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398
<br />
<br />April 25, 1978
<br />
<br />At a regular meeting of the City Council he~d on April 25, 1978, there were present:
<br />
<br />Richard J. Davis, Jack P. Barnes, E. Saunders Early, Jr., Archie Elliott, Jr.,
<br />James ~. Holley, Edward L. Oast, Jr., Robert W. Wentz, Jr., Robert T. Williams,
<br />City Manager, Gordon B. Tayloe, Jr., City Attorney.
<br />
<br /> Rev. Elmo Bellamy, Pastor, Mt. Sinia Holiness Church, opened the meeting with prayer,
<br />followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
<br />
<br />Mayor Davis welcomed all visitors in attendance.
<br />
<br /> Motion of Mr. Wentz and seconded by Mr. Early, minutes of the Public Hearing meeting of
<br />April 10, 1978; minutes of the regular meeting of April 11, 1978, to be approved as received,
<br />and was adopted by unanimous vote.
<br />
<br /> 78-128 - A joint Public Hearing between the Portsmouth Planning Commission, Portsmouth
<br />Redevelopment and Housing Authority Commissioners, and City Council on the proposed Southside
<br />IV Redevelopment Project was presented, with the following present:
<br />
<br />Planning Commission
<br />
<br />Beverly P. Veal7, ¥ic~ Chair,&n, R. G. Corprew, Jr., Millard C. Norman, Vincent
<br />Skeeter, Mrs. Susan Stewart, Ex-Officio, C. H. McGin~is, Ex-Officio, J. Brewer
<br />Moore, Director of Planning.
<br />
<br />Portsmouth Redevelopment & Housing Authority
<br />
<br />Herbert K. Bangel, Chairman, Dr. E. A. Barham, Jr., Mrs. Charles Downs, J. Robert
<br />Gray, George Minor, Jr., D. Barton Frye, Jr., Executive Director.
<br />
<br />Mayor Davis opened the meeting with the following remarks:
<br />
<br /> "As each of you know, this hearing has been called for the purpose of providing intereste¢
<br />individuals with the opportunity to express their views regarding the proposed Southside tV
<br />Redevelopment Plan which has been developed in conjunction with the 1978 Community Development
<br />Program, for which Fe~ltal approval was received on November 28, 1977. Following a practice
<br />begun in 1975, tonight's hearing brings together members of the City Council, the City Plan-
<br />ning Commission, and the Board of Commissioners of the Portsmouth Redevelopment and Housing
<br />Authority. This combined approach permits the three representative bodies to hear together
<br />comments from all interested parties and individuals.
<br />
<br /> I would like to first mention that the funding for activities proposed in the Redevelopme~
<br />Plan for the area behind the former United States Coast Guard base has already been the subjec~
<br />of several public hearings and required local approvals in the formulation of the 1978 Com-
<br />munity Development Program. This hearing this evening ~s required in accordance with state
<br />law to permit the Portsmouth Redevelopment and Housing Authority and the City to begin work
<br />in this redevelopment area.
<br />
<br /> As we mentioned in the earlier meetings on this subject, this Plan, ~n combination with
<br />the City's purchase of the Coast Guard base, gives us a unique opportunity to attract a major
<br />industrial development to this community and to directly address the dual local problems of
<br />unemployment and a relatively declining tax base. I should also mention that this proposed
<br />undertaking marks yet another milestone in this Council's commitment to the elimination of the
<br />severe conditions of blight and deterioration which have plagued Southside for many years.
<br />Council realized from the outset, at the first public hearings held in December 1974 on the
<br />Southside I and II Redevelopment Projects, and at the February 1976 public hearing on the
<br />Southside III Plan that it would take a number of years to complete our work in this neighbor-
<br />hood, in light of the limited resources available. Although we are well along on this task,
<br />the limited annual funding of the Community Developmenm Program under which we carry out these
<br />activities will again require us to implement this program over several years.
<br />
<br /> Before turning over the floor for comments, I would like to call on Mr. Herbert Bangel,
<br />Chairman, Portsmouth Redevelopment & Housing Authority, for his comments."
<br />
<br /> Mr. Herbert Bange~l, Chairman, Portsmouth Redevelopment~& Housing Authority presented the
<br />following:
<br />
<br /> "As Mayor Davis has pointed out, the proposed Southside IV Redevelopment Plan has been
<br />the subject of much previous discusg~on. However, while many of you here may be familiar with
<br />the erB'ibi~before you because of these earlier considerations, this hearing is nonetheless
<br />important since it will result in the Authority and the City being given the formal authori-
<br />zation to carry out this redevelopment program in the Southside Neighborhood.
<br />
<br /> .~be proposeJ Southside IV Project W~!xbe...bo~Bed_.ge~e~ally by First S~ree~ on tke ease,
<br />L~ncb~n Street .on the ~ou~h,~Fourth Str~tfF~-the '~-and Wythe~S~e~t- 0n tha nb~th..' Thfs'
<br />u~r~ak~ng ~s.consi~tent, with the s~ut~d&.~G~:~an~ ~s~ Pta~~ ~eh' Will ~8o~ted bg: ~he '.
<br />~g~b~rhood ahd,the City Council' in 1976'~d~.~lg,z~r-~h~' assemblage and'pre~ar~ti6n of,this
<br />propert.~ for industriJl ~euse. Pr'oject ac{lv}~es~Zwii-1 be scheduled ~n an-in~mental~aJis
<br />over'~the n'ext ~hre& to four years depend~ng:on'the,aYRit~itity af Community Development'f~nd~
<br />5n'o~suYPor~ bfthe ~i~y ~0u~cii',s ~ommi'g~:n~g~Ssu~hsid~ and Mayom ~avis"~r~marks,
<br />like ;~: ~o.~e~tha~ -'~h0ulg tfiis"pi%an]be an3~o~ 58G-':o?- ~-h-e*~225 fatal acres
<br />ci~ding-the-'83 acre Effingham Project, 'w~ll ~e'design~ted within a redevei~pment plan which
<br />hopefully will insure the ultimate rebuilding of this community. I am confident that with the
<br />assemblage of this tract of industrial land in combination with the 8.5 acre former Coast Guar~
<br />Base being purchased by the City, that a major industry will be attracted to this area to aug-
<br />ment the City's economic growth while providing many new employment opportunities for neighbor-
<br />
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