In their first of two final votes, the Salem City Council voted 3-2 Monday night to approve an amended rezoning application to change 62 acres of HopeTree Family Services’ land to a planned unit development.
Council members also voted to nearly double their salaries starting in July 2025.
There will be a second reading and vote at the council’s Dec. 9 meeting to decide the fate of HopeTree’s requested rezoning. If that meeting results in a vote against approval of the rezoning application, it will be thrown out.
Councilman Hunter Holliday made a motion to table the vote, which did not carry but was seconded by Jim Wallace. Holliday then listed, in a separate motion, seven amendments to the rezoning, which also did not carry. Those amendments pertained to limitations on construction and heavy equipment, use of city services and the adequacy of existing water, sewer and stormwater infrastructure. He said he felt that the council didn’t know enough about the costs that residents will pay over the long term as a result of the rezoning.
“What is the burden that the citizens of the city of Salem are going to face 10 to 15 years down the road?” Holliday said. “We can’t answer that question.”
Holliday and Wallace voted against the amended rezoning application from HopeTree. Bill Jones, Randy Foley and Mayor Renee Turk voted in favor.
Turk said when the council decided in June to approve HopeTree’s original application, “this council was well informed.”
“We spend a lot of time and dedication,” Turk said. “All this council is doing is correcting procedure.”
Past votes on HopeTree rezoning
HopeTree first sought rezoning its property earlier this year.
On June 24, the city council approved a rezoning from residential single-family zoning to a planned unit development, allowing for the construction of up to 28 more commercial units on 62 acres of the land. HopeTree said it was looking to retain about 22 acres of the land and would sell the rest.
Five plaintiffs sued the city over that rezoning, mostly on the grounds that improper procedure had been followed in approving it.
HopeTree resubmitted its zoning application — which was substantially similar to the first attempt — in August.
On Nov. 13, the planning commission recommended approval of the amended application on a 4-1 vote after a joint public hearing with the council. Twenty-nine residents spoke on the issue, with the majority opposing the rezoning.
Only five people spoke during the citizen comment portion of Monday night’s meeting. None spoke directly on the HopeTree vote to come later in the meeting.
Citing the packed council room, Holliday motioned to extend the comment period to give those who did not get to sign up for a chance to speak. Wallace seconded the motion, but the motion didn’t carry and the comment period ended, resulting in some shaking heads from the crowd.
“We have established guidelines that have been used all the time since I’ve been on council,” Turk said. “If there’s adjustment to that, I think that’s something that can be discussed.”
Council votes to raise members’ salaries
The council also voted 3-2 Monday night to raise members’ and the mayor’s salaries to the maximum allowed by the General Assembly: $24,000 for the mayor and $22,000 for council members, effective July 1, 2027. Turk, Jones and Foley voted in favor; Wallace and Holliday voted against.
“Just because the legislature gave us the ability to almost double our pay doesn’t mean we should,” Wallace said. “When you have a very modest salary, you attract people who want to come and serve the city.” Wallace will not serve another term after his current term ends on Dec. 31, after an unsuccessful run in this year’s council election.
Previously, salaries were based on the 1996 limits: $13,000 per year for mayor and $12,000 for council members. The General Assembly changed these limits in 2023.
Other local governing bodies across the region have taken a similar step in recent months. Among them was the Roanoke City Council, which voted to enact these new maximums in July, increasing salaries by $5,000 per year starting July 1, 2025, until they reach the maximum salaries allowed.
