City Council will ask the General Assembly to amend its charter to make it more difficult for council to approve major land use changes in the rural southern city.
The council adopted the request as part of the consent agenda Tuesday on a 10-0 vote. After weeks of discussion and revision, the language requires a supermajority of the council to approve significant land use changes.
The change would offer more protection – nine votes of 11 on the council rather than six – from making land use decisions in rural areas, such as allowing rezonings to higher density. It includes a provision about handling requests for city water and sewer south of the Blue Line.
The Blue Line is a utility cutoff point for city water and sewer services. It is south of the city’s better-known Green Line, an anti-sprawl boundary, and this step comes amid tension about residential and industrial development efforts between the Green and Blue lines.
Vice Mayor Rosemary Wilson said she and state Del. Barry Knight, a farmer in the rural area, worked on the request and it has the backing of Virginia Beach Farm Bureau.
“The point was that we want to make sure that area of the city, the rural area, is going to go in perpetuity to be rural,” Wilson said. “And this is a good way to do it.”
Councilmember Barbara Henley, a farmer who represents the area, previously did not support the legislative request, calling it a means of opening the door to possible development. Recent language revisions, however, sought to address possible impacts to properties in the city’s farmland preservation program and other concerns, such as extending utility services.
That eases some, though not all, of Henley’s concerns.
“I will support this because it has improved from what was originally proposed,” she said during an interview before the vote. “I think this still may be is opening a gate that we’re going to have to watch real closely, but at least it covers the fact that water and sewer cannot be extended without more consideration.”
During the meeting, Henley responded to comments by John Moss, a former council member. Moss had suggested a “friendly amendment” that the district representative must be part of the super majority on votes involving property within their district.
Henley said she supported the requested charter change because it included a means of making extending services south of the Blue Line more difficult, but she added Moss’ suggestion should be discussed further.
Henley noted she has been outvoted on land decisions within her own district, including on rezoning requests that “sort of obliterated the Green Line.”
“It’s very possible that the representative of the district is the only one who is in opposition and everyone else approves it,” she said.
City Council Member Stacy Cummings said he understood the intent of the idea but “giving absolute power to one person” doesn’t solve the problem.
“My objection to that addition is that I don’t think in any vote that any one member should have a veto over the will of the other 10 members.”
