Virginia Beach buys land near City Hall for $7.84M

VIRGINIA BEACH

Meet the newest owners of a 500-acre farm near City Hall: Virginia Beach's taxpayers.

With an eye to the future, the city has purchased the Brown Farm for $7.84 million.

Mayor Will Sessoms compared the purchase to the city's acquisition of the 1,200-acre Lake Ridge property off Princess Anne Road in the 1990s. It now houses sports facilities, medical offices and education buildings.

"The potential is there," Sessoms said.

The most recent owner of the Brown Farm, Kempsville Presbyterian Church, had plans to build a new church and a campus of ministries called "The City of Hope" on part of the land. Church officials wanted to sell the rest for development.

The church bought the property, off North Landing Road near the Virginia Beach National golf course, in 2009 from developers and brothers Steve and Art Sandler for $7.4 million.

At the time, banks were foreclosing on many of the Sandlers' undeveloped properties during the decline in the housing market.

Becky Kubin, a city attorney, said the city paid a fair price for the land. Since buying the property, the church had invested heavily in engineering and development plans, Kubin said.

For the purchase Tuesday, the city used money from a voluntary buyout program aimed at curbing growth around Oceana Naval Air Station. The city and state invest $15 million annually to buy properties near the base and under the jet flight path to ensure the base stays in Virginia Beach. So far, $93.7 million has been spent to protect the base from encroaching development.

Beach officials expect the Navy will reimburse the city and state for $3.9 million of the Brown Farm cost, in exchange for barring residential development on the land.

It is likely the city will use some of the property for roads, hold a portion for open space, and eventually develop the rest for institutional or office space, Kubin said.

Deirdre Fernandes, (757) 222-5121, deirdre.fernandes@pilotonline.com