Councilmanic Perceptions of Water Policy for the Lake Gaston Water Supply Project in Virginia and North Carolina Beverly Mcafee Hedberg Old Dominion University

Old Dominion University ODU Digital Commons Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban College of Business (Strome) Management Spring 1997 Councilmanic Perceptions of Water Policy for the Lake Gaston Water Supply Project in Virginia and North Carolina Beverly McAfee Hedberg Old Dominion University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/ urbanservices_management_etds Part of the Public Administration Commons, and the Water Resource Management Commons Recommended Citation Hedberg, Beverly M.. "Councilmanic Perceptions of Water Policy for the Lake Gaston Water Supply Project in Virginia and North Carolina" (1997). Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), dissertation, , Old Dominion University, DOI: 10.25777/q6j7-bd35 https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/urbanservices_management_etds/6 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Business (Strome) at ODU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Management by an authorized administrator of ODU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. COUNCILMAN!C PERCEPTIONS OF WATER POLICY FOR THE LAKE GASTON WATER SUPPLY PROJECT IN VIRGINIA AND NORTH CAROLINA by Beverly McAfee Hedberg B.A. May 1970, Florida Southern College M.A. May 1987, Regent University A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Old Dominion University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY URBAN SERVICES - MANAGEMENT OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY May 1997 Approved by: Approved by: Taylor Sims' Leonard Ruchelman (Director) Jean, Olollege of 'Business and Public Administration Gail Jofinson (Member) Wolf gang'‘Pin'dur ■ Jpnn C.^Munday Jr/ (Member) Program Director Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT COUNCILMANIC PERCEPTIONS OF WATER POLICY FOR THE LAKE GASTON WATER SUPPLY PROJECT IN VIRGINIA AND NORTH CAROLINA. Beverly McAfee Hedberg Old Dominion University, 1997 Chairman: Dr. Leonard Ruchelman The purpose of this case study is to analyze the perceptions of city council members in formulating and implementing policy on the Lake Gaston Water Supply Project in Virginia and North Carolina. A comparison of the perceptions of twenty-three members of three city councils: Henderson, North Carolina; Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina; and Virginia Beach, Virginia serves as the basis for analysis. Their perceptions of the issues and how they view other actors in the intergovernmental arena, within the context of the Lake Gaston Water Supply Project. Specifically, the research examines how city council members view (1) water-policy issues, (2) the positions of council members, city councils, and interest groups, (3) the position of key state actors, and (4) the positions of federal actors as they pertain to the Lake Gaston Water Supply Project. It was found that local policy-making is highly fragmented and not easily directed. Proceeding through the intergovernmental maze is a necessary councilmanic activity. Turf battles, bureaucratic red tape, and communication failures have all contributed to long delays in resolving Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. persisting issue of satisfying the water supply needs of Virginia Beach. The study demonstrates how conflict results when attempts are made to meet the growing water needs of urbanizing areas --an ever more critical urban policy concern. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. V To my Fathers, Morgan Favors McAfee, Jr., D.D.S. and Alfred Alphonse Hedberg, D.D. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Much gratitude is expressed to Dr. Leonard Ruchelman, my Director, whose depth of knowledge and understanding guided my research and my writing. Appreciation is also extended to Dr. Gail Johnson and to Dr. John C. Munday Jr. of Regent University for their willingness to serve on my Committee. Recognition must also be given to the members of the City Councils of Henderson, North Carolina; Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina; and Virginia Beach, Virginia for making themselves available to be interviewed. Additionally, many thanks go to Mary Lawrence and Rita Trammell of the City of Virginia Beach Municipal Reference Library for their considerable assistance in my archival research on the Lake Gaston Water Supply Project. A debt of gratitude is owed to Dr. Timothy D. Norton for his invaluable contribution as an editor of my numerous drafts and re-writes. Most of all, I want to thank my husband, Lee, and my daughter, Katey, for their patience and understanding during a process that "never seemed to end." Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES ........................................... ix Chapter I. INTRODUCTION ................................... 1 LOCAL WATER P O L I C Y .......................... 2 BACKGROUND .................................. 6 STUDY OBJECTIVES AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS .... 10 LIMITATIONS OF THE S T U D Y ...................... 16 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STU D Y ...................... 17 OUTLINE FOR THE STUDY ...........................18 II. REVIEW OF THE RELATED LITERATURE ................. 20 MAKING LOCAL WATER POLICY IN THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL A R E N A .................... 20 LOCAL WATER-POLICY FORMULATION AND THE POSITION OF CITY C O U N C I L S .............................23 WATER L A W ....................................... 30 DYNAMICS OF INTERGOVERNMENTALRELATIONS .... 33 III. METHODOLOGY....................................... 46 RESEARCH DESIGN .................................48 SELECTION.......................................49 INSTRUMENTATION.................................51 DATA ANALYSIS ...................................56 IV. A BACKGROUND AND OVERVIEW OF THE LAKEGASTON WATER SUPPLY PROJECT .............................58 THE 1960s: A DECADE OF ESTABLISHING MUNICIPAL BOUNDARIES AND CONNECTIONS ................ 58 THE 1970s: A DECADE OF REGIONAL INITIATIVES . 60 THE 1980s: A DECADE OF INFLAMMATORY POLITICS AND INCREASED LITIGATION.................... 64 THE 1990s: A DECADE OF CONTINUED LITIGATION, ATTEMPTED MEDIATION, AND HEIGHTENED FRUSTRATION .................................76 V. COUNCILMANIC BACKGROUNDS AND PERCEPTIONS OF POLICY ISSUES, LOCAL ACTORS, AND POSITIONS OF LOCAL INTERESTS ...................................87 A PROFILE OF COUNCILMANIC BACKGROUNDS.......... 87 COUNCILMANIC PERCEPTIONS OF POLICY ISSUES . 90 COUNCILMANIC PERCEPTIONS OF LOCAL POSITIONS . 95 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. viii COUNCILMANIC PERCEPTIONS OF THE POSITIONS OF LOCAL INTEREST G R O U P S .......................99 SUMMARY ........................................ 103 VI. COUNCILMANIC PERCEPTIONS OF THE POSITIONS OF STATE AND FEDERAL ACTORS IN THE LAKE GASTON WATER SUPPLY PROJECT..............................105 COUNCILMANIC PERCEPTIONS OF THE POSITIONS OF STATE ACTORS BY DEGREE OF SUPPORT FOR COUNCIL POLICY ...................................... 105 COUNCILMANIC PERCEPTIONS OF THE POSITIONS OF FEDERAL ACTORS IN THE POLICY PROCESS BY DEGREE OF SATISFACTION......................110 CONCLUSIONS.................................... 116 VII. FINDINGS AND INTERPRETATIONS.................... 119 THE POSITION OF CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS IN THE FORMULATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF LOCAL WATER POLICY ................................119 COUNCILMANIC POLICY-MAKING AND THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL ARENA...................... 120 COUNCILMANIC PERCEPTIONS OF POLITICAL PATTERNS. 123 INTERACTIVE RELATIONSHIPS AMONG OVERLAPPING GOVERNMENTS..................................131 STRATEGIES TO EXPLORE ..........................134 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH ........... 138 BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................ 140 APPENDICES A. LETTERS OF CORRESPONDENCE...................... 149 B. SUMMARY OF INTERVIEW RESULTS.................... 153 C. THE INTERVIEW GUIDE ............................ 157 D. TABULAR SUMMARY OF INTERVIEW RESULTS............. 161 E. CHRONOLOGY OF THE LAKE GASTONWATER SUPPLY PROJECT...................................... 186 F. DATA-REDUCTION PROCESS.......................... 231 VITA .................................................... 237 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ix LIST OF TABLES TABLES PAGE 1. A Profile of Councilmanic Backgrounds............... 88 2. A Profile of Councilmanic Perceptions of Gaston Policy Issues....................................... 91 3. A Profile of Councilmanic Perceptions of Local Positions in the Gaston Project......................96 4. A Profile of Councilmanic Perceptions of the Positions of Local Interest Groups in the Gaston P r o j e c t .......................................... 100 5. A Profile of Councilmanic Perceptions of the Positions of State Actors by Degree of Support for Council Policy ................................... 106 6. A Profile of Councilmanic Perceptions of the Positions of Federal Actors in the Policy Process by Degree of Satisfaction ........................ Ill Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Water resource

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