Several Residents Express Concerns To City Planners
Southern Virginia University secured several affirmative votes from the Buena Vista Planning Commission last Tuesday, Aug. 13, in favor of the university moving forward with its plans to build a 600-bed, five-story dormitory.
The Commission voted to grant certificates of appropriateness for the design of the structure and for the demolition of seven buildings to make way for the project. The Commission also voted to recommend approval of abandonments of various rights of way that crisscross the site and to recommend approval of a conditional use permit for erecting a building with 218,525 square feet of floor space in the Seminary Hill District.
“This is a major, positive move for the city,” said Tom Roberts, Buena Vista’s director of community development. “It will increase the available housing elsewhere in Buena Vista. Housing for working families is a very important need in our area. The lack of it has been a constraint to industrial development.”
Of the seven buildings slated to be demolished, Roberts said five are modular units that went up in the early 2000s and the other two are residential-like structures used for storage that were built in the 1950s. None were deemed to have significant historic archi- tectural value.
City staff has recommended minor design changes to the project such as increasing its pedestrian connectivity to other sidewalks on campus. SVU is pledging to repair outdoors stairs descending Seminary Hill to Magnolia Avenue that have been in pretty rough shape in recent years.
Roberts said city staff is to meet with SVU officials to discuss developing a parking plan that will be in the interests of the city and university. “We want them to look at parking on campus holistically,” said Roberts. “They have made a good start by inventorying 1,200 spaces on campus.” He said there are still questions about those spaces, such as how many are at the athletic fields, and what happens when these are taken by spectators at sporting events.
SVU has an enrollment presently of around 1,000 students. Two-thirds of students have vehicles, which would equate to about 650 cars on campus. So, theoretically, there are 1,200 parking spaces for 650 cars.
Interest in SVU’s plans for the dormitory was indicated by the large number of people attending last week’s meeting, which is unusual for the Buena Vista Planning Commission. Few actually took the opportunity to address the Commission. One, Cory Bachman of 162 W. 28th St., said the dormitory would tower over his property.
“My backyard is looking at this view,” he said. He bought his house, he said, because he wanted to raise his family in a quiet neighborhood. He acknowledged purchasing the property with the knowledge that it abuts a small college but said he didn’t anticipate such a huge dormitory being built next-door. “I don’t want to get in the way of progress for SVU but this is going to be pretty injurious to our property value and those of the neighborhood. The reputation risk to the university is significant.”
Jesse Lineberry, a candidate for mayor, asked that the city not approve any of the abandonments of rights of way for the project. He said he didn’t think the city has the necessary infrastructure to support such a large project.
“Our infrastructure is collapsing at the hands of students,” he claimed. He questioned whether the fire department’s 20-year-old ladder truck was adequate to provide fire protection for the dormitory.
Kathy Janiczek of 349 E. 26th St. said she likes the design of the dormitory, though it’s going to be “gigantic.” She expressed concern over parking. She said a house in her neighborhood that became student housing had 10 cars parked at it last year, even though it was supposed to be a rental for just four students.
“Parking is a situation that has to be addressed,” said Commission member Tim Petrie. “I’d like to see SVU work on a policy to accommodate this many students on campus. The overall scale of the project,” he noted, is that this is the biggest building he can ever remember being proposed in Buena Vista. “I applaud SVU for being successful,” he added.
Alluding to the proposed abandonments of rights of way, Commission member Bryson Adams pointed out that SVU would be paying the same rate as anyone else would – 75 centers per square foot, or about $60,000.
Commission chair Dennis Hawes said the project represented a “huge” investment on the part of SVU. Among its benefits is that it would pull SVU students away from the city’s residential neighborhoods, thus reducing this type of “sprawl. It will keep residential areas residential.” Giving up rights of way the city doesn’t need, he said, would generate revenue for the city. “The city is not giving anything up and getting $60,000.”
Following the discussion, Petrie made a motion to recommend abandoning rights of way for the project as presented. Marilyn Cash seconded the motion, which passed 7-1. Sarah Henson cast the lone dissenting vote. A motion to recommend approval of a conditional use permit for the project was made by Petrie, seconded by Harold Kidd and approved by a 7-1 vote, with Henson again dissenting.
Petrie made a motion to grant a certificate of appropriateness for the design of the dormitory. Cash seconded the motion, which passed 7-1, over Henson’s dissent. Cash made a motion to approve a certificate of appropriateness for the demolition of the seven structures. Petrie seconded the motion, which passed 8-0.
“I wouldn’t want my house up against it. It’s really going to tower over that neighborhood,” said Henson in explaining her dissents in the first three votes. The project came up so quickly, she said, that she worried impacts hadn’t been studied sufficiently such as the increase in storm water runoff. A storm water management plan is required as part of the approval process for new construction.
A separate public hearing was held for the planned demolition of a brick residential structure at 247 Chestnut Ave., at the corner of Chestnut and Ridge avenues, for the purpose of creating a 31-space parking lot for SVU. The house has been used for SVU storage in recent years. On a motion by Justin Wiseman, seconded by Cash, the Commission voted 8-0 to grant a certificate of appropriateness for the demolition.
