Habbab resigns from Charlottesville Planning Commission

A vacancy has opened up on the Charlottesville Planning Commission with a public resignation last week. After Council voted 3-2 against a resolution on March 18 calling for a ceasefire in Israel’s war against Gaza, Commissioner Karim Habbab spoke at the second opportunity for public comments.

“Your vote and your reasoning, three of you, is pathetic,” Habbab said. “This is not a matter of policy but a matter of humanity. I feel sorry for you if you think this topic is too controversial for a local government to consider. We need to have the backbone to say killing innocent people is bad.”

The vote on a resolution calling for a ceasefire dominated the March 18 Council meeting.  Habbab was among several people who took to the podium to make a comment on the resolution which had been added to the agenda at the beginning of the meeting. 

“Effectively immediately I am stepping down from my role on the City Planning Commission as I can not in good conscience continue to serve in my role with a City Council that cannot uphold the basic value of human life,” Habbab said. 

Habbab joined the Planning Commission in June 2021. 

The seats held by Lyle Solla-Yates and Betsy Roettger expire on August 31, 2024. Only applications for Habbab’s seat are being taken at this time and applications are due April 26, 2024. 

The new vacancy is one of several current openings for which the City of Charlottesville is seeking new applicants. 

“We believe it is not only the right, but the responsibility of interested and capable citizens to become engaged in local government policy by advising City Council on important community-related issues,” reads the latest press release on the topic. “Serving on a Board or Commission is an excellent way to make a personal contribution to Charlottesville’s growth and can be a rewarding experience for everyone!”

Here are the vacancies with deadlines of May 8, 2024:

• There’s one vacancy for a member of the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority (learn more)
• There is one opening on the Board of Architectural Review for the owner of a business or commercial property located in a design control district (learn more)
• There are two vacancies on the Community Development Block Grant Task Force with one slated for a resident of the 10th and Page neighborhood and another reserved for the Ridge Street neighborhood. (learn more)
• There are two open positions on the Charlottesville Affordable Housing Fund committee with both seats reserved for beneficiaries of affordable housing projects. (learn more)
• There are two vacancies on the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority  with one at-large position and one resident of public housing. (learn more)
• There is one vacancy on the Historic Resources Committee. (learn more)
• There are four openings on the Housing Advisory Committee, two of whom must be a current resident of subsidized housing. The notice does not specify what the other two slots are for. There were recently new appointees as I wrote about at the time. (learn more)
• There are two seats on the Jefferson Area Board for Aging’s Advisory Council that need occupants. (learn more)
• Four people are needed on the Local Board of Building Code Appeals. (learn more)
• There are three seats on the Minority Business Commission. (learn more)
• Charlottesville needs someone to represent the city on the Piedmont Family YMCA’s Board of Directors. (learn more)
• Another two individuals are needed for the Piedmont Virginia Community College Board. (learn more)
• There’s one vacancy on the Police Civilian Oversight Board for a community representative. (learn more)
• The city is seeking one of its own employees to serve on the Retirement Commission as well as a retiree as well as a community member with professional money management experience. (learn more)
• There are four seats open on the Social Services Advisory Board. (learn more)
• There are four slots seeking applicants for the Towing Advisory Board. (learn more)
• Until this moment, I’ve never thought about the Vendor Appeals Board which needs three seats filled. City employees cannot serve on this board. (learn more)

Before you go: The time to write and research of this article is covered by paid subscribers to Charlottesville Community Engagement. In fact, this particular installment comes from the March 27, 2024 edition of the newsletter and podcast. To ensure this research can be sustained, please consider becoming a paid subscriber or contributing monthly through Patreon.