VIRGINIA BEACH
Over two decades, the city has spent about $34 million to buy land for a road that appears increasingly unlikely to be built.
City leaders are scheduled to meet with federal environmental officials Thursday in a last-ditch effort to save the proposed Southeastern Parkway.
If the project fails, the city would have to figure out what to do with about 420 acres of purchased properties, a patchwork of land that represents a small portion of the road right of way.
The 21-mile Southeastern Parkway has been on the drawing board since the early 1980s to directly link Virginia Beach and Chesapeake and alleviate traffic on Interstates 264 and 64. Environmental concerns - mostly over wetland destruction - have long dogged the road.
The city started buying land in the path of the Southeastern Parkway
in 1989 as part of a program called "advanced acquisition." It worked this way: Landowners who submitted plans to develop property in the corridor were rejected. They could then sell the land to the city if money was available.
"We have not actively sought acquisition," said Jim Lawson, the city's real estate agent. "It has always been in reaction to potential development that would have put hundreds of homes in the corridor."
Chesapeake officials have not purchased any land in that city's parkway corridor, because environmental documents have yet to be finalized, said Eric Martin, public works director.
Virginia Beach bought most of the land in the late 1990s through the mid-2000s when the economy was robust. The last purchase - a 9.5-acre, $1.1 million parcel from five property owners planning a subdivision off Indian River Road - was in December.
Developer and architect Dan Brockwell, one of the property owners and a member of the city's development authority, doesn't have high hopes for the road project.
"I don't know if I'll live long enough," the 64-year-old said.
The fund for property purchases is now virtually depleted - about $89,000 remains. The total amount of money needed to acquire the entire right of way has not been calculated, Lawson said.
Representatives from the city and federal agencies are scheduled to meet Thursday for a mediation session in Richmond.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has rejected the project three separate times because of harm to wetlands.
If the project dies, the land could be resold when the economy improves or used for open space or farmland, said Beach Deputy City Manager Dave Hansen.
He said the properties were purchased to show the city's "intent and commitment" to the project.
Building the road is "not even being seriously discussed in my opinion, because of the funding realities," Beach Councilman Jim Wood said. "We need to build it, but I don't know that it's financially feasible. And if that's the case we need to start thinking about selling off the property."
Some city leaders remain optimistic.
"Sooner or later it's going to be built," Mayor Will Sessoms said. "We can use that land."
As the region faces a glut of transportation needs with little money, officials have decided to prioritize projects to increase the chance of getting funding.
Where the Southeastern Parkway falls in the ranking remains to be seen, but it's almost certain to trail the region's bridges and tunnels.
"I hate to tell you a lot of projects aren't going to make it," Dwight Farmer, executive director of the Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization, told the City Council last week. "There's going to be a lot of losers and a few winners."
Sessoms, who chairs the transportation organization's board, said of the Southeastern Parkway: "I don't see it being at the top. My perception is it wouldn't be close."
The city bought one of the largest and most expensive parcels in the corridor from developer Dick Foster in 2001. The 50-acre swath of forested land cuts through the Castleton neighborhood. The city paid $5.75 million for it.
Foster said at the time he wasn't in any hurry to sell to the city.
"Back then," he said, "those lots were going as fast as I could get them developed."
He said he could see the city selling the undeveloped land if the parkway is not built.
"It could be finished being developed," he said. "Maybe for once the government would make a profit."
Castleton residents seemed unconcerned about the prospect of a four-lane divided highway through their neighborhood.
"I don't think it will ever get built," said Joe Tottossy, a member of a community association in the Buckingham section of Castleton. "It almost seems like it's back to square one. So it's just a piece of land that sits there."
Aaron Applegate, (757) 222-5122, aaron.applegate@pilotonline.com
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Please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Flooding, failing home foundations, cement ponds, etc. all the result of poorly planned developments. If the Army Corps and EPA did not step in, how many more screw-ups would VB and Chesapeake have committed? The almighty dollar speaks loudly and the politicians and their development cronies will fill every square inch of their cities. There needs to be balance and someone must be the watchdog for the disenfranchised. The Feds do a pretty good job of allowing folks to get what they need but this is not necessarily what folks want! Please do not scream that the government is taking your propery, they would be glad to buy it for what it is worth, as a Wetland! Sorry that the VB folks did not recognize this basic concept and overpaid for swampland.
What's up with that.
"Developer and architect Dan Brockwell, one of the property owners and a member of the city's development authority, doesn't have high hopes for the road project."
If that isn't a conflict of interest I don't know what is.
wasteful and stupid
Looking at the map, I can already go most of this way without too much traffic via Dam Neck and Oceana. However, I still can't get to VB City Hall or Sandbridge without going down dismal two lane roads or all the way around to General Booth. How about spending all that money on making those two roads 4 lanes? Or completing Lynnhaven or Nimmo Parkways?
Idea
Sell that land and use the proceeds to finish Lynnhaven Parkway
typical City Council
Just another example of City Council making unwise purchases. Any wonder they will pay $40M for land that was appraised at $10M.
How many others have noticed
How many others have noticed that the only two optimists in this story are Sessoms (mayor/banker/political pundit) and Foster (millionaire real estate developer). The commonality between these two is that they have the least to gain by admitting that purchasing land at such exorbitant cost was probably a bad decision, especially at around $100,000 to $500,000 per acre in some cases for undeveloped, forestry property. With nearly 35 million dollars spent on just 420 acres of swampland, somebody made out like fat cats and it probably wasn’t the former property owners off of Indian River Road-oh, wait, that 1.1 million dollars for 9.5 acres off of Indian River Roads was for planned subdivision development, not actually developed land, so again, point taken. Plus, when the time came, the city(cities) could have easily used their rights to eminent domain to acquire said property at market rates. Let’s see them try to unload this land now. It’s time for us to remove the veil from our eyes and see what’s going on for what is really is and not for what our "leaders" would like for us to believe.
reckless strategy
This was a reckless strategy foisted on the taxpayers by Spore,Sessoms and Oberndorf. Chesapeake stood pat and comes out smelling like a rose.
These three have a penchant for spending other peoples money (OPM), the likes of which have never been seen before and will likely never be seen again. They just paid 4x ($40 million) the assessed value ($9.5 million)for an abandoned freight rail line that the illuminati want for light rail.
With a 1.4 trillion dollar deficit, a jobless recovery, and two wars going on these cats want to chase rainbows on a system that will do nothing for congestion on our roadwaysand is projected to cost a billion dollars. VA Beach currently has the lowest average weekly wages in the entire state and is losing population.
How much more of this "leadership" and "good" judgement can we as citizens stand? At least we have TPC golf, the sportsplex and 31st 4 star hotel. HaHaHaHa!
no TPC
We lost TPC. There is another organization running it now. Sorry. That only leaves the two other shining stars of VB.
give it up
I have the same sentiments as my neighbor, Joe T. The city just needs to give up the costly fight and sell the land.
Idiotic
Posters here such as HR Native are clueless to the extent of damage that Virginia Beach has done to our local environment. If they had their way they would drain every swamp and marsh to the Carolina line so they could put up cookie cutter homes and gain tax revenue. Fortunately the Federal Government steps in and stops some of this destruction. If Virginia Beach had not built so many homes and left the wetlands alone they would not have the traffic woes they suffer from today. They built way beyond the ability of their infrastructure's support and now they are whining because they cannot get their way. Looking back over the last thirty years Virginia Beach has probably destroyed more wetlands than any city in the region. They made their own bed, so they should deal with it.
Not the Federal Government's business
The Federal government has no business telling Virginia what it can and cannot do with its land. State's rights have been completely trounced. The Founding Fathers are rolling over in their graves.
Hooray for the Wetlands!
As someone that has lived here for over 40 years as an adult, I've seen the beautiful green expanses of Virginia Beach disappear under ugly cookie cutter subdivisions. Even the 'Green Line' got swept away in the rush of developer’s greed. Wetlands aren't just for this generation, they are for all time. Wonder why there's so much flooding? - Wetland destruction. Why have the Chesapeake Bay crab fisheries almost collapsed? - wetland destruction and pollution. Chesapeake Bay will be a wasteland without the wetlands.
Quit being so shortsighted and greedy. If it had been left up to some of those commenting here, Yosemite Park would have been cut up into trailer lots.... makes money, right?
The city should just
The city should just calculate the cost of an EPA fine into the construction costs and build the damned thing. Anyone who has lived here more than a minute knows it is a necessary part of the infrastructure. Let VB makes the decisions for VB and tell the EPA to stay out.
Environmental insanity
The only term for this can be environmental insanity. When common sense gets so clouded that the good of the people takes back seat to something that MIGHT (not will) impact the environment, it's crazy. Consider this, they are allowed to cut down every tree in the swamp, impacting the ecosystem for more than a hundred years, but you cant sink a piling to support a brige. There is a common agreement that could be reached in this problem but the Stalinists at the EPA have way too much power.
Spend, spend, spend
Instead of "Build it and hope they will come." VB's modo with this is "Spend and hope it will be built." I got a bridge for sale if anyone wants to buy it...
Wetland Roadblocks
Ha. I'm so annoyed at this idiotic policy of wetlands trumping the legitimate needs of people that I think I'll chuck a spear thru the next gangly heron that lands in my yard just to spite the EPA dorks. They should hold the meeting in the southern part of Virginia Beach. No doubt the EPA guys will end up being late.
RE: HR-native
So you want to make the heron suffer a cruel death because you're annoyed with the EPA???!!! Why don't you run for city council? Your solution is as pointless and painful as most of the stuff they come up with. You'll fit right in. May they run the lightrail straight thru your property.
A road
of convenience is not a legitimate need, if traffic is so bad then maybe those affected should consider leaving for work earlier in the morning.