Councilmember Emmett Pepper

UPDATED 6/18/2024 **Excessive Heat Watch with Opening of Cooling Centers**

This is exciting. The work of the Charleston Land Reuse Agency (CLRA) is paying off. It (or, "we," since I'm on the board) has been paying for some of the demolitions of buildings in need of demolition, purchasing abandoned properties, and doing the legal legwork necessary to make the properties sale-able. NOW, we created incentives to build new homes in the City and they're being built. This Habitat home is going in at an empty lot in the West Side flats. There are others being built there, too.

More than 25 new builds will be built this year thanks to the work of the CLRA. This is part of how we will rebuild our city, and indeed are already doing so. Charleston has lost population for not just my entire lifetime, but nearly all of my parents' lifetimes, too. I believe that we can stop that trend by the time we get to the 2030 census if we continue to be effective at rebuilding in our urban core.

Councilmember Robinson has been doing an excellent job of keeping up with the State's efforts to repair MacCorkle Avenue in Kanawha City. If you live or work in KC, you should follow his updates.

It's gonna be another fun-filled weekend in ! Live on the Levee, Foam at the Dome, the Rainbow Run 5k, and so many more.

For Event Listings >> https://bit.ly/3quywbO

For Traffic Information >> https://bit.ly/4aAiXke

🔷 FRIDAY, JUNE 7🔷
Parking Notice: on-street parking is not permitted / other metered spaces may be bagged as "no parking" without notice"
All Day - Day of Live on the Levee
Unit Blocks (Kanawha Blvd to Virginia St) of Court St, Summers St, Laidley St
(Event Prep / Vendor Parking)

Road Closure: Live on the Levee
2P - End of Event (9:30P window)
Kanawha Blvd, Clendenin St to Hale St
Live on the Levee

Parking Notice: All vehicles must be removed from all metered parking spaces on Capitol St
Before 3P
Capitol St, from Kanawha Blvd to Lee St
(Road Closure for Outdoor Dining)

Road Closure: Outdoor Dining on Capitol St
3P - Sunday, June 9 at 11P
Capitol St, from Kanawha Blvd to Lee Street
*Virginia St and Quarrier St intersections will be accessible to traffic

Road Closure: Foam at the Dome
5P - Saturday, June 8 at 8P
Kanawha Blvd, Greenbrier St to California Ave

🔷SATURDAY, JUNE 8🔷
Road Closure: Outdoor Dining on Capitol St
Continued from Friday - Sunday, June 9 at 11P
Capitol St, from Kanawha Blvd to Lee Street
*Virginia St and Quarrier St intersections will be accessible to traffic

Road Closure: Foam at the Dome
Continued from Friday - Saturday, June 8 at 8P
Kanawha Blvd, Greenbrier St to California Ave

Road Closure: Rainbow Run 5K
7A - 11A
Smith St, Shrewsbury St to Brooks St

Rolling Closure: Rainbow Run 5K
7A - 11A
Morris St, Smith St to Hansford St
Hansford St, Morris St to Chilton St
Chilton St, Hansford St to Piedmont Rd
Piedmont Rd, Chilton St to California Ave

🔷SUNDAY, JUNE 9🔷
Road Closure: Outdoor Dining on Capitol St
Continued from Saturday - Sunday, June 9 at 11P
Capitol St, from Kanawha Blvd to Lee St
*Virginia St and Quarrier St intersections will be accessible to traffic

Thanks to the work of Mayor Goodwin, the Tree Board, and the Charleston Green Team for making Charleston the first city in the state in a decade to become a Tree City USA! Charleston is the 17th WV city to earn the designation.

Charleston celebrates Tree City USA status and (a belated) Arbor Day Last year, Charleston, West Virginia became a Tree City USA, a status given out by the Arbor Day Foundation. An Arbor Day celebration was held to celebrate the Tree City USA status on May 16, 2024. As part of the celebration, a dogwood tree was planted with the help of Edgewood Elementary students a...

I went down to check out the setup for the USA Cycling Championships and the new sculpture dedicated to the late Martha McKee and some of Ms. McKee's family were there checking it out. They told me that they know Martha would have loved this sculpture because she loved color, both in art and in the way she dressed. It was special to me to connect with the McKee family in that way at the sculpture.

People have been asking about the traffic notifications for the USA Cycling event. Here's the rundown:

Traffic Information | City of Charleston The City of Charleston is preparing to welcome the USA Cycling Pro Road National Championships.

As we prepare for the USA Cycling competition coming up, I am proud to be part of helping make Charleston more bike-friendly.

In addition to a proclamation that Mayor Goodwin issued today recognizing National Bike Safety Month, Council unanimously approved my bill to make updates to our traffic code as it relates to cycling. The bill represents several months of work with experts and officials to:
○ Remove outdated provisions,
○ Make the city code more aligned with state code, and
○ Improve how cycling laws are enforced.

After hosting the race this year, we will also continue to work to improve cycling in the city by:
● Updating and modernizing the cycling plan for the city and
● Designing the Capital Connector project, to add bike infrastructure on the Boulevard, East End and downtown, with the first public meeting on Tuesday 5/7 at 5:30pm at the library.

I'm glad to be part of the team that works to keep improving our city in this and so many other ways.

People have been asking me when the Bird scooters would come back from "flying south for the winter." I didn't really know because Bird is a private company that makes its own decisions. The city government role was just to authorize it to operate. But to answer your questions...they're back!

Important public meeting to make your voice heard and learn about the project to make the city more scenic, bike-friendly, and pedestrian-friendly.

⬇️Go ahead and out your comments below too!⬇️

The project will cover Kanawha Boulevard between Magic Island and the 35th Street Bridge, as well as Greenbrier Street from the river to the interstate.

Had a great day on the West Side today. Started out with the Team Up to Clean Up event over by the Beatrice Street Park, where my son Adlai (6) and I got a bag and a half of trash from the streets to the trash truck.

Then Adlai had a game with his team, the Blue Foxes at West Side Soccer Association, Charleston, WV up at Cato Park. It was a fun and competitive game with the South Hills team!

Later I got to go door-to-door over near Mary C Snow West Side Elementary. I was offering help with city issues and also getting the word out about my friend Richard Lindsay for Kanawha County Circuit Judge. Don't forget to vote for Rich on May 14 (early voting May 1-11).

I don't know what it's like outside of Charleston, but I am always just so impressed by the voters whenever I canvass door-to-door. It's easy to get discouraged reading the news, but we in Charleston are in good hands with our voters.

Yesterday, I introduced a bill relating to bike safety. (No foolin'!) The bill is designed to update and modernize our traffic laws to reflect a regulatory environment that makes it safer for cyclists and pedestrians. I appreciate my fellow at-large Councilman Shawn Taylor, chair of the Public Safety Committee, for cosponsoring the bill.

As we prepare to welcome the USA Cycling Pro Road National Championships next month, I think it's important that we have up-to-date cycling, pedestrian, and traffic laws. I also hope to work on additional cycling infrastructure over time, including signage and education, as we will be hosting that tournament for at least the next five years.

The bill does a few things:
--Makes it so it's no longer a (theoretically) jailable offense to ride a bike on a sidewalk, along with some other updates to penalties so that they are more appropriate.
--Conforms city code with the state law requiring three feet or more between a bike and a car that is passing the bike.
--Updates unreasonably restrictive requirements on how people can ride bikes on streets, as well as some antiquated/confusing code.
--Gets rid of the bicycle registrations, which were cumbersome and were not being utilized. Instead, the city will likely encourage people to utilize Project 529: https://project529.com/garage/

The bill has been referred to the Ordinances & Rules Committee, which I serve on as a member of the committee.

📷: The City of Charleston Bike Plan, https://www.charlestonwv.gov/life/bike-plan

In recognition of the new state law that allows public school teachers to teach Flat Earth Theory to students who ask about it, I wanted to find a way to legislate being tolerant of similar viewpoints, as well.

So today, I'm introducing a bill to permit Charleston land owners to describe any and all parcels inside city limits as being "flat land."

By exponentially increasing the flat land here, it will allow for much greater economic development and utilization of land that is otherwise fallow. I believe this policy change will put us on the same rocket ship 🚀 ride that the state has been taking.

The capital of the Mountain State can be flat without needing a single coal mine operator, we can simply declare the land to be flat.

We need to be open-minded and seek to encourage the consideration and contemplation of alternative facts relating to the shape and curvature of the earth. With this bill, the city joins with the state in doing so.

I had some time before my son's soccer practice with West Side Soccer Association, Charleston, WV. So I went to check out part of the 9+ acres that the city has been able to add onto Cato Park through the work of the Land Reuse Agency. Some pretty woods with some nice views!

Really great event coming up for anyone who has guns they do not want (no ammo is accepted) and would like to have them turned into something really cool. The event page is at Guns to Gardens Safe-Surrender Event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/315035824240435/

As stated below, there will be gift cards available for surrendered guns of between $100 and $200 each.

More info below.

Our newest flyer!
This is what May 4th will look like: Before the gun owner enters the parking lot a "greeter" will welcome them and confirm that their gun(s) are in the back of the car and unloaded.
As the car enters the parking lot, a "gun expert" retrieves the firearm, checks it to be sure it's unloaded and takes it to the chop saw station. A "shepherd" joins the gun owner, walking along side the car as the owner drives to the chop saw station. The shepherd will have a brief survey for the gun owner, although the he/she remains anonymous.
After the gun(s) are finished being dismantled, with their owner watching from their car, the shepherd gives them the gift cards assigned by the value of the gun they surrendered. The surrenderer then exits the parking lot with a thank you from us for choosing to have their gun repurposed as a garden tool

I've updated my Issues & Accomplishments page on my website to add in the work I did in my second year in office (2023). Here's what I added:

Emmett’s 2nd year in office (2023):
• Lead sponsor of a resolution and bill that protects public lands in the city by setting goals to:
- Have a public park within a half mile walk of 75% of the city’s population;
- Protect 5% of the city as public parkland ;
- Protect 3% of the city’s natural landscapes;
- Use more native plants, reduce pesticides, and operate bird-safe buildings; and
- Protect habitats for endangered species and species needing conservation, including monarch butterflies.
• Building on the success in 2022 to legalize electric scooter use to draft and pass an operating agreement with the Bird scooter rental company, so they can rent scooters in a safe and effective manner to people in Charleston.
• Continuing to work with the Goodwin Administration to find a local solution for recycling to avoid excess costs taking our recyclables to Beckley, and with the Green Team to make city government more sustainable and improve recycling rates.
• Led work with colleagues on Council to send letters to the Public Service Commission in opposition to utility rate increases, especially when hundreds on the West Side lost gas heat as the result of a water break.
• Continuing to serve on the Charleston Land Reuse Agency to address vacant and dilapidated buildings and make good use of vacant properties. In 2024, the CLRA has in place some important incentives to encourage redevelopment.
• Continue serving on the Spring Hill Cemetery Commission, where there is a City Arborist working, for the first time in many years. The City Arborist is implementing good tree management practices, not just in the Spring Hill Cemetery Park and its Mary Price Ratrie Arboretum, but across the city.
• Worked with Councilmember Faegre on a resolution recognizing the importance of preserving our historic brick streets.
• Putting in the legwork to help constituents with their specific needs and hyperlocal concerns from drains to parking to street signs.

Issues & Accomplishments See the issues Emmett Pepper is fighting for on Charleston’s City Council.

From the Charleston Area Alliance:

We hope to grant over $50,000 this round of the Charleston Women and Minority-Owned Small Business grant program. Deadline for applications is February 22, 2024 at 3:00 pm. We encourage grant requests between $2,500-5,000 each. Previous grant recipients are not eligible for this round.

Here is the link to apply:

Charleston, WV Women and Minority-Owned Business Grant - Charleston Area Alliance Grant GuidelinesGrant Program for Charleston, WVWomen and Minority-Owned Small Businesses 2024 Goal:  The goal of the Grant Program for Women and

I serve on the CLRA and am very proud of the New Construction Incentive Program which "offers between $35,000 and $50,000 in cash incentives for new, middle-income single-family housing and will in turn bring much needed new and affordable housing to the community."

The CLRA has been taking control of abandoned and neglected properties and now we are pushing to redevelop them. My hope is that we can reverse the population loss that we've had in Charleston for not just my entire lifetime, but my parents' lifetimes, too. This initiative and others across various aspects of the city can be part of the solution for population loss.

📣 The CLRA wants to hear from you!

The Charleston Land Reuse Agency (CLRA), a public agency created by the City of Charleston, announced it will host two community input events in February – a Developer Roundtable on February 21 at 3 p.m. at the City Service Center (915 Quarrier Street, Suite 6) which will provide real estate and development professionals the opportunity to learn about new incentive programs and share their perspectives on needs and barriers to housing redevelopment, and a Public Input Session on February 28 at 5:30 p.m. at Roosevelt Community Center gym (502 Ruffner Ave.) which will provide residents the opportunity to share their priorities for their neighborhoods and the City as a whole.

The Developer Roundtable, scheduled for February 21 at 3 p.m. at the City Service Center, will include a presentation by Bowen National Research regarding a regional housing study commissioned by Advantage Valley—with focus on Kanawha County, along with preliminary data and trends for the City of Charleston. The roundtable will provide Bowen National Research and the CLRA the opportunity to gather essential feedback on housing needs from the development community in support of application for designation as a BUILD WV - Housing Development Tax Credit District (https://bit.ly/3wiVRzV). Designation under this statewide program would allow for new construction and redevelopment tax incentives to stimulate investment in the Capital City. The CLRA, during this roundtable, will also introduce its New Construction Incentive Program which offers between $35,000 and $50,000 in cash incentives for new, middle-income single-family housing and will in turn bring much needed new and affordable housing to the community.

The Public Input Session, scheduled for February 28 at 5:30 p.m. at the Roosevelt Community Center, will provide community members the opportunity to learn about the current work of the CLRA – specifically related to housing, redevelopment, and conservation; and provide input regarding their priorities for their neighborhoods. The CLRA will also introduce its new Side Lot Program, designed to grant next-door vacant lots to existing property owners to help them increase the value and equity in what may be their most valuable asset – their home.

The Developer Roundtable and Public Input Session are open to the public. Refreshments will be provided. For more information, email [email protected].

BACKGROUND: Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin spearheaded the development of a comprehensive strategy to address dilapidated structures and the creation of the Charleston Land Reuse Agency, which was established by City Council on August 19, 2019, with the goal of promoting the productive use of property by identifying available properties suitable for public space, conservation, housing, and commercial use; and pursuing the acquisition, management, inventory, and disposition of those properties. Read more >>> https://bit.ly/3HRh6eL.

YOUTH EXCHANGE OPPORTUNITY
The Charleston Area Youth Exchange Program with Banska Bystrica, Slovakia (current 10th & 11th graders)

Have you ever wanted the opportunity to travel the world and to discover a new culture? The Charleston Rotary Youth Exchange Program offers you the chance to do just that!

This program gives you the opportunity to spend a month in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, Charleston’s Sister City, also located in a beautiful mountainous region. You will discover beautiful architecture and try new foods that you have never heard of. You will meet many new people and will find yourself growing in ways unimaginable. You may find yourself traveling to nearby countries such as Hungary, Austria, Poland, Romania, and more.

If you have ever wanted to travel, to learn more about the world, to learn more about yourself, and to broaden your horizons, you should take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

Apply here:
https://forms.gle/gY4Zf1DAtHmRKnAk9

More info in the comments.

Photo credit: https://inbounds.rye2240.org/rotary-district-2240/long-term/

https://wchsnetwork.com/new-resolution-establishes-goals-on-charleston-parks-protecting-wildlife/

New resolution establishes goals on Charleston parks, protecting wildlife Charleston City Council voted to approve the resolution Monday.

Passed!

On Monday December 18, the Council passed legislation that I started working on over a year ago that sets goals for having more parks in the City, including protecting more natural landscapes, and reducing the use of practices that will harm wildlife. I'm really proud of this policy because it is forward-looking and has long-term implications for the city without being overly onerous or cumbersome. It seeks to have public parks near where people live, reduces impacts to biodiversity, and gives us natural spaces to spend time in.

Here are the key provisions:
• Sets a goal that 75% of the city's residents live within a half mile walk of a public park.
• Sets a goal that 5% of the Land of the city be parkland, with 3% being natural landscapes.
• Strive to utilize native plant species, reduce pesticides, and utilize bird-safe practices.
• Seek opportunities to enhance/protect habitats of species of concern such as endangered or threatened species and the monarch butterfly.

Below is the current map showing that 52% of our residents live within a half-mile walk of a park.