THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 3, 1995 TAG: 9502010157
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANCIE LATOUR, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 62 lines
When City Council members voted in December to approve a rezoning request for 78 new single-family homes in Camelot, they thought they had finally put to rest a contentious year-long battle between residents of that Deep Creek neighborhood and developer W.W. Reasor.
Now, a group of Camelot residents, still unsatisfied with a 4.6-acre park Reasor offered as part of the deal, have resurrected the controversy.
A group called the Concerned Citizens of Camelot has filed a petition with Chesapeake Circuit Court to reverse the council's decision and force Reasor to increase his offer to at least 13 acres of recreation space.
More than 1,200 residents have signed the petition so far, according to community activist C.C. Hawkins.
The new committee emerged the day after the president and some board members of the Camelot Civic League chose to abide by the council's Dec. 20 vote and work to build on the 4.6-acre site.
Signs of conflict within the neighborhood had surfaced before the council decision, when a civic league vote on whether to fight the developer's offer came back split 38-37.
Though residents agreed that Camelot had been neglected for decades by the developer and by past city councils, some said it was time to lay down the fight and take the 4.6 acres offered by Reasor.
Hawkins, one of the founders of the new committee, said that was a decision he could not abide by.
``I think some of those civic league members, they just decided they can't fight anymore,'' Hawkins said.
``The community needs the 13 acres, simply because once the houses are built on it, you're never going to get a playground on it again.''
Larry Spruill, president of the Camelot Civic League, could not be reached for comment.
Though the City Council took action approving the rezoning, the City Code gives residents recourse to challenge that decision. Residents are permitted to petition the Circuit Court within 30 days of a City Council vote.
The council, which was served with the petition last week, has 21 days to either reverse its decision or maintain its original vote.
If Hawkins and others get the 13 acres for the community, they would be the third citizen group to succeed in changing the course of development in Chesapeake.
In the late 1980s, residents of Bells Mill compelled a nearby developer to reduce the number of homes and make road and sewer improvements after two years of petitioning and time in court.
And residents of Elbow Road killed a proposed 1,019-unit subdivision after collecting 17,000 signatures and forcing a citywide referendum on the issue. Voters rejected the development by a 26-to-1 margin.
Spruill, who does not support the action, met with Parks and Recreation director Claire Askew to discuss the layout of the proposed 4.6-acre park site at Guenevere and King Arthur drives, across from Camelot Elementary School. The council has appropriated $46,200 toward playground equipment, a picnic shelter, tables and benches for the park.
KEYWORDS: CHESAPEAKE CITY COUNCIL by CNB