James City County boards approve shoreline nourishment, six Chesapeake Bay exception requests with conditions

James City County’s Wetlands Board and Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area Board met April 9 and approved a wetlands permit to replenish beach sand at 1812 Cypress Isle and six Chesapeake Bay exception requests, most with conditions requiring mitigation, sureties or time-bound compliance.

Staff said the wetlands permit, WJPA 25-0008, would replenish previously authorized beach fill and plant 663 Spartina plugs, and recommended approval with a $3,500 surety and a permit expiration of April 9, 2028. Emily Grojean, watershed planner, told the Wetlands Board that the original permit (VMRC permit No. 09-1044) had authorized revetments and 13,680 square feet of beach nourishment and that recent wave action had eroded the fill. “To stabilize the current shoreline,” Grojean said, the applicant seeks replenishment.

The Chesapeake Bay board then considered six exception requests at properties across James City County. Staff recommended approval of most applications as either minor or administrative impacts, with specific mitigation and surety amounts. The board voted unanimously on each case; several approvals included conditions that require the applicants to obtain all federal, state and local permits, submit mitigation plans, post surety, and record affidavits at the Williamsburg–James City County courthouse.

Votes at a glance

- Wetlands Board case WJPA-25-0008 (1812 Cypress Isle): Motion to grant wetlands permit for beach replenishment and 1,800 square feet of planting with 663 Spartina plugs; staff recommended a $3,500 surety; permit to expire 04/09/2028. Motion passed 5–0.

- CBPA-25-0022 (240 Jefferson’s Hundred — Lynch): After-the-fact exception for a house addition and to bring existing gravel landscaping into compliance; impacts 1,860 sq ft of new impervious in…