Chesterfield looks to avoid more sprawl

For decades, Chesterfield County's developer-driven growth has pushed farther and farther south and west, eating up the county's vast rural lands.

But infill development would be favored over unbridled sprawl in the county's proposed Comprehensive Plan. Chesterfield officials are promoting development of housing and retail within the already-developed state Route 288 corridor to revitalize tired shopping centers and build homes in established communities.

County Planning Director Kirk Turner said infill development focuses growth on places where county services — such as schools, fire, police, and sewer and water utilities — are already in place, filling in vacated stores and empty lots. He said bringing new homes into areas where there are already residences attracts new businesses.

Iron Bridge Road, Hull Street Road and Midlothian Turnpike would be the focal points for infill development that would feature a mix of retail and housing. Hull Street Road near Turner Road is an example of an area where retail uses, service businesses and high-density residential living could be combined, Turner said.

"We want to promote reinvestment back in these developed areas so they retain their vitality and retain their attractiveness as desirable places to live and shop on into the future," Turner said.

This isn't merely the vision of county planning staff, Turner said. Residents told county officials in a series of public meetings as the planning process began that they want the county to grow in the areas closer to Richmond. They suggested that older neighborhoods and commercial areas be revitalized and more-walkable communities offering some businesses be created. They also want to protect southern and western areas of the county from development.

If the proposed Comprehensive Plan is approved, the county Planning Department will create a detailed infill strategy that would include ways the county can promote and attract infill development, Turner said.

Some possibilities include expediting construction approvals for infill projects, training staff how to help business locate and start businesses, and financing infrastructure improvements.

Infill development goes hand-in-hand with the county's plan to set aside much of its undeveloped land as green space. More than 50,000 acres in southern and western reaches of the county would become a green zone, with a maximum density of one unit per 25 acres.

County resident Sherry Marcini, who lives off Courthouse Road, likes the idea of Chesterfield promoting infill. She said that when she drives around Chesterfield's half-filled shopping centers, she is disgusted by the waste.

"There are so many stores that are empty, and yet we're building more," said Marcini, sitting in front of a Starbucks on Hull Street Road. "Why are we expanding when we have so much availability right here? I want them to use what we already have. I don't want to see more buildings."

But her friend Kathy Misiano worries that any development within established parts of Chesterfield, such as her neighborhood off Fordham Road, might bring new residents. "The schools are so incredibly overcrowded as it is," she said.

Turner noted that if the county doesn't have to use precious resources to open new schools in the western reaches of the county, money could instead be directed to expanding and upgrading existing schools such as Manchester High School, which Misiano's son attends.

Not everyone will embrace the concept of infill development, said William P. Brown, vice chairman of the county's Planning Commission. "From the developers' point of view, it's just easier to go westward in Chesterfield than go through the rigmarole of satisfying already-existing neighbors," he said.

Brown wants to ensure that any infill development would be carefully managed. He said he wouldn't green-light a proposed but now-stalled development of 100 single-family residences off Jacobs Road unless the developer made significant road improvements. He was worried that new residents would use the already-busy Fordham Road. He said those kinds of stipulations on infill might make developers leery.

Craig Toalson, executive vice president of the Home Building Association of Richmond, said his group supports any development, including infill. He said members are more concerned about proposed limitations on development in the southern and western parts of the county.

"Their biggest concern is being told where they can build and where they can't," Toalson said.

Brown said infill development will not meet everyone's needs. "It's not going to be something that just overwhelms the market and eliminates the desire by some people to have their own home in a more traditional residential subdivision," Brown said. "There are going to be some people who say, 'I want my 3 acres in a country setting.' "

But one sticking point could be the more than 40,000 county lots that have been zoned residential. In some cases, developers already have filed subdivision plats, which means they need only staff approval to pursue zoning permits.

A key element to infill development will be the inclusion of mixed-use housing developments, such as the proposed rehabilitation of the Cloverleaf Mall property on Midlothian Turnpike. Plans call for the mall to be demolished and replaced with a project anchored by a Kroger grocery store and surrounding retail space. Crosland Stonebridge LLC also hopes to add more than 500 multifamily and single-family housing units.

Turner said infill development already is occurring without the Comprehensive Plan in place. Costco, for example, opened a store this month near Chesterfield Towne Center, in one of the county's older shopping corridors, rather than building farther west in a new development.

Lisa M. Guthrie, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters, said it makes sense for the county to fill in its core rather than expand westward, leaving behind miles of abandoned storefronts.

"We can't keep building out to Amelia," she said. "We've got to take care of what we've got."

kgreen@timesdispatch.com

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