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Coalition pushes to make kempsville historic district by wwy yrj
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Coalition pushes to make kempsville historic district by WWY YRJ
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| Article Posted: 11/12/2012 |
| Article Views: 183 |
| Articles Written: 1412 - MORE ARTICLES FROM THIS AUTHOR |
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Coalition pushes to make kempsville historic district |
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Business,Business News,Business Opportunities
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By Jennifer Jiggetts The Virginian-Pilot May 13, 2012 VIRGINIA BEACH Diann Nickelsburg and her husband always thought Kempsville was afine place to raise their children. The schools were good; the areawas family-oriented. She can remember when the crowds were fewerand the traffic less congested. "It was not built up like it is now," Nickelsburg said. Things have changed.
These days the city is re-configuring the intersection of PrincessAnne and Kempsville roads to better accommodate 60,000 dailyvehicles. That set off a high-profile eminent domain dispute withthe historic Emmanuel Episcopal Church. Last month, the City Council approved Kempes Village, a 170-unitcomplex that will include converting the old Kempsville High Schoolinto high-end lofts and offices. While the developers will preservethe school, many neighbors said the project lacked features for a"village" feel, sought in the area"s master plan.
And the city has had some preliminary discussions about a potentialWalgreens store next to Emmanuel Episcopal. All that has people like Nickelsburg worried about the changes, andtalking about how to preserve the historic character of an areathat is fast being altered by construction and development. Although Kempsville doesn"t have the blocks of centuries-oldhomes like Olde Towne Portsmouth or Colonial Williamsburg,Nickelsburg and some of her neighbors feel it does have its shareof history. They"d like for that history to guide itsredevelopment – not the pattern of suburban sprawlthat"s been more typical.
Nickelsburg and others in the Kempsville Coalition of Civic Leagueswant the city to create a historic and cultural overlay districtfor Kempsville. That would designate the intersection of PrincessAnne Road and South Witchduck/Kempsville Road as a historicdistrict. A designation would mean property owners in the areawould have to adhere to certain rules that haven"t yet beendetermined. Their goal is to preserve several historical landmarks at or nearthat intersection, to preserve Kempsville"s heritage, and tomake sure that new development is complementary to the historicarea. Kempsville is named for George Kemp, who acquired land at theheadwaters of the Eastern Branch of the Elizabeth River in 1652.Kempe"s Landing became a small village with tobaccowarehouses lining the riverfront by 1700.
Kempsville was thePrincess Anne County seat from 1778 to 1823. Its important landmarks include the Carraway House, believed to bethe oldest surviving wooden structure in the city, and the170-year-old Emmanuel Episcopal Church. Pleasant Hall, a Georgianhome on Princess Anne Road that was built around 1769, was used byLord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia, as his headquartersfor the Battle of Great Bridge during the Revolutionary War. Today, Kempsville has about 100,000 residents.
In 2006, the City Council approved the Historic Kempsville AreaMaster Plan as a general guide for redeveloping the neighborhood bybuilding on its historic character and developing properties intovillagelike communities. But residents say they want the designation to put much tighterrestrictions on projects here. Clay Bernick, environment and sustainability administrator for thecity"s planning department, said there is a lot of supportfor a historic designation. The city currently has 14 historic andcultural overlay districts.
Bernick said there are restrictions onwhat can be done to buildings, signs, paint colors, roof shinglesand redevelopment in these districts. But he said there are nuances that make it difficult to get adesignation, such as details in the city"s code and findingout whether property owners want the designation. The City Council would decide what the rules of the district wouldbe with recommendations from the planning department and a workgroup of representatives in the community. Bernick said hedoesn"t have answers about what people would have to adhereto because he"s not sure the historic district overlay willbe adopted. Bernick said the city is putting together a review group to developa list of what it hopes to accomplish.
Officials are researchingwhether the request meets city and state requirements. It is hopedthat city officials will make a recommendation by late summer,Bernick said. Local historian Stephen Mansfield said that if a designationisn"t given, Kempsville residents can still preserve theheritage of the community with markers, signs, kiosks and walkingtours. Regardless of what happens to the district idea, some residentshave questions about the future of Kempsville. Nickelsburg isconcerned about the traffic and what she calls the overbuilding atPrincess Anne Road and Witchduck-Kempsville roads.
"It"ll look like other areas in Virginia Beach, withdrugstores on every corner and apartments and apartments andapartments," Nickelsburg said. Resident Ann Farr said she"s so worried about traffic thatshe prefers to use the back streets. Farr said every time she turnsaround, it seems like a new development is sprouting up on theneighborhood"s green spaces. "I"m a little concerned about the future ofKempsville," she said.
"It can go either way." Not everybody is worried. David W. Weiner, a representative of the Carolanne Farms CivicLeague, said he likes the direction that the area he"s calledhome for 10 years is heading. Weiner is pro-development and said hesupports the plan to designate Kempsville as a historic district. "Right now is a good time to start talking about it,"he said.
"Kempsville is getting better." Jennifer Jiggetts, 757-222-5150, jennifer.jiggetts@pilotonline.com. I am Energy Projects writer, reports some information about electric eel shock , motorcycle clip ons.
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