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June Newsletter

 

In this edition
- Green Drinks Chesapeake - Wednesday, June 26
- Proposed changes to Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area in Chesapeake
- Comp Plan Open Houses
- City Council Meeting - June 11 (Single Member Voting Districts & Recycling Referendums)
- June Planning Commission Meeting - June 12
- Agricultural Subdivision Ordinance
- Action Alerts
- More Upcoming Events
- In the News

Green Drinks Chesapeake - Wednesday, June 26

Our next meeting will be Wednesday, June 26, 2024 from 6 pm to 8 pm at YNot Italian in Greenbrier, 1036 Volvo Parkway, Suite 7 Chesapeake, VA, 23320.

Among other topics we'll discuss drafting a sign-on letter to the City Council about Planning Documents that are being prepared, including the Greenbrier Area Plan and the Trails and Connectivity Plan.

Please note the day change to Wednesday. The City Council meeting on Tuesday the 25th will be considering the proposed CBPA changes, so we wanted to keep that day clear to attend the City Council meeting. There have been several City Council meetings of interest on the 4th Tuesday in recent months, so we will consider moving the Green Drinks to the 4th Wednesday permanently.

What is Green Drinks?  Green Drinks is mostly for people working on environmental issues, but anyone can come -- people from environment groups, business, government, academia, and as individuals. There is no 'us and them'. Green Drinks is a chance to mingle, share insights, inspire and delight each other. Come out and order some food or a drink (each participant pays for their own drinks and food; if drinking, please do so responsibly!) and join the conversation. Please do share the invite with others who may be interested. 

Proposed changes to Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area in Chesapeake

Areas affected in Fernwood Farms/Riverwalk
On Friday, May 31st, several of us met with the Planning Department to discuss the proposed CBPA District boundary changes in Chesapeake.  In attendance were representatives from the Friends of Indian River, Fernwood Farms Civic League, and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.   Representatives from Wetlands Watch wanted to attend the meeting but were unavoidably unavailable that day.  

The Planning Department provided an informative briefing on the process they followed for the CBPA changes.  We discussed multiple areas of concern and the Planning Department said they would address these areas.

The removal of the forested wetlands by Fernwood Farms continues to be one of our areas of greatest concern, but not the only area. Read more on the items we asked the City to address at http://www.greeningchesapeake.com/2024/06/cbpa-update.html

The CBPA changes are scheduled to go back to City Council for decision on Tuesday, June 25.

Comp Plan Open Houses

The Greenbrier Area Plan Open House was on May 22.  The charts presented can be seen at https://www.cityofchesapeake.net/3100/Greenbrier-Area-Plan.  

The Trails and Connectivity Plan Open House was on June 3.  The charts presented will be posted soon at https://www.cityofchesapeake.net/3233/Chesapeake-Trails-and-Connectivity-Plan

Comments on these plans can be sent to planning@cityofchesapeake.net

The Planning Department is continuing with the next round of public Community Open Houses. Upcoming meetings include:

  • June 10 from 5:00 - 6:30 p.m., Chesapeake Conference Center
  • June 13 from 5:00 - 6:30 p.m., Fire Station #7, 3329 South Battlefield Blvd.
  • June 17 from 5:00 - 6:30 p.m., Chesapeake Lifestyle Center

See https://www.cityofchesapeake.net/3275/Comprehensive-Plan-Update for more info

City Council Meeting - June 11

The City Council is anticipated to draw an exceptionally large crowd to City Hall at their June 11th meeting due to items related to elections and recycling on the agenda.  There are two resolutions at the top of the agenda that, if passed by the City Council, would authorize and direct the city attorney to petition the Circuit Court to call advisory referendums on 

  1. "a proposed charter amendment to establish eight single-member voting districts for the election of council members, rather than an at large election without regard to residency, with the Mayor continuing to be elected at large."
  2. "a proposed ordinance imposing a fee to establish a curbside recycling program."

Anyone wishing to address City Council during the meeting must register with the City Clerk’s Office prior to the 6:30 p.m., start of the meeting on June 11. Speakers may register by calling the Clerk’s Office at (757) 382-6151 any weekday between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Speakers may also register in-person prior to the meeting on June 11; however, given the anticipated crowd, pre-registration is recommended to ensure your opportunity to speak. Those who pre-register will still need to check-in prior to the meeting, in order to confirm attendance. A check in location will be provided just outside of the Chambers.   See the full agenda and rules for the meeting at Regular City Council Meeting, Jun 11, 2024

June Planning Commission Meeting 

  • June 12 - Planning Commission Meeting Agendas (cityofchesapeake.net).  Items of interest on agenda:
    • Springton at Grassfield, a 172.5 acre Planned Unit Development along Dominion Blvd.  Most of this land is cleared agricultural land or fallow; it would add 1200 homes - 720 multi-family homes, 455 townhomes, 176 single family homes; it would ultimately add about 25 acres of tree canopy.
    • McGhee’s Concrete on Bainbridge Blvd
    • An apartment/condo complex at the south terminus of Kingsborough Square, i.e. behind the Food Lion off Battlefield. This would clear about 6 acres of woods, with only about 1.5 acres of trees replanted.
    • A YMCA Athletic Field in Great Bridge just off the end of Etheridge Manor Blvd. This would clear about 8 acres of trees.  

Agricultural Subdivision Ordinance

On Wednesday, May 22, the Planning Commission recommended Approval of a proposed ordinance change (Version A) to change the way Agricultural subdivision happen to prevent unplanned "by right" development in rural areas.  It changes the process that currently allows agricultural land divisions for the intention of agricultural use, but which have been used as a development tool to create numerous single-family dwelling properties instead of bona fide agricultural land use.   The proposed Ordinance amendment would require a preservation easement on property being so subdivided to provide a mechanism of enforcement to ensure these parcels are used as originally proposed by the land owner.  The ordinance next goes to the City Council, likely in June; date TBD.  See the details on the proposed ordinance at PLN-TXT-2023-013----Ag-Text-Amendment-PDF (cityofchesapeake.net)

Action Alerts

More Upcoming Events

In the News

Stay on top of the latest news and join the conversation in our Facebook group at Greening Chesapeake | Facebook

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Support Tree Bills in General Assembly

Update 2:  Urge Governor Youngkin to sign HB529 and HB1100 into law to ensure our community is able to conserve and plant more trees that will benefit the health of all Virginians! Contact him today -  https://p2a.co/dT5K6jN   Update: Both of these bills have been passed by the House and Senate and are now heading for the Governor's desk for signature.  Stay tuned for any Action Alerts asking folks to contact the Governor to urge him to sign these bills.  There are several bills in the General Assembly that would give the City of Chesapeake the option to do more to protect trees and restore tree canopy during development.  Current state law limits how much Chesapeake can require of developers during construction.   HB 1100 would enable all counties, cities, and towns in Virginia to adopt tree conservation ordinances to conserve healthy mature trees during construction projects.  HB 529 would increase how much canopy must be replaced when trees are cut down during development.   B
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CBPA proposed change details

April 23 Public Hearing Package with rationale for the proposed changes -  https://www.cityofchesapeake.net/DocumentCenter/View/18260/04-23-24-Item-7_PLANNING_CBPA Consideration of the change was Continued (deferred) to the end of June. Below the proposed CBPA changes provided by Chesapeake Planning Department were compared against National Wetlands Inventory maps -  https://fwsprimary.wim.usgs.gov/wetlands/apps/wetlands-mapper/ 1. Fernwood Farms/Riverwalk Areas Proposed for removal (red), addition (dark green) National Wetlands Inventory City Drainage Map   https://www.cityofchesapeake.net/DocumentCenter/View/4216/Figures-PDF Background on Interrupted and Disconnected Wetlands for CBPA Guidance Documents https://www.deq.virginia.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/22569/638430806129970000 Google Earth 4/8/1990 2. Great Bridge Blvd Areas proposed for removal (red) National Wetlands Inventory Close-up 3. Oakbrooke (East of Arboretum) Areas proposed for removal (red)/addition (dark green) Nat
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Welcome to Greening Chesapeake

Kicking off this new blog for 2024 to work on the goal to green Chesapeake by increasing natural area - green spaces and blueways - across the City.   Steps include protecting existing tree canopy, encouraging protection of natural areas, and planting trees and native plants across the City on public, institutional, commercial, and residential properties.   Other key tenants to building a greener city include connectivity - enabling people to reach destinations safely by foot, bicycle, and public transit, not just automobiles - and adopting sustainable practices. Stay tuned for information about upcoming events, actions, and information related to Greening Chesapeake. 
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