Posted on July 4, 2016
By Mechelle Hankerson, The Virginian-Pilot
The city may change some aspects of its 5-year-old neighborhood dredging program, which is the first of its kind in Virginia Beach.
The program allows waterfront neighborhoods to adopt special tax districts to pay for city-administered dredging projects. On June 21, Public Works staff updated council members about proposed changes.
The potential amendments come after removing a total of 18 properties from two special dredging districts. Staff had to remove two properties from the Chesopeian Colony district because neighbors didn’t grant an easement for the properties to be treated.
Another 16 homes were taken out of the Hurd’s Cove district because permitting agencies said it would cause too much damage to wetlands, said coastal manager Phill Roehrs.
The city can work on some wetlands, Roehrs said, but federal environmental agencies require the city to replace them somewhere else. Replacing the damaged wetlands in Hurd’s Cove would almost double the cost of the $2.9 million dredging program.
“There’s no guarantee that this program is good for every creek and cove,” Roehrs said. “There are probably areas in the city where this won’t work.”
Many residents were “terribly disappointed” about being removed from the district, said Martin Schildwachter, who helped with the petition process for Hurd’s Cove.
Neighborhoods that want to be part of the dredging program have to submit a petition with at least 80 percent of waterfront property owners approving the special tax district. Hurd’s Cove had one of the highest approval ratings with more than 83 percent, Roehrs said. Even after removing the 16 properties, it’s still above the required 80 percent.
Will Rountree also helped with the neighborhood petition in Hurd’s Cove and hoped to get as many neighbors involved as possible. Dredging keeps the waterways healthy and usable, he said.
Other Hurd’s Cove residents have no problem being removed from the dredging program.
Douglas Forziati said he never liked the idea of paying more taxes for something that would mostly benefit neighbors who own boats or other watercraft.
“I’ve never had a boat,” said Forziati, 74. “I wouldn’t know what to do with a boat and I’m too old to be on a boat.”
Residents who were taken out of the districts will be refunded the money they paid into the dredging projects. According to initial estimates of the annual cost per household in Hurd’s Cove, the city is looking at refunding roughly $27,520 among the 16 property owners.
In Chesopeian Colony, the city would refund two homeowners about $5,600, based on original cost estimates.
Some of the proposed changes to the citywide neighborhood dredging project include:
- Requiring City Council to consider changing the tax rate of a district immediately when properties are removed if it would cause more than a 25 percent increase. If deletions don’t increase the rate by more than 25 percent, Council would consider changing the rate every four years.
- Including city-funded dredging in areas closest to the main channel of major waterways.
- Refunding money to properties that were originally included in the district and then removed. It would include interest, if City Council approved it.
- Allowing the addition of new properties without changing rates for current participants.
- Requiring owners to pay an entry fee into the program if they’re not part of the original district. It would offset costs associated with treating a longer channel.
- Any additions to the districts would go before the City Council.
Source: The Virginian-Pilot
