VIRGINIA BEACH — A dearth of available industrial land in Virginia Beach is prompting city economic development officials to contemplate options south of the so-called Green Line, a environmentally-sensitive urban boundary that aims to protect open spaces and agriculture in the southern part of the city.
At a City Council retreat Tuesday, most members supported the idea, giving the city manager the go-ahead to explore expansion of Innovation Park, an existing light industrial complex along Princess Anne Road, and to study the process to amend a 2017 master plan for the Interfacility Traffic Area.
The council members also agreed to move forward with new sports facilities and a law enforcement training center in the same vicinity. All three projects can be accommodated within 4,400 available acres in the ITA, according to the city.
The Interfacility Traffic Area, or ITA, is located between Naval Air Station Oceana and Naval Auxiliary Landing Field Fentress in Chesapeake. It’s a significant flight zone and high noise area which limits the type of development that can be built there. Residential development is essentially prohibited.
“There’s a lot of land there, and it just seems like we’re plotting not just the next 12 months, but really the next 25 years,” said Vice Mayor Rosemary Wilson. “You want to play, but you also have to work. We’re going to have to have a place to have jobs to come in.”
Wilson also said the lack of available land is making it hard for the city to attract a new director of economic development. The position hasn’t been filled since Christian Green resigned in June after serving in the role for less than five months.
But not everyone was on board with expanding the industrial park. Councilwoman Barbara Henley, who represents the district, pushed back, saying the proposal risks compromising a fragile landscape that should be reserved for environmentally-friendly projects.
“Before we start planning what we’re going to do in here, we better look at this issue of what the land is like and what is best for the land,” she said at the retreat.
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The undeveloped land in the ITA currently is comprised of wetlands, forests and farms. It acts as a middle-ground between the city’s high-density neighborhoods and the agricultural area. Development in the ITA currently must comply with specific zoning and design guidelines. Any non-conforming use requires approval by both the Planning Commission and the City Council.
The 2017 ITA master plan calls for expanding existing active recreation around Dam Neck Road with new types of sports not currently offered. It recommends a research farm, an agricultural research center, wildlife rehabilitation center, environmental conservation center, and a municipal services facility.
“Enhancing natural features will allow improved stormwater management and flood controls,” the plan says. “Throughout the area, trail and open space would connect the uses.”
Following the 2005 Defense Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission’s report, the city limited development and acquired land in the ITA. The idea for an athletic village concept on city-owned land below the Green Line goes back to 2001. But the city’s previous studies and plans don’t include industrial uses in the ITA. Henley, who worked on the 2017 plan, worries that residents of her district have been left out of the loop on any potential expansion of Innovation Park.
City Manager Patrick Duhaney said there will be time for input in the future because the process of amending the ITA plan and rezoning the land would require several public hearings.
“None of this can be done without significant public feedback,” Duhaney said.
Expansion of Innovation Park
Now called Innovation Park, the light industrial complex along Princess Anne Road was originally planned to be an office and research hub that would focus on biomedical technology. But a lack of local interest in the biomedical industry forced the city to shift gears. Only 10 acres will be available for development after Acoustical Sheet Metal’s planned expansion. Council members want to pursue a process to amend the ITA master plan to allow for a potential expansion of Innovation Park.
Law Enforcement Training Academy
The city has been working to identify a future location for a training facility to be used by the police and Sheriff’s Office. The Law Enforcement Training Academy currently operates out of an aging former elementary school building on Birdneck Road. The city already approved $9 million for a new design. The City Council decided Tuesday to move forward with designing it to be built on 10 acres in the ITA.
Sports tourism
Virginia Beach Parks & Recreation has put together an expansion plan for its existing athletic facilities off Princess Anne Road in an effort to attract more visitors to Virginia Beach. It includes facilities for baseball, pickleball, disc golf, a BMX track, cross country course and nature trails that could be built in phases. The City Council agreed to pursue an economic feasibility study for some of the plan’s less costly elements.
Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com