Public‑works staff ask council to approve 560 Oceana dredge‑material site as Whitehurst DMMA nears capacity

LJ Hanson, the City of Virginia Beach director of public works, briefed the City Council on May 13 that the city's primary dredge-material management area (DMMA) at Whitehurst is nearing capacity and that staff will seek a modification to a conditional use permit to allow a replacement DMMA at 560 Oceana Boulevard.

Hanson said the Whitehurst DMMA, a 31‑acre former borrow pit that began operations in 2012, was originally permitted with an expected useful life through about 2036 but is filling faster than estimated. "We had projected that it would last us until about 2036," Hanson said. "However ... our facility is filling up faster than we originally had projected." He reported roughly 60,000 cubic yards of storage remained at Whitehurst and that, at current rates, that capacity would be exhausted by the end of the calendar year.

Staff proposal and technical details

Public Works proposes modifying an existing conditional use permit (CUP) to permit placement of dredged silts, clays and sands in a 19.5‑acre site at 560 Oceana (a former sand/borrow pit, zoned I‑1). Hanson said the proposed Oceana DMMA would have an estimated capacity of about 350,000…