Fortress City Hall?

Maybe.

Mayor Levar M. Stoney’s administration, shaken by the May 31 massacre in which a Virginia Beach city employee killed 12 people and wounded four others at that city’s munici- pal center, is preparing to roll out a plan that could end the free and unfettered movement of the public inside Richmond City Hall and possibly in recreation areas, libraries and other city property.

Police Chief Will Smith cited the massacre in disclosing Monday to City Council that the administration would present in 30 days or so a plan for strengthening the now lax security in public spaces where city authority to ban firearms was stripped away years ago by the General Assembly.

“We are somewhat behind the times in that we are an open, easily accessible operation,” Chief Smith said.

He offered few details of what he described as a long-needed security overhaul that potentially could carry a multimillion-dollar price tag.

Chief Smith made the announcement during a special City Council meeting at which the council gave a big thumbs up to Mayor Stoney’s week-old proposal to ban guns from city buildings and parks. The council’s approval was a largely symbolic vote given the city has no legal authority currently to implement it.

Racing to get it on the books ahead of a special General Assembly session next Tuesday, July 9, to consider gun control legislation, the council voted 7-0, with two members, Kristen N. Larson, 4th District, and Reva M. Trammell, 8th District, abstaining to protest the fast pace that prevented them from hearing from constituents.

Ms. Trammell, who chairs the coun- cil’s Public Safety Committee, received support from two other council members in seeking a 60-day delay on the vote. Irked that the mayor didn’t personally present his proposal because he was attending the U.S. Conference of Mayors annual convention in Hawaii, Ms. Trammell argued, “I have 26,000 people in my district and they should be able to speak about this.”

She said she has heard from constituents who disagree about the need or want a better explanation of how a gun ban would be enforced.

Ms. Larson also expressed dismay at the swift movement of the legislation and urged more time. So did council member Kim B. Gray, 2nd District, who ultimately joined the majority, despite labeling the legislation “grandstanding” and decrying Mayor Stoney’s description of the General Assembly as “spineless” for failing to address gun control or restore the ability of Richmond and other localities to craft local laws that meet their communities’ needs.

Picking up an argument that several speakers made, Ms. Gray expressed concern that the legislation and height- ened City Hall security mostly would hit those who obey gun laws, not those who don’t.

Most council members, however, agreed with the gun ban. Councilman Michael J. Jones, 9th District, said he is a gun supporter, but noted that urban Richmond is not like rural Virginia and needs to be able to create legislation that serves its residents.

Councilman Parker C. Agelasto, 5th District, who also backed the legislation, urged the city to be more creative in dealing with gun control. He noted that state law bans firearms on public school property and urged the administration to consider transferring nominal ownership of parks and recreation enters to Richmond Public Schools to take advantage of that option.

Council President Cynthia I. New- bille, 8th District; Council Vice President Chris A. Hilbert, 3rd District; Andreas Addison, 1st District; and Ellen F. Robertson, 6th District; also supported the mayor’s ban proposal.

Mayor Stoney, who was preparing to fly back to Richmond as the council met, expressed satisfaction with the vote, calling it “a strong message to the Virginia General Assembly that Richmond stands ready and willing to immediately implement the kind of common sense gun regulation that will enhance the safety and security of residents, employees and visitors.”

“Now it’s time to take this mo- mentum across the street and hold our commonwealth’s elected representatives accountable for protecting our children and families,” he continued in a statement, adding that Richmond’s leaders “proved they have the spine to act; now the ball is in the General Assembly’s court.”

Republicans, who narrowly control both houses of the state legislature, have indicated they will reject gun control legislation that Gov. Ralph S. Northam has brought them back to Richmond to consider. Republicans killed the same proposals in the General Assembly’s regular session earlier this year and in the past.

Before Monday’s council vote, Chief Smith, with Sheriff Antionette V. Irving and a cadre of deputies in the audience, became the main advocate for the gun ban.

He argued that “people have a right to conduct business without fear of being injured by an illegally carried firearm.” While the chief acknowledged that such a ban would not halt a determined person, he said making guns less available in public spaces could reduce the prospect of a firearm being used when arguments get out of control.

Chief Smith also acknowledged that if the legislature continues to block a ban on guns in public places like City Hall, it would be “meaningless” to install metal detectors as Mr. Jones has advocated because there would be no way to stop or prevent people with guns from entering the building.

That would be fine with Robert Sadtler and Larry Hodges, opponents of the gun ban. They told council that the real impact would be to prevent law-abiding gun owners from carrying guns into city buildings and public spaces.

“All this is going to do is leave people helpless” when something happens, Mr. Sadtler, a representative of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, said in urging the measure’s rejection.

Glenwood W. Burley, a retired police officer, urged passage of the legislation he called “proactive, not reactive” in seeking to ward off a Virginia Beach type of incident.

Other supporters, including gun control group Moms Demand Action, view the ban as helpful.

“Every child deserves to feel safe in a park, ” said Laura Swanson of Moms Demand Action, in referencing the fatal shooting of 9-year-old Markiya Dickson during the Memorial Day weekend in a city park. Her death was one of nine park shooting incidents this year.

She called children’s safety in parks “really important to me as a mother” in urging the council to keep that in mind when the members voted.