Hampton City Council Work Session on FY2027 Budget and Resilient Hampton Water Plan - April 22, 2026
Hampton City Council Work Session on FY2027 Budget and Resilient Hampton Water Plan - April 22, 2026
The Hampton City Council held a work session on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, at 1:00 PM in Council Chambers, 22 Lincoln Street. All seven council members were present. The meeting included briefings on the Hampton City Schools FY2027 budget, the City Manager's Recommended FY2027 budget, and the Resilient Hampton water plan for Fox Hill, Grandview, and Harris Creek. The council also entered a closed session for legal and personnel matters and adjourned at 4:45 PM.
Discussion Items
1. Briefing on Hampton City Schools FY2027 Budget
School Board Chair Dr. Richard Mason, Superintendent Dr. Raymond Haynes, and CFO Brittany Branch presented the proposed budget. The total estimated budget is $372 million, including a $328 million operating fund (a $15 million increase). Key highlights: projected state revenue of $218.3 million and an estimated local contribution of $102 million. Enrollment is projected at 18,432 students, an increase of 79. The budget includes a 3% employee compensation increase with no increase to healthcare premiums, and a $1.9 million investment in the teacher salary scale, raising starting teacher pay to $58,050—projected to be the highest on the Peninsula. Over half of Hampton’s teachers hold a master’s degree or higher. The division has achieved a 98.88% on-time graduation rate and a historic low dropout rate of 0.02%. The budget adds 43 positions, but only three are new: a school security officer for Bethel High School science wing and two dual-language immersion teachers. The remaining positions are transitions from grant funding. Other investments include $3.1 million for facility improvements, continued funding for the employee pharmacy and wellness center, Academies of Hampton, welding and electrical certification programs, and English Language Arts instructional resources. Council members asked about teacher pay rankings, the CPEG cost shift, retirement contribution increases, and federal funding stability. The presentation noted that the state budget is not yet finalized, so adjustments may follow.
2. Budget Discussion: City Manager's Recommended Fiscal Year 2027 Budget
City Manager Mary Bunting invited initial comments from council on the Manager’s Recommended Budget. Councilmember Hope Harper thanked the city budget team for a well-prepared and easy-to-read budget book. Mayor Gray noted that additional public input will be received during upcoming budget hearings before final adoption. No specific questions or amendments were raised at this session.
3. Briefing on Resilient Hampton Fox Hill, Grandview, and Harris Creek Water Plan
Chief Resilience Officer Olivia Askew presented the watershed-level water planning process. The plan aims to identify coastal resilience and adaptation strategies for the northeastern part of the city. Key climate projections: sea level rise of 1.5 feet by 2050, 3 feet by 2080, and 4.5 feet by 2100. Community engagement included 23 interviews and three open houses with about 160 attendees. Top concerns: flooded roads and restricted access, emergency service limitations, stormwater maintenance issues, shoreline erosion, and property damage. The city is hosting a three-day design workshop next week at the Fox Hill Neighborhood Center, with public gallery walks each evening from 5:30-6:30 PM. A final plan will be presented for adoption as a Comprehensive Plan amendment. Council questions addressed dredging programs, available grants for neighborhood associations (e.g., Virginia Conservation Assistance Program, rain grants, neighborhood improvement grants), and FEMA mitigation programs for home elevation and acquisition. Mayor Gray asked about the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study for structural flood protection. City Manager Bunting explained efforts since 2014-15 to secure a Coastal Storm Risk Management (CSRM) study, noting challenges with changing federal rules and funding limitations. Congressman Scott and Congressman Whitman are advocating for language fixes or a new study to allow structural solutions.
Key Outcomes
- No votes were taken on the budget or water plan briefings; they were informational.
- The council voted unanimously (7-0) to enter closed session at 2:09 PM for consultation on pending litigation, real property acquisition in the Newmarket Creek area, appointments, and performance of a council appointee.
- After closed session, the council voted unanimously (7-0) to certify the closed session.
- The meeting adjourned at 4:45 PM.
- The council will hold budget hearings with public input before final adoption of the FY2027 budget.
- The Resilient Hampton water plan will proceed with community design workshops and a future presentation for adoption.
- The specific appointment to the Western Tidewater Regional Jail Authority was not discussed in open session; it was likely handled in closed session.
Meeting Transcript
Councilwoman Campbell, present, Councilwoman Farabee, present, Councilwoman Harper, present, Councilwoman Muggler, present, Mayor Gray. Present. And we have uh several presentations uh on the agenda this afternoon. The first is uh city council uh budget presentation or update. So I'll turn that over to City Manager to introduce that. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Mayor and Council members. As you know, we're entering into the actual work sessions after we've released a manager's recommended budget, and by tradition, we have with us the school board and superintendent and his team to present their school board budget. I'm sure they'll tell you a little bit more about this as they do it, but um lest us all remember we don't have a state budget right now. So I expect, I think they probably expect this will change a bit once they get a final state budget based upon what the House and Senate introduced. But today they're going to present what they responsibly had to look at, which was the introduced budget. So real quickly before they present that, I want to acknowledge the I think we have the everyone is that right. I got to count from this almost everyone. We don't have Mr. Kilgore, but six of the seven school board members with us. Chair Richard Mason is going to kick off the presentation. Want to acknowledge Vice Chair Stephanie Jackson Afanja, uh Dr. Tina Banks Gray and Stevens Cherry, uh Reverend Woodhouse, um, as the other school members, school board members in attendance, and of course, Dr. Haynes, Dr. Congiano, and Brittany. Um, we have a Britney Abbott. So I had to think Brittany Branch, um, their chief financial officer will be part of the presentation. But Dr. Mason is going to kick it off. All right, Dr. Mason, welcome. Good afternoon, Mayor Gray, Vice Mayor Brown, and members of City Council, and my Mary, my city manager. We appreciate the opportunity to be with you all today to present our our budget. Um, the Virginia School Board Association, or we as we refer to it as VSBA, they outline the three core responsibilities of our school board, and that is hiring and evaluating the superintendent, establishing policy, and adopting and overseeing the budget, and we approach each of these duties with great care and accountability. Now, the budget that's going to be before you today certainly reflects deliberate planning on a strong commitment of fiscal responsibility. It is designed to support our students while honoring the trust placed in us as stewards of public funds. Uh, but I also want to acknowledge uh Mr. Jason Samuels and Mr. Joe Kilgore. They're not able to be here with us today because of some previous work commitments that they had to um attend to, but they were certainly a part of the planning and and the work that has gone into this. My official apologies for miscounting. There were only five, and I did leave off Jason Samuels. Thank you for catching my mistake. It's all right. If you want to miscount and add about two more million dollars into that budget, we'll we'll take that missing. It's not that expensive of a mistake. Well, Hampton City School certainly remains grounded in in its mission to partner with our community to ensure academic success for every child every day, whatever it takes. In alignment with this mission, the school board provided clear direction to the superintendent to guide the development of this budget. We also sought meaningful input from our community. The top areas identified from the community were competitive employee compensation, strengthening school safety, and expanding tutoring and academic support. This budget certainly reflects our strategic priorities and the voices of our community, in which it is balanced, focused, and aligned with shared goals. And so before turning things over to the superintendent and his team, I want to take a moment on behalf of the school board to thank the city council for your continued collaboration and partnership. And you certainly know I brag on this relationship and what we do here in the city of Hampton because we certainly don't take it for granted when I hear some of the challenges that our other school boards face in their communities. We are truly blessed to have this working relationship.
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