Chesapeake Planning Commission Pre-Meeting and Public Hearing: April 8, 2026
Chesapeake Planning Commission Pre-Meeting and Public Hearing: April 8, 2026
On April 8, 2026, the Chesapeake Planning Commission held a pre-meeting at 11:00 AM and a subsequent public hearing at 7:00 PM. The meeting included agenda organization, a continuance request for a data center text amendment, consent agenda approval, a presentation on comprehensive plan updates and 2232 review processes, and adoption of bylaw changes.
Consent Calendar
- Item 1: Bainbridge Boulevard Infill LOTS – Placed on consent after staff confirmed the application includes turnaround space to avoid backing onto Bainbridge Boulevard. No updates from staff. (Speaker John Harbin indicated he was available for questions only.)
- Item 2: Beneath Crawl Space Service – Placed on consent with no updates or public comment. (Speaker Mark Brown indicated he was available for questions only.)
- Both items were approved unanimously as part of the consent agenda motion (7-0).
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public testimony was given during the public hearing. Two individuals (John Harbin and Mark Brown) indicated they were available for questions only on consent items but did not speak.
Discussion Items
- Agenda Overview and Placement (Pre-meeting): The commission reviewed three applications. One application (PLN-TXT-2026-001 regarding data centers) was placed on the continuance/withdrawal portion per staff request. The remaining two items were placed on the consent agenda.
- Comprehensive Plan and 2232 Review Presentation (Pre-meeting): Planner Enzo Lundy presented updates on the Chesapeake 2045 Comprehensive Plan, including new web pages, a dashboard for implementation tracking, the Deep Creek Area Plan (presented to City Council on March 17, 2026; traffic analysis to be provided, adoption anticipated May 19, 2026), and the Western Branch Area Plan (consultant contract execution within a week, kickoff within a month, completion in 16–18 months). He explained 2232 reviews per Virginia Code Section 15.2-2232, where the planning commission determines if unmapped public improvements conform to the comprehensive plan, and the annual Capital Improvement Program (CIP) review process.
- Bylaw Discussion and Vote (Pre-meeting): Two proposed bylaw changes were discussed: (1) In the event of a tie vote, a commissioner must make a motion on whether to send the item to City Council or retain it at the commission. (2) Speaker time limits were standardized to three minutes across all agenda items (previously varied by item type). A motion to approve the previously circulated bylaw changes was made by Vice Chair Squelia, seconded by Secretary Malone. The motion passed 7-0, and the changes took effect immediately.
- Data Centers Text Amendment Continuance: Application PLN-TXT-2026-001 – a text amendment to regulate where data centers can be located within the city. Staff requested a continuance indefinitely to refine control over data center placement. The motion to continue passed 7-0.
Key Outcomes
- Continuance: PLN-TXT-2026-001 (Data Centers) continued indefinitely (7-0).
- Consent Agenda Approved: Items 1 and 2 approved unanimously (7-0).
- Bylaw Changes Approved: Tie vote procedure and uniform three-minute speaker time limit adopted (7-0).
- Minutes Approved: Minutes of the March 11, 2026 public hearing approved by unanimous consent.
- Meeting Cancellation: The April 22, 2026 meeting was canceled due to no business (unanimous consent).
- Adjournment: The pre-meeting adjourned at 6:13 PM; the public hearing adjourned at 7:08 PM.
Meeting Transcript
The Planning Commission pre-meeting for April 8th, 2026 is now in session. Welcome to our pre-meeting. Thank you for taking part in the business of our city. First order of business is the agenda overview discussion. We have a total of three applications, of which one application is for continuance or withdrawal. Mr. Boswick, would you please provide the commission with an overview of the application? Good evening, Mr. Chairman and Commissioners. Yes, we have one application that's requesting a continuance, PLN-TXT-2026-001 regarding data centers. And as I can just make a statement when we talk about this, this is the one that we're coming in with data centers, correct? Um just so as we move forward with this, understand that there are districts now that currently data centers can go into. Really, this text amendment is looking to take some control of where they can go and make sure that that it'll be a proper use within the city. So as we move forward, just keep that in mind. Correct? Correct. Correct. All right. Uh with that being said, do any commissioners have any comments or questions regarding this item? And without any objection, the item will be placed on the continuance withdrawal portion of the agenda. Next, we'll review the remaining items and determine placement on either the consent or regular agenda. The first item is item number one, Bainbridge Boulevard Infill LOTS. Ms. Ott, do you have any updates regarding this application? No updates. However, we may get one phone call from an adjacent property owner. Just uh having some questions regarding the application. Uh do any commissioners have any conflicts with this application? Do any commissioners have any questions for staff? And I'll just have one question just uh as we go through this. Um I know we're talking Bainbridge. We talked about how far uh in some past applications the distance was from the right-of-way to the road, and um I do know that looking through it, there were share driveways, but there is one parcel that does not. However, I am correct. Uh the difference with this one versus the other uh the one we had a month or two ago was that this actually has turnaround space in the back. Is that correct? Yes, this application will allow the residents to turn around and go forward onto Bainbridge Boulevard instead of backing out onto it. Yeah. Okay. All right. Um is there any other questions or any discussion? Here and none, is there any objection of placing this item on the consent agenda? All right, then we will place item number one on consent. The next item is item number two, beneath crawl space service. Ms. Ott, do you have any updates regarding this item? Uh this one has no updates and no public comment. Do any commissioners have any conflicts with this application? Do any commissioners have any questions for staff? Is there any discussion? Here, none, is there any objection of placing this item on the consent agenda?
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