THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 23, 1995 TAG: 9503210131
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 05 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SCOTT McCASKEY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 66 lines
That sound City Council members hear buzzing in their ears just might be jet skis.
At a March 14 public hearing, City Council delayed a review of a proposed zoning change that would allow a jet ski rental facility in Ocean View. Council members and City Attorney Philip R. Trapani said they needed more time to study the legalities of the proposal.
Nearly 200 residents, for and against, attended the hearing. The issue has many people concerned.
The facility would would rent jet skis, boats and other watercraft along the Bay front at 9710 Chesapeake St., south of the public beach. A change from residential to commercial zoning is required before any ground can be broken.
Proponents say the operation would enhance recreational opportunities in the community. Opponents complain that changing the zoning would go against a long-range plan to establish more residential development in Ocean View. They also cite noise and danger to swimmers as potential problems.
On Jan. 26, the Planning Commission voted to allow the change. The Planning Department had advised the commission against it, saying the facility would be incompatible with a residential setting and set a precedent for future commercial development.
Ronald Boone Jr., who would own and operate the facility, hopes City Council will follow the Planning Commission's lead. A 22-year-old Ocean View resident, Boone said the business would offer a family service that would benefit the community. Boone said that more than 100 people had taken off work to attend the hearing and support the operation. But he insisted he was not angry that council had delayed a decision.
``I understand, but I do hope they don't postpone it another month,'' he said. ``I put in my application in November. If they wait another month, I won't be able to get my building up until halfway through the summer.''
There is considerable support for the facility.
``I think it would be good for the community,'' said Robert Bayliss, president of the West Ocean View Civic League. ``It could be something that may draw some tourists. I've done some investigation on jet skis. The new ones have their exhaust systems under the water and don't make much noise.''
Jackie House, owner of Jackie's House of Hair on Little Creek Road near East Ocean View, says she thinks the business would be good for kids.
``I believe the facility would be a wonderful thing to keep the kids busy,'' she said. ``Right now, there's nothing for young people to do on the beach. I'd rather see the kids out there than the drunks or the prostitutes.''
But there is also opposition to the proposal.
``I'm against spot zoning,'' said Robert Ingraham, who lives in Pinewell By The Bay, an upscale single-family development west of the proposed site. ``The Boones are good people, but if you do it for one, you have to do it for all, and we're trying to keep the neighborhood residential.''
Barbara Cox, a member of Pinewell By The Bay Civic League, says she thinks the city is contradicting itself.
``We thought the City Council was going to make a concentrated effort to make this a a residential area,'' she said. ``First we hear residential, now commercial. It's like the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing.''
The proposal has been rescheduled for City Council's March 28 public hearing at 7:30 p.m. in City Hall. by CNB