Western Branch Land Use Study
Project Update
September 26, 2000
Purpose of Study and Background
The City has hired BTG, Inc. to complete a land use and infrastructure study for the western portion of Western Branch. The purpose of the Western Branch Land Study is to develop two land use, infrastructure and economic development alternatives for the western portion of the Western Branch planning area. The area is approximately 6.6 square miles in size and is bounded by Pughsville Road to the north, I-664 to the east, Military Highway to the south and the Chesapeake/Suffolk city line to the west.
Citizen Input
The first step of the study was to hold a citizen input meeting. The meeting was held on March 20, 2000 with approximately 100 citizens in attendance. At the meeting, staff led the citizens through a "SWOT" analysis, where the citizens identified what they saw as the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for the study area. A survey was also distributed.
Steering Committee
A Steering Committee was formed to assist in the development of the study. The Steering Committee is comprised of citizen and business representatives that have a stake in the outcome of the study. Two Council Members, two Planning Commissioners and a member from the Industrial Development Authority also serve as ex-officio members. The purpose of the Steering Committee is to review and endorse the work products developed by the consultant. The Steering Committee has met four times. At their first meeting, the Committee identified issues they determined to be important considerations for the study. At the second meeting, BTG, Inc., provided an overview of key findings based on their analysis of existing conditions and input received from the community. The Committee then held a brainstorming session regarding possible land use and infrastructure scenarios utilizing the information provided by the consultant and the community. At the third meeting, the Steering Committee selected two alternatives for further study. These alternatives are described below. At their last meeting, the Steering Committee reviewed the results of the economic and fiscal analysis for the two selected alternatives.
Existing Conditions Analysis
An early step of the process was to determine the existing conditions of the area. Some of the key findings of this analysis are as follows:
- The current zoning of the study area is approximately 66% Agricultural, 5% Business, 5% Manufacturing, 3% Office-Institutional and 21% Residential.
- The study area contains approximately 4,200 acres and approximately 2,800 acres is undeveloped.
- Approximately 30% of the total land area and 40% of the undeveloped land area is wetlands. Although scattered throughout the area, the largest areas of wetlands occur in the western half and northern quarter. The extent of wetlands found in the study area is larger than originally thought.
- Using current zoning and historical average lots yield, an estimated 940 additional dwelling units will be constructed at build-out.
- The current population of the area is approximately 2,700 and at build-out, using current zoning and historical average lots yield, the estimated population is 5,500.
- The existing commercial/retail development in the Chesapeake Square area exceeds 1.5 million square feet and will have a significant competing impact on commercial/retail development within the study area.
- The Hampton Roads airport is currently obligated to the FAA to continue service as a public airport for at least 10 more years. Furthermore, there are plans to improve the airport by adding a new, longer and wider runway paralleling the current east-west runway will expand the capacity of the airport for type, size and frequency of aircraft usage.
Strengths and Weaknesses of the Study Area
Based on this analysis, BTG, Inc. determined the following to be the strengths and weaknesses of the study area:
- Strength - Access and proximity to existing and planned high capacity, multi-modal transportation networks.
- Strength - Possible airport expansion.
- Strength - Wetlands/natural land offer good recreational area opportunities.
- Strength - 200 acre Gateway Commerce Park.
- Strength - Adequate and available water and sewer.
- Weakness- - Quantity and location of wetlands.
- Weakness- - Study area population is relatively small.
- Weakness - Capacity for additional traffic on Portsmouth Boulevard west of I-664.
Development of Alternatives
BTG, Inc. developed five (5) land use and infrastructures alternatives. All five (5) alternatives reflected a sensitivity toward existing development patterns, environmentally sensitive areas, roadway patterns, planning and economic development objectives, socio-economic characteristics, and the vision for the study area as forwarded by the citizens from the area. Supplementing the input received from the residents, major landowners, the Steering Committee, and City staff, BTG, Inc. based their recommendation on numerous other considerations including:
- Regional Growth Rates and Projections
- Capture Percentage of the Chesapeake Non-Residential Projected Growth
- Growing Strength of the I-664 Corridor
- Regional Roadway Congestion and Travel Uncertainties
- Improvements and Increased Use of the Route 58/Route 460 Corridor
- Possible Extension of the Pleasant Grove Connector
The five alternatives ranged from land uses with the most infrastructure constraints to land uses with the least infrastructure constraints. Land uses for all five alternatives generally recommended industrial to the north, commercial and office along Portsmouth Boulevard, residential to the south including a golf course, and the airport with office/flex space along Military Highway.
On August 17th, BTG, Inc. presented the five land use alternative scenarios to the Steering Committee for their review and comment. The Steering Committee selected two (2) alternatives, with revisions and recommendations, for further consideration. The basis for the Steering Committee recommendations was to recommend alternatives that best take advantage of existing and proposed road networks so as to increase economic development opportunities for the area. The alternatives are known as Alternative "D" and Alternative "E".
See illustrations of Alternative "D" and Alternative "E". Both of the alternatives seek to enhance and protect the existing residents and their environment, while providing ample economic development opportunities for the City. Roadway recommendations were made and visually depicted to complement the existing and proposed land uses. Both alternatives are somewhat similar in design, containing a proposed golf course, focusing major retail and office development, identifying neighborhood commercial areas, suggesting complementary vehicular traffic circulation flow, pedestrian and bike trails, open space locations, and modest residential growth opportunities. The most obvious difference between the two plans centers around the extent of the industrial land use in the northern portion of the study area. Alternative "E" presents a larger vision for the extent of industrial land near the I-664 Pughsville Interchange.
Detailed Description of Alternative "D":
Alternative Scenario "D" includes a development plan for accommodating 970 single family and 600 multi-family units, 2.3 million square feet of retail and hotel rooms, 2.7 million square feet of office, and 2.5 million square feet of industrial space. The time horizon for this development scenario is twenty (20) years.
| Year | Residential (Units) |
Multifamily (Units) |
Commercial Retail (sq.ft.) |
Commercial Hotel (Rooms) |
Commercial Office (sq.ft.) |
Manufacturing/ Warehousing (sq.ft.) |
Office/ Flex (sq.ft.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000-2004 | 220 | 300 | 155,000 | 100 | 440,000 | 200,000 | 444,000 |
| 2005-2009 | 250 | 300 | 451,250 | 200 | 440,000 | 400,000 | 444,000 |
| 2010-2014 | 250 | 0 | 576,250 | 300 | 640,000 | 200,000 | 666,000 |
| 2015-2019 | 250 | 0 | 777,500 | 200 | 580,000 | 200,000 | 666,000 |
| Total | 970 | 600 | 1,960,000 | 800 | 2,100,000 | 1,000,000 | 2,220,000 |
* Note: Office/Flex Space consists of 30% Office and 70% Manufacturing/Warehouse.
The industrial properties are located to the north of the study area. The existing wetland areas located south of the industrial area are preserved. Offices, hotel sites, and an area for multi-family development are located south of the wetland area. A significant portion of the retail is clustered around the I-664 interchange and is located on the north and south of Portsmouth Boulevard. Offices serve as a transitional land use between this retail and the single-family designation that consumes most of the area south of Portsmouth Boulevard. To the west, the existing wetland areas are preserved. A golf course serves as a transition between the single-family properties and the airport. Office/flex space is found to the north and east of the airport. A small area of retail is included to provide convenience goods and services to the residential development. Pods of existing wetlands located to the north and east of the airport are preserved.
Alternative "D" calls for the widening of Portsmouth Boulevard to accommodate the retail uses along this major corridor. A north/south connector is included between Portsmouth Boulevard and Pughsville Road; however, this road is pulled towards I-664 to avoid wetland impacts. A north/south arterial is also included on the south side of Portsmouth Boulevard to Military Highway, where an interchange is proposed. Local road improvements to serve development throughout the study area are included, such as the widening Jolliff Road to four lanes, construction of Dock Land Road extended, and a network of minor roads to serve the office/flex space east of the airport.
BTG, Inc. has completed a fiscal impact analysis for this scenario; the results indicate a positive fiscal impact.
Detailed Description of Alternative "E":
Alternative Scenario "E" includes a development plan for accommodating 970 single family and 880 multi-family units, 2.7 million square feet of retail and hotel rooms, 3.1 million square feet of office, and 4.4 million square feet of industrial space. The time horizon for this development scenario is twenty (20) years.
| Year | Residential (Units) |
Multifamily
(Units) |
Commercial Retail (sq.ft.) |
Commercial Hotel (Rooms) |
Commercial Office (sq.ft.) |
Manufacturing/ Warehousing (sq.ft.) |
Office/ Flex (sq.ft.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000-2004 | 220 | 300 | 155,000 | 100 | 440,000 | 400,000 | 444,000 |
| 2005-2009 | 250 | 350 | 751,250 | 200 | 880,000 | 800,000 | 444,000 |
| 2010-2014 | 250 | 230 | 881,250 | 100 | 640,000 | 1,000,000 | 666,000 |
| 2015-2019 | 250 | 0 | 777,500 | 0 | 580,000 | 800,000 | 446,000 |
| Total | 970 | 880 | 2,565,000 | 400 | 2,540,000 | 3,000,000 | 2,000,000 |
* Note: Office/Flex Space consists of 30% Office and 70% Manufacturing/Warehouse.
The industrial properties are located to the north of the study area; however, Alternative "E" presents a larger vision for the extent of industrial land near the I-664 Pughsville Interchange. Approximately half of existing wetland areas south of the industrial area is preserved. Offices, hotel sites, and an area for multi-family development are located south of the wetland area. A significant portion of the retail is located on the north and south of Portsmouth Boulevard and clustered around the I-664 interchange. Offices serve as a transitional land use between this retail and the single-family designation that consumes most of the area south of Portsmouth Boulevard. To the west, the existing wetland areas are preserved. A golf course serves as a transition between the single-family properties and the airport. Office/flex space is found to the north and east of the airport. A small area of retail is included to provide convenience goods and services to the residential development. Pods of existing wetlands located to the north and east of the airport are preserved.
Alternative "E" calls for the widening of Portsmouth Boulevard to accommodate the retail uses along this major corridor. A north/south connector is included between the Portsmouth Boulevard and Pughsville Road; however, this road is pulled away from I-664 to increase the amount of land available for industrial development. A north/south arterial is also included on the south side of Portsmouth Boulevard to Military Highway, where an interchange is proposed. A flyover from the study area across Military Highway to the Sunray area is also proposed. Local road improvements to serve development throughout the study area are included, such as the widening Jolliff Road to three lanes, construction of Dock Land Road extended, and a network of minor roads to serve the office/flex space east of the airport.
BTG, Inc. has completed a fiscal impact analysis for this scenario; the results indicate a positive fiscal impact.
The illustrations provide a conceptual look at what the area might look like if development proceeds under the recommended alternatives.
