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Virginia Beach officials announced some good news last week in their effort to roll back development threatening pilot training at Oceana Naval Air Station. There's a bonus for taxpayers. Actually, two.
As part of a land swap, the city is getting 82 acres on Lake Rudee for a nature park with hiking trails and a launch for kayaks and canoes. In addition, the federal government is giving Virginia Beach as much as $7.1 million - $4 million more than anticipated - to help with the two-year-old land-buy program.
The announcements are welcome news at a time the city and state - which are devoting $15 million a year to buying property around Oceana - face severe budget cuts. Virginia Beach is getting Marshview Park on Lake Rudee, one of the largest tracts of undeveloped land at the Oceanfront, without having to spend money from its open space fund. In exchange, the Navy is getting restrictions on development of 46 acres the city bought on Indian River Road between Oceana and Fentress Auxiliary Air Field.
The additional $4 million from the Navy will help Virginia Beach buy more property around the bases. Several property owners have expressed willingness to sell, but the city hasn't had the money.
The land acquisitions began after the federal government threatened in 2005 to move the Navy's master jet base out of Virginia Beach because large swaths of homes and businesses had come too close to Oceana. At the time, about 3,800 homes and businesses were found to be potentially incompatible with the base.
Since then, in the stretch between Oceana and Fentress, Virginia Beach has bought or agreed to buy 254 acres for $9.3 million. In the areas around the base where planes are most likely to crash, the city has acquired 42 acres - eliminating the potential for 264 homes and businesses - for $31.8 million.
In its efforts to undo the large-scale development built around Oceana in the 1970s, as well as protect neighborhoods that were there before the base, Virginia Beach has completely rewritten zoning laws governing the area, relocated businesses and bought hundreds of homes. It's made commendable progress toward the ultimate goals of keeping people safe, maintaining old neighborhoods such as Gatewood Park and Oceana Gardens and improving training conditions for pilots.
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I know what the BRAC said
I also know what the City chose to do. I participated every step of the way.
If the City had done what the BRAC required, to the letter, there would be GREATER encroachment in APZ1. How could this be? Because the city could buy only so many homes via condemnation for $15M/year, while the "by right" development continued. The net result would be MORE incompatible uses in APZ1 than what will take place through the city's plan.
BTW, the plan was formed via the Citizen BRAC Commission, made up of homeowners, businessmen, and others in the city, from inside AND outside APZ1. The plan does far more to stop encroachment than blindly following the ridiculous BRAC demands could ever do.
Don't Care About Va. Beach Council Meetings
BRAC required rolling back ALL existing encroachment. That's the issue. Go back and read it yourself...it is BRAC Criterion #2. The legislation passed by Virginia and the zoning passed by Virginia Beach falls FAR short of what BRAC requires. Undeveloped land can be controlled through zoning. Why is Va. Beach spending the money that was to be allocated for ROLLING BACK encroachment on property that hasn't encroached upon the base?? I'll tell you why, they are scared to death of condemning 3,800 homes in Va. Beach because it will become an imminent domain situation and folks will sue the city. That's why. Buying up undeveloped property in the name of "controlling encroachment" while grandfathering in new development is smoke and mirrors.
They don't want to take the difficult steps required to make Oceana a viable Master Jet Base. If and when Oceana's jets get realigned someplace else, the city will have no one to blame but themselves.
Please educate yourself before you comment
Noolf, the city stated that they would reduce encroachment on Oceana – but NOT by condemnation. They REFUSED to take that step because the plan they adopted reduces incompatible (future) development around Oceana FASTER than they could have done via condemnation and allowing "by right" development to continue.
The new developments that are going in have been grandfathered as they were permitted prior to 20 Dec 2005.
Had you attended any of the meetings, or viewed any of the (MANY) sources of info, you would have known this. Do some research, before you dig your own hole.
This Is Good News?
Since when is it good news to hear that our federal tax dollars via the U.S. Navy are being used to augment Va. Beach's land grab? Didn't Va. Beach cause the encroachment problems around Oceana to begin with? But $7 million of our federal tax dollars are going to bail Va. Beach out? A "land swap"? Something doesn't add up here. Who owns the Marshview property and what are they getting in return? And why is Va. Beach using money allocated to rolling back encroachment for purchasing undeveloped land? Isn't this counter to the BRAC requirement to roll back ALL encroachment? According to BRAC, Va. Beach is supposed to be CONDEMNING all existing incompatible land uses (residential) within the APZ-1 crash zones. Why are they wasting money on undeveloped land that they could control through zoning anyway? $32 million for 42 acres? That's a good deal? And why are brand new residential developments