THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, May 9, 1996 TAG: 9605090371
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TERRI WILLIAMS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Short : 44 lines
It seems like everyone wants a prime chunk of property owned by the Navy near Driver.
But tonight citizens will have their last say in how they think the Navy's surplus Radio Transmitting Facility should be used.
The Planning Commission and the Alexandria-based consultant EDAW, Inc. will host a citizen's forum at 7 p.m. at Driver Elementary School at 4270 Driver Lane. It's the last community forum before the proposal is shipped back to the Planning Commission and City Council.
The various proposals for this property reads like a grocery list:
The city wants to use part of the 597-acre site for a riverfront park and recreational area.
The U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife Service wants to expand it to include the Nansemond River National Wildlife Refuge.
Old Dominion University has plans for an environmental education center.
And Youth Entertainment Studios, a Virginia Beach organization, wants part of the land to build an entertainment center for youth.
Bennett's Creek Little League wants the area to be a ball field.
For the last few months, city officials and residents haven't reached a compromise. At one point, citizens said the area should be used as an environmental research center, but along came YES with the proposal for inner-city youth.
During a council meeting earlier this year on the matter, Councilman Charles F. Brown asserted that some residents didn't want the studio nearby because it helped mostly inner-city minority youth. Other council members such as Marian ``Bea'' Rogers said Brown's allegations were false.
The proposals will be presented to the Planning Commission on May 21. The council will then vote on the matter in June, said Planning Director Paul E. Fisher.
Various federal agencies that currently have some involvement with the property will have some input in how the land is reused. However, the secretary of the Navy will have the final say. by CNB