Discussion of Shore Drive issues:

4. Unfinished Business
o Shore Drive Road Improvement Updates –

Bikeways and Trails Advisory Committee
Traffic Engineering conducted a study and received a report indicating a high
level of pedestrian/motorist accidents along Shore Drive and the Pacific Avenue
area. They applied for, and received a VDOT grant that will be utilized to install
flashing pedestrian crossing signs. The signs will make motorists aware of the
high level of pedestrian and cyclist activity when approaching the Oceanfront
area. Staff distributed a concept map of the project and sign locations. This
project should be completed within the next six months.
Bruce Drees asked if lowering the speed limit along Shore Drive has ever been
considered. Staff stated that Jason Cosby, Director of Public Works is forming a
committee that will investigate this issue. Several factors are taken into
consideration, staff discussed the components and process for determining road
speed limits.
Staff discussed Phase II, Phase III and Phase IV of Shore Drive improvements
(clarifying that the “Phase #’s” are not necessarily the order that the phases will
be designed and constructed.)
Phase II (Partial) – Shore Drive corridor from South Oliver
Drive/Waterspoint Place to Treasure Island Drive. It will also include
improvements along Shore Drive at the Northampton Boulevard
interchange and to the intersections at Pleasure House Road and
Greenwell Road. The plans are at 35% design and do not include bikes
lanes, however this is early in the design phase. The $10 million project
does not have funding allocated for construction until FY 2013-14.
Phase III (Partial) – Shore Drive corridor from the east side of Lesner
Bridge to Great Neck Road. It includes improvements to the intersections
at Vista Circle/Page Avenue, West Great Neck Road, North Great Neck
Road and Starfish Road. This section will include the flashing pedestrian
signs. The funds allocated for this project include design and site
acquisition. The project is at the 35% design. Construction funding is
proposed to be allocated FY 2013-14.
Phase IV – Shore Drive corridor from Marlin Bay Drive/Sandy Oaks Drive
to the west end of Lesner Bridge. It will include improvements at the East
Stratford Road intersection. This phase is fully funded and design will
start after July 1, 2009 and will be coordinated with the Lesner Bridge
project.
The committee requested staff to develop correspondence to Jason
Cosby requesting on-road bike facilities as applicable when Public Works
develops the scope of work for these projects. The correspondence will
include all three phases and will be submitted to PW prior to July 1. Staff
encouraged committee members to be involved and continue to be active
advocates when budget public hearings are conducted.
Motion: Ned Kuhns made the motion to request that PW consider a
variety of possible on-road bike lane facilities in Shore Drive Road
Corridor right-of-way that is in the best interest of the cyclist and
pedestrians when developing the scope of work/design for this project.
Ross Vierra 2nd the motion; all members in favor.

BTAC June 8 2009 meeting minutes[ 4pg PDF]

A piece of concrete fell from the bridge this morning, prompting the city to shut it down for about an hour while traffic engineering checked to “ensure that the bridge is safe,” said Officer Margie Long, a spokeswoman for the police department. It reopened at about 12:15 p.m.
Read more at Pilotonline.com.

From Cape Story’s neighborhood watch:

Dog found on Beech St between Poincianna and Bike Path.  White with black spots on ears, possibly American Bull Dog mix, spayed female and wearing a red collar.

Email Tim from Contact page if she’s yours.

In the past month, Virginia Beach officials have reduced the scope of the Cape Henry beaches replenishment project by a fifth in order to get approval.
Read & comment on article at Pilotonline.com.

The first public forum will be from 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Princess Anne High School, 4400 Virginia Beach Blvd.

The second one will be from 7 to 8 p.m. June 25 at Great Neck Recreation Center, 2521 Shorehaven Drive.

The third is scheduled from 7 to 8 p.m. July 1 at Bayside Recreation Center, 4500 First Court Road.

For more information, call the city at (757) 385-4621, or the corps at (757) 201-7258.
More at Pilotonline.com.

If you haven’t attended, or helped out…. you gotta!

From Cape Story:

Cape Story’s 46th Annual 4th of July Parade/Brunch & Fireworks!!!
Saturday July 4th
(Rain Date Sunday July 5th)
Parade 10am – Noon @ Cape Story Neighborhood & Park
Fireworks – 9:20pm @ Cape Story Beach

This year’s parade and brunch will take place from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm (noon) on Saturday July 4th.  The parade route will start on Beech at the bike path, proceed down Beech to Poinciana, follow Poinciana to Bayberry, turn left on Bayberry and end in the neighborhood park. All bike riders, floats and marchers need to line up for the parade between 9:30am – 9:45am.  Please be careful spilling out onto Shore Drive.  If you have to, line your float up in Bloom’s parking lot and we will work you into the parade as it starts moving.

This year’s parade theme, determined by votes at the Spring Fling, is “The American Revolution”.  Awards will be given for Most Original, Most Patriotic and Best Theme. Bribing the judges is greatly encouraged!  The parade will be followed by a brunch in the park. There will also be biscuits, doughnuts, fruit and patriotic tunes performed by the “Acoustaholics”.  As she has done in years past, an ice cream truck will also be provided courtesy of LYNN HUME, RE/MAX Allegiance.

The annual fireworks show will once again be presented by Zambelli Fireworks Internationale. The display will consist of over 700 shells and will be launched around 9:20 pm on Saturday July 4th from the beach at First Landing State park. The rain date will be Sunday July 5th at the same time. Please pass the word that personal fireworks are prohibited.

Volunteers are still needed for all of the 4th of July events.
” Brunch set-up, Brunch Clean-up, Brunch servers – Please Arrive at the park at 9:45am to help.
” Fireworks set-up and clean-up – Trucks and movers are asked to arrive at First Landing at 1:00pm.
” Trucks and movers are desperately needed for the fireworks.  Last year we had a great group of people to support this event and it ran very smoothly.  Let’s do it again this year.  It is only about an hour worth of time, so please help.  Please contact Todd Solomon at 667-8533 or todd@sdcc.info

FIRE WORKS on the BAY sponsored by CAPE STORY And Area Neighbors and Civic associations and Friends and Businesses –  and interested parties

Dear Shore Drive Neighbors,
First off, I want to give a huge THANK YOU to everyone that donated to last years show. The support of our community never ceases to amaze me. The plea for additional funds was heard by many residents and allowed our budget to get back on track. As a result, this year’s show will be bigger and better and promises to take your mind off the nation’s economic troubles. Well, at least for the weekend.

For many years, Shore Drive residents, civic leagues and merchants alike have enjoyed this great local tradition. This year’s show will be launched from the same beach location (northwest corner of
First Landing State Park). The show will take place the evening of July 4th at approximately 9:20pm with a rain date of July 5th.
The cost for this year’s entire event including fireworks, security, mailing and permits will amount to $13,000. Unlike City sponsored shows, our “Fireworks on the Bay” display is completely funded by
the local community (residents, civic leagues, merchants). Shore Drive Locals have provided much appreciated support in years past. So once again, Cape Story by the Sea Civic Association is reaching out to all of our neighbors for any financial support possible.
As always, there will be no Cape Story sponsored publicity for this event except a “Thank you” advertisement placed in the Beacon after the event.
Volunteers for an hour of set-up/clean-up and volunteers with trucks are desperately needed. If you would like to help or have additional comments, I can be reached at 667-8533, todd@sdcc.info or the
below address. Comments (good and bad) are encouraged.
Thank you for taking the time to consider this request and for contributing to a celebration that is enjoyed by so many locals.

Contributions should be made payable to “CSBTS” or “Cape Story by the Sea Civic Association” and mailed to “Fireworks on the Bay”, P.O. Box 700, Virginia Beach, VA 23451.

Thanks for your generosity,
Todd R. Solomon
Co-Event Chairman for Fireworks on the Bay.
Warning: State regulations prohibit launching personal fireworks.

Cape Story by the Sea CIVIC ASSOCIATION

Reminder – Use of personal fireworks is prohibited without a permit.
Recently you may have received information in a donation letter or civic league newsletter for the Fireworks on the Bay.  On behalf of the City’s Fire Marshall, please note the following clarification regarding the use of personal fireworks.  “Storage, handling, use of fireworks without a permit from the Fire Marshal’s Office is a violation of City ordinance Sec_12-43_2_(2).pdf and is a Class 1 Misdemeanor. Class 1 Misdemeanors are punishable by up to a $2500 fine and/or 12 months in jail.”

Drawing of location of new pound nets.

Click on image to enlarge.

Drawing originally posted here.

From Cape Story neighborhood watch email, below is text from Police document:

6/12/09                                                                     2009-093

VIRGINIA BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT

DOES NOT ENDORSE ANY ALARM COMPANY

Several citizens have called the police department to report security alarm company sales people going door to door attempting to sell home security systems claiming they are working in conjunction with the City of Virginia Beach or the Police Department’s alarm unit. Both of these statements are false. The police department does not endorse any alarm product or company. Citizens confronted by such a claim are asked to report that alarm company to the Virginia Beach non-emergency Communications Center at 385-5000. 

At least two home security alarm companies are going door to door claiming that the City is paying for the installation of the alarms.  Several citizens reported the salesmen were wearing badges on chains around their necks leading potential customers to believe that they are police officers. Lawful police officers will never sell products or pick up money from a citizens home.

When considering alarm systems consult with several reputable home security system providers and make sure they are Department of Criminal Justice Services licensed in Virginia at [this link] . You may also want to check the BBB for any complaints about alarm providers.

MPO Jimmy Barnes
Public Relations/Spokesperson
Virginia Beach Police Department
Jfbarnes@vbgov.com

[Editor’s note: Formatting including Seal not being visible is lost in posting of text.]

Link to Pilotonline.com article. [added 6.13.09 @ 3:39pm]

According to report:

Incident occurred May 27th at 21:53Hrs.

[…] piloting a USCG 25ft response boat collided with the poles of the pound net adjacent to Lynnhaven inlet.  They turned west out of the channel in good water at 5-10 knots.  Conditions were dense fog.  After the collision, the vessel was taken back to […] and placed on the trailer for inspection.  There were no injuries or serious damage to the vessel to report.

[…] conducted an investigation to confirm that the structure was properly permitted and constructed by a licensed contractor.  Also inquired as to why no notice was given to the Coast Guard so they could serve notice to mariners about the new obstructions.  He was unable to confirm any efforts by the Waterways Division to have the poles removed as a hazard to navigation.

Previous post.

City staff had originally recommended the Lynnhaven Boat Ramp, but nearby residents and boaters were opposed to that site because of concern over truck traffic.

…and concern over an incredible amount of safety conflicts including barge strike on the Lesner Bridge, enormous safety conflicts at the LBR&BF, in the water, etc.

Thank you City Council!

Read & comment at Pilotonline.com.

The following was recently posted at Tidal Fish, a well known, and heavily used website, & web forum  for the fishing & boating community.

Word is we’ve had our first incident with these nets. The incident that occurred was not with some dumb drunk idiot recreational boater but with a USGC 25’ boat. Apparently the USCG boat was running at night and ran smack into the poles of one of these nets. There was damage to the boat but I don’t know if anyone was hurt. The word I heard is that the poles didn’t show up on their radar. I heard the coasties were very upset about this and were making phone calls to find out who allowed these nets to placed in such a highly traveled area.

I hope nobody was hurt in this incident but am glad to see that the first incident occurred with professional boaters. This goes to show just how dangerous these nets really are. I’m sure that if these nets are allowed to remain after this incident that something will be done because of this. At the very least I would expect that they will be required to have lights placed on them.

I’ll say it again, if these nets are left as is someone is going to die.”

… and they have sent up there concerns to higher authority for Federal interdiction to remove “Hazard to Navigation”. [Their] approach is that Federal Authority in regards to “Hazards to navigation” [supersedes] state jurisdiction, therefore obstructions can be ordered removed by feds. One big factor for USCG authority is the proximity of nets to “Major” shipping channel.

[Note: this incident was confirmed to be accurate before posting.]

Monday June 15th $5 donation to support the Ocean Park Volunteer Fire & Rescue Sailors Meet and Greet

More at CapeStory.org.

Good morning everyone,

      The 1st Platoon of the 241st Seaport Operations Company is scheduled to return to Fort Story Monday around 9 a.m. from its 15-month deployment to Iraq. The ceremony is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. at the Forty Story Gym, and I hope you and your organizations will be able to attend. The buses should be coming down Shore Drive sometime between 9 and 9:30 a.m.

      Thank you for showing your support for our troops by putting up the “Welcome Home” signs and American flags. It adds a special touch to these Soldiers’ long- anticipated homecoming.

      If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Thank you for all you do for Fort Story, our troops and their families.

Best,
Monica

Monica Miller Rodgers
Fort Eustis Command Information Officer/Fort Story Public Affairs
757-878-4920 Fort Eustis Office
757-878-4928 Fort Eustis Fax
757-422-7101 Ext. 225 Fort Story Office
757-422-7706 Fort Story Fax
monica.millerrodgers@us.army.mil
Please tell us how we are doing!

Integral to the success and vitality of any city are the homes and neighborhoods in which its citizens live. Vibrant neighborhoods with well-maintained homes are connected to good jobs, good schools, and lead to a high quality of life.

Link at VBGov.com.

SDCC’s meeting this month will feature a presentation by Staci Martin, District Program Specialist for Virginia State Parks headquartered out of First Landing.  She manages visitor experience—visitor experience is education programs, signage, information kiosks, public relations—anything that would enhance someone’s experience at the parks.  She’s been with the parks for five years. View flier. [1pg PDF]

She will be giving us some special inside information about what a treasure we have in First Landing State Park (known to long-time residents as Seashore State Park.) 

For a preview, you could visit this site but it won’t give you the full picture only an insider knows.  Please, won’t you join us at 7:30 p.m., Monday, June 29, 2009, at the Ocean Park Volunteer Fire & Rescue Station.

No one’s been hit, but the City Council figured it was a matter of time. And there’s no interest in beefing up the enforcement for jaywalking, because the city wants Town Center to be pedestrian-friendly.
Read entire article at Pilotonline.com.

From Cape Story Neighborhood Watch:

“Elora was returned to us this afternoon. Thanks so much everyone!
Cherrie”

From Cape Story Neighborhood Watch:

I am missing my female long haired kitty.  She’s about three years old, 6 pounds, black with a white chest. She’s very shy but answers to “Elora” (as much as any cat answers to their name). She was last seen on Friday night at our home on Hatton Street.  My five year-old granddaughter is very worried as this is more her cat than mine.

If anyone sees her, please call me!

Cherrie H.
412-4025

Please see that attached Exhibit A showing the approximate locations for the proposed pedestrian crossing warning signs with solar powered flashing lights.

Previously at SDCC.info.