Thank you.

I'd like to recognize Vice Mayor Ritter at this time for the invocation and the pledge of allegiance apply.

Thank you.

Um I just want to give a little prelude.

Our former council member Susie Kelly always said this prayer, and I think this is an extremely appropriate time.

Um to revive that.

It's the prayer of St.

Francis.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me so love.

Where there is injury, pardon, where there is doubt, faith, where there is despair, hope, where there is darkness, light, where there is sadness, joy.

Divine master grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood, as to understand, to be loved as to love with all my soul.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

Join me in the Pledge of Allegiance, please.

I pledge allegiance to the United States of America.

And to be violent for which it stands.

One nation, under God, with a region.

Yes, I have to record down.

Madam Clerk, would you please call the roll and thank you, Vice Mayor Ritter, for that prayer.

Councilmember Bunn.

Here.

Councilmember Jeffreys?

Here.

Councilmember King.

Here.

Councilmember Newens?

Here.

Councilmember Smith.

Here.

Councilmember Ward.

Present.

Councilmember Whitaker.

Present.

Vice Mayor Ritter?

Here.

Mayor West.

Here.

At this time I'm going to go down to the podium and turn the uh gavel over to the Vice Mayor.

Ms.

Madison, would you get no idea?

Can you tell?

Okay, thanks.

We're glad.

We're happy to have you all here.

Um the mayor has a special recognition he would like to make.

So there are oftentimes council will find things to disagree on.

But there's one thing that we do not disagree.

That is how much care and appreciate you, David Mattis.

Mr.

Mayor got your mic.

Repeat that, please.

There's one thing we're going to agree at disagree on tonight.

We don't agree.

All of us, every single one of us, to uh how much we respect and appreciate all that you do for us.

I know this is your 10-year service award that I want to present to you.

And honestly, there should be something else because of those ten years, nine of them you had to deal with me, and I do apologize for that.

But I do thank you.

God bless you.

Thank you.

Come on, please go.

I'll just correct him in saying that I've been with him since 2008.

But I left for a couple of years and went to Virginia Beach.

I've actually been with the city since 2005.

Bless your soul.

I can't find my camera.

Oh, thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Oh, you did, Jeff Cotton.

Thank you all.

Um, Miss Lindley.

Could you provide the language for the certification of the closed meeting, please?

Yes.

Is there a motion?

Well, approval of the Dr.

Ward.

Second.

Second.

Thank you, Dr.

King.

All in favor, please indicate by voting yes.

Ms.

Madison.

Record the vote.

Motion is first.

Excuse me.

Motion to certify the closed meeting is adopted by a nine-o vote.

Thank you.

I'll turn the gavel back over to Mayor West.

Thank you, Madam Vice Mayor.

Next is the proposed approval of the proposed agenda.

Are there any corrections councils would like to make?

Seeing none, please prepare to vote.

And vote.

Well, we do have a motion for approval.

Thank you, Ms.

News and Dr.

Ward.

Please prepare to vote.

Please vote and record.

Motion to approve the agenda as presented is adopted by a 9-0 vote.

The minutes of the meetings on November 18th and December 9th and 16th, 2025 are presented for approval.

And without objection, and there are no changes or corrections.

The minutes are approved as presented.

Next is citizens' comments on agenda items only.

City Council meeting constitutes a public uh limited public form.

Therefore, public comments must be relevant to items on the council agenda or otherwise reasonable, considering the purpose of the meeting.

As established by City Council's rules of order and procedure, any count speaker that delays interrupts or otherwise disrupts City Council's ability to conduct this meeting in an orderly manner by disorderly incident or disturbing action speech or other conduct will be declared out of order.

Do we have any speakers?

Madam Clerk.

Yes, sir.

We have one speaker, Marcus Bolton, and he's here to speak about the vacancies on South Norfolk Revitalization Commission.

Okay, thank you.

Good evening, uh Mayor, Vice Mayor, and members of the City Council.

Um here to speak on the vacancies of the South Norfolk Revitalization Committee.

Um I have been working closely with the area.

Oh, sorry.

I'm from 1217 Seabor Avenue, uh Chesapeake, Virginia, right off of South Norfolk.

Um I've been working closely with the area, making connections with not only the pastor but the Civic League and the Revalization Committee.

And um pretty much what I'm going for is just repowering and empowering the community, figuring out ways that we can get these business owners together underneath one umbrella.

And um I just basically recently uh apply for commission um seating, and I was hoping that pretty much I would be taken into consideration, not only for that, but also um also planning and details of what we have going forward.

Thank you, sir.

Appreciate your efforts.

We shall do that's all the speakers.

That's all the speakers, madam clerk.

Yes, sir.

Mix is consent agenda.

Would you please present it?

Madam Clerk.

City Clerk Items 1, refunds.

A your space star mount LLC, 27,434 and twelve cents.

B, Wagoner Green Bar, LLC, $19,387.29 cents.

Two, resignation, Sabrina Banks, South Norfolk Revitalization Commission.

City Manager Item 1, request a transfer of $70,378 from the administration program and $235,622 from the operations program to the Animal Services Program in the Police Department's FY 2026 operating budget requested by the police department.

That concludes the consent agenda, Mayor.

Thank you very much.

Madam Clerk, next uh are there uh any items that council members would like to remove from the consent agenda.

Thank you.

Motion please.

Move approval.

Thank you.

And then uh Vice Mayor Ritter, please prepare to vote.

Please vote and record motion to approve the consent agenda as presented is adopted by a 9-0.

Next is our regular agenda, Mr.

Manager.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Item two is a request to appropriate 125,583 to the Sheriff's Office FY 2026 operating budget for the school resource deputy program requested by the sheriff's office.

Motion please.

Um move approval.

Thank you.

Mr.

Vice Mayor.

Thank you.

Ms.

Ms.

Newens, any discussion?

Um I have a question for the manager.

Unless you want me to call down the rogue's gallery out there.

Okay.

Um I'd like you to talk about the origin of this money, please.

So it's not general fund money, correct?

Yes, ma'am.

So this is a contract service uh between um the um schools and the sheriff's department.

Uh it's it's been in effect, uh I think for almost two years now.

Um, and uh we've received some grant money um to support this.

Um so the what what we're authorizing tonight is executing is uh um appropriating the uh grant money that we've received to cover a portion of those costs.

Thank you.

Um that's all I think there was a little bit of confusion as to the finance source.

Pardon me?

Oh, sorry.

Um there was some confusion as to the source of the financing.

Um, but I would like to recognize that we do have three of the members that help lead the school security task force, and thank you all so much for being here.

Um much of what they do is confidential work.

Obviously, we do not want it blast at all over what all the security measures are in place for our schools, but this group has done a tremendous job to help secure the safety of students and staff in all of our schools, and thank you all, and thank you so much for being here.

Thank you, Ms.

Ritter.

Yes, sir.

And I should have mentioned the source of the grant is the State Department of Criminal Justice Services.

Okay, is this for the first eight deputies or is this for the second?

Do we know?

Captain Geiss is giving me the indication it's the second.

I didn't mean to leave you out, Captain Geis.

He and Dr.

Second the So that's the additional eight and the supervisor.

Great.

Well, thank you.

And I don't mean to leave you out.

Um, Dr.

Schultz and Captain Geis are the leaders of the school security task force, and um certainly deserve a lot of credit for all this the upgrades.

Thank you.

We have a motion for Ms.

Ritter second, Ms.

Newis uh for approval.

Please prepare to vote.

Please vote and record.

Madam Clerk.

Motion to approve the request as presented is adopted by 9-0 vote.

Ms.

Lindley, would you please present your item?

Yes.

A resolution authorizing the city attorney to execute an agreement terminating a triparty agreement to clarify and enforce Professor.

Move approval.

Move approval.

Thank you, Mr.

Sinner.

Thank you, Mr.

Whitaker.

Mr.

Whitaker, did you want to second it?

Second.

Thank you.

Any discussion on this item?

See none, please prepare to vote.

Let's vote and record.

Madam Clerk.

Motion to approve the resolution as presented is adopted by a 9-0 vote.

Next is citizens' comments on services, policies, and affairs of the city, not agenda speakers, Madam Clerk.

Yes, sir.

We have two speakers.

Vic Nichols, Affairs of the City, followed by Tommy Hart.

Good evening.

Several things tonight.

Very quickly, one.

The comprehensive plan.

So what is the plan for Chesapeake in terms of green briar and traffic?

Because waiting 45 seconds for a right turn.

Not a positive thing.

It says that we're not planning at all where it comes to Greenbrier.

Somebody made the comment too that Hampton Roads was putting all of its eggs in one basket.

It mentioned us in two other cities in terms of growth, and that's it.

One of the things that they did say to curb housing costs were using micro apartments.

They reduced construction cost 25 to 35 percent, of course, ADUs and single steer buildings, oddly enough.

Most of the seniors prefer the people that have been there for a while, especially because they are closer to their age.

It seems to me like the city could probably get those people back if the city really cared.

Question is going to be how much you care to get people back for the regular taxpayers.

Because I've been paying taxes in this city for over 25 years.

And it'd be well worth my time and every other senior that I know that participated in the programs to have those people back.

And I'll be quite frank, I have my suspicions as to why they're gone.

Simply because I know the city well enough.

I'll leave that on the table.

In regards to some comments made last time about ICE, bring them here.

So you know what?

If you're a senior, you'd like to have peace and quiet.

And the fact is crime and other things do follow those issues, and people are much out of hand.

I know myself and other people that the way we protest is old style.

We'll maybe carry some signs or things like that.

We talk.

But there's no kind of violence, no kinds of evil, and we've actually shaken hands with different groups after we protested.

So we need to keep that peace, guys, because the last thing we really need to be is in the news.

We're bad enough in the news already at the state level.

So we really need to take a look at that.

But I, for once, would like to see something done on the traffic, and of course, us seniors, because I'm sure y'all will be hearing about it.

I know a number of them have indicated that, and we're gonna keep at this.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Tommy Hart, public safety.

Good evening, Mayor, Vice Mayor, members of council, my name's Tommy Hart.

I live at 1900 St.

Brides Road, Chesapeake, Virginia.

I'm coming to try to pick up where I left off the last time when I ran out of time.

Uh this was when I was a detective with uh uh internal affairs with the Chesapeake Police Department, and we had a officer who was very corrupt.

I when I was on internal affairs, we had dozens of complaints from police officers and business owners.

The business owners and the police officers knew this lieutenant was doing these robberies, but we were forbidden to do anything.

And finally, the city manager, from what I heard, called the chief and told him he had to do something.

Now I don't know that the city manager told him to assign me to it, but I got assigned to it.

And I wasn't real happy with it because I knew that when I caught him robbing a store, there was a 50-50 chance that I'd never be able to testify against him.

But anyhow, the first night that we were on it, we staked out to police headquarters.

He stayed at police headquarters for 55 minutes.

He left, went to Ocean View, and went down to Willoughby's Pit next to the Hampton Roads tunnel and met with a woman down there.

He stayed with that woman we know for three and a half hours because we watched the house.

The lights went off in the house.

We left, we come back to police headquarters, met with Sergeant L.

I'll say, Yeah, you don't want me to mention no names.

And I was typing a report, and of course he asked me what I was doing.

I said, I'm typing a report, and he said there'll be no paperwork on this.

And I typed a couple more words, and he snatched the paper out of typewriter, tore it up and threw it in the trash can, and he said, You will not mention this to nobody.

If you do, you'll be fired.

So he came to me the next day and wanted me to write a letter on Detective Barnett saying I'd seen him driving his unmarked car on Victory Boulevard in Portsmouth.

And I told him I can't do that, it's a lie.

He said he won't know no different because I followed him, and that's where he was at this certain time.

He gave me the time and all the letter.

I refused to write the letter.

That evening he called me and wanted to meet with me, and I met him and he had the letter already typed up for me.

And he said, Here, sign this.

I refused to sign the letter.

I told him, I said, I'm not gonna lie.

And I made a mistake by telling Detective Barnett what was going on, and he promised me he wouldn't tell, but he within 30 minutes he'd gone to the sergeant and told him that I'd told him everything.

And of course, the sergeant went back and wrote a letter asking uh the chief to fire me because I had driven my unmarked car on assignment to follow the lieutenant and went across the Norfolk City line, and he wanted to fire me for crossing the Norfolk City line with my police car without calling him.

I couldn't call him because I was on the same radio frequency as the lieutenant that I was following.

But uh I he asked me how come I followed him across the city line.

And I said, Well, he could rob a uh drug, he was a he he specialized in robbing drug stores because he was using drugs and selling drugs, and so he asked me why I crossed the city line, and I told him, I said, because he might rob a store in Norfolk, and we get he said, No, he said, if you catch him robbing a store in Norfolk, you will not take any action and you will not report it to Norfolk police.

I said, That's all right, I'll get him here in Chesapeake.

He said, No, when you catch him in Chesapeake, you can't charge him.

You got to tell me and I'll take care of it.

And I told him, of course, my brain uh got outrun by my mouth, and I told him, I said, I'm gonna put him in jail.

He didn't fire me for driving the car across the city line because he knew it never stick.

He charged me for insubordination.

And the insubordination was I refused to sign the letter.

And I told the chief, I said the letter was a lie.

He told me, he said, you need to find another profession because you can't function as a police officer if you can't lie to for the good of the department.

And I was demoted, my pay was cut, and I was sent over to Western Branch because they knew all the robberies were happening around Great Bridge here and over in South Norfolk and Deep Creek.

He wasn't robbing none over there, so they thought they'd get me away from him.

And I was spoken eight months later, I was contacted by Alcoholic Beverly Control, and they sent the assistant director down and they asked me, was I interested in going to work for them and was I happy with Chesapeake?

I said no.

They said, Well, we're eat up with complaints on Chesapeake since you left.

And the alcohol the illegal alcohol is overrunning in the city.

I don't know if you heard it.

That was your time, a couple of seconds.

I didn't hear it.

Yeah, me too, but I that you're good.

For next time.

We'll catch you next time.

All right.

I got a little bit more.

Okay, thank you.

Thank you.

That's all of the speakers.

Yes, sir.

Right.

Next is nominations and appointments of boards and commission.

Uh turn the gavel over to Vice Mayor Ritter.

Thank you.

And I would direct um to uh everyone's attention to Ms.

Madison, who will um read a list of those to be interviewed for certain boards and those who um will be appointed to others.

Ms.

Madison.

Thank you.

The first is Airport Authority.

We have two nominations.

Carl B.

Rickerson, George M.

Yakis.

They will be interviewed on February the 10th.

Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area Board is being continued.

Chesapeake Redevelopment and Housing Authority.

Brenton Artists, La Keila Lofton, and Ryan Schrader will be interviewed on February the 10th.

Economic Development, Todd A.

Mayfield will be appointed.

South Norfolk Revitalization Commission, Marcus Bolton, Sarah Brown, and William Nertney are appointed.

Chesapeake Commission on Health and Well-Being.

Centera Brown Yearling is reappointed.

Crystal Leponte, Monica Quentin, and Shagosie Vines is appointed.

Chesapeake Community Criminal Justice Board.

Lakeisha Stevenson, reappointed.

Wallace Chadwick, Sheriff, appointed.

Christina Hood, Education, appointed.

Catherine Garnier, Jody Love, and Ronald Telsch appointed.

Chesapeake Interagency Interagency Consortium, Kenya N.

Brown, Juvenile Services Rep, appointed.

Chesapeake Land Bank Authority, Christie Wooten, EDA representative, appointed.

Chesapeake OPEC Finance Board, Corey Kring, City Treasurer, appointed.

Eastern Virginia Regional Industrial Facility Authority, Tanya Gill, EDA Rep, appointed.

Fine Arts Committee, we will be continuing that.

Excuse me, it's Fine Arts Commission.

That is continued.

Local emergency planning committee, we have four appointments.

Matthew Ellis, Edward Horrahan, Robert Lee, and James Parton.

Natural Event Mitigation Advisory Committee, Doug Crosson.

And that concludes the nominations and appointments.

Thank you, Ms.

Madison.

Give the gavel back to the mayor.

So we have uh recommendations and uh appointments for uh boards and commissions.

Uh do we need a motion on to approve those?

No.

So without objection, that the list has will be approved.

Next is unfinished business.

Uh Madam Clerk, would you please present a first unfinished business item?

Item A, amend the action taken at the January 20th, 2026 City Council meeting to correct a clerical error regarding PLN Comp 2025-003, 2045 Chesapeake Comprehensive Plan A resolution to amend the text correlating maps and technical document of the 2035 Chesapeake Comprehensive Plan as necessary to repeal the Chesapeake 2035 comprehensive plan, including all studies, maps, and plans, incorporated therein and adopt the Chesapeake 2045 Comprehensive Plan with all attachments, maps, and appendices included therewith.

I have it right here.

Adopting the Chesapeake 2045 Comprehensive Plan and its Master Transportation Plan as presented.

Second.

Thank you, Mr.

Smith.

I have a motion for approval by Ms.

Ritter, second by uh Councilman Smith.

Is there any other discussion?

Please prepare to vote.

Madam Clerk record.

Motion to amend the action taken at the January 20th, 2026 City Council meeting to approve the resolution, version dated January 20, 2026, adopting the Chesapeake 2045 Comprehensive Plan and its Master Transportation Plan as presented is adopted by a 9-0 vote.

Thank you.

Are there any other unfinished business item council members have at this time?

Next then is new business.

We council members have any new business items they'd like to bring up at this time.

Perhaps it's in that we have an announcement.

So I do that now, all right.

And I just want to commend our uh school system uh for we know that uh when the next time we meet it'll be February and um the and idea commend the city manager and Mr.

Mike Barber and um the um staff for approving anyway for bringing it to us that we approve the uh agreement with uh Dominion for the lights at the Cornland School.

Well I do commend the school board for and Mr.

Luther uh for having the foresight uh to um do a podcast and on the Cornell School and the Historical District for African American Historic uh week and month, really so I just want to say thank you to them for having that foresight and uh the Corneland School will be featured among a lot of other things going on in our great city of Chesapeake to um address and certainly being right to uh Black History Month in February.

So I just wanted um commend them for doing a great job, and it will take place before we meet it here, or perhaps the day before.

So I just wanted to thank the school board for having that foresight, and I know we have some school board members here and supporters of the school board, so and in our schools, and I just want to say thank you.

I don't think they came to hear that, but since I know about it, I wouldn't make that acknowledgement.

Thank you, Dr.

Ward.

Any other uh new business?

And we have nothing we need to do for closed sessions.

Uh Madam Attorney.

I would like to read a motion for the interviews you will conduct before the February 10th meeting.

This is a motion to conduct a closed meeting on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, at 445 p.m.

in Chesapeake City Hall, to discuss, consider, or interview prospective candidates for appointment to city boards, commissions, and authorities for the purpose of considering candidates for the airport authority and the Chesapeake Redevelopment Housing Authority.

All is permitted by Section 2.2-3711A1 of the code of Virginia.

Thank you.

Madam Attorney, a motion is a second, please.

Dr.

Ward, thank you.

Second, thank you.

Any discussion?

Thank you.

Please prepare to vote.

Please vote and record.

Motion to certify the closed meeting on February the 10th at 445 is adopted by a 9-0 vote.

Thank you.

I think that pretty much concludes our agenda.

So I'd like to uh call on Council Vice Mayor Ritter for our benediction.

Thank you.

Lord, help us to live each day quietly, easily, to lean on your great strength, trustfully, respectfully, to wait for the unfolding of your will, patiently, serenely, to meet others peace of peacefully and joyfully, and to face tomorrow confidently, courageously.

Amen.

I'd like to ask Mr.

Bolton if I can meet you over here real quick at the meeting.

Council net meeting is now adjourned.

I don't know.

Do they need one?

They're all candidates.