THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, May 1, 1996 TAG: 9604300133
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY KAREN WEINTRAUB, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 241 lines
EVER WANTED TO HAVE a say in how big the city should grow? Or when it should stop growing?
Ever wanted to say no to more strip malls and tract housing, or tell a developer to take a hike?
Ever wanted to help design a city?
The Virginia Beach Planning Department wants to give you the chance.
Starting tonight, the Planning Department will hold 17 public meetings to get residents' ideas as staff members draft the next comprehensive plan for the city's development.
The plan only affects new development or redevelopment - it won't help you get rid of the shopping center down the street - but it will help the city make plans for the future.
Here are some commonly asked questions and answers about the process and how you can participate in it:
What's a comprehensive plan?
A comprehensive plan is a blueprint for future development, a guide that suggests the best locations for commercial growth versus residential development, public space versus private needs. The plan doesn't say ``we need a Blockbuster Video here,'' but is more general, suggesting, for instance ``it makes sense to have retail stores in this area.''
How does the plan affect development?
The plan is a policy guideline but does not have any legislative teeth. The zoning map, which may or may not be changed to comply with the plan, actually dictates what type of development can go where.
Because the plan is drawn up with the help of the City Council and Planning Commission, those bodies will use it when considering whether to allow a new subdivision in one area or a Wal-Mart in another. It also helps decide where the next new library or recreation center will go.
The plan obviously has more impact on open land where growth can occur than in already-developed neighborhoods, but sometimes it leads to new uses for areas. The last comprehensive plan, for instance, suggested that the Burton Station neighborhood near Norfolk International Airport should be an industrial park rather than a residential area.
How would the plan affect me as a Virginia Beach resident?
The drafting of the plan gives citizens a chance to affect the future development of their city. Many residents complain about overdevelopment, traffic congestion, ugly shopping centers. The planning process gives people an opportunity to voice their complaints and be a part of the solution. The plan will help you and your neighbors bring the type of development you want into your community, and keep out what you don't want.
Who comes up with the plan?
The comprehensive plan is drafted by the city's Planning Department staff with input from city officials, business leaders and residents. The council and Planning Commission have set long-term goals for the city that will provide the basic framework for the plan, but the details will be worked out by the staff and the public. Using the council's ideas ``as a foundation,'' Thomas C. Pauls, comprehensive planning coordinator, said, ``what people have to tell us will have a direct influence on the comprehensive plan which in turn will influence the development of the city.''
How will my input be used?
The Planning Department has scheduled 17 public meetings between May 1 and July 1 to come up with a common vision for the city's future.
``We want to hear what you want and what you don't want,'' said Jolilda Saunders, planning support services coordinator with the Planning Department. ``We want to establish and articulate a direction for the comprehensive plan and a shared vision for where we want the city to go.''
For example, if a large number of residents clamor for a new recreation center, the city's long-term recreation plan might be changed to include one; or if hundreds of people complain about big-box shopping centers such as Wal-Marts, development regulations might be changed to limit the number that could be built.
What has happened so far?
The City Council and Planning Commission spent a Saturday in March setting a general direction for the plan, saying they hoped it would promote economic development, protect the city's natural resources and provide for high quality services.
Planning Department staff members and a Norfolk State University intern have spent several months compiling demographic information and organizing the community meetings that start today. Fliers have been sent to 227 civic leagues and more than 200 places of worship to invite residents to the public meetings. All 76,000 students in the Virginia Beach school system will be given information to bring home about the meetings; and several pizza delivery companies are considering passing out fliers to their customers. Information on the meetings also is available at the public libraries, and can be obtained by calling 427-4621.
What happens next?
The department will spend the summer and fall processing the public comments and input from special interest groups such as the military and business leaders. Staff members will then hold 17 more public meetings to show what they have come up with and to get citizen reaction. The final plan will be presented to the City Council for approval early next year.
What will the completed comprehensive plan look like?
The city's last comprehensive plan, finished in 1991, was an inch thick and difficult to read. This time, the Planning Department is hoping to come up with a more understandable - and thinner - document. The final plan will be divided into eight chapters addressing key topics: land use, transportation, natural resources, public facilities, housing, open space, economic vitality and community appearance. Localized plans that have already been written, such as the Outdoors Plan, the Pembroke Central Business District Master Plan, the Oceanfront Resort Area Concept Plan will legally be considered part of the comprehensive plan but will be separate documents.
What will the public meetings be like?
The meetings will start off with a flag salute led by Girl or Boy Scouts, a video explaining comprehensive plans and a short speech by a Planning Commission member. Then, participants will break up into smaller groups to talk in detail about what they think is right - and wrong - about their community and their city's development. Those groups will reconvene at the end and share their conclusions with the entire crowd. Participants also will be asked to fill out a report card to rate basic city services.
Saunders said her department's main goal is to get as many residents to participate in the meetings as possible.
``We're having a party and the worst thing that could happen is nobody shows up,'' she said. ILLUSTRATION: Graphic with map and chart
AREA #13: COMMUNITY PROFILE: LANDSTOWN - LAKE PLACID - CHRISTOPHER
FARMS
AT A GLANCE...
LAND USE
Single-family residential is predominant land use
Commercial development is located at the intersection of Holland
and Shipps Corner roads
NATURAL RESOURCES
West Neck Creek scenic waterway
Environmentally sensitive areas due to marginal soils, wetlands,
floodway and floodplain areas
Southern Watershed Management Area
TRANSPORTATION
Impacted by the proposed Southeastern Parkway and Greenbelt
highway
Capital Improvement Program (CIP) road projects:
1. Holland Road, Phase VI - four-lane divided road from Dam Neck
Road to proposed Ferrell Parkway
2. Ferrell Parkway, Phase II - four-lane parkway from Landstown
Road (now named Dam Neck Road) to the Virginia Beach Municipal
Center
3. Ferrell Parkway, Phase V - four-lane divided road with bikeway
from Princess Anne Road to General Booth Boulevard
4. London Bridge Road Extended - four-lane road from Shipps
Corner Road to Dam Neck Road;
5. Dozier's Bridge replacement - located between Holland and
Seaboard roads.
Portion of Landstown Road, from Holland Road to the Amphitheater
property, was officially renamed Dam Neck Road.
PUBLIC FACILITIES
Kellam High School
CIP School projects:
1. Kellam High School Additions - 20 additional classrooms and
other improvements as deemed necessary by the Virginia Beach School
Board
2. Future elementary school, to be located along Holland Road
west of the Christopher Farms subdivision.
CIP Water Utility: Holland Road/Courthouse Forest - project
provides city water service mains and fire protection to the Holland
Road/Courthouse Forest area.
CIP Sewer Utility: Princess Anne/Courthouse/Holland Road -
project provides city sewer service to Princess Anne Road east of
Holland Road and Courthouse/Holland Road area to replace failing
septic systems.
HOUSING
Existing housing stock ranges in age from less than 1 year up to
19 years
Existing residential densities range from 1 unit per acre to 3.6
units per acre
Approximate percentage of existing housing types - 84 percent
single-family detached, 9 percent single-family attached, and 7
percent multiple family.
ECONOMIC VITALITY
The City of Virginia Beach Municipal Center is a major employer
located immediately adjacent to his community
OPEN SPACE
Neighborhood parks and the Kellam High School athletic fields
Community is served by the Princess Anne District Park;
Proposed canoe launch and parking at the new Dozier's Bridge
CIP Trail project: Pungo Park Connector Trail, Phase 1 - 10-foot
wide pedestrian and bicycle trail to be provided within the existing
Norfolk/Southern Railroad right of way from Dam Neck Road (formerly
Landstown Road) to the Virginia Beach Municipal Center.
COMMUNITY APPEARANCE (including historic/cultural resources)
Southernmost portion of this community, between Holland and
Princess Anne roads, contains the Courthouse Historical and Cultural
District
The designated historic properties in this community by the
Virginia Department of Historic Resources date between the late
1800s to early 1900s
IF YOU GO...
The City Planning Department, now drawing up a plan to guide
growth and land development, has scheduled 17 meetings during May
and June to get citizens' ideas. Planners have divided the city into
17 sections, each of which will be the focus of that day's session.
See the map at left to see which area will be discussed on which
date.
All the workshops will be held in school cafeterias from 7 to 9
p.m. Any citizen can attend any workshop, regardless of location.
For more information, call 427-4621.
The meetings are scheduled for:
Today at Kellam High School (area 13 on map)
Monday, May 6, at Salem Middle (area 11 on map)
Wednesday, May 8, at Thalia Elementary (area 9 on map)
Monday, May 13, at Creeds Elementary (area 17 on map)
Wednesday, May 15, at Princess Anne Middle (area 15 on map)
Monday, May 20, at Windsor Oaks Elementary (area 10 on map)
Wednesday, May 22, at Strawbridge Elementary (area 16 on map)
Wednesday, May 29, at Trantwood Elementary (area 6 on map)
Monday, June 3, at Corporate Landing Elementary (area 14 on
map)
Wednesday, June 5, at Cooke Elementary (area 3 on map)
Monday, June 10, at Thoroughgood Elementary (area 1 on map)
Wednesday, June 12, at Bayside Middle (area 4 on map)
Monday, June 17, at Shelton Park Elementary (area 2 on map)
Wednesday, June 19, at Rosemont Elementary (area 12 on map)
Monday, June 24, at Kings Grant Elementary (area 5 on map)
Wednesday, June 26, at Woodstock Elementary (area 7 on map)
Monday, July 1, at Providence Elementary (area 8 on map)
Participants will be asked to consider these questions at the
meeting:
A. What makes your community a good place to live, work and
play?
B. What are the three most important changes you would like to
see happen over the next 10 to 20 years in your community?
C. In our city?
by CNB