Here's a plain-language version of the Hampton petitioners' proposed amendment to the ordinance that embodies Hampton's enormous influence over the future of this national treasure.

The Hampton petitioners are exercising rights that are specified in the city charter and built into American democracy. Their petition calls for amending the ordinance to mandate a new version of Hampton's formal outlook and approach concerning Fort Monroe. This improved outlook/approach would:

* Highly value Fort Monroe's 400 years of public ownership, the entire 570-acre post's status as a National Historic Landmark, and its unique natural resources and recreational opportunities -- as required by state law .
* Mean pursuing for Hampton the economic and other forms of enrichment that a Fort Monroe refashioned as a Grand Public Place would bestow.
* Distinctly recognize the need to preclude any local tax burden for Hampton citizens.

The amended ordinance would require seeking to achieve those goals through:

* Striving to keep all of Fort Monroe in public ownership under the management of a public entity dedicated to stewardship of Fort Monroe as a Grand Public Place for the American people.
* Planning for a Fort Monroe that sustains itself financially through judicious use of Fort Monroe's many potential revenue-generating assets.
* Ensuring that the possibility of a continuing federal role at Fort Monroe -- a self-sustaining national park, likely combined with a federal or a federal-state trust -- is investigated fully and pursued vigorously.

Hampton City Council appoints seven of the eighteen commissioners on Virginia's Fort Monroe Authority (the "Fort Monroe Federal Area Development Authority"). The amended ordinance would direct Hampton's seven commissioners to pursue the amended city policy on Fort Monroe "to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law." That is, the proposed amendment respects the prerogatives of the state and the Fort Monroe Authority, while at the same time improving Hampton's official outlook and approach to the opportunity that Fort Monroe represents.

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