THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 26, 1995 TAG: 9502240200
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: By MAC DANIEL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 93 lines
A stalemate has emerged between Chesapeake residents and Suffolk over a proposed automobile race track and an adjoining industrial park.
But the Chesapeake City Council is trying to stave off an all-out border war by calling for more communication between both leaders and residents on both sides of the line.
On Tuesday, the Chesapeake City Council unanimously passed a ``resolution of concern'' over the unbuilt Suffolk facility.
The Chesapeake resolution falls short of protesting the track. Instead, the council said it was deeply concerned about an array of ``negative'' impacts of the track and industrial park on nearby residents of Jolliff Woods in Western Branch: crime, drunken drivers, traffic congestion and noise.
An amendment to the resolution formally asks for continuing dialogue between Suffolk and Chesapeake city officials and residents.
When Councilman John de Triquet asked the council to go a step further and take a strong stand against the facility, his colleagues refused, saying a formal protest could end any dialogue between the two cities and their residents and bode badly for future cooperation between the two cities.
Developers Upton & Arnette Associates announced plans for the 684-acre Northgate Industrial Park in July. The park site, at the intersection of Shoulders Hill Road and Nansemond Parkway near the Chesapeake-Suffolk border, is planned to surround the 65-acre, half-mile oval race track. If all goes according to plan, promoters hope to start their first racing season next year.
The site lies close to Interstate 664 and rail service and is considered a prime location by Suffolk officials. The track and industrial park are located about 1.3 miles from homes in both cities.
Though the resolution was a formality, it sends a signal to Suffolk city officials that their neighbors are none too happy about the plan.
Suffolk officials aren't very happy with Chesapeake residents either. Some members of the Suffolk City Council said Chesapeake residents ended any possible dialogue by filing a lawsuit against the city.
A series of meetings were scheduled between Suffolk and Chesapeake residents and city officials to discuss the track shortly after it was approved Jan. 4. But days before the first meeting was to take place, residents of Jolliff Woods and Suffolk filed a lawsuit against the city of Suffolk over the track, claiming it was illegally approved.
Suffolk City Manager Myles E. Standish said Wednesday that Suffolk city officials canceled the meeting shortly after the lawsuit was filed. The matter, they said, should not be discussed publicly while in litigation.
In addition, Chesapeake and Suffolk residents have publicly accused the Suffolk City Council of wrongdoing in approving the track, implying that council members benefited in some way. None of the speakers had any proof of wrongdoing.
As a result of these unsubstantiated allegations, both sides have become more entrenched. Suffolk Mayor S. Chris Jones last week went so far as to threaten to cut off any speaker at the City Council meetings that accuses the council of wrongdoing without proof.
Tuesday's resolution in Chesapeake also marked the first time de Triquet, who represents Western Branch, publicly spoke out against Suffolk's plans.
``I don't presume to have a position to criticize or interfere with the good-faith deliberation of the council of Suffolk,'' said de Triquet. ``I respect their decision-making process . . . and I respect the procedures that they have ordained for that decision to be made. But an orderly process of deliberation doesn't necessarily result in an appropriate decision. It doesn't necessarily guarantee that the decision is the best for the people.
``I want to publicly express my opposition to this,'' he added. ``The facts clearly indicate that the project is detrimental to the health and welfare of our citizens, and those are the citizens that I as a council member represent.''
De Triquet said local roads can't handle the traffic, and he accused Suffolk officials of using a flawed noise study of the track site.
``Today,'' he said, ``the issue at hand, though it's not fully in our jurisdiction, at least demands an equal amount of conviction and voice from council.''
Mayor William E. Ward, who has already met with the mayor of Suffolk to express residents' opposition, resisted that stance.
``We must be very careful when we move to a point of confrontation with another city,'' Ward said. ``When we put in the Western Branch mall, we didn't go to Suffolk and say, `This is going to drain your business,' or to Portsmouth for that matter. . . . We need to have an ongoing dialogue on this process so that it won't have a negative impact on the city or its citizens.''
Four Western Branch residents, ``No Race Track'' signs pinned to their shirts, spoke in opposition to the race track and asked the council to do the same. ILLUSTRATION: Map
JOHN CORBITT/Staff
KEYWORDS: RACE TRACK CHESAPEAKE CITY COUNCIL by CNB