Virginia Beach council meetings returning to City Hall after 9 months away due to the pandemic

Virginia Beach — Now that COVID-19 vaccines are widely available, the Virginia Beach City Council is returning to its normal meeting spot in City Hall.

Last fall, the Health Department recommended that the Virginia Beach City Council and Planning Commission temporarily relocate to the city-owned convention center until conditions of the coronavirus pandemic improved. The vaccine clinic was also operated inside of the convention center.

The HVAC system in the City Hall council chambers did not meet the Centers for Disease Control expectations for air cleaning and circulation to prevent the spread of COVID-19. So since October, the council has been regularly meeting at the convention center to allow the public enough room to practice social distancing.

The first meeting at City Hall will be held on July 6. Formal council meetings begin at 6 p.m. and are held every other week.

In the fall, construction is expected to conclude on a new $50 million City Hall building at the municipal center.

Alissa Skelton, 757-995-9043, alissa.skelton@pilotonline.com