Minutes 03/12/2002 - Laserfiche WebLink

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March 12, 2002 (g) Z-02-03 DOWNTOWN NEIGHBORHOOD - Request of Glenn Yates, representing Ebenezer Baptist Church and New Mount Olivet Baptist Church, to rezone property in the 900 block of County Street from Downtown, D-2, Commercial and Residential Downtown, D-2, Mixed. The Comprehensive Plan recommends commercial development of this property. Motion by Mr. Griffin, and seconded by Mr. Whitehurst, to concur with the recommendation of the Planning Commission that Z-02-03 be approved on first reading, and was adopted by unanimous vote. - Unfinished Business - 02 - 54 - Adoption of an ordinance to repeal Section 7-140 of the Code of the City of Portsmouth related to waiver of fee for work in Urban Enterprise zone and to amend Section 35-216 related to rehabilitated real estate in Urban Enterprise zone. Deferred from the February 26, 2002 City Council meeting. Recommendation: · Adoption of an ordinance to amend the Code of the City of Portsmouth as follows: (a) To repeal Section 7-140 entitled "Waiver of fee for work in Urban Enterprise Zone." · (b) To amend Section 35-216(a) Division 4, pertaining to rehabilitated real estate in Urban Enterprise Zone, by updating the current designated Enterprise Zone census tracts to reflect the 2000 Census and adding the census tracts designated as the Federal Empowerment Zone and Virginia Enterprise Zone in 1999. Purpose and Need: · Section 7-140: The original Enterprise Zone application contained a 10-year sunset clause that expired in 1994. The City of Portsmouth is no longer obligated to offer the fee waivers. As of March 2001, permit fees were no longer being waived in the Enterprise Zone. · Section 35-216(a) Division 4: The included census tracts should reflect the 2000 Census for accuracy and consistency. The Empowerment Zone was not incorporated into the Code upon designation in 1999. Section 35-216(a) reflects an incentive offered in the Empowerment/Enterprise Zone. The City is also in the process of applying for an expansion of the Empowerment Zone to include a portion of Census Tract 2114 containing the proposed Midtown Conservation and Redevelopment Area. It is necessary to show that the current Empowerment Zone has been incorporated into City Code. Financial Impact: · Empowerment and Enterprise Zone incentives make sites such as Victory Crossing more attractive to developers and businesses. The Victory Crossing business park and shopping center components are expected to generate $128.5 million in private investment and over 2,700 jobs. Motion by Mr. Benn, and seconded by Mr. Whitehurst, to adopt the following ordinance, and was adopted by the following vote: "ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTERS 7 AND 35 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA (1988) BY REPEALING SECTION 7-140 AND BY AMENDING SECTION 35-216 THEREOF, PERTAINING TO THE VIRGINIA ENTERPRISE ZONE AND THE FEDERAL EMPOWERMENT ZONE." Ayes: Benn, Griffin, Pitts, Robinett, Whitehurst, Holley Nays: None