Nearly two years on the job, City Manager Sanders provides status report on various initiatives

Charlottesville City Manager Sam Sanders has held that position for nearly two years, lasting longer than several of his predecessors. His tenure so far has been marked with a series of ambitious initiatives and he provided an update to City Council on July 7.

“Upon taking the role of City Manager, I decided that it was important for me to be able to come before council and the public every quarter and report on our progress at getting the work done for the city,” Sanders said. “My goal is to always present a work plan at the start of each fiscal year and then to give quarterly updates.”

Sanders said a new work plan for FY2026 will be presented to Council in a couple of weeks. These work plans track progress toward elements of the city’s strategic plan framework adopted by Council in September 2023.

One of the headings in the original plan had the title “Commitment to Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion” but that has now been changed to “Commitment to Opportunity and Access.” The FY2025 review notes that an action item titled “Operationalize JEDI” has been paused due to federal threats against diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

“While we are concerned about the actions of the federal government, we are not stopping the work that we need to do that has been identified and prioritized by this Council,” Sanders said. “Until you tell me otherwise, that is what we will continue to do. But language is what is being used right now as a target. It is also being used to try to separate localities from their values.”

One of the strategic outcomes in the plan is titled Housing with four action items. Sanders has been working on various plans to build a low-barrier shelter for the unhoused and the most recent plan has been to locate one at the site of the Salvation Army thrift store on Cherry Avenue. Sanders had no update on that but said he was continuing to work with multiple parties.

“One day soon I hope I’ll be able to come back to you and tell you how it’s looking when we think we may have something that we can go live with,” Sanders said. “But in the meantime I am looking at alternatives because I believe in a plan B, C and D just because that’s who I am.”

In June, Council approved several million in surplus funding for what Sanders has referred to as community interventions. One of those includes hiring two people to conduct outreach with unhoused individuals in the community.

Another item under Housing listed as “ongoing” is to define the portfolio of properties owned by the city and the Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority. Council got an update in June from CRHA Executive Director John Sales as I reported for C-Ville Weekly.

“We’re going to continue to work with CRHA and we plan for you to see that as a part of an additional conversation in the joint session that has been scheduled for next month with the CRHA board,” Sanders said.

Another strategic plan outcome area is titled “Organizational Excellence” and one of the action items is to “rebuild staff capacity.” Sanders reported that several critical vacancies have been filled such as the city attorney, social services director, a human resources director, and several transit positions. One vacancy remaining to be filled is the position of emergency management coordinator and Sanders said an offer has been made.

The beginning of fiscal year 2026 means that a fourth collective bargaining unit is now in place.

“Public works, utilities and Parks and [Recreation] staff primarily are now in an organized bargaining unit,” Sanders said.

Also under Organizational Excellence and listed as “in progress” is an audit of the process that develops the city’s Capital Improvement Program.

“Deputy [City Manager James] Freas has received that charge and that mission and that request and I’ll say demand, to be perfectly honest, that we’ve got to do better at making sure that that information gets shared with you and the public,” Sanders said.

Accomplishments in the last year under “Partnerships” include:

• A new lease with the Charlottesville Parking Center for the Water Street Parking Garage (read my story)
• A new agreement with the Charlottesville-Albemarle Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals to run the state-mandated animal shelter
• An agreement with the Albemarle County Sheriff’s Office related to management of the new joint General District Court in Court Square

Under “Recreation, Arts, and Culture,” Sanders announced that Brenda Kelley, formerly the city’s redevelopment director, will now serve as the Downtown Strategy Manager in the Office of Economic Development.

“The goal is to be able to have a resource available to our business community on the mall to be able to speak to someone directly and get hopefully the kinds of attention that they’re looking for as well as an increased maintenance plan and a series of improvements along the mall as our asset that turns 50 years old next year will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Downtown Mall along with with to 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence,” Sanders said.

Under Transportation, Sanders said one item that will be completed is a bus shelter at Midway Manor, a stop served by the free trolley-style bus.

City Councilor Natalie Oschrin said she appreciated the presentation and the update because it might help area residents understand what the city government is doing.

“A lot of the work that the city does, I mean some of it is easily visible, like infrastructure projects and, and bus frequency, things that are felt and seen and visible,” Oschrin said. “But a lot of this is internal organization management and systems development and getting all of that kind of aligned in a way that is harder for the public to see.”

Sanders didn’t mention everything that had been in his written report.

“I reflect during this time of year as it is perfect for thinking about what went well, what did not, what can we do next year, and how do we get it done,” Sanders wrote.

Sanders said the city has recently filled the positions of Human Resources director, Social Services director, and the City Attorney. He said other successes include adoption of a new transition plan for the Americans with Disabilities Act as well as a master plan for Parks and Recreation. Sanders also said Council did not increase any of the tax rates this year.

“While the reassessment increased the revenue, the budget does not compound the issue for residents and property owners by levying even more taxes,” Sanders said.

Sanders took the opportunity to announce organizational changes that have now taken effect after the dissolution of the Office of Community Solutions.

• The Office of Budget and Performance Management is now known as the Office of Budget and Grants Management.
• Housing operations that were under the Office of Community Solutions are now in the Department of Neighborhood Development Services.
• Brenda Kelley, hired many years ago to be the city’s redevelopment manager, now works in the Office of Economic Development as the Downtown Strategy Manager.

Other items from the rest of the report:

• In January, Council amended the city’s human rights ordinance to facilitate a planned partnership with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. The idea is to permit city employees to investigate federal Fair Housing complaints. So far the department under the Trump administration has not moved forward but the report said a conversation was held on June 17 and the contract is under review and more information will be available this month.
• A 262.9 kilowatt solar photovoltaic array is being installed at the Charlottesville Area Technical Education Center (CATEC) and is expected to be completed by September.
• The city continues to encourage the purchase of e-bikes by opening up a third round of their $1,000 vouchers. More information is available here.

Before you go: This story was originally posted in the July 9, 2025 edition of Charlottesville Community Engagement and then posted here on July 10. To learn how to support this work, please visit this page elsewhere on this website.