VBTES Public Involvement
The overall public involvement plan includes:
- Presentations to all interested community and business organizations
- Electronic newsletters to highlight project milestones
- The use of Twitter, Facebook and other social media when there are new developments
- Stakeholder interviews
In addition, the public will have several opportunities to comment when the study process resumes. While the study is on hold, however, the public is encouraged to send comments via e–mail or by mail at 3400 Victoria Blvd., Hampton, VA 23661.
Previous Public Meetings
A public meeting was held on Wednesday, June 30, 2010 at the Westin Virginia Beach Town Center. Click the link below for more information.
- Public Meeting Power Point (pdf 5.2MB)
- Public comments received from June 30, 2010 meeting (pdf 54.2MB)
- Responses to Questions-Comments June 2010 Public Meeting
- Addendum to Comments Received
Public meetings were held on September 9th at Princess Anne High School and September 10th at the Virginia Beach Convention Center. Click on the links below for more information.
- Presentation given at both meetings
- Boards that were on display for public comment
- All public comments received from both meetings via comment forms and webpage
- September 9th and 10th, 2009 Public Meeting Questions and Answers | 11-25-2009
- Comments received at Public Meeting(2) – September 2009
- Comments received at Public Meeting(2) – September 2009
- Click here to view photos from this meeting
Station Area Workshops
Hampton Roads Transit and the City of Virginia Beach hosted two station area workshops to obtain public comment on station locations along the right of way. Residents were given an update on the study since the last public meetings in September 2009 and information on how stations could work within the residential and business communities.
After a brief presentation, attendees were invited to talk among themselves about the areas where they live. Several tables were set up with maps showing potential station sites and demographics from each of these areas.
- Agenda
- Power point presentation
- Maps
- December 2nd meeting notes
- December 9th meeting notes
- Public comments from Station Area Workshops December 2 and December 9, 2009
- Station Area Workshop Questions/Answers – March 2010
- Click here to view photos from this meeting
Study Committees
Study committees were established to gather community input, technical experts, and other interested parties and to help guide the study process.
Community Advisory Committee (CAC) Purpose
The purpose of the committee is to advise HRT, the City of Virginia Beach, and the consultant team on issues and potential impacts related to the alternatives under consideration within the study corridor. The CAC is important to the process because its members provide unique input that combines on-going, detailed project knowledge with the perspectives of community residents and business owners. The members also serve as important liaisons to their communities through neighborhood, civic and business groups and informal networks of friends, coworkers and neighbors.
CAC Membership
The Community Advisory Committee is comprised of representatives from organizations that represent neighborhoods, civic leagues, places of worship, and representatives of businesses that are within the project corridor. The project corridor is defined as ¼ mile on either side of the Norfolk Southern Railroad Right of Way. Beyond that point, the project corridor is generally bounded by Birdneck Road, Norfolk Avenue, Pacific Avenue, and 22nd Street. The members of the CAC have been selected by Hampton Roads Transit in collaboration with the City of Virginia Beach.
CAC Roles and Responsibilities
The CAC meetings will complement the broader public outreach activities. The CAC is not a budget or policy setting committee but will provide a constructive neighborhood-level forum on specific impacts and mitigation strategies. The CAC input will help to identify physical characteristics, access deficiencies and an understanding of how the construction and operation of a fixed guideway system may impact the residential neighborhoods, businesses and property owners along the study corridor. Evaluation of financial strategies will not be addressed by the CAC.
All CAC meetings will be open to the public and the meeting schedule will resume on the project website when the study begins anew. Members will participate meetings during the study period and review project materials such as reports or documents and provide constructive feedback to project staff.
Here is information from the CAC Meeting held on June 24, 2010:
Here is information from the CAC Meeting held on October 28, 2009:
- CAC Meeting #1- October 28, 2009
- CAC Meeting #1 Summary
- CAC Meeting #1 Breakout Groups Notes
- CAC Meeting #1 Presentation
- CAC Questionnaire
- Responses to questions from CAC meeting 1-22-10
Click here to view photos from this meeting
The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC)
The TAC will consist of staff from key organizations, including the City of Virginia Beach, HRT, Hampton Road Transportation Planning Organization, Virginia Department of Transportation, the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and other regulatory agencies. The TAC will:
- Provide reliability of technical methods, assumptions, and results throughout the study
- Ensure that the study complies with all requirements of local, state, and federal agencies
- Review technical reports and findings produced during the study and comment on the reasonableness of the approach and results