DATE: Saturday, April 19, 1997              TAG: 9704190402

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B2   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY MAC DANIEL, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:   40 lines

CHESAPEAKE COUNCIL RETREAT BEGINS WITH GROWTH-CONTROL TALK

The Chesapeake City Council's two-day retreat began with an oftentimes rambling discussion with the Planning Commission on how to better control future growth.

No solid conclusions were drawn during the meeting at the Holiday Inn Executive Center in Virginia Beach. However, it was clear both bodies believed the creation of new area-specific ``growth corridors'' in the city was paramount.

Chesapeake uses four different kinds of ``overlay districts'' to control growth in the city. These districts encompass huge areas of land and vary in permissible density - from seven units per acre to as little as one unit per three acres.

It has been a system that has worked up till now. But with Virginia Route 168 and U.S. Route 17 closer to expansion than ever before, the council is now considering ``growth corridors'' - smaller, more concentrated districts - to control the spread of growth in largely rural areas opened up by the new capital projects.

For example, with construction set to begin on the Oak Grove Connector linking Virginia Route 168 with interstates 464 and 64, areas of southern Chesapeake will soon be a 20-minute drive from Norfolk - prime conditions for bedroom communities.

Rarely has the council had a chance to think so far ahead, an opportunity City Manager John L. Pazour said is necessary. Without such talk, Pazour said, ``decisions will be made on a more ad-hoc basis, and many of the benefits that Chesapeake offers will be hurt over time if this continues to happen.''

Most of the council and commission's attention was focused on rural southern Chesapeake, the next area of high growth in the city. Agricultural preservation techniques were also discussed.

The council meets with members of the School Board and economic development department today during an all-day session beginning at 8:30 a.m. in the fourth floor personnel training room in City Hall. KEYWORDS: CHESAPEAKE CITY COUNCIL

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