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Last Updated: Nov 14, 2008 - 7:14:54 PM |
Hurricane Isabel pummeled Chesterfield on September 18 and 19 in 2003. It was an event that is hard to forget. At the time, it seemed to be just another storm, and I had no idea as to how dangerous it was or what damage the wind was capable of inflicting.
Leaving the office at about six o’clock after sheets of rain had beaten on the side of our building for most of the day, Linda and I decided to tour the area to see if the storm had caused any damage. We had no idea what we were in for. Driving south on Harrowgate Rd., only a mile from our office, we encountered a large oak tree that had blocked the road. Adrenaline pumping, we decided that South Chester Rd. would allow us to skirt the road closure so we could further explore how Isabel was treating Chesterfield.
A half-a-mile down South Chester Rd., another fallen tree; this monstrous oak had taken down power lines with it, and live wires were splayed across the road. Time to turn around. As we made a turnabout in someone’s driveway, a branch clunked on the roof of the car. Needless to say, we made a beeline for home, realizing later just how close we came to really getting hurt.
We all have our Isabel stories to tell; they have even crept into the conversation when it comes to influencing the growth issue in Chesterfield.
During the last Chesterfield planning commission meeting, a speaker said she didn’t want a
single tree within striking distance of her home. Tree save and mass grading code amendments were being proposed by the environmental engineering department. Developers opposed the amendments because it inflicts additional site development cost. It’s less expensive to clear a development all at once. It’s looked at by some as being an initiative that will curb growth.
I like the idea of saving trees; after all, the abundance of trees here is the primary reason I moved here from the Midwest, but we must be careful not to grab Band Aids here and there in an effort to regulate growth.
The tree save issue will be considered this week by the board of supervisors. They will also discuss stronger regulations on phosphorous levels in the Swift Creek reservoir. Those who oppose this regulation, including the Chesterfield Chamber of Commerce, contend that it’s another strategy to slow or even stop growth. The proposed Roseland new-urbanism style development may be stopped in its tracks, even if approved by the board, if the overarching phosphorous levels issue is enforced.
Is it the intention of those who are bringing these issues to the table to reduce phosphorous or clear cutting or to stop growth? That’s an important question to ask.
Levels of service for schools would cap the number of students at any particular school at 120 percent of functional capacity. Even school board members caution that growth in school attendance cannot be calculated in such a simplistic manner. A tool in the growth toolbox, or another Band Aid?
Raising planning fees was one budget item this year that non-builder/developer folks jumped on the bandwagon for. Taxpayer relief or antigrowth tool?
In the meantime, the county is about to embark on an countywide comprehensive plan that should address many, if not all, of our growth issues. It should address how to take advantage of our greatest assets in the county and how to manage runaway growth. The new plan, if done properly and as advertised, should clean up much of the ambiguity that exists in our current comprehensive plan. We should be looking at the big picture and how all of the county’s communities fit together and benefit from the strengths that exist in each.
Why, then, are we now wasting our time, and your tax dollars, messing around with stop-gap measures to encumber growth when we have such a great opportunity just over the horizon? Bids for a comprehensive plan study are about to be let.
While the recent little initiatives look good on the surface, the underlying fact is that what we truly need is a comprehensive plan that will address all of our growth related issues.
Do we really want to stop growth or manage it?
The previous board of supervisors adopted a connectivity policy requiring new developments to connect to adjacent neighborhoods whenever possible. One of many tools available in a toolbox for addressing transportation problems. An overall plan for addressing transportation issues was never done. So the connectivity (Band Aid) policy never got traction and is waived by our elected officials almost every time it’s in play.
So why waste our time, effort, and credibility on these little Band Aid initiatives when we have the opportunity to work out the entire growth issue with a new comprehensive plan – a comprehensive plan that could have real teeth and not only manage our growth, but bring real prosperity to Chesterfield.
A hurricane is not a problem if you have a sturdy house, backup power, and enough sense to get in out of the rain. Being prepared and having a good plan will keep you high and dry during this hurricane season and this perfect storm of growth.
mfausz@villagepublishing.com | 751-0421
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