Hampton Roads

[rusthebuss]

The Cornerstone development looks pretty good.

[rusthebuss]

I support you and i do see your point vdogg. I support this area as a whole. I want this area to become the metro it has the potential to be. Nobody supports this area and those who do need to support each other and the cities we live in. Alot of people have no faith in this area and think nothing of Hampton Roads and i see this in the forum and from talking to people. Alot of people think this area will be nothing but a port and nothing else. But i feel this area is greater than that and i think you do to or you wouldn't post in this forum. So dude keep up the good work and i will back you up dude so don't think that i don't support you or vabeach. i just feel that vabeach just doesn't have good intentions for the area but just for its self. I grew up here and will probably always live here so i want it to grow.

[vdogg]

Well, that may be true, but that being said i really don't think any govt in hampton roads has "good" intentions. I am by no means supporting council because they're idiots. But by some cosmic joke these idiots managed to turn out a good idea and thats what i'm supporting. I haven't always lived in this area. I came here about 8 years ago from Michigan. I didn't know what to think at first but gradually this area has grown on me. I have no problem with spirited debate, a forum in which everyone agrees is boring. I do see some of your points, but whatever councils intentions the end result has been great so far. I only hope it stays that way.

[rusthebuss]

Well, that may be true, but that being said i really don't think any govt in hampton roads has "good" intentions. I am by no means supporting council because they're idiots. But by some cosmic joke these idiots managed to turn out a good idea and thats what i'm supporting. I haven't always lived in this area. I came here about 8 years ago from Michigan. I didn't know what to think at first but gradually this area has grown on me. I have no problem with spirited debate, a forum in which everyone agrees is boring. I do see some of your points, but whatever councils intentions the end result has been great so far. I only hope it stays that way.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Dude you have walked into a war that has been going on since the 60s. I'm glad that you support here we need it. See alot of people that live here have no root here so they could care less about here. Most areas have roots set in place, not here.

[vdogg]

Dude you have walked into a war that has been going on since the 60s. I'm glad that you support here we need it. See alot of people that live here have no root here so they could care less about here. Most areas have roots set in place, not here.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

When i first came here i didn't plan on having roots here, trust me. But i'm here now so i might as well make the best of it. The thing about the disagreements between the cities is that its not just the governments. It seems to run straight down to the average citizen on the street and its a very polarizing environment. If people started demanding that their governments worked closer together something would get done. But you're right. Most people don't care.

[vdogg]

People not having roots here is all part of the transient nature of a military town. Its hard to change. I wish we weren't so dependant on the military in this area. Thats a big part of the problem right there.

[bobliocatt]

Watch out what you wish for, because Jacksonville wants to help you lessen your dependancy on the military by heavily pushing for the relocation of 2 of your 5 home based aircraft carriers & their fleets to Mayport Naval Station here.

[rusthebuss]

People not having roots here is all part of the transient nature of a military town. Its hard to change. I wish we weren't so dependant on the military in this area. Thats a big part of the problem right there.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

This area is really changing though and the it is getting less dependent of the military to a certain degree. People are starting to set roots here they just don't care about the politics of the area. I hope Jacksonville doesn't get the carriers and as of right now they can't hold a nuclear carrier.

[rusthebuss]

Watch out what you wish for, because Jacksonville wants to help you lessen your dependancy on the military by heavily pushing for the relocation of 2 of your 5 home based aircraft carriers & their fleets to Mayport Naval Station here.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

They were just talking about taking just one to replace the Kennedy

[Viper]

Congress has stated they do not want to consolidate their Eastern Seaboard Carriers at a single base. Considering Jeb Bush is heavily pushing for keeping a Carrier in Jax really hard, you can expect Norfolk to lose at least one.

There was planned, or even completed, work of $300 million for the Kennedy that can now be put towards altering Mayport to support a nuclear Carrier.

[vdogg]

I think we're going to lose that carrier as well but i think the economic impact of losing that carrier may be slightly overstated. The $300 million in lost repair work is the biggest impact but the loss of 5000 sailors in this region will have the least impact imo. If you consider that at any given time of the year we have at least 5000 sailors out to sea not spending money in this area anyway, the loss of 5000 permanately will have a negligible impact. Norfolk has just topped $1 billion in new residential construction alone. I think the economy can take the hit. We may be set back about a year, but it won't be as apocalyptic a scenario as the media is portraying it. Now if you want to start talking about base closings, well thats a completely different story .

[rusthebuss]

I think we're going to lose that carrier as well but i think the economic impact of losing that carrier may be slightly overstated. The $300 million in lost repair work is the biggest impact but the loss of 5000 sailors in this region will have the least impact imo. If you consider that at any given time of the year we have at least 5000 sailors out to sea not spending money in this area anyway, the loss of 5000 permanately will have a negligible impact. Norfolk has just topped $1 billion in new residential construction alone. I think the economy can take the hit. We may be set back about a year, but it won't be as apocalyptic a scenario as the media is portraying it. Now if you want to start talking about base closings, well thats a completely different story

[vdogg]

Just wonder when they will start on the Trader Publishing building and when they will start on Granby Towers.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Beginning of March and the start of fall respectively.

[rusthebuss]

Any new news? Have you heard anything with the wedgewood project?Is there anything happening on the pennisula?We really haven't posted anything about the penn. and i know they have some things going on over there.

[vdogg]

Any new news? Have you heard anything with the wedgewood project?Is there anything happening on the pennisula?We really haven't posted anything about the penn. and i know they have some things going on over there.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

council was supposed to meet on wedgewood last night but the meeting was cancelled.

[rusthebuss]

I heard today that private contractors is seriously designing a third bridge tunnel to the pennisula. This will be a toll road and privately financed. The road will be from 564 to 664 crossing from norfolk to craney island to the monitor merrimac tunnel. VDOT says that they want the complete details by next winter.

[rusthebuss]

Is there any new news?

[vdogg]

Is there any new news?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Been out of town for a little while so i haven't been keeping up. I do know, however, that the Granby Towers project has now started taking reservations , so that probbably means that building is pretty much guranteed to be built. Constrution is supposed to start late august or early september. They probably have a website up and running and as soon as i find it i'll post it here.

[JohnnyCockfight]

This is an article from the Daily Press about Port Warwick, a new development on the Peninsula in Newport News. I have put in bold the parts of the article that talk about new developments, stretching from Williamsburg all the way down to Suffolk and Isle of Wight.

New urbanism taking to streets

City and county planners like the high property values; residents like the convenience.

BY KEITH RUSHING

247-7870

Published February 21, 2005

NEWPORT NEWS -- Patrice Stein was living in a spacious suburban house with her husband a few years ago, but something was missing.

When she saw Port Warwick - a mixed-use, 150-acre development of brick homes, condos and apartments, and shops centered around a three-acre square - she had an "a-ha" moment.

"It was a fabulous community," Stein said. "I said ah, this is it. This is what's missing."

She found the friendly urban-style neighborhood she'd been looking for in Newport News' Oyster Point area.

"You see people walking the dogs. And you stop and talk to people. There's such a variety of businesses," Stein said.

The largest green area, William Styron Square, is named after the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer from Newport News. The complex has smaller squares and public statues commissioned by the developer. There are shops where you can get coffee, beer or wine, and restaurants where you can get a sandwich or dinner.

Stein said Port Warwick reminded her and her husband of growing up in the city, and of the villages she visited in Europe.

"I grew up in a circle. He grew up on a square," she said. "We wanted to live in the inner city."

She, her husband and their 7-year-old son live in a spacious condominium above the store she owns, Beck & Stein books. Stein plans to open a bed-and-breakfast in an adjacent condominium.

NEW URBANISM

Port Warwick was the harbinger of a new trend in residential developments in Hampton Roads. More and more of these mixed-use, or "new urbanist," developments are springing up throughout the country, said Dan Rodriguez, a professor at the University of North Carolina's Department of City and Regional Planning.

New urbanism emerged in the late 1980s when architects and developers began looking for ways to create alternatives to suburban sprawl, Rodriguez said. The concept incorporates smaller lots, sidewalks, narrow streets and a mix of offices and stores, often around green spaces.

The idea is to create urban communities where people can walk to work, a store or restaurant rather than rely on their cars.

"They (architects and developers) are trying to bring back an urban America - bringing together some of the suburban elements we like," Rodriguez said, adding that the homes in these communities will often have larger rooms and plenty of green space.

Although they are an effort to create an urban environment, these new communities are generally built in more suburban areas where large plots of land are available.

In the past five years, the number of new urbanist projects nationwide has increased at least 20 percent each year, Rodriguez said.

In many cases, communities have altered zoning laws to allow for higher-density development and stores and offices in the same area. Rodriguez said more than 40 states now have development plans or codes that promote these neighborhoods. Because the communities encourage walking, they're believed to have a lower impact on roads and traffic and demand fewer road-widening projects and retention ponds.

"The bar is lowered because the impact is lower," Rodriguez said.

Cities and counties tend to like new urbanism because the developments attract upscale residents, raising the value of housing.

"They have appreciated faster, which means they've been in short supply," Rodriguez said. "Prices shoot up."

The high property values have a downside, however.

The communities tend to lack economic and racial diversity, which is one of the goals of the new urbanism movement, Rodriguez said.

"I think you're going to find that there's a major gap between what proponents of new urbanism would like it to do and what they actually do," he said. "They tend to be upscale developments of predominantly white residents."

To combat that problem, lawmakers have to create solutions that will create more economic and racial diversity when these communities are being built, Rodriguez said.

A LOCAL TREND

City and county administrators throughout Hampton Roads, including Suffolk, Isle of Wight, Williamsburg, James City, Gloucester and York, say these developments are necessary to provide alternative neighborhoods for the people they're trying to attract.

Last month, the Suffolk City Council paid $4.65 million for 25 acres of land that abuts the Nansemond River, hoping that a private developer will build a new urbanist or mixed-use development there.

"Suffolk has been trying to find some developers who would do new urbanist type of work," City Manager Steve Herbert said. The city also hired an expert to help the city use new-urbanist design principals in downtown redevelopment efforts. "We think it's an alternative to the standard subdivision design that we've seen so much of over the years because it offers a mix of uses," Herbert said. "Most are designed to be walkable and bikeable communities."

Last week, Suffolk's City Council approved a mixed-used development that allows for a combination of green space, single-family homes, row houses and homes with attached stores on 61 acres of land. The development, Bennett's Creek Square, almost triples the density allowed by current zoning laws, raising some concern among residents about increased traffic.

In Newport News, a Virginia Beach developer plans to build a mixed-used development at Jefferson Avenue and Denbigh Boulevard that includes 304 apartments surrounded by shops, restaurants and offices. Like Port Warwick, the Denbigh development will have some apartments built directly above shops. City officials are also reviewing another mixed-used development plan.

Isle of Wight officials are reviewing a plan for 430 residences along with stores, offices and public space. The proposal will include lofts above commercial space and public art.

WALKING COMMUNITIES

"They're using alleys, sidewalks ... a great deal of open space. A green runs down the center of the project," said Jonathan Hartley, Isle of Wight County's planning director. They also propose setting aside 21 acres for public use.

"I think we're trying to create a higher quality of life by offering more walkable, livable communities," Hartley said. "Being able to live, work and play without getting into a car is a goal we're trying to reach for."

He said county officials also invited new-urbanism experts to Isle of Wight to talk about development concepts. They've also toured Port Warwick.

"It's a great example," Hartley said. "The basic concepts and design certainly have a lot of merits."

Port Warwick developer Bobby Freeman said he didn't know anything about new urbanism when he launched the project back in 1999.

"I felt the community didn't have a Ghent and an Old Town Portsmouth," he said, referring to two gentrified urban communities in Norfolk and Portsmouth. "I thought there would be people who wanted to live like five minutes from the office."

Freeman said he researched Ghent and Hilton Village in Newport News, to see why the communities worked. "I measured how far apart the houses were - how far they're set off the street. There was a real consistency there."

Freeman said he took those measurements back to his land planners, and the design for Port Warwick was laid out. When people started hearing about the plans for the community, Freeman said, many told him it fit the definition of new urbanism.

"We have all these shops at Styron Square. People are constantly walking to the retail and dining area. In most suburban neighborhoods, you don't walk anywhere. There's no place to walk. There's no pedestrian destination."

MORE TO COME

Freeman expects to see a lot more developments like Port Warwick built in Hampton Roads because of the growing demand. "You see people measuring all the time," he said, referring to developers. "You're going to see more Port Warwicks pop up than you can shake a stick at."

Mayor Joe Frank said the city wasn't sure how to make the best use of the land where Port Warwick is being built until Freeman presented his plan.

"This was just so dramatic that we all got excited over it," Frank said.

He said the complex has been really successful. "People who live there love it," Frank said. "It's a lifestyle for people who don't want large yards, want to be close to their neighbors and want the parks and restaurants."

In 2001, Newport News launched its own mixed-use project, City Center at Oyster Point, with an office complex, apartments, shops and restaurants.

Last year, Hampton began a downtown revitalization project, luring developers to build apartments, lofts, offices and stores on city-owned land. It hasn't been without some opposition. At public meetings, residents have said they fear local fishermen would be driven away because redevelopment plans would force a marina to close.

James City and Williamsburg both have mixed-used projects in the works. James City's New Town development would contain between 1,200 and 2,000 single-family homes, town houses and apartments with an office, research district and movie theaters.

Williamsburg's High Street project calls for upscale town houses, apartments and condominiums alongside green areas, walkways, an events plaza and a shopping center with upscale shops and a multiplex theater.

Both New Town and High Street may have apartments or condominiums above stores.

"As land gets scarcer and scarcer, it becomes a real efficient way to do development," said Jim Noel, York's director of economic development.

[vdogg]

Thanks for posting this. I've seen complaints on several boards that peninsula development does not get nearly enough attention cause all the publicity is surrounding Va. Beach and Norfolk. I was astounded the other day to learn that the Newport News Towncenter also includes plans for a 23-story highrise. If it were in Va. Beach or Norfolk, the media would be all over it, but i have yet to hear anything about this. When i find the plans I will post them here. In the mean time, if there is any more development from the peninsula keep posting it, I'd like to hear about it. .

[rusthebuss]

Thanks for posting this. I've seen complaints on several boards that peninsula development does not get nearly enough attention cause all the publicity is surrounding Va. Beach and Norfolk. I was astounded the other day to learn that the Newport News Towncenter also includes plans for a 23-story highrise. If it were in Va. Beach or Norfolk, the media would be all over it, but i have yet to hear anything about this. When i find the plans I will post them here. In the mean time, if there is any more development from the peninsula keep posting it, I'd like to hear about it. .

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Where are they planning on having that high rise at? Oyster Point?

[vdogg]

Where are they planning on having that high rise at? Oyster Point?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

yes

[rusthebuss]

yes

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Res or business? I imagine buisness in that area. I'm glad to see the whole area growing but the roads need to be built to the needs of the growth. I heard the other day that private contractors are going to try to build the next crossing from 564 to 664.

[vdogg]

I believe its this hotel. Still looking for the rendering i saw online. When i find it i'll post it here.

HOTEL - CONFERENCE CENTER

City Center at Oyster Point could be the new home of the 250-room Marriott Hotel and 70,000 sq. ft. Conference Center.

Since the inception of City Center at Oyster Point a hotel and conference center has been part of the master plan. City Council and the Newport News Economic Development Authority have approved the initial design and funding. Final project approval is expected in May 2004 with an eye on the projected Hotel opening in late 2005. Armada/Hoffler Development Co. in Virginia Beach and Crestline Hotels and Resorts in Bethesda Md. will partner to design, own, build, and operate the hotel, which is expected to cost between $27 million and $30 million. The Marriott Hotel will be a premier facility in a premier location overlooking the fountain at City Center.

To unsubscribe please reply with the subject line, "Unsubscribe."

http://www.oysterpointonline.com/newslette..._newsletter.htm

[vdogg]

To date i do not believe they have started on this project. Not sure what the hold up is.