Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 22, 1995 TAG: 9506220055
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By ROBERT LITTLE and DAVID M. POOLE STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
RICHMOND - Gov. George Allen told reporters Wednesday afternoon that it would be ``nearly miraculous'' for a proposed Lake Gaston settlement to pass the General Assembly by June 30.
A few hours later, he took a more optimistic tack by advising lawmakers to clear their calendars next week for a possible special session to consider the settlement.
The somewhat mixed messages served as a reminder of the on-and-off nature of Virginia Beach's 12-year struggle to import much-needed water from Southside Virginia.
They also underscored the fact that while negotiators soon may agree on the final wording of a compact, one of the city's toughest battles - the political one - looms on the horizon.
``I think we will have something on paper eventually,'' said Anthony Troy, a Richmond lobbyist working for Virginia Beach. ``The question is whether there will be the political will to carry it forward.''
Negotiators in Virginia Beach, Norfolk and North Carolina continued to narrow their differences Wednesday over plans for the 76-mile water pipeline. Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim said most of his city's objections - once the primary roadblocks to a deal - either have been resolved or softened.
In a three-page letter to legislators Wednesday, Allen said he will call a special session of the General Assembly June 28-30 if a final agreement is reached quickly.
The governor sent the letter, he said, to give lawmakers time to prepare. But most long have been preparing politically for the prospect of an election-year legislative session to settle an often-thorny regional issue.
``A lot of people don't want a session of any kind right now, because it's election time,'' said Sen. Stanley Walker, D-Norfolk. ``In Hampton Roads, the issue doesn't bother us so much. But in other parts of the state, I know it can be a very troubling issue for them.''
The Allen administration and General Assembly leaders have tried to walk a delicate line where the pipeline is concerned - one between voter-rich Hampton Roads, where support for the pipeline is high, and Southside, where opposition reigns.
Allen has expressed support for the pipeline but tried to validate Southside's concerns that the pipeline could mean future limits on their water use. His moderation has not always been popular.
``I'm well aware of the animosity that is engendered by my position,'' he said Wednesday.
In the House of Delegates, some Democrats have concluded that it would be good politics to postpone the pipeline issue until after the General Assembly elections in November. The theory is that a delay would deny Republican candidates in Hampton Roads credit for the deal - and undercut GOP candidates in Southside and Southwest who would have to answer for Allen's support of the pipeline.
House Democrats held closed-door strategy meetings during a retreat Wednesday at The Homestead in Hot Springs. Most members attended and could not be reached for comment.
But Majority Leader Richard Cranwell, D-Roanoke County, is on record against the pipeline, and Speaker Thomas Moss, D-Norfolk, has shown little urgency to work a deal.
Most legislators familiar with the negotiations still predict success before the tentative June 30 deadline. But election-year positioning, they say, has become a dangerous and unavoidable quirk in the negotiations.
``I hope it's not petty politics at the state level that's going to do this thing in,'' said Del. Leo Wardrup, R-Virginia Beach.
The two sides, meanwhile, continue trying to hand off responsibility for reaching a deal. Democrats say a deal can't come together until Allen calls the assembly into session to debate the issue. Allen dismissed the idea Wednesday, saying it would be a waste of time to call a special session until there is some assurance a deal would fly.
``We don't need to be spending all that money for legislators just to come down here and bicker amongst one another,'' Allen said.
``To just think ... that, gosh, all of a sudden, people from Southside and Virginia Beach will be in agreement and folks from Norfolk will no longer be bickering with people from Virginia Beach is contrary to common sense.''
by CNB