THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 23, 1996 TAG: 9610230393
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MAC DANIEL, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: 35 lines
With some reservations and temporary deletions, the City Council on Tuesday approved its legislative wish list for the upcoming session of the General Assembly.
The package, as it has since 1994, includes a request for impact fees for new development. Such fees are usually collected when a building permit is approved and are used to pay for expanding roads, schools and other city services that are affected by development.
Impact fees have had a rough go in the General Assembly. No one from Chesapeake's delegation introduced a bill calling for such fees in 1996. Three other bills all were killed in committee.
A proposal that would have asked the General Assembly to defer taxes on unimproved, residentially zoned property was delayed.
The council also delayed approving part of the legislative package that would have allowed voter-initiated referendums so a public hearing can be held on the issue.
Other requests in the approved legislative package include:
State funding for public school construction. With student enrollment increasing rapidly, city officials believe this initiative is vital.
Full implementation of the state's funding formula for libraries. Under the current program, Chesapeake libraries will receive $227,737; if the program were fully funded, the city would receive $306,780, according to city officials.
In other action the council delayed voting on whether to contribute $187,000 annually over the next five years to the private-public Forward Hampton Roads initiative, which aims to bring businesses to the region.
KEYWORDS: CHESAPEAKE CITY COUNCIL by CNB