DATE: Tuesday, May 20, 1997                 TAG: 9705200002

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B10  EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Editorial 

                                            LENGTH:   51 lines

CAUTIOUS GROWTH: THE VIRGINIA BEACH PLANNING COMMISSION WAS RIGHT TO APPROVE A NEW SUBDIVISION BELOW THE GREEN LINE

The Virginia Beach Planning Commission voted last week to rezone for a residential development 58 rural acres below the Green Line.

The vote surprised many observers and evoked howls of protest from others who mistakenly believe that the Green Line is a sacred boundary below which no development is allowed.

In reality the Green Line is a point below which the city no longer provides services such as water or sewer. The imaginary line was drawn by City Council in 1979 to halt the unbridled development that had defaced much of Virginia Beach during the 1970s.

There are three ``transition areas'' below the Green Line where all manner of development is already taking place. The city's Lake Ridge project is an example of growth in one transition area. In addition to the amphitheater already there, the city has plans for a soccer stadium, golf courses, office buildings and schools at Lake Ridge.

In voting to approve the Sandy Hill Farm project, the planning commissioners did what they have been charged to do: carefully consider each request for rezoning on a case-by-case basis and vote to allow development that will be beneficial to the city without placing an increased tax burden on the citizens.

A final decision about the Sandy Hill Farm subdivision now rests with City Council.

This small parcel of land at the intersection of Princess Anne and Sandbridge Roads is adjacent to 150 acres already zoned commercial. Also weighing in favor of the rezoning is the fact that this land backs up to the well-established housing development of Three Oaks. It would be naive to think this acreage could be successfully farmed for much longer.

The pricetag predicted on these new upscale homes will be a boon to the stagnant tax growth in the city. And preliminary plans for the subdivision with prices ranging from $220,000 to $250,000 indicate that this will not be the type of crackerbox construction once favored by some Virginia Beach builders.

The rural character of Virginia Beach is important to a balanced community, and we support the concept of a Green Line to help preserve it. An imaginary line on a map should not substitute for sound decision-making, however.

This promises to be an issue of increasing importance with the arrival of Lake Gaston water later this year. City planners predict a new and much-needed growth spurt for the city. It is reasonable to assume that some of that development will occur in the sparsely populated southern half of the city.

When new development is proposed, it ought to be carefully considered by the Planning Commission and City Council and not decided automatically by a little-understood imaginary line.

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