THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 12, 1996 TAG: 9601120535
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DEBBIE MESSINA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 75 lines
Residents along a tributary of the Lynnhaven River have failed to stop construction of a Great Neck home they fear is too close to the water and too large for the lot.
A Circuit Court judge has ruled that the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area Board did not err in allowing a home to be built on an erodible slope close to Back Neck Cove.
``It appears to this court that the board did everything it could to be fair to all the parties. . . .,'' Judge Jerome B. Friedman wrote in his opinion affirming the board's decision last spring.
While residents of Back Cove Road don't have a problem with building a house on the lot, they opposed this specific house. They argued that it is too close to the water and will degrade water quality. They also say it is too large for the lot, which is not in character with the street's large wooded parcels surrounding custom homes.
Residents have been tenacious at trying to stop construction.
They spoke at three public hearings held by the board last year.
When that failed, they tried to halt land-clearing efforts by parking their cars along the front of the lot, blocking the bulldozers. The police made them move their cars.
Then they appealed the board's decision to the Circuit Court.
``We knew all along it would be an uphill battle,'' said Jeffrey C. Harper, who owns the adjacent property.
``But we were trying to make a statement,'' he added. ``Things are getting offensively out of balance between the intent of the Chesapeake Bay act and what the local policy has been, which is: I never saw an idea I didn't like.''
Under new Bay protection laws, this lot could not be built upon because it is in a protected area.
But because this lot was created before the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area ordinance went into effect, a house can be built, with permission of the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area Board. The board may impose restrictions on construction to reduce the environmental impact.
Some houses along Back Cove Road sit as close to water as the proposed home, but they were built long before current environmental regulations.
Under the new regulations, a home can be built on the lot if the encroachments into the protected areas are minimal. The neighbors argued in court that the restrictions imposed on the builder were not minimal.
``There is an alternate location for this dwelling that would lessen the impact,'' attorney Patrick A. Genzler said. ``A smaller house would totally avoid this.
``Plus it would be more in character, not only with the neighborhood, but with the intent of the ordinance.''
The city planning department recommended that the Chesapeake Bay board require the builder, Wayne Beagle, to make several changes in his proposal. One of those included moving the house 20 feet farther from the water.
Beagle agreed to all the changes except moving the house.
``Although grateful for the compromises that Mr. Beagle has already made, staff feels that the proposed location of the dwelling is in conflict with the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area Ordinance,'' reads the planning department evaluation of the project.
The Chesapeake Bay Board did not agree and allowed him to build in the original location.
``I think the board did everything it could,'' said Vanessa Valldejuli, the assistant city attorney representing the board. She said board members took the unusual steps of holding three hearings and visiting the site.
``The board wasn't faced with an ideal situation,'' she said. ``A lot of situations are not going to fit the perfect picture.''
Residents have decided to stop their fight. ``We've been settling into the reality of it,'' Harper said. ``The guy now has a legal right to build so let it happen. We'll have to adjust to it.'' by CNB