Construction has started! Handicap access is closer than ever, the big machines and wood pilings are on the bay and construction has started on the Sandalwood Walkover.   
Thanks for the info Empsy.

The waters were calm on Tuesday as workers prepared 215 of the cylinder piles for new, snug-fitting jackets. The wrapping is lined with wiring and connected to zinc anodes below the water, a method called cathodic protection.
Read entire article at Pilotonline.com.

When they wade into the Lynnhaven Inlet, fishermen feel like they?re walking in the wake of their ancestors. ?People have been fishing there for 400 years, since the first landing,? said Mark Feltner, who heads a group fighting to maintain coastal access for the public.
Read entire Pilot Warrior article.
Virginia Coastal Access Now, or VCAN.

Photo of actual plans for the facility. [Click image for larger view.]

Red line is approximate path of dump trucks. [Click image to enlarge.]

Aerial shot from Google Maps.
[The dump trucks will be sharing the northern parking lot and the only entrance/exit to the entire boat ramp. More pics to follow.]

Above is one image from the proposed plans to turn the Lynnhaven Boat Ramp into a Dredge Spoil Transfer Station too.

The current info available includes:
+ Western Branch of Lynnhaven needs dredged
+ The facility proposed for the Boat Ramp could be permanent or temporary
+ Facility could be in use from 6 months – 2 years – undetermined
+ Barges docking at the facility could be 40-65 feet long
+ Unclear how long barges would block boat channel while unloading
+ Unclear who company would be who would operate barges, dump trucks & facility
+ Dump trucks operating from the facility could be 40-60 on any given day
+ Dump trucks would follow gravel path in above image & share Boat Ramp with other traffic
+ Dump trucks would carry material to an existing facility located near Oceana Blvd
+ Time of year facility would be in use is unclear
+ One lane of the Lesner Bridge would probably be closed for trucking operation as has been done in the past
+  Opinion of various regulatory agencies that need to be involved is unclear

[VBGov.com Official Project Page checked September 25th, 2007 10:56am]
Official Page at VBGov.com for proposed project.
Includes links to:

+ Main Channel Map
+ Transfer Station Map
+ Disposal Area Map
+ Project Status Page for W. B. Lynnhaven River Dredging
+ CIP Project Status

View entire photo here. [1 pg PDF]

As mentioned previously “Indigo Dunes has attracted the attention of Environmental Attorneys, Scientists, Engineers & Planners from around the country who collectively have decades worth of experience”.

Here’s some of the documentation that was presented at the hearing that will undoubtedly be used going forward in this process:

Introduction of SDCC’s Argument [2pg PDF]
SDCC’s Argument [13pg PDF] Note: Several dozen pages of supporting docs to this Argument will be made available.
Dr. Maynard H. Schaus Statement [1pg PDF]
A Wildlife Argument [5pg PDF]

VIMS Report on 06-2601 [9pg PDF]
Planning Department Comments [3pg PDF]

There was significantly more information presented including dozens of pages of supporting resources, verbatim testimony & more that will be made available to the public in the future.

Diamondback Terrapin Nest on Pleasure House Point.

Two raccoons tested positive for rabies yesterday evening. The raccoons attacked two pets, a cat in the Chick?s Beach area and a dog on Wolfsnare Road.  The cat will be placed in isolation for six months because it wasn?t vaccinated for rabies.  ~From Betsy

We apologize for the late notice but as you can see, it was just announced!
Release Date:  Friday, June 15, 2007 11 a.m.

The community is invited to attend a Citizen Information Meeting on Phases II and III of the Shore Drive Improvement Projects (CIP Projects 2-116, 2-117 and 2-200)  on Tuesday, June 19, 4:30 to 7 p.m. at Hermitage Elementary School, 1701 Pleasure House Road.

More at VBGov.com about Meeting.
Public Works Capital Project Detail Sheet.

Public Works Project Manager: Heather Ham
[encode=hmham@vbgov.com?Subject=Shore Drive]Email her[/encode] or phone her at 385-4131 to learn more.

When: June 13, 7pm to 8:30pm
Where: Virginia Beach Central Library Auditorium
What: Disaster Preparedness Primer presented by the American Red Cross.

The program will focus on how to prepare our communities and work in concert with state agencies to support our individual neighborhoods.

Anglers get $5 for calling in a catch, or $20 if they keep the fish on ice for scientists to retrieve.
From CBF.org’s Blog.

Appeal is currently scheduled for Wednesday, July 25, 2007, 9:30AM.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

The Virginia Beach Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area Board will hold a Public Hearing on Monday, June 25, 2007, at 11:00 a.m., in the Council Chambers of the City Hall Building, Municipal Center, Virginia Beach, Virginia, at which time the following applications will be heard:
OLD BUSINESS:

1. SANDLER AT INDIGO BAY LLC – Variance to Sec. 106 of the CBPA Ordinance on
107.12 acres by plat located along MARLIN BAY DR., also known as proposed
project INDIGO DUNES. GPIN 1489-47-2243 DISTRICT 4? BAYSIDE

At VBGov.com.
And there’s more…

No further info is available right now.
This was confirmed by Environmental Engineer Justin Worrell of VMRC.

If you attended the workshop about turning the boat ramp into a dredge material transfer station, the part about “…would also remain available for private neighborhood dredging projects after the City project is finished” was apparently clarified.

From Cookie Ketcham, VBCERT Coordinator:
Hi Everyone!  The Virginia Beach Community Emergency Response Team, in conjunction with the Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries, will be offering a Boater Safety class, open to the public, at the Fire Training Center, 927 So. Birdneck Road, Tuesday, June 25 and Thursday, June 27 from 6:30 pm ? 9:30 pm both nights.

Updated June 4th, 2007 at 8:44am.

VMRC Appeal Meeting Info from the Virginia Regulatory Town Hall website which is sponsored by the Virginia Department of Planning & Budget.

[Note: if you are viewing this over the weekend…we checked on the statement we of course will be checking on the statement “This meeting has been canceled” that is posted there. No worries, we were assured we would be kept in the loop. According to Justin Worrell, the VMRC Rep, the hearing is still currently schedule for June 27th.]

According to SailVirginia2007.com Ships will begin to rendezvous at the official Sail Virginia 2007 anchorage location off East Beach, Ocean View, starting at 10 am on Thursday, June 7. Sooo….seems they might be visible from our beaches starting an hour or more before![?]

Uruguay’s tall ship Capitan Miranda, captured at Lisbon during the 50th Anniversary Tall Ships’ Race. [From Flickr.com] She’s one of the Tall Ships that’s coming.

Thanks for the info Susan & Empsy!

LRNow has a project on next Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, June 4, 5, and 6 from 4:00-6:00 PM. They’re looking for volunteers who would help with transplanting Spartina alterniflora plugs into a wetland restoration area in Crab Creek at the Virginia Beach City Boat Ramp on the west side of the Lesner Bridge at the mouth of the Lynnhaven. 

The city has choices to make, too. Should we change how we evaluate development proposals? Do we need a new approach to stormwater management?
Tuesday, June 19 at 7:15 ? 9 p.m. in the Virginia Beach Convention Center.
Learn more at VBGov.com.

The state commission is tentatively scheduled to hear the Indigo Dunes case on June 27, said Justin Worrell, an environmental engineer for the agency.

Read & comment on article at Pilotonline.com.

Thanks to Mr. Joel Rubin for supplying us with their appeal notice of Wetlands Board recent decision on Indigo Dunes.

According to the letter, it appears their legal team has expanded to include Mr. John W. Daniel II and Mr. John K. Byrum Jr. of Troutman Sanders.