Town Hall Meeting Rundown

Town Hall Meeting, Feb 7, Jennie Dean Elementary School, 7 p.m.

Manassas City Public Schools Update:

Manassas City Public School Superintendent Gail Pope updates City Council members on schools; in particular, the math, science and engineering initiative—Next. Students from intermediate and high school participate in the program.

 Mayfield participates in Legos at an intermediate level and Osbourn High School has a Robotics team, which currently has 35 students, a lot of which are freshman, Pope said.  The superintendent also made the community and council aware that the school board has implemented a third class for the school system’s integrated math and science course. Pope said the additional class is part of a 7-12 grade stem initiative for students who “love math and science.”

 Superintendent Pope also answered the question, “Are the schools doing well?”

She responded: student performance improving every year. That being said the teachers and staff know there is always room for improvement and work towards that on a daily basis. She also noted that the schools are all fully accredited and SAT scores as a whole are improving. She noted that five students who graduated in 20110 were appointed to service academies, including MIT and Carnegie Melon.  Ms. Popes said that is pretty remarkable for a smaller school system.

SKATING EVENT TO BENEFIT SCHOOLS:
Coucilmember Bass reminded those in attendance of the “Skating for Education” event at the city’s Harris Pavilion on Friday, Feb. 18, from 6 to 9 p.m. Regular and admission and rental fees apply, but sponsorships and raffles taking place at the event will benefit Manassas City Public Schools. The event is presented by the Manassas City Public Schools Education Foundation. Rain or snow date is Feb. 25.

 UPDATE ON Rte. 28/Wellington Rd. Construction:

City Manager Lawrence D. Hughes updates residents on Rte. 28 and Wellington intersection construction. Hughes said the city has been anticipating the needed overpass for 20 years, and had some great news for commuters and residents:

Weather and work progress permitting, it is expected that by the end of the week Rt. 28 should be back to four lanes.  

 Virginia General Assembly update:

Coucilmember Bass encouraged residents to write/correspond electronically with Senator Colgan and Del. Jackson Miller who represent the region as they are now partaking in the General Assembly down in Richmond and mulling over the state’s budget.

Upcoming Events:

 Mayor Harry J. Parrish reminded residents that the city’s new power supply contract is in effect and March. 12 is the city’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade at 11 a.m.

Virginia Power Canon Branch transmission line update:

Resident expressed concern over proposed routes for the power line.

Public Works Director Mike Moon responded: the city has not endorsed a particular route as they are waiting on Dominion to provide answers to some of the city’s questions. City council will take a former position on the plan in the next few weeks or months to come, Moon said. Check here for maps of the proposed routes for Dominion Power line.

Budget talk:
Citizen encourages tax raise to help promote effectiveness of public safety and schools in the city.

Budget issues have derailed efforts to work on surface water runoff issues along Prince William Street around Jefferson Street, Mike Moon said.  Project is designed, but is not an easy one. Funding is an issue as well, costing over $3M.

Council remind those in attendance that public is invited to all upcoming budget sessions. Find full FY12 Budget Calendar here.

 Citizens’ time:

Special Ed program needs to receive appropriate funding. National Guard recruiter and father of disabled child at Jennie Dean is beyond frustrated at the fact her received an e-mail from the school board stating they don not meet with parents, saying they have been operating like this for over 20 years.

School board meetings have citizens’ time as well, mayor advised.

Three councilmembers—Harrover, Bass and Wolf are appointed to a special committee that meets with members of school board for budget issues. Their meeting is Wednesday, Feb. 9, at 5:30 p.m.

 Citizen asked Councilmember Bass about the idea of the city hosting a ‘First Night’ family-friendly event on New Year’s Eve in Old Town. Manager responded: we are really struggling to maintain (financially) the festivals that we do have. But the Mayor said it will be something the city will look at in the future.

 ***Reminder***both the city and school board are currently working on the 2012 budget. Find full FY12 Budget Calendar here.