Planning commission declines to recommend rezoning of Fort Eustis Boulevard parcels after residents object

The Newport News Planning Commission voted 2-6 on Feb. 5 against recommending approval of a rezoning request for parcels at 628 and 634 Fort Eustis Boulevard that would change the sites from R-4 single-family dwellings to R-7 medium-density multifamily with proffers.

City planner Saul Garcia told the commission that application CZ20240001 covers 6.29 acres and that the city’s One City One Future 2040 comprehensive plan assigns the site a medium-density residential designation that corresponds to 12–24 dwelling units per acre. Garcia said the comprehensive-plan density range would allow up to 150 units across the two parcels, and that the applicant had proffered a maximum of 120 units, organized into four buildings. "The applicant is proposing 120 dwelling units in keeping with the comprehensive plan land use designation," Garcia said.

The staff presentation described required lot, setback and open-space standards for the R-7 district and noted the Department of Engineering had accepted a traffic impact analysis prepared by McPherson Consulting. The applicant’s proffers, Garcia said, address site design, architecture, landscaping and traffic mitigation. Those traffic proffers include widening Fort Eustis Boulevard to 32 feet,…