Virginia Beach Planning Commission Informal Session – September 9, 2026
Virginia Beach Planning Commission Informal Session – September 9, 2026
The Virginia Beach Planning Commission held an informal session on September 9, 2026, chaired by John Coston. The commission reviewed 20+ agenda items, including subdivision variances, conditional rezonings, street closures, and conditional use permits. Staff recommendations and commissioner comments guided the assignment of items to the consent calendar or formal hearing. A cannabis zoning update and a proposal to change speaker order were also discussed. Key outcomes include deferrals, consent designations, and identification of items for formal hearing.
Consent Calendar
- Items 2 & 3 (Subdivision variance and conditional rezoning for three lots on Seaboard Road): Staff recommended approval; placed on consent.
- Item 4 (Street closure of 7.5-foot alley portion at 624 Surfside Avenue): Staff recommended approval; placed on consent.
- Item 5 (Street closure of 50x15-foot alley portion between 512 Vanderbilt Avenue and 613 South Atlantic Avenue): Staff recommended approval; placed on consent.
- Item 10 (Modification of conditions for a 20,000-square-foot field house at Catholic High School): Staff recommended approval; placed on consent.
- Item 15 (Conditional use permit for a bulk storage yard on Damneck Road): Staff recommended approval; placed on consent.
- Item 16 (Conditional use permit for an indoor recreational facility – 24/7 gym): Staff recommended approval; placed on consent.
- Item 19 (Conditional use permit for an indoor recreational facility – Iron Asylum gym): Staff recommended approval; placed on consent.
- Three sets of minutes were also added to the consent agenda.
Public Comments & Testimony
(No public testimony was taken during this informal session. However, the following items have registered speakers who will be heard at the formal hearing:)
- Item 1 (Subdivision variance for lots off Dolly Road and Gun Branch Road): Two speakers signed up.
- Items 8 & 9 (Modification of proffers and CUP for bulk storage yard on Bells Road): Three speakers signed up in opposition.
- Item 17 (CUP for mini warehouse with retail on Laskin Road): One speaker signed up; staff also received 19 letters of opposition and a petition with 1,040 signatures.
- Item 18 (CUP for bar/nightclub at existing nonconforming use): One speaker signed up in opposition.
- Items 21-26 (CUP for short-term rental at 1909 Cypress Avenue): Commissioner Plumley expressed opposition, necessitating a formal hearing.
Discussion Items
- Item 1 – Subdivision Variance for Lots off Dolly Road and Gun Branch Road: Staff found the variance acceptable to correct a historical improper subdivision. The applicant requested removal of condition 5 (new ingress/egress easement), but staff proposed a plat note instead. Commissioner Cromwell questioned lot acreage discrepancies and ownership of the private easement. Commissioner Marsh confirmed fire access would be addressed later. Attorney for the applicant abstained from voting. The item will be heard formally.
- Items 8 & 9 – Bulk Storage Yard on Bells Road: Staff recommended approval, noting compatibility with industrial uses and Navy restrictive easement. Commissioner Plumley requested a 30-day deferral because a key community leader from Historic CTEC could not attend. Discussion included a potential time limit tied to Navy approval. Staff noted the applicant had not responded to that suggestion. Deferred.
- Item 11 – Conditional Rezoning for 209 Multifamily Units on Bonnie Road: Staff supported the proposal, noting density of 21.5 units per acre, a 10-foot-1-inch height deviation (to 55 feet 1 inch), and compliance with SGA plans. Commissioner Camp strongly objected to the encroachment on the Thayer Creek Greenway, stating that parks and open spaces should not be reduced for private development. He indicated he would vote against it. Other commissioners noted the applicant worked with VDOT and staff to minimize the impact. The item will be heard formally.
- Item 17 – Mini Warehouse with Ground Floor Retail on Laskin Road: Staff recommended denial, finding the primary self-storage use inconsistent with the resort area SGA’s vision for an active, pedestrian-oriented corridor. The applicant submitted a revised plan after staff analysis, increasing retail from 6,000 to 8,000 square feet and adding pedestrian/bike amenities. Commissioners discussed market demand, building flexibility, and the timing of the revision. Staff confirmed parking was still adequate under the revised plan. The item will be heard formally.
- Item 18 – Bar/Nightclub CUP for Nonconforming Use: Staff recommended approval to bring the existing use into compliance after a 1,000-square-foot expansion without permits. Commissioner Plumley questioned the lack of building permits and inspections. The item will be heard formally.
- Items 21-26 – Short-Term Rental at 1909 Cypress Avenue: Staff recommended approval for six apartment-style short-term rental units on the top floor of a building with ground-floor office. The site is currently vacant. Commissioner Plumley opposed, calling it “dorm-like” and noted scant plans. Commissioner March also expressed concern about evaluating without sufficient details. The item will be heard formally.
- Cannabis Zoning Update: Hannah Sabo, Zoning Administrator, briefed the commission on draft zoning regulations for cannabis uses, including cultivation, processing, retail, transportation, delivery, and testing. Proposed regulations include by-right use in certain districts, odor mitigation, security plans, and conditional use permits for retail and testing. A public survey will be released to gather feedback on hours of operation and separation distances. Commissioners raised questions about state limits, federal legality, and enforcement. The task force includes police and school representatives. Next steps include adoption prior to February 1, 2027.
- New Business – Speaker Order: Commissioner Plumley moved to change the order of public speakers (calling them in the order they signed up rather than all proponents then opponents). Commissioner Camp seconded to allow discussion. Commissioner March argued the two issues (speaker order and maintaining order) are tied and should be addressed together at the upcoming retreat. The motion was deferred to the retreat without a vote.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Agenda Set: Items 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 15, 16, 19 (and three sets of minutes) will be voted on as a block at the formal hearing.
- Deferrals: Item 7 (Fountain Drive street closure) deferred 30 days at applicant’s request. Items 8 & 9 (Bells Road bulk storage) deferred 30 days per Commissioner Plumley.
- Items for Formal Hearing: Items 1, 8, 9, 11, 17, 18, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, and 26 will be heard individually.
- Conflict of Interest: Commissioner Plumley abstained from Item 1 due to his firm’s representation of the applicant.
- Speaker Order Discussion: Deferred to the scheduled retreat for a comprehensive discussion on meeting procedures and public decorum.
Meeting Transcript
Good morning, everyone, and thank you, planning commissioners and staff for your participation today. My name is John Coston, and I'm the chair of the Virginia Beach Planning Commission. Welcome to the September 9th informed session of the Virginia Meet Planning Commission. All this meeting to order. Just a couple quick things. We're working on that. So if we could get an update on that to make sure, you know, we plan accordingly. Um I'd like that. Then a reminder, I know we're a little early, but your November meeting is on the second Thursday, not the second Wednesday due to Veterans Day. So just gonna I'll remind you again next month. Um, and then the other thing, and Tori can speak to it a little bit more, but I wanted to touch on you've got two um proposed versions of amendments to your policies and procedures. Um as staff had discussed, and I think we've discussed it informally here, um, but that I asked Tori to include for your consideration is that when someone signs up to represent a group, it's somewhat self-explanatory when you're representing an HOA or some organization. Um, but I had some clarifying language proposed to say if you're representing a group of people, you need to um specifically identify what individuals you are representing. That way we make sure that that person then doesn't sign up to speak as well. I think we had that come up at one meeting, so that was just something for your consideration. Well, since I'm the author of the other version, I don't object to what you're saying. So can we simplify our proceedings by dispensing with the other one? And just working with the one that you are suggesting. Um Commissioner Camp had also quoted additional language for consideration, so I'm gonna have those uh printed out for you as well for you to see with the the document that you're considering. Is that okay? So the one Caitlin, of these two, one of them is like smaller font. Are we working from the bigger font one? Is that yours? Yes. Okay, so we can talk H three, the language for clarifying that. So we can discard the one that has the gray bar on the right side. All right, thank you. While we're waiting, if you wanted that update, uh Commissioner Anderson and myself uh had not had an opportunity to find a time that would rework for both of us to meet. So we're planning on meeting after he gets back from his vacation. Reason why he's not here. So we can have an update on that, but we did decide that it should only be an hour. Sure. Commissioner Anderson retreat. Oh yeah, just Commissioner Anderson just sent me a text saying he's thinking of us, but he's walking in historic Prague at the moment. What a guy. Just one of the brainwork. Okay, we're ready to move on. All right now. Item one. This was the request for a subdivision variance in section 4.4B and D of the subdivision regulations to allow the creation of two lots that are deficient in lot width, street line frontage, and lack of direct access to a public street. The subject properties are zone AG1 and AG2 and have access to existing private ingress egress easements along Dolly Road and Gun Branch Road. Although the properties are shown on the recorded plats, the plats were not signed by the Princess Anne County planning director prior to recordation, um, as was was required at that time. Therefore, the properties are considered to be improperly subdivided by D. The applicant is proposing to vacate the interior lot lines and create two new lots identified as lot X-1 and lot A-1 in order to legally establish the lots for future sale. Both proposed lots exceed the minimum one-acre lot area requirement. However, neither meets the required 150-foot width or 120-foot street line frontage. Additionally, neither lot has direct access to a public sheet street, therefore, a subdivision variance is required. Egress easement, which is along Dolly Road, while the which the applicant intends also to increase by 10 feet. The proposed lots will be required to comply with all other requirements of the zoning ordinance and the subdivision regulations. Any future residential development will also be subject to the AG1 and AG2 requirements, including the one-acre minimum lot area and the density limitations.
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