Should stormwater regs for developers differ on location in Virginia Beach? Advisory group could study it

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — It’s been nearly four years now since new development standards were put into place in Virginia Beach with a goal of making sure new construction, didn’t result in an increased risk of flooding.

City council didn’t want a sequel of what occurred during the rains during Hurricane Matthew in 2016, when a newer high-end community flooded because of poor infrastructure , and city taxpayers were put on the hook to help fix the issue.

But developers warned the policy could end up discouraging new development all together and make homeownership less affordable .

Now, after more than several years of the regulations coupled with skyrocketing mortgage and construction costs, one council member is looking to see if there is any way those stormwater rules could be tweaked to find a happy medium.

Councilman Joash Schulman, is putting forward an idea to form an advisory group whose goal would be to make recommendations to city council “regarding how best to balance the need for stormwater management and flooding protection with development and redevelopment opportunities.”

Affordable housing is still considered out of reach for the most common jobs in Virginia Beach, the city’s recently completed housing study found.

City council has made creating more affordable housing in the city a top priority.

Schulman wants to know if there could be a way to encourage development by lightening the regulations in areas where the risk of flooding isn’t as great.

“We’ve got a big city and we can’t treat everywhere the same,” Schulman said. “Some places flood regularly, some places are more appropriate for development because they’re higher ground and more permeable soil. So I think, you know, my hope is that this group will take a look at some of what we want to achieve as a council and give us some policy recommendations about how to get there through the stormwater regulations.”

Flooding poses problems for just about every part of Hampton Roads, but Virginia Beach is uniquely suited to get hit from every angle: the Atlantic pushes in from the east, the Chesapeake Bay from the north, the Elizabeth River from the west and the Currituck Sound from the south .

A “Sea Level Wise” plan put together in partnership with Dewberry said Virginia Beach should plan for about 1.5 feet of sea level rise by 2050, and 3 feet by 2080.

But Schulman also wants the advisory panel to look at what could be done to finally try and make good on a more than two-year-old neglected commitment from a previous city council, having to do with how city planners recommend projects.

Ahead of a 2021 bond referendum where voters were asked if real estate taxes should be raised to fund 21 flood protection projects, city council passed a resolution promising to amend the city’s comprehensive plan, if the referendum was successful.

The change, more or less, would direct the city’s planning department to recommend denial of any new development proposal that increases the demand on the city’s stormwater system.

It was to be done in three weeks.

While the bond referendum was approved by nearly 73% of voters, the amendment has yet to be made.

The city’s planning commission has recommended denial of the resolution twice, pointing to the developer concerns. While Mayor Bobby Dyer was steadfast in saying “we did not violate our word,” no action has been taken on passing the amendment since May 2022.

Since then, residents often critical of new development and spending have used the resolution as an example as to why council actions shouldn’t be trusted.

Schulman wasn’t on council at the time the resolution was passed, and neither were a majority of current sitting members. However, he understands the frustration.

“The language and the resolution was, I mean, just ill defined in a way and difficult for, you know, for industry professionals to kind of work through,” Schulman said. “My hope is that we can work through this group to get some good recommendations for us to do exactly that, preserve the intent of of what the amendment was trying to achieve and do no harm, don’t make things worse, but also create a climate that’s conducive to doing business and to, you know, growing our economy in a strategic and resilient way.”

Schulman said the 19-member advisory group would be made up of industry experts and those who just simply call Virginia Beach home.

“We want people not only from the development community and engineering professionals, but also people who are environmentally or conservation-minded land use or environmental attorneys, but also resident participants who represent their watersheds,” Schulman said. “We want to make sure that people can see what the conversation is about.”

Dyer seemed supportive of Schulman’s approach.

He admitted for the first time that he wouldn’t have voted to include the comprehensive plan amendment if he could go back in time.

“It was rushed,” Dyer said. “We far exceed state standard s and regulatory costs are really, you know, a major factor and the expense of housing now. So once again, it’s finding the balance that, you know, staying true to the intent of what we want to do.”

Correction: The on-air version of the story incorrectly states the amount of the bond referendum. WAVY-TV regrets the error.

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