whole membership. If
approved, they will be incorporated into the overall package.
Items Proposed by Delegates -- While we have encouraged everyone to
attend the Legislation Committee�s meetings, it�s only fair to let issues
proposed by delegates be considered by the whole membership. However, to
prevent �sneak attacks� on the Legislation Package, the Executive Committee
has agreed (as it did last year) to require submission of issues by
individual members not later than 3 days before the meeting. Proponents of
items must forward such proposals in writing to either the Legislation
Committee Chair or the Civic Federation President. They will also need to
place 75 copies of their proposal on the table in the lobby of the Hospital�
s Hazel Conference Center by 7:15 p.m. on November 13th.
Prioritizing Our Issues -- This year, the Executive Committee has
recommended that the Federation select a few proposals from the legislative
package to define priority issues for action by the State Legislature, the
County Board, or the United States Congress. These would be the issues for
which we would like to hold our elected representatives and officials most
accountable. During this meeting, each delegate will have an opportunity to
select his or her 5 top priority items from the adopted package. The votes
will be tallied, and the Federation�s top 5 priorities will be presented as
a separate document to our officials and representatives.
Next Month � School Board Visit
Next month�s general meeting will feature a visit by our Arlington
School Board members. The Federation�s Schools Committee has submitted a
series of questions to the School Board. The questions generated by the
Schools Committee can be viewed at our website, �www.civfed.org� Additional
questions will be taken from members at the meeting.
Baseball Stadium Issue Reappears
Once again, the issue of locating a major league baseball stadium has
been raised. The October 27th issue of the Washington Post (page D4)
indicated that our local Congressional delegation had asked Baseball
Commissioner Bud Selig to make rule changes to establish (or move) a team
into a �landmark stadium� in Arlington. When contacted by local papers, the
Federation President reiterated that the Federation had opposed the Twin
Bridges site proposal in 1996 and kept a statement in the Federation�s
annual legislative package opposing funding a stadium. The ACCF President
re-affirmed the Federation�s support for member civic associations that
would be impacted by the additional noise, traffic and parking problems
which a site in the Pentagon/Pentagon City area would impose.
Proposed "9/11 Scholarship Fund" Resolution for Public Safety Employee Children on November Meeting Agenda
The Finance Committee has developed a "9/11 Scholarship" resolution for
the November general membership meeting. The fund is the idea of Tim Reese,
President of the Arlington-East Falls Church Civic Association. Tim noted
that many residents have wanted to do "something extra" in recognition of
the heroism and magnificent response demonstrated by the Arlington County
Fire, Police, and Sheriff�s Deputies in the September 11th attack on the
Pentagon. The resolution proposes establishing a fund to provide
scholarships for college-bound children of Arlington County Fire, Police,
Sheriff�s Deputies and E-911 Emergency Center personnel who have served 10
years or more for the county (or children of those who were disabled or lost
their lives while serving). The Arlington Community Foundation has agreed
to administer the fund (if approved), relieving the Federation of
substantial paperwork and making the fund a charitable contribution (for tax
purposes). That will also permit donation designations via the United Way
and CFC payroll plans. Public safety supervisors and union leaders have
uniformly praised the idea, expressing their appreciation for such
recognition. A number of member Civic Associations and Organizations have
already pledged to support the fund, if passed. Federation President Jim
Pebley and Finance Committee members Kim Smith, Tim Wise, Tim Reese and Pat
Smaldore can be contacted for more information about this fund. The
proposed resolution can be viewed at the Federation�s Website at
�www.civfed.org�.
[ed. note � This fund is a great idea � something extra that we can do � but
let�s not forget to continue to support the other funds and charities that
continue to count on us � let�s not make them causalities of 9/11, too! �
j.p.]
A Note From Your President
Life has slowly moved on from the disaster that struck us in September.
While many things have changed in our world, we have resumed many of our
routines and endeavor to make things normal once again despite the threat of
future acts of terror. As a baby boomer, I am reminded of growing up under
the threat of nuclear war. We feared it. We drilled for it in school.
Fleets of armed bombers flew alert missions around the clock. And yet, we
lived with it � we bought cars, we built homes and we planned for the
future. Ours is a culture borne of freedom and liberty that is both
resilient and enduring.
On October 25th, I met with our County Board Chairman, Jay Fisette to
deliver the resolutions passed at October�s meeting and to talk about other
concerns. While the half hour meeting was cut short, I focused on the
following issues: -
Infill Resolution � I noted the membership wants to see more information on
impacts of proposed zoning ordinance changes on existing homeowners.
Fire Department Resolutions � Despite the current political rhetoric, I
reported that the membership is very much united behind the County resolving
the staffing and inspection problems.
- Resumption of Airport Operations � While the Federation is encouraged to see
the economic hardships of the closure lessened, our members continue to be
concerned about arrival and departure routes over the County and the impact
on safety, noise and quality of life. Mr. Fisette invited the Federation to
speak to Board Member Barbara Favola, who represents the County on the
airport noise abatement committee of the Council of Governments.
- I-66 Widening Proposals � I reiterated the Federation�s concerns,
expressed in earlier resolutions, about the need to develop comprehensive
solutions as opposed to simply adding lanes to I-66 inside the beltway.
- Metro Rail Expansion � In view of the Washington Post�s recent article
about the addition of an additional Metrorail line though Arlington north of
the existing line, I noted that there appeared to be a new station added and
asked if tunneling under residential areas was being considered. Mr.
Fisette replied that the plans under consideration would put the line in the
I-66 right of way and not under homes. I expressed the need to get inputs
from affected neighborhoods early on in the planning process. He suggested
talking to the Board�s representative on the Metro Board, Mr. Zimmerman.
The Federation will be following up on this issue in November.
One Final Announcement � I received a note from our friends at Fort
Myer inviting Arlingtonians to the 2001 U.S. Army Soldier Show Finale on
Monday, 19 November at 7:30 in Conmy Hall on base. The public is invited
and you can still get on base (with minor delays at the gates) to see the
show. We�ll run the whole public service announcement on our website,
www.civfed.org�
See you, Tuesday November 13th � Jim Pebley
The legislative package follows!
Proposed ACCF 2001 Legislative Package
As reported by the Legislation Committee
Civic Federation Principles
Because Arlington�s population is changing rapidly, the Civic Federation
adopts the following principles in order to maintain our quality of life,
enhance the desirability of our community as a place to live and work, and
meet future human and infrastructure needs:
- We oppose any efforts to change formulas for state funding that would
result in decreases in funding for Arlington County government and public
schools
- We urge the General Assembly to revise the state transportation funding
formula to increase funding for growth areas such as Northern Virginia
- We strongly support increased funding for schools, mass transit, and
highways
1. Administration of Government, Generally
A. Requirement of State-Owned Industrial Facilities to Develop
Environmental Management Plans. Supports legislation to develop and
implement pollution-prevention plans and to establish a state office to
coordinate and provide technical assistance.
B. Initiative and Referendum. Requests the Governor of Virginia to
appoint a bipartisan study commission to examine and weigh the potential
assets and liabilities of Initiative and Referendum in Virginia.
2. Arlington County
Rename N. Herndon Street. Urges the Arlington County Board to rename N.
Herndon Street to N. Hunter Street in honor of former County Board member
James B. Hunter.
3. Authorities
Baseball Stadium Authority. Urges repeal of the Virginia Stadium
Authority, Virginia Code section 15.1.227-71 and opposes use of public funds
for professional sports facilities in Virginia. Supports return of
professional baseball to the Nation�s Capital.
4. Aviation
National Airport. Deplores recent changes at Ronald Reagan Washington
National Airport that have extended the perimeter for departing flights and
have increased the number of slots available. We strongly support the
designation of Reagan National as a short-range airport and a return to the
1250-mile perimeter rule.
5. Conservation (environment)
Importation of Trash. Strongly urges the Governor, our congressional
delegation, and the General Assembly to continue to pursue all available
avenues to prevent additional importation of trash into Virginia
6. Crimes and Offenses Generally
A. Sodomy Laws. Supports repeal of the sodomy law as it applies to
consenting adults.
B. Sexual Orientation. Supports the addition of sexual orientation to the
coverage of antidiscrimination and Hate Crimes laws.
C. Aggressive Panhandling. Requests the legislature to authorize the
Arlington County Board to adopt an ordinance to make it unlawful for any
person to panhandle in an aggressive manner, to panhandle within fifteen
feet of an automatic teller machine, or to panhandle from any operator of a
motor vehicle while standing in a roadway median or on a travel lane.
D. Handicapped Parking. Supports legislation to raise the reduced mail-in
fine for parking in a handicapped space from approximately $100.00 to
$300.00 (the current fine is $500 should you go to court).
E. Volunteer Enforcement of Handicapped Parking. Urges the Arlington
County Board initiate training and deployment of volunteers to enforce
handicapped
parking violations in accordance with Section 46.2-1244 of the Code of
Virginia.
F. Red Light Cameras. Supports requiring the owner of a vehicle captured
on film running a red light to be responsible for payment of the fine
whether the owner or another person was driving. A defense for this crime
could be providing proof that the vehicle was stolen.
7. Criminal Procedure
21-Day Rule. Urges extension of the period for consideration of
potentially exculpatory evidence in capital cases from 21 days to 3 years.
8. Dangerous Weapons
Gun Control. Strongly supports requiring mandatory instant background
checks on purchasers of all firearms at all gun shows and allowing up to
seventy-two
hours to complete the check if the instant check is inconclusive.
9. Discrimination and Housing
Employment and Housing. Urges prohibition of discrimination in employment
and housing on the basis of sexual orientation.
10. Domestic Relations
Same-sex Marriage. Supports repeal of �20.45.5 that states, �A marriage
between persons of the same sex is prohibited. Any marriage entered into by
persons of the same sex in another state or jurisdiction shall be void in
all respects in Virginia and any contractual rights created by such marriage
shall be void and unenforceable.�
11. Energy Conservation and Resources
Recycling. Urges the General Assembly to increase recycling goals from 25 to 35 percent by the year 2005 and to establish an official definition of
recyclable materials.
12. Education
Standards of Learning (SOL). Urges a study by an accredited independent
organization to determine if SOLs can be made a more effective measurement
of student achievement.
13. Housing
Home Ownership Incentives. Urges Arlington County to develop incentives
under 2000 General Assembly SB 87 to encourage law enforcement officers and
deputy sheriffs to become homeowners and residents in Neighborhood Strategy
Areas in Arlington
14. Insurance
A. Insurance Rates. Supports a law to prohibit insurance companies from
raising rates when the insured motorists in accidents are found to be not
"at fault."
15. Property and Conveyances
Retention of Local Zoning Authority. Supports legislation to prohibit
Commonwealth agencies from overriding local jurisdictional use plans and
zoning decisions and ordinances.
16. Public Health
Ban on Smoking in Restaurants. Urges legislation extending to Arlington
County the authority to ban smoking on the premises of any restaurant or
other establishment in which prepared food is served for consumption on the
premises. Furthermore, when such enabling legislation has been enacted, the
Civic Federation urges immediate imposition of the aforementioned
restriction by Arlington County.
17. State Corporation Commission
State Corporation Commission. Supports increasing the SCC�s membership
from three to five and encourages General Assembly members to ensure that
confirmation of candidates includes full disclosure review of their
qualifications and records with regard to consumer issues.
18. Taxation
A. Consumer Use Tax. Supports repeal of the Consumer Use Tax.
B. Economic (Fair-Market) Rent. Recommends establishment of statewide,
economic (fair-market) rent, not contract rent, as the basis for assessments
of commercial property.
C. Cigarette Tax. Supports authorizing Arlington County to increase the
cigarette tax in a manner similar to that of cities.
D. Local Income Tax. Opposes legislation that would allow a local income
tax.
19. Transportation and Highway Safety
A. Truck Safety. Supports measures to increase the number of officers and
to strengthen penalties for violators in order to improve safety of truck
operations on
Virginia highways. Demands stronger enforcement of speed limits, and urges
tougher requirements for commercial drivers� licenses.
B. Interstate 66. Opposes changes to I 66 inside the capital beltway
unless such changes are part of a comprehensive regional transportation plan
and are made with community consensus.
C. Radar-triggered Cameras. Supports enabling legislation to allow
Arlington County to institute a pilot program to enforce speed limits on
state and county-managed roadways through fixed radar-triggered cameras.
20. United States Government
Professional Sports Facilities. Supports an end to Federal tax subsidy for
professional sports facilities.
21. Water and Sewer Systems
A. Water Quality Measurements. Urges DEQ to develop and standardize
methods for the measurement of contaminants in storm waters and waters that
feed the Chesapeake Bay.
B. Nutrient Reduction. Encourages the Commonwealth to consider methods in
addition to point source control to achieve identified nutrient reduction
goals.
C. Integrity of Public Water System. Supports a JLARC review of the
integrity of the state�s public drinking water supply system to identify
problems and determine appropriate penalties for lack of compliance.
ADDENDUM
The members of the Legislation Committee present and voting agreed
unanimously that all items that appeared in last year�s package that
received majority support from the Committee would appear in this year�s
package. The new items in the body of the package were approved unanimously
by the members of the Legislation Committee present and voting. The
provisions in the addendum received majority, but not unanimous approval,
and will be voted on separately by the delegates at the November meeting.
Criminal Procedure
Death-Penalty Moratorium. Urges legislation that will impose a moratorium
on executions until policies that minimize the risk that innocent persons
will be executed and that will ensure that death-penalty cases are
administered fairly and impartially by:
a) removing the 21-day rule on introduction of new evidence in
death-penalty cases
b) ensuring competent legal representation for low-income defendants
c) exempting mentally incompetent persons (mentally retarded or seriously mentally ill)
d) exempting offenders who were under 18 years of age at the time of the
crime
e) ensuring that racial discrimination is not a factor in application of
the death penalty
Truck and Highway Safety
Funding Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Projects. Urges the State
Legislature to direct the Secretary of Transportation to revise facility
construction guidelines of the Commonwealth Transportation Board and safety
funding guidelines of the Virginia Department of Transportation to ensure
appropriate consideration of pedestrian and bicycle safety projects.
ACCF Officers
President Jim Pebley 703-525-0766 jim+
Vice President Dan Krasnegor 703-534-4024 dan+
Treasurer Frances Finta 703-528-2882 (no email)
Secretary Tim Wise 703-243-8345 tim+
Executive Committee
Chairman - Dan Krasnegor 703-534-4024 - dan+
Member - Robert Atkins 703-527-8859 - (voice or fax) - (no email)
Member - Mileva Hartman 703-841-9287 - mileva+
Member - Roger Meyer 703-671-3655 roger+
Member - Patrick Smaldore 703-528-3935 - patrick+
Member - Kim Smith -
kim+
ACCF Committee Chairs
Bylaws
Jean Mostrom, Chair 703-532-0452
Scott McGeary, Vice Chair 703-750-4704
Community Relations Jacqueline Mow 703-528-1112
Cultural Affairs
Environmental Affairs
Housing
Legislation
Membership
Frances Finta 703-528-2882 (no email)
Parks & Recreation
Planning & Zoning
William Gearhart 703-522-2276 bill+
Martha Moore 703-527-3782 martha+
Public Services
+
Revenues and Expenditures
Robert Atkins 703-527-8859 (voice or fax) no email
Schools
Special Events
Transportation
Adrienne Pilot 703-351-9464 adrienne+
Jerry Gideon 703-979-8507 jerry+
Newsletter Editorial Committee
+
News email: - civicvoice Fax: 703-486-0576 +
Web: - www.civfed.org (civfed.com works too)
Recipients of this newsletter are encouraged to forward to all and any
interested parties
Copies of the Newsletter are available for Download from the Civic
Federation website. (That is a paper version statement: this page is the Web version.) the Civic Voice is also distributed by email.
The paper version of the Civic Voice uses a freshly updated design introduced in 2001 by Cheryl Whitehead, who can be reached through email to cwhite229@erols.com. This Web version using the same text but posted within the style confines of our Web page design, is put up by Randy Swart. If you have comments or complaints about either version, please contact the editor, Jim Pebley
This page was last revised on: December 28, 2003.
|
Arlington County Civic Federation
