Summary of Key Comprehensive Plan Studies and Policies

Western Branch Land Study

The purpose of the 2001 Western Branch Land Study was to develop a land use, infrastructure, and economic development plan for the western portion of the Western Branch borough of the City. The area comprises a roughly 6.6 square mile area bounded on the north by Pughsville Road, on the east by Interstate 664, on the south by and on the west by the City of Suffolk. The study recommends a mixture of land uses capitalizing on proximity to the interstate, existing neighborhoods, public services and commercial areas. The 2035 Land Use Plan incorporates a combination of Alternatives D and E. The complete study can be found on the Planning Department’s web page at the following link:

http://www.cityofchesapeake.net/Page3151.aspx

An update to the study was adopted by City Council in February 2006. The amendments introduced mixed-use designations compatible with the Land Use Plan. The Design section of the Policy Document covers these amendments also.

Poindexter Corridor Strategic Development Plan

The Poindexter Street Strategic Development Plan creates a new identity for South Norfolk and the Poindexter Street commercial corridor, building on the historic character, strong neighborhood identity, underutilized waterfront, interstate access, and close proximity to other urban activity centers in surrounding localities. The study recommends site specific design criteria for the following areas:

o Waterfront (north of the ) o I-464 interchange (interchange between I-464 and Poindexter Street) o Village center (Located at Poindexter, Liberty and 22nd Street) o Poindexter Street corridor; and o Liberty Street corridor.

The Poindexter Corridor Strategic Development Plan will be the guiding document for future public and private investment and projects in the area. However, since its adoption, there have been some changes to actual land uses, particularly in the Waterfront area, that could necessitate a re-visit of the study. Generally speaking, the land use recommendations and design criteria in the Plan for the following areas are still very relevant: Liberty Street corridor, various greenway linkages, and overall capital improvements. Specific design standards are discussed in the Design section of the Policy Document. The Plan can be found on the Planning Department’s web page at the following link:

http://www.cityofchesapeake.net/Assets/documents/departments/planning/complan/ Appendix G-Poindexter-optimized.pdf

Great Bridge Village Design Guidelines

The Great Bridge Village Design Guidelines plan was adopted by City Council in December 2008 as a replacement to the Great Bridge Battlefield Plan Corridor Study. The Design Guidelines study area refined the previous study area by creating distinct overlays known as the North Gateway District, Causeway District, Historic Battlefield District, Great Bridge Business District, and South Gateway District. The goal of the study was to develop a land use plan to enhance the economic vitality of the area by creating a waterfront destination for tourists and residents alike. The study established development design guidelines for each of the overlays to protect the aesthetic and visual character of the greater Great Bridge Village area. The 2035 Land Use Plan incorporates the study’s recommendations by establishing land use designations consistent with a multi-use village district. The design elements of the study are further discussed in the Design section of this Plan. A copy of the plan can be found on the Planning department’s web page at the following link:

http://www.cityofchesapeake.net/Page3119.aspx

Transportation Corridor Overlay District (TCOD)

The purpose of the Transportation Corridor Overlay District (TCOD) is to preserve future economic development opportunities for high quality, attractive development along key transportation corridors. To ensure that the overlay fosters high quality development, TCOD consists of a series of guidelines designed to ensure that each rezoning and conditional use permit proposal is consistent with district policies.

The original TCOD Policy adopted by City Council in June, 2000 designated the Dominion Boulevard corridor and three interchanges of the Chesapeake Expressway as Target Areas for future economic development uses (subject to the provisions of the TCOD policy). The first Target Area in the Chesapeake Expressway corridor included a 1-mile radius buffer from the center of the Hillcrest Parkway interchange. The second target area included a ¾ mile radius buffer from the center of the Indian Creek Road interchange, and the third target area included a ½ mile buffer from the centerline of the new Route 168 alignment extending from the Northwest River south to the State line.

During development of the 2026 Comprehensive Plan, the City Council-appointed Plan Advisory Team (PAT) expressed concerns about the proposal to establish an Auto-Oriented Major Activity Center on the Frank Williams Farms Tract, given that that the Northwest River TCOD Target Area already existed in the environmentally sensitive Southern Chesapeake area. As a result, a compromise was reached wherein the Williams Tract Major Activity Center was included in the 2050 Preferred Development Pattern Map, while the Northwest River Target Area was eliminated from the TCOD. However, this latter target area remains designated as a Gateway (see the Gateways subheading of the Policy Document’s Land Use section, as well as the Design section).

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On November 15, 2016, City Council approved an updated Transportation Corridor Overlay District policy, adding Route 17 to the North Carolina state line as a TCOD Corridor and also adding two new TCOD Target Areas within this corridor: Landing West and the Frank Williams Farm. These new Target Areas are intended to accommodate commercial and industrial uses only, while the Route 17 TCOD Corridor as a whole is intended to accommodate agricultural and similar low impact uses.

The 2035 Land Use Plan and Dominion Boulevard Corridor Study Master Land Use Plan have incorporated specific land use recommendations for the areas of the TCOD falling within Suburban and Urban Overlay Districts. The Indian Creek, Landing West, and Frank Williams Farm Target Areas fall outside the 20-year window of this Plan and as such it is premature to assign specific recommended uses for the entire target areas. However, they are still preserved for future economic development uses consistent with the TCOD Policy, which is incorporated into this Comprehensive Plan.

The 2035 Comprehensive Plan’s Chapter 4, Quality of Life, further discusses TCOD. A copy of the TCOD Policy can be found on the Planning Department’s web page at the following link:

http://www.cityofchesapeake.net/Page3150.aspx

 The Transportation Corridor Overlay District Policy (TCOD) should be reviewed for possible expansion to the other roadways such as Military Highway, Kempsville Road, Pleasant Grove Parkway, Interstate 664 and Southeastern Parkway.

 The City Zoning Ordinance should be amended to provide clear linkages between it and the provisions of the Comprehensive Plan.

 Multi-family developments should be discouraged within the first ½ mile of the center of each TCOD Target Area, so as to preserve these strategic areas for economic development activities.

South Military Highway Corridor

The South Military Highway Corridor has long been an important roadway for the City. In the early 1940’s, Military Highway was built as a defense highway to serve the Norfolk Naval and Little Creek Amphibious Bases. Its purpose was to bypass the congested traffic areas of Portsmouth and Norfolk, and to provide a high volume/high speed highway for transporting military supplies. Today, South Military Highway continues to serve diverse land uses (type and density), as well as businesses and populations of widely different socioeconomic characteristics.

Because of its importance as a major arterial through Chesapeake, the 2026 Moving Forward Chesapeake 2035 Comprehensive Plan Page 3

Comprehensive Plan recommended that a comprehensive corridor study and master plan be developed for this area, as advocated for by the South Military Highway Task Force established by City Council in 2003. The corridor study was adopted as an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan, and the 2035 Land Use Plan reflects its recommendations. Short and long-term recommendations in the study should continue to be pursued. With the anticipated opening of the replacement in 2014, the South Military Highway Corridor Study was reviewed to ensure its viability based on newer conditions and was found to still be relevant. A copy of the complete study can be found on the Planning Department’s web page at the following link:

http://www.cityofchesapeake.net/Page3149.aspx

Route 17 Trail / Dismal Swamp Corridor Study

Old U.S. Route 17 was a two-lane highway leading from the urbanized sections of Chesapeake through the rural southern section of the City and into North Carolina. Much of the old road runs along the Dismal Swamp Canal, which is a part of the Intracoastal Waterway System. To expand capacity and improve safety, the Department of Transportation constructed a new four-lane facility east of the current Route 17 alignment. Through a collaborative partnership with federal, state, and other entities, the old roadway was converted into a multi-use trail in order to expand recreational opportunities while protecting open space and managing access. This area is viewed as a vital conservation corridor for the City, due to its rich history and unique natural amenities. In this regard, the City arranged for the development of a master plan for the Route 17/Dismal Swamp Corridor to plan for land uses between the old and new roadway, to develop the old roadway as a multi-use recreational facility, and to establish design guidelines for the new route. The complete master plan can be found at the following link:

http://www.vhb.com/Route17/

Williams Tract

The 4,000-acre Williams Tract is owned by Frank Williams, who has operated a large- scale, mechanized farming operation there since 1978. Crops grown on the property generally include potatoes, soybeans, corn and wheat. The land has a flat topography and is largely void of any trees or significant areas of native vegetation. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has declared the property to be “prior conversion cropland” which means there are no jurisdictional wetlands on the site. The tract, which contains no major buildings or non-farming site improvements, abuts Route 17 for approximately 3.4 miles in the extreme southwestern corner of Chesapeake. Mr. Williams owns an additional 1,500 acres in North Carolina.

Alternative land uses for the Williams Tract have been considered by Mr. Williams and others for a number of years, particularly in the context of the planned Norfolk-to- Raleigh Connector (and potential interstate designation), along with improvements to Route 17 and completion of the Dominion Boulevard Bridge Replacement &

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Roadway Improvement Project. The property was the subject of a study in 2003 by an Urban Land Institute Advisory Services Panel (ULI Panel) as to its development potential. Recognizing the property’s remote location, lack of available infrastructure, and potential environmental concerns, the ULI Panel nonetheless concluded that this single-owner, 4,000-acre contiguous property held strategic development potential for the City under a comprehensive, long-term plan.

The Forward Chesapeake 2026 Comprehensive Plan, adopted by City Council in March 2005, designated the Williams Tract as an Auto Oriented Major Activity Center on the 2050 Preferred Development Pattern Map. In 2013, the 2026 Comprehensive Plan was amended by Council to include provisions for the City to recognize Unique Economic Development Opportunities (UEDO) and this policy was continued in the 2035 Comprehensive Plan. Under this policy, City Council has the ability to identify and strategically promote such opportunities that may be available throughout Chesapeake, subject to certain criteria to define a UEDO and its relationship to surrounding land uses.

In January 2015, City Council adopted a resolution identifying the Williams Tract as a candidate UEDO for further study, as provided for in the Comprehensive Plan. In the same resolution, Council requested that the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) designate the property as a “mega site” for commercial development. In May 2016, City Council adopted a resolution requesting the Planning Commission to consider and make recommendations regarding an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan to extend the Transportation Corridor Overlay District along Route 17 to the North Carolina line and to establish target areas.

A successful grant application was submitted by the Chesapeake Economic Development Department to VEDP in August 2016 for site characterization as a mega-site. The Frank Williams Farm Tract’s development potential was further bolstered by the Dominion Boulevard Bridge and Roadway Improvement Project. On November 15, 2016, City Council adopted amendments to TCOD that extends the overlay district down Route 17 from the Dominion Boulevard Target Area to the North Carolina line and adds two new target areas that encompass the Frank Williams Farm Tract and Landing West Industrial Area. At that same meeting, City Council also adopted a resolution designating a portion of the Williams Tract as a UEDO under the Comprehensive Plan.

The Frank T. Williams Farm Properties now has the following official designations in relation to the 2035 Comprehensive Plan: Auto-Oriented Major Activity Center on the 2050 Preferred Development Pattern Map; City Gateway on the 2035 Land Use Plan; Unique Economic Development Opportunity ( the portion corresponding to the proposed Coastal Virginia Commerce Park); and TCOD Target Area. City Council amended the UEDO portion of the Williams Tract as a Gateway Virginia Innovation District designation on the 2035 Land Use Plan. The updated November 5, 2018 and November 13, 2018 staff reports for PLN-COMP-2018-002 offers findings and considerations for future development of the UEDO and the remainder of the Williams Farm Properties.

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