Bylaws Committee

Scott McGeary

Chairman

Schools Committee

The Schools Committee submitted this report on the 2007-2012 Capital Improvement Plan as their annual report.

Revenues and Expenditures Committee (FY 2006)

Members

Burt Bostwick, Chair
Jerry Auten
Frank Emerson
Roye Lowry
Roger Meyer
Roger Morton
Tim Wise

Activities

The Committee's principal activity is the review, analysis and report on the Manager's proposed budget for the coming fiscal year. Our committee met more or less weekly from late February through early April, and provided a report and recommendations to the membership at the April 4, 2006 meeting. The membership approved a resolution on the committee's recommendations, which were subsequently forwarded to the Arlington County Board and the County Manager. A response to the resolution is awaited.

The Committee has also decided to conduct monthly meetings, or as required to review the following County documents and actions:

• Manager's Proposed Budget
• Manager's Proposed Capital Improvements Program and Associated Bond Referendum
• Annual Fiscal Year Closeout
• Manager's and Board's Budget Guidance
• Comprehensive Annual Financial Report ("CAFR")
• Interim Quarterly Reports

Reports to the membership and public testimony to the Board will be made as appropriate, but it is not anticipated that a resolution will accompany each report.

ACCF has also requested appointment to the Fiscal Affairs Advisory Commission. A response is also awaited to that request.

Housing Committee

June 2006 Housing Committee Annual Report:

The Housing Committee Chair, Kathryn Scruggs, served as the Civic Federation's representative to the County Roundtable on Affordable Housing, attending meetings from May to November. Committee member Stan Karson also attended most of the meetings.

Stan brought a resolution to the Federation in September 2005 proposing that the County adopt policy to ensure that affordable housing resulting from site plan projects be either on site or as close as possible to the site. The Federation adopted the resolution at its October meeting.

Following much discussion of the progress of the Roundtable last fall, the Housing Committee drafted a resolution that was referred for joint review by the Housing Committee and the Planning and Zoning Committee. The Committees successfully produced a resolution that became moot when the County announced that the Roundtable had arrived at an Agreement. The Housing Committee then proposed and the Federation adopted a resolution to support the Affordable Housing Roundtable's Agreement on December 6.

Committee members participated in a community forum on affordable housing--Wake Up Arlington--on October 1, 2005.

The Committee submitted four recommendations to the Revenue and Expenditures Committee for consideration during its review of the proposed County budget The Committee also proposed revised recommendations for increased County funding for housing programs at the April meeting; the Federation did not adopt them.

For the past several months, Committee members have been involved in discussions concerning the proposed loss of 456 units of affordable housing at Buckingham Village. A Committee-proposed resolution for preserving affordable housing at Buckingham was referred for joint review to the Housing, the Planning and Zoning and the Cultural Affairs Committees, along with that of an individual Delegate for supporting the historic designation of Buckingham. The Committees drafted a resolution addressing both affordable housing and the historic aspect and proposed it to the Federation on June 6, 2006.

Housing Committee

Gene Betit
Stan Karson
Peter Owen
Max Scruggs
Joe Wholey
Kathryn Scruggs, Chair

Parks and Recreation Committee

June 2006 Parks and Recreation Committee Annual Report:

A major activity of the Park and Recreation Committee during the past year was reviewing and commenting on the Public Spaces Master Plan (PSMP). Committee co-chair Jay Wind represented the Federation on the task force charged with preparing the plan, and other committee members attended task force meetings as well as public forums on the plan. When a final draft of the PSMP became available, the committee drafted a resolution, and it was adopted at the general meeting on December 6, 2005.

The committee reviewed the Four Mile Run Restoration Master Plan, which emphasizes restoration of lower Four Mile Run. The committee submitted a draft resolution that was adopted at the general meeting on February 7, 2006.

The committee reviewed revised plans for a high-rise residential building at 1101 Lee Highway in Rosslyn and recommended that the Federation reaffirm its opposition to the proposal. That was done in a letter from the ACCF President to the County Board on February 10, 2006.

Finally, the committee continued to discuss boathouse siting issues but has not yet recommended a Federation position on this.

Co-chair Jay Wind served as CivFed's representative on the Open Space Master Plan Task Force that prepared the Public Spaces Master Plan. Members of the committee this year:

Robert Atkins
Susan Beaulieu
Sandi Berenbaum
Bernie Berne
Suzanne Bolton
Burt Bostwick
Maureen Farrell
Larry Finch, Co-Chair
Anne Fisher
Martha Cole Glenn
Judy Green
Rob Swennes
Mandy Wertz
Jay Jacob Wind, Co-Chair
Julie Zalkind

Cultural Affairs Committee

June 2006 Report of Cultural Affairs Committee:

Cultural Affairs presented a panel on the visual and performing arts in Arlington on March 7.

The panelists were Jon Palmer Claridge, Program Director for Arlington Cultural Affairs Division and co-creator of the Arts Incubator; Wendy Rahm, Chair of the Arlington Commission for the Arts;Paul LeValley, Executive Dirctor of Arlington Independent Media and Chair of Arlington Citizens for the Arts; and Jeremy Mayer, Assistant Professor of Publilc Policy at George Mason University. Vivian Kallen, ACCF Cultural Affairs Chair, was presenter. In presenting an overview of Arlington's Arts program, the panel discussed the role of the arts in the cultural, economic, and educational life of the County, ending with a strong endorsement of the proposed cultural center in the Courthouse area.

Cultural Affairs was represented at the meeting which discussed and prepared the resolution on historic preservation and Buckingham which will be presented at the June 6 meeting.

The Cultural Affairs Committee has been a committee of one for some time. Next year there should be an active attempt to create a broad-based committee. ACCF members who are interested should contact me at vivian@civicfed.org or viviankallen@att.net.

Also, Arlington Citizens for the Arts plans to apply for Civic Federation membership.

Vivian Kallen

Schools Committee

June 2006 Report of the Schools Committee:

During the past year the Schools Committee grew to 10 members. It issued its customary budget recommendations and report to the Civic Federation, which were incorporated into the Revenue & Expenditures report and overwhelmingly approved at the April 2006 federation meeting.

In addition, this year the Schools Committee produced two other reports: one reflecting on the school system's efforts during the last five-year strategic plan to eliminate the achievement gap and the school system's goals going forward, and the other recommending changes to the Superintendent's proposed Capital Improvement Plan (bond and construction projects) for the next five years. All of these reports can be found on the Civic Federation website.

The Committee's recommendations concerning the Capital Improvement Plan were as follows:

• Reduce the proposed 2006 bond from $78 million to $55 million.
• Keep bond amounts in the $50 million range through 2012.
• Adhere to the School Board's policy of not putting construction projects on the ballot until there are specific, detailed plans (there are no such plans for Yorktown High School or the Reed School, both of which are in the Superintendent's proposed bond for the 2006 ballot.
• Accelerate Wakefield High School by putting money for design of the project in the 2006 bond and construction funds in the 2008 bond
• Remove Reed School from the Capital Improvement Plan through 2012 and use existing space for the programs housed there
• If necessary for urgent projects whose design plans are ready in odd-numbered years, put them on the ballot in the years in which the plans are ready so that the projects are not delayed, and the public is not asked to vote on them before the plans (and budgets) for the projects are known.

William Barker
Barbara and John De Pauw
Reid Goldstein
Herschel Kanter
Roye Lowry
Roger Meyer
Jim Schroeder
Tim Wise

Beth Wolffe Chairwoman
June 6, 2006

Environmental Affairs Committee

Environmental Affairs Committee Report

Although we did not convene as many meetings as I would have wished in part because of some medical problems which culminated in minor surgery for me, I believe we had a successful year.

We joined in satisfaction that we had facilitated the project of promoting back yard habitat prize competition which was being promoted by Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment. We had recommended this activity to the Civic Federation and were most pleased when it received such enthusiatic support from the Arlington community.

Thanks to Larry Finch, a most active member of our Committee, we were able to learn about the outstandingsuccess of the Donaldeson Run restoration effort. One of our meetings was held in situ and we highly recommend it as an outstandingly successful County accomplishment. We are qually impressed and hopeful about the job being undertaken in respect to Four Mile Run. We would suggest that there be a program about this at a full membership meeting of the Civic Federation.

Further matters about which we received information and would endorse for future consideration by the Civic Federation include the removal of invasive plant species and restoration of native plantsand the desirability of securing the services of a third urban forester. The two that we have are working valiantly to aid in the future development of the County's trees and other plantings, but they are overtaxed in doing their work by its volume.

We have found it very difficult to receive feedback from members and friends about perceived environmental needs, and we recognize that many other committees deal with these. I think in the year to come our Committee should submit a suggestion sheet at one or two of our membership meetings and request that written ideas and queries on environmental matters should be submitted so that they can be acted upon.

I have enjoyed my two year stint as Environmental Affars Chair, and I regret that I find it necessary to resign this position. Because of family health concerns I shall be unable to continue to represent my Civic Association as a Delegate, which is a requirement for a committee chair.

I do want to thank Patrick, Larry, Maureen and all the other members of our Committee who have cooperated in our mission to protect and enhance the truly beautiful natural environment of Arlington County.

Ben Axleroad

Membership Committee Report

The Membership Committee, consisting of Catherine Camp, Anna Medlen, Vice-Chairman William Munson and Chairman Frances Finta, participated in several telephone pollings as they conducted the business of the Membership Committee. Frances Finta maintained contact with persons in The Chatham Condominium Unit Owners� Association as they prepared to join the Federation.

In addition to presenting applications for membership to the Membership Committee and the Federation body, the Chairman functions as a source of information to those interested in joining the Federation, establishing civic groups and/or acquiring information about the Federation. The Membership Committee Chairman has instructional guidelines on how to establish a civic association and how to join the Arlington County Civic Federation available for those who want them. Civic associations are not required to join the Federation but it is necessary for the Federation to approve an association�s boundaries. The Chairman then submits the association�s name and boundaries to Ms. Toni Copeland, Clerk of the Arlington County Board, for placement on the County issued Civic Association map.

One organization was voted into membership during this fiscal year. It is: 1. The Chatham Condominium Unit Owners� Association, admitted September 6, 2005.

One organization resigned. It is: 1. Optimist Club of Arlington, VA, resigned October 28, 2005.

As of this date, the Federation consists of eighty-two (82) organizations. Delegate attendance, number of associations represented at the monthly meetings, and the number of visitors who signed in can be found in the accompanying chart. Monthly programs are also listed. The number of delegates attending meetings ranged from forty-five (45) to seventy-six (76). The average delegate attendance was sixty-one (61). The number of organizations represented ranged from thirty-six (36) to forty-five (45). The percentage of organizations represented ranged from forty-four percent (44%) to fifty-four percent (54%).

On Candidates� Night, when those delegates or alternate delegates who wish to ask questions of panelists are asked to "place their names in a box," committee members handle the task of identifying delegates. They also help with other operational tasks.

The Chairman maintained the delegate roster, printed all mail labels, and published the annual delegate roster. To do so, the Chairman sent to each member organization a request for an updated list of delegates. At the same time, the Chairman, who is also the Federation Treasurer, mailed the annual dues request. The Chairman sent copies of the Federation Bylaws and other descriptive materials to all new presidents of member organizations. The Chairman maintained meeting attendance records and maintained a file of organizations that are or have been known to be members of the Federation.

MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS� JULY 1, 2005� JUNE 30, 2006

Frances M. Finta
Chairman

Local Emergency Planning Board Report

During this past year the LEPC has met 3 times.

LEPC is a federally mandated group that must meet once a year to discuss any hazardous materials incidents and to review the County's hazardous materials plan. Since Arlington County does not have any locations like chemical plants, there is not a lot for the LEPC to discuss. Their were no hazardous incidents in Arlington since last meeting.

The Office of Emergency Management (OEM) wanted to maximize the strength of knowledge of the LEPB by combining them with the Citizen Corps Council (CCC) meetings. This way the County gets maximum benefit from all the knowledge of both groups. Both groups are more advisory in nature and help do a better job of meeting community emergency preparedness needs.

At the June 13th meeting a VDOT representative discussed evacuation planning being done on a regional basis. Also discussed at the meeting were the FDIC's emergency planning efforts which consisted of a tour of their new state of the art facility. Discussed the latest version of the Emergency Operation Plan (EOP). Discussed the CERT program which is gearing up for new training in the fall.

Staff Coordinator is:

Debbie Powers, Deputy Coordinator, OEM
1400 N. Uhle Street, Suite 300
Arlington, Virginia 22201
703-228-3314
Fax 703-228-3667
dpowers@arlingtonva.us

This page was last revised on: June 27, 2006.