[Code 1991, § 2-3]
No contract, deed, agreement, or other instrument for the City's
purchase or lease of any interest in real property, or any option
for the City to purchase or lease any interest in real property, shall
be enforceable against the City unless such instrument is approved
and executed by the City Manager or the Assistant City Manager and
approved as to form and executed by the City Attorney.
[Ord. No. 01-13, 6-12-2001]
No deed purporting to convey an interest in real estate to the City shall be valid unless accepted by the City, evidence of which acceptance shall appear on the face of such deed or on a separately recorded instrument. Such deed or other instrument shall be executed by the City Manager or the Assistant City Manager pursuant to an ordinance, resolution, motion, or other action of City Council indicating the intent of the City to acquire or otherwise accept such property interest. The City Manager and the Assistant City Manager, however, shall have the authority to accept the dedication of public utility and access easements on behalf of the City. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any conveyance of real estate to the City pursuant to Chapter
78. Every deed purporting to convey real estate to the City shall be in a form approved by the City Attorney.
[Code 1991, § 2-4; Ord. No. 00-06, 4-11-2000]
A. The rights of the City to its waterfront, wharf property, public
landings, wharves, docks, streets, avenues, parks, bridges, and other
public property and its gas, water and electric works shall not be
sold or otherwise conveyed in fee simple except by an ordinance passed
by a recorded affirmative vote of three-fourths of all the members
elected to the City Council.
B. The City shall not sell or convey in fee simple, or enter into any
agreement to sell or convey in fee simple, any real property owned
by the City until the City Council has held a public hearing in accordance
with Code of Virginia, § 15.2-1800, concerning such proposed
sale or conveyance. This subsection, however, shall not apply to:
(1) The vacation of public interests in real property acquired by the
City through the subdivision or rezoning of land; or
(2) The vacation of public streets and rights-of-way.
C. No contract, deed, agreement, option, or other instrument for the
sale or conveyance of a fee simple interest in City-owned real property
shall be enforceable against the City unless such instrument is approved
and executed by the City Manager or the Assistant City Manager and
approved as to form and executed by the City Attorney.
[Code 1991, § 2-5; Ord. No. 00-06, 4-11-2000]
A. No franchise, lease, easement, or right of any kind to use City-owned
real property in a manner not permitted to the general public shall
be granted by the City for a longer period than 40 years, except for
air rights together with easements for columns of support, which may
be granted for a period not exceeding 60 years.
B. Before granting any such franchise, lease, easement, right, or privilege
for a term of five years or less, the City Council shall hold a public
hearing in accordance with Code of Virginia, § 15.2-1800.
Notice of such public hearing shall be advertised once in a newspaper
having general circulation in the City at least seven days prior to
the date set for the hearing. This subsection shall not apply to the
leasing of City-owned real property to another public body, political
subdivision or authority of the commonwealth.
C. Before granting any such franchise, lease, easement, right, or privilege
for a term in excess of five years, except for a trunk railway, the
City Council shall first, after due advertisement, receive bids therefor
publicly, as provided by Code of Virginia, §§ 15.2-2100
and 15.2-2102, and shall proceed with the granting of such franchise,
lease, easement, or other right to use real property in such manner
as is otherwise required by law.
D. No such contract, deed, agreement, or other instrument granting a
franchise, lease, easement, or similar right to use City-owned real
property shall be enforceable against the City unless such instrument
is approved and executed by the City Manager or the Assistant City
Manager and approved as to form and executed by the City Attorney.
[Ord. No. 00-06, 4-11-2000]
Notwithstanding any other provision of this division to the
contrary, the City Manager shall have the authority to grant licenses
for the use of City-owned real property, including the right to allow
encroachments within City rights-of-way, provided that such licenses
create no property interest in the licensee, that they are revocable
at will by the City, and that they impose no liability or responsibility
upon the City for any costs, expenses, or damages arising out of the
licensee's use of such property.