The City of Virginia Beach adopted the CBPAO on January 1, 1991. This ordinance affects all property in Virginia Beach that drains into the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, approximately the northern one-third of the City.
In addition, the CBPAO is an effort to enhance the water quality by protecting environmentally-sensitive areas such as buffers adjacent to waterways, tidal shores, and wetlands, as well as highly erodible soils. These sensitive areas, called Resource Protection Areas (RPAs), are closest to the shorelines that have an intrinsic water quality value or are sensitive to the impact of development. All other lands in the watershed are called Resource Management Areas (RMAs). The RMA is intended to protect the integrity of the RPA and extends from the RPA boundary outward to the watershed boundary limit.
Further information regarding the CBPAO can be found in Appendix F of the Virginia Beach City Code.
Application Filing Deadline
The Deadline for filing
an application to be heard by the CBPA Board is prior to the 1st
of each month to be heard at the following month’s hearing if the
application is complete.
Application Filing Fees
The filing fees must be made payable to the City Treasurer.
*The costs of the public notice sign(s), legal advertisements in the Virginia-Pilot/Beacon, and the postage for mailing of requirement notices to property owners adjacent to the subject site is required in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Most recently notification fees were variable and based on the number of signs required, number of adjacent property owners and the amount of text in the legal notice and could not be assessed and paid until after the application fee was paid. Effective October 1, 2017, a flat fee for the CBPA public notice will be implemented and will be paid at the same time as the Board application fee.
CBPA Meeting Times & Location
In accordance with Virginia Code § 2.2-3708.2, Virginia Code § 15.2-1413 and the City's Continuity of Government Ordinance adopted on September 15, 2020, and Chapter 1289 of the 2020 Acts of Assembly as amended, the chair of the Virginia Beach Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area (CBPA) Board, until further notice has called for public hearings to be held BY ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION MEANS which will be held virtually with CBPA Board Members, Staff and citizens participating via video/audio conference. For a list of specific meeting times and virtual meeting links please refer to the 2021 Agendas & Minutes tab below.
For those citizens who desire to attend a CBPA Public Hearing virtually, registration is required. Registration is available under the virtual meeting link provided in the 2021 Agendas & Minutes tab. If you wish to make comments virtually during the public hearing, please follow the two-step process provided below:
1. Register for the CBPA Public Hearing through the WebEx event at the virtual public hearing link provided in the 2021 Agendas & Minutes tab.
2. Register with the Department of Planning & Community Development by calling (757) 385-4621 or via email at sheederi@vbgov.com prior to 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before the scheduled CBPA Board Public Hearing.
Citizens may also submit comments to the CBPA Board prior to the public hearing via email to pscully@vbgov.com or via United States Mail to PJ Scully, 2875 Sabre Street, Suite 500, Virginia Beach, VA 23452.
Staff will attempt to facilitate real-time citizen participation/comments at the public hearing for those citizens who registered, which includes speaker's name, physical address, email address, and phone number. For more information on this process, please contact Staff at (757) 385-4621.
Copies of the proposed plans, ordinances, amendments and/or resolutions are on file and may be examined by appointment in the Department of Planning & Community Development at 2875 Sabre St, Suite 500, Virginia Beach, VA 23452 or online at www.vbgov.com/cbpa. For information call (757) 385-4621. Staff Reports will be available on the webpage 5 days prior to the public hearing.
If you require a reasonable accommodation for this meeting due to a disability, please call the Department of Planning & Community Development at (757) 385-4621. If you are hearing impaired, you can contact Virginia Relay at 711 for TDD service.