Developer Applies to Convert Old School to Apartments

By DORIE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave

July 9, 2012

The Town of Cape Charles has made public an application by Echelon Resources, Inc., for a Conditional Use Permit to, according to Town Planner Tom Bonadeo, “rehabilitate the Old School Area and convert it to 17 residential apartment units and surrounding grounds.”

The “surrounding grounds” include the basketball court and the parking area currently used by persons accessing the park and adjoining children’s playground.

If the Echelon Resources request is approved, there will no longer be any public parking for Central Park other than on the street.

The current basketball court will become a parking lot, but the developer has made clear that the parking lot will be off-limits to the public.

On March 29, Echelon Resources President Edwin Gaskin wrote in an email to Town Manager Heather Arcos and Assistant Town Manager Bob Panek: “What about the Town altering the entrance to the kiddie park to deny access into our parking lot.” (The email was obtained through the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.)

“What about the Town altering the entrance to the kiddie park to deny access into our parking lot.”
– Developer Edwin Gaskin’s email to Town officials

The Town Planning Commission will review the Conditional Use Permit at its July 10 meeting (6 p.m. at Town Hall).

A local resident familiar with the Town’s permitting process has noted several deficiencies in the Conditional Use Permit application:

• Under “Land Owner’s Signature” appears the signature of Edwin Gaskin “on behalf of Echelon Resources, Inc.” But although Mayor Dora Sullivan has signed a contract for the sale of the school and surrounding property, no closing has occurred, and the Town remains the owner of the property.
•  The application has a checked box indicating that attached is a “disclosure statement signed and notarized verifying ownership.” No such statement is attached to the application.
• The application states that a $300 application fee has been paid by the applicant. But no copy of a check is attached, which is another requirement of the application.
• Also required is that “names and addresses of adjacent property owners” must be supplied. A list of 27 property owners is attached, but most of them are not adjacent to the property. For example, four of the named property owners have Tazewell Avenue addresses, which are not even shown on the plat accompanying the application. The school and public areas to be sold are bounded by the park, including the tennis court, and by Madison Avenue and Plum Street. Only two of the “adjacent property owners” listed show an address on Madison Avenue or Plum Street. (Several of the property owners listed have only out-of-area mailing addresses, so it is not known if they are also adjacent owners.)

According to the Planning Commission Agenda, the only decision for July 10 is whether to schedule a Public Hearing July 26 for the rezoning of the property and for a conditional use permit.

As reported by the Cape Charles Wave on June 29, this will be the seventh time the public has been asked to provide comment on the sale, rezoning, and conditional use of the former school building. The hearings were:

• February 9 – Town Council Public Hearing
• March 10 – Town Council Public Information Meeting
• April 3 – Planning Commission Public Hearing
• May 10 – Town Council Public Hearing
• June 5 – Town Council and Planning Commission Public Hearings
• June 14 – Public Hearing
• July 26 – Town Council and Planning Commission Public Hearings

The June 5 Town Council and Planning Commission Public Hearings were held in the Fire Hall to accommodate the large public attendance.  Some 16 speakers voiced opposition to selling the school and converting it to apartments.

It is not known why the Town intends to schedule further public hearings on the same issue.

A resolution adopted June 28 by Town Council refers to the Planning Commission the prospective rezoning of the school and surrounding property. The resolution makes no mention that the Town already applied to the Planning Commission for rezoning and conditional use, that several public hearings have already been held, and that the Planning Commission voted June 5 “to table the decision regarding the Conditional Use Permit and Rezoning of the subject parcel to give the Commissioners time to become better informed regarding the issues and to ensure the proper procedures had been followed.”

The Town Council resolution asks the Planning Commission to “consider whether, in the event the rezoning is approved by the Town Council, a Conditional Use Permit should be granted for the Old School Rehabilitation as an Adaptive Reuse and make a recommendation in connection therewith.”

Because the property currently is zoned Open Space, it is protected from any conditional use, and so no application for other use would normally be expected to be considered until the property is rezoned. The Town Council’s resolution to the Planning Commission appears to be an effort to leapfrog the rezoning requirement, and obtain from the Planning Commission a hypothetical decision on what they would do if the property is rezoned. This may be intended as a reassurance to the developer, who has up to six months to decide whether to actually buy the property for $10 and proceed with the redevelopment.

Meanwhile, a third member of the Planning Commission has tendered his resignation. The resignation of Planning Commission Chairman Bruce Brinkley brings to three the vacancies on the seven-member panel. Six members are appointed at large, and the seventh is always a Town Council member (currently Joan Natali). The three remaining appointed members of the Planning Commission are Dennis McCoy, Malcolm Hayward, and Mike Strub.

Regardless of what the Planning Commission ultimately recommends regarding rezoning and conditional use of the school and park property, Town Council makes the final decision, and is not bound by the Planning Commission.

As of today, two Conditional Use applications have been filed — the first in the name of the Town, and the second in the name of the prospective owner (Echelon Resources). Neither can be approved until the property is first rezoned.

The Cape Charles Wave will report further developments following the July 10 Planning Commission meeting.